by: Rudy Gamble
We have four days with no non-exhibition games so I figured I would vomit out a ‘how are my teams doing?’ post. It has been a pretty good year so far – I’d say 3 of my 7 teams are in contention to win. Read the below at your own peril as – by their very nature – team writeups are sess pools for self-congratulation and self-pity.
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In case you missed it, the All-Star break is upon us! As the (sort of) halfway point in the season, it’s time for teams to either go for broke or build towards next season. Some players have given owners reason to rebuild perhaps due to injuries or ineffectiveness, however not all is lost! Count on the following guys to regain some of their value in the final months.
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by: Mike
Here’s a look at the best prospects for fantasy baseball right now. It’s a fluid list, and you’ll see some big changes as well as some new faces from the preseason Top 50. I’m sticking to a cap of 130 at bats or 50 innings pitched in the major leagues when determining who is still eligible for this list. So while some of the names have already been promoted this year and are expected to graduate, I’m still going to rank them. If Miguel Sano drinks too much nerve tonic with only 100 MLB at bats, he’d still qualify for prospect lists heading into next year, so he’s included on this one. This list does not include any 2015 draftees or J2 signees. The +/- column on the right shows how much each prospect rose or fell from my preseason list. I wouldn’t sweat players who moved just a few slots. Instead, I’d focus on the double-digit changes and the new additions. For lengthier notes on some of the biggest movers, you should check out last week’s post. Personally I skew towards hitters and rank only a handful of pitchers that I really like. Keep in mind that I’m coming at you from the perspective of our fantasy game, so it may differ from a traditional prospect list when it comes to certain players. Now that the housekeeping is out of the way, here is this year’s midseason Top 50 prospects for fantasy baseball…
Please, blog, may I have some more?With the MLB All-Star game set to begin in just a few hours and the first half of the season in the books, we’re provided with the perfect opportunity to hit the reset button on our fantasy teams and re-evaluate all MLB players for fantasy purposes. The players who are of particular interest are those who have significantly over or underperformed pre-season expectations thus far. For this week’s post, we’ll look at four players who were largely afterthoughts on draft day (late round picks and undrafted players) but have turned out to be high-end fantasy performers during the first half of the 2015 season. Will these players maintain their impressive levels of production? Are they “trash” or “treasure”? Barring injury, it’s difficult to envision any of these players being “trash” since they’ve been so good thus far, but some may be more reliable than others going forward. With that in mind, I’ll use the term “TRASH” to designate the players who might have more perceived value than actual value moving forward, and the term “TREASURE” to identify the players who are worth holding onto or perhaps even acquiring for the stretch run. Here are four players who exceeded expectations in the 1st half of 2015 (with their current positions on the year-to-date Razzball Player Rater):
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by: J-FOH
Break yo’self foo! No, not like the video… like in take a break from fantasy for a few days and just chill. I hate that baseball won’t rid itself of this ridiculous All-Star break. I’m a fantasy player first. Seriously, what do fantasy baseballers get in return? We are left freaking out if our “guy” does well in the home run derby or our ace injuries himself/delays his next start by pitching in the mid summer crapbasket. Can the All-Star game be a bigger joke? I hate that they award the winning league home field advantage in the World Series. I hate having to read headlines about all the online ballot stuffing. Way to go internet… you blew it again. What I hate the most about the break is I get bored. Like a junkie waiting for a fix or a fat kid waiting for dessert, I need my games! I’ve been watching mediocre movies on Netflix and working on some new dance moves. What are you doing for the break?
Please, blog, may I have some more?
by: Grey
Welcome, prematurely balding men and five women who are married to prematurely balding men and decided if you can’t beat them, join them! Make yourself comfortable, this is gonna be a long post. Here make yourself some java. Okay, you just poured rat poison into your coffee. Don’t worry, it can’t be worse than owning Pablo Sandoval in the 1st half. Oh, you owned him and that’s why you poured it into coffee! Now, I’m following! Hey, who’s leading here? Well, whoever it is their taillight is out and I’m gonna have to make a citizen’s arrest. Before we get into the top 100 for the 2nd half of 2015 fantasy baseball, let’s just be glad our 18-year-old selves can’t see us now, we’d get beat up! But our twelve-year-old selves would think we’re the coolest! So, as with all of the other 2015 fantasy baseball rankings, take this list with a grain of salt. If you need a 2nd baseman, but an outfielder is above him that doesn’t mean you can’t trade the outfielder for the 2nd baseman. Also, things change in fantasy baseball. Daily. I could put Au Shizz number two on the top 100 list for the second half of 2015 and he could pull a–Well, we won’t even mention an injury with Goldy. Why soil a good thing, ya know? This list is a road map for where I think guys are valued. It’s not the Holy Grail in the Church of Grey, that would be my mustache. This list is NOT (caps for emphasis, not aesthetics) where I see guys ending up if you were to take their first half and combine it with the 2nd half of their season. This is simply a list of the top hundred fantasy baseball players if you were to pick them up today. So while Carlos Santana did not have the greatest first half, he will appear on this list because I still believe. The projections are not their combined 1st half and 2nd half numbers; these are their projections for the 2nd half of 2015. I also liberally used our rest of the season Fantasy Baseball Player Rater. That’s right, we have a Player Rater that tells you what guys will do. It’s like that camera from The Twilight Zone. Welcome to the future! Anyway, here’s the top 100 for fantasy baseball for the 2nd half of 2015:
Please, blog, may I have some more?I’ve just never been a Matt Moore guy…
Uber-talented Moore has always gotten praise for his clean mechanics and smooth delivery, plus fastball, and solid slider, but it never materialized into good control and solid numbers. Those horrible, horrible walks… Moore’s K zone looks like a star chart!
