One Man’s Trash: Choo Still Chugging Along

I still can’t believe it took us so long to figure out The Seoul Train nickname for Shin Soo Choo. No wonder we don’t get paid the big bucks. I think it was Rudy who finally figured it out. So freaking good. Anyways, that’s another reason why you should subscribe to the award-winning (courtesy of The Son Awards) tools and projections. Best in the biz. Back to…..aaah Choo. Gesundheit. Jay “Who Is Never” Wrong wrote up a good piece on Choo back in March, which you can find HERE. Read it. Since I wrote up Shogo Akiyama earlier this week, I wanted to keep the asian flavor going, so let’s get the spiciness flowing.

Over the past three years, Choo has been a model of consistency. He’s played around 150 games each season, accrued around 650 plate appearances, clubbed 20 home runs, scored 90-ish runs, driven in 60 RBI, and stolen around 10 bases each season (only 6 in 2018). The walk rate has been around 12%, strikeout rate in the low-20% range, with a slash of .260/.370/.440. Interestingly, the SLG has increased in each of the past three seasons. All that at the ripe ages of 36, 37, and 38 years old. Chugga chugga Choo Choooooooo!!!!

Please, blog, may I have some more?

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See all of today’s starting lineups

#	MLB Starting Lineups For Sun 8/17
	ARI \| ATH \| ATL \| BAL \| BOS \| CHC \| CHW \| CIN \| CLE \| COL \| HOU \| KC \| LAA \| LAD \| MIA \| MIL \| MIN \| NYM \| NYY \| PHI \| PIT \| SD \| SEA \| SF \| STL \| TB \| TEX \| TOR \| WSH \| DET \| OAK

The Case for Adrian Houser to be 2020’s MVFP

by: Hobbs

If you’re reading this, it’s Thursday — Opening Day 2020. Drafts are pretty much done with and, if you still have one yet to go, holy shit, you’re giving me anxiety just thinking about it. I wrapped up my final NFBC draft this past Monday and, as I’ve become accustomed to since the onset of my 2020 draft season back in early March, I got yet another share of Adrian Houser. Now, if you read our 2020 Razzball Fantasy Baseball Staff Picks, you know I already made some bold predictions about Houser this season. Not only did I pick Houser to become the Most Valuable Fantasy Pitcher (MVFP), but I also tabbed him to win the NL Cy Young. Truthfully, I probably should have stopped at MVFP, because that alone would have demonstrated the statement I’m trying to make about Houser while increasing my chances of being correct. But I’m not here to toot my own horn and act like I know everything about fantasy baseball — I’m here to inform our readers and, if just one lucky soul added Houser as a result of my boldness, I believe I’ve succeeded in my mission.

Please, blog, may I have some more?

FanDuel: Happy (Re)Opening Day

July 23, 2020 | 2020 Fantasy Baseball, DFS, Fanduel |

by: MattTruss

Hello fellow DFSers and WELCOME to (Re)Opening Day 2020! Wooo! We made it! I have a sneaky suspicion that DFS usage will be up across the board this season as it seems like the ideal way to handle a season with so many question marks. To celebrate the occasion, FanDuel is kicking things off by giving everyone with an existing account ten free dollars. $10…FREE! How great is that!? Go enjoy some free DFS and try to turn that $10 in something more! Drafting season long teams in July seemed like just going through the motions. You had no idea if the player you drafted was even going to be around in two weeks, was even in the country yet, had COVID, had symptoms or just tweaked their back. Mike Trout could miss some weeks when his baby is born, or could be done for the season at that point. Who knows!? What we do know is we can make these decisions daily based on who is actually at the park. Paying attention to lineups this season will be vital as a player could show up with a fever and not be allowed to play, so follow those beat writers closely and check lineups often. Along with that, we have a DH in the NL now, which opens up more hitting options for us and could allow NL pitchers to go deeper into games. Speaking of pitchers, I feel as though I’ll be paying up for pitchers more this season than in year’s past. I have a feeling there will be more “openers” and bullpen games this year with only 60 games, making those starters who can go 7+ even more valuable. I won’t be messing with many cheap starters this year unless the match-up is choice. I just don’t think there will be many long leashes. It could be the year of the long reliever. With only two games on the Opening Day slate, picks will be in short supply so I thought I’d muse a bit on the upcoming season and it’s strategy.

New to FanDuel? Scared of feeling like a small fish in a big pond? Well, be sure to read our content and subscribe to the DFSBot for your daily baseball plays. Just remember to sign up through us before jumping into the fray. It’s how we know you care!

Please, blog, may I have some more?

