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Fantasy Baseball: Daily Notes for Monday, May 20th

By Trader X on May 20, 2013
This entry is filed under Fantasy Baseball and tagged daily notes, fantasy, fantasy baseball, mlb.

It’s Miggy’s world…we’re all just living in it

Welcome to our Fantasy Baseball Daily Notes! Just like last year, I’ll be combing over box scores and scouring local beat writers’ reports each morning to help ensure you have all the information you need in order to make the right decisions for your fantasy baseball lineup. So make sure you check back at this very spot for Hot/Cold Streaks, Injury News, Closer Updates, Daily Stats, and more so that you can stay one step ahead of the rest of your league!

5 Good Nights, 5 Bad Nights

It’s a fact of life that every baseball player goes through hot and cold streaks. It’s important not to let those streaks influence a player’s fantasy baseball value too much, but it is important to be aware of how a player is doing within a short period of time (a seven-day sorter is always a good tool to use). A player’s short-term numbers can be the difference between winning and losing in daily games, and it can also make a huge difference in year-long leagues. For instance, if you can keep finding the second basemen on hot streaks and dropping them for another streaking second basemen once they get cold, you can piece together a very useful middle infielder-by-committee for your roto team. So before we get to today’s games, let’s take a spin through last night’s box scores to identify who had a good night and who had a bad night on Sunday, May 19th.

5 Good Nights

Miguel Cabrera: 4-4, 4 R, 3 HR, 5 RBI
Everth Cabrera: 2-6, 2R, 2 RBI, 3 steals
Will Venable: 2-5, R, HR, 2 RBI, 1 steal
Justin Masterson: 7.0 IP, 3 H, 0 ER, 2 BB, 11 Ks, W
Ricky Nolasco: 8.0 IP, 5 H, ER, BB, 11 Ks, W

Honorable Mention: Adam Jones, David Murphy, Michael Brantley, Prince Fielder, Ryan Zimmerman, Dustin Pedroia, Erick Aybar, Yonder Alonso, Jason Vargas, Homer Bailey, Matt Moore, Lucas Harrell, Jeff Locke, Jonathan Pettibone, Juan Nicasio, John Lackey, Matt Magill

5 Bad Nights

Dan Haren: 5.0 IP, 9 H, 7 ER, 2 BB, 5 Ks
Doug Fister: 4.2 IP, 9 H, 5 ER, BB, 3 Ks
Felix Hernandez: 5.0 IP, 8 H, 5 ER, 2 BB, 8 Ks
Victor Martinez: 0-5
Mike Moustakas: 0-5

Dishonorable Mention: Kenley Jansen, Aroldis Chapman, Barry Zito, Derek Holland, Kyle Lohse, Jake Peavy, Dillon Gee

Daily Grab Bag

Check back here for daily updates on injuries, closer battles, player news, and anything else that might affect your fantasy baseball team.

Ian Kinsler was placed on the 15-day DL with bruised ribs and Jurickson Profar was called up to take Kinsler’s place while he is out. It’s not clear if Profar will be sent back down to Triple-A once Kinsler is healthy, but it’s worth taking a flier on the Rangers’ top prospect just in case.
Johnny Cueto (oblique) has been activated from the DL and will start against the Mets today.
After Steve Cishek was unable to close the door on the Diamondbacks, Mike Dunn was summoned to record the one-out save for the Marlins. If Cishek continues to falter, Dunn, A.J. Ramos, and Ryan Webb may get a look at some save opportunities.
With Grant Balfour having pitched the previous two days, Ryan Cook picked up a save for the A’s yesterday. Cook may get a few saves like this going forward, but there is no closer controversy here.
Ryan Howard sat out yesterday’s game and will have a precautionary MRI done today to make sure there’s nothing major going on with his sore knee. Howard will rejoin the Phillies today, but it doesn’t look like he’s very likely to suit up tonight.

