It was a long, strange journey through the month of April (seven whole starts) for my Mitch Keller preseason sleeper. Whenever a sleeper does bad, I blame woke. He was not awake, but maybe that was asking too much of a sleeper. I tagged him a sleeper, after all. Was I asking too much to beg, on my hands and knees, to wake the eff up? (I said the preceding like I was Christopher Walken. Go back and read it again. And you’ll see.) So, maybe it’s a May thang, I ponder as I look at Mitch Keller throwing a complete game yesterday — 9 IP, 1 ER, 6 baserunners, 5 Ks. He started the game with a 5.18 ERA and 3.4 BB/9 (not good for him), and ended it with a 2.9 BB/9 and ERA at 4.44. Not saying it’s all fixed and we’re back on the Keller Express, next stop Funsiesville, but it shows you how early it still is. One more great start from Keller and he’ll be exactly where we thought when we drafted him, i.e., it was woof but could be back to Old Keller. Anyway, here’s what else I saw yesterday in fantasy baseball:
Edward Olivares – 2-for-4, 4 RBIs and his 4th homer. Now bench him for five days, then bring him in as a defense replacement on day six. Who are we kidding, Olivares hit a grand slam and was replaced by the .176-hitting Suwinski in the same game!
Zach Neto – 1-for-3 and his 3rd homer, hitting .239. Ya notice there’s no Zacharies? What’s up with that? [deafening silence] Okay.
Mason Black – 4 1/3 IP, 5 ER, as he was called up by the Giants. His parents failed him. Paintit was right there for a first name. Or Whoyacallin. That might lead to some fights, which is good! Son, this world is rough and if a man’s gonna make it, he’s gotta be tough. Little Man in Black on Black. Here’s what Itch previously said, “It’s a two-pitch, three-quarters look from the 6’3” Black, but if his command is on point, he gets an extra pitch or two out of the fastball/slider combo because he can work both inside and out, up and down. Stealing the back-door slider strike from lefties, especially, gives him a chance against them because he can also back-foot the pitch for punch-outs in two-strike counts. Though he struggled a bit in 60.2 innings at Triple-A, Black was the club’s minor league player of the year in 2023 and should get a look pretty early in 2024. Now, if you excuse me, I’m plotting to poison Grey’s boba.” What the heck? So, I put Black in the top 100 starters at the last minute in March, because he looked solid, then they signed Blake and Blake beat Black back. Check me out, finished that sentence without a two-hour bee delay. Black’s a streamer for now, clearly.
Zack Wheeler – 7 IP, 0 ER, 5 baserunners, 11 Ks, ERA at 1.64. Oh, the Giants are bad too. We’ve got a running tally of the bad teams vs. the good teams and the bad teams are starting to beat out the good teams. Not in games, but in sheer volume. It’s easier to count the number of good lineups. Let’s see in the NL: Phils, Dodgers, DBacks, Padres, Braves, and Cubs. Am I missing any decent NL lineups? Brewers? Meh, I guess. What’s that, less than half of the NL?
Bryce Harper – 2-for-4, 3 RBIs and his 8th homer, and 2nd homer in as many games. Twice would’ve been Bryce as nyce!
Kyle Schwarber – 2-for-4, 2 runs and his 9th homer, hitting .212. Schwarbomber gonna hit 50+, ain’t he?
Joe Kelly – Hit the IL with a shoulder strain. Which is whatever, but with Evan Phillips injured, this shores up Daniel Hudson’s grasp on the closer job or. Dot dot dot.
Alex Vesia – 1 IP, 0 ER, ERA at 1.56 and his 1st save, with Blake Treinen (1 IP, 0 ER) brought in for the 8th inning and Daniel Hudson was brought in after the game to chat with some fans, hand out giant foam fingers. Ya know, the stuff a non-closer does.
Teoscar Hernandez – 2-for-4 and his 9th homer, and 2nd homer in as many games, and 3rd homer in four games. Mr. Bungled Teoscar in the preseason so badly. He was so obvious value, and I drafted him nowhere. The Teoscar for Biggest Idiot? Not to me, I have no Teoscars.
Shohei Ohtani – 2-for-3, 2 RBIs and a slam (11) and double legs (8, 9). Next preseason, there will be people still who are like, “Meh, I don’t know, he doesn’t have any eligibility.” Yeah, then you can’t freely pick up great guys like Nick Gordon.
James Outman – 1-for-4, 2 RBIs and his 3rd homer. I legit forgot he existed, and I have him on a team, so that’s a very bad sign.
Walker Buehler – 4 IP, 3 ER, as he was activated from the IL. Good news, he was able to throw 77 pitches. Better news, he doesn’t need his third Tommy John surgery yet.
Jake Burger – 0-for-4 as he was activated from the IL. Finally my Keto diet gets some variety.
Nick Gordon – 1-for-3 and his 5th homer, and 2nd homer in as many games. Hot schmotato alert!
Alex Wood – 6 IP, 0 ER, 3 baserunners, 3 Ks, ERA at 5.30. I cannot tell a lie, I streamed Wood, like my name’s Balsa, baby!
Corey Seager – 1-for-5, 3 RBIs and his 3rd homer, hitting .227. Know how I just said above I forgot Outman existed? Seager went 100 picks before him and has about the same value so far.
Bryse Wilson – 6 IP, 0 ER, 4 baserunners, 6 Ks, ERA at 2.40. Not Streamonator‘ing him, not thinking about it, because I know as soon as I pick him up, he will explode all over my teams.
Michael Massey – 1-for-3 and his 3rd homer, 3rd homer in a week. “Take it, it’s yours.” That’s Maikel Garcia handing Massey the Chalice of the Hot Schmotato.
Cole Ragans – 6 IP, 2 ER, 4 baserunners, 8 Ks, ERA at 3.38. Prior to this game, Ragans was the 71st best starter on the Player Rater. Doubt this moved him up much.
