Whenever spring training starts to wind down and the closer spot is yet to be determined, it’s never a good thing.  It causes rosters to get fat off the land, and wastes your draft picks on no-news type situations. I will turn my one good lazy eye to the Minute Maid conundrum of “who closes for the Astros?”  Some may ask: “who cares?” But this is the essence of SAGNOF believers. Cheap closers are what makes the fantasy world get on a sit, spin, chug a beer, and scream obscenities at trolley cars.  So from the beginning of the hot-stove baseball season, and even after they signed Luke Gregerson, I believe that it’s still Chad Qualls‘ job.  No news is good news for the incumbent… Even though the news all across the reliever landscape is all speculation, “he said this” and “the beat writer said that”.  Well, the only person who actually knows is the manager, Hinch.  So I am going to do my best to break it down from my ivory soap tower.  Stick around, there may be something fun or edible once you get inside.
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From being a consumer of Razzball for a few years, Iâm sure many of you already are in or know of OBP or On-base percentage league(s). Chances are if youâre playing in an OBP league, youâre playing with some seasoned teams. The metric has eased into MLB broadcasts and has become an important measurements as to a players overall worth more so than batting average. However the player gets on first, whether he leaves the bat on his shoulder or gets plunked, the idea is, itâs just the same as a base knock. If you play in competitive leagues, I advocate changing from AVG to OBP, for me it increased my understanding of different players who didnât always get the recognition but are valuable to their teams.
When looking at outfield and considering OBP, you want to consider âdoes this player make a living beating out bunts?â Speed players generally have lower OBP because they want the ball in play so they can run out a single. It does not translate to all players, but as you look at the rankings, youâll see players like Billy Hamilton or an Anthony Gose can compromise your OBP category in a Rotisserie league or H2H. Yes, youâre not drafting Hamilton for his OBP (or AVG depending what league you play in), but just know, if he gets 550 + ABs, that will hold down your team ranking in that category for the year unless the makeup of your other players compensate.
Please, blog, may I have some more?As the adage goes, ‘nobody wants you when you’re old’. Unless you’re a female and Grey Albright is nearby. Yo Sky, check out this smoking hot chick! *Clicks google image link*. Um, Grey? Yeah? That’s Raquel Welch. I know, right? Older the berry, the sweeter the juice, you know what I’m sayin’? *hi-pitched cackling ensues*. I get it, though, in this day and age where steroids can’t even be used to quell skin rash irritations without a 50 game suspension. We get to see athletes in their truest form: they’re human, they get tired, they get hurt, they age and their prime doesn’t last 10+ years. But as a fantasy player? EFF THAT NOISE. Bring back the greenies, baby! But I digress, the key is, ageism is a real thing at the draft table, especially for a late bloomer and in steps Steve Pearce. So what has my fantasy loins in a lather like Ann-Margaret just did a cat-walk in lady’s lingerie for Grey? Well, read on. Here’s why I think Pearce is a good get for deep leagues this year for 2015 Fantasy Baseball…
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I joined Funston, Behrens, Pianowski, Dalton Del Don, Not The Noise (someone drafted using Brad Evans name, but it wasn’t him), Rudy, Paul Singman and others. Since Singman writes for us now, we’re up to three writers in the Friends & Family draft held at Yahoo. Within ten years, it’s going to be 14 Razzball writers vs. Funston, and Funston will prolly still win after only drafting Howie Kendrick. I’m not being entirely facetious, Razzball’s results in this league have been less-than-stellar. I don’t mention this to be modest — modesty’s for nuns! — I tell you this to preamble my reasons for drafting Billy Hamilton. I feel like my Friends & Family mojo is leaking oil, the carburetor is coughing up fumes and I’m on the side of the road, with my skirt hiked up, and no one’s stopping. So, I decided to draft someone I have never drafted before and paid full price, to boot! (By the by, when I go to Italy, I like to shout, “To boot!”) Well, enough about me, more about my team! Anyway, here’s my 15-team, 5×5, roto, Friends & Family fantasy baseball draft:
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The Numbers Game: Power and Speed
March 19, 2015 | 2023 Fantasy Baseball | 64 Commentsby: Big Magoo
It’s no secret that offense has been in decline across the board in major league baseball in recent years. It seems like only, uh, 17 years ago that the race was on to see who could break Roger Maris’ single season home run record. Last season, only Nelson Cruz reached the 40 HR mark and just ten other players managed to knock 30 out of the park. Remember Vince Coleman’s string of three consecutive 100+ steal seasons from ’85-’87? No? Too young, eh? If you’re familiar with the video game R.B.I. Baseball for the original 8-bit Nintendo, he’s the guy who’s able to steal bases at will. It was basically the same deal in real life. Pretty darn impressive feat, especially when you consider the fact that only four players reached the 40 SB mark last year.
