Welcome back for another star-studded event! Assuming you hack into your favorite online dictionary and replace the definition of ‘star’ with “guy who lives in his mom’s basement and screams when someone finishes his Doritos,” and next to the definition of ‘stud’ you put a picture of yourself. The Razzballies are the only award show where it’s totally fine to show up in sweatpants, and for your fingers to be orange from Cheetos. We don’t judge. We will occasionally mock. Mock-judge, tomato-tomahto. Get over it! I hope you enjoyed the clip show where I inserted myself into various baseball clips from this year. How about the clip where I was Joe Maddon intentionally walking Bryce Harper? Hee-lar-e-US! So, before I’m talking to no one but a room full of seat-fillers, here’s the year-end awards for the best and worst of fantasy baseball:
Fantasy AL Most Valuable Player – Before we announce our first winner, I just want to introduce the accountants from Lobstein, Kipnis and Yunel. Without them, I’d be counting the votes all on my own and I have a hard enough time counting to eleven without dropping trou. Your AL MVP, and a guy I like to personally thank for helping my offense in a few leagues, the one, the only…Sorry, having a hard time opening this envelope….Mookie Betts! Whatever you call him — Mookie Ballgame, the Greatest Mookie Who Ever Lived With Apologies To Mookie Wilson and Mookie Blaylock, the Hamilton Musical In Baseball Form, the Unfrozen Ted Williams, or simply, Mookie Best — there was no one more valuable in the American League this year. We have no time for speeches, but Mookie would like to thank his stacked lineup.
Fantasy NL Most Valuable Player – The NL Fantasy MVP, like the AL one, doesn’t take into account team wins and “intangibles.” Nope, here as Razzball HQ, we look at tangibles! And those aren’t fungible! This is commonsensible. Uh-oh, I’m stick in an ‘ible loop, what can I do? Listen to the Bible on Audible? There’s only one man that can help, he goes by the name of Vie-R. That’s right! The NL MVP is a guy whose last name you can’t even pronounce…Jonathan Villar! This might be the first time in eight years of these awards a waiver wire pick is the MVP of a league. Too bad I didn’t tell you to draft him. Oh, wait, I did. About ten times, including my shortstop sleeper post that has Segura, Villar, Ketel, Semien, Tim Anderson, Story and Didi. Five out of seven ain’t bad, as a ‘roided-out Meatloaf would sing.
Fantasy AL Cy Young – The NL Cy Young is a slam dunk. The AL Cy Young is a dam slunk, as in it’s obvious but still makes no sense except in backwards world. Last year, it was Dallas Keuchel that won the fantasy Cy Young, and regular one, and this year’s winner will have a lot in common with him. Mostly because I won’t want (stutterer!) to be within five rounds of drafting him when he’s taken next year, but my flummoxing is best left to my recap of all the top 40 starters in the next week or so and the offseason. Today, we celebrate the unlikely Fantasy AL Cy Young, Rick Porcello! I’d give him a chance to say something but I used all his time by talking about how much I don’t like him.
Fantasy NL Cy Young – This was the slam dunk; Max Scherzer walked away with the award like he walks away from comments like, “What the hell is up with your eyes?” Too bad the Tigers didn’t keep Scherzer and Porcello to go with Fantasy AL Cy Young runner-up, Verlander. They might not have started Anibal Sanchez for 26 games.
Fantasy AL Least Valuable Player – Justin Upton looked like he was walking away with this award for the first five months, but, like Justin Upton is wont to do, he screwed this up too. I’d personally love to give the award to Sonny Gray, but he wasn’t drafted high enough to be truly unvaluable (Made Up Word of the Day!). Miguel Sano was shizzy on the stizzy, if you feelzie me, but, again, I told you to avoid him, and these are my awards. It’s not Carlos Gomez, because I hated him in the preseason and he was ranked after the winner, and still my awards. The player who won (lost?) was the guy in the background of the strip club yelling, “Yo, you gotta see this girl’s knockers!” as you tell your wife that you’re working late. The one, the only…Jose Bautista. He was ranked in the top 30 on most preseason lists and now he’s in the top 20s of the 200s on the Player Rater. I’d give Bautista his award but I can’t find him, oh, there he is, batting leadoff.
Fantasy NL Least Valuable Player – Bryce Harper wins in a landslide, a landslide caused by his owners stomping their feet and throwing hissy fits at his hitting. Harper made baseball fun again, for everyone that had a draft pick later than three overall and didn’t draft Harper. There’s hope next year though, since Ian Desmond won last year’s NL Least Valuable Player and the year before was Carlos Gonzalez. In other words, Shelby Miller wishes he could’ve won this award; would be his first positive in six months.
