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Mike

Author: Mike

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Mike

DraftKings -The Win In My Sale

June 1, 2014 | DraftKings | 16 Comments

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Since returning from the disabled list, Chris Sale ($11,600) has pitched nine scoreless innings with 14 strikeouts and only one walk. He tops the Stream-o-Nator this morning at a $29 value and faces a Padres lineup that is dead last in team batting average and also in the top ten for team strikeout percentage (21.9%). He’s the most expensive option at DraftKings today, but he still comes in at under $12K so it doesn’t completely handcuff your hitters. I’m building around him and counting on 25 points from the 25-year-old southpaw.

If you are new to DraftKings, use our promo link to get started. New players that click on that link will get a free contest ticket with a first time deposit (only new users eligible). The winner of the contest gets entry into our $500k Showcase with a $100k top prize. Also, if you haven’t tried the DFSBot via Rudy, check it out: it compares projected values to actual DFS prices for the day. Here are some of today’s other picks for DraftKings contests on 6/1/2014…

Please, blog, may I have some more?
Mike

One Man’s Trash: Keuchel Exercises

May 27, 2014 | Fantasy Baseball Buy/Sell | 92 Comments

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It was easy to accept Jay(Wrong)’s offer to add an additional column when I heard his idea. The concept was simple: take a look through the most added and dropped players and decide which ones are actually deserving of their big gains or declines in ownership percentage. Every fantasy baseball platform has some version of the ‘Most Added/Dropped’ sheet, but for the purposes of this column, I’ll use ESPN’s data. I don’t consider ownership percentages to be research. In fact, if you you are using ownership percentages as your only barometer for player evaluations, then you probably found Razzball by mistake. Welcome. We’re here to help.

What is interesting about these numbers is that they offer a window into the minds of all the other teams out there patrolling the waiver wire. We see a player on our roster or in free agency with the double digit red/green numbers next to his name and we tend to think, “What am I missing?” There are two feelings I hate in fantasy baseball- the feeling that I just dropped somebody I shouldn’t have, and the feeling I just picked up a guy who’s about to go as cold as ice. God forbid we tick both boxes in the same move (I’ve done this).

Each week, we’ll look at one of the biggest adds or drops, then I’ll suggest one player from the most added column that I feel is actually trash, and one player from the most dropped list that is actually a treasure.

Please, blog, may I have some more?
Mike

Jones-ing For Steals

May 26, 2014 | Steals | 16 Comments

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It’s not even June and the Mariners are on their second leadoff hitter in James Jones. The 25-year-old center fielder has hit at the top of the Mariners lineup and looks to remain there for the foreseeable future. Yes, I copied and pasted that last sentence from the Abraham Almonte post. Jones has looked good though, hitting .306 with a .377 OBP in the twenty games since his call up. More importantly, he’s swiped three bags already and projects to steal around 15 bases by year’s end. That’s a serviceable number for deeper mixed league owners struggling to find steals in their lineup. Jones stole 25+ in each of his last two minor league seasons, and he’s currently sporting a 62% ground ball percentage which is allowing him to maximize his speed. That percentage is seventh among outfielders with at least 50 plate appearances. This week, Jones gets a favorable match-up against the Tigers, who have allowed the tenth most stolen bases this season (34). A battery of Anibal Sanchez and Alex Avila has quickly become one of my favorite to run against since beginning this column. Jones probably won’t get to face that specific battery this time around, but one of our other SAGNOF picks will. Here are some of this week’s steals plays in fantasy baseball…

Please, blog, may I have some more?
Mike

DraftKings: Mad Bum Brings Mad Value

May 25, 2014 | DraftKings | 8 Comments

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Madison Bumgarner sits on top of the Stream-o-Nator today at a $29 value, yet he’ll cost you only $9,600 on DraftKings. There’s a lot to like here in both the pitcher himself and today’s match-up. This season, Bumgarner sports a 9.97 K/9 to go along with a 2.61 BB/9. He’ll face the Twins today, who have the seventh worst strikeout percentage in baseball. For a price tag under $10K, it’s as good a play as we’ll find. There are a couple of $12K+ options in Adam Wainwright and Masahiro Tanaka, but I’m finding that spending that much on pitching cripples my ability to spend what I want on hitters. If I can find an arm around $10K instead, I’d rather jump on that and land some better bats. Bumgarner looks like one of those arms today.

