POTW (8/16 – 8/22)

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Posted by Fenam on August 24th, 2010

AL Hitter:

Robinson Cano NYY 2B (ESPN 100.0%)

This week: 9/27, 7 R, 4 HR, 13 RBI, 5 BB, 5 K, .333 AVG, .438 OBP, .815 SLG, 1.252 OPS

It pains me to put two Yankees atop the POTW. There is no way around it; at this point in the season, Robinson Cano is the best second baseman in the MLB. It certainly helps that he is on the Yankees hitting in new Yankee Stadium with that all-star lineup. However, this columnist cannot ignore his season long statistics. The fact of the matter is that this week was just the norm for Cano as he continues to have a blazing hot season and is a strong candidate for the MVP award.

Season line: 155/477, 84 R, 25 HR, 86 RBI, 45 BB, 58 K, 2 SB, .325 AVG, .387 OBP, .566 SLG, .953 OPS

Runners up: Evan Longoria, Miguel Cabrera, Coco Crisp

AL Pitcher:

C.C. Sabathia NYY SP (ESPN 100.0%)

This week: 13.0 IP, 8 H, 2 ER, 3 BB, 17 K, 2 QS, 2 W, 1.38 ERA, 0.85 WHIP

*Insert first sentence of AL Hitter here*. I’m really getting tired of being forced to put CC in…

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MacGyvering It Part III: Twitter

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Posted by Fenam on August 23rd, 2010

Over this series of utilizing the internet universe I have covered Google Reader and Podcasts, but now it’s time for the greatest and fastest source of news and information known to man, Twitter. I was skeptical of Twitter’s application at first. Then, I tried it. It really is the ultimate source of information. The key to Twitter is to only follow those people that are relevant to what you want to know. If you follow a bunch of people randomly or because they follow you, you’re going to get information that is annoying and time consuming to read. To develop your list of who to follow is an ongoing task that will develop throughout the whole time you utilize this great web app.  Similar to the following two posts I will give you a starter kit for Twitter to get you off your feet and start following the most pertinent sources of information. I realize most people don’t have a lot of idle time, so to be simple about it all you need to do is set up a Twitter account follow this list. You may then check it whenever it is convenient with your Droid, iPhone, Blackberry, PC, netbook,…

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Waiver Mavens – Week 21

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Posted by Mat on August 22nd, 2010

I write this article enroute to Beantown where I’m making my first pilgrimage to Fenway Park, one of the first iron grandstands built in the early 20th century. . . and adding another notch in my belt of stadiums I’ve visited. . . I’ll be rocking my Josh Beckett jersey with pride… go Sawx! By the way, I may be crazy, but I’m not writing this while driving!  Without further (Freddie) ado… here’s this week’s edition of Waiver Mavens.

Position Players

Omar Infante, Atlanta Braves (2B, 3B, SS, LF, RF, OF, CI, MI) owned in 36% of Yahoo! Leagues. The Braves played a bit of musical chairs after Chipper Jones’ injury shifting Martin Prado to third and Omar Infante, who was filling in for the aforementioned Prado on the disabled list, was handed an opportunity for a full time gig as an everyday second baseman. In 86 at bats since filling in at second base on July 31, Infante put up an impressive372/400/535 line with 2 homers, 4 doubles, 13 runs and 3 steals to boot. Considering his extensive position eligibility Infante shapes up to be a versatile option (especially for Monday/Thursday substitutions) the rest of the way, he should…

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TWTW (8/14/10 – 8/20/10)

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Posted by Matt on August 21st, 2010

8/14 – The Giants took a game back from division rival the Padres in a 3-2 extra inning affair.  Carlos Zambrano outdueled Chris Carpenter in the Cubs’ 3-2 victory over the Cardinals.  Miguel Montero launched two homeruns in the Diamondbacks’ 9-2 victory over Jason Marquis (now 0-5) and the Nationals.  J.J. Putz took the loss, blowing the save in the Tigers’ 3-2 defeat of the White Sox.  Alex Rodriguez blasted 3 homeruns off of the lowly Royals as Phil Hughes moved to 14-5 on the year in the Yankees’ 8-3 win.  Roy Halladay and the Phillies blanked the Mets, 4-0.  Jon Lester outdueled Colby Lewis in the Red Sox’ 3-1 victory over the Rangers.  Hong Chi Kuo notched another save as the Dodgers defeated the Braves, 2-1.

