Top Corner Combos Which Show How Few Good Combos Exist

Hope you guys are enjoying the break this week. Time to look at your teams, assess the damage, etc. For full disclosure, ya boy is 50 games up in a H2H, but drafting Vlad Guerrero Jr. in literally every league I’m in has killed me. I mean, 4th in my home roto leagues and 6th in TGFBI isn’t bad, and at least I can come back! And doggone it, Vlad is gonna get hot after he rests his back this week, book it.

A former middle infield guy, name escapes me, he’s not our current guy, used to rank combinations in there, and I followed suit. In honor of that random guy I never met and went away after a few months, here are the top combinations of first and third basemen by teams.

Interestingly, there is like one good combination with two actual great assets. Nick Kurtz, Matt Olsen, Sal Stewart, and Miguel Vargas all outpace 22 entire teams, and therefore carry their combo ranks. We shall do the top five, in descending order. All values are in Razzball yearly rankings, free on this site.

NATIONALS

Luis Garcia 24, Curtis Mead 9: 33 total

Garcia, longtime middle infield prospect, was slapped at first and given his 20 HR half its agreed with him. He’s probably the waiver pickup of the year, and nothing in the Statcast page screams fluke. I mean, it doesn’t really scream unless your phone has an alarm coming on set to a scream noise, which you could do, but why? Mead is a Razzball favorite and has been recommended by everyone as decreed by our contracts. The Nationals offense has been a joy, and these two are right in the thick of it.

SACRAMENTO

Nick Kurtz 28, Zach Gelof 6 34 total

Well, that was fun. Kurtz is out with a thumb thing for an indeterminate time, and Gelof has a lacerated knee. Kurtz is obviously a beast, and there is nothing else to do besides wait for his return. Gelof, eh, whatevs. It’s a testament to Kurtz though that he’s the second highest ranked corner guy in the league, and a clear first round pick for years going forward.

HOTLANTA

Matt Olson 27, Mauricio Dubon 9, 36 total

Love the consistent production Olsen has given for years. While the batting average continues to be a bit of a risk, the lineup and power he produces lead to nice juicy counting stats. Dubon in’s third eligible and doing better than Austin Riley, which tells you all you need to know about how Riley is doing this year.

WHITE SOX

Miguel Vargas 26, Munetaka Murikami 10, total 36

I know 36 is tied, but with Murikami back, this duo could actually be the top by the end of the season. Yes, the slugging sensation is back for the first place Sox, make sure he’s back in there for you. White Sox fans deserve this, and if you have either of these guys, you do too based on where you picked them. Smart owner, you are.

RAYS

Junior Caminero 30, Yandy Díaz 20, Jon Aranda 18

Total either 50 or 48

Having the top-ranked corner bat wins a lot of duos. Either Yandy or Aranda makes this the top combo by 14 points over second place! Imagine if a certain star SS wasn’t, well, you heard that story. The first place Rays are fun to watch, flying high, and their superstar top five pick next year is leading the way.

Honorable mention goes to the Yankees, with Ben Rice scoring 42 on his own, but if you’re playing him at first, I wanna know who your catcher is!

And now, a look at a couple of the worst of the corner combo meals:

CUBS

Michael Busch 4, Alex Bregman -0.8

Busch’s entire value is in OBP leagues as his power has dried up, and Bregman swapped his bat with a pool noodle for the first half. This negative score for Breggy includes a couple of HR this past week. Likely too late to save either guy’s season line, but there are some small signs of hope.

ROYALS – THE WORST

Vinnie Pasquantino -7, Makkah Garcia -5, Total -12

Ooooooof, and if you drafted these guys in the fifth and seventh, you were stoked! Vinnie at least is back from an injury, and maybe can get hot in August? There’s been little hope except for track record.

Thanks for reading during the break!