Archive for starting pitchers

Before I begin, please allow me to congratulate both Craig Kimbrel and Jeremy Hellickson for winning their respective league’s 2011 Rookie of the Year awards.  It was the first time since 1981 when Dave Righetti (NYY- AL) and Fernando Valenzuela (LAD- NL) won that each league’s award went to a pitcher in the same season.  Both seemed deserving of such esteemed honors, although one brings on a greater debate than the other.  Kimbrel, with a record 46 saves by a rookie, finished with a 2.10 ERA, a 1.04 WHIP, and an eye-popping 127 strikeouts in 77 innings of work.  Hellickson, starter of 29 games and winner of 13, finished the season with a 2.95 ERA, a 1.15 WHIP and notched 117 Ks in a rookie-leading 189 innings.  I could talk about peripherals and who was more deserving and what not, but that’s neither here nor there right now.  What is important is how winning this award affects the value of each player in 2012 fantasy baseball drafts.   All too often, players are drafted based on name and hype and winning the Rookie of the Year award certainly helps build both.  So before you go breaking the bank to acquire this year’s crop, allow me to point out that you should probably keep your expectations low.

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While most people remain fixated on the principle players of the deal that saw the San Francisco Giants trade left-hander Jonathan Sanchez to the Kansas City Royals for outfielder Melky Cabrera, seemingly lost in the shuffle was the news that Giants manager Bruce Bochy announced, shortly thereafter, that Barry Zito will be the team’s No. 5 starter in 2012.  “I’m not gonna hide from it,” Bochy said. “Barry Zito is our 5th starter next year.”  Sounds pretty official, huh?  There had been talk of a possible competition with Eric Surkamp, but Bochy quickly squashed any speculation and has apparently set his team’s rotation.  Any available free agent pitchers can cross the Giants off their wish list.  So now the question comes to us fantasy owners — is Zito even worth a look this season or is it a safer play to just bypass him altogether?

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When the FanGraphs meet-up took place in San Francisco on Tuesday night and the group was sitting around the TV hanging on each and every pitch thrown by Stephen Strasburg, inspiration hit for today’s Would You Rather column.  Proven talent versus monumental upside.  Seasoned veteran versus young upstart.  Future Hall of Famer versus….future Hall of Famer?  There are a lot of pros on each side and very few cons.  So if it were up to you…

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Happy 4th of July weekend to you all…

So some of the boys and I decided to test out our waiver wire skills and ran a quick little Deep League Waiver Wire draft.  We had to pick those that we thought would be the most productive for fantasy teams THIS season but had less than a 10% ownership mark using ESPN Fantasy as a guideline.  Since the pick’ns were pretty slim, we left the positions as follows:  C, CI, MI, OF, SP, RP.  I had the first pick of the four of us, so here’s what I did… Read the rest of this entry »

While the rest of the world is going gaga over the resurgence of Bartolo Colon (I’m not buying it), there’s another pitcher out there who has apparently hopped into his Delorean and gunned it to 88.  San Francisco’s Ryan Vogelsong made his first start of the season in replacement of the injured Barry Zito this past week, pitched 5.2 innings allowing two runs on four hits and a pair of walks, and picked up his first win as a starter since 2002.  He actually looked better than his stat line reads as opening jitters got the better of him in the first, but he settled down very nicely and matched a career high eight strikeouts.  But now the question remains — is he worth a spot on your fantasy roster? Read the rest of this entry »

For years I have preached about the immense depth at starting pitching.  You can find plenty of quality starters for cheap in your draft and, with the help of the waiver wire, can build a successful fantasy rotation without having to invest heavily in an ace or two.  With a nice complement of some quality relievers, you can go cheap on starters and, in turn, bulk up on better hitters.  In the end, your team dominates in the offensive categories, puts up a solid showing in almost all of the pitching categories, and leaves you at the top of your standings by season’s end. Read the rest of this entry »

After finishing my last post on the potential return to the majors for Brandon Webb, I was inspired to continue down the path of the walking wounded and talk about another AL starting pitcher I  met along the way.  He’s also coming back from major surgery, is on schedule to make his team’s Opening Day roster and a first week start, and for me, remains a high risk candidate in which to invest.  So when it comes to draft day, you’ve got to ask yourself one question: Do I feel lucky?  Well, do ya, punk? Read the rest of this entry »

There really hasn’t been much player movement amongst the starting pitchers in the AL, so let’s just call it one old face in one new place.  After throwing a total of 4 innings in 2 years due to shoulder bursitis, surgery to correct it, and a lengthy rehab, Brandon Webb is finally headed back to the mound in 2011.  He’s obviously got plenty working against him still and likely won’t be ready for the start of the season, but for a $1 investment, the former NL Cy Young award winner could be worth owning this year. Read the rest of this entry »