If you lurk in the comments section of any fantasy baseball blog, you'll see a plethora of "who should I keep" type questions. Keeper leagues - no matter how many players you can protect - are eventually going to require you to choose between players on the fringe of your roster. Who you decide to keep and who you decide to set free is important, especially when your team is competing. You can always trade your fringe guys for draft picks or something like that, but then you're still choosing between who to put on your block and who to keep for yourself. I used to agonize over these decisions. But after a while I started to see some patterns in the good choices versus the bad ones, and now it's not such a big deal. I also started taking a lot of downers at that time, but I'm sure the two events are in no way related. If you want to ignore this and do your zag thing, go ahead. I'm just going to try to explain how I personally decide on keepers when there's a "tie" on my list and only one seat at the table.
Monthly Archives: January 2016
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Each new season brings change. And this one is no different. The leaves have changed color, and they will turn back again. The reliever corps are no different, in-season or off of it. The reliever flux train has already started, and it's just January. For some teams, it is a needed boost to a back-end unit that was piss pour last season. For most though, it is a change for the piece they were missing. While others, (cough, cough, the Yankees) just want to be greedy and make a super-unit of the three-headed variety. So today, as it being my first post in the new season, I will look at the guys who changed clubs and will most likely open the season as that teams new closer. It isn't very dissimilar to real life, you know that 'ole tale... for it's as old as the sea. Some young up-and-comer arrives and thinks they can do your job better, faster and for longer, but veterans that have been an established piece for years get the respect they deserve. That's what makes a 12 dollar salad a 12 dollar salad. So without all the soliloquy and gesturing, let's just get to the closers who have changed clubs for the better...
Top 20 2nd Basemen for 2016 Fantasy Baseball
January 22, 2016 | Fantasy Baseball Rankings | 207 Commentsby: Grey
To make sure I don't miss any player in my rankings, I go through every team's depth charts and I go through every eligible player who is projected for at least one at-bat by Steamer. After I looked through the players with at least one at-bat at 2nd base, I vomited in my mouth, then spit said vomit onto the ground and it spelled out, "Gnarly." My vomit is right. 2nd base is not a pretty position. Shortstops got younger in the last year and some guys are coming to make it even better. The top 20 1st basemen wasn't straight gorge, but there was plenty of talent there from veterans. The top 20 catchers are always ugly, but these top 20 2nd basemen are giving the catchers a run for their money. There's only three guys with legit 20-homer power and three guys with easy 20-steal speed. One that will hit .300 and zero that will get 100 RBIs. I don’t know what happened to the latest crop of 2nd basemen, but I have a theory. Twelve years ago, when these 2nd basemen were learning the position, their role model was Bret Boone. Boone used to frost his hair blonde, so all the kids learning 2nd base at that time, frosted their hair too. Then their friends beat the crap out of them, and that was the end of all future 2nd basemen. Here’s the position eligibility chart for 2016 fantasy baseball. All the 2016 fantasy baseball rankings are under that linkie-ma-whosie. As always, my projections and tiers are included for the low, low price of zero dollars. Anyway, here’s the top 20 2nd basemen for 2016 fantasy baseball:
Changing of the Guard: Too High Or Tulo On Carlos Correa
January 21, 2016 | 2023 Fantasy Baseball | 36 Commentsby: malamoney
Fact. Everybody loves January Grey. In December you get Santa Claus and in January you get Grey. Instead of the jolly fat man, you have the jolly mustache man. Well... guess who's making his January debut, has two thumbs and loves Blow Pops? That's right, "this guy"! I actually don't like Blow Pops, but I wasn't sure it would get past our editors had I said "blowjobs". I'm sure at least two of my ten readers from last year were wondering if I'd be back in 2016. Well, the suspense is now over. December Grey offered me the opportunity to continue sharing my immature and opinionated "points" of view and I accepted. I considered taking my talents to South Beach (espn.com), but then I remembered that they suck. So do many of the other sites and blogs out there "on the line". Razzball is where the cool kids hang out. Top 20 1st Basemen for 2016 Fantasy Baseball
January 21, 2016 | Fantasy Baseball Rankings | 227 Commentsby: Grey
After the top 20 catchers for 2016 fantasy baseball, it's all downhill. And by downhill, I mean it will pick up speed and start moving quickly. That really should be what "it's all downhill" means. I fixed you, English language, you're welcome. The top 10 for 2016 fantasy baseball and the top 20 for 2016 fantasy baseball were done the other day too. I think this is what they call getting you up to date. I don't mean that as in, "We have to shave his unibrow into two eyebrows, and maybe have him wear something other than a sports jersey, so he's 'up to date' a girl." This top 20 1st basemen for 2016 fantasy baseball goes to about 60. Every year it seems like it gets longer and more unwieldy like the story you tell people on why you didn't finish college. As always, for each player there’s my projections and where I see tiers starting and ending. There’s the position eligibility chart for 2016 fantasy baseball, and all the 2016 fantasy baseball rankings are under that linkie-ma-whosie. Anyway, here’s the top 20 1st basemen for 2016 fantasy baseball:
2016 Minor League Preview: New York Yankees
January 20, 2016 | Fantasy Baseball Prospects | 47 Commentsby: Mike
The Yankees have a strong system, and by holding on to their prospects last summer they're going to enter the 2016 season with a lot of potential energy. Gary Sanchez and Aaron Judge are poised to help the big club this year. So is Greg Bird, although he technically lost his eligibility. Because the Yankees are active in the international market, there's a solid crop of teenagers coming up in the low minors. It's not going to be anytime soon, but you can sort of see how this might converge into an even stronger group in the next year or two, especially when you factor in their crop of new draftees stateside. Of course not all of them will make it, but the more lottery tickets you own the better your chances, right?