Fantasy POS – Because you have to get an award, and there’s none more fitting, Justin Upton, you are this year’s Fantasy POS. You made it impossible for people to carry you for the first four months, then made those same people regret dropping you in your final two months. We will be shipping an x-ray of Pablo Sandoval’s stomach to Upton, because a few years back Sandoval ate this award.
Fantasy Hitter You Most Likely Dropped and Picked Up A Dozen Times – “Michael Saunders is not only hot, but he’s in the middle of the Jays’ lineup!…Saunders is cold but still in the middle of the Jays’ lineup…Is Saunders now in a platoon?…Saunders is hot again, but hitting eighth…Saunders is being moved up…And day-to-day with his knee…Saunders is healthy but not hitting…Healthy and hitting…Healthy and out of the lineup…In the lineup, healthy, not healthy, out of the lineup, and Saunders is giving me a nervous breakdown…HELP!” Runners-up: Kevin Kiermaier and Leonys Martin.
Player You Had Forever and Most Likely Should’ve Dropped – “I’m really loving Nomar Mazara!” Three months later, “Is Mazara even still playing? Why do I own this guy? Hello? Hello? Damn, I shouldn’t ask these questions in a cave.”
Player On The Top Of Your Waivers That You Just Couldn’t Bring Yourself to Pick Up – “There’s no way Khris Davis continues to hit home runs at the rate of, well, Chris Davis.”
Pitcher You Streamed So Much You Ended Up Owning Him – “Okay, I’m going to give a Whirlybird Streamer Streamstein to Tanner Roark, but if he’s bad, I’m losing him so fast it’s gonna hurt him.” And that’s the story of how you ended owning Tanner Roark for three months. Close runner-up: Danny Duffy.
Player You Were Waiting for the Other Shoe to Drop From, But Thankfully It Never Did – Jonathan Villar’s improbable season was improbably terrific, though you probably knew that.
Player You Were Waiting for the Other Shoe to Drop From and It Ended Up Kicking You in the Groin – For the better part of three months, you loved everything about Drew Pomeranz, then he got dragged by the Regression Fairies, and when I say dragged, I mean 6-foot men in four-inch pumps.
Player You Were Waiting for the Other Shoe to Drop From and When It Did You Were Okay With It – Mark Trumbo. Sure, he didn’t hit .350 after May, but he did continue to hit bombs and leaving you with a Trumboner.
Player You Traded Away That You Most Regretted – “As long as Brian Dozier doesn’t hit 28 homers in the 2nd half, I’m fine trading him for a closer.” *cut to three months later* “Oh, eff me.”
Player You Traded For That You Most Regretted – Bryce Harper can’t be this bad…Wow, no, he can be worse. Runner-up: mi novio, Giancarlo.
Top SAGNOF – Jonathan Villar/Jeanmar Gomez. Remember, the essence of SAGNOF is cheap saves and steals. No one came close to Gomez for cheap saves and Villar is going to need to talk to Meryl Streep about building extra award shelves.
Remember That Feeling You Had When You Walked In On Your Parents Having Sex, This Pitcher Gave You That Feeling Every Fifth Day – Shelby Miller. May he accidentally have a tub of mayonnaise dropped on him, then get caught in an elevator with Sandoval and Billy Butler.
Lmfao. Outstanding work.
@Lucky Dog Hot Sauce: Thanks, man! How’d you do this year?
@Grey: posted in your last topic – won my $ league for the 2nd time in 12 years, 1st time in a decade. Woot! Despite many sticking a fork in them, both Beltre & Cano(t hit singles) successfully unforked themselves, and my youth movement OF of Betts/Springer/Bradley Jr/Yelich was fantastic. Lost Story, Strassburg, Matz & GCole, but with ASanchez, Lester, Hendricks and a slew of pickups I managed to win it all.
If it were 6×6 I woulda had it wrapped up a month ago. :)
@Lucky Dog Hot Sauce: I meant if it were straight roto. It was 6×6, but H2H. Man I miss old school roto – 3/4 of the league would quit though. Damn fantasy footballers & their short attention spans. Funny how many in my league complain about streaming pitching – I keep saying, “lets go back to straight roto so you get punished for a bad pickup then!” – no takers. Sigh.
Nice! Congrats!
Grey!
Great award show! Nothing left out, str8 dope!
