In nineteen-aught-eight, William Howard Taft defeated William Jennings Bryant for the presidency; the 4th Olympics took place in London under the glower of crooked teeth; Cy Young pitched his 2nd no-hitter with nary an undershirt; Henry Ford called a Jewish toddler a “baby of suspicious origin;” Orville Wright laid out his plans for flight which included “a crappy bag of peanuts to all passengers and getting hit in the head by elbows as other passengers walk down the aisle,” and Leon Trotsky ate a bean and cheese burrito, getting explosive, uncontrollable diarrhea which resulted in excessive swearing and fist clenching, hence the term “the trots.” 1908 was also famous as being the last year Michael Taylor wasn’t a fantasy baseball sleeper. We’ve come a long way since then. The remarkable thing about this bit of trivia is it would lead one to believe Michael Taylor was a sleeper as early as 1909, yet he’s still only 26 years old. There’s something to be said for aging well, and being bad at math. Yes, we’ve come to the end of our fantasy baseball rookie posts and we’re onto our fantasy baseball sleepers. You’re very welcome. So, what can we expect from Michael Taylor for 2018 fantasy baseball and what makes him a sleeper?
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.
I’m excited to announce that I’ve already participated in my first 2018 fantasy baseball mock draft. And here’s the crazy part, it’s still 2017. Mind blown! Last week Scott White from CBS invited me to join his first mock of the season. While one might have thought I would have passed on the offer considering the 2017 World Series had completed only three weeks earlier, I jumped at the opportunity. And when I say “jumped” I mean I shrugged and said to myself, “What the heck.”
The format for the mock league was head-to-head points using standard CBS scoring. Those of you that have read my posts during the last three years will know that I am a points league kinda guy. My content is focused on this format. What better way to get an early start on some new material than to join eleven other top notch analysts in a way too early mock draft.
Please, blog, may I have some more?This one feels a year away from fantasy production, but since the Dodgers promoted Alex Verdugo this past September, and let him get at-bats, I’m on a fence with hedges all around me. Or maybe it’s a hedge maze like in The Shining. Or the Shinning with Groundskeeper Willie. Or maybe it’s a fence made of hedges. Or a fence made of hedgehogs. Ugh, I’m so indecisive I can’t even decide if I’m on a fence of hedges, a fence with hedges around me, a maze of hedges, or a fence of hedgehogs for Alex Verdugo. Maybe a nap will help…*dozes off, wakes, sees a young Lea Thompson* It’s 1955!? Okay, let’s play out the Dodgers’ outfield. Chris Taylor is in center, but can play the infield; Puig looks locked into right; there’s not enough screws loose in Home Depot for them to not play Cody Bellinger; Joc Pederson is still looming, but he’s starting to feel like a guy that might need a change of scenery or will be a platoon player and Kiké — not Gabe Kapler — can play outfield, but he’s a futility player. Not a lot of wiggle room for Verdugo, and Los Angeles isn’t known for autumn, but that changing landscape leaves Alex Verdugo with a chance to play if Taylor plays infield. So, what can we expect from Alex Verdugo for 2018 fantasy baseball?
Please, blog, may I have some more?I hate using the term sleeper, it means so many different things to different people. I recognize that there’s a wide spectrum of knowledge amongst my readership. So to some of you the Yankees Jorge Guzman is a sleeper, but to other’s he’s not. That said, with the ease I added Guzman in my 16-20 team leagues this Fall, I’m willing to go out on a limb from first hand experience, and slap and big ole ZZZZZZZ… label on Guzman. Over the last few months if you follow the minors leagues, The Yankees, or more specifically the Yankees minor leaguers in the Arizona Fall League, then you’ve probably heard all about Justus Sheffield and Albert Abreu, but more specifically Sheffield. A lot. Justus got the BX Bump (which is also a great interracial porn film BTW). If you’re a Yankees fan staying hip to all the up and coming prospects, then you’re probably aware of Chance Adams, Domingo Acevedo, and Dillon Tate. I’m sure you read about Guzman too, but I’m willing to guess the next statement might shatter all of you pre-conceived notions about the Yankees current minor league pitching oligarchy. Jorge Guzman is the best pitching prospect the Yankees have. That’s it, post over. I led you to the cliff only to push you off and leave. I have Christmas, Hanukkah, and Kwanzaa shopping to do… I’M JUST PLAYING BABY! Of course I wouldn’t have left you without some gems to help you. Here’s why Jorge Guzman might be a player to target in off-season dynasty leagues in 2018.
