Gettin’ Jiggy Whit It …And The Top 100 Hitters, Week 12

June 20, 2016 | Creeper of the Week, Fantasy Baseball Rankings | 40 Comments

by: M@

Why do I continue to highlight songs from my middle school days? I honestly have no idea. But it works. However, I can’t take the credit for this one. Thank you, creative Royals fan and MLB.com. If only I could pull the freakin gif off of Twitter now. Ugh. Am I a Royals fan? No. Do I #VoteRoyals? No. Do I still get jiggy with it? Um, I’m not sure that I ever did. I don’t know that Will Smith did, either. But in terms of a creeper, it’s a perfect moniker for another MI that’s already given the boot to one established veteran, and is proving that he’s more than worthy of his spot at 2B. Since taking the leadoff slot in the lineup, the Royals are 8-2 in their past 10. Who we talking about?

Whit Merrifield, 2B (21.2% owned) – He’s jumped up just above the 20% threshold with a 15.2+ added percentage. And smart of you if you already grabbed him. Is he cracking the Top 100 quite yet? No. But just barely. Consider him the honorable mention of the week. In the past 15 days Merrifield is tied with Robinson Cano and Paul Goldschmidt for the most hits in the majors (21), Rougned Odor for the most at bats (63), and is tied for 11th in total bases (33) while slashing .333/10/2/8/1. His BABIP is an unsustainable .400, but through the minors he’s proven he can get on base (~.350 OBP past three years), provide a little pop and swipe some bases (48 SB in last 750 minors ABs). Hitting atop the Royals lineup should give him ample opportunity to rack up runs, and it seems that he’s here to stay after the Royals DFA’d Omar Infante due to Merrifield’s emergence. He may slow down a tick, but while he’s hot I’d grab him, especially if you need AVG, R and SB help. Let’s safely project .275/40/6/30/15 the rest of the way. I can get jiggy with that.

Enough creepin’…Here are those Top 100 Hitters for Week 12!

Please, blog, may I have some more?

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SAGNOF Report – The Steals With Friends Game

June 20, 2016 | Steals | 7 Comments

by: Smokey

With the complexity of scoring, much like that of Scrabble, the steals game is all about the triple word score. With names and with letters that are uncommon for words, you know the J’s and X’s of the world. We all can cheat and make the word “jo” or “ox”, but imagine the scoring erection you will get when you use Rajai This wordsmith of the basepaths has been giving new form to the SAGNOF game. Over the last 14 games, no one in the game has more steals than Davis. Rajai has been the Magi of it for years, and it is crazy to think that he’s crazy Joe Louis old. He is 35, which isn’t quite as old as me, but I also don’t even run when chased, let alone run 90 feet from pillow to pillow. For the most part, Rajai is the goods because he basically fills all your SAGNOF needs and isn’t and absolute void in other categories like a newly DL’d Mallex. Davis, over the last 14, has put up 2 HRs and a cup full of RBIs. It is more than what we get from Mallex, who offers nothing but steals. even is an abysmal in BA, and his one saving grace is that his OBP is decent because he takes walks at almost a 17% clip. So for the few of you that are surfing for a SAGNOF savior to replace your Mallex fix… here are some names that could be good for now and later. Side note, I used to love that candy.

Please, blog, may I have some more?

DraftKings: From The Law Office of Kershaw, Strasburg & Bumgarner

June 20, 2016 | DraftKings | 4 Comments

by: Teddy Heater

That totally sounds legit right? Clayton Kershaw, $14,200 & Stephen Strasburg, $13,200 are squaring off in LA tonight and the place is going to be on fire, literally. Game time is temperature is set to be around 97-100 degrees, so between the fastballs and the the sun, Chavez Ravine it’s going to be muy caliente. Gun to my head, I’m going with Kershaw tonight because he seems like he’s going to be able to get through the heat and still go 7 or 8 innings. Strasburg left early a few starts ago with cramping, so if dude doesn’t hydrate he may only go 5 or 6 innings, leaving precious points on the table for you. If you want to stay away from this matchup all together then go with Madison Bumgarner, $12,800 at Pittsburgh, who just got victimized by Kyle Hendricks with 12 K’s in 6 Ings. Granted the Pirates have no game vs the Cubbies, but if Hendricks can miss that many bats then look for Madbum to continue mowing guys down. From a pitching stand point, those are the studs that will be highly owned, so lets take a look at a couple other guys who might be flying under the DK radar.

New to DraftKings? Scared of feeling like a small fish in a big pond? Well reserve your spot in the 25 Team Razzball Exclusive League set to run today to wet your DK whistle. Just remember to sign up through us before you do. It’s how we know you care! If you still feel helpless and lonely, be sure to subscribe to the DFSBot for your daily baseball plays.

