Another week is in the books in the Razzball Elite League, as we’re right at the halfway point through the first REL season. Hard to believe! Two teams are fighting for World Series appearances to become the fabled inaugural REL champ, and after ceding the top spot last week, The Orange Birds reclaimed their throne over the Blue Jays in an epic battle of the birds in the AL. The Aviary League! Bada bing. I have dad jokes! In the NL, the Nationals continue to dominate, with the San Fran Giants still clipping at the Cubs heels [paws] jostling for second place. Here’s how week 13 went down in the 2016 REL League, plus a look-in at the REL 2 League with how it’s shaping up:
| NATIONAL LEAGUE | ||
|---|---|---|
| REL Dynasty – NL | ||
| Nationals | 139 | Waiver Adds and Prospect Callups Past Week: |
| FAAB Remaining: | $100 | Adam Frazier Pit – 2B $0, Jim Henderson NYM – RP $0,Lucas Giolito Was – SP (called up) |
| Cubs | 115.5 | Waiver Adds and Prospect Callups Past Week: |
| FAAB Remaining: | $96 | Dalier Hinojosa Phi – RP $0, Blaine Boyer Mil – RP $0 |
| San Fran Giants | 111 | Waiver Adds and Prospect Callups Past Week: |
| FAAB Remaining: | $81 | Conor Gillaspie SF – 3B $0 |
| J.T. Marlin | 94.5 | Waiver Adds and Prospect Callups Past Week: |
| FAAB Remaining: | $100 | n/a |
| Suplex City Cards | 94 | Waiver Adds and Prospect Callups Past Week: |
| FAAB Remaining: | $86 | n/a |
| Pirates | 91.5 | Waiver Adds and Prospect Callups Past Week: |
| FAAB Remaining: | $66 | Chad Kuhl Pit – SP (called up) |
| Mookie Mets | 85 | Waiver Adds and Prospect Callups Past Week: |
| FAAB Remaining: | $95 | Kelly Johnson NYM – 1B,2B,3B,OF $0 |
| Knoche’s Rockies | 84.5 | Waiver Adds and Prospect Callups Past Week: |
| FAAB Remaining: | $64 | Daniel Descalso Col – 2B,SS $1, Cristhian Adames Col – 2B,SS $0 |
| Dodgers | 75 | Waiver Adds and Prospect Callups Past Week: |
| FAAB Remaining: | $100 | n/a |
| Diamondbacks | 74.5 | Waiver Adds and Prospect Callups Past Week: |
| FAAB Remaining: | $75 | n/a |
| Philadelphia | 58 | Waiver Adds and Prospect Callups Past Week: |
| FAAB Remaining: | $47 | Ramiro Peña SF – 2B,SS $0, Andrés Blanco Phi – 1B,2B,3B,SS $0 |
| Cincinnati Reds | 53.5 | Waiver Adds and Prospect Callups Past Week: |
| FAAB Remaining: | $5 | Keyvius Sampson Cin – SP,RP $0 |
| Brewers | 48.5 | Waiver Adds and Prospect Callups Past Week: |
| FAAB Remaining: | $54 | Sean Nolin Mil – SP $0, Yhónathan Barrios Mil – RP $0, Peter Bourjos Phi – OF $1, Michael Reed Mil – OF $0, Edubray Ramos Phi – RP $2 |
| Well, nothing too dramatic is new to report, as we continue to tank and keep the team prepared for fielding trade offers. I added more Milwaukee Scrubs (should be the new team name) to have depth in order to move the few big names I have left if the right offers come along. Braunie had a big game last night! Someone I offered him to shoulda taken it!
