Two oft-injured pitchers are struggling with performance right now, and have already seen the disabled list this season. And yet they have enough upside to remain on rosters. When they’re right, they are top-half closers. Right now, too much looks wrong.
Aaron Griffin struck out a season high four batters in his fourth and final outing of June, but that’s just part of what you’re going to get from the Rays RHP prospect.
Griffin was economical and used a mixed bag of tricks to get Brooklyn Cyclones hitters out, going four innings without allowing a run and holding them to just four hits.
After last season, people were understandably expecting a lot out of Adam LaRoche. He set a career high in home runs and tied his career high in RBI, and with the Nationals expected to have one of the better offenses in baseball he was supposed to be in a good situation in terms of runs and RBI as well.
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When I’m gathering up starting pitchers for a daily fantasy game, I often find myself staring at a mess of mediocre options in the middle of the pack. Sometimes I’ll see a bunch of okay starters facing good offenses, or poor starters facing poor offenses. When I look at the ERAs and the FIPs and the strikeout rates and find too many options that are too similar, I need some sort of push to pick one guy over another. At that point, I’ll consider looking at a pitcher’s ground ball rate.
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In Mid-May, I cherry picked some of the surprising batted ball distance leaders and laggards. I focused mainly on the top and bottom range of distances while ignoring the middle. Now, I’m going to look throughout the leaderboard and identify players who have averaged a distance that validates their season or seems out of whack.
Here’s to hoping everyone had a lovely Canada Day yesterday. The lingering question is what exactly does one do on Canada Day?
On today’s agenda:
1. Bad news for Brett Lawrie
2. Third time’s the charm: Adam Eaton edition
3. Trevor Cahill to the disabled list
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Welcome to July and the halfway point of the season! Now is the time to see how much ground you can gain in saves and holds as we inch closer to both the MLB trading deadline and your league specific deadline. A few bullpen situations are sure to change and we’ll provide the latest and greatest rumors so you can snag that next-in-line closer before the current one is moved.
• Koji Uehara blew his first save as the anointed Red Sox closer last night but was actually fortunate enough to receive the win. The last time the Sox made a closer switch, Junichi Tazawa was named closer but the Sox are now going with Uehara. I don’t think the Red Sox will be so fickle as to remove Uehara because of a rough outing or two, especially since he’s pitching to a 2.58 xFIP. However, considering the Sox gave him the first chance and the fact Uehara might receive a few more days off than a normal closer to keep him fresh, Tazawa should remained owned in fantasy leagues. Even if he wasn’t going to sniff the ninth inning Tazawa is worthwhile of a roster spot with a 2.94 xFIP, a 9.73 K/9 and the third best strikeout to walk ratio among all relievers.
In the last MASH Report, I introduced SLOW which looks for hitters having problems catching up with fastballs. From now on, I will be looking at players on HURT and PAIN for my Monday/Tuesday post and then SLOW for my Thursday/Friday post. Today, I have three closers coming off the DL, several reports of hitters playing through injuries and some other tidbits.
• Michael Pineda is looking to return to the majors soon. A week ago, I looked at the data available on him so far during his rehab. I have found a bit more recent data on his return:
Pineda threw only three innings Sunday in a start for Trenton against Binghamton, the Mets’ Double-A affiliate. Pineda allowed four runs on four hits and four walks, striking out four. He gave up two home runs, throwing only 32 of his 67 pitches for strikes.
According to one scout, Pineda’s fastball ranged from 90-95 mph, sitting mostly around 92. The scout said Pineda fell behind too many hitters, was inconsistent with his fastball command, throwing “flat” fastballs that got very few swings and misses, exhibiting a “sluggish” demeanor on the mound.
The fastball velocity still looks to be down a few mph and he seemed to struggle throwing strikes. Temper expectations for him.
“Dude’s not even 24 and he’s already hit 20+ homers twice. He’s on a trajectory that’ll take him to the top of the first basemen, with good plate discipline and power.”
or
“Have you seen him hit? Freddie Freeman’s power numbers in the minors were not exciting. Disagree.”
There’s good points on both sides of the battle. But Freddie Freeman owners in dynasty leagues are probably wondering if they have a long-term, top-of-the-table asset, or if he’s a better plug-in piece for a contender.
Nearing the All-Star Break, fantasy owners are primed to make moves to prepare themselves for a second-half push. This tiered list should serve as a quick-reference guide as owners evaluate trades and ruminate on potential waiver-wire pickups. Some minor shake-ups have occurred in the second-base rankings, but the overall landscape remains intact.
(Note: This tiered rankings list may not include every single player who’s eligible at second base in every league. It’s primarily geared toward the ESPN positional eligibility guidelines.)