Please, blog, may I have some more?

Teheranonehitus Rex

June 20, 2016 | Fantasy Baseball Daily Notes | 554 Comments

by: Grey

You know how they have pink bats for Mother’s Day? They should have bats in the shape of penises for Father’s Day. “Ooh, a swing and a miss. Damn, he had that schlong just out in front of that ball.” “You know socialism never worked, but penises have worked for thousands of years, depending on what interpretation of the Bible you ascribe to.” “Wow, what size bat is David Ortiz using?” Happy Father’s Day to all of our readers minus five ladies! Yesterday, for Dad’s Day, Julio Teheran showed us Americans how they do it in Iran on Father’s Day. Teheran #1 — ptooey everyone us! His line was 9 IP, 0 ER, 1 hit, zero walks and 7 Ks, lowering his ERA to 2.66. I’ve been saying for a few weeks now that Teheran is worth picking up. He’s obviously not this good. His xFIP is 3.97, but his walk rate is down from last year and his ground balls are up, not literally. Other than last year, he was a consistent low-3, high-2 ERA guy, and he looks like he found his way back there. By the way, if you’re thinking what I’m thinking, agreed, we should not allow any university lacrosse teams access to the penis bats. Anyway, here’s what else I saw this weekend in fantasy baseball:

Please, blog, may I have some more?

This Week in Razz: Week 11

June 19, 2016 | This Week in Razzball | 1 Comment

by: Viz

On behalf of everybody at Razzball, Happy Fathers Day to all of the fathers out there! We’re closing in on the halfway point of the season and the Large Father himself, David Ortiz, comes in at #12 overall in our Player Rater. Would I be looking to sell high? The correct answer is it probably doesn’t matter. Odds are you won’t be able to because he’s a DH only who is 40 years old. The good news is that you more than likely got him pretty late in your draft and he’s giving you incredible value. While I don’t expect him to hit 40 bombs, he should still contribute plenty down the stretch so feel free to ride him out on his retirement tour. Let’s take a look at everything that has been posted on Razzball over the last week:

Please, blog, may I have some more?

OPS Leaguers Unite! Consider Jefry (Not Jeffrey) Marte

June 19, 2016 | OPS Leagues |

by: Phil B.

Now that the closest baseball stadium to me is in Anaheim I’m watching more Angels games. Truthfully I’m watching more MLB network, and then Cubs games, and then Angels games. It’s still more than just the Mike Trout highlights I would normally but in any event I’ve seen some of this guy, Jefry Marte. Jefry Marte? Who is that? And why can’t he spell Jeffrey right?

Well this Jefry is seeing time in left field for the Angels, who really stink out there to the tune of an MLB worst .550 OPS (thanks Yahoo!, as that tidbit is on his player page). That is pathetic. So they’re running Marte out there, who is normally a corner infielder. Only 24 years old from the Dominican Republic, which is on the island of Hispaniola (which is such a fun word to say, especially if you throw a lisp in there), Marte has been around in his short career. He originally started with Mets at age 17, played in the Futures game at the 2011 All-Star Game, was traded to the A’s for the not aptly named Collin Cowgill (he’s not a cow at 5’9, 190), and then was released by Oakland after the 2014 season. Signed by Detroit two weeks later, he wound up being designated for assignment so the Tigers could sign Justin Upton (I can’t imagine that Detroit could foresee that Marte would be almost as good so far in 2016 as Upton) and traded to the Angels.

Marte did play in the majors in Detroit last year, hitting four homers in 80 at-bats; this season in limited action he’s hit four homers in 42 at-bats and has an OPS of 1.078; which is good. His 4.5% BB and 29.5% K are not. Those numbers last season on the Tigers were 8.9% BB and 24.4% K. So he looks like a hacker. A power hitting hacker in the same lineup as Mike Trout? Are you sure I’m not really talking about Albert Pujols? No, I’m not. Not even I can recommend Albert anymore. Just think, the Angels get him for how many more years? Five more? And full no-trade protection? Ha!

Please, blog, may I have some more?

DraftKings: HR/FB + Hard% = Dingers

June 19, 2016 | DraftKings |

by: Zach

Hey everyone, welcome to Sunday, and happy Father’s Day!

We’ve got another great 11-game slate that features a ton of offense, with many pitchers to attack on the slate. One of the biggest reasons why there are plenty of offenses to chose from is because there are many examples of the opposing SP having a high HR/FB-rate, and a high Hard%. Both of these two stats can accurately predict if a pitcher will give up some home runs. HR/FB-rate is exactly what it sounds like, a HR to fly ball ratio, giving an accurate representation how how well a batter’s ability is to create fly balls, and in turn, convert those to dingers. If a SP has a high HR/FB-rate, they have some serious blowup potential, as most of their fly balls given up results in homers.