If you are new to DraftKings, use our promo link to get started. New players that click on that link will get a free contest ticket with a first time deposit (only new users eligible). The winner of the contest gets entry into our $500k Showcase with a $100k top prize. Also, if you haven’t tried the DFSBot via Rudy, check it out: it’s a fantastic resource that compares projected values to actual DFS prices for the day. Here are some of today’s other picks for DraftKings contests on 5/25/2014…

Please, blog, may I have some more?
Mike

Danny Boy, The Swipes Are Calling

May 19, 2014 | Steals | 16 Comments

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Fellow Razzballer and DraftKings extraordinaire BTXJ brought Daniel Santana to our collective attention last week in the comments. Santana returned from a hamstring issue this past weekend and could be a cheap source of steals going forward. His ability to play both middle infield and outfield, as well as switch-hit, make him an interesting play in deeper leagues and leagues with daily roster moves. He’ll most likely hit from the bottom of the lineup, but he could certainly play his way up at some point. The 23-year-old is 8-for-21 in the majors this year and stole 30 bags in Double-A last season. He had stolen four bases prior to his call up from Triple-A this year. Why does an inexperienced hitter coming off an injury get the lede? He’s got the best possible match-ups this week. It’s only five games, but the Twins draw the Padres and Giants. Those teams are 1-2 for the most stolen bases allowed in the majors this year with 42 and 38 steals allowed, respectively. Even without a ton of playing time, Santana could work in a steal or two against these teams. Here are some other steals plays for this week in fantasy baseball…

Please, blog, may I have some more?
Mike

DraftKings – Find Some Lee Way

May 18, 2014 | DraftKings | 25 Comments

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It’s possible that the Philly homer in me is coming into play, but I am brimming with confidence in my Phils after last night’s offensive explosion. Cliff Lee ($10,600) looks like a great play today against a Reds lineup that is missing both Jay Bruce and Joey Votto. Lee’s K/BB ratio is fifth among all MLB pitchers and he’s the best option under $11K on DraftKings. Lefty Cole Hamels had no trouble handling the Reds yesterday with 7 IP and 10 strikeouts, and I’m confident Lee can provide more of the same. Stream-o-Nator likes the cut of his jib as well. He’s sitting numero uno at a $28 value.

Head over to DraftKings and use our promo link. New players that click on this link will get into a free contest with a first time deposit (only new users eligible). The winner of that contest gets entry into our $500k Showcase with a $100k top prize. Also, check out the new DFSBot tool. It compares projected values to DraftKings salaries so you can fill your lineup with the best bang for your buck. If you just want to play for fun, you can enter a free contest with me to challenge my lineup today. A few other Razzball personalities have been known to stop by so come check it out. Here are today’s picks…

Please, blog, may I have some more?
Mike

While My SAGNOF Gentry Weeps

May 12, 2014 | Steals | 58 Comments

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Coco Crisp‘s recent neck injury opens the door for Craig Gentry over the next few days. He’ll likely take over in center and bat at the bottom of the A’s lineup while Crisp practices turning his head in both directions. Hopefully he didn’t promise his bike to anyone who could fix him. You were supposed to sleep on a board, Coco! Gentry makes an interesting play for steals, and he appeared in this very column last week. In 2013, Gentry had 24 stolen bases in just 287 plate appearances, so he’s got some wheels. He’s already got six steals in limited playing time this year. On the schedule this week are the White Sox and the Indians. Both teams are tied for the 10th most steals allowed in the majors (25) so it’s not a bad match-up play. Crisp isn’t on the disabled list, he’s just day-to-day, so it could just be the White Sox series that Gentry gets all of the starts.

Take a peek at the new SB Rates vs. SP tool that Rudy has conjured up. Using all of last year’s data, it lets us know which pitchers to deploy our SAGNOF specialists against (based on their steals per innings pitched rates). I used it yesterday in DFS when I saw Eric Young was going to start against Cole Hamels, who’s pretty easy to run against. I swapped him into my lineup and it paid off with two steals from EY2 in the game. Here are some other SAGNOF picks for this week…

Please, blog, may I have some more?
Mike

DraftKings – Kershaw Is The Mother Of All Pitchers

May 11, 2014 | DraftKings | 18 Comments

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Before we go any further, pick up the phone and wish your mother a happy Mother’s Day. In honor of the woman who taught me not to play in traffic, pet strange dogs, or stick Legos up my nose, I’m playing it super safe today with my A-1 starter and drafting Clayton Kershaw ($13,000) in cash games. He’s a whopping $30 value on the Stream-0-Nator and I would be really surprised if he doesn’t post at least 25 points today. Then again, it doesn’t take much to surprise me anymore. I’m boring y’all! The biggest drawback to Kershaw today is what that hefty price tag does to the rest of your lineup, so it will be key to draft a solid number two starter and we’ll have to scrape together some pocket change for a couple hitters today.