3 Up, 3 Down, and Throwing Darts

Starting and sitting the right pitchers on a day-to-day basis is often the lynchpin of winning any fantasy baseball league – roto, head-to-head, daily, and otherwise. In order to give you some help picking your pitchers for today, I’ve gone through all of the stats that I could (pitchers’ career numbers vs. certain hitters and lineups, home/road splits, lefty/righty splits, etc) and have made nine recommendations. I’m not going to proclaim that I’ll get these 100% correct all season, but anyone that does should be sitting on an island that they own in the Pacific – not writing fantasy baseball articles. The goal here is to play the odds the entire season and slowly build your “win” percentage closer to 100% than to 50%.

Here are today’s recommendations with, 3 Up (three pitchers you shouldn’t think of sitting), 3 Down (three pitchers with some warning flags for today), and Throwing Darts (three pitchers that I’ll be taking a flier on):

3 Up

Clayton Kershaw at Milwaukee Brewers

Shelby Miller at San Diego Padres

Cole Hamels at Miami Marlins

3 Down

Bartolo Colon at Texas Rangers

Patrick Corbin at Colorado Rockies

Shaun Marcum vs. Cincinnati Reds

Throwing Darts

Julio Teheran vs. Minnesota Twins

Ryan Vogelsong vs. Washington Nationals

Josh Lindblom vs. Oakland A’s

Swings and Misses

A hitter’s career numbers against a pitcher don’t always tell the whole story, but it can be informative if used correctly. I’m of the opinion that some information is better than none, and while there are other pieces to the puzzle of setting your daily lineup (splits, weather, etc.), I think a hitter’s career numbers against a pitcher can be very indicative of future success or failure. Some guys just own certain pitchers, and vice versa. As such, I’ve gone through today’s matchups and picked the best (and worst) matchups I could find. Anything less than 10-12 career at-bats is a relatively small sample-size (so take those with a grain of salt), but sometimes that’s all that is available.

Swings

Travis Hafner is 15-for-33 (.455) with four home runs in his career against today’s starter, Freddy Garcia.
Adrian Beltre is 19-for-60 (.317) with five home runs in his career against today’s starter, Bartolo Colon.
Paul Konerko is 10-for-23 (.435) with three home runs in his career against today’s starter, Jon Lester.

Misses

Brandon Phillips is hitless in 12 career at-bats against today’s starter, Shaun Marcum.
Robinson Cano is 2-for-15 (.133) in his career against today’s starter, Freddy Garcia.
Nelson Cruz is 1-for-12 (.083) in his career against today’s starter, Bartolo Colon.

If you have any questions, comments, complaints, or have a suggestion on a feature you’d like to see covered in these daily reports, please contact me @FantasyTrade411 or email me at FantasyTrade411@gmail.com and I’ll be happy to respond.

Fantasy Baseball: Week 8 Waiver Wire Wonders and Streaming Saviors

By Seth Klein on May 19, 2013
This entry is filed under Fantasy Baseball and tagged fantasy baseball, home runs, streamers, waiver-wire, waivers. | 2 Comments

You’re not cool unless you pick up “RAUUUUUUL” …

This column is featured every Sunday, and is dedicated to helping fantasy baseball owners find the diamonds in the rough among the waiver wires. I will also recap the week that was for my previous week’s starting pitching “streamers”. All suggested “Waiver Wire Wonders” are never more than 60% owned in both ESPN and Yahoo! leagues and all “Streaming Saviors” are never more than 75% owned in both ESPN and Yahoo! leagues.

WAIVER WIRE WONDERS

Eric Chavez, 3B (Diamondbacks): Chavez was once a player to be reckoned with for opposing pitchers. From 2000-2006 he averaged 28 HRs and 94 RBIs per season, but injuries struck, and from 2007 until last season he played in only 35 games per year. After tallying only 160 at bats in an injury-shortened season with the Yankees in 2011, they decided to bring him back in 2012 on a 1-year, $900,000 deal. It was a smart move by GM Brian Cashman, as Chavez ended up filling in a lot at third base while Alex Rodriguez was injured. He finished the year with 16 HRs and 37 RBIs in 278 ABs. Those numbers were good enough that Arizona brought him on this year for $3 million. After starting a little slow out of the gate (.241 BA in April), he’s really hit the floor running in May, where he’s boasting a .436 average (17 for 39), to go along with a home run and 9 RBIs. He almost never plays against left-handed pitchers, and while the D-Backs face two of them this week, matchups IN Colorado and against San Diego are too hard to ignore. He’s someone that you may drop in a couple weeks, but get him now while he’s hot. (7.3% owned on ESPN; 8% owned on Yahoo!)

