For those deep league teams still in the hunt for the money, congratulations. Unfortunately, I cannot enjoy that same position in my own league. I do, however, have two exciting options that could potentially increase your chances of finishing in that coveted money spot.
It’s been awhile since we’ve done one of these. Let’s get right to it and take a look at some shortstop performances over the past two weeks.
Risers:
He’s actually steadily improved every month, but even his improvements were still far less than we’ve come to expect from Ramirez. His wOBA by month are .245, .312, .324, .516. Needless to say, July has been pretty kind to him. In his 61 plate appearances this month he’s hitting .392/.492/.706 with 4 HR, 17 RBI, and 7 K to 10 BB. The four home runs tie his high for a month this year and the 17 RBI are already eight more than he had back in April. It’s only been 61 plate appearances but it looks like Ramirez may finally be turning the corner we’ve all been waiting for. For all of us who have stuck by him this entire season I sure hope that’s the case.
His month of June was actually pretty amazing. He hit .297 in 105 plate appearances, but only managed a .681 OPS. He was the definition of an empty batting average. So far his July is pretty amazing as well. In his 42 plate appearances he has a 0.0% walk rate and 0.0% strikeout rate. Somehow he’s been able to run into two homers and banged out three doubles, giving him one less extra base hit than he had in June. He’s never hit for much power over his career, but has been able to maintain a decent enough average to retain value in deeper mixed or NL only leagues. He’s currently hitting .314 and is available in 93% of Yahoo! leagues.
Fallers
When Castro isn’t hitting for average he provides very little to your lineup. He doesn’t hit for any power and doesn’t walk enough to pick up any steals. This month he’s hit just .236 with zero steals and zero home runs. His strikeout rate has ballooned to 21.4% in 56 plate appearances. For someone that is owned in 91% of leagues you need better production out of him. If someone like Keppinger is available in your league you may be better off adding him until Castro can get back to his normal self.
They’re having shortstop issues on the south side of Chicago as well. Ramirez has been falling since June, putting up a .265/.311/.343 triple slash line with 1 HR and 11 RBI that month. That was after a hot May in which he posted a .389 wOBA. Unfortunately for him, he seems to have carried over the woes of June into July. He’s hitting .217 in the month, and while he does have two home runs his OBP is a horrible .265. The worst part about his season has been the lack of stolen bases. Ramirez had averaged 13 in his first three seasons but has only three so far, meaning he’s unlikely to reach double digits which severely damages his fantasy worth.
Scott Rolen found himself riding pine for the second consecutive day yesterday and the narrative out there is that Dusty Baker thinks he is playing through a sore shoulder, so he’s simply making the decisions for him. But Rolen, 36, has probably been playing with a sore shoulder for the better part of a decade, so reading the proverbial tea leaves makes the fantasy owner wonder if this “rest” has more to do with his recent ineptitude at the dish. While he’s surely going to return to the lineup soon, considering a triple slash line of .242/.279/.399, you have to wonder if there’s more unscheduled rest in his future.
We’re now sitting here in mid-July and four times the Catcher Rankings have been adjusted to reflect both the current season’s performance and expected rest of season projections. For the most part, the criticisms have been mild as we all seem to be, reasonably, on the same page. However, there’s one thing that continuously sticks out at me and today, I feel it’s time to address it. The title obviously says it all, but still, I feel it necessary to ask the question: What’s up with all the Chris Iannetta love? Read the rest of this entry »
Today I will look at a few players on the DL owned in less than 60% of all leagues.
Luke Scott (22% ESPN, 18% Yahoo) and Vladimir Guerrero (44% ESPN, 57% Yahoo) – The DH situation in Baltimore will be in flux for the next couple weeks. First, Luke Scott is to come off the DL tomorrow, and with Vlad on the DL, he looks to move into Baltimore’s DH spot. Luke has had mixed results in 2011. He is hitting HRs (and getting the Runs and RBIs that go with them) with 9 so far in just over 233 PA. The problem is that in those 233 PA he has hit only 0.233 and continues to have no speed (11 career SB). He does give an owner the flexibility of being qualified at 1B and OF which Vlad does not. He looks to be a nice pick up for the next couple weeks since he is to be the everyday DH.
The problem is that he will probably lose his DH spot once Vlad returns and will move into a LF platoon with Pie and Reimold. While Vlad has not hit as many home runs (7) as Scott so far this season, his 0.279 AVG is more appealing. Scott looks to be a nice replacement for Vlad owners, but he doesn’t look to have a permanent place in the Orioles lineup.