8/15 – Jeremy Hellickson moved to 3-0 on his young career in an impressive 3-2 Rays defeat of the Orioles.  Vincente Padilla was rocked, giving up 8 earned in 4 1/3 innings in the Braves’ shalacking of the Dodgers, 13-1.  J.J. Putz took another loss for the White Sox as the Tigers outslugged them, 13-8.  Paul Konerko hit his 29th homerun of the year and Miguel Cabrera hit his 27th.  Brian Bullington notched…

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Matt’s Musings – Injuries? What injuries?

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Posted by Matt on August 20th, 2010

At the risk of this sounding immediately like a Mets bashing article (which it is), I must also preface it by saying that it’s also a praise of two teams that I have come to greatly admire - the Boston Red Sox and the Philadelphia Phillies – ducking from objects being flung at me from Yankees and Mets fans..

The New York Mets finished last season a very disappointing 70-92 only a year after going 89-73 and missing the playoffs by a mere game.  So what went wrong?  Well, we were told that it was injuries.  The Mets undoubtedly were plagued by injuries (most of them mishandled) the entire ’09 season.  Their catalyst, Jose Reyes, played in only 36 games.  Carlos Beltran, their five-tool player, played in only 81 games.  Carlos Delgado, their power, played in only 26 games.  John Maine, the Mets’ #2 pitcher at the time, pitched in only 15 games.  Oliver Perez, newly signed to a 3 year $36 million deal, pitched in only 14 games.  And there were more.  And to top it all off, David Wright had one of his worst statistical seasons as a member of the Metropolitans.  So Mets fans were supposed to buy…

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Instant Replay

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Posted by Cary on August 19th, 2010

A growing issue of late in MLB has been whether or not to institute the further usage of instant replay on safe/out/ fair/foul decisions by umpires.  Both sides of the argument have legitimate gripes.  It is a difficult and delicate issue throughout the game that is as old as time.  Here in lies the question: Is it more important to uphold the sanctity/speed of the game or to get the calls right?

The usage of instant replay this season has been successful and I am not saying it shouldn’t expand.  Make sure we are doing it for the right reasons though, with proper facts behind it.  I am all about getting the call right, but a better solution could be to require mandatory training for MLB umpires.  A more structured, rigorous annual training program for major league umpires should go a long way.  It doesn’t matter if you are in the majors or doing PONY League games, any umpire knows your goal day in and day out is to get better.  If they were required to go through a training camp-like clinic every season like the players do, this would undoubtedly lead to better officiating.

In a recent independent study…

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AL/NL POW (8/9 – 8/15)

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Posted by Fenam on August 17th, 2010

AL Hitter

Ryan Raburn Det OF, 2B (ESPN 7.2%)

This week: 11/25, 4 R, 3 HR, 5 RBI, 1 SB, .4400 AVG

Who? That’s a direct quote uttered from my mouth while writing this article. Little known Ryan Raburn went on his own little tear this past week to earn him an unlikely HOTW honor. A-Rod put up a decent case but Raburn won out with the unlikely AVG and the lone SB. Raburn has had a down year after batting .291 last season but this week certainly bumps up the stats as he gets 3 of his 7 home runs and doubles his SB total. I don’t expect Raburn to be any kind of a fantasy asset this season so keep him on the waiver wire and just shake your head.