After never ranking him favorably the past few years because of a 4.5 walk rate, yes 4.5, I thought the buzz for him off the DL from TJ recovery was too… buzzy. I’m at a loss for words I’m so confused! But I hadn’t seen him pitch since hitting the DL after two starts last year, and maybe a reconstructed elbow can help. “He’s more machine now, than man!” Well let’s hope it helps the horrific walk rate! Here’s how he looked yesterday hosting the Astros, along with ranks for pitchers for the second half:
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by: RotoLance
For my “Rest Of Season” edition of SAGNOF Special, I’d like to start with a confession, or really more of an admittance: I’m in two Razzball Commenter Leagues this year and last year I was in one. Those are only the fourth, fifth, and sixth rotisserie leagues I’ve ever played in. This despite having played fantasy baseball since 2002. The reason is because I’ve primarily played in head to head leagues. One of the biggest differences between the two formats is the nuance involved in the tradeoff of various hitter stats (what one hitter can give you versus what another can) in rotisserie and it becomes much more important to not just realize where you are in the standings of individual stats but to try to predict/project where you will be by season’s end. That’s why I’ve chosen to give you some Rest of Season Steamer projections for the best base stealers. Use it to project your own players, to project your place in the final standings, or to scheme up a trade.
Please, blog, may I have some more?The Razzball Pod is back, I’m back, BABY WE GOT BACK! I survived the bachelor party with just enough time/remaining brain cells to catch up with Grey on his second half buy lows and first half fantasy MVPs. No, one wasn’t Joe Blanton! I then run quiz Grey on some stats trivia, including some surprising league leaders. I love that Grey drops a “reading USA Today” reference. Nice one gramps! Here’s the latest edition of the Razzball Baseball Podcast:
Please, blog, may I have some more? by: Grey
As soon as you’re finished with this post, I want you to close your laptop, step outside and look at a bird in flight. Pick up a flower, breathe in its fragrance, sneeze from your allergies, wave to a neighbor and close your robe because you’re not just waving with your hand. How does that feel? Exhilarating? Then your dedication sucks! It should be a total bore. You should be more interested in whether or not I’m going to have a top 100 for the 2nd half of fantasy baseball tomorrow than what your significant other has been doing for the last three and a half months. Luckily, I will have a top 100 tomorrow, and your significant other can remain your fantasy team. Okay, enough hubbub on the tomfoolery! Yesterday, Rob Refsnyder went 2-for-4, 2 RBIs and his 1st homer as the Yankees called him up on Saturday to be their 2nd baseman. My middle infielder slot on all of my teams feels like the old adage, “Ridden hard and put away wet.” If a fantasy team slot could catch an STD, my MI slot would be it. There might not be a starter on any team that I haven’t tried once, thanks, Rendon! Refsnyder had seven homers and ten steals with a .290 average in Triple-A and looking at him, I’m immediately reminded of Pedroia. In other words, goodbye, Jace Peterson, hello, Refsnyder! Anyway, here’s what else I saw this weekend in fantasy baseball:
Please, blog, may I have some more? by: J-FOH
Hey look, it’s all-star week. Wonderful… stupendous… greaaaaat *said in sarcastic monotone voice* Real baseball? Blah! Give me games so I can play my game. I can’t even go to Draftkings… or can I? *writes note to text Sky* From my many years of watching movies and television shows I have gathered that a play is in two acts. I could look this up, but I don’t want the government thinking I’m going to plays. Speaking of the theater, I was watching Little Nikita the other night while I fought with my insomnia and was surprised when I found out that it was directed by the same guy that directed my Week 14th Update and this all star cast classic. Sorry guys… and girls, that was a whole lot of unnecessary, here is a good baseball fight clip for you, for putting up with me. Prior to the break, I had been ranking players by combining what they had done, what they will do, and to a small degree, their trade value. All in all, it was always looking forward. Today, I am traveling in time (but not really), to give you my top-100 ROS. Think of it as a clean slate for some, an endorsement of others, and a dumping on of those that I don’t like for the second half. So put on your head band on and let’s go to the future. Oh, wait, before moving on to the list I want you to know there is no creeper this week nor a frankencatcher. They will return next Sunday when we have full week ahead of us!
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by: Davidwiers
This is a unique time of the year as the All-Star break gives players some extra time off. Those who may have otherwise been placed on the 15-day disabled list will be able to catch a bit of a breather. Unfortunately there were several injuries that forced teams to place players on the shelf, some with six to eight week time frames. Consider this the triage version of the Ambulance Chasers as the lesser injury write ups will wait until next week. In addition to the players on the shelf, there are some replacement suggestions who should be available in most formats as well.
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