John Danks (33% ESPN, 46% Yahoo) – Danks is scheduled to return from DL on Wednesday to make his first start since Jun 25. He was having an OK season before he went on the DL. His 3-8 record is not great (it was 0-8 at one point), but he has been pitching a better than it shows. He has a 4.21 ERA, 1.35 WHIP and a 2.32 K/BB. Those stats are decent enough for a starter in deep or AL only leagues.
Stephen Strasburg (1% ESPN, 13% Yahoo) – Recent reports from the Nationals state that Strasburg may be back in September for a few starts. He may be a nice replacement for a pitcher that may be shutdown late in the season. If you have room on the DL, it might be a good time to pick him up and see if he will pitch in the majors this season.
Brett Anderson (36% ESPN, 48% Yahoo) – Stick a fork in him and send him to the WW. TJS has him out for this season and I see very little reason to have him as a keeper for next season. An owner might as well keep a player that plans to start the season off the DL.
A pair of National League outfielders for your pleasure.
Ryan Ludwick (33% owned in Yahoo)
Ludwick is long-rumored for greener pastures, but it’s important not to overvalue the effect a move might have on his value. As a right-hander in PetCo, his home run power is only suppressed 5% according to StatCorner. If he moved to the Braves (-8% PF for HR by RHB), the Pirates (-17%), Rays (-7%), Red Sox (-7%) or Indians (-12%), he wouldn’t receive a boost in that category. The Giants (-1%) and Tigers (+11%) would be surprisingly positive destinations for him in this analysis. Overall, though, you’d think the Red Sox, the most recently rumored to be interested, would make for the best destination. Their park aids right-handed offense 6% overall while PetCo suppresses right-handed wOBA by 8%. A few more doubles would do Ludwick some good. At the plate right now, the current Padre outfielder is hitting more fly balls than he ever has, and showing the worst power. He could easily hit .260 with double-digit home runs in the second half, even if he joins a crowded contender. Other than BABIP (.270 this year, .304 career), most of his peripherals are in line with his career numbers. Sure, the 33-year-old is declining, and that’s a natural part of his three-year decline in HR/FB percentage, but there’s still enough punch there to be fantasy-relevant in deeper leagues. Especially with a tiny boost from change in parks.
Tony Gwynn, Jr. (2% owned in Yahoo)
Yeah, it’s a little strange to recommend a speed-only center fielder without a center field glove playing in a slightly pitcher-friendly park, especially right after his team traded for a veteran that plays his position. That said, Juan Rivera has been in town for a little bit of time by now and it looks like we can predict the playing time situation there. As a lefty, thin Gwynn is in line to play against righties. That works well given the fact that his OPS against righties is 6.4% better than his number against lefties. Lo and behold, the righty Rivera is 12% better against lefties by OPS. Play Gwynn against righties and you get a better walk rate (10.6% vs 6.4%) and ISO (.074 to .051). Both of those peripherals should help feed his batting average and keep it from slipping below neutral territory. Of course, you own him for speed, so it’s also good to see him play right-handers in that regard. He doesn’t have great upside, and you’ll have to manage him every day, but if you have room on your bench and a need for speed, Gwynn is still an option for you.
Welcome back from the weekend. Here’s three young-ish starting pitchers that could help your team in the short-term…
Mark Ellis | 9% Owned (Y!) | 12% Owned (ESPN)
If you look up “pesky” in the dictionary, you may very well find yourself staring at a picture of Mark Ellis. His photograph also happens to grace the page in which the definition for “Deep League Second Baseman” resides. Some of us were worried that we would have to find a new player for the 2012 version of the dictionary, but after being traded from the A’s to the Rockies a couple of weeks ago, it appears Ellis is still deep league worthy.
Nine pitches; six strikes. That’s all it took for Joe Nathan to rack up his five saves of the season, and second since reclaiming the closer role over Matt Capps. Capps had been terrible in July; allowing seven runs in 5.2 innings and failing to record a strikeout. Nathan, however, has also struggled this season after attempting to return from Tommy John Surgery, and even managed to miss a month this season with elbow issues. Since returning from elbow soreness, Nathan has been lights out for the Minnesota Twins. Now that Nathan has been reinstalled as the closer, what are the chances he keeps the job for the rest of the season?
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I am quite shocked by the lack of fanfare for Johnny Cueto’s performance thus far. This is officially the first article written about him all season on this site. With a 2.01 ERA and 1.00 WHIP over 89.2 innings, he has been fantastic, at least on the surface. Below the surface of course, things get interesting.