Was proud owner of Porcello and he was influential in winning the Ws category in my RCL. Lord knows the Giants couldn’t score 1/2 of what Porcello received in terms of run support for Bum or the same from LAA for Shoemaker. Both Shoemaker and MadBum were tough to own because of their lack of Win appeal.
Slowly recovering from the side-effects of the injection I got yesterday! It was a doozy. Two more to go – today and tomorrow, lower case yay. Then back to the grind on Thursday but at 80/20 on retirement from this organization to find something closer to home.
Cheers,
Ante
@Ante GALIC: Thanks! You really need to find something closer, you’re too far from your family and you’re in Africa alone
@Grey: Grey!
The 20 part! There’s a new colleague who just started. He is probably the only staff member from the Indian subcontinent in the mission and indeed in all of Chad. He’s pretty cool, I know I didn’t sign up because of him but being the only white dude in the office among 39 other colleagues is just as not easy for him as it is for me.
I’m going to apply for a assingment length reduction from the standard 24 months to 18 months. Then I only have to serve half of that time (9 months) before I can start applying for better posts closer to home. So Feb 1, I can start applying and if nothing comes my way I’m done around November 1. That’s the best that I could do if I wasn’t going to just flat out resign with nothing in the bag and it’s not really to my advantage.
Problem is I’d have to give 3 months’ notice according to the contract I signed or forfeit a lot of money before actually leaving. I’d be subject to a lot of ridicule by colleagues, especially pan-African and mostly sub-Saharan colleagues. Would not look forward to that noise!
Cheers,
Ante
Yeah, that’s tough, I can understand why you wouldn’t want to resign…That’s a lot to lose… You just have to ride it out until you can get a new job…
That was one heck of a SS sleepers list you made, you didn’t even mention Semen so it’s 5/7 actually. Although every SS is good these days so I guess haters would say, “Grey you suck how can you get two wrong you destroyed my fantasy team”.
Wow that’s embarassing, was Porcello really the AL CY Young?? Shows always look NL for pitching, now more than ever.
Not sure Harpers 24/21 is that terrible though, shouldn’t the award go to Dread Pirate?
Funny stuff and agree with the rest! Made 3rd place in my tough 16 team H2H league this year (lost to the winner), my best result there so thanks for that Grey (or is the Grey love-in post to come?)!
@Swfcdan: Porcello barely edged out Verlander on the Player Rater… Harper was pretty miserable for the entire 2nd half…. Thanks! Next year we’ll get you first!
@Grey: And everyone and their mom thought Verlander was toast! What the hell happened to pitching in the AL this year? A Sanchez could’ve been the CY Young, sounds utterly crazy but at least we expected more from him than Porcelain.
Agreed, totally effin bonkers
@Grey: Grey!
Sorry to interject here. Porcello did a lot of good by throwing a lot of pitches in the strike zone. I know it sounds too simplistic, after all that’s Fartolo’s schtick and although it worked for him too it also resulted in some implosions this year. But for Porcello he was constantly throwing like 77 of 110 pitches for strikes per game and batters were ill-prepared for this Rick Porcello. Who knew? Piscotty knows!
Cheers,
Ante
He must’ve did something right, he was the best AL pitcher!
@Swfcdan: Everyone… except Razzball’s pitching expert JB! To bad i didn’t believe him and instead chose to beat myself upside the head with a 16in dildo by drafting Smarja again.
ESPN Points – Head to Head… 24 starts per week for pitchers… but if you have any starts left on Sunday, you can start as many pitchers on Sunday that you want. Because of this glitch, I handily won my league. I don’t feel good about it, but I feel better about doing that than probably losing gracefully.
ESPN has always been a trash fantasy site in my opinion. And by that I mean the interface is just subpar… but now I can glitch their system and I get away with it? Isn’t that what the site is supposed to protect against? Ah well.
Cheaters never win, except this time, and some others.
@CMUTimmah: Not a glitch, not cheating. It’s the way it works (Yahoo, too). RCLs have a 180-start limit. All starts count, though, on the day you reach the limit. 275 teams finished with more than 180 starts; 33 used the real max, 188.
@CMUTimmah: I’m in Yahoo roto. I did the same thing. So did 11 of the 12 owners in the league. We have a 1500 innings limit and only 1 person finished with less than 1530 IP.
Its not a glitch man, you obviously knew what you were doing more than your opponent. But you could say the same thing about the fact that you are on this site reading Grey’s shizz. Sometimes… that feels unfair to your opponents too. Congrats on the win and good to your Chippewas this year.