Signing up for DraftKings is easy and if you use that link, you’ll get a free ticket for a contest with your first-time deposit. The winner of that contest gets entry into our $500k Showcase with a $100k top prize. Also, if you haven’t tried the DFSBot yet, check it out. It gives you an idea of who the best values are based on their projections versus their actual DK salaries for the day. This comes in really handy on a day like today when we splurge on pitching and need to find some cheaper bats. If you’d like to see how your lineup fares against the Guru and I, join our free 5-team contest. As always, double check the starting lineups and the weather before the day’s games begin. Here are today’s DraftKings picks for 5/11/2014…

Please, blog, may I have some more?
Mike

Jace Is The Place For Steals

May 5, 2014 | Steals | 31 Comments

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Jace Peterson continues to see regular playing time with Chase Headley on the disabled list. Headley is expected to return around May 10th, so we should get another week of SAGNOF from Peterson. The 23-year-old has tallied two steals in 21 plate appearances for the Padres and he has seven home games on the schedule this week against the Royals and Marlins. The Royals have been stingy in allowing stolen bases, but the Marlins haven’t. The fish have given up the fourth most stolen bases in baseball entering Sunday’s games. Peterson had 39, 51, and 42 stolen bases over his last three minor league seasons. He is more of a deep league pickup, or a stop gap in your lineup given Headley’s imminent return, but the speed is real and he’s available (0% owned ESPN). A quick reminder to utilize the new SB Rates vs. SP tool here at Razzball. It’s a quick and easy way to find pitchers who are good targets to run against, and comes in handy for DFS and daily roto leagues. Here are some other steals picks for fantasy baseball this week…

Please, blog, may I have some more?
Mike

DraftKings – Sonny Gray Real Estate

May 4, 2014 | DraftKings | 25 Comments

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A title in tribute to my indie rock/emo wife, whose compact disc collection of bands I’ve never heard of almost matches my collection of baseball players she’s never heard of. Sonny Gray ($10,600) isn’t necessarily one of the elite pitchers according to DraftKings prices this Sunday and Stream-O-Nator doesn’t care for the start, so this pick is kind of a wild hare from the depths of Mike’s mind. It’s hard not to like what Sonny Gray has done already this season with a K/9 of 8+, a BB/9 just north of 3.00, and a 54% groundball rate. He’ll need that groundball rate today as the wind is blowing hard out to right field at Fenway. Aside from that, the road start against the Red Sox doesn’t scare me since Gray has actually pitched better away from the Coliseum this year. Let’s hope the pick pans out, or I’ll be putting on my black eyeliner and heading for the nearest mall with the emo kids.

As always, take advantage of the great tools we have at our disposal here at Razzball. The Hitter-Tron and Stream-O-Nator are particularly useful for daily fantasy. I’m partial to stolen bases thanks to my regular column here, so I’m going to pimp another tool called SB Rates vs. SP. It allows you to see how pitchers fare historically in terms of stolen bases allowed. I think it’s worth mentioning given there is a big points swing between a successful steal and a caught stealing. If you’re new to the site, you can start an account using our DraftKings link. Last but not least, I’m running another 5-man contest (FREE) today so you can check on my lineup. We’ll have a special guest from Razzball in the contest as well. Hint: He wears a turban. Here’s some other picks for today’s DraftKings contests…

Please, blog, may I have some more?
Mike

That’s So Maybin

April 28, 2014 | Steals | 77 Comments

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One of the perks of getting burned by the same player year after year (in this case Cameron Maybin) is that I get to come up with a different pun for a title each season. This one wasn’t my brainchild, though. It comes to us courtesy of Rudy Gamble. He’s not just a stat guy. He’s pretty hilarious, especially on Twitter. Maybin burns me every year because I get sucked in to the youth (he’s still just 27) and the glimpses of upside he still flashes from time to time. Take last year for example, when he came back to the field for what ended up being just a handful of games, but still stole four bases. Maybin was one of my offseason choices for SAGNOF outfielders simply because he still has that 30-40 stolen base potential in his legs. He’ll have to hit and hit well to earn his keep in the crowded San Diego outfield, and health is obviously a major concern, but when he’s on the field he’s still a good steals play. The center fielder will draw the Giants and Diamondbacks this week. Both teams are in the top-10 in baseball this season for steals allowed. Lots of options for steals with some recent injuries so let’s get to it…

Please, blog, may I have some more?
Mike

DraftKings – Brand Ryu

April 27, 2014 | DraftKings | 31 Comments

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If you believe in luck, it’s been a bad scene for me lately. In the span of 48 hours, I lost my front tooth, totaled my car, and forgot to tell my starting shortstop to stay the hell away from Ryan Braun‘s backswing. I’m also 1-5 on the year with my over/under picks for those of you who are keeping track. Oh well. There are some who say we make our own luck. That’s all I’m trying to do with these posts really. I take the information available to me via tools such as the Hitter-Tron and Stream-o-Nator and make the best recommendations I can to help you win. But even the best information can’t protect us from Jean Segura walking into a bat or Francisco Liriano getting a nosebleed. If you are new to the site, be sure to sign up via our DraftKings promo link. Also, if you’d like to play against myself and a few friends in a free contest today, click here. You can win bragging rights for a whole week!

Please, blog, may I have some more?
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