Jon Jay, OF (Cardinals): Being in the Cardinals lineup almost guarantees a player decent stats. St. Louis has been in the Top 5 in team batting average the past two years, and this year is no exception to the rule. With a cumulative .266 BA, guys are getting on, which means runs and RBIs aplenty for the Cards bats. Early on, manager Mike Matheny had been using Jay in the leadoff spot, but that didn’t go too well. In 79 ABs batting first, he compiled a forgettable .215 BA, with 2 HRs, 8 RBIs and 14 Ks. This was obviously not a good fit, and he’s since been flip-flopping between the 6th (18 ABs) and 7th (27 ABs) spots as well as some time batting 2nd (12 ABs). In those combined 57 ABs he’s hitting an outstanding .351 and has 13 RBIs. He will score more runs from the leadoff spot, but I think fantasy owners will be happy sacrificing runs for a better batting average and more power production. After swiping 19 bases last season, having only one stolen base this year has to be a little disappointing, but he’s played in 40 of the Cards 42 games and doesn’t have any competition for playing time, so pick him up if you need an outfielder. (50.6% owned on ESPN; 21% owned on Yahoo!)

Raul Ibanez, OF/DH (Mariners): At 40-years old, Ibanez is one of the oldest everyday players in the league — but don’t tell him that! Over the past seven games he’s hitting .357 (10 for 28) and has smashed an incredible 6 home runs, including a 2-homer game vs. the Yankees in which he collected 6 RBIs and became the oldest player to hit a grand slam at Yankee Stadium. With age he has lost some of his bat speed, which has caused a rapid decline in his ability to hit lefties, and because of this he is used almost exclusively vs. right-handed starters. Although the Mariners are scheduled to face off vs. three lefties this week, don’t let that stop you from picking him up while he continues to tear the cover off the ball. (3.3% owned on ESPN; 6% owned on Yahoo!)

STREAMING SAVIORS (Week of May 6-May 12)

Brandon McCarthy, Diamondbacks (5/24 vs. San Diego): After hurling 17 consecutive scoreless innings in his last two starts, McCarthy really seems to be getting into a groove. A juicy matchup vs. the weak hitting Padres (24th in runs scored) is too good to pass up.
Julio Teheran, Braves (5/20 vs. Minnesota; 5/26 @NY Mets): Having finished spring training at the top of most pitching categories, Teheran was a big draft day sleeper. After getting crushed for 13 ER in his first three starts and subsequently falling off the radar, he has quietly righted the ship. In his last four outings he’s given up only 8 ER in 25.1 IP, including 3 quality starts, lowering his ERA from 7.31 to 4.57. He has a nice two-start week on the horizon vs. the Twins and Mets.
Wandy Rodriguez, Pirates (5/21 vs. Chicago Cubs; 5/26 @Milwaukee): I always say to never start a pitcher in his first game fresh off the DL, but you can also use that theory in reverse and start the pitcher opposing him. The Cubs will be sending Matt Garza to the hill, who hasn’t pitched in nearly a year, and Rodriguez looks to reap the benefits. Not convinced yet? This game will be played in Pittsburgh, where Rodriguez has a sparkling 1.35 ERA this year (compared to 6.11 on the road), and on top of that, current Cubs batters are a hitting a combined .224 against him in their careers.
Hector Santiago, White Sox (5/24 vs. Miami): Santiago has been quietly putting up very nice numbers as a starter (2.95 ERA) and needs another good outing to guarantee his spot in the rotation once John Danks returns from injury. This is a prime matchup vs. the dismal Marlins offense.
Jose Fernandez, Marlins (5/21 vs. Philadelphia): It’s not every day that I recommend streaming a Marlins pitcher, but this is a rare case in which he actually had a very good chance to win, or at least put up good numbers. Miami’s prized young arm has already thrown 13 shutout innings vs. Philly this year, which has led to one win and one no-decision. His counterpart will be rookie Tyler Cloyd, which means that he avoids facing off against Phils aces Cliff Lee and Cole Hamels.