@CMUTimmah: Not a glitch, it’s fantasy baseball. Welcome to it.
@Cram It: is this a humble brag?
@The Hack: I don’t know where the brag is. It’s fantasy baseball 101.
@The Hack: Oh, unless you mean his humble brag? Haha.
@Cram It: Going back to our Murphy bet, in response to your reply. I didn’t say I expected anything like this, just that he was going to hit 20+homers no doubt.
It was only for fun man, who’s going to bet over the internet dollars to a stranger that probably lives in his mom’s basement for all we know (just kidding but still). The point was he had changed as a hitter which showed in the postseason, yet people somehow thought that performance was a complete fluke. Fluke’s don’t happen against Kershaw and the best pitchers in the postseason, may that be a lesson to y’all if it happens again this fall with someone.
N.B In my Murphy league I still wasn’t anywhere near a championship, but that was because of god shitty pitching.
@Swfcdan: I know it was for fun. I was joking as well. We’re all just joking.
Actually, fluke’s like that do happen, especially when they occur after he’d been his career average for 6 months before those couple of post-season weeks. Lots of guys get hot for 2 weeks!
@Cram It:Ha ok all good.
Hot against the best pitchers around though? That’s the difference in the postseason, teams don’t make it without good rotations- when Murphy hit 2 off Kershaw that’s what made me take notice, especially as it was lefty-lefty. Maybe there are some examples I can’t think of, who turned back into pumpkins.
But still I guess it means I can give you advice and doubt your advice now, and if you question it I’ll just say “Remember Murphy!” Haha…
@Swfcdan: Ha. You can give me all the advice you want, I’m not taking it! As you can do the same with the mine. America!
@Swfcdan: David Freese stuck out to me. He was an older “rookie” who had a ridiculous post season. He never translated into an MVP.
@Cram It: ding ding ding. It like that guy you know that brags about nailing some broad that you know a half dozen guys already nailed her
@The Hack: Ha. Spot on.
@CMUTimmah: As others said, it’s how it’s always been
@Grey: I actually almost got burned by this my first year playing Yahoo! Fantasy Baseball, I was cruising in 1st and the guy in like 4th place streamed a ton of pitchers the final day to finish 2nd. My brother got screwed out of the money cause of this strategy.
That sucks!
So, way too early, but I’m curious as to just how far Harper has fallen from graces with this terrible season. Next year, I can keep 4. I realize things may change, but if you had to pick now, which 4?
C. Seager
N. Arenado
J. Villar
B. Harper
C. Sale
B. Buxton
@Adam P.: Seager, Arenado, Harper, Sale
@Adam P.: Seager, Arenado, Harper, Villar or Sale
Heyward has to get some kind of award. Maybe “the Cub that wasn’t worth owning” award.
@Damon: Or maybe “the Cub who played most of the time, but you wish didn’t” award.
@Damon: Agreed. He’s the guy who’s been getting drafted the last 6 years way higher than he’s been worth. I can’t think of another player like him….one we keep drafting for this long thinking “this is the year”.
@Cram It: I traded for him after his early struggles thinking I was buying low. Great team, secure starting spot, only 26, Steamer projections loved him.
List of players with as many ABs as Heyward who had less HR:
1. Cesar Hernandez
That’s it.
List of players with as many ABs who had less RBIs:
1. Hernandez
2. Gardner
List of players with as many ABs who had less Runs scored
1. Y. Molina
2. A Escobar
3. K. Pillar
List of players with as many ABs who had lower avg:
1. Chris Davis
2. Chris Carter
3. Todd Frazier
List of players with as many ABs who had lower OPS:
none.
Holy crap, this is insane
Whoa
@Damon: He was off the charts terrible. I don’t know how it’s measured, but I’m thinking he was THE worst hitter with qualified AB’s.
@Damon: True, he sucks donkey balls
That’s the award! “Player who you knew was awful, just not Donkey Balls awful”
HAHA, yes!
Wow, you hit all my “Fantasy Hitter You Most Likely Dropped and Picked Up A Dozen Times”. Also on my list is Pedro Alvarez. Love that guy!
@Scott: Ha, yup!
So I guess I shouldn’t have traded Villar/Sam Dyson for Corey Seager back in July. That was an impossible deal to turn down at the time though. Unless you are Cpt Hindsight, of course.
Dig this article. Looking forward to all things offseason already.
LGM, LGM, LGM!!!!
@knucks: LGM!!
@knucks: That deal isn’t terrible, a loss, but not awful… LGM!
