Happy almost-Fall Equinox, deep-leaguers! We’ve continued to tick the days off the calendar and here we are with just over a week to go in this glorious time of year we like to call the fantasy baseball season. I seem to forget each year how random (and often frustrating) setting a lineup gets each September, with expanded rosters wreaking havoc on playing time situations, pitching rotations, and accurate injury reports, but it will all be in the rear-view mirror soon enough. If nothing else, in the deep-league world, this is a good time of year to keep an eye on the teams at the bottom of the standings, looking for that proverbial diamond in the rough. This week we’ll concentrate on guys who’ve been getting regular playing time for bad teams. I find bad MLB teams are always a great place to look for deep-league fantasy help, and perhaps never more so than these last weeks, when players who would be lucky to be scraping together a few at bats for a contending team often find themselves in an eliminated team’s lineup daily. As is our deep-league norm, it’s unlikely any of these players will make a standard-league fantasy impact any time soon (or perhaps ever), but some may be of interest to those in NL-only, AL-only, or other deep leagues – either for the last days of 2018, or for us to put a pin in for when we head into the 2019 season and beyond.
Please, blog, may I have some more?I don’t have enough spam, give me the Razzball email newsletter!
Weekly Razzball news delivered straight to your inbox.
Jose Altuve was the clear cut number two coming into the 2018 season. As a matter of fact, there were some “experts” that even dared to put him ahead of Mike Trout. Personally I though that was about as silly as drafting the oft injured James Paxton in the earlier rounds. Fool me once James. I guess that’s why I put the word expert in quotes when referring to those of us that write down our thoughts and call it advice. Altuve has averaged about 512 points a season over the last four seasons with 0.738 points per plate appearance. That’s pretty damn good. However, my preseason rankings had him as the fourth hitter behind Mike Trout, Nolan Arenado and Mookie Betts. Overall I also had Max Scherzer, Chris Sale and Corey Kluber ahead of Altuve. Regardless, he was an obvious first round pick.
Please, blog, may I have some more?Boy, where did 2018 go. This DFS baseball season has flown by, and hopefully you, my loyal readers, have had immense success this year (and hopefully I helped!). As we get into the last 10 days of the regular season, things can get a little wonky in DFS. Let’s look at some general strategy, and some picks for today on FanDuel.
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?[brid autoplay=”true” video=”297637″ player=”10951″ title=”Fantasy Baseball Mailbag Week 25″]
This is going to blow your mind. Before you read any further, I want you to take some precautions. Grab some masking tape from your “Never Used Shizz” drawer and wrap it around your head. Whoa, whoa, whoa! You didn’t just wrap your head with masking tape, covering your eyebrows, did you? Hmm, well, when you remove that tape, you’re gonna look like Phil Simms. (Hint: He’s got no eyebrows.) Okay, I told you to avoid Tommy Pham in the preseason, due to his draft price, and ranked him 31st for all outfielders. On our Player Rater going into yesterday’s game, he was ranked 31st. *does Ace Ventura victory dance on the porch* I have exorcised the demon! Yesterday, he had one of his best games of the season, if not best (yes, too lazy to look), he went 3-for-5 with his 18th and 19th homer, hitting .266, but hitting .327 on the Rays, and if he wasn’t derailed by an injury when he first arrived in Tampa, he’d be doing better (or worse as his BABIP stabilized; it’s ~.500 in September). I could see letting up on my hate on Pham in 2019, but he’s still old and has stopped running, so the price will need to be much more reasonable. Okay, you can remove the tape now. Hey, eyebrows are overrated (like Tommy Pham coming into this year). Anyway, here’s what else I saw yesterday in fantasy baseball:
Please, blog, may I have some more?Razzball’s own Paul The Martian (on Twitter @PaulTheMartin) makes a guest appearance on this week’s Ditka, Sausage Pod! Discussion topics include 2019 #2earlymock drafts, Yankees players, The Martian’s expectations for Nolan Gorman, Alex Kiriloff, Keston Hiura, and Jesus Luzardo, as well as, potential tax evasion techniques, and of course, some flat earth discussion.
Are Aaron Judge and Christian Yelich fantasy first rounders for 2019? Acuna or Vlad in dynasty leagues? Gleyber or Andujar for rookie of the year? Who is Black Grapefruit?
Find out the answer to all of these questions in addition to why Mallex Smith was forced to seek a restraining order against Paul, right here:
Please, blog, may I have some more?Even though he may not have reached his preseason expectations, Tommy Pham has put together a strong season and could still finish as a top 30 outfielder. His power-speed combo out of the Rays’ cleanup spot makes him an attractive target today in Texas. Globe Life Park is one of the best hitting environments in the league, especially during the day. Facing off against Yohander Mendez makes this an even better matchup for Pham, because:
A) Mendez sucks
B) Pham hits lefties better than righties, and
C) he’s projected for 0.0 points on Draft.
That’s right, as at time of writing, Draft has placed a 0 point projection on Pham (I’m assuming accidentally), so you should be able to grab him with one of your last picks.
New to Draft? 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 you do. It’s how we know you care!