There was no column last week, but here are the Streaming Savior results from Week 6 (May 6-May 12):

Jason Vargas, Angels: 5.2 IP, 10 H, 5 ER, 2 BB, 7 K and ND vs. Houston

Jeff Locke, Pirates: 6.0 IP, 3 H, 1 ER, 3 BB, 3 K and ND vs. NY Mets

Andrew Cashner, Padres: 7.1 IP, 4 H, 0 ER, 3 BB, 4 K and W vs. Miami

Kevin Slowey, Marlins: 4.2 IP, 11 H, 5 ER, 3 BB, 0 K and L vs. LA Dodgers

Hector Santiago, White Sox: 7.0 IP, 4 H, 0 ER, 2 BB, 8 K and ND vs. NY Mets

By Seth Klein (@SethDaSportsMan)

Seth is a writer for FantasyTrade411.com, specializing in fantasy baseball, basketball and football. He was born and raised in Los Angeles, CA, but has been a die-hard New York Giants, Knicks and Yankees fan since birth. He has been playing fantasy sports since 1999 and has since developed a real knack for daily streaming and “working the wire”, which can be attributed to his keen analysis of in-season trends. He is also a writer BucketsOverBroadway.com, a New York Knicks website, and you can find him gracing the airwaves on @ThaSPORTSKRIB, a weekly show dedicated to sports. Seth attended the University of Arizona, where he majored in “tardiness”, and is now a certified personal trainer and fitness nutrition specialist. Feel free to send all your fantasy sports questions to Seth on Twitter: @SethDaSportsMan

Simply Sabermetrics: Everyone Loves A Comeback

By Trader X on May 18, 2013
This entry is filed under Fantasy Baseball and tagged fantasy baseball, mlb, sabermetrics, sabr.

The numbers say that Brandon McCarthy can help your fantasy baseball team

By John Otano

In 1968, Boston Red Sox first baseman and outfielder Kenneth Harrelson hit 35 home runs, drove in 109 runs while finishing third in the American League MVP voting. Harrelson had hit 24 home runs in the past two seasons combined and his previous career-high had been 23 homers. He was named the Sporting News Comeback Player of the Year in 1968.

In 1968, the Sporting News understood how Harrelson had won their award. They just didn’t have the tools to understand why Harrelson had achieved that award.

Why are we talking about a player in 1968? Kenneth Harrelson is better known, now, as Hawk Harrelson. His home-run calls are a show within the show. He’s also cited the movie Moneyball as a leg of his argument against the use of sabermetrics in the game of baseball. He believes the “will to win” can’t be quantified.

In a way, Harrelson has a point. As effective as sabermetrics can be, it can’t completely predict the future performance of a player. It does, however, improve your chances of correctly evaluating the future performance of a player.

Evaluating players future performance is the name of the game, after all. In order to play fantasy baseball, there needs to be a basic understanding of sabermetrics. The question you need to ask yourself as a fantasy baseball player is, why should you view baseball played in 2013 through a 1968 lens?

This brings me to a baseball player who is active who embraces and uses sabermetrics to improve his game on the field, Diamondbacks right-hander Brandon McCarthy. He’s the anti-Hawk Harrelson and he also has some value for you on your fantasy baseball team.

Brandon McCarthy (ARI-SP) (Owned in 37 percent in Y!, 37 percent in CBS, 32.6 percent in ESPN)

On the surface, Brandon McCarthy looks like a completely passable waiver wire option right now. He’s 0-3 with a 5.63 ERA and a 1.54 WHIP in 48 innings so far this season. He’s still doing the little things right, despite the ugly results so far.