Please, blog, may I have some more?“This might sound hyperbolic, which isn’t the type of chamber Michael Jackson used to sleep in, but I think Lewis Brinson can be the Rookie of the Year in the NL next year if he gets the ABs. He could vault himself into the conversation for top ten outfielders as soon as 2018 with the opportunity. Only thing stopping him besides playing time is his plate discipline. That concerns me. He’s pretty swing happy. Last year in 23 Triple-A games, he walked at a 2.2% clip and K’d at a 22.6% mark.” And that’s me quoting me from my Lewis Brinson post from last year. In only 47 ABs last year for the Brewers, Brinson struck out 31% of the time and hit .106. Super small sample size — that’s what she said, and then I asked her if she meant it ironically. It does show there’s still a problem here though. Of course, there’s also still wonderful to be found in Brinson. His Triple-A numbers last year were 13 HRs, 11 SBs, .331 in 299 ABs while only K’ing 18% of the time. Right direction for the fire emoji, and away from the flame out, but he did have a .377 BABIP, which is likely a little high, even for someone with his speed. So, what can we expect from Lewis Brinson for 2018 fantasy baseball?
Please, blog, may I have some more?The once mighty Cubs system is no more. What was once the premier talent pool of young prospects, is now little more than a glorified waiting room for long shot arms, and future fringe MLB regulars. Not to be confused with Future’s M.O.B Regulators, which is a mix tape made entirely in Future’s bathroom following an aggressive lunch at a local Chi-Fil-A. In fact if you listen hard enough, you’ll catch a half dozen flushes between mumbled vocals. That’s all besides the point though, you’re here to get up to speed on the Cubs farm system, and the never-ending list of projectable starting pitchers that litter their list at the moment. So this begs the question… Am I low on the Cubs system? Ahhhh, does a frog bump it’s ass when it hops? Of course I’m low on the Cubs system it’s a bunch of projectable arms! Have you even read me before brah? I hate projectable arms for fantasy! Cause they’re always projecting, and breaking, and breaking, and projecting!! Then again after spending the better part of the week digging into it, there are some bright spots, as well as a handful of breakout candidates. It’s the Top Cubs Prospects for 2018 Fantasy Baseball.
Please, blog, may I have some more?Happy weird nether land between Thanksgiving and Christmas just known as holidays. But not in the “Happy holidays” way that pisses off my Aunt on Facebook. No room for Red Cup anger in this piece, there’s important news to discuss. Not sure if you’ve been living under a rock the past few weeks, but something is amiss in the A-T-L. At the moment 13 prospects from the past few international classes have been declared free agents, including big names like Kevin Maitan, Yunior Severino, Abraham Gutierrez, and Livan Soto. To sort through all this madness I’ve brought on one of the few people on the planet that’s had eyes on a majority of these prospects. That man is Jason Woodell of Prospectstorm.com, Prospect 1500, and @jasonatthegame on the Twitter machine. Jason and I discuss the penalties, repercussions, and the potential outcomes. Jason then goes player by player, giving you scouting reports on each of the fantasy worthy names among players released. Truth be told, the audio is a little rough, Jason was traveling for Thanksgiving, and made the call from the car. Enjoy the smooth sounds of the road.
Please, blog, may I have some more?I’m so effin’ stuffed from stuffing and turkey and turkey stuffing and–Why didn’t the Indians just pounce on the Pilgrims when they were in a food coma? Any hoo! Happy Thanksgiving, now let’s get down to bidness, as Hip Grey says. In my Harrison Bader fantasy outlook post, I went over a lot of what I think of the Cards’ outfield. Same pretty much holds true for Tyler O’Neill. Find Bader’s name and replace with O’Neill. And, I guess, replace Harrison with Tyler, otherwise you’re gonna be reading about Harrison O’Neill who does not exist. If there’s a Harrison O’Neill reading this, sorry, you’re Bruce Willis in The Sixth Sense. All I’ll say specifically about Tyler O’Neill regarding playing time is, if he’s the rookie outfielder call-up for the Cards, it likely hurts Bader and vice versa. Okay, with that out of the way, Tyler O’Neill is a sexy ball of meat. There’s a GIF below that I admired for about twenty-five minutes. He looks a little like Jeff Bagwell, right? He has much worse swing tendencies than Bagwell, but I’ll get to that in paragraph numero dos. Right now, let’s admire that GIF. Short, compact, monster power. Makes me want to buy groceries from Tom Thumb. Wait, what? Well, I guess if subliminal advertising is gonna work on me from that clip, it’s not Cox. By the way, Landrum backwards means nothing, so not sure what that outfield fence is getting at.
So, what can we expect from Tyler O’Neill for 2018 fantasy baseball?