So what are Deshizz and Shane Supergreene up to these days?
@Duda Want to Build a Snowman?: Quit baseball, opened a B&B
@Grey: Sounds about right . . . they sell farm-to-table supergreene juice there too. Was very excited to try it before opening day, of the b&b, as I heard it was de shizz and expected it to steal about 60 breakfast mornings for me this spring/summer . . . unfortunately once I tried it, it only ended up being about 8.
I don’t mind the accommodations, but having to suffer through conversation with DeShields about being a sleeper is a struggle
@Grey: HA!!
I need to decide what 10 players to keep next year for my Keeper league. What do you suggest?
H2H 12 team. Yahoo
Trea Turner
Bregman
Herrera
Mazara
Cespedes
T. Frizer – will he be 1st base eligible next year??
M.Franco
M.Harvey
V. Velazquez
Tyler Glasnow
Devon Travis
L. Cain
Jung Ho Kang
thanks!!
@Juan: Nice keepers. I’m no master lothario pert, but if it were my team, I’d keep everyone but your 3 pitchers (Harvey/VV/Glasnow), assuming Herrara is Obudel not Kelvin. Those SPs could be alright, but all carry a whole lot of uncertainty.
@Juan: Not Kang, Travis, Glasnow
I streamed porcello quite a few times in august before t mac swooped him. I can honestly say didn’t see that coming. I still won’t draft him
@The Hack: How crazy is it the best AL pitcher was on waivers in August?
@Grey: Its Ludajesuschristo. His May June were not good (4.65 & 3.96 ERA respectively) and when you look at his numbers they are pretty similar to the past except in BABIP, strand rate, and pitch values. His pitch values are off the charts. Interesting about his strand rate, he’s usually awful in that category, being in the high 60’s most his career. 72.9 is league average and this year he’s at 74.3, which says he stopped crapping the bed with runners on base but its not even that high. A lot of the best arms are in the 80% range.
Interesting stuff
@Grey: I just skimmed through the numbers but what that did make me do was really question the pitch values on fangraphs. His fastball goes from a 0.6 to a 13, hie slider from a -4.1 to an 8 and his change up from a -6.7 to a 10. Who the hell is the pitching coach for the sox? And why didn’t David Price get better
Because he’s old and lost a lot on his fastball, is my guess w/out looking
@Grey: I question the pith values, that is all. I posed the question below, what is better, beating you or finishing atop the RCL’s, I think beating you is the rarest occurrence #selfpromotion
If you finish atop the RCLs, you are beating me
@Grey: not really since being in a league with someone is very different than actually playing against them
Wait that made no sense..you know what I meant. You always think you wouldn’t have won that league if you had to play against me
Yeah, agreed… But if someone finishes 1st overall it’s still a huge accomplishment
Agreed on firstboverall. I’m just saying it feels better beating you
You don’t know how it feels to win overall… I will say it is remarkable that you and I finished first and second considering where we were four months ago
I’ve been top ten. Now if it was for money like nfbc that’s even cooler. I just feeling like gloating about beating rudy two years in a row and you this year. The charade is up. I’m just having fun with this because I won.
Yeah, you should gloat, it’s an accomplishment…. I was amazed I was top ten last year, that shizz is seriously hard
And you know what’s funny not funny is that last year perts had a lower index, we had a 107 this year, but rudy turned down the index factor this year. Or at least he was supposed to
That’s likely b/c two outside perts, Gianella and McLeod, asked me if they could add a co-manager… So, they had interns managing their teams
Magoo and ralph both stayed very active.
@The Hack: Porcello was hurt early last year, probably hurt his pitch values. Once he came off the DL last year there were noticeable improvements.
Is he a Cy Young winner? NO, but he’s a solid 2, and back end guy for fantasy.
Random meaningless note: He lived next door to my wife growing up. She used to babysit him as a kid.
Fuck Justin Upton. That is all.
@PK: Amen, PK!
That Nomar Mazara almost cost me a few games since I almost dropped him for Wil Myers
I mean Mazara did cost me a few games after I almost dropped him for Wil Myers. I waited too long and Myers was picked up before I could.
@William Hung: I hear that
Hi Grey, thanks for your regular and helpful articles.
Who will win?
TOR or BAL ? NYM or SF?