Also last night, Junior Guerra was BALLIN’! 8 shutout innings with 7 Ks and only 4 baserunners. Two were in the first inning at that! Mannnn, the Dodgers are cold right now. He’s another guy I’ve offered in trades, but everyone being uninterested is only raising his price as he looks better and better. Might just hold both these guys after all. I actually spent a little money on FAAB, which probably deserves a slap in the face for being impatient with my $. I only spent $3 though, so there’s that… This Edubray Ramos dude had some absurd numbers in AA/AAA with 41 K:4 BB and a 0.38 ERA in 23.2 AAA innings. At only 23, I think he could be an impact reliever for a good while; I was happy no nab him. Already has 2 holds and has only been in the Majors a week. Also snagged Peter Bourjos, mainly because I streamed him while hot in standard mixed-leagues, so felt he should be owned. Got rewarded with a homer last night! Although stats are pretty meaningless to me right now… He’s obviously on the block if anyone wants to give me their last farm guy haha… To the Minors, and oh man, third straight week with a Chris Paddack update! He pitched his THIRD STRAIGHT hitless outing, going 5 innings in all of them, and the last 2 have been perfect. Oh, and a 28:1 K:BB in those last 15 innings. ABSURDITY! He now has a 48:2 K:BB in 28.1 innings in A ball. This should be a really fun second half for my guys. I’m likely going to see Orlando Arcia, Alex Reyes, and Josh Hader all called up. Maybe Tyler Beede gets a cup of coffee at the end of the year. And best of all, the Brewers signed #5 overall pick Corey Ray, who seems like he’s already a consummate professional and sending him straight to A ball. Another year or two and this could all start coming together! |
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| Jay the Wrongest | 38.5 | Waiver Adds and Prospect Callups Past Week: |
| FAAB Remaining: | $100 | n/a |
| Braves | 37 | Waiver Adds and Prospect Callups Past Week: |
| FAAB Remaining: | $84 | n/a |
| AMERICAN LEAGUE | ||
|---|---|---|
| REL Dynasty – AL | ||
| Orange Birds | 123.5 | Waiver Adds and Prospect Callups Past Week: |
| FAAB Remaining: | $79 | Junior Lake Tor – OF $0 |
| Glad I finally got around to writing one of these this week. My team is once again at the top of the standings, but by tomorrow that will probably change as the Blue Jays and I have been battling for first over the past two weeks. I think it helps that I own some of their bats (Saunders, Carrera, Goins, and now Lake) so when the team goes off I get a portion of the stats.
Despite numerous negotiations with multiple teams, I have yet to make a trade (though I am leading the league in WW moves) and I am still not sure if that is a good or bad thing. I am still open to trading Harvey, but if I wouldn’t trade him for Eduardo Nunez (which almost happened), I’m not sure what I should trade him for. My only regret so far this year has been dropping Nunez before he starting going off. I definitely would not be last in steals had I not done that. My team is playing well overall despite my starters regressing a bit as the real Orioles continue to dominate in the AL East. I am still in the market for a starting pitcher, as I can no longer trust Ricky Nolasco or Kendall Graveman, so let me know if you are looking to sell any. Ideally I am also looking for steals, but I do not think I am looking to pay much for them which is probably part of the reason I have not made a trade. Although it has been half a season, I am still trying to figure out how to properly value players in this league. On a interesting note, I believe three weeks ago, I won a $9 FAAB bid on Chris Taylor who ended up playing one game for my team before being benched in real life. Before I could drop him, he was traded by the Mariners to the Dodgers for Zach Lee and now Zach Lee is on my roster and hopefully will get some starts for the Mariners this year. Definitely a cool aspect of this league. |
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| Blue Jays | 120.5 | Waiver Adds and Prospect Callups Past Week: |
| FAAB Remaining: | $92 | Abraham Almonte Cle – OF $0 |
| The Tribe | 110 | Waiver Adds and Prospect Callups Past Week: |
| FAAB Remaining: | $79 | n/a |
| The real life Tribe is unstoppable right now! Unfortunately I’ve settled into 3rd place 10 point behind the top teams and 9 points ahead of the 4th place team. Our starting pitching has been everything we had wanted and is the true strength of our team. We have made a few moves/trades trying to bolster our bullpen and we are slowly crawling up the standings where we were once in last place S/H. I believe this is our best chance of catching the teams above us. We shall see.