Same thing applies with a pitcher who has a high Hard%. This means that most of the balls put in play off of the pitcher are classified as being hit with a hard speed. In more simpler terms, you can’t have extra-base hits if you hit a soft lob into the outfield.

We have many different pitchers who have high HR/FB-rates and high Hard%’s, which increases their likelihood of giving up some runs, which we would all like to have.

New to DraftKings? Scared of feeling like a small fish in a big pond? Well reserve your spot in the 25 Team Razzball Exclusive League set to run Monday June 20th to wet your DK whistle. Just remember to sign up through us before you do. It’s how we know you care! If you still feel helpless and lonely, be sure to subscribe to the DFSBot for your daily baseball plays.

Please, blog, may I have some more?

Down On The Farm: Vogelbach the Jelly Donut of Swat!

June 19, 2016 | Fantasy Baseball Prospects | 75 Comments

by: Geoff

It’s Father’s Day, and as a father of three, there’s nothing I’d rather do than ignore my children for a few hours in order to write glowing prose about an overweight guy named Dan. Could this exercise of self indulgence ultimately lead to my demise when my daughter seeks employment at the local gentlemen’s club? Or when my two sons decide to pursue careers in baseball well into their mid-30’s on the independent ball circuit? Then again, what could make a father prouder than watching his boys player/coach the Massapequa I-Roc Z’s? I know what you’re all thinking “Ralph we care not about this tired exercise of projecting a future of unmet expectations. The Simpsons beat that theme into the ground years ago. So tell us more about this overweight Dan fellow.” Absolutely!! Verbose and demanding reader, I’d love to. Portly Cubs prospect Dan Vogelbach is at it again, reminding us that the Northsiders have an embarrassment of riches and not nearly enough positions on the major league level.

Over the past week he’s hitting .357 with 3 homers and 7 rbis, raising his season slash-line to .306/.431/.544. The biggest area of growth this season for Vogey has been the power, having previously topped out at 19. So far this season he has 12 homers over 253 plate appearances at AAA Iowa. He’s also walking 17% of the time, which is downright ludicrous. So when’s he coming up right? Well unfortunately best case scenario for Vogelbach is he gets traded to an American League team before the trade deadline, because the chances are slim (pun intended) that he sees any extended time with the Cubs. Either way he’s worth keeping an eye on, and if he does end up in Tampa Bay or another AL destination he’s worth adding immediately.

Please, blog, may I have some more?

Two-Start Pitchers, Week 12: No Worries For Nola

June 18, 2016 | Fantasy Baseball Rankings, Two Start Fantasy Starters | 17 Comments

by: M@

Fantasy owners can be fickle. Can we not? Fickle as a pickle. Hang on…

Sorry, had to get the computer back from my grandmother. While the saying may be as lame as Facebook is to a High Schooler, the initial verbiage is somewhat true. Chris Archer? Aah, he sucks now. Matt Shoemaker? He’s awful! Cole Hamels? Those peripherals just scream regression. Or how about the rook Michael Fulmer. Y’all see his first four starts? 19.1 IP, 14 ER?!? Send him back down! Listen, sometimes a quick trigger is the right move (see: Sonny Gray early in the season), but often times, as it is with the four names just mentioned, the overzealous hyper-anxious fickle nature of the tiny past 14 days window can bring with it a big #facepalm a week later. All four of those pitchers took the mound this past Friday night. Here’s what being fickle gets you:

Archer: 6.0IP/6H/3ER/3BB/8K
Hamels: 7.0IP/3H/0ER/3BB/6K
Shoemaker: 6.0IP/6H/1ER/1BB/7K
Fulmer: 5.2IP/5H/1ER/4BB/5K (1st ER in last five starts, just the 2nd in his last 40 IP)

I’m pretty sure you’d take all of those, yet some of you may have jumped ship back in April. See, no reason to worry. And one more name that the same deep breath should be practiced towards this week: Aaron Nola.

Nola has been phenomenal for the surpassingly future-is-bright Phillies this year. He carries a 3.51 ERA into this week’s slate, and that’s after his past two starts being purely dismal with a combined slash of: 6.2IP/15H/10ER/4BB/8K. Brutal. But don’t you dare let that raise your blood pressure, especially for this week.

