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Perhaps it’s the constantly ticking pitch clock causing me anxiety and doubt but the Pittsburgh Pirates, yes those Pirates aka the 1979 World Champs have now won four in a row and that’s almost entirely due to free-agent-to-be Bryan Reynolds. Reynolds was 3-for-5 with his MLB leading fifth home run Friday night along with 6 […]

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It was a wild offseason for the National League, one highlighted by Trea Turner’s lucrative ($300 million) transition from the Dodgers to Phillies, along with fellow shortstop Xander Bogaerts’ introduction to the NL, via the San Diego Padres and $280 mil of his own. Two of the absolute best shortstops in the game are anchored […]

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Last week, we jumped right into our our first look at the Top 100 Hitters for the 2022 Fantasy Baseball Season.  If you missed that article then please pause the current programming and give us a quick read to catch up.  This week we continue to jaunt down the rankings by looking at the next 20 hitters on the list.  This week’s edition is smattered with risky bets like Ronald Acuna and Mookie Betts, solid producers like Freddie Freeman and Ozzie Albies, and upside potential with Eloy Jimenez and Tyler O’Neill.  So let us kick this off with a #11 who really should be #1, but thanks to a the injury risk he is our headliner at the end of the first round.

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I really didn’t understand the whole Bo Bichette is greater than Vladimir Guerrero Jr. movement that took place this draft season. That’s not a knock on Bichette by any means, but instead an affirmation that Vlad is a very special player that came into this league as the highly touted number one prospect ahead of Fernando Tatis Jr, Eloy Jimenez, Kyle Tucker and Bo Bichette. While it does seem like Bo had a smoother transition into the big leagues, anyone that thought Vlad wasn’t going to find his groove likely made a bad decision (or three) along the way. A few years ago there were many preaching that Guerrero Jr. was going to become the best player in the game. Well the hype train has just arrived at the station as he currently leads all hitters in fantasy points. I know Ronald Acuna Jr. has been lighting the roto world on fire, but he still has less points than Vlad. By the way, what’s the deal with there being so many top tier hitters with a Jr. at the end of their name? I wonder if I should change my name to malamoney Jr.

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One of the great things about points leagues is that they are very straightforward. You don’t have to balance out a guy with a poor average who hits bombs or steals bases. All we need are the guys at each position that score the most points. “Wow, that’s so smart, why didn’t I think of that earlier?”  Yes, I can hear the groans now. Obviously, you know that the team with more points wins. What I’m getting at is that at the end of the day we have a nice clean number to quantify fantasy performance. So what’s my point you ask? Well, it also highlights the differences between points leagues and categories. So, with that in mind, let’s take a look at how the player rater compares to the current points standings.

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One more week in the book and we’re starting to see guys separate themselves. It’s still early but things are starting to clear up and the season is in full swing. So what have learned? Ronald Acuna is pretty dang good at hitting a baseball and we should have taken Corbin Burnes earlier. If you were fortunate enough to snag either of them congrats and if you have both well… you’re the envy of the rest of your league. But we all know those two are crushing it, you don’t need me to tell you that. Now, on to some other players to take note of.

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You know what’s fun? We’re already equal to a quarter of the way through the 2020 sprint season here in 2021. But you know what? We’re barely scratching the surface here in 2021. There’s month of games to go, and the good players haven’t gotten good yet. Hell, most of our first round picks are straight booty cheeks. It’s okay y’all! Brighter days are coming, it’s 4-20 and we’re smoking you out with all the bad vibes on this week’s show. So don’t fret, it ain’t June yet! We got time. So relax and tune into the latest episode of the Razzball podcast.

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Ryan Gosling wants you to believe in Jazz Chisholm. Did you know that I love Ryan Gosling? Not just because La La Land helped me rediscover my love of Los Angeles. Or because he’s a bird if Rachel McAdams is a bird. Not even because of his squeaky voice in Gangster Squad or his face tattoo in the Place Beyond the Pines. Nope. I love him because he saved Jazz. Baby Goose loves Jazz. And now he’s got that crazy, stupid love for Marlins rookie middle infielder Jazz Chisholm, who had himself a night Friday going 2-for-3 with his third dinger and helped spur the Fish (get hooked!) to victory. The 23-year-old is currently slashing .294/.405/.706 with three jacks, seven runs, and six RBI through his first 12 games. Did I mention he has three steals? Because this is a power-speed combo available in over 65% of fantasy leagues. Mmhm. Dude is smooth like…uh, smooth jazz, I guess. Anyway, as I did my 5-10 minutes of toilet research for this post I noticed many articles referenced some eye-popping stats on Chisholm’s baseball savant page. Most notably, his average exit velocity is way above the league norms (93.9), and his 34.8% barrel percentage is one of the highest in the league. Yes, but what does it all mean, nerd?? It means he’s absolutely demolishing baseballs. Molly-whopping. Mashing. And Fueling that insane .783 XSLG%. Now, obviously, the 12 strikeouts in 34 ABs is more than a bit concerning, but he’s also drawn seven walks and hasn’t been chasing pitches outside the zone on those Ks. If the Jazz Dinger can keep his strikeouts down and continue to be selective with the pitches he swings at there is a rare raw power-speed combo here that would make Emma Stone blush. He could be a 25-25 guy! Gosling says Jazz is “conflict and compromise, And It’s Just… It’s New Every Time. It’s Brand New Every Night!” Intoxicating enthusiasm from The Gos and he’s right. Grey told you to BUY and all that Jazz could be worth a speculative add wherever you need middle infield help. Time to Jazz up your fantasy team!

Here’s what else I say Friday night in fantasy baseball:

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Another week in the books. So what have we learned? We’re starting to get more clarity on playing time situations and the cream is rising to the top. The Mets can’t figure out how to stay on the field, having only logged 8 games. Unfortunately, there will continue to be Covid issues going forward which could affect any team so it’s more important than ever check your lineups daily. That leaves weekly formats out in the cold so check Monday mornings and then just hope for the best. Hopefully the situation gets better going forward but there’s really no way to be sure. 

As we see guys begin to separate themselves remember that we still have many many more weeks to go. Be ready to ride a hot streak on waivers but don’t over react to your guys starting slow. Slumps happen and we’re only a couple weeks in. 

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