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Second base is a solid position in OBP leagues and you can find standouts across the board and throughout the top-20. I have a few guys I am targeting heavily in drafts for the keystone, as well as MI positions, as I tend to end up with a second baseman there too. The top-5 in OBP looks a lot like most rankings: Robinson Cano .382, Jose Altuve .377, Ben Zobrist .354, (Anthony Rendon if eligible .351), Howie Kendrick .347, and Brian Dozier .345. There are also a couple of names left off of this list that are pretty consistently in the top 5 ranks: Ian Kinsler .307, and Dee Gordon .326 (but more on him later.) Here are a few guys I am targeting and one player, who was a surprising breakout last year, that I’m avoiding…
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2015 NL Central Spring Training Preview
March 19, 2015 | Fantasy Baseball Team Previews | 5 Commentsby: waterloo
Do we know look at the Pittsburgh Pirates as a true contender instead of the team that had 20 straight losing seasons?  For the most part, yes, but there are still skeptics out there.  For the first time in a long time, the Pirates entered Spring Training with no real position battlesâŚyet. The team surprised brass around baseball when they walked away the winner in the Jung-ho Kang bidding, but as of now, the powerful Korean [Jay’s Note: Hey, that’s my nickname!] is going to back up Jordy Mercer at short and Josh Harrison at third base…
Please, blog, may I have some more?Alex Cobb left his start the other day with forearm tightness, but he’s not concerned. “Not concerned with forearm tightness” is now the number two reason for Tommy John surgery. Number one is “torn UCL.” The number three reason is “I feel great!” If we have one more pitcher say, “I feel great,” without someone else saying they’re “not concerned with forearm tightness,” then it will be a dead heat and could come down to Tanaka’s translator chiming in with how Masahiro feels. A pitcher and manager’s reporting on an arm issue is like reading a Yelp review written by the owner of the restaurant. “I didn’t know scalloped potatoes could be so sublime!” And I didn’t know I had to avoid every other starter in drafts, but here we are. Cobb says he should only miss his Opening Day start, but I’ve lowered Cobb way down in my top 400 and into my top 60 starters to a tier where I would not draft him. There’s enough to worry about when drafting a team, don’t get too cute with “Well, so-and-so fell so far I figured I’d give him a chance even though his arm is dangling at every joint.” Anyway, here’s what else I saw in spring training for fantasy baseball:
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DraftKings: What Is This âDaily Fantasyâ You Speak Of?