Season line: 51/215, 25 R, 7 HR, 34 RBI, 16 BB, 58 K, 2 SB, .237 AVG, .305 OBP, .405 SLG, .710 OPS

Runners up: Alex Rodriguez, Josh Hamilton, J.D. Drew

AL Pitcher

Felix Hernandez Sea SP (ESPN 100.0%)

This week: 14.2 IP, 11 H, 0 ER, 5 BB, 20 K, 2 QS, 1 W, 0.00 ERA, 1.09 WHIP

Who’s leading the majors in quality starts? Adam Wainwright? No.…

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MacGyvering It Part II: The Podcast

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Posted by Fenam on August 16th, 2010

The Podcast, the pinnacle of nerdom, is a great boon for the fantasy universe. If, like me, you spend hours around a computer while listening to music or the radio, you can add a dash of podcast for some variety in your routine. When it comes to fantasy podcasts, it’s tough to get around the nerdy voices and general free flying opinions so you may want to start with the more successful personalities that offer good information but also the humor and wit required to keep you entertained. Finding the best podcasts is a bit of an arduous task. While a quick search through the iTunes store (iTunes –> iTunes store –> search: fantasy baseball podcast) will get you a few of the more mainstream podcasts, it’s a journey to discover the true gems. One way to do this is to search for “podcast” through your RSS reader. However, many probably haven’t explored that tool as much as I have. So, I have compiled a list of the podcasts I use with a short description, frequency of podcast, and general rating on quality.

#1: ESPN Fantasy Focus Baseball (Everyday)

iTunes description: “ESPN Fantasy experts Matthew Berry…

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Waiver Mavens – Week 20

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Posted by Mat on August 15th, 2010

No Brainer

Hong-Chih Kuo, Los Angeles Dodgers (RP) owned in 28% of Yahoo! Leagues. Kuo has been thrust into the closer role in Hollywood thanks to the recent woes of Jonathan Broxton.  With the Dodgers still in the hunt for the NL Wild Card, Kuo could earn himself some saves over the last quarter of the season.

Position Players

Chris Johnson, Houston Astros (3B, CI) owned in 49% of Yahoo! Leagues. Can’t argue with John’s numbers in the past four weeks and 85 at bats:  5 bombs, 5 doubles, 1 triple, 23 RBI, 15 runs scored and a line of 435/457/694 … a 1.152 OPS for those keeping score at home. This guy has flat out been a machine the past month and should be owned in all formats, just be careful if he comes crashing back to earth, but so far so good, especially since he’s moved down in the lineup.

Rajai Davis, Oakland Athletics (LF, CF, RF, OF) owned in 49% of Yahoo! Leagues. I’ve been touting Davis for some time and with good reason his numbers in the past month indicate that that he has value in average and steals (in 79 at bats he’s hit…

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Matt’s Musings – Never Surrender

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Posted by Matt on August 14th, 2010

This article is not your ordinary article.  I’m not speaking to a general audience.  It’s more of a plea to one specific individual.  A plea to the Milwaukee Brewers’ Corey Hart.  Corey – if you’re reading this (and of course he is), why on God’s green Earth do you not come to the plate with the 80s sensation Corey Hart blaring over the Miller Park sound system??  Why?!  I read somewhere that you actually come to the plate to a strange medley of country songs.  Okay, fair enough.  You like country music.  But that’s really only acceptable if your name is anything BUT Corey Hart.  You’re a star, Corey.  You had a tremendous first round in the MLB Homerun Derby this year.  You’re helping fantasy owners everywhere with your strong .287/23/76 line after starting out the season in a platoon.  You have a mullet dammit!  You owe it to yourself to walk – no – to strut to the plate to the synth pop sounds of 80s icon Corey Hart.

Now, you don’t even have to choose the ever popular “Sunglasses at Night.”   We all know that you do not wear your sunglasses during night games.  Rather, I suggest the moving uplifting slow-tempo jam ”Never Surrender.”  As Patrick Bateman once stated:…

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