Justin Steele – 4 2/3 IP, 0 ER, ERA at 0.96, as he was activated from the IL. Kevin from ESPN’s Get Him In Your Lineup Department said, “The escalator says Schlinder, is that as in the list guy?”
Christopher Morel – 1-for-4, 2 RBIs and a slam (8) and legs (4), and, like, his 17th homer this month. Sorry, Dave Winfield, Morel is the new Mr. May. Standby for the June sell.
Yu Darvish – 5 IP, 0 ER, 4 baserunners, 5 Ks, ERA at 2.94. It’s not haha funny how funny it is that Darvish has become a boring backend starter after all those years of sheer dominatitude. Hmm, tried to do something there and it didn’t work. Dominatitude sounds like the name of the Nats’ mascot.
Simeon Woods-Richardson – 6 IP, 0 ER, 1 hit, 1 walk, 8 Ks, ERA at 1.74. Gave you my Simeon Woods-Richardson fantasy, and nothing’s really changed. I like him; I kinda like all Twins pitching prospects, but this was also a solid matchup. (Inner monologue says, “They’re all good matchups, Brent.” Because there are so many bad hitting teams.)
Brandon Nimmo – 2-for-5, 2 runs and his 4th homer. Nimmo found one!
Sean Manaea – 6 IP, 3 ER, 7 baserunners, 1 K, vs. Kyle Gibson – 6 IP, 2 ER, 9 baserunners, 4 Ks, ERA at 3.68. This matchup was billed as, “Jesus Hayzeus and Carfax, don’t make me say anything nice about these guys, but that doesn’t mean they can’t be useful for fantasy. Happy? That was kind of a nice thing.”
Riley Greene – 1-for-5 and his 9th homer. The greatest sleeper call of mine? Well, no, I’ve had a few great ones, but this ain’t bad so far!
Jack Flaherty – 6 IP, 2 ER, 7 baserunners, 6 Ks, ERA at 3.86. Bit surprised the Ks weren’t higher. What’s the opposite of “Flaherty will get you everywhere?” That’s this.
Triston McKenzie – 5 IP, 1 ER, 6 baserunners, 6 Ks, ERA at 3.97. Straight from the community theater production of Forrest Gump, where McKenzie played the feather, and into the fire. Can’t start a fire without a spark from two twigs, which bring us back to McStickzie. Oh, his peripherals look awful, too, by the by. I’d be very scared about starting him.
Jonny DeLuca – 2-for-4, 4 RBIs and his 1st homer, and his 4th game played. So, Lowe (rhyming em-effin’ Simon over here) is back, and DeLuca played center yesterday, which is significant, because Siri was the Rays’ CF up until now. Maybe Siri gave the address for a plumber when she was asked what was Amanda Plumber’s last movie and Kevin Cash was finally fed up! DeLuca is super toolsy — power, speed, could make decent contact — but the thing holding him back was the playing time. If he has PT, he begins immediately to become intriguing.
Tommy Pham – 1-for-4, 2 RBIs and his 2nd homer, hitting .282. Wham, bam, thank you, Pham!
Mike Clevinger – 2 IP, 3 ER as he was called up. He clearly misses his pal Zach Plesac. Wonder where he is…[phone rings] Hello? Plesac? What’s up, man? You in the cuzzi with one in a koozie trying to get the Postmates dude’s attention with your pineapple za? Damn, man, that’s crazy. Okay, lates.
Like any of these guys over Gavin Sheets? Kody Clemens, LaMonte Wade, JD Davis, Tyler Freeman, Lipscomb, Nevin, Wisdom, Gabriel Arias, Josh Rojas, Toro-Hernandez, Senzel, Vierling. Temporary CI guy until Jung comes back. Thanks!
Lodolo for my Jones…which side?
My apologies in advance….catcher question. Be patient with O’Hoppe or drop for any of Campusano, Diaz, or Jansen, or equally bad Ruiz, Melendez, or Bo Naylor? It’s still early, so leaning toward holding out hope for Logan. What do you think?
I guess O’Hoppe heard me…3/4 already tonight with an RBI. Ha!
4/5 now! Ha!
@Grey: sagnof – hudson, jax, reed garrett or leiter jr?
thanks!
Hey Grey, at the end of the season, who has better stats DeLuca or Edman?
Thanks, as always.
Hi Grey,
1) In a 12 team roto redraft 5×5 here are my non-injured starters:
Steele, Lugo, Bradish, C. Scott, Kikuchi, Crochet
I’ve got C. Javier and T. Bradley coming off the IL.
Who are the drop(s)?
1a) Is this how you’d rank them?
Steele, Lugo, Bradish, Crochet, C. Scott, T. Bradley, C. Javier, Kikuchi
2) 12 team mixed keeper league with OBP/SLG/OPS (plus cats for 2B, 3B, TB, SB and docking points for Ks and GIDP). Only one 1 UTIL slot, no CI/MI, slots for LF, CF, RF, no 4th/5th OF.
I’ve been perma-benching CES and Kjerstad, and CF has been a struggle with Outman, Chourio, Adell.
On the waiver wire: Lazaro Montes, Eloy, Castellanos, Winker, Gorman, Frelick (CF), T. Freeman (CF), Rafaela (CF), C. Keith, Kiriloff
Any moves you’d recommend?
2a) I’ve been holding Orelvis. Drop/trade him in order to stash Noelvi?
Thanks in advance.
A. Matt Olson, Dansby and Littell
B. Josh Naylor, Nico and Jhoan
Better start today: Reynaldo López at home vs Bos or Seth Lugo at home vs Mil
Maeda. That is/was not good. I can cool anyone off!
Yikes that was bad
Not an east start tbf but sheesh. SON nailed it!