March 18, 2015 | DraftKings | 71 Commentsby: Sky
The world that you live in is now over. Oh God, what have we done?!? I knew we should’ve recycled more! Hrm, maybe that was too dramatic of an intro for the regular reader. But I do agree, you should recycle more. Lots of states give you 5 cents back on those beer bottles, it’s totally worth it. Except those Bud bottles; yes, I’m blatantly judging you. But more to the point, the fantasy sports industry is a’changin’ and Razzball has been in on this shift in landscape since 2013 when JB first offered people a million crappy sandwiches. Believe me, the prizes have improved since then, I swear! For real, though, we’ve been talking Daily Fantasy Sports for the last couple of years and if you haven’t joined the fray, I’m gonna give you as many reasons why to below. But not just any DFS site, of course. That’s like saying you potty trained your kid and now your bathroom looks like Jackson Pollock was only given yellow to paint with. Nah, we gonna hone in that target by sending you to DraftKings. If you’ve never played, that link is where you start. By signing up through us for DK, you get a free ticket into what’s called a Moonshot. That’s a tourney. Don’t worry if you’re already getting lost, we’ll get you ready to go before the season starts so stick with us. This tourney has a $100K prize pool and top prize is $10K. Just think how much leeway with your wife and your obsession over fantasy that could buy. But of course, we’re getting a bit ahead of ourselves. You wanna hear a bit more about this game before you dive in and dive in we shall. So here’s how your bankroll gonna get swole by playing Daily Fantasy on DraftKings for 2015 Fantasy Baseball…
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What is there not to love about Mike Trout? I know. The fact that I don’t own him in any of my keeper leagues and the chances of me owning him in any of my other leagues is slim. In order to do so I’d have to have the first pick of the first round. Or would the second pick be good enough to land me Trout? Dare I suggest the idea of drafting Clayton Kershaw ahead of Trout in head-to-head points leagues? The thought of not taking Trout with the first pick is one that only Dom Cobb could plant in your subconscious. But would it be such a terrible decision? Let’s look at the numbers.
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2015 Minor League Preview: Houston Astros
March 18, 2015 | Fantasy Baseball Prospects | 69 Commentsby: Mike
Organizational Talent Rankings via Baseball America
2014 (5) | 2013 (9) | 2012 (17) | 2011 (26) | 2010 (30)
2014 Affiliate Records
MLB: [70-92] AL West
AAA: [74-70] Pacific Coast League – Oklahoma City (2015: Fresno)
AA: [67-73] Texas League – Corpus Christi
A+: [78-62] California League – Lancaster
A: [70-69] Midwest League – Quad Cities
A(ss): [48-28] New York-Penn League – Tri-City
Graduated Prospects
George Springer, OF | Jon Singleton, 1B | Jake Marisnick, OF (from Marlins) | Collin McHugh, RHP
The Gist
This is a fun system for fantasy prospects and reminds me of the Rangers’ farm with a stud building block, toolsy outfielders, and a couple of nice arms to round things out. The Astros have talented young players surfacing on the major league team as well, with George Springer entering his sophomore season and Jake Marisnick in the mix for an outfield gig. I like Marisnick as a sleeper this year, as he’s always had that 20/20 type of profile and now finds himself in a better park for hitting. Jon Singleton needs some polish after hitting just .168 in his rookie year, but I’m still buying the 23-year-old in dynasties thanks to his power potential. Mike Foltynewicz and Rio Ruiz would have both been towards the top half of this list prior to being traded to Atlanta.
We (me) have gone over the catchers, 2nd basemen, shortstops and 3rd basemen to target. Last year, I dedicated this post to one player. I started last year’s post with, “Ahoy, all of youse that are apathetic about Michael Brantley, what follows is a one long love letter to said player, because, really, someone has to!” And that’s me rubbing it in your face that you didn’t listen to me. Sorry, that was petty, said Tom as he filed a lawsuit against Sam Smith. You know who I’m caca-cuckoo on this year? Same first name, same skill set, same set of worries, Michael “Be Mine” Saunders. It should be fun (for me) next year when I point out I tried to get y’all to draft Saunders, but no one wanted any part of him, until, of course, it was too late. Sad story (for you). (By the by, in last year’s outfielder sleeper post: Brantley, Ozuna, Yelich, Springer, Calhoun and Corey Dickerson.) Okay, so this post is all the outfielders that are being drafted after 200 overall that I have uber-sexy feelings for. Now, this is a (legal-in-all-countries-except-Canada) supplement to the top 100 outfielders for 2015 fantasy baseball. Click on the playerâs name where applicable to read more and see their 2015 projections. Anyway, hereâs some outfielders to target for 2015 fantasy baseball:
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