Yes, he’s had two straight horrible outings, but that’s on the heels of nine straight quality starts with 6 or more Ks in all but one of them. An even better reason to love your some Nola this week (and no, I’m not talking about the Taints…Falcons fan here)? He’s on the road twice. Check his home/road splits:

Home: 41.0IP/4.83ERA/1.41WHIP
Road: 43.2IP/2.27ERA/0.87WHIP

Now I don’t believe we have a reverse 2015 Dallas Keuchel on our hands, as his home stats are inflated from his last start, but I’m most certainly relying on him for stellar numbers on the road. Give him the visitors bench against the Twins and the Giants? Even better! No worries on young Aaron, folks. He’s no foofoo like Robin Arryn. Eat the fickle pickle, and don’t worry about that little guy.

Please, blog, may I have some more?

My Cherie Almora

June 18, 2016 | Fantasy Baseball Daily Notes | 57 Comments

by: Dan Pants

Albert Almora, Jr. went 3-for-4 with 2 RBI Friday night and the rookie outfielder has now hit safely in his past three games and is slashing .429/.455/.619 since his call up June 7. Oh, hello there, AAJ. Have we met? This isn’t just any prospect we’re talking about here. This is a Cubs prospect. Alert the media! Oh wait, that’s us? Grey covered him a week or so ago, and I’ve been telling you to pick him up as well. Grey said, “Albert Almora also anagrams to Barrel T. Alamo, who’d be great as a San Antonian oil man villain.” Sound advice as always, boss. I will summarize in case you no read good. Almora had 3 homers and 10 steals in 55 games at AAA and he likely won’t play every day, so expectations can be tempered. I added him everywhere I needed runs and average, but I also drafted Giancarlo Stanton and Justin Upton, so I’m not so sure you should be listening to me anymore. Regardless, he’s definitely a player to keep your eye on, especially if you have a third eye, and the other two are busy trying to watch the NBA Finals and the most-hyped episode of Game of Thrones ever simultaneously. If you’re a sucker for the rookies like me, Almora has looked good so far at the plate and bats in a stacked Chicago line up and could certainly be worth an add for his upside alone.

Here’s what else I saw Friday night in fantasy baseball:

Please, blog, may I have some more?

DraftKings: Crazy Eyes

June 18, 2016 | DraftKings |

by: Gern Blanston

It’s June! That means Orange Is the New Black is back and Max Scherzer is dominating batters. If you haven’t seen the show, don’t worry. This write up contains no spoilers. All you need to know is that there is character named Crazy Eyes and Max has crazy eyes. Like the Orange Is the New Black fan base, Max loves June. Throughout his career, hitters only have a .284 wOBA in June. His first complete game came in June 2014 when he shut out the White Sox. His first no-hitter came in June 2015 against the Pirates at Nationals Park. It was nearly a perfect game, but was spoiled by Jose Tabata. BOLD PREDICTION ALERT: Scherzer will throw a perfect game today! It’s the only logical outcome. Sorry Padres fans, but the Padres are the team most likely for Max to achieve a perfect game against. They have a league low .278 wOBA and 75 wRC+ vs RHP. They also have the lowest BB/K ratio at .26 vs RHP. Max has been throwing close to 55% fourseamers this season, which the Padres have been hitting only .222 and slugging a league low .377 against. While Max has struggled against lefties this season, Jon Jay is the Padres best lefty… I’m not too concerned. Padres hitters are going to feel like they are in prison when the dig in to face off against Max. I now sentence to read the rest of my picks for this Saturday DK slate.

Please, blog, may I have some more?

Closer Report, Week 11 – Perkins? Should Have Went to Shoney’s

June 18, 2016 | Closers, Middle Relievers | 36 Comments

by: Smokey

The save buffet line in Minnesota is becoming a tiresome “wait-and-see who gets the chance today”. We all sit there and wait to own all the bullpen condiments that they offer, whether it be Brandon Kintzler, Fernando Abad, Trevor May, Kevin Jepsen, or Michael Tonkin. Including Perkins, those are the names that have been gifted a precious save chance for the occupants of the Twin Cities. A save opportunity total that is second to last in the league (18), in front of a surprise first place team in the Cubs. The Cubs are only there because they are beating everyone up and don’t have the late-inning chances that other losing teams do. So back to the Twinkies… they have the least amount of saves, holds, and have the least amount of appearances by relievers with the lead. All those things are so bad for roster space that you are speculating it to get you a save. They are on pace to average less than 3/4 of one whole save a week. But if people want to keep roster shuffling, looking for the odd save here or there, who am I to judge? I mean, some people say cucumbers taste better pickled. The fortunate thing for you is that I am here to guide that steady hand and give you astute advice for a nominal (not nominal, it’s free) fee. So here the rankings of closers for week 11, now with more added snippets of goodness!

Please, blog, may I have some more?