The only – and I mean the ONLY – consolation is that my oppponent is starting Allen…
Could you please rank Rooker, Wilyer Abreu, and Manzardo.
For what? To play? Bench? Abreu, Manz
Sorry. To play. And looking for HR/RBI
I’m in a 10 team mixed yahoo redraft league. I just activated Sewald. Who can I drop to pick up Oneil Cruz? I was punting saved but picked up Sewald and put him in my IL spot. I didn’t think it was a good idea to cut him.
Roster:
C – Yainer Diaz (C,1B)
1B – Bryce Harper (1B)
2B – Isaac Paredes (1B, 2B, 3B)
3B – Spencer Steer (1B, 2B, 3B, OF)
SS – Corey Seager (SS)
OF – Jazz Chizholm Jr (OF)
OF – Adolis Garcia (OF)
DH – Christopher Morel (2B, 3B, OF)
BENCH: Gleyber Torres (2B)
BENCH: Jurickson Profar (OF)
SP: Jack Flaherty
SP: Brady Singer
SP: Aaron Civale
SP: Sonny Gray
SP: Yusei Kikuchi
SP: Zac Gallen
SP: Reynaldo Lopez
SP: Ryan Pepiot
SP: Walker Buehler
CLOSER: Paul Sewald
BENCH: Paul Skenes
Profar
I just realized that I omitted my third OF in the lineup, which is Profar. Is it still Profar with gleyber going to the DH spot?
I guess Gleyber
10 team 6×6 with OPS. Am I crazy to want to drop Gurriel instead of J. Young? It’s to accommodate an activation. Gurriel has been on a 2 for 33 skid, which likely colors my view.
LF Y. Alvarez
CF Bellinger
RF Tucker
OF Pages
Util Friedl
Depth – Young and Ruiz*
*- I just fear dropping Ruiz because I see that future meaning someone else reaps the Ruiz speed after I’ve held him since the draft. If you think I need to let go, I can consider it and possibly arrange an intervention for myself.
Robles just returned, he might eat into Young’s PT
Hmmm. Think I’ll go another way and drop Black for now. Sorry, this is what I get for trying to tighten up my original question!
ok
Side A: Soto Side B: Arozarena and Gallen
which would you want?
12 team points league if it matters. Other pitchers are Castillo, Peralta, Bryce Miller, Bibee, Gray, Littell, Stone, Fedde and will be getting Taj Bradley this weekend
A
I guess my Stripling stream wasn’t that bad!
Haha, well played!
He should change his nickname from chicken strip to chicken shit… I’ll see myself out.
Haha
How do you feel about Seager so far? Statcast isn’t looking great but I feel like he’ll turn it around.
Would you prefer Hoerner and Reynolds or Seager and Nimmo?
Thank you!
I’d take Seager there, but it’s close…I think Seager might be in for a terrible year
Yeah I offered Hoerner for Seager straight up but was countered with Hoerner+Reynolds for Seager+Miguel Rojas. Don’t know how much more I’d be willing to give up for Seager than Hoerner which I was thinking about countering with the above^
I’m winning steals by a ridiculous margin so I’m trying to move Hoerner for some more pop. How would you rank Seager, Josh Naylor and Christian Walker ROS?
Sorry, meant to add Hoerner to that last list. So Seager, Naylor, Walker, Hoerner. Thanks!
If you’re winnign SBs by a lot, Hoerner for Seager is fair…I’d take Naylor, Walker then Seager
10 team H2H points league
Need to drop one to stream. Which should I drop?
Bassitt or R. Lopez
Bassitt
Lugo, Crawford, Maeda – not sure I’ve ever started pitchers with a bigger combined SON negative value.
What could go wrong?
Haha, whee!
Sorry if this has been answered, but what do you think of Civale tomorrow in a QS 12er? 36(!) on the SON but just shithouse his last time out…
Plus, somebody dropped Rodon in my league – worth a grab? Current rotation is:
Gausman
Gilbert
Miller
Lugo
Maeda
Crawford
Stroman
M Keller
Ed-Rod – IL
against who
whom. Haha, just kidding. White Sox
at home
Ha, thanks! can’t imagine not starting anyone vs. the White Sox
Yeah, it’s hard not to. Thoughts on a Rodon pick-up? (second part of question above…)
I’d prolly go over Stroman
Gah. Sorry! What Vin said. Thanks Vin!
looked up, and this is gotta be one of the most unironic things very many people will call ironic, morel mushrooms in fact flourish the most in late april to may. wonder if morel the human is aware of this. something for those interviewers that never have anything half intelligent to ask him after a game about (i don’t mean CUBS journalists only, all sports).
stripling right now: gotta be the worst BABIP’ing done to a pitcher so far this year: 7 singles, 2 BB’s (both arguably ump walks, esp the first), 2 outs and the last 2 runs shouldn’t have been earned since error in the middle of that.
that’s in just that one inning i mean.
more than 2 runs weren’t earned.
Haha
Would you replace Loperfido with Merrill,Outman or Kepler or hold?
Would you dump Torkelson for any of:
Ty France
Andrew Vaughn
Ryan O’Hearn
Jeimer Candelario
Thank you!
Outman
O’Hearn
Corbin Carroll is batting leadoff which means he’s fixed now.
that’s how lineup slotting works, it subs for shoulder surgery every time.
Haha, yay
Streamed the only two Rangers left on the wire: Heim and Taveras.
Woohoo!
Nice!
Morel or Bo ROS 12-team roto
Morel
Ouch…what exactly is happening this season.
Ugh
Friedl or Bellinger – 6×6 roto redraft using OBP. TJ is available in my league.
Cody
Is Friedl and Turang the same player in your opinion? although Friedl hit lead off in a better park.
No
Few trade proposals. It’s a small/shallow 6×6 (AVG & OBP) roto redraft.
