You know how you bought that prosthetic pierced nipple in college? Then, one day, you were at a strong-in-energy kegger and everyone was screaming for you to jump in the pool, but you knew there was a 99% chance your prosthetic pierced nipple would come off and everyone would know you’re a fraud? But you jumped in anyway, and your prosthetic pierced nipple floated away, but, to your surprise, everyone liked you still, without the prosthetic pierced nipple. Lucas Giolito is your tan-lined nipple without the prosthetic piercing. He may get hit around occasionally, he might not always get Ks, but, at the end of the day, Lucas Giolito (6 IP, 2 ER, 6 baserunners, 13 Ks, ERA at 3.42) is a great, bare-nippled pitcher. His 11.3 K/9, 3.2 BB/9, 3.35 FIP tell me next year he’s going to be a sneaky top 15 starter in 2020, who is forgotten like a prosthetic pierced nipple. Anyway, here’s what else I saw this weekend in fantasy baseball:
Reynaldo Lopez – 6 1/3 IP, 0 ER, 9 baserunners, 3 Ks, ERA at 5.16. Don’t look now but ReyLo has an under-3 ERA in the 2nd half. Just trying to poke his head into our 2020 players to draft that bugger us. British definition of bugger.
Chris Bassitt – 7 IP, 0 ER, 6 baserunners, 7 Ks, ERA at 3.56. Bassitt is mostly a MediaOAKer, but yesterday’s was an away game, and his next start is at home, but it’s not good. Tell em, T.I. “That’s no MediaOAKer.”
Matt Olson – 2-for-3, 2 RBIs and his 23rd homer, hitting .257. That’s a good start, but we want more if Olson needs forgiveness for his last two weeks.
Derek Law – Got his 3rd save on Saturday as Ken Giles continues to work on a once-a-week schedule. Jays get, maybe, seven save opps the rest of the year and Giles is available for, maybe, three of them? I don’t know, homies, doesn’t sound very valuable. Giles has had more news reports of him not going on the IL than saves in the last two weeks.
Trent Thornton – 6 IP, 1 ER, 4 baserunners, 6 Ks, ERA at 5.34. The Trent Thornton stream vs. the Yankees: when you can’t juggle pins and you start juggling cleavers.
Masahiro Tanaka – 8 IP, 0 ER, 3 baserunners, 4 Ks, ERA at 4.64. Tanaka’s ERA vs. the Red Sox: 4,000.00. Tanaka’s ERA against all other teams: -2.10.
Andrew Heaney – 3 2/3 IP, 1 ER, ERA at 4.89, as he was activated from the IL. I love that Heaney took the mound this weekend, because I can yell, “Heaney hill,” and run around the house in women’s undergarments, but I don’t think there’s much here for this year, and wouldn’t even trust him with the Streamonator.
Kole Calhoun – 1-for-2, 2 runs and his 26th homer, as he hit his 1st career homer in Fenway, and on Saturday Trout did the same. I won’t beat the same drum again about the schedules sucking, but Trout is not just now hitting a home run in Fenway because he doesn’t hit homers everywhere. Double negatives be ignored!
Andrew Cashner – 1 2/3 IP, 3 ER, ERA at 4.83. If he was traded to the Astros, he’d be on his 24th inning of no-hit baseball. Cashner going to suck on the Sawx was one of the most predictable things to come out of that trade, so what if the Red Sox didn’t care? Seriously, what if they just made the move to make it seem like they were doing something, when, in reality, they were content with their 2018 World Series win and didn’t want to invest much in this club?
Christian Vazquez – 1-for-5, 2 RBIs and his 18th homer, hitting .281. For what its Werth, he’s been more valuable than Gary Sanchez this year.
Josh Bell – 3-for-4, 4 RBIs and two homers (28, 29). Josh Bell crawls out of a wardrobe box, spits out a moth ball, coughs then, “How’s things?”
Paul Goldschmidt – 4-for-5, 2 runs, 3 RBIs and a slam (26) and legs (1), hitting .262. Au Shizz! Putting aside the batting average that has been on decline for over a year, Au Shizz’s steals have gone up and vanished. Him or Abreu in 2020? Okay, him, but barely.
Lane Thomas – 2-for-5, 5 RBIs and his 3rd homer, hitting .364. When Lane Thomas is done knocking in runs, he’s outfitting plus-sized women. Hashtag blessed.
Jeff Samardzija – 8 IP, 1 ER, 2 baserunners, 5 Ks, ERA at 3.55. I’ll never stop thinking about how I owned him last year. It’s appropriate that his last name looks like when a cartoon character curses.
Jake Arrieta – 3 IP, 5 ER, ERA at 4.64. When I see Arrieta, I hear Alouette. That’s about as useful information as Arrieta is for fantasy.
Mike Soroka – 7 IP, 0 ER, 4 baserunners, 6 Ks, ERA at 2.32. “Hey, I wanna watch a RuPaul Drag Race marathon for five months.” That’s the Regression Fairies during every Soroka start and why they’re absent from the park.
Mark Melancon – 1/3 IP, 4 ER and might’ve had the quickest stint ever for a closer. Was named closer on Friday, and, on Saturday, he stood underneath a plane bathroom as it emptied. On Sunday, Luke Jackson (1 IP, 0 ER, 3 hits and the save) looked about as shaky as a stoner Shakespeare with the line readings in Henry The 1/8th. “Oreos, Oreos, wherefore art thou Oreos?”
Ender Inciarte – 2-for-3, 3 RBIs and a slam (5) and legs (7), hitting .235. Ya know he’s doing all of this just for me and my 2020 rankings? Ya know this, right?
