Casey Kotchman, Corey Patterson and Chris Resop: Deep League Waiver Wire
In today’s edition of Deep League Waiver Wire, all three players’ names start with a “C.” So that’s something.
Archive for May, 2011
Catcher Rankings Updated
With the calendar flipping to May, it’s time to re-visit the 2011 Catcher Rankings and see who has climbed closer to the top and who’s been dropping like a stone. As you may recall, the RotoGraph writers got together before the season began and constructed a composite catcher rankings. However, after gaining some feedback from all of you, I have decided to make my adjustments to the rankings based on the following criteria:
| 1. Current performance level |
| 2. Expected performance for rest of season |
| 3. Value based on standard 5×5 categories (avg over OBP) |
The arrows are used to highlight a player moving up or down in tier, but you’ll also notice some minor tweaks within the tiers as well. Some that will obviously have more impact than others. So without further ado, you may now cue the theme song to The Jeffersons… Read the rest of this entry »
Potential Starting Pitcher K/9 Risers Through the Lens of SwStk%
May 2, 2011
A couple of weeks ago, I looked at the SwStk% metric and its relationship to K/9. In that article, I looked at pitchers in 2010, comparing their SwStk% and K/9 rates to determine who may be in line for a bump in strikeout rate in 2011 and who might be set for a decline. With a month now in the books, let us check in on some of the leaders in SwStk% who currently have a lower K/9 than might be expected.
Week 5 Two-Start Pitchers Update
Here is the latest update to Week 5 two-start pitchers. Again this list is subject to change going forward.
Pitchers not listed on last update: Weaver, Hamels, de la Rosa, Buchholz, E. Jackson, Dempster.
Pitchers no longer scheduled for two starts: Beckett, Oswalt, Tomlin, Rogers, Chatwood.
Of the new pitchers, let’s look at Jorge de la Rosa. After a strong finish to the 2009 season, where he was 15-3 over his final 22 games with a 3.93 ERA, many were predicting that de la Rosa was ready to become one of the top pitchers in the game. But a slow start in 2010, followed by a hand injury turned his 2010 campaign into a lost season.
Many fantasy players slept on de la Rosa, who had an ADP in the 160s prior to this season. For those fantasy players that kept the faith, de la Rosa has rewarded them with a fine start to the 2011 season, with a 4-0 record and a 2.61 ERA in April.
One of the big steps forward for de la Rosa this season is with his walk rate. With a career mark near 4.5 BB/9, de la Rosa has a sparkling 2.90 rate so far this season. And his improved command has not come with any dropoff in strikeouts, as his 8.42 essentially matches what he did in 2010 and is above his 8.00 lifetime mark.
In his last outing, de la Rosa had his best game of the year, as he allowed just 1 ER in 7 IP, with 0 BB and 9 Ks. He’s been lucky with his HR rate, but his 2.90 K/9 shows how well he has pitched.
He has two road starts this week, including one in Chase Field against the Diamondbacks, where he is 0-3 lifetime, but it is hard to imagine sitting him with how well he has been pitching so far in 2011.
Last week’s Sunday look was Jesse Litsch. The take away was to keep him on the bench this week because of his matchups but to monitor his peripherals to see if he was getting grounders and strikeouts. Here was his combined line for his starts against the Rangers and Yankees:
12 IP, 8 ER, 4 BB, 6 Ks, 20 GB, 16 FB