1. Adolis or Lindor
2. Bellinger or Carroll
3. Lindor or Elly
Which sides do you like most?
Adolis, Cody, Elly
Carroll back in the leadoff spot.
Ruiz or Diaz at C for ROS in NL-Only H2H OBP league?
Diaz
Thank you!
Hi Grey,
I was sitting Kunner at Atlanta. Thoughts?
PS Semien has 13 points already today. Thanks for bringing me to my senses!
Sit
Good afternoon, Grey!
Trade rating question, which side? Analyzer likes side A but I know you are bearish on Seager and Framber.
Side A: Corey Seager, Framber, Taylor Ward
Side B: Teoscar, Logan Gilbert, Maikel Garcia
Thanks!
B
Is Carroll and Duran for J Rod a bad move at this point?
Twins duran
No
OBP league with 4 OF slots and 1 IF slot (and my util filled with Shohei).
Current OFs are Schwarb, Ozuna, O’Neill, Varsho, Springer (often benched), with Seiya on the IL and James Wood biding his time
Current IF options are CES and Grissom.
I’m about to open up an IL slot with pitchers getting healthy, and will need to make a drop or 2. Drop any of the above to pick up a recently dropped Nolan Jones? (1b/OF eligible)
Springer, CES, Wood are your drops
drop Luis Garcia Jr or Vaughn Grissom for deLuca? honestly just trying to catch a breakout somewhere in a 12 team keeper league.
it feels like luis garcia is breaking out
Nah
I’m starting Kutter agin’ the Braves. Not with great confidence, but battling some injuries in that league. Here’s where I’m hanging my hat. League hitting .195 against his fastball. Acuna .236 vs fastballs, Riley .247 versus fastballs, Olson .235 vs fastballs. Miller carved up the Braves last week with a fastball heavy diet and difficulty with good heaters has been part of the Brave narrative all year. I have Reynaldo going against him so hoping a pitching duel breaks out.
I’ll piggyback off of this reasoning!
I debated it a lot, late Sunday I removed him from my lineup for an extra closer…Just couldn’t pull the trigger
Esteury Ruiz’s playing time is nauseating…. Somehow I’m in 3 outta 12 in a keeper….. look to trade if I can get ANYTHING ??? Ughh
Sure
Bench bat ROS upside: Rafaela, T. Black, Castro. Thanks! Could Rafaela turn out to be a monster?
Black
Love your general confidence in Black. I hope you are right.
Me too!
When Bellinger comes back, who to drop to make room?: Gurriel Jr, Loperfido, Goldschmidt or keep a bench bat at delete my SP streaming position (currently occupied by Taillon or C. Scott; I have 2 more SPs than this week’s H2H opponent so don’t need to have a streamer this week/could keep both of them rostered)?
Thanks!
Loperfido if he hasn’t done anything by the time Cody returns
he’s today benched for cabbage too. against a righty.
I saw
Along the same lines as the previous Friedl question. Drop Ward for TJ?
Yes
Appreciate that. ROS rank regardless of position Keeper League. TJ, Ward, Westburg, Luis Garcia
Westburg, TJ, Ward
Friedl back today and hitting leadoff, grab Friedl and drop Chourio? Or just hold for hopeful better days ahead with the talent of Chourio?
go with Friedl
Not the answer I was expecting! Was playing time/lineup spot the deciding factor for you?
leadoff for Cincy is huge
he went 17/28/.280 last year Chourio be lucky to do anything close to that
Thanks Grey, I’m doing it!
No problem
One last question, platoon worries at all with Friedl? I can’t recall from last season
Well they face a Lefty tomorrow so we will find out quickly
Yeah, maybe a little platoon concern — Chourio struggling and batting 9th makes him less valuable
I think they just moved him down in the order against Lefties last year so we should be good on that front, as long as he’s in there is all that matters. Sorry I’ve taken up way too much of your time talking about TJ Friedl haha
Yeah, hopefully
i confirm this is right, benched against some lefties but not all, moved way down in lineup against the others for friedl.
Hey Grey, I’m near the bottom of my league with not much chance – both hitting and pitching killing me in nearly all categories. Castellanos has been crap, but I feel like he’s worth a flyer. Do you think offering LuGuJu for him makes sense?
Yes
Need a util bat. H2h points league. Adell or Garcia Jr?
Thanks!
Adell
Which side do you like more….
Busch and Arozarena or Vinny P and Teoscar
Vinnie
Hi Grey,
2B
I have both Marcus Semien and Katel Marte at 2B. My pitching is good. For example, I had Ragans, Wheeler and Flaherty on Monday. I got 59 points out of 63 points. I certainly need better bats. Semien has been struggling.
1.Does he have any trade value for a better bat at SS where I have Rengifo?
2.Would you be looking to trade him?
3.Would you still be starting him everyday? I have been using Marte at DH
My Of is
LF; Profar or Gurriel
CF: Duran or Nick Senzel
RF: Starling Marte
4.Would you still move Nick Senzel for Bryan De La Cruz?
5. I was starting Profar while he is hot? What are your thoughts on starting him or Gurriel?
Thanks as always for your insight!!!!
Semien is the best hitter you’ve mentioned here, be patient
Thanks!! i needed that!
No problem
Is it a sign that Semien has 9 points so far today? don’t sell that crystal ball!! thanks!!
No problem
Correa or Bichette? Real quesiton.
Meh, Bo, I guess
Wow. Was expecting more of a “Bo… Not Close… Be Patient” response. Other SS options are Neto, Josh Smith, Tyler Wade, Mateo. Don’t really want any of them, but Bo is killing me.
Thoughts?
Sigh, Bo
Berrios has been good but against the Phillies I am thinking if it’s a good start today.
Don’t see how you can bench Berrios anywhere
Seager & Springer to get JRod? Or too much?