An interesting time is about to be upon our league and I’m nervous how this will go. Trading season is practically here for the big league clubs and my parent team and a few of my key players are being discussed. According to “sources” the Indians are looking to add a bat. Players like Braun and Kemp are being brought up in the local papers. This could be helpful but I have traded a few prospects so it could be tricky as well. If I have to share the return of a trade because a prospect I traded get’s moved in a deal it could be more difficult. Also being reported by “sources” is the Cubs interest in my newly acquired closer Chapman. I knew this risk when I traded for him but I need the saves. The next month will go a long way in determining my chances to win this year. On the block – needs HR, BA, RBI, S/H also interest in guys in the low minor leagues |
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| Astros | 101.5 | Waiver Adds and Prospect Callups Past Week: |
| FAAB Remaining: | $55 | A.J. Reed Hou – 1B (called up) |
| We be still climbin’ dem standings! Where to focus on today… How about the changing of the Astros lineup. To start the year they went with Altuve, Springer, Correa, Rasmus. The top 3 were doing fine but the bottom of the order was not and the Stros were losing regularly. The 1st thing they did was flip Altuve and Springer. Things were going well, until Rasmus’ April was so far in the rear view mirror that another change was needed. Now adays the lineup is Springer, Marwin(or Valbuena who’s been red hot), Altuve, Correa. Springer’s bat has cooled lately but Altuve has been a man possed hitting 3rd, Correa has 17 RBI over the last 2 weeks, and they’ve won 10 of their last 11 games. It isn’t just those guys though. Gattis is hitting again and even Gomez is hitting over .300 in the past 2 weeks. The bottom of my roster is Castro, but I only play him when I have to, Marisnick who doesn’t get nearly enough playing time, Jefry Marte who’s my only backup 3B but has at least been playing everyday, and of course my newest addition, AJ Reed.
So Reed hasn’t come out on fire. He’s no Trevor Story! No he’s going to be much better… With MILB numbers mirroring the likes of Anthony Rizzo I figured I should check and see how he did when he was called up in 2011. 1st month in the majors he hit .175, 2nd month .098, 3rd .133. So obviously Rizzo was a complete and utter failure as a hitter and the Padres were right in trading him for Cashner. The sarcasm didn’t come off as thick there as I wanted. Maybe that isn’t the best comp. Goldschmidt in the same 2011 was called up late in the year and hit .250 with 53 Ks in 48 games. What a waste of a roster spot. Why wasn’t he traded for an injury prone SP? I guess what I’m trying to say is that rookies take patience, even the best ones. They can’t all be Trout, oh wait he only hit .220 in his 2011 rookie year. Maybe they can all be that good eventually. My Astros pitching has improved slightly but they are all still well below preseason expectations. So why am I climbing in Wins, ERA, and WHIP, while leading in Ks? 1. Cause Danny Duffy was by far my best draft day buy at $27. 2. Dapper Dan Mengden is straight dominating and well worth the $16 I FAABd him for. 93-94 MPH 4-seamer, 87-89 MPH cutter/slider or whatever it is, 82-83 MPH changeup, and a slow 72 MPH curve. A solid aresenal for sure and it comes from a funky delivery, but the best part is that he throws all 4 pitches for strikes and at 4 different speeds. I’m struggling to find another pitcher to compare him too and I simply can’t come up with anyone. He has what I covet the most in fantasy sports: uniqueness. |
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| Red Sox | 99 | Waiver Adds and Prospect Callups Past Week: |
| FAAB Remaining: | $29 | Geovany Soto LAA – C $2, Wade LeBlanc Sea – SP $9, Scott Feldman Hou – SP,RP $5 |
| Tigers | 97 | Waiver Adds and Prospect Callups Past Week: |
| FAAB Remaining: | $52 | Bryce Brentz Bos – OF $12, Caleb Joseph Bal – C $3, Heath Hembree Bos – RP $1 |