Marcus’s Calf Goes Off Like A Stroman Candle

July 23, 2020 | Fantasy Baseball Daily Notes | 378 Comments

by: Grey

Marcus Stroman went from calf tightness to a tear. That’s what the cow said! Huh? Sorry, I’m a little freakin’ delirious because I own Stroman in not one, not two–I can’t even count how many leagues I own him in because I don’t have enough fingers and toes, and this is a PG show and we can’t count with anything else, you absolute pervs! Hey, serious question, has anything ever good happened to the Mets? Not to get all metaphysical rolling magnets around my shakras, but The Curse of The Bambino became The Curse of 1986. I won’t hear different. Bill Buckner allie-kazoo’d some voodoo on Mookie Wilson and the Mets have never been the same. Alas, I would drop Stroman in every league, aside from maybe NL-Only, but even there it’s pretty meh. He’s week-to-week, so maybe he returns by the end of August. What are you holding that for? The S’s and G’s train left the station a long time ago. Anyway, here’s what else I saw yesterday in fantasy baseball:

Please, blog, may I have some more?

Rookie Leaderboards: Home Runs, Stolen Bases, and Saves

July 22, 2020 | Fantasy Baseball Prospects | 13 Comments

by: The Itch

In a blurry baseball universe, one thing that’s clear about 2020 is the numbers will look funky.

I will miss the number 30, especially.

We had some good times.

And sometimes we’d double up 30/30 . . . those were the days . . .

I suppose we could rally around 30 Runs or RBI?

Nah that’s ridiculous, and only Kyle Lewis or apex Giancarlo could hit 30 home runs in 60 games, so we should probably say our goodbyes to those curvy round benchmarks. Funky numbers only from here on out! 11? Come on down! 17? Wow that’s a lot of whatevers in 2020!!

As part of this ongoing effort to make my funk the P funk, I’m building rookie leaderboards with concrete Miss Cleo numbers. Projections, if you’re nasty.

Here’s a funky song to play while you imagine the future.

Please, blog, may I have some more?

Charting the Future: Multi-Position Premium

July 22, 2020 | 2020 Fantasy Baseball | 3 Comments

by: TheTinDoor

The great Jeff Zimmerman (Fangraphs, The Process, etc.) recently revisited a topic that’s always ripe for debate: what kind of extra value does a multi-position player get, compared to those who only play one position? We can all agree that multi-position is better than single; quantifying that value, however, proves more difficult. A few years ago, Rudy assessed this briefly in his seminal piece, “Debunking Positional Scarcity“, and recommends adding a $1 for multi-position players.

Jeff’s article took a different approach: instead of measuring what a player’s value should be, he attempted to measure the actual impact in terms of draft cost. In other words, what premium does the market place on these players? Read the full piece; Jeff estimates ~$3.20 bump on average.

While I like the goal (understanding market premiums), Jeff’s methodology (comparing the draft cost of two similarly-projected players) was limited in scope. So I’ve set out to do additional analysis with the same goal: measuring the market premium of multi-position players.

Please, blog, may I have some more?

Fantasy Baseball Podcast: Cardinals Baseball with Chelsea Ladd

July 22, 2020 | All Podcasts |

by: Brent

Chelsea Ladd (@chelseabrooke), from Dugout Dish joins the show to breakdown the St. Louis Cardinals squad. We find out how her baseball career got started and where she wants her brand to grow. We breakdown the old, but reliable lineup that includes Paul Goldschmidt, Yadier Molina and Matt Carpenter. What kind of impact they can have in a 60 game season? We dive into the rotation led by Jack Flaherty. Will Carlos Martinez be in the starting rotation or a bullpen piece moving forward? We discuss these topics and get to know Chelsea more with our rapid fire questions!

Please, blog, may I have some more?

Heads Up! H2H Categories Week 1 – Domo Arigato Mr. Akiyama

July 22, 2020 | 2020 Fantasy Baseball, Fantasy Baseball Head-to-Head Leagues | 6 Comments

by: Richardo

Baseball is finally here as the regular season starts on Friday! In this weekly article, I’ll attempt to bring to light lower-owned players that are adds to help you stay ahead of the competition and win your league. This is a sprint, not a marathon, so now is not the time to get attached to those slow starters. Normally, they’d have time to turn it around, but with a 60 game season, a couple of struggling bats or arms could drag your team to the bottom of the standings. With that in mind, here are some Week 1 options to get you started on the right path.

Shogo Akiyama, OF, CIN – 24% owned on ESPN and CBS – Akiyama is penciled into the leadoff spot for the Reds and they get six games against the hapless Tigers rotation to start the season. The other four games come against the Cubs, where they’ll face Tyler Chatwood and Alec Mills in two of those games. Akiyama has been scouted with “above average plate skills”, while most projection systems have him hovering around a 9% walk rate. With Joey Votto, Eugenio Suarez, Nick Castellanos, and Mike Moustakas batting behind Akiyama, he should score plenty of runs out of the gate. If Akiyama is still available in your leagues, now is the time to add him.