JRod side
12 Team Dynasty deep roster P. Meadows, H. Davis, J. DeLuca
DeLuca
Need to drop one of the others. Looks like meadows headed to AAA so I can move him or Davis there.
I dont know what you’re saying
My bad. I need to drop either Meadows or Davis to pick up DeLuca. Davis is already NA and Meadows is getting demoted Tuesday. Which of those two would you drop for Deluca.
Drop Meadows
been waiting on this for a while now. nice.
We are approaching the quarter point of the season. STL is 2nd lowest in runs scored per game. Are you expecting a turn around for Goldschmidt? I was not expecting vintage Goldy when I drafted him, but this is terrible. Thanks
No, I am not
Keeper/contract league and I have Jordan Walker sitting on my bench with a 3 year contract for $0 while he sits in the minors trying to figure out how to be a major league baseball player. I was just offered a trade for Jordan Hicks and Jake Cronenworth for Walker.
Do I give up on Walker and take the two for one deal or stay put. I know both of those players are doing great so far this year but are they worth the future that Walker could be? Thanks.
Hicks side
Feel like the Rays are a couple weeks away from going on a big run
Jose Lowe back, Taj/Baz back in a couple weeks, Randy showing signs of life..
Time to get in while the water is still cold !
Yeah, could be
In a 12 team dynasty keeper league is Sonny Gray for Jarren Duran, Max Clark and Tyler Black fair?
Duran side, it’s fair
Hi Grey,
I have Steele, Berrios, Greene, Flaherty, R. Suarez, Kikuchi, J. Gray, and Luzardo is coming back this weekend. Which 2 would you lose?
Thanks for your help.
no idea of their matchups
Not enough room on my team. I need to drop or trade 2.
Gray, and Luzardo
Thanks. Have a great day
you too!
Worth using a late WW slot ( #11/12) for Civale at the expense of Edward Cabrera?
Sure
Who’s your favorite streamer for tomorrow?
M. Perez vs LAA
R. Olson @ Det
G. Stone vs Mia
Stone
James Wood or Nolan Jones?
Roto, NL-only, keep for 2 more years
Jones
I have Alonso and Olson in a keep forever league. We keep 13 so it’s a “mini dynasty”. Are you overly concerned with either? Would you be looking to move either? If so what would you be looking for in return? I have Manzardo, Aranda(stashed on IL but coming back soon and won’t have room) and Steer with 1B eligibility. I am in 4th and won’t be able to make a push this year unless these guys start living up to their projections. I would love to hear your thoughts.
I wouldn’t sell low on them
I was thinking of targeting a team that has Christian Walker, Josh Naylor, Vinnie P, Hoerner, Josh Lowe, and Jarren Duran. What about Olson for Naylor and Hoerner?
Maybe even throw in someone like Rooker and/or Jacob Young and try to get Lowe or Duran as well.
Sure
MLB Trends: Batting Average Hits Lowest Mark Since 1968
HRs Down 15% in 2024- Home runs are at the lowest rate since 2015
Batters are hitting .239, the worst mark since 1968
OPS & Slugging Percentage are also at their lowest marks in more than 30 years
Ergo there’s lotso pitching to be had, but this blows. Many good hitters hitting .200 or lower. Somethin’s going down Hutch…
Good stuff! I thought that was the case, but wasn’t sure…It really feels like hitting sucks everywhere
Also, do you believe Julio Rodriguez will resemble the power hitter we assumed we drafted. Is he still a buy low player, as opposed to a sell?
Yes, he’ll be fine
Another one for you. Who would you rather part with for Josh Naylor in an OBP league?
Nico Hoerner or Westburg? Westburg has some keeper appeal at $10 next year where Hoerner is likely not a keeper.
Ranked 52, 56, & 46 in our league respectively.
Alternatively, who would you rather have ROS Alonso or Bregman?
Westburg
Hey Good people, thoughts appreciated on an offer I received.
My Harper, and E. Phillips for Joe Ryan and Vinny P. Close, good? or hold?
The other one was Harper and Senga, for Joe and Vinny
tia
Harper side
keep Harper, not close
I can’t be the only one that would buy a coffee table book full of Kevin from ESPN’s Get Him In Your Lineup Department quotes right?
Haha
Arozarena or Castellanos?
Randy
10 team, 5×5. Got offered Berrios for either Steele or Peralta. I’m currently first in ERA and WHIP (yay!) but 8th in W and last in Ks (boo). Relatedly, I’m projected at 50 innings under allowance- Luzardo, Scherzer, and EdRod all on IL (Skubal, Suarez, Lugo other starters).
Thoughts?
Hold
Hey Grey! What’s your read on E. Julien’s inconsistency so far? The vagaries of youth?
I’m debating whether to hold or replace him with someone like Pham. OPS league.
I’d hold
Thanks!
No problem
NL-only, E. Montero or Brujan?
Brujan
Do you think Trevor McGill is the Brewers closer going forward
I’d say almost certainly
No
you don’t think so? you think it’s a share with payamps? megill has looked a lot better.
or are you thinking when air bender comes back?
Devin comes back at some point, absolutely
Just think the Brewers aren’t committed to anyone…If Megill has two straight bad outings, he’s out…or even maybe one bad one
Sadly I would have taken / settled for a boring backend starter last year from Darvish. I traded for him right after the Mexico game thinking I was getting a decent deal. I orchestrated that trade too. He was on my no draft list this year.
So many pitcher doing well who probably shouldn’t be according to advanced stats. How come I don’t own any of them? It kind of makes me sick.
Yeah, I would’ve taken it too
what do you think Teoscar’s end of season line looks like?
Wondering if I try and snag him (nonkeeper) in a 12 team roto for my $1 westburg keeper and new hotness Jacob Young…. (if I did that move, then westburg’s spot would be filled by India or waiver wire until late season whenever mclain returns).