Top 20 Catchers for 2016 Fantasy Baseball
January 20, 2016 | Fantasy Baseball Rankings | 162 Commentsby: Grey
The other day the top 10 for 2016 fantasy baseball was straight sexy like when a model on America's Next Top Model knows how to smize and booty tooch. Then, the next day, the top 20 for 2016 fantasy baseball was all the flavors of the Skittles rainbow melted into one giant Skittle that was a color that was not-black even though all colors together should've been. Today, the top 20 catchers for 2016 fantasy baseball is the direct opposite of those wondrous achievements. This post, here, is, um, catchers. Lowercase yay. Most of you know how I feel about catchers. If you draft a catcher any time before the first 100 picks, you don’t know how I feel about catchers. Let me freshen up your cocktail with a splash of insight. I don’t draft top catchers in one catcher leagues. I Reggie Roby them. Last year, Posey was the top ranked catcher at the end of year. Yet, he was only the 8th best 1st baseman, about as valuable as Albert Pujols, who hit only .244. The best catcher can’t spray aerosol deodorant on the top guy for another position. The top five catchers last year were Bust Posey, Bri McCann, Eve Gattis, Russ Martin and Sal Perez. Only one guy was drafted in the top 100. No one should draft a top catcher because there are no top catchers. They’re all hot garbage with a side order of gefilte fish, or kapelka as Q-Tip calls it. Catchers are unreliable to stay healthy; the job is grueling and takes its toll on offensive stats. There’s not much difference between, say, the tenth best catcher and nothingness. Last year, Welington Castillo was the tenth best catcher. He was on waivers for at least half the season. He was the tenth best catcher with a line of 42/19/57/.237. Yo, Q, forget kapelka, Welington Castillo makes me vomit. Also, with this crop of catchers — they’re actually deep in mediocrity. You can draft the fifth best catcher or the 12th best and they’re tomato-tomato said with a different emphasis. Because I ignore the top catchers doesn’t mean I’m starting the top 20 catcher list at number twenty-one; some of you might want to know the top catchers. You can lead a horse to water, but you can’t make them draft d’Arnaud. In two catcher leagues, catchers are a little more valuable, but I’d still prefer to avoid them. You can see other top 20 lists for 2016 fantasy baseball under 2016 fantasy baseball rankings. Listed along with these catchers are my 2016 projections for each player and where the tiers begin and end. Anyway, here’s the top 20 catchers for 2016 fantasy baseball:
Interesting Stats and Trends – 2016 Hitter Edition
January 19, 2016 | 2023 Fantasy Baseball | 64 Commentsby: Big Magoo
I'm a stat junkie. Way back in the pre-internet days when I was just a little Magoo, I would run outside first thing in the morning to grab the daily paper so I could immediately check out the previous night's box scores. There's Tony Gwynn leading the league in batting average yet again. A slam and legs (before I even knew what that was) by that Bonds fellow. The Big Unit piled up another dozen Ks. Another high scoring game in Colorado. What's the deal with that place anyway?
This fascination with statistics has led to the fantasy baseball obsession that I'm burdened with today. Only now, with all of the advanced statistics and metrics that are available at the click of a button, the obsession is worse than ever. Fortunately for you, all of the man hours that I've wasted poring over stats this offseason has allowed me to discover some interesting nuggets of information that I think are fantasy-relevant for the upcoming season, and I'd like to share some of them with you today. At least, I find them to be interesting and potentially useful for fantasy purposes, and I hope that you will too.
From here on out, I'll be listing various statistics with little to no analysis so that you can be the judge of how relevant each statistic and/or trend is in regards to the 2016 season. This article focuses on hitters only, and the stats that will be highlighted range from the basic (home runs, stolen bases, batting average, counting stats) to the slightly more advanced (plate discipline, batted ball profile).