The most effective pitch in baseball is a strike and this Diamondbacks hurler is one of the best in the game at throwing strikes. McCarthy is currently sporting a 5.3 strikeout to walk ratio. Anything above a 3.0 strikeout to walk ratio is usually a good indicator that the pitcher is finding the strike zone with regularity. Which is a good thing since, you know, three strikes and you’re out.

There’s a direct correlation between a pitcher’s Cmd ratio (Strikeouts/Walks) and potential earned run average.

Taken from Ron Shandler’s 2013 Baseball Forecaster (you need to make the yearly investment), here’s some research done outlining the correlation over the past five seasons.

(From Ron Shandler’s 2013 Baseball Forecaster)

Besides throwing strikes, McCarthy is retaining his velocity, though, he won’t post incredible strikeout rates, he’s getting ground ball outs 43.2 percent of the time. Ground balls are good because they aren’t in the air and, you know, those can land in the seats.

Owned in less than 40 percent in all of the major fantasy baseball major platforms, Brandon McCarthy is still displaying the skills that make him a very useful starting pitcher in mixed leagues in 2013.

John Otano is a freelancer for Sports Illustrated and Web Production Assistant for MSG Varsity in New York. He was a reporter and editor for several Long Island Patch.com sites and wrote a fantasy baseball column for the Long Island Press. John can be followed on Twitter at @MisterOtano.

Fantasy Baseball: Daily Notes for Friday, May 17th

By Trader X on May 17, 2013
This entry is filed under Fantasy Baseball and tagged batting matchups, closers, daily fantasy sports, daily gaming, ews, fantasy baseball, Injuries, mlb, notes, prospects, streaming pitchers.

We have a Travis Snider sighting…

5 Good Nights, 5 Bad Nights

Travis Snider: 3-5, 2 R, HR, 3 RBI, 1 steal
Daniel Murphy: 4-4, 2 R, RBI
Leonys Martin: 2-4, R, 2 steals
Stephen Straburg: 8.0 IP, 3 H, ER, 3 BB, 4 Ks, W
Mat Latos: 8.1 IP, 4 H, 2 ER, BB, 4 Ks

Honorable Mention: Brett Gardner, Jay Bruce, Geovany Soto, Mitch Moreland, Wilin Rosario, Will Middlebrooks, Brandon Crawford, Jose Fernandez, Jonathon Niese, Alex Cobb, Francisco Liriano

5 Bad Nights

Fernando Rodney: 0.2 IP, H, 3 ER, 4 BB, 2 Ks
Justin Verlander: 2.2 IP, 6 H, 8 ER, 2 BB, 3 Ks
Steve Cishek: 1.2 IP, 3 H, 3 ER, 2 BB
Jacoby Ellsbury: 0-5
Todd Frazier: 0-5

Dishonorable Mention: Jayson Nix, Michael Saunders, Ike Davis, Edinson Volquez, Jhoulys Chacin, Matt Cain

Daily Grab Bag

Check back here for daily updates on injuries, closer battles, player news, and anything else that might affect your fantasy baseball team.

While an MRI showed no serious damage, David Price was placed on the 15-day DL with a left triceps injury.
Alexi Ogando has been placed on the 15-day DL with biceps tendinitis.
Andrew Bailey (bicep) is expected to return to the Red Sox and assume closing duties on Monday.
Josh Beckett has been placed on the 15-day DL with a groin injury.
Matt Garza (arm) has looked strong in his rehab outings and may join the Cubs as soon as next week.