Ronald Acuna Jr. – 2-for-4, 2 runs and his 33rd homer, hitting .298. Tildaddy embarrasses you by rapping Ice Cube’s Check Yo Self at your junior hockey tryouts.
Ian Happ – 2-for-4, 2 runs and his 4th homer, hitting .300, and that’s four homers in seven games. Hot schmotato alert; I picked him up and I’m only a little embarrassed to admit it.
Aristides Aquino – 1-for-3, 1 run, 1 RBI and three homers on Saturday (5, 6, 7). He calls himself The Punisher, but I’m thinking of another superhero, Catwoman, because every time he hits, I’m screaming Halleberrylujah! He wants to be known as The Punisher; I’m cool with it, goodness snows; I love puns. But The Punisher seems so Reds hot that I need a dip in the ocean, because I’m having a seazure with each long ball. Send me a palming influence by conchtrast, dolphinitely. The Punisher makes me daisy, floral intents and purposes. Wait, our omsbudsman is saying cut out the puns. Whittle be okay; it’s just an old knives tale. I’ve told you to pick him up every day for the last week, and grabbed him myself last weekend:
Aristides Aquino’s FAAB price this weekend is gonna be crazy, except, ya know, if you got him for a $1 last weekend pic.twitter.com/KQ1umNe08E
— Razzball (@Razzball) August 11, 2019
Kenta Maeda – 7 IP, 0 ER, 3 baserunners, 6 Ks, ERA at 4.12. I streamed him on Saturday, and dropped him on Sunday. That sounds like the beginning of female empowerment song. Speaking of which, Cougs and I saw Mary J. Blige on Saturday. As she sang I’m Going Down, all I could hear was myself at drafts saying I’m Going Dahl. I think I’m damaged.
Hyun-Jin Ryu – 7 IP, 0 ER, 6 baserunners, 4 Ks, ERA at 1.45. Legit cannot wait until he’s randomly IL’d again on Wednesday and he’s stuck in my weekly lineup like he was stuck on my bench for yesterday’s start.
Justin Turner – 2-for-4, 3 RBIs and his 18th and 19th homer. Tee bee aitch, Turner’s having a better season than I thought and often give him credit for.
Cody Bellinger – 2-for-4, 2 runs and his 38th homer, hitting .317. He’s having a better season than anyone minus Yelich, and CY can’t get on the field because he has a back 40 years older than his baby face.
Will Smith – 2-for-3, 3 RBIs and his 7th homer, hitting .313. 2020’s #1 catcher? Won’t be ranked as it, but could easily be it. “It” is a strong word, said my English Comp teacher, sarcastically.
Adrian Houser – 6 IP, 1 ER, 4 baserunners, 10 Ks, ERA at 4.00. Fun fact! Another name for a sink is a Adrain Houser. In fairness, Houser does have a 94+ MPH fastball, 9.7 K/9 in just under 70 IP and a decent xFIP, but he has a homer problem which isn’t great in Miller. I’m not going in in (stutterer!) shallower leagues, but I would either look at his matchups or cyclops him in deeper leagues.
Jordan Lyles – 7 IP, 1 ER, 7 baserunners, 9 Ks, ERA at 4.71, and three straight solid games off the Pirates. Paging Ray Searage, paging Ray Searage.
Mike Minor – 8 IP, 0 ER, 5 baserunners, 11 Ks, ERA at 2.90. When the Rangers are shopping Minor at this offseason’s Winter Meetings, they should act it out like Christopher Walken playing Russian roulette in The Deer Hunter.
Yordan Alvarez – 2-for-5, 1 run and three homers on Saturday (15, 16, 17), hitting .355. As of this writing, Yordan was just outside the top 10 on the 30-day Player Rater, and just outside the top 20 for next year.
Jonathan Villar – 3-for-4, 1 run and 2 steals (25, 26), hitting .271. He took one wonk-ass route to fantasy value, but if he gets to a 17/35 season, he’s going to easily be worth the draft price.
Rio Ruiz – 2-for-5, 2 RBIs and his 7th homer, and 2nd homer in two games. The Rio runs through the schmotato patch! What, it’s a fertile land.
Edwin Diaz – 1 IP, 2 ER, ERA at 5.60. Apparently, Mickey Callaway wants his career buried next to Edwin’s effectiveness. Not sure why they’d ever go to Diaz again. He is singlehandedly ruining the greatest comeback story in sports, the Mets. Michael Lewis starts writing about how Mr. Met is making love to Mrs. Met and birthing the Mets nine months later, then they ruin it with Edwin Diaz. They need to go to Seth Lugo.
Juan Soto – Sprained his ankle as he was rounding third base. I need us to form a prayer circle in the shape of a sexy soda can and bow our heads sensually.
Aaron Civale – 6 IP, 1 ER, 4 baserunners, 5 Ks, ERA at 1.00. Here’s what I said previously on him, “Civale looks like a 6.5 K/9, 2 BB/9, 4.25 ERA pitcher, which is whatever outside of AL-Only leagues. On the other hand (were we using hands?), Civale doesn’t throw with much velocity, which is my new ‘he throws with a lot of velocity,’ so I’m just gonna be a subtle cyclops.” And that’s me quoting me! I’ve now officially moved from cyclops to I’m picking him up in deeper leagues.
Greg Allen – 2-for-5, 2 runs and his 3rd homer. Preseason sleeper alert!
Jose Berrios – 6 IP, 3 ER, 7 baserunners, 4 Ks, ERA at 3.29. Not to yell fire in the theater of Razzball, but he averaged 94.1 MPH from 2016-18 on his four-seamer, but is down to 92.1 in his last three starts. Insert squiggly-lipped emoji. “My name’s Mehphy.” Sorry, squiggly-lipped emoji. “Mehphy!”