Love the production, but feels like the combo of Westburg (.323 xBA!) and Young/schmotato out perform the combo of Teoscar and India…
90/33/115/.260
Let’s bookmark this! Love it
Haha
Please rank these in a QS league: Cole Irvin, C Sanchez, Keller, Wesneski, Stone
Thanks!
Keller, Stone
Interesting fact. In 34 games, Houston batters have the least number of Ks at 220. Rockies have the most at 340! That’s good for an extra 3.5 Ks a game.
Furthermore, with only 1 extra game, the BoSox and Mariners have K’d a total of 347 and 360 times, respectively
Those are some juicy targets.
Good stuff!
Boba king are you starting lopez at home vs boston?
Yes
Hunter Green and Munoz for Randy? Or is that giving up too much for a .147 hitter?
Randy
Would you roll with Quinn Priester vs The Hslos today? Thank you!
Sure
Related to earlier question….would like to “sell high” on Ranger Suarez and Flaherty….who are some good targets (other pitchers)
Castillo
Rooker, Adell, Jacob Young, DeLuca, Rosario, Rojas, Outman, Schanuel, Pham, Carpenter
Please rank top 4 ROS overall fantasy production.
Adell, Young, Rooker, Pham
I am loath to say anything nice about a player I own as the regression retribution is often swift and painful…but Robert Suarez. Exhibit A, the Tauchman at bat in the 9th. He threw 4 fastballs at 100 that dotted the glove side up and in. Like dead on the corner. That pitch can be fouled off, but it cannot be put in play by a human. Ridiculous.
Yeah, he was so reasonably priced too…I wish I had him in more places, think I only have him in RCL
I have one really good team this year. Sitting at 110.5 points just outside top 100 overall despite some slow starts on offense (Judge, Alonso, Gorman and just welcomed JDM). Got Suarez and McArthur for $3 and $1 in that league. Hitting on cheap closers really sets up a lot of stuff.
For fear of jinxing, I’ve been pretty good this year…only one bad team
my rcl team was in 1st not long ago . that team isn’t bad. my team with my son has injury problems. my team in our league I never liked from the jump and I’ve made bad line up decisions and at least one notable FaaB error, but there are some pieces there. Julio is killing those latter two teams at the moment but I’m operatibg on the assimption that’ll change.
I have a few JRod type teams– maybe glass half full type thing, but I consider those teams doing well…If I have JRod and am middle of the pack, then things can only get better
I had a feeling you’d have good teams this year. Did some strategic thinking the last year and a half it seems like.
Still need luck…I just lost Trea in our league, so will see if I can withstand another injury in that league
team with my son got Jlowe and hopefully Yelich soon. as you mentioned in the keller blurb, things still pretty dynamic standings/results wise this time of year
Yeah totally, that’s not out of it yet
Morning Grey please pick 3 OBP Roto league. Winker, Stott, Cowser, Canha, Mountcastle, Julien, Peña, J Young, G Torres, Gurriel Jr, Chourio, Vinnie, Torkelson, Friedl. Thanks man!
Gleyber, Mount, Chourio
I had keller for those 7 lousy starts and cut him after his last one (oak). That’s all it took to get him going. It happens every time I cut a guy who i drafted.
Ugh, I know, brutal
ESPN points, ROS only
which side?
A-Luis Castillo
or
B-Ranger Suarez and Jack Flaherty
Thanks
A
Grey, handsome face, I know you said not to get suckered in by Angels pitchers, but Pat Sandoval is facing the lowly Pirates today. Worth a stream?
Go for it
Good Morning Grey!
In an NL H2H, I need to drop one of Mason Black, Ginkel, Treinen, and Strahm in a couple days, and possibly a second next week. Is this the order you’d drop in?
My other pitchers are Raisel, Doval, Steele, Garrett, Sanchez, Reynaldo, King, and Taillon.
Thank you!
You mean reverse order? Why would you keep Strahm?
Yes! I didn’t proof what I put down as I was in a hurry before I left. I would drop Strahm first. I am up in the air for Treinen/Ginkel. D-Backs have had so few Save Opps and Sewald is due back. Treinen looks filthy and could be in the mix short-term.
BTW, I thought I was doing well trading away Suarez for Braxton the week he was supposed to come back and then the dead-arm issue hit. I really needed a 5th SP and had the other 3 guys to close. Hopefully Garrett can do close to what he did last year and give me value back.
Thank you!
That makes sense then…yeah, ouch on that trade…No problem
I even had your stamp of approval before going through with it. Again, we thought Garrett was coming back.
Yeah
I wonder if there’s a place that tracks leadoff bombs in a season because Riley Greene is probably going to hit a bunch of them this year
Sure you can find it
Statmuse is interesting. Typed the question and it came up with
4 Kyle Schwarber
3 Ketel Marte
3 Gunnar Henderson
2 Josh Rojas
2 Andrew McCutchen
2 Riley Greene
2 Marcus Semien
2 CJ Abrams
QS league, can you rank ROS? I can roster 3 of the 4
Edward Cabrera, Civale, Taillon, cole irvin
Civale, Taillon
You willing to start Lugo today vs MIL? He’s been dealing, but the k-rate isn’t high and the peripherals leave me a little scurred.
Yes
Rizzo, Pham or adell? Points league
Adell
Adell or castellanos
Cast
Safe to drop Langford?
Yes
Grey
Needed to drop 2 with Duran (FBaldelli) and Steele back. Lugo has been outpitching Keller so felt an easy choice. Part of me wants him to do well to justify taking and now depending on who adds him part of me doesn’t.
Ok
12 team H2H 5×5 mixed categories.
I punted pitching and have patched together a serviceable staff.
