Through the first few weeks of the season it seemed as if Prince Fielder was gearing up for another disappointing season. While last year was the result of an injury, it was disappointing nonetheless. Maybe he should have never left Milwaukee. You know, on the playground where he spent most of his days. Although Detroit wasn’t bad to him either. Those who doubted Fielder are now likely doubting themselves. Those that drafted him are now patting themselves on the back. In the past 14 days, no hitter has more fantasy points than Prince who has collected 72 points, including 6 home runs, 19 RBIs and 0 stolen bases. However I am predicting at least one stolen base before the season concludes and I believe that will be one more than Billy Butler‘s season total. Fielder is on pace for 35 home runs, 133 RBIs and a “jazzy” 577 points. 133 RBIs would be a single season high for Prince. Even though he looks more like Uncle Phil, The Fresh Prince Fielder is back!
Now let’s “throw it to Lucas“. Lucas Duda that is. Hopefully the Duda has been making his fantasy owners happy this season and they haven’t been keeping him on the bench. With 5 home runs and 54 points in the last two weeks perhaps he is living up to some of the preseason hype. And by preseason hype I am referring to the projections of 25-30 home runs. While he’s only on pace for just over 20, he is also currently batting .294. I’m not sure Lucas will be consistent enough to start on a week to week basis, but I am certainly going to keep an eye on him. And right now I’m starting him over Jason Heyward.
Guess who just traded Lorenzo Cain and Rusney Castillo for Jason Kipnis? That’s right, this guy! Cain and Castillo were both bench players as I had a lot of depth in the outfield and Kipnis is currently the top scoring second baseman with 161 points. So essentially I gave up very little to get a lot. And right now Kipnis is about as hot as it gets, next to Prince Fielder, Bryce Harper and Ryan Braun of course. Kipnis is so hot that he could probably keep the Menorah lit for weeks! Before a disappointing 2014 season, he flirted with stardom in both 2012 and 2013, hitting nearly 20 home runs and stealing 30 bases. He’s slightly behind pace for a 20/20 season, but I think a 15/25 season is well within reach. And with 161 points, he is well on his way to 500+ points season. Robinson Cano who? Despite being a tad low on Kipnis a few weeks back, he has won me over.
In the last 7 days Evan Gattis is batting .333 with 34 points. This will probably be the only time in his career that he ever hits for an average greater than .225. He now has 10 home runs and is on pace for a 30+ season. It’s nice to have a 30 home run catcher playing in the outfield. Hopefully those of you that drafted him have stuck with him.
Here are some other players that have been dropping points on their opponents like it’s their job over the last two weeks.
Miguel Cabrera (57 points), Josh Donaldson (56), Brandon Belt (54), Andrew McCutchen (52), Michael Brantley (50), Kyle Seager (49), Jose Bautista (47), Paul Goldschmidt (45), Brandon Crawford (45), Nolan Arenado (45), Nori Aoki (44), Pedro Alvarez (44), Jhonny Peralta (44), Kris Bryant (43)
What about pitchers? What about Bob? Not Bob, pitchers. Are there any noteworthy pitchers this season named Bob? I dare you to name one.
Mad Max Scherzer is proving everything he was expected to be when he was signed by the Nationals. In the last two weeks alone he has had 3 starts (3 QS) in which he pitched 22 innings, striking out 30 batters for 3 wins and 93 points. Move over Tom Hardy and Mel Gibson as Fury Road sounds more like the path hitters take when they walk back to the dugout after Scherzer has just struck them out. I wish a little of that Scherzer awesome-ness would rub off on Strasburg.
“Sterling” Archer put forth perhaps his best outing of the season the other day (34 points), only to go home with a no decision. That’s what happens when you pitch for the Rays and are pitching against Felix Hernandez. Can we call it now and just give the AL Cy Young award to King Felix. He leads all pitchers in fantasy points, especially in leagues that reward additional points for complete game shutouts. To put things into perspective, my personal league is very pitcher-friendly when it comes to points. Felix currently has 305 points. Scherzer is second with 266. The top batter is Bryce Harper, and he has 203. Next is Goldschmidt with 186.
Here are a few starting pitchers that have been throwing strikes the last two weeks:
Jacob deGrom (88 points), Trever Bauer (79), Jeff Samardzija (73), Gerrit Cole (70) Carlos Carrasco (69), Clayton Kershaw (69), Jered Weaver (69), Jordan Zimmermann (67), Madison Bumgarner (64), Kyle Hendricks (63), Drew Hutchinson (63)
I’d like to say one more thing while we are discussing pitchers. I love Gerrit Cole. Get him on your team. Averaging about 21 points per start so far this season, he is a pitcher you will want to have for at least the next 5 years. If Gerrit teams up with a Tom Cruise to do a Days of Thunder 2, would they name the main character Gerrit Cole Trickle? I wonder if when Ron Searage comes out to talk to Cole late in a game he says “You better go high Cole. Pick a line you can pitch through. Cole, are you alright? Answer me please. Pitch around this mess. You can pitch through it!!!” Perhaps they can also sign Zach Wheeler for the Days of Thunder sequel too…