@Wilson.: TOR…NYM
Grey need help with your pinpoint crystal ball forecasting 10 team H2H keeper league 5×5 allowed 9 keepers stuck on the following players to keep Harper Trout Stanton SMarte Schwarber Story Villar CSeagar Braun Votto Odor KDavis TTurner GSanchez Degrom Hendricks
Not Davis, Hendricks, deGrom, Schwarber, Votto or Sanchez
@Foul balls: who are the other 9 teams? can anyone get in this league?
My most frequent streamers this year were Steven Wright, Matt Shoemaker and Jon Gray. Carlos Rodon and Ian Kennedy get honorable mentions for me as well. I kept going back for the Julio Urias rookie nookie too, that only worked out a couple times.
I traded Villar to Simply Fred for Jeanmar Gomez in ECFBL. I was desperate for saves and figured the other shoe had to drop on Villar eventually. I figured he’d provide some speed still but BA and what not would fall off….he hit 1 HR and stole 14 bases for my team…he hit 15 HRs and stole 42 for Fred. Gomez gave me 20 saves and a 5.58 ERA. Doh! I still won Steals though, so I was at least trading from a position of strength, but still.
@MattTruss: Grey wanted to trade me Villar for Salazar at the break, and Im thinking I will acquire him, he sucks it and I drop him by August 1st. If I make that deal Im probably in the top ten because Salazar killed me when he got hurt then I dropped him in August anyway.
Ouch
@MattTruss: it doesn’t really hurt because I won perts. How many people here can say they defeated mustache mountain or is it mount mustache? No idea, but really what is the greater feat? Beating grey or winning the rcl overall title?
I should have said “Ouch, but hey, you still won!”
@MattTruss: but seriously. Still won? I beat grey. Has a commenter ever beat grey? I was a commenter before a hack
@The Hack: How often does a commenter play Grey? Aren’t you guys in an “Expert League”? Winning the overall RCL is a greater feat. You’re beating 1000 other people.
Agreed
@Cram It: you arent actually playing them a formula decides it and besides it is rare for someone to beat grey and rudy at their game. Hey I need to self promote myself for once.
I hope you get the invite in next year. You’ve earned it
@The Hack: I’ll believe you if you say it’s rare. I don’t really know. I know they play a lot of leagues and I imagine they don’t win all of them every year. But congrats though. I’d be gloating too if I were in your shoes. That’s why we play the game!…and for the money (if applicable).
you get it. I have to be obnoxious at least once a day. I just know lots of people want to play grey and rudy and few get the chance to
Wow, you traded Villar early if he gave Fred that much… Like first 6 weeks of the season early… I did the Shoemaker, Gray and Kennedy streams way more than I want to remember
It was June 1st, yea…
Ouch
Boss Man,
I can’t believe I didn’t win my league. I got bull-Doziered. So, help me pick up the pieces and tell me which 8 to keep off this list of losers. Mookie, Rizzo, Arenado, Lindor, Kluber, Scherzer, Polanco, Myers, Posey, Odor. (Also, Joc, V-Mart, Baez, Santana, Saunders, Matz, etc. – I’m still shaking my head that I didn’t win. I even had Kershaw by the end of the year).
That sucks! Nice keepers though: Not Myers or Posey
@Grey: ESPN has Myers ranked 26 for next year. I’ll be able to package him and the dream-Catcher for draft picks. Still thanking you for green-lighting my keep of Arenado and Mookie two years ago. Also, still trying to figure out a way to keep Javy this year. Might trade away Odor.
Yeah, you have too many keepers, for sure
More Greytness from the Grey rocker. Yes Villar was huuuge surprise. But Trout should have won it. 315/123/29/100/30 add up to way huuuger, legendary numbers.
I won my season long 5×5 mixed roto on last day, late in the day. Very good 11 man league. Thank you Verlander, Franco, and Blackmon for coming through.
Thanks! Congrats on the win!
Grey, Rudy and all the Razzball staff, thanks for the great advice. I won my 18 team Roto league and my 14 team H2H… long live to the Streamonator!!!
Congrats! No problem
Grey,
In a keeper league, my old men of terror at 1st and Util, took a big hit with Ortiz Retiring. Still have Pujols and VMart (and Frazier but i use him at 3B)…
thoughts on Greg Bird for next season? Good bounce back guy to target?
What about Tommy Joseph – was he sat against Lefties? he hit them well – .281 with 7 hrs in 89AB
Tommy Joseph or Greg Bird?
thank you in advance.
Too early to say, prolly Joseph
Grabbed Verlander off waivers at the ASB after he was dropped. He had a crummy ERA, but that career best k-bb and swg strk % was too good to ignore.