3 Up, 3 Down, and Throwing Darts

Matt Harvey at Chicago Cubs

Gio Gonzalez at San Diego Padres

Clay Buchholz at Minnesota Twins

3 Down

Tony Cingrani at Philadelphia Phillies

Rick Porcello at Texas Rangers

Mark Buehrle at New York Yankees

Throwing Darts

Jarrod Parker vs. Kansas City Royals

Jorge De La Rosa vs. San Francisco Giants

Jeanmar Gomez vs. Houston Astros

Swings and Misses

Vernon Wells is 24-for-50 (.480) with three home runs in his career against today’s starter, Mark Buehrle.
Robinson Cano is 8-for-20 (.400) with three home runs in his career against today’s starter, Mark Buehrle.
Carlos Gonzalez is 9-for-25 (.360) with three home runs in his career against today’s starter, Madison Bumgarner.
Joey Votto is 7-for-16 (.438) with one home run in his career against today’s starter, Cliff Lee.
J.P. Arencibia is 7-for-15 (.467) with one home run in his career against today’s starter, Hiroki Kuroda.
Adam Jones is 10-for-31 (.323) with three home runs in his career against today’s starter, Jeremy Hellickson.
Chris Davis is 8-for-18 (.444) with one home run in his career against today’s starter, Jeremy Hellickson.
Justin Morneau is 8-for-16 (.500) in his career against today’s starter, Clay Buchholz.

Misses

Josh Hamilton is 1-for-8 in his career against today’s starter, Chris Sale.
Daniel Murphy is 1-for-9 (.111) in his career against today’s starter, Edwin Jackson.
Coco Crisp is 3-for-17 (.176) in his career against today’s starter, James Shields.

FanDuel DFBC Qualifier

By Trader X on May 15, 2013
This entry is filed under Daily Gaming Recommendations, Fantasy Baseball, Sports Investing and tagged daily fantasy sports, daily gaming, DFBC, fanduel, fantasy baseball.

Come play tonight's DFBC qualifier for a chance to win $1 Million!

Come play Friday’s DFBC qualifier for a chance to win $200K and a trip to Vegas!

Are you ready for the biggest Fantasy Baseball contest of all-time? Our exclusive daily fantasy partner, FanDuel, has put together the Daily Fantasy Baseball Championship (DFBC) that will offer over $1 Million in guaranteed cash prizes and a trip to Las Vegas for the 45 finalists of the contest!

How Do You Enter?

Tonight’s tournament starts this Friday night and all you have to do is enter by clicking here: DFBC 2013. You can enter qualifying tournament for $10 (so don’t be a cheapskate!).

What Can You Win?

FanDuel is guaranteeing a prize pool of $1 Million and the winner of the DFBC will get a cold $200,000 (Second Place gets $50,000 and Third Place gets $35,000)! Cash prizes are awarded to the top 45 finishers so you could still win $2,500 even if you finish 45th.

In addition to all the great cash prizes, the 45 finalists will win:

One plane ticket to Las Vegas
One limo ride from the airport to the Palazzo Hotel and Casino
Two nights in a suite at the Palazzo
Friday night cocktail party with all the other winners
An amazing Saturday night of fantasy baseball at Lagasse’s Stadium

Not a bad deal, huh? I’ll be playing too and hopefully we’ll see each other in Vegas! And if you missed it before, you can enter here: DFBC 2013.

As always, please feel free to let me know if you have any questions!

Fantasy Baseball: STAT Scout (Steals)

By Trader X on May 15, 2013
This entry is filed under Fantasy Baseball and tagged categories, fantasy baseball, steals.

Nate McClouth has been a terror on the basepaths this season

By Paul Giordano

Consistently coming up short in a specific stat category? Not sure of who to go after to help your team compete? Well then this page will be your new best friend.

Every week I will scout a new statistical category. You will be able to compare league leaders with some under the radar type players. I will provide a key pick up for both shallow and deep league formats. Lastly, I will give an analysis of the pros and cons for each of the players.

This week in STAT Scout:

Steals

League leader – Jean Segura (13 steals )

Shallow leagues – Nate McLouth (11 steals)

This was a tough call between McLouth and Everth Cabrera (77%). I went with McLouth because he has more to offer in other offensive categories. Both hit high in the order and both seem to have a green light in most situations.

McLouth, and this is why he got the nod over Cabrera, is quite the stat filler thus far in ’13. Nate is scoring runs at a great clip this season. He is hitting in front of names like Machado, Davis, and Jones. So chances are if he is standing on second he is going to be hitting the dish soon. McLouth is also showing versatility in how he gets on base. He is hitting .286 this season and has a solid OBP of .375 with 14 walks.

McLouth is not going to hit for much power. Yes, he does have 3 homers this season but I think as he solidifies his role he will focus more on just getting on base and letting the real big bats drive him in.