Taylor Rogers – 1/3 IP, 4 ER as he gave up the game-winning grand slam to Carlos Santana (25th homer), ERA up to 2.68. Yo, Baldelli, you can go to other pitchers occasionally. Hayzeus eff Christmas, he’s overworking Rogers.
German Marquez – 8 IP, 3 ER, 7 baserunners, 9 Ks, ERA at 4.75. Now he goes home for his next start. So I can’t see how awful his next start turns out, please tie me in my basement…*dons Pulp Fiction gimp outfit, grunts when you shy away*
Josh Naylor – 1-for-4 and his 6th homer, 2nd homer in three games. Padres are hilarious how much they never want to play Wil Myers.
Ryan Yarbrough – 8 2/3 IP, 0 ER, 3 hits, zero walks, 8 Ks, ERA at 3.56, as Cash pulled him one-out from a complete game shutout. Hilarious effin’ Cash. Not to make this super basic, but start any pitcher vs. the Mariners.
Eric Sogard – 1-for-4 and his 13th homer, and has a ten-game hitting streak, which is why I’m questioning why I’m so stupid to drop him in one league. Any hoo! Hot schmotato alert!
Jakob Junis – 6 IP, 2 ER, 6 baserunners, 6 Ks, ERA at 4.80. I’m sure the Streamonator liked this start because it was against the Tigers. You just have to avoid Goodrum, which sounds like an episode of Bar Rescue.
Mike Montgomery – 7 IP, 0 ER, 4 baserunners, 12 Ks, ERA at 6.02. Even broken clocks are right twice a day, unless you go back and forth over the International Date Line.
Hunter Dozier – 3-for-5, 3 runs and his 21st and 22nd homer, and four homers in four games, hitting .285. I want to draft him for 2020 already.
Whit Merrifield – 2-for-5, 2 runs, 3 RBIs and his 14th homer, hitting .306. Fourteen homers? Do you even launch angle, bro?
Jorge Soler – 3-for-3, 5 RBIs and his 34th and 35th homer, and 3rd homer in two games. “Yeah, maybe we went too far.” That’s Our Commissioner Manfred cleaning juice off a baseball with a Shamwow.
Gibson or Lucchesi?
Dude, not to derail the good times baseball feeling for some dumb politics, but I just realized how cool New Hampshire is. They elected a congressman named Dick Swett. Instant legend.
Fun with small sample sizes. Prorated stats for Bichette if he would have started in March: He would have 75 doubles.
Aquino would have 878 homers.
Man, news about Pham doesn’t look so great. He may not be able to help me ROS. Drop for JDD? I have Alvarez, B. Reynolds, Eloy and Peralta. 12 team mixed roto. Peralta isn’t looking so hot either. Others available are ….
Anderson
Happ
Calhoun
Nah, you gotta wait to hear more news on Pham
Will do, Thanks . Great call on talking me out of dropping Minor for Pineda. Pineda goes to IL and Minor has a 2 start week tosses 15 shutout innings 2 W’s and a 18:2 KK:BB. You da man!
Playoffs.
Pham’s hand injury ha me worried. Drop him for a hot bat like Pillar or Teoscar or hold?
Wait for word
Ok got it
Thanks
Have a good night
You too!
They Grey
Would you drop
Ed-Rod for either Quintana or Reynaldo Lopez
Ed-Rod looks bad tonight and hasn’t been that good in
His last few
Quintana
Sorry same answer over
Lamet or Dillon Peters
Lamet at home or Peters at home
At this rate I wouldn’t be surprised if Ellsbury came back this week and hit .330 with 7 HRs the rest of the way. As impressive this season has been for the Yankees I feel like the playoffs are going to be a rude awakening.
Ha! Totally
Who says Managers don’t make a difference. Clint Hurdles prowess at keeping the lineup being posted until the last second is vastly underestimated.
HAHA
Drop Ender,Myers or Tapia for Happ?
Myers
Grey would you drop VanMeter, or Jose Martinez for Happ?
JoMa
ok I just did it. thanks.
OBP league…hold Franmil or drop for one of: JD Davis, B Anderson, Upton, Senzel, Kingery, B Reynolds, Margot
Thanks!
Davis
drop cooper for rojas?
Yes
Ugh catcher questions. Dropping Danny Jansen with his announced time share for Mejia, Molina or Alfaro?
Molina
LOL btw nice pronunciation by Anime Grey of Castillo in the video; I see someone slept through Spanish class. Luis Cas-TEE-yo.
Grey,
I am torn between three guys to pick up for Jose Martinez:
Yaz, Happ, or Inciarte (scares me with his .235 average)
Happ
ok thanks
would you drop VanMeter for Happ?
Thought you were dropping that other schmohawk
im debating between both
No problem
Do you still believe in caleb Smith ros? He seems like he has hit a wall. Still getting K’s but not the same dude we saw earlier. Hes been giving up a lot of homers. Are you using him at least at home in a 12 team league? Still probably gets k’s but this time of year preservation of ratios is important.
Huh? Yeah, what happened to him?
He has been giving up a lot of homers and hasnt been great since returning from the IL. He couldn’t get out of the 5th inning last time
He had a 3.48 ERA in July in 31 IP
10 Team H2H Points
Need 2 of 4 for the week
German Marquez vs Mia (@ Colo!)
Gallen @ Colo! ; vs SF
Luchessi vs TB ; @ Phil
Canning vs Pitt ; vs Chi WS
Thanks
Canning, German — Wheee, fun times!