Please, blog, may I have some more?[brid autoplay=”true” video=”297637″ player=”10951″ title=”Fantasy Baseball Mailbag Week 25″]
Why do I keep hearing in my head Deniece Williams? “Let’s hear it for the boy! Let’s give that ball a hand!” Am I the only one hearing that? Recently, Jameson Taillon mentioned that he always smells the ball before playing catch. What is with guys smelling balls? Don’t pretend I’m the only one! Is that a carryover from our gorilla days? I’m like John Scopes with a monocle! Speaking of evolution, I was recently thinking about how we’ve managed to stand upright, but thousands of years and we’re not using our feet as hands yet? Like you wouldn’t take three hands and hop on one leg all day, please. Any hoo! Jameson Taillon threw a gem yesterday — 7 IP, 0 ER, 5 baserunners, 11 Ks, ERA at 3.24. I’m going to like him in 2019, as I’ve liked him for the last few years, but I can’t say I’m as excited about his 8 .4 K/0, 2.2 BB/9 and 3.56 xFIP as I wish I were. His fastball velocity of 95 MPH should be producing a tad more. I think there’s a 10 K/9 in there somewhere, but since he’s basically repeated his previous year’s stats, it’s hard to expect that much more in 2019. Still, have to give the ball a hand! Anyway, here’s what else I saw yesterday in fantasy baseball:
Please, blog, may I have some more?Everybody needs to be on high alert, Razzball HQ’s location might possibly be in flux. While most of the operations this summer have been run from Grey’s desert fortress, (apologies again, to all the interns that passed talking Ted for walks in the Palm Springs sun. We’ll tip a Steel Reserve in your memory.) Madam Cougs has been hard at work preparing the SAGNOF mansion for the marketplace. For the first 70 or so minutes Grey takes us through the trials and tribulations of the Albright’s real estate venture. All the while assuring us, that the fact their entire building is selling has nothing to do with roaches, mice, vagrants, or the murder that happened on the 3rd floor. After that we talk baseball, lots of it. Mostly pitching as we dive into some names that under-performed in 2018, but could be due for a bounce-back in 2019. Yeah we talk Luis Castillo, Madison Bumgarner, Michael Wacha and more. It’s the latest episode of Razzball Fantasy Baseball Podcast. As always, go and checkout our sponsor Rotowear.com and use our promo-code SAGNOF to get 20% off all of your purchases.
Please, blog, may I have some more?This little piggy went to market. This little piggy stayed home. This little piggy had roast beef. This little piggy had none. This little piggy went….Wee, wee, wee, all the way home! (Head Shoulders Knees and Toes and Other Action Rhymes). Well, my Puigy went to the ballpark. My Puigy stole second. My Puigy stole third. My Puigy sometimes sits which makes him sad. But when he plays and gets a pitch to hit…..Wee, wee, wee, he flips the bat and makes his way home! Yasiel Puig has been en fuego since the start of the month: .367/.457/1.000 with 6 home runs and 2 stolen bases. The ISO is at .633, walk rate is 14.3% while the strikeout rate is 11.4%!!! I’m squealing like a little piggy right now. Anyways, can this Puig make championship banners fly high?
Please, blog, may I have some more?Something came up in the comments of my last Razzball Commenter Leagues article that I thought I’d address this week. This is something veteran RCLers from the ESPN days will recall and you’ll also be familiar with this concept if you play in Yahoo Pro Leagues or something similar. The idea is that you can maximize your pitching counting stats by manipulating the day you go over your 1400 IP. In the ESPN days this was manipulating the day you went over the 180 GS limit by getting to 179 GA and then loading up 9 starters and hitting 188 GS. The same thing applies here with the IP limit (and also in Yahoo leagues) in that on the day you go over the 1400 IP limit all of your pitching stats count for that day. So, let’s say you work it so you get to 1398 IP, then you load up 9 starters the next day. If all 9 starters last 5 IP, you’d hit 1443 IP and thus gain an extra 43 IP of strikeouts and possibly earn an extra win or two along the way. The risk is obvious. I have a hard enough time pulling one streamer out of the free agent pool that won’t obliterate my ratios, nevermind eight! Unless you are holding a slim lead in the ratios that you don’t want ruined, there’s not much to lose in maxing out your stats though. So far we’ve had one manger take the shot. We’ll take a look at how they made out and more from the week that was, week 24 below:
Please, blog, may I have some more?Get in as much MLB on Draft.com as you can before the summer is gone. Football is already pulling at our attention. The weather will (hopefully) begin to cool and windows can be left open through the night. There’s nothing quite like the strong sleep brought on by cool outside air moving through your bedroom. A good DFS lineup is a close second, though. Unearthing a gem like Jake Bauers on the right night is a great rush. Here are a few more plus plays.
New to Draft.com? 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?[brid autoplay=”true” video=”297637″ player=”10951″ title=”Fantasy Baseball Mailbag Week 25″]
*spraypaints Foltynewicz incorrectly on the bumper of my car* “Okay, Cougs, now back this car up over my head. Why are you arguing with me? I see the way you look at me when I burp in public, just back the damn car up over my head! I’m looking for a visual metaphor here!” So, how was your Monday? Mine was just terrific! Not as terrific as Ryan Borucki, apizzarently. On my tombstone it’s going to read, “He died from a miserable September in his fantasy leagues, of course. Dur.” I mean, Jesus Aguilar Christmas Effin’ Christ, what in the holy name! Okay, okay, OKAY! Back to Borucki. Yesterday, he went 8 IP, 0 ER, 4 baserunners, 7 Ks, ERA at 3.86, which is a helluva lot better than Faultywhichwhich! Borucki’s K-rate (6.1), his walk rate (2.8) and his 4.57 xFIP leave piles and piles to be desired. However (throw out everything Grey just said!), the Stream-o-Nator does like his next start a teensiest bit, and I could see streaming him. “Now back up the car!” Anyway, here’s what else I saw yesterday in fantasy baseball:
Please, blog, may I have some more?