And now, without further ado, here are some interesting stats and trends to consider for the 2016 fantasy baseball season:
Top 20 for 2016 Fantasy Baseball
January 19, 2016 | Fantasy Baseball Rankings | 238 Commentsby: Grey
This is one of the most difficult posts to write all year. Maybe I shouldn't try to write it with my feet. Eff it, you know what? No guts, no glory. No toes, no post either, naw mean? There’s just so many different ways the top 20 for 2016 fantasy baseball could go. Maybe next year I’ll write a top 10 with a ten way tie for the tenth ranked guy. Last year, I had Nolan Arenado higher than anyone and Ian Desmond. You win some, you lose some. I also had Donaldson, Bryce, Hanley and Bautista in the top twenty. Again, win, win, lose and...DRAW! Two words...I'm drawing what appears to be a pirate only he's in front of a mic stand... It's Fetty Wap! I wouldn’t draft a starter in the top twenty, so I rank them accordingly. If you want to bemoan my ranking of Kershaw or any pitcher, then bemoan away. Just remember, a bemoaner sounds a bit to me like "U be a boner." All the positional rankings will live under the 2016 fantasy baseball rankings. Anyway, here’s the top 20 for 2016 fantasy baseball:
Podcast: “We Can’t Do Han Solo Twerking Jabba The Hutt’s Niece”
January 18, 2016 | All Podcasts | 12 Commentsby: JB Gilpin
2016 is here! 2016 is here! Grey and I hop, skipped, and jumped all the way into the Razzball Podcast Studio for our first Podcast of the 2016 season. Hail to the 40-win Brewers! Oh wait, I promised Grey I wouldn't derail everything for Brewers talk, but I did it on the Pod anyway! On today's show, we recap the biggest free agent and trade moves amongst hitters and their projected draft spots in upcoming fantasy drafts. Grey loves himself some [player]Jason Heyward[/player]! We also talk 3B tiers and where [player]Todd Frazier[/player] fits in, and a mutual love for a very late-round sleeper. That's what we call a tease! Here's our first edition of the Razzball Baseball Podcast for 2016:
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Top 10 for 2016 Fantasy Baseball
January 18, 2016 | Fantasy Baseball Rankings | 232 Commentsby: Grey
I sure wish Grey would do his 2016 fantasy baseball rankings. Wait, I am Grey and this is those rankings. Holy crapballs, this is the greatest day ever! Now, only 400,000 words more until I finish my top 400 and I’ll be done. Worst day ever! Damn, that excitement was fleeting. Well, not for you because you don’t have to write all the rankings. You lucky son of a gun! I wish I were you… *wavy lines* Hey, why am I balding and wearing sweatpants? *wavy lines* Hmm, maybe we’re okay with who we are. Now before we get into the top 10 for 2016 fantasy baseball (though I imagine every single one of you has skipped this intro paragraph), I’m gonna lay some ground rules. First, keep your hands and legs inside the trolley. Second, send me all your money. Damn, tried to trick you! Okay, here’s where you follow us on Twitter. Here’s where you follow us on Facebook. Here’s our fantasy baseball player rater. Here’s our fantasy baseball team name generator. Here is all of our 2016 fantasy baseball rankings. Here’s the position eligibility chart for 2016 fantasy baseball. And here is a picture of my son. What a punim! You may not get all of those links in such a handy, easy-to-use format ever again this year, so make proper note. (Unless you just go to the top menu on this page that says "Rankings" and click it, but semantics, my over-the-internet friend, semantics.) Now my expositional half insists I breakdown some generalizations about these 2016 fantasy baseball rankings. The 2016 fantasy baseball rankings will be an ever-evolving mass like the blob. This fantasy baseball top 10 for 2016 list is as of right now and could potentially change with a big injury or Mike Trout quitting baseball because he’s bored with being the best and wants to play competitive Mahjong. So while it is the 2016 fantasy baseball gospel, take it with a tablet of salt. Tomorrow we will cover the rest of the top twenty for 2016 fantasy baseball, then we will go around the horn with a top 20 list for every position. Then for pitchers and outfielders, I’ll turn the dial to 100. Listed with each player are my 2016 projections. Did I consult with anyone else who does projections? It would be ignorant not to, but, in the end, these are my projections. Players need 10 games at a position to get included in the positional rankings. Finally, as with each list in the 2016 fantasy baseball rankings, I will be mentioning where I see tiers start and stop. I look at tiers like this, if Bryce Harper and Paul Goldschmidt are in the same tier, it doesn’t matter if one guy is ranked 2nd and one guy is ranked 3rd, they’re both very close. It comes down to personal preference. I would prefer the guy at number two better than the guy at three, but you do you, I’ll do me and let’s hope we don’t go blind. Anyway, here’s the top 10 for 2016 fantasy baseball:
2016 Minor League Preview: Houston Astros
January 17, 2016 | Fantasy Baseball Prospects | 57 Commentsby: Mike
What a wild year for the Astros. They made the playoffs, called up their star shortstop Carlos Correa, and made some big trades that have changed the look of this farm heading into 2016. It's still very strong and full of great fantasy options, but just look at the list of players who left this system - Brett Phillips, Mark Appel, Vincent Velasquez, Domingo Santana, Rio Ruiz, Mike Foltynewicz, Nick Tropeano. Not to mention losing Delino DeShields in the rule five draft and the quality graduations. That kind of hit would cripple most systems, and yet here we are with still one of the best farms in the game right now. Last year's draft netted the Astros two top bats in Alex Bregman and Kyle Tucker, and they saw a big breakout in A.J. Reed, who could be in line to play first base for Houston early in the 2016 season. It's a good time to be an Astros fan.