Diamondbacks called up Josh Rojas. Think he’s worth a speculative add?
Where is he playing?
Drop Luis Urias for Josh Rojas?
Meh, can try him if the league is shallow since Urias is literally doing nothing
Saw that Jansen’s workload will be reduced in preparation for playoffs. I don’t know that that does to his projected saves total ROS. Would you drop him for Seth Lugo or no?
Nah, Lugo can’t go on back to back days
until Callaway realizes Lugo is the only guy who can get anyone out in the bullpen against the Braves and throws him out there for every game
We’re halfway thru August and he still hasn’t figured it out
Not sure why the Blue Jays want to roll Giles out there – are they not trying to trade him in the offseason?
They don’t know what they’re doing
10 team H2H Points
1. Pick one for this week only:
Matt Olson – [email protected], 4 vs Houst (including Verlander, Greinke, Cole)
Kingery – 3vs Chi Cubs, 3 vs SD
2. ROS Catcher:
D’Arnaud, Vasquez, Carson Kelly, Molina
Thanks
1. Olson 2. Vazquez
Should I drop Franmil Reyes for Ian Happ? I do realize this would mean Franmil will get hot and hit 10 homers this week.
Sure
Greetings Grey,
Below is my updated roster. I added Parra after seeing Soto get injured just in case it was more serious, and he’s filling in for Soto today. I also added Yonder for Coors (faces RHP Mon/Tue).
A) Available bats right now are: Kendrick (activated today from IL), Asdrubel, Arozarena (STL call up for JoMart), Haseley, Camargo. Which, if any would you switch up?
B) Gio (@WAS, @STL), Houser (@WAS, vs. ARI) and Davies are all on FA. Would you drop any of the following for them?
Austin Brice (holding out for hope of getting SAGNOF with shaky BP)
Lauer (vs.TB, @CIN, vs. BOS, @SF)
Wood (@WAS, vs.STL, @PIT, @MIA)
Musgrove (vs. WAS, @PHI, @COL)
Quantril (vs.TB, @CIN, vs.LAD, @SF)
NL-Only, 10-TM, H2H, 5×5 (OBP) – $280 Auction (Keep 5)
CA Smith
1B Rizzo
2B Hernandez
3B Rendon
SS Escobar
IF Longoria
OF Acuña Juña
OF Harper
OF Hoskins
OF Inciarte
UT Parra
B Yonder
SP Bauer, Ryu, Corbin, Mikolas, Musgrove, Wood, Quantrill, Lauer
RP Yates, L. Jackson, Austin Brice
IL Kimbrel
Thanks!!
Davies is no longer an option.
A. JoMart out for a while? Thought he was day-today…. I’d want Camargo over Longo who is so boring B. Wouldn’t really mess with any of these, but Musgrove’s matchups are garbage too… Houser over Musgrove
Thanks for the response!
A) JoMart was put on IL and Arozarena was brought up. He was 349/.435/.547 with 10 HRs and 16 SBs in 80 games between AA and AAA.
B) Yonder isn’t starting today, which is a little weird given the day he had yesterday. I’ll probably drop him tomorrow for Camargo. Parra will probably be the next guy out if Soto is only out a couple games.
C) I hear you about messing with my pitching staff. It’s so hit or miss this year. Luckily, the team I’m playing this week only has Paddock, Vargas, Limet, and May. He’s in last place, and he has a few SPs hurt, so he probably won’t spend the $ for streaming starters.
D) Houser is on waivers, so I’ll have to see if he clears. I don’t want to use a waiver pick on him and go back to the bottom. Tyler Beede is there also, and SON has him at $6 vs. OAK at home. Drop Musgrove for him, and then I can figure out who to drop for Houser.
A. Hmm… Interesting… I’d lose Parra for him
D. Okay, Beede at home
Thanks!
No problem
Thoughts on the callup of Joshua Rojas on Arizona? You grabbing him?
Seems to have awesome AAA stats this year.
Thanks!
I’m not grabbing him
Is he playing somewhere?
Yup, batting 6th tonight for Arizona.
Meh, I picked him up, whee!
Player A –
329 AB / 59 R / 20 HR / 51 RBI / .304 AVG / .273 xAVG / .550 SLG / .465 xSLG / 34.5% Hard Hit / 85.6 Exit Velo / 8.2 Launch Angle / 7.2% Barrel
Player B –
313 AB / 57 R / 17 HR / 61 RBI / .321 AVG / .311 xAVG / .572 SLG / .531 xSLG / 42.7% Hard Hit / 91.0 Exit Velo / 14.6 Launch Angle / 7.6% Barrel
Player A is Altuve
Player B is Urshela
Sometimes you have to block out the name recognition.
If only Altuve got the O’s 20 times a year
That too :)
Can anyone explain to me why the Twins manager will run Tsylor Rogers out there for a two inning save, then throw him again the very next day???
What kind of idiot does that? Does he not realize that by the time you count his warmup pitches for each day that he’s effectively pitched 4 or 5 inning??? What an effing D-Bag!!!!
Also, one more thing. … Aquino!!!!!
Aquino!
I love how the Orioles’ staff is like a roaming Coors field bringing gaudy offensive numbers to all they encounter. They’re like an ATM for counting stats.
As a Betts, Benintendi, and Vazquez owner – i’m licking my chops over that 3 game series this weekend
Haha
Great round-up Grey!
Do you like Puig or JD Davis in a 5×5 H2H league to help down the stretch?
Thanks,
LG
Thanks! Puig
10 team NL only 5×5 standard category roto league.