Justin Upton is/was a real dick: hit .250 with 20 Homers after I dropped him in July.
Yeah, and Verlander gives Upton dick, though not Justin
@Grey: Hehe. The cycle of baseball and life is complete.
Haha
@Grey: I started watching you twos justifies last night. So far I have it as a 7
Samesies! I watched the first two episodes of Justified last night… Meh, I’m at about a 6
@Grey: hahahah. I give it the 7 for the actors and the slutty but sexy blonde
I found out last night Cougs’ friend is the sexy blonde’s manager… She was like “You want her on the podcast” and I was like, “It’s not the podcast I want her on.”
@Grey: razzball periscope? Snapchat? My face!
Yes, yes, and YES
@Grey: Haha. Walked into that one!
@Grey: Looking at the team I drafted and the team I finished with, I’d say Chris Archer should be up there with Upton for Fantasy POS – cause those Ks came at a cost of everything else in H2H. You also never knew what you were going to get with Archer either.
Jonathan Schoop is also another player I’d put up there for Player I added/dropped a bunch of times and debated with you on all season long until he went on that crazy hitting streak. Since I didn’t finish the season with either Schoop or Kipnis, I don’t know who finished higher on the player rater.
So next season – Carlos Rodon a late round pick in season long leagues, and a top 20 pitcher in 2nd half leagues???
Yeah, Archer screwed me too… Likely cost me 5 points alone… Rodon!
Even with the depth in the SS position, I have to keep Seager over Harper, right?
Nope
I’m really pulling for the Jays tonight only for the chance they can meet up with the rangers. I would love to see a playoff brawl after that bush league shit the rangers pulled the last time they played
Totally! Gotta root for a fight!
@Grey: I was going to root for the Natty B’Ohs but now I’m conflicted with this scenario…
I honestly think that it’ll come down to the bullpens and the O’s have the better one. Plus, I can’t root against Showalter. I lived in Baltimore when they were trash, rolling out guys like Felix Pie and he came in midseason and got them to play .500 baseball.
Oh, I can root against him, no problem there
Every award show needs some performances. This year we have Flavor Flav doing autotune R&B
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wsnNdGrGF0Y
That’s what we needed! Thanks, Rappin’ Ralph!
Gregory Polanco received platelet-rich plasma (PRP) injections in his left knee and left shoulder on Monday, reports Matt Gajtka of DKPittsburghSports.com.
I don’t know if this is good or bad, likely not good
Won my first title this year in the 4th year of our 12 team 8 keeper H2H 5×5 league! But its never too early to start figuring out keepers. We keep 8 at no cost besides them acting as the first 8 rounds.
C – Realmuto
1B – E5
2B – Kinsler
3B – Arenado
SS – Villar
OF – Betts
OF – Cargo
OF – Cruz
UTIL – Votto
UTIL – Cutch
BN – Justin Turner
SPs – Mad Max, Stras, Cueto, Verlander, Tanaka
RPs – Jansen, Britton, Thornburg, Kintzler
I figure a lot of these are obvious but I’m curious if you pick the same 8 that I”m considering. Thanks for a great season!
Edwin, Arenado, Villar, Betts, CarGo, Cruz, Votto, Scherzer… CarGo might move on from Coors though, so that could change, maybe Stras returns healthy in the spring so maybe that changes, but yeah, around that
@Grey: Pretty much the same guys I was thinking. I’m just not sure what to do cuz I’m planning on keeping Stras cuz hes a beast when hes healthy. No idea what to do with Villar either. I wasn’t planning on keeping him just cuz I don’t know if he can repeat. Villar and Cargo it will probably be between for my last spot. I guess this is a good problem to have. Thanks Grey!
Villar has 60-steal speed, even if he regresses to 7 HRs and .250, he’s still worth a keeper if he steals 45+ bases, which he should…Agree though good problem to have
Who wins donkey of the year? Chris Carter or Todd Frazier
Carter
@Grey: the urban donky takes it.
Any thoughts about calling todd frazier the Donkfather?
Why isn’t he already The Donkfather, that’s perfect!
@Grey: from this day forward he will be known as the Donkfather
I love it!
@Grey: does he keep the nickname if his average goes back up over .250?
Once a donkey…
Another fun year Grey sir!
Thanks, Papa Smurf!
It was 79 here on Saturday. Right now it is 32 and snowing.
Perfect weather to play some baseball!
I think it is against the law to play baseball in October in Saskatchewan.
Haha… You need to move to Florida!
I hate this time of year when the local broadcasts get taken over.Thank God there is at least no more Joe Buck.
