Category: Fantasy Baseball (Page 10 of 48)

      Top 5 MLB surprises and Top 5 busts in 2009 so far

      May 23, 2009 /

      We’re approaching Memorial Day and are already about a quarter of the way through the baseball regular season. Some players historically take a while to get going, and some start off blazing hot and then cool off. Here we take a look at five pleasant surprises, and five busts through the first 40 or so games of the 2009 season.

      Top 5 Suprises

      1. Zack Greinke, SP, Kansas City Royals—One of the reasons the Royals are off to a great start is that Greinke has found his rhythm, to the tune of 7-1 with a 0.82 ERA, as well as 73 strikeouts and 12 walks in just 66 innings. Greinke has given up a microscopic six earned runs so far. Six! It’s not like the kid wasn’t talented, but his career record before 2009 was 34-45 and his ERA 3.96.

      2. Jason Bartlett, SS, Tampa Bay Rays—Before this season, Bartlett was a career .285 hitter with 16 career home runs. So far this season, he’s off to a wicked start–.376 batting average, 6 homers, 23 RBI, 9 doubles, 12 stolen bases and an OPS of 1.004.

      3. Raul Ibanez, OF, Philadelphia Phillies—This is looking like the free agent signing of the off-season. Or maybe coming over to the world champs from soggy Seattle was a good move. Ibanez was a respectable .288 hitter and was averaging 22 homers and 95 RBI, but so far in 2009 he’s hit 15 home runs and driven in 40 runs, while hitting .349 with 10 doubles, 4 stolen bases and a .724 slugging percentage. You think the Mets should have made a run at the guy instead of wasting all that money on P Ollie Perez?

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      Bullz-Eye Sports Channel, Fantasy Baseball, Happy Hour, MLB

      Reds’ Votto has ear infection

      May 21, 2009 /

      It appears that the dizziness that Reds first baseman Joey Votto has been dealing with is related to an ear infection.

      The team said Thursday that Joey Votto has been diagnosed with an inner ear infection, secondary to the flu he had last week.

      The team said all other test results were normal and he is expected to return to the field in the next few days.

      Votto has missed 8 starts with the flu or dizziness and twice more left games early.

      The Reds (as well as fantasy baseball owners everywhere) need this guy back in their lineup. Votto is quickly emerging as one of baseball’s best young hitters and hopefully he makes a quick recovery.

      Fantasy Baseball, MLB

      Fan catches Chris Coghlan’s first home run. Fan receives arm, demands leg.

      May 17, 2009 /

      SPORTSbyBROOKS has a great piece up about Nick Yohanek and his adventures with the Florida Marlins’ Chris Coghlan. Apparently, there’s a great start-up business here: Selling home run balls back to the guys who hit them out. After Coghlan hit his first in the majors, he was approached by Yohanek (who had caught the ball) after the game. Upon giving the fan a signed game bat and photo-op, Coghlan was surprised to learn that that just wouldn’t be enough to get Yohanek to fork over his ball (the identity of the preceding pronoun is anybody’s guess). Let’s hear from Yohanek and Brooks now:

      Yohanek, not surprisingly, has a different view of things. We’re a little more suspicious of his version of the facts, mainly because he’s got far more reason to lie and even in his quotes, he comes off as an unholy prick:

      “I explained that ballhawking is my hobby and that what I was asking in return was fair,” Yohanek said Thursday, in an e-mail to the Associated Press. “I told him I make $50,000 a year working in law enforcement and that I didn’t feel like I was asking for too much. He responded, ‘Good for you.’ Real classy. Way to respect law enforcement. Way to respect a fan.”

      Yes, exactly. Clearly his tone was indicative of a disrespect for law enforcement and fans, and in no way affected by annoyance when a grown man makes demands for what should be a treasured keepsake. Real classy, Yohanek.

      I can’t help but agree with my esteemed colleague on this one. While it is true that modern athletes make an exorbitant amount of money, it’s simply a matter of capitalism: if someone’s willing to pay that amount, then make them pay it, right? Supply and demand and such…Wait a sec, I may have just agreed with Yohanek here.

