Those that have been reading my points league posts since I started with Razzball a few years back know that I dislike batters that strikeout a lot. I’ve been a vocal supporter of penalizing batters for strikeouts. I have even gone as far to say that if you are in a points league that does not subtract points for strikeouts that you should find another league. In points leagues strikeouts cost you points. Anything that costs you points is a poison. Take a player like Khris Davis. Last year he had about 399 fantasy points, finishing just inside the top 50 batters. Davis struck out 195 times. In leagues that penalize one point for a strikeout, that’s 195 points he lost. That’s as many points as Alex Gordon had in all of last year. Chris Davis with a “C”, had 190 points. Like Khris Davis with a “K”, he also had 195 points deducted for strikeouts.
Now get ready for this. After an exchange in the comments section of a preseason post I’ve been thinking about the value, or lack there of, of a strikeout. My thought process was that a strikeout is pretty much the worst out you can make. It’s entirely unproductive and it can’t even advance the runners (ignoring strike three that gets away from the catcher). How is this any different than a popup in the infield? If you think about it, it’s not. They both result in the same outcome. So if we subtract a point for a strikeout, shouldn’t we subtract a point for a popup to first base? I think the answer is no. I’m starting to think that a batter shouldn’t lose a point for either of these events. Or, more accurately, he shouldn’t lose a point for a strikeout since he already doesn’t lose a point for the pop out.
How would this change the landscape of points leagues? Well for leagues that don’t currently penalize for strikeouts, they would remain the same. Duh. For everyone else, a fair amount of players would suddenly become a quite bit more valuable. Khris Davis’s 399 points now becomes 590 points. And instead of being a top 50 batter, he becomes a top twenty. Giancarlo Stanton and Aaron Judge become the number one and top batters overall. If I’m being honest I am really thinking this is the right move. I can’t believe the words are actually coming out of my mouth. And by “out of my mouth” I mean being typed by my fingers.
Let’s take a quick look at how this rule change would effect this season’s year-to-date rankings. Subtracting one point for a strikeout here are the top twenty.
Mookie Betts – 191 points
Manny Machado – 173 points
Mike Trout – 168 points
Bryce Harper – 163 points
Jose Ramirez – 162 points
Freddie Freeman – 155 points
Nick Markakis – 150 points
Ozzie Albies – 149 points
Didi Gregorius – 147 points
Francisco Lindor – 143 points
Aaron Judge – 140 points
A.J. Pollock – 135 points
Mike Moustakas – 132 points
Andrelton Simmons – 129 points
Javier Baez – 128 points
J.D. Martinez – 128 points
Kris Bryant – 126 points
Jed Lowrie – 125 points
George Springer – 124 points
Carlos Correa – 123 points
Without subtracting for a strikeout, here is the new top twenty.
Mookie Betts – 210 points
Mike Trout – 201 points
Manny Machado – 196 points
Aaron Judge – 194 points
Bryce Harper – 192 points
Ozzie Albies – 184 points
Freddie Freeman – 183 points
Jose Ramirez – 178 points
Francisco Lindor – 178 points
A.J. Pollock – 173 points
J.D. Martinez – 173 points
Didi Gregorius – 169 points
Nick Markakis – 167 points
Carlos Correa – 163 points
Jed Lowrie – 160 points
Justin Upton – 160 points
Javier Baez – 159 points
George Springer – 159 points
Mitch Haniger – 158 points
Giancarlo Stanton – 158 points
While Mookie Betts remains the top player, there are a lot of the same names in both lists, just in a little bit of a different order. It’s also important to keep in mind that we are only seven weeks or so into the season. The further into the season we get the more I think the list changes. Some players that made the list once strikeouts were ignored are Justin Upton, Mitch Haniger and Giancarlo Stanton. Some players that are considered strikeout hitters that are slowly creeping their way into the picture, falling a bit outside the top twenty, are Trevor Story (156 points) and Khris Davis (153 points).
It’s a lot to chew on, but I’m seeing a revolution being started right here. What do you think? Joey Gallo was overhead screaming “I’m ready to get this shit started!”
My two cents.
Vladimir Guerrero’s starting percentage in CBS is 1 percent. Shouldn’t it be zero? Are there leagues with no bench?
Someone needs to tell Adam Wainwright that his career is over. Maybe move his desk to the basement and take his stapler.
Edubray Ramos. I kinda like that name. Hello my name is Edubray. Hi Ed. No it’s Edubray. You mean Odubel. No, that’s another guy. What do you think all of us minorities looks the same. I bet you think that’s Vladimir Guerero pointing at Maikel Franco.
Rob Deer approves not deducting a point for a strikeout.
I plan to see Solo solo. Is there any other way?
Kevin Pillar is under-owned.
Why is a nickel bigger than a dime?
Does Mike Moustakas own a diner? If so, does Billy Butler eat for free?
Are any of you planning to wait in line this Saturday for Nine Inch Nails tickets?
Has Julio Teheran turned a corner?
A post on Nick Markakis is coming.
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