SP: Gilbert, Imanaga, Cease, Lugo, Olson, Crochet, C. Scott, Kremer with Pivetta set to come off the IL
RP: E. Diaz, Helsley, M. Miller
I was offered Flaherty and Blake Snell for Helsley.
Would you make that trade or just sit tight? Thanks!
Flaherty side
Rojas been tearing it up– just hot shlomato or should I dump Julien for him?
tx
Schmotato
I just did this exact thing. Expect Julien to catch fire and Rojas to go ice cold!
Ha, yup
Rojas has already matched Julien’s hit total over the last week lol
Need 2B/SS
Would you send Chourio/Suarez for Gimenez/Turang?
Don’t know who Suarez is
Ranger Suarez/Chourio for Gimenez/Turang
Ranger side
Boba king are you starting your boy kutter at atlanta today?
I am not
With playing time, grab DeLuca, drop W.Benson or Nut Bar?
Noot
5/7: Gavin Stone MIA, or Reese Olson @CLE?
5/10: Garrett Crochet CLE, or Zack Little NYY?
Stone
Littell
Morning! Drop Soler for Pages in an OPS league?
Meh
Keller or Houck ROS?
Houck
What the O/U till the next major injury on the 2x Tommy John Pitchers such as McClanahan, Ragans and Buehler? Like 2.5 years maybe? Which is just about the time they get into their groove. Will be kind of interesting to watch and see, and I’ll be watching them on someone else’s team.
Sounds about right, not sure, tbh
Please rank
Buehler
Ober
Woo
Pivetta
Ober, Buehler
That’s it. I’m putting a stop to this Jon Singleton nonsense. I’m picking him up right now.
Haha
Would you mind dropping Julio where you have him? For me.
Now the time to scoop Castellanos up (dropped a few days ago in a 10 team H2H OPS)? Would be dropping Kepler.
Yes
Would you add any of the following to this team and who would be the drops? Kepp 13 forever. OBP/SVHLD
Bats: DeLuca, Rojas, Adell, Benintendi, Benson, Nevin, Rosario, Outman, Fraley, India, Carpenter, Pham, Eugenio, Schanuel, Suminski, Toro, Baty
Arms: Schreiber, Stanek, Estevez, Stratton, Austin Adams, De Los Santos, Morejon, Slaten, Tyler Rogers, Ryan Thompson, Gil, Maeda, Bryse Wilson, Wesneski, Cecconi, Ashcraft, Assad, Alzolay, Detmers, Lynn, Kyle, Gibson, Ed Cabrera, Aroldis, Chris Martin, Holderman Sborz
Just copied yesterday’s lineup.
C-Heim
1B-Alonso
2B-Stott
3B-Devers
SS-Thairo
2B/SS-Dansby
1B/3B-Manzardo
LF-Steer
CF-Pages
RF-Adolis
OF-Rooker
UTIL-Arozarena
UTIL-De La Cruz
Bench:
Gleybar
Olson
Yordan
Volpe
Jacob Young
Luis Garcia
SP:
Ryan
Gausman
Kirby
Burnes
Singer
Turnbull
Littell
RP:
Jansen
Kittredge
Finnegan
Treinen
Barlow
Vesia
I’d look at Littell and look for best matchups
Pretentious Baby Name Idea:
Zacho.
When anyone understandably tries to rhyme it with “nacho”, you give them the “Actually, it’s pronounced Zack-o” and the implied “you dumbass” stinkeye.
I like it
16 MLB teams hitting below .240
Yarbs gonna Yarb
Rays playing time gonna be tough to figure. Lotta RCL streaming oportunities with Rosario, Siri, Delucca, Palacios all potentially productive but tough to hold. Add Blowe (possibly even Jlowe) on the platoon bus.
Agreed, Yarbs is a good call
Seems the emphasis has shifted from making consistent hard contact to lifting and launching. Can still have both with the right approach IMO.
Picked up another Ray in Brujan, hope he plays
*Brujan in Miami
Harold Ramirez (4for4) remains uninteresting?
Yeah
FWIW: He’s surprisingly running some.
yeah
Trade Olson for Adolis Garcia?
Yes
Drop Kyle Harrison for Means?
Thanks!
Sure
Can’t believe I was drafting J-Rod over Ohtani in a couple spots, not next year !
JRod is a part time player. That needs to be factored in to his rankings. Much in the same way a Royce Lewis is, factoring in the inevitable injuries. If your lucky you might get some 2nd half production from JRod
your speaking chinese pal, no idea what that even means
Brutal
Grey,
who are your 2 favorite two-starters for next week?
Bibee @TX; MIN
Blanco OAK; MIL
Eflin @Bos; @Tor
Hicks LAD; COL
Montgomery CIN; DET
Rodon @Min; CHW
Singer @Sea; OAK
Singer, JoMo
Hi,
12 teams dynasty league :
Quick thought :
I have Walker, Torres, Witt, Abrams, Bregman, Alvarez, Acuna, Carroll and Chisolm as core hitters.
My SPs are doing good.
Yet, my team is 9th… Strange year with hitters rankings
Quick question :
Rank ROS
Pfaddt
Montgomery
Flaherty
Thanks Jogon
Flaherty, JoMo
Can only keep one in traditional roto (5 starters) — Kyle Bradish or Kutter?
Bradish
Would you stream Maeda or Olsen @ Cleveland this week?
Maeda
Advice on starting following today please?:
1) Gallen in Cincy
2) Crawford in Atlanta
Both feel not great to me but maybe making more of this than need to lol!
Thanks
Good Morning! Happy Tuesday. Couple of quick questions:
1) Who is Brent? (From your inner monologue) Why Brent?