Agreed
@Grey: Check out the dichotomy- we root against any geographical affiliation all year long ,then revert to our roots after FBB season is done.
Maris or Mantle?
Totally, Mantle, cmon
@hondo: Wait,I googled,it appears he is still twitching.The horror.
Haha
Thank you Grey
Hard to show my appreciation over the Internet, but I read every word you wrote this year and it brought me great joy. I finished well in my leagues (top 20 overall rcl), but the most important part was the entertainment and love of baseball I get from Razzball. Doesn’t hurt that I love puns!
Thanks for another great year and here’s to many more!
Pat
No problem, thanks for the kind words, Pat!
Buck not using Zach Britton…..LMFAO……….that…that is…a fireable offense, right?!
He led off all year with a .308 OBP hitter
Won the consolation bracket of the ol’ H2H. lowercase yay.
Congrats! Why’s that lowercase? Sung like Charlie’s mom, cheer up, Stevie!
HAPPY THORSDAY…..LGM!!!
It sucks that it’s one game and go home… But LGM, b/c no on likes the Giants
@Grey: right?!?!? I think this year more than others show why this is ridiculous because they don’t deserve to be here. All three NL divison winners have better records than the wildcards (that doesn’t always happen) I think all three actually clinched the division with a week left in the season. That’s nuts.
They all clinched in the final weekend, I think
@Grey: nope. Dodgers clinched two sundays ago, cubs about 10 or 11 games left and Nats last monday…I believe. The divison were blowouts this year
I meant the Wild Card teams clinched this past weekend, not division teams
@Grey: yeah duh. I wasn’t talking about them. The NL divisions were all blowouts
Ah yeah, my bad, homey!
@Grey: just please spell it homie not homey. It looks too much like honey and besides
https://goo.gl/images/WQRdAT
That’s plural
You know what I meant….homie
Go Mets?
Mccullers and Nola or Carlos Martinez in a keeper league? We keep 16 players in a h2h league.
Martinez, pretty fair
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4DoQ7YzdmxY
I wanna hang out with that stuffed bear!
You see this yesterday? http://genius.com/a/christian-mom-shoots-tearful-11-minute-rant-about-vince-staples-norf-norf-lyrics
@Grey: Teddy Ruxpin will say whatever tape is in his back, that’s awesome.
Haha, I just read an article about that lady around 20 minutes ago. I don’t know the song and didn’t watch her video crying. It has to be funny.
Oh, it’s amazing… I like the song, but her performance of it is top-notch
@Grey: I like how she says the part about skipping school is where it gets real bad. Haha.
That second video is great.
I enjoyed when she ‘sang’ hoes get abortions and there was a kid climbing on the couch in the background
@Grey: The poster child for abortion.
Hahahaha… No comment, I mean… Well…Yeah
@Grey: Did you see the simulation of tonight’s game on Deadspin? 4-3 top 9, the Mets bring in Robles and he gives up the tying HR to I forget who…. looks like Buck Showalter was running the simulation. Anyway, Lagares of all people hits a walk off in the bottom of the 9th off of a righty throwing Javier Lopez (he’s a lefty right????)
Check it out here if interested: http://deadspin.com/1787444593
Thanks!
Nah, hadn’t heard that… Actually doesn’t sound that crazy, I expect a close game, our Teamonator has Mets as slight favorites
Just realized there are no lefty pitchers in the game… nevermind on that
Thank you Gray! Back to Back championships in my $$ league!
Hit big buying Story, Lamb, Colome and Dozier in the draft for a combined $30/$270!
Thanks for all your advice! Time to watch some playoffs, football, basketball and the hot stove!
Congrats! No problem!
This is BAF. Pitchers duels are so over rated
It’s going fast at least
@Grey: I guess that makes it better. On the flip side I can’t see any pitcher ever fearing either of these lineups.
True, true
@Grey: okay. This inning should be over. Strikezone at the knees is a ball? Bring on the robot umps
Ump-o-Nator?
@Grey: boom!
https://twitter.com/DodgersBeat/status/783845901961793537
Best shirt ever
That is pretty great, buy it for me, thank you!
@Grey: that’s a negative ghost rider
Haha
Man Rivera’s framing on those low pitches looks awful. Does he usually struggle like that?
Familia doesn’t look good either way
True, but that 8th inning was brutal framing wise, I’m sure that passed ball was because he was ‘trying to frame’
@Grey: I thought he looked awesome!
Signed
-giants fan
lol