Though I have no math to back this up, anecdotally (is that a word? the red underline of death is appearing underneath it as I type!) it seems as if pitchers suddenly improve mid-season much more frequently than hitters. In other words, the light bulb goes on and a pitcher’s skills will surge in a hurry. I decided to compare SIERA over the last 30 days with SIERA in April for all starting pitchers (this was originally meant to only include American Leaguers, since I’m the AL SP man, but my mind was apparently elsewhere and I forgot to filter, oops) to see who has enjoyed the biggest declines in the metric. This is a great way to identify RoS breakout candidates by looking beyond just the ERA leaders for the month.

Read the rest of this entry »

Special note: Matt Cain’s perfect game netted me 91 fantasy points. For reference, a score of 300 on the week usually results in a win. If you have a good story — fantasy or otherwise — about last night’s perfecto, please share in the comments.

Kevin Youkilis is likely going to be moved before the trade deadline. This much we know. What we don’t know, however, is where he will end up. Youk’s value this year and next year depends on what happens over the next two months, so it’s time to dig in. While we can’t make a 100% accurate prediction, fantasy owners can at least plan ahead and forecast likely landing spots. So, I’m doing that for you; because you’re lazy, and I have a gift.

Read the rest of this entry »

• Ryan Cook earned his first handshake of the year Tuesday night as the Athletics defeated the Rockies, 8-5. Cook came on in the ninth and surrendered a hit, a free pass and whiffed two en route to the save. The righty has allowed just two earned runs in 27 appearances, good enough for a 0.67 ERA (2.83 FIP). Despite a 5.33 BB/9, Cook maintains a spectacular 0.89 WHIP thanks to a 0.91 BAA. Although these ratios may be unsustainable due to a .191 BABIP and 91.7 LOB%, Mike Axisa suggests Cook may not regress as far as some may assume since he’s a fly ball pitcher in a huge ballpark. Grab Cook where you can, as he seems to be the current head of skipper Bob Melvin’s closer-by-committee.
Read the rest of this entry »

Relief pitchers qualified at starters are great assets for fantasy teams with a limited number of RP slots (and IP limits). These pitchers can be played when a starter has a day off to pad a team’s rate stats. Also, they are a great source of creating Holds and on the rare occasion,a few Saves. Here is a look at some of the top SP qualified RP so far in 2012.

Brett Myers – 2.08 ERA, 6.6 K/9, 1.7 BB/9, 15 Saves
Brett’s main value comes from the Saves he generates. His strikeout rates are not ideal for a RP, but his low walk rate allows him to maintain a decent K/BB (4.0) and low WHIP (0.83). The one huge issue with Myers is that he may end up getting traded to a contender and lose his closer role

Read the rest of this entry »

Eric Wedge announced that Brandon League will regain his ninth inning role sooner than later, which is upsetting to Tom Wilhelmsen owners but is refreshing for those who have stuck with League through his early season struggles.

Despite Wilhelmsen’s three consecutive saves in three straight opportunities, he may soon be moved back to the set up role. In keeper or dynasty leagues, Wilhelmsen is certainly the player to target if you are looking for the closer of the future in Seattle. With League being an impending free agent, Wilhelmsen will most likely take over the role for next season. If League pitches well over the course of the next month and a half, he could even be a trade candidate for a team looking for right-handed pitching help.

Read the rest of this entry »

Let’s face it, the waiver wire is looking pretty bleak these days.  Obviously if you’re in a real shallow league of eight to ten teams, there are always guys worthy of picking up even for just a week or so.  But the deeper your league gets the worse it looks out there and as writers trying to suggest a worthwhile pick-up, it can often be difficult.  So now that I threw that caveat out there, here are two guys that probably aren’t bad enough that they could contribute as a possible fill-in for you while your guy maybe nurses a sore hamstring or is mired in some sort of multi-week slump. Read the rest of this entry »

Last season, en route to their surprise division championship and NLCS appearance, the Diamondbacks got 24 starts out of the rather unheralded Josh Collmenter. As a starter at the back end of the rotation, Collmenter could hardly have been better for the Diamondbacks, giving them a 1.07 WHIP and 3.38 ERA over 154 innings, but he left fantasy owners in something of a conundrum. Yes, his rate stats were a great asset, but he had more than five strikeouts in a start just twice during the season; in the vast majority of his starts, he struck out four or fewer hitters. Read the rest of this entry »

Third base has been a real test to the adage that baseball is a marathon, not a sprint. Sticking with players through their slow starts or long stretches of vacant counting stats has no doubt tested many of you, not to mention having to plug holes when injuries arise. Keeping a pulse on third base trends, there’s a decent waiver wire pickup, an annual early June buy low candidate.

Trevor Plouffe

In fanatasy baseball circles, it’s likely that Trevor Plouffe has more value as a shortstop (among the multitude of positions he’s eligible at) but up until a few weeks ago, he hardly had any value whatsoever. From April 6th to May 18th, Plouffe was “hitting” .135/.264/.284 with three home runs and a pair of doubles and if not for his positional versatility, he probably would have been sent back down to the minors.

Since May 19th, however, he’s caught fire — batting .327/.351/.727 with six home runs, four doubles, 11 RBI in 57 plate appearances  His overall line stands at a not-so-awe-inspiring .217/.299/.473 but it’s worth pointing out that his BABIP is only .207 on the season. During the stretch from May 19th, it was a little more league-average at .308 and he consequently posted terrific numbers. Based on his hit trajectory, his expected BABIP is about .270 on the season in large part due to an elevated fly ball rate, but while that’s perhaps not ideal, it’s certainly not .207 bad.

Note: After Tuesday night, Plouffe’s line since May 19th is now .350/.371/.783.

Read the rest of this entry »

Today’s deep league waiver wire highlights an outfielder I am somewhat shocked still has such a low ownership percentage and a pitcher who you should get an early jump on.

Read the rest of this entry »

I had a fight with my computer last night. There was yelling, name calling, and blame. Needless to say, I slept on the couch, and the Roto Riteup suffered. But we’ve made up today, so the Roto Riteup is back in action!

Read the rest of this entry »