I was planning to sit L. Cain this week with only 5 games scheduled for MIL – but then Soto rolled his ankle….
Start Cain or Childish Bambino this week – super tight races across the categories (although I’m not desperate for SB help).
Thanks Grey
Cain
Hunter Dozier on fire!! But here comes the dreaded 5 game week. Start him over a 7 game slumping Franmil or Odor?
Start 2;
Hunter Doze 2vSTL, 3vNYM
Stinky Odor 4vMIN, [email protected]
Franmil 3vBOS, [email protected]
Sit Dozier
What are you thoughts on Heaney and Folty the rest of the way? I have a streamer spot where I could add one of them and I could drop one of:
Gibson (love/hate thing going on with him)
ReyLo (the joy ride second half seems close to crashing soon)
Yarbrough: soft tossing leftists-yeesh
Lamet: guy reminds me of Nuke Laloosh.
I was thinking of streaming Heaney and dropping ReyLo for Folty in 12 teamer H2H.
Thanks
They’re all matchups dependent
Would you add McKay over Wood?
Also last catcher question. Rank these guys ROS
Smith
Kelly
Mejia
d’Arnaud
Yes, but might matter on matchups and McKay might get shut down, but who knows with Wood
Smith, d’Arnaud
Rank these closers for ROS please:
– Workman
– Pagan
– Diaz
Thanks!
Pagan, Workman
How would your rank Juan Soto, Yordan Alvarez and Pete Alonso for 2020??
Alonso, Yordan…prolly
NO K’s in this league—– 4×4 R.O.Y. ??? Houser Ross T Williams Fedde…. please name top two… W then ERA matter most
None… Houser, Williams
Just posting to send a big shout out to Razz Ball! Clinched a first round bye and the overall #1 seed yesterday with 3 weeks still to play. Couldn’t have done it without you guys (and Christian Yelich)!
Nice!
Still holding Le Terminator? Mejia is looming
I could see flipping them
Would you recommend waiting a few days to see how both players do to start the week?
Sure
Or would you consider Smith over both of them?
Yes
In the hunt (as of aug. 12) for the NFBC OLC, I lost out on a bid Urshela, and got Tauchman instead, as well as J.D. Davis and Inciarte (need s.b.’s). Seems like I did ok, particularly ig Tauchman, Davis, and Inciarte get regular playing time.
What do you think ?
Think those guys have been awesome, now figure out how to get them all to hit vs. the O’s
Wanting to cut bait on Segura, which two would keep from this group?
Odor, Segura, McMahon, Sano, W. Calhoun, Happ?
I’d play matchups, McMahon at home, Sano
Manfred, the guy that was dropping serious money investigating Biogenesis and how they were making a mockery of the game… goes ahead and puts the steroids into the baseballs instead of the players. He gave Rawlings Tony Bosch’s prescription pad and told them “Micro-dosing is the thing of the past. We are macro-dosing the baseballs from here on out!”
Soler flares are going 390 ft.
I can’t wait until the end of the year comes and 50% of the league has career highs for home runs.
Imagine the arbitration impact of all of this!?
Anyway –
-Picked up AQUINO for the hefty price of dropping Ian Desmond (jokes) mid week last week. Can’t wait for his production to just stop dead now that I did that.
-Traded Trout, Pollock and Pineda for Cole, German and McKay. Pollock was dropped, so I picked him back up. Pineda to the IL. Trout is a beast, but I am chasing all pitching categories… went from 5th to first since the trade.
Who should I run out there this week (standard 5×5 roto):
-Alex Wood for 2 (@WAS, STL)
-Stroman vs (@ATL)
-Kyle Gibson vs (@MIL)
Haha, totally
You just jinxed Aquino, thanks!
Wood
Soler flares… i see what you did there.
Ha
Btw, I noticed that the NFBC folks have started hockey leagues this upcoming year. I used to play fantasy hockey in baseball offseason as I’m not a football guy and grew up going to Kings games. I stopped playing after the birth of my second child five years ago but may give it a go this year again since there are finally some money leagues in hockey. It’s points based both roto and h2h formats. Anyway, I’m pointing that out here since I noticed you cover hockey a little and maybe there are a few puck heads in this crowd that might care to give it a look.
You should hit up hockey.razzball.com — our head writer, Viz, is a pro poker player, I’m sure he’d get into the league with you and maybe post about it… We could also get you $25 off, prolly
Okay, thanks for the tip, sounds good. Will check in with him over on Razzball hockey.
No problem
Please rank ROS
Civale, Dustin May, cal Quantrill
May, Civale
I had six pitchers going yesterday and only room for five. Had Berrios in and Minor on the bench. Then I saw the Robot had Minor above Berrios. Wow what a call by the Robot!
Nice!
10 team H2H points league
Pick one to start this week
Paddack @ Phi (Velasquez) (SON 11.3)
or
Soroka vs LAD (Maeda) (SON 3.6)
Paddack
Here’s a weird last minute call for a weekly league pickup in a reliever spot.
Luis Cessa.
The Yankees play 8 games this week with the double header today and no off days, and only have 4 healthy starters. Cessa hasn’t pitched in 4 days. He should pitch bulk twice this week vs baltimore and then again vs Cleveland over the weekend. He’s pitched really well layely in multiple inning outings. Decent chance he shows up with a win and could get 8 innings of work over the week.
I’m starting him in 2 leagues this week
Esketit!!!
Ha
Hi Grey, one more question: I could drop Voit for Correa, or I could drop Ross Stripling for Kenley Jansen or R Osuna? Points league. What do you think? Seems Stripling will just be used in a middle relief role? Voit may have some value.
