In the last three weeks Adam Eaton has seen his ownership in points leagues nearly double, reaching a level greater than his draft percentage. During that time he has scored 72 points. Only a few other players have scored more. He is on pace for 14 home runs and 17 stolen bases. His preseason projections were 4 homers and 17 stolen bases. I liked him preseason. I like him even more with the 10 additional home runs.
In the last month only Lucas Duda has as many home runs as Carlos Gonzalez (11 HR). However Cargo is batting .392 and has more RBIs and points. As a matter of fact, as crazy as Duda’s tear has been, Cargo’s 108 points are 27 more points than Duda’s 81. I’m taking Cargo over Duda if I have the choice. If only Duda had stolen a few bases, then I could have gone with “Zip-a-Dee-Doo-Dah” as my title.
After Cargo, the player with the most points is Nelson Cruz. In the last two weeks he is batting .435 with 7 home runs, 10 RBIs and 73 points. Seven home runs and just 10 RBIs???!!! How many solo home runs can a guy hit before he goes blind?
Do you know who leads all hitters with 20 strikeouts in the last two weeks? If you guessed Adam Dunn, then you probably got out of your DeLorean in 2012. If that’s the case, can you place the following wagers for me. The New York Football Giants to win the Super Bowl, the Los Angeles Kings to take Lord Stanley’s Cup, and the New York Baseball Giants over the Detroit Tigers in 4. Since I am not suddenly filthy rich I can assume only two things. You have yet to place my wagers, or you have decided to keep the winnings for yourself. Either way, not cool.
The correct answer, with 20 swings and misses, is Chris Davis. Surprise, surprise. However… during that span he also has 8 home runs, 25 RBIs and 67 points. I still want nothing to do with him in a points league that discriminates against strikeouts. He’s too streaky for my liking. You know who else has 20 K’s during that same time? Kris Bryant and Ian Desmond. I know this is going to ruffle some feathers, but I’m not even sure Bryant is worth owning in redraft leagues. He’s not even a top 15 third baseman in points leagues.
Is Jose Abreu showing signs of life? Believe it or not, Abreu is quietly on pace for 29 homers, 100 RBIs and .296 batting average. When did that happen? Why didn’t I trade for him weeks ago? You like Abreus? I got some numbers for you. When I asked Jose’s fake uncle Bobby to proof read this post he laughed and then said, “Been there, done that. Only when I did it, I also stole 40 bases.” How do you like them Abreus. And that’s me comparing Abreus to Abreus.
Speaking of signs of life, I think Melky Cabrera might have gotten the same wake up call. Did the fantasy overlords recently pay a visit to the south side of Chicago? Excluding week 15, since week 10 Melky’s weekly point totals have continued to increase. In the last three weeks he has 77 points. While that’s chump change compared to Cargo, Cruz and a few others, it’s also nothing to shake your head at. As a matter of fact, I consider 20 points in a week from a hitter a good week. I don’t have exact numbers, but I from a small sample size I have found the average points for a batter in a week to be around 15. I consider over 20 a good week, over 25 a very good week, over 30 a great week, and over 35 an effing awesome week! In the last three weeks Melky is averaging just over 25 points.
In the past month Joey Votto has been the most productive first basement in points leagues with 94 points. But he’s not the first baseman I’m looking for. That would be Eric Hosmer. Hosmer is right behind Votto with 89 points during that same stretch. He only has 3 homers, which by the way is actually the word hosmer slightly scrambled, and hasn’t stolen any bases, but the great thing about points leagues is that it doesn’t matter how you earn your points. And you know what else I like about Hosmer? I own him in every points league I am in. And I drafted him very late.
With the playoffs now in sight in many leagues it’s time to put the pedal to the metal and make sure you get there. If you’re season is already over I suggest you start making trades to better your chances in 2016.
And just in case anyone was wondering, here is my 2016 points league roster wish list which I probably could have drafted this year.
Kyle Schwarber, Albert Pujols, Kolten Wong, Carlos Correa, Manny Machado, A.J. Pollock, Lorenzo Cain, Ryan Braun and Charlie Blackmon.