Overall, McLouth has only been caught stealing 1 time this season. That has entrusted him with his manager and earned him a green light. The Baltimore Offense is turning into a machine and McLouth is going to earn you a lot of runs scored as well.

Deep Leagues – Juan Pierre (12 steals)

Until last night Juan Pierre was tied for the Major League lead in stolen bases. That made this choice a virtual no brainer. Pierre is playing for a struggling Miami team, but in terms of stealing bags he is shining.

On top of pilfering, Pierre does not have much else to offer you. Unfortunately, he is playing for the Staton-less Marlins which as we all know struggles most game to get a hit let along score runs. However, when Pierre does get on base it is probably with a single; He only has 4 doubles on the season. So when he does get on base he is usually standing on first, which will provide numerous opportunity for him to swipe second.

As a negative, he doesn’t have much else to offer you. He has virtually no power, and isn’t even hitting for a good average this season. So far he is hitting .240. Pierre is not going to be an everyday start on your squad. But if you have a spot to stash him, go for it. The day you really need a steal he is definitely worth a play.

Overall, Pierre is a crafty Veteran whose role is stealing bases. With that being said Pierre is going to pick good situations to steal and do it at a very successful clip.

To all of my fantasy faithful, I hope this has helped. Competing in every statistical category is a challenge in fantasy baseball but hopefully some of these helpful hints can help bolster your squad’s chances this week.

Next week on STAT Scout we will take a look at some pitchers and examine the ever elusive hold.

By Paul Giordano

Paul is a 20th century history teacher from Westchester, New York. He currently coaches basketball at the varsity level and has coached softball and football in the past. He is an avid sports fan who is going for the fantasy triple crown this year, he won his football and basketball championships – now it’s time for baseball season.

Fantasy Baseball: Daily Notes for Wednesday, May 15

By Trader X on May 15, 2013
This entry is filed under Fantasy Baseball and tagged batting matchups, closers, daily fantasy sports, daily gaming, daily notes, fantasy baseball, Injuries, mlb, news, notes, prospects, streaming pitchers.

Carlos Gonzalez kept mashing last night with a two home run game

5 Good Nights, 5 Bad Nights

Carlos Gonzalez: 5-5, 3 R, 2 HR, 3 RBI
Mitch Moreland: 2-5, 2 R, 2 HR, 3 RBI
Howard Kendrick: 3-4, 2 R, HR, RBI, 1 steal
Clayton Kershaw: 8.2 IP, 5 H, 0 ER, BB, 11 K’s, W
Homer Bailey: 9.0 IP, 6 H, 0 ER, 2 BB, 10 Ks, W

Honorable Mention: Mike Trout, Carlos Beltran, David Ortiz, Pablo Sandoval, John Mayberry Jr., Xavier Paul, Patrick Corbin, Chris Tillman, Doug Fister, Andrew Cashner, Jake Peavy, Dan Haren, Jason Vargas, Jonathan Pettibone, C.C. Sabathia, R.A. Dickey, Jeff Francis, Felix Hernandez, Julio Teheran

5 Bad Nights

Jim Johnson: 1.0 IP, 4 H, 2 ER
Carlos Villanueva: 5.0 IP, 12 H, 7 ER, K
Dillon Gee: 4.0 IP, 9 H, 5 ER, 3 BB, 5 Ks
Yadier Molina: 0-5
Ian Kinsler: 0-5

Dishonorable Mention: Yuniesky Betancourt, Geovany Soto, Garrett Jones, Pedro Alvarez, Michael Saunders, Yoenis Cespedes, Ricky Nolasco, John Lackey, Rafael Betancourt, Joe Nathan, Lucas Harrell, Barry Zito, Scott Kazmir, Jeremy Guthrie, John Gast, Derek Holland

Daily Grab Bag

Check back here for daily updates on injuries, closer battles, player news, and anything else that might affect your fantasy baseball team.

With Brandon League recently getting Don Mattingly’s shaky “he’s our closer for now” support, Kenley Jansen picked up the one-out save for the Dodgers last night. There could be changes afoot in Los Angeles and it might be smart