| Mariners | 88.5 | Waiver Adds and Prospect Callups Past Week: |
| FAAB Remaining: | $25 | n/a |
| White Sox | 79 | Waiver Adds and Prospect Callups Past Week: |
| FAAB Remaining: | $84 | n/a |
| Yankees | 73 | Waiver Adds and Prospect Callups Past Week: |
| FAAB Remaining: | $59 | Jacob Lindgren NYY – RP $0, Chad Green NYY – RP $0, Luis Cessa NYY – RP $0 |
| Power Rangers | 71.5 | Waiver Adds and Prospect Callups Past Week: |
| FAAB Remaining: | $70 | Justin Smoak Tor – 1B $3, Matt Davidson CWS – 3B $1 |
| Rays | 63.5 | Waiver Adds and Prospect Callups Past Week: |
| FAAB Remaining: | $4 | Nick Franklin TB – 1B,2B,SS $0 |
| Royals | 63.5 | Waiver Adds and Prospect Callups Past Week: |
| FAAB Remaining: | $66 | Pat Light Bos – RP $1 |
| Despite being buried too deep in the standings to make any noise this year, I’m encouraged by how the young bats on my Royals team are starting to come together. Cheslor Cuthbert, acquired in a recent trade, has started to find his power stroke and if you’ve been wondering “Where’s Oswaldo?”, Arcia landed this past week with the Rays and is already making an impact. Was hoping he would be signed by the Sawx, but at least he’s in the AL East now and I’ll happily accept that outcome.
Quite predictably, with something to prove now, Oswaldo immediately started hitting and hitting with power. It was reported that the Twins traded Arcia to the Rays for “Cash Considerations”, said to be…$45K?? Wow Twins, nice financial haul!! With that massive war chest now, guess the Twins can head on over to the Free Agent market and just buy another left-handed 25 year-old power hitter with 35 homer upside. While I’m pleased with the bats I’ve acquired, I’m starting to think my 3-Man starting rotation of Ventura, Nova, and Volquez, as intimidating as it seems, may not be quite enough to pitch me to a championship. Hoping for help from the recent draft, I was thrilled when I heard the potential number one overall draft prospect, Pitcher A.J. Puk, had slipped all the way to the Royals in the 2nd round! Turns out I was wrong though and had just gotten the names all mixed up (kind of like when I thought Slim was trying to trade me Moran, but it was actually Morin). In fact the Royals didn’t draft A.J. Puk after all, but some other pitcher dude named A.J. Puckett. WHAT THE PHUCKETT??? Hopefully it all works out for the Royals (recent history says it won’t), but I’m still looking to add young pitching prospects and an outfield prospect or two. Willing to move pieces like Kendrys Morales, Flash Gordon and Wade Davis to make it happen. |
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| Halos | 52.5 | Waiver Adds and Prospect Callups Past Week: |
| FAAB Remaining: | $51 | n/a |
| Athletics | 42.5 | Waiver Adds and Prospect Callups Past Week: |
| FAAB Remaining: | $83 | n/a |
| Minnesota Twins | 14.5 | Waiver Adds and Prospect Callups Past Week: |
| FAAB Remaining: | $70 | n/a |
REL 2 – NATIONAL LEAGUE
REL 2 – AMERICAN LEAGUE
Rangers – 11 points out of first place! I’m coming for you Seattle. Yu Darvish went back on the DL which was a bummer. I’m really hoping the next time he comes back it’s for good. I was able to snag Lincecum for $10. Even though his last start was pretty bad, I’m still feeling like he’s a steal for that price. It’s nice to have Robinson Chirinos back, he’s already hit three home runs for me since his return. It was a lot of fun to see Profar getting the everyday start at 2b while Roogie was out, but now he is blocked and unable to start more than a few games a week which is a bummer. With Yu being uncertain and both Derek and Colby to the DL, I have to wonder if the Rangers will be trading him for starting pitching (in real life that is). All in all, I like where I sit. There is still plenty of time for me to make a push at dethroning Seattle. In the words of Ron Washington “Even a blind squirrel find a nut every once and awhile”.
Angels – Wish the Angels had even the slightest bit of news to report on…but the basement is dark and I can’t see.