Please, blog, may I have some more?

If I Didn’t Have Bad Lux, I’d Gavin None At All

July 22, 2020 | Fantasy Baseball Daily Notes | 271 Comments

by: Grey

I never really liked Gavin Lux. Never drafted him before. Not the kind of guy I buy usually. I want big power or speed upside from my rookies. Especially speed. Five category? Well, Luis Robert can canoodle my noodle any time. Nick Madrigal? Okay, fine, but his hit tool is insane. Carter Kieboom? More like a Kie-fizzle in that platoon. I want dem wheels or dem big muscles. Gavin Lux does what? Few homers and a few steals, and hits maybe .260? I never draft that! Dot dot dot. Usually. I can’t believe I’m rostering that ess oh bee on my Tout Wars team. I think I was price enforcing, that’s at least the story I’m going with and don’t end sentences with with — dah! If Chris Taylor really does get 60-games’ worth of ABs over Lux, it doesn’t make him a posh upgrade, but simply a good flyer due to lineup, i.e., counting stats vs. a Taylor H.A.M. sighting. I moved down Gavin Lux in my top 500 and top 20 2nd basemen. Hopefully, Gavin Lux is up after only six games to a week, due to service time. He must’ve ruffled some feathers when he complimented Lasorda by saying he really liked the “sauce” at the team’s quarantine spaghetti dinner. IT IS GRAVY!!! Anyway, here’s what else I saw yesterday in fantasy baseball:

Please, blog, may I have some more?

2020 Razzball Fantasy Baseball Staff Picks

July 21, 2020 | 2020 Fantasy Baseball | 24 Comments

by: Jay

Welcome to another season of Razz-matazz Fantasy Baseball. Now with more social distancing! (Jokes on them, basement social distancing is easy!) So despite the pandemic, here we are with another year of staff picks. So what’s the goal with this? Hashtag content, baby. (That’s the technical term.) There’s another goal though, one less self-fulfilling, unlike your mother. Despite the modern advancement of technology and science, we still have no way to have every writer provide their extended take on every single player in the MLB. We try though! And so we have this quick-and-easy (I regret burning my “yo momma” joke now…) presentation that provides you, the Razzmatazzball community a viewer-friendly and succinct breakdown of how we feel about the upcoming season. The general gist? WEAR YOUR MASK. True MVP’s stay together people.

So without further ado, here are our Official 2020 Razzball Picks! (Be sure to share yours in the comments section!)

Please, blog, may I have some more?

Fantasy Baseball Podcast: On The Eve Of The 60 Game Sprint

July 21, 2020 | All Podcasts | 1 Comment

by: Geoff

Where will the Blue Jays play? Who will close for the Pirates? Will Yasiel Puig suit up in 2020? Will A.J. Puk and Jesus Luzardo ever pitch for the Athletics? Kieboom to Kie-toon with Asdrubal Cabrera. All this and a breakdown of the top FAAB bids in TGFBI this past weekend. There’s a lot to cover and half of it won’t be true by Saturday. The wackiness of the 60 game season is upon us. If you’re like me you’re strapping on your helmet (mandatory I wear one while using the inter-webs per my doctor), and getting ready for more twists and turns than any country road. It’s the latest episode of the Razzball Podcast and I lost my car keys.

Please, blog, may I have some more?

Bear or Bull: Fo Shogo

July 21, 2020 | 2020 Fantasy Baseball, Bear or Bull | 20 Comments

by: Son

I usually have FOMO when it pertains to Japanese imports: cars, video games, sushi, anime, toilets, and baseball pitchers. I just learned that there’s a concept called JOMO, which is the joy of missing out. L. O. L. Well, I get JOMO when it comes to Godzilla, radioactive fish, and baseball hitters from Japan. But, but, but….there are always exceptions to the rule. Hideki Matsui, coincidentally nicknamed Godzilla, was amazing and so was Ichiro, but the rest of the list is the aftermath of eating that five-eyed fish. So, where will new import, Shogo Akiyama, fit into the spectrum?

Akiyama is 31 years old, 6′ 0″, 190 pounds, and bats from the left side. He played nine years in the JPPL and put up some impressive numbers. In 2015, he had 216 hits in 143 games and, over the past five years, has always produced over 170 hits per season. Over the last three seasons, he’s clubbed over 20 homers, stolen at least 10 bases, had a batting average over .300, and OBP hovering close to .400. He has five-category skills, but it’s the JPPL, so that sort of production is unrealistic to expect his first season in MLB. So what can we expect?

Please, blog, may I have some more?