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      Bullz-Eye Sports Channel, Fantasy Baseball, General Sports, Humor, MLB, Rumors & Gossip

      Top 10 MLB active free passes

      May 16, 2009 /

      There are some batters that no pitcher wants to face, especially in a crucial situation with runners on base, or with first base open. But some guys are intentionally walked with regularity, and in some cases, even with the bases loaded to give up one run instead of four. Here is the current Top 10 among active players in intentional walks. Pitchers, proceed at your own risk…..

      1. Ken Griffey, Seattle Mariners (244)—Of course this guy has always been a feared slugger, but he had a career high 25 intentionals in 1993, and the year he slugged 56 homers with 147 RBI on his way to winning the AL MVP (1997), Griffey was intentionally walked 23 times. Yikes. But before we get all excited about that, consider that Barry Bonds was given the free pass 120 times in 2004, a league record that surely will never be broken.

      2. Vladimir Guerrero, Los Angeles Angels (240)—He’s topped 20 seven times and 30 once. Is he that feared or are pitchers tired of looking at that crap on Vlad’s helmet?

      3. Manny Ramirez, Los Angeles Dodgers (199)—‘Roids, no ‘roids, hormones, no hormones, whatever. This is the one guy in baseball I am never pitching to if I don’t have to.

      4. Carlos Delgado, New York Mets (186)—As a Mets fan, I’m just glad my team doesn’t have to face this guy. There is always the potential to hit one 600 feet the opposite way.

      5. Todd Helton, Colorado Rockies (172)—You don’t give a guy like Helton anything to hit, not with a .329 lifetime batting average, as well as an average of 30 homers and 109 RBI per season.

      6. Albert Pujols, St. Louis Cardinals (160)—Oh yeah, screw what I said about Manny. I forgot about Albert. He’s only 29 years old and should easily hit 700 homers or more. THIS is the guy I don’t ever pitch to if it’s not necessary.

      7. Jim Thome, Chicago White Sox (159)—It’s interesting to note that in the ‘90’s Thome and Ramirez typically had single digits in free passes. That’s because if you put them on, you still had to face Albert Belle or Eddie Murray.

      8. Chipper Jones, Atlanta Braves (143)—It’s kind of funny that Chipper’s intentional walks are declining as he’s becoming a better and better hitter.

      9. Ichiro Suzuki, Seattle Mariners (129)—This one baffles me. Why put a guy on who averages 40 steals per season?

      10. Gary Sheffield, New York Mets (128)—A nice, long career, and sheer intimidation at the plate, even today at age 40.

      Source: Baseball Reference

      Bullz-Eye Sports Channel, Fantasy Baseball, MLB

      Ryan Zimmerman’s hitting streak reaches 29 games

      May 12, 2009 /

      There isn’t much positive news coming out of Washington these days when it comes to the Nationals…outside of Ryan Zimmerman’s now 29-game hit streak, that is.

      Zimmerman went 4 for 5 with two homers for the Nationals, including a solo shot in the sixth off Johnson and a three-run shot in the ninth. He wasted no time extending the longest hitting streak in the Nationals’ brief history and the longest by a third baseman in a quarter-century when he slapped a first-inning single.

      “He’s a big man. I’ve got legs and arms and everything coming at me,” Zimmerman said of Johnson. “His slider looks pretty good, just like it does on TV. I can see why he’s been so good.”
      With his ninth-inning shot off the tin covering on the right-field arcade, Zimmerman improved to 48 for 126 (.381) since the streak began.

      What’s rather impressive about Zimmerman is that he stands away from the plate, which leaves the outside corner exposed (or one would think). But Zimmerman is anticipating pitchers trying to work the outside corner and he’s just going with the pitch. He’s not trying to do too much with the pitch and he’s not trying to pull the ball like so many batters (on all levels) do. He’s seeing the ball incredibly well right now and the 3-run dinger he hit last night at AT&T Park was impressive given how high the ball must travel over the wall at that stadium.

      He’s got a long way to go to catch Joe DiMaggio’s 56 games, but it’ll be fun to watch Zimmerman try to extend his streak on a nightly basis.

      Fantasy Baseball, MLB

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