Thanks
Stripling for Jansen
Thanks, but I will go Osuna after this news just broke:
Jansen will be given more scheduled days off in an effort to prepare him for the playoffs, Mike DiGiovanna of the Los Angeles Times reports.
Analysis: Manager Dave Roberts indicated that he has spoken with Jansen about reducing his workload as he tries to right the ship and put an end to his recent struggles. Jansen will retain the closer position but will yield save opportunities on scheduled off days to other relievers, with Joe Kelly and Pedro Baez first in line for such chances. With the Dodgers firmly in control of the National League West, they have plenty of room to tinker with their bullpen as they gear up for another World Series run. This includes taking steps to get Jansen back on track, as he has blown two of his previous save opportunities and has posted a career-worst 3.74 ERA in 45 games this season.
Gotcha
The news above on Jansen is interesting. I own him in a shallow 10-team standard roto. I have Jansen, Rogers and Hand as my closers.
I’m in 1st place overall by about 20 points. I’m 2nd in the save category with 73 – seven behind. I’m 4 and 11 saves ahead of the two closest teams behind me in this category. If the Dodgers limit Jansen’s workload, how many more saves do you see him getting ROS? Should I drop him and pick up another bat like Urshela or Acquino for pop and average? The average category is tight among a handful of teams.
C Garver
1B DJ
2B Baez
3B Rendon
SS Story
OF Yelich, Acuna, Springer
UTIL Soto, Altuve
BENCH P. Alonso
SP Cole, deGrom, Morton, Clevinger
RP Jansen, Rogers, Hand
BENCH Buehler, Corbin
No one is getting more than 10 saves the rest of the way, so maybe he gets 7 — those OFs will never play on your team
Happy Monday, Grey!
SON says to flip a coin on E. Rodriguez today @ Clevland (0.6). The rest of my pitching matchups this week are money though. Should I…
A) Bench ERod so the rest of his owners (does anyone else still own ERod?) can benefit?
B) Roll the dice, because I didn’t make it to first place by playing it safe!
For what it’s worth, his line projected by SON would net me around 10 points if we don’t factor in a win or loss. An average ERod start is like 19 points.
Thanks!
B
Sounds good!
No problem
Matt carpenter looks so done.. guessing youd take garrett cooper ros over him yes?
Yes
Did you see this thing about Houser that he threw up on the mound during the first inning…and he’s done it before in various games?
Does he need a bucket?
Hahahahaha — WUT?
It’s pretty bonkers.
I guess its not any more disgusting that chewing dip. Barf=“the New Dip”. A good marketing point could be “reduces your chances of oral cancer” and “a good way to attract bulimic fans”.
Well his vomit appears to be clear/liquidy, so it’s probably a lot cleaner than dip. You ain’t cool, unless you barf on the mound!
This is true
Looks like Cruz will be back!
From the #MNTwins: “Nelson Cruz was examined by Dr. Thomas Graham today in New York. It was determined there is no damage other than the ruptured tendon in his left wrist and therefore no surgery is required.
He will resume baseball activities Tues, begin his hitting program.”
Yes, because a ruptured tendon sounds like “no damage”?!
Wow, dude is a monster
Hey Grey,
12 Team H2H Categories
Drop Dustin May for a 2 start Brendan McKay?
Thank You!
Nah
Well, I didn’t heed your advice on the Greek god of power—- Aristides (Air-iss-ta-dees) for last week’s FAAB in NFBC. I did surprisingly land him in one league for $35. He will start this week alongside the Acuna to his Soto, Yordan-o Alvarez. Next year I want an OF of Acuna-Soto-Alvarez-Aquino. Unlikely realistic but dreamers must have dreams. That $35 was dirt cheap though. One of my leagues he went for $600. I bet that same guy has regrets for not doing that a couple months back on Yordan-o.
I want Acuna in every league next year… I’m beginning to think Soto is slightly overrated for 5×5 since he doesn’t steal regularly…Obviously I still love him
Yeah, Soto may be more realistic about 70-85 ADP, more like Castellanos, Upton, Haniger coming into this year.
I’d Soto is fine at 20-30, but 30 HRs, .290 with runs and RBIs and a few steals is essentially every 3 hole hitter
Can I trust any of these 2 start pitchers this week to be somewhat helpful in a points league?
Vargas (v CHC, v SD)
Desclafani (@WAS, v STL)
Mitch Keller (@LAA, v CHC)
Merill Kelly (@COL, v SF)
Trust? No… If you need one, Vargas
Hey Grey,
H2H 12-team cat. keeper (keep12) balanced stats (R,H,HR,RBI,SB,BB,AVG, OPS,XBH / W,CG,SV,K,GIDP,ERA,WHIP,QS), limited moves (35 per year, *12 left*), no streaming.
The way I see my team below is I can drop one of Giles or Heaney when Kluber starts to pitch to bring him off the DL and save the other one (of Giles or Heaney and/or D. May as he will eventually get shut down) for playoff streaming. Either way, I’d like to save at least 10 for playoffs if you see anything worth swapping from the wire. Also, what are your thoughts on J. Cueto ?