Please, blog, may I have some more?This feels more like of a functional rookie post vs. a drool worthy one. Which is odd, because I don’t know if Jorge Alfaro is a rookie. I looked into it, and, from what I can tell, Alfaro still has his rookie eligibility. But if he doesn’t, look at this as the first sleeper post that’s boring vs. the last rookie post that’s boring. Man, I am selling the shizz out of this. Any hoo! Jorge Alfaro. Confession Alert! I ask Prospector Ralph for about ten names of rookies that will impact this year and then go off that list for these rookie posts. I mean, who better to ask than the guy that knows more about prospects than anyone else? Well, at least more about prospects than anyone I know, which, in my myopic world, is the same thing. Any hoo, Part 2: Return To Hoosville, Ralph didn’t give me Jorge Alfaro as a name to cover. I don’t think he likes him, y’all! I can understand his trepidation. Alfaro’s a catcher, that’s kinda boring. For fantasy, however, a catcher that has an everyday job and won’t be drafted until late in redraft leagues has value, especially one with huge raw power. So, what can we expect from Jorge Alfaro for 2018 fantasy baseball?
Please, blog, may I have some more?It’s with heavy hearts that we bid adieu to the dynamic duo of Halph. That’s right, it is with great sadness that I inform our listening public that Michael Halpern has moved on to the high stakes world of Bird Law. Our once loyal podcast host is needed by our feathered friends. Remember loyal listeners, bird law in this country is not governed by reason. With that said, the one the only Lance Brozdowski will be joining me as my permanent co-host until, he too grows up. I’m Peter Pan y’all, not to worry, old Ralphie ain’t going nowhere. Unfortunately Lance is unavailable until after Thanksgiving, so you got me for at least an episode. In today’s show I touch on Peoria’s stacked Arizona Fall League team. As well as my thoughts on Luis Urias, Mitch Keller, Kyle Lewis, and Eric Filia. It’s sure to be more Endorphin Ralph than you can handle. It’s the latest episode of the Razzball Prospect Podcast.
Please, blog, may I have some more?I nearly didn’t write this post. Wasn’t that I didn’t have love for Gleyber Torres. Though, my love for Gleyber is admittedly less coalesced into an actual thing than you’re gonna find from just about any Yankees fan. “Ya godda be fahkin jokin wit me right here, kid. Gleyber Torres is gonna be the greatest of all-time, son. All. Time. I wanna coalesce my fist into ya fahkin head with your sissy-boy words. Why don’t ya use a word like fuhgeddaboudit? Scared of being too real? Before you answer, I need to go with my mom to have her mustache waxed.” That’s your run-of-the-mill Yankees fan. See, Gleyber is already being fitted for Monument Park in Yankee Stadium before he even plays a game. By the way, fitting someone for Monument Park is like how Jabba the Hutt fit Han Solo for carbon. Little known fact, Monument Park in Yankee Stadium is the only place in the MLB where players are immortalized by being buried there. Kidding…or am I?! You need to Google it to verify the answer, don’t lie. Any hoo! Brian Cashman said the other day Gleyber Torres would get every opportunity to win the 3rd base job in Spring Training. Chase Headley said, “I have a love letter from a Padres fan named, Jay Wrong, that says I should be playing 162 games a year. On the reg.” So, what can we expect from Gleyber Torres for 2018 fantasy baseball?
Please, blog, may I have some more?What’s the difference between a doughnut and a Dave Dombrowski Farm system? The doughnut usually leaves some crumbs behind! Wocka Wocka! In grand double D fashion, the long-necked one, emptied the farm to upgrade the major league squad. Some moves worked (Chris Sale & Craig Kimbrel) others have fallen flat(I.E. Travis Shaw+ for Tyler Thornburg). Regardless, the Red Sox minor leagues have acted as Dombrowski’s personal check book, in the early part of his tenure. For the past ten years Boston has had one of the strongest farm systems in the game, producing talent like Pedroia, Lester, Ellsbury, Buchholz, Bogaerts, Bradley, Betts, Benintendi, and recently Rafael Devers. The team now faces the challenge of restocking the once proud farm, following three years of trades, and a lost international period, due to a penalty received for rule violations. The last two drafts have been solid, but unspectacular, and have taken the Red Sox in a different direction. The focus has been heavily on pitching, giving the Sox depth in an area where they’re typically weak. Six of the following Top Ten is comprised of pitchers, and four of the six were drafted over the past two years. It likely would have been an even split between pitchers and positional players if not for the unfortunate, and tragic passing of July 2nd gem, Danny Flores. The shocking loss certainly leaves an already thin system further exposed. Will it be completely emptied to land Giancarlo Stanton? Or will the Sox stand pat this offseason, add in the June draft, and look to be players at next year’s trade deadline? One thing is for sure, with Dombrowski at the controls, someone’s getting traded in this beeyatch.
Please, blog, may I have some more?