2) Of course I dropped Keller before this start. As did many others, I’m sure. His next start is v Cubs (one of the decent hitting teams). Pick up and Start or leave on the wire in an 11-teamer? Alternatives are:
Civale (vWSOX),
Luzardo (might start at home against PHI this weekend),
Ashcraft (vARI and @ARI – another one of those good hitting teams)
Abbott (@SF)
Lively (@WSOX)
Olson (@CLE)
Stone (vMIA)
3) Can you rank the top three options from the above for this week?
Nick……..I’m thinking about the deer. Going to ‘Nam. I like the trees, you know? I like the way that the trees are on mountains, all the different… the way the trees are
Haha
It feels like there have been some surprises lately with regard to pitching. Good matchups and poor results or poor matchups and great results. Do you find this to be the same? Or is it just random events that I’ve been finding with my lineups. I’ve been benching good starts with bad matchups and starting the good matchups with poor results.
My guess is that this will stabilize by the end of the month making things more predictable.
I do, things even out over long haul
Good to know. I follow the $treamonator to a tee and have been starting and sitting based on values above and below zero. It’s been frustrating but understandable.
This is by no means a critique on the tool, I think you guys do fantastic work.
Yup
Slade Cecconi….
I like he throws hard and strikes people out, but is that sustainable? I know nothing about his stuff…any insights?
Didn’t he get rocked last timeout?
Yes he did
Cash (TB) don’t care about Fantasy Baseball & I’ll leave it at that
Haha
Drop Adell for DeLica?
I have no idea what Grey thinks, but Adell is still hitting the ball hard, just hitting them where they are. 0 for his last 10 or so.
Nah
Singleton or Aranda ROS? Thanks
Aranda
Alexis Diaz available. Drop Alvarado, McArthur, Seward or hold?
Hold
DeLuca or Jacob Young?
Young
Wheeler (#23) and Keller (#64) both made the Best Fantasy Starts list yesterday. It is Wheeler’s third entry on the list, and Philadelphia’s 11th:
11 Zack Wheeler Apr 20 vs CHW
18 Ranger Suarez Apr 27 @SD
23 Zack Wheeler May 6 vs SF
27 Spencer Turnbull Apr 19 vs CHW
37 Ranger Suarez Apr 22 @CIN
42 Ranger Suarez Apr 16 vs COL
52 Ranger Suarez Apr 11 vs PIT
70 Cristopher Sanchez Apr 17 vs COL
73 Zack Wheeler Apr 25 @CIN
79 Spencer Turnbull Apr 2 vs CIN
82 Aaron Nola Apr 21 vs CHW
Seattle has the next most entries with 8:
4 George Kirby Apr 27 vs ARI
9 Luis Castillo Apr 20 @COL
30 George Kirby Mar 29 vs BOS
32 Luis Castillo Apr 30 vs ATL
33 Bryce Miller Apr 6 @MIL
53 Bryce Miller Apr 17 vs CIN
54 Logan Gilbert May 4 @HOU
85 Logan Gilbert Apr 16 vs CIN
I think 4 different pitchers with 2 great starts each bodes well for the Mariners.
I asked this question yesterday, but it was kind of late, so maybe you didn’t see it:
Does a pitcher have to get the Win in order to make the Top 100 Starts list? Was that always the case? I feel like we used to count all starts, regardless of the Win or not. I know the Win adds to the value of their performance, but is it really weighted that much?
I ask because I own Jared Jones, and was surprised that his gem didn’t make the list. Seems silly to omit amazing performances just because they didn’t get the Win. I just don’t see the argument that a 7IP, 0ER, 1 Hit, 0BB, 10K performance somehow wasn’t one of the best 100 starts just a month into the season.
It counts all starts, but a guy can’t make the top 100 without a win bc wins are so valuable
It’s why Ragans is 48th best starter and not top 20
SP value is based on 4 categories, so Wins are 25% of their value. So, while it is a great start, it is not as valuable for fantasy. Until today, my unofficial list had Flaherty and Jones on the list without wins. Now Flaherty is at 97 and Jones 101.
Usually in April there would be a few non-winners on the list, who would disappear as the season went on and more great starts happened. For some reason preseason starts have been included this season, so the non-winners haven’t been able to crack the list.
Thank you Grey and Vin for the explanation!
No problem
Should’ve just drafted M’s starters…Tho, prolly be hurting for wins…Thanks, Vin!
Grey!!!!
a. Gasser available in my RCL. Would you sign him up (he could face St. Louis at home, he last pitched on Sunday in AAA) over Vesia (just added) or Thielbar (also just added, why is Baldelli not using his closer in the 9th??)?
b. Chris Rock quote of the day for May 7, 2024
I think what kind of person you are during success is who you are. It’s easy to be nice in failure and when you’re broke – then you really need a lot of help from people. But after you win some money, that’s the person you really are, because now you can be mean to people. You can act like an asshole. I’ve seen people trip out again and again. A lot of times this behavior, when you’re up, will determine if you get another shot someday, because things in this business always go down. I want them to say, “He was a nice guy during the whole process. He never did the entourage thing.” Because that ain’t funny. It’s annoying.
Cheers,
Ante
A. Over Thielbar seems fine
Grey!!
Thielbar the Twins closer he of the 6.14 ERA and 1.7+ WHIP!!
Cheers,
Ante
Haha
Today Flaherty is the 71st SP on the Player Rater. Ragans is 48.
Figured he’d move up some, still so early
One bad start has hurt him. 7 ER in 1 and 2/3 vs Baltimore.
Yeah, and lack of wins
That Keller start felt great after having Wacha and Freddie over the last few days…
Checking the wire and would you take Tyler Anderson, Taillon, Dunning, Paxton or Mason Parker over Kenta?
Limited (30) moves 5×5 roto league, current pitching is Keller, Freddie, Olson, Kikuchi, Skenes, Braxton etc.
Also is Vesia worth a move on or do we think it’s unlikely he gets enough value to justify it?
Nope
Nope