Waiver wire
HIT –I. Happ, A. Duvall, R. McMahon, JD Davis, T. Hernandez, C. Dickerson, J. Kipnis, K. Schwarber, E. Sogard, A. Santander, S. Kingery, F. Galvis, S. Castro, E. Inciarte, H. Renfroe,
PIT- J. Cueto (DL), V. Velasquez, B. Keller, J. Waguespack, C. Bassit, S. Lugo, I. Nova, D. Norris, H. Bailey, J. Vargas, A. Civale, B. Anderson
RP- J. Leclerc, I. Kennedy, B. Workman, D. Law
My team:
C – W. Ramos
1B – A. Rizzo
2B – K. Marte
3B – C. Santana
SS –T. Turner
CI – E. Suarez
MI – G. Urshela
LF – J.D. Martinez
CF – C. Blackmon
RF – H. Dozier
Util – P. Goldschmidt
BN – C. Yelich DTD
SP – J. Paxton
SP – J. Verlander
SP – W. Buehler
RP – K. Jansen (RP)
RP – J. Hader (RP)
P – K. Giles (RP) DTD
P – F. Vazquez (RP)
BN – B. Mckay
BN – Z. Gallen
BN – D. Lamet
BN – D. May
BN – A. Heaney
DL – C. Kluber (60-DL)
Thanks bud
Marv
Hey Grey,
H2H 12-team cat. keeper (keep12) balanced stats (R,H,HR,RBI,SB,BB,AVG, OPS,XBH / W,CG,SV,K,GIDP,ERA,WHIP,QS), limited moves (35 per year, *12 left*), no streaming.
The way I see my team below is I can drop one of Giles or Heaney when Kluber starts to pitch to bring him off the DL and save the other one (of Giles or Heaney and/or D. May as he will eventually get shut down) for playoff streaming. Either way, I’d like to save at least 10 for playoffs if you see anything worth swapping from the wire.
Also, what are your thoughts on J. Cueto ?
Waiver wire
HIT –I. Happ, A. Duvall, R. McMahon, JD Davis, T. Hernandez, C. Dickerson, J. Kipnis, K. Schwarber, E. Sogard, A. Santander, S. Kingery, F. Galvis, S. Castro, E. Inciarte, H. Renfroe,
PIT- J. Cueto (DL), V. Velasquez, B. Keller, J. Waguespack, C. Bassit, S. Lugo, I. Nova, D. Norris, H. Bailey, J. Vargas, A. Civale, B. Anderson
RP- J. Leclerc, I. Kennedy, B. Workman, D. Law
My team:
C – W. Ramos
1B – A. Rizzo
2B – K. Marte
3B – C. Santana
SS –T. Turner
CI – E. Suarez
MI – G. Urshela
LF – J.D. Martinez
CF – C. Blackmon
RF – H. Dozier
Util – P. Goldschmidt
BN – C. Yelich DTD
SP – J. Paxton
SP – J. Verlander
SP – W. Buehler
RP – K. Jansen (RP)
RP – J. Hader (RP)
P – K. Giles (RP) DTD
P – F. Vazquez (RP)
BN – B. Mckay
BN – Z. Gallen
BN – D. Lamet
BN – D. May
BN – A. Heaney
DL – C. Kluber (60-DL)
Thanks bud
Marv
Forget Cueto — Lose Giles for Kluber, none of those other guys on waivers are necessary right now
awesome, thanks
No problem
1) In a vacuum, better bat to play this week (5×5 shallow roto league) J Upton (7 games vs Pirates and White Sox) or Kingery (6 games, vs Cubs and Padres). Looking for overall value, no specific category. Who would you roll with this week?
2) So, do we hold and start Marquez for his home start vs MIA (SON $21) later this week in a super shallow league, or drop and pick back up after for next start after in Arizona?
Upton
2. Start German
please rank ROS:
Odor,Isan,Ender and BrainAnderson. Thanks
Ender, Anderson
The Real Joey Bart in his column yesterday recommended streaming Jose Suarez today against the Pirates. SON liked him yesterday(+5-ish), but soured on him this morning(+0.7). What’s your take? Feels risky, but could use the two extra starts this week(second start is vs. CHW +15.2).
I saw Suarez, didn’t pick him up, don’t trust him
Slim pickens this week, but that’s what my gut says too. Thanks man!
No problem
Saurez has been a bit shaky from what i’ve seen of him. he’s had trouble with command and gets bailed out by his change up. could be lucky or could get rocked. i guess that goes for most, hahaha, but thats my 2 cents.
Appreciate the input!
Who would you rather have rest of season, at the utility position, in a points league:
Yordan Alvarez or Carlos Correa?
Thanks
Yordan
Last question because it’s on my mind. Sorry.
I wasn’t able to move an expiring contract of Altuve yesterday. I can retain him for 25% off draft price though in 2020. My current 2B, SS and MI are Mondesi, Tatis, Urias. I know it’s early, but do you think those 3 are a solid enough MI for me to not retain Altuve? In a pts league I love the first two, but Urias may not quite be there yet. Just your 2020 thoughts on the players I mentioned.
Thanks for all of your help today.
Mondesi/Tatis likely over Altuve even without keepers considered
For sure I’d keep those two at $1 per season. I think I’ll see how the rest of the season goes for Urias. Altuve for even $50 after discount ($300 cap) at one of those 3 slots is a good deal and would pair nicely with Mondesi and Tatis.
Altuve over Urias
I’m in an MLB Survivor league, where you have to pick a team that must win at least half their games in a given week – can only use each team once. I’m down to scraps now…below are my best two choices left for this week. Any strong preference?
Colorado (6 at home) – 3 vs ARI, 3 vs MIA (Lambert 2 starts)
Toronto (6 at home) – 3 vs TEX, 3 vs SEA (Stewart 2 starts, after Opener)
Jays
That was my lean too. Lambert is just…yuck. Stay hot Jays!
Thanks!
No problem
Great writeup! I got Yord of the Rings in FAAB for $26 this year, thinking he was a non keeper (would be keepable for $29). But he’s starting to look pretty tasty despite that price! ($260, 12 team roto)
Anyway, got a pretty specific question for you…
12 team roto, weekly lineups (9 for pitchers). I’m in a tight tight race but just overtook first. I’m leading in ERA and way ahead in Wins. I’m middle of pack for saves, with 3-4 points to gain if i can gain 4-5 saves.
To try and make up the difference, would you start 4 or 5 closers if you don’t have great SP matchups?
Specifically, that would mean starting Leclerc and Lugo as my rp4 and rp5 then benching wood’s 2 starts (wash and stl) and plesacs 2 starts and also not starting scherzer (who may or may not start Sunday).
Thanks!
Yordan will go for more than that, but not sure how much more or other options
Yeah, go Leclerc and Lugo
Morning!
12-team league (redraft); is Mercado droppable?
My current OF (start 3) looks like:
– Trout
– Alvarez
– Aquino
– Mercado
(and H. Dozier with his OF eligibility can be swapped in)
Thanks in advance
Sure
Travis D’Arnaud or Christina Vazquez? 5×5 with Ks and OBP
Vazquez
Acuna has 6 homers and 3 steals the last 7 days, hitting over 400 in that stretch. Last season he got scorching hot, I could see him going insane and winning the mvp.
Totally, he’s moved into 2nd place on Player Rater, nearly moving in front of Yelich
AWhile back Grey, you told me to not have such a young staff, since they’re not consistent. So, over the past month, I made some deals to try to rectify that. How does this staff look like going into 2020 (trade deadline just passed).
SP – Ohtani, Grienke, C. Smith, Paddack, Gallen
RP – J. James, Stripling, W. Smith
FA in our draft: deGrom, Sale, Bauer, Clevinger, Severino, Snell, Berrios,….possibly Thor, G. Cole, if not kept by other owners due to high prices. I have a lot to spend on a few opening roster spots.
11 team 330 deep keeper pts league, without knowing other staffs, how does this look for 2020 (I realize it’s early).
Looks solid!
Bradley
Start Gardner
With Isan headed to the Rocky Mtns for 3 games struggling with weekly lineup (R. Tapia home for all 6) leaning towards sitting Hoskins (6 @ home) Hosmer (3 home/3 away) and V. Robles (6 @ home) Hos, Hos, and Vic have been a real drag. Please rank for this week:
I. Diaz
Tapia
Santander
Hoskins
Hosmer
V. Robles
5X5 Roto – Thanks for your opinions!
Hoskins, Hosmer, Isan
10 team H2H points league
Pick one to start this week
McKay vs SD (Lauer) (SON 17.1)
or
Soroka vs LAD (Maeda) (SON 3.6)
McKay
Can you rank these questionable closers ROS for saves:
Melancon
Workman
LeClerc
Workman, Leclerc
I have to keep one of these 2 guys, as I only have one move remaining: Nelson Cruz or Luke Voit. Points league. Who would you keep? I have to decide before the 12:05 game today.
Thx
Voit
Team has the injury bug and feeling the squeeze on # of batters. Are any of the below droppable (in 1st currently)?
C: Contreras
2B: Mondesi
OF: Dahl
Thanks!
They’re all droppable
goddamn it, i had all 3 at one point – still stashing Contreras and have Mondesi on the IL for myself. Though I should be making the playoffs which start in 3 weeks for me (4 if I get a 1st round bye) so that’s why I’m holding Contreras
Gotcha
a) SON always loves Brandon Mckay it seems and can’t figure out why. He hasn’t had a QS since his first outing but has solid starts and his FIP and xFIP are around 3.7. Trust him for his next start at Padres ($19)?
b) Don’t know if I can afford to lose two starts but: Starting Gallen in Coors tomorrow (-$22)?…Starting RAY in Coors (-$8)? Ray doesn’t actually pitch that badly in Coors for his career or this season. Career @ Coors: 36 IP, 4.2 ERA, 2.7 FIP, 3.67 xFIP, 1.76 WHIP, 11.1 K/9, 4.5 BB/9
c) Similar question on Mondesi as guy a little above. I feel like one extra spot would be helpful this time of the year and I have Kluber Mondesi Contreras down with 2 DL spots. Is it worth it to drop Mondi or Willy now? We have this week and two more until first week of playoffs. Playoffs are 3 weeks long.
c cont’d.): (sorry) I’ve missed out on a lot of the young hitters that come up raking (Aquino, etc) because I hold players for too long. Would use the extra spot taken up by a DL guy to try Happ probably.
I would’ve dropped Mondesi weeks ago, Contreras was dropped in multiple leagues of mine
A. Yes
B. These are terrible, neither
I’m in a fifteen team NFBC with both these guys on one team or another so there are weekly lineups and limited FA’s. So, in one league I have both. Ray is worth the risk for me no doubt. If I bench Gallen at Coors I lose the second start at hone vs. SF. My other options are Yamamoto at him vs LAD and on road at Coors or Elesier vs. LAD. Im going with the former two so wish me luck.
In any event we play categories not names. If I have a two start guy and my greyest odds for gaining ground is W’s and K’s I’ll overlook the potential implosion in ERA and WHIP if it makes sense. In the Razzball NFBC you could say I made a mistake by not starting Folthy last week despite his mediocre ratios. Case in point. I needed W’s and K’s so I blew it by not starting him despite it being “unadvisable” to start him.
In a dog fight for the playoffs. Gotta sit one the following this week
Soler (only 5 games but hot)
Bichette
Aquino
Ozuna
No idea of matchups, but I guess Soler
Soler vs Mets later this week, so that could be a bad matchup (Thor, DeGrom)… prob the best strategically
10 team
Bench bat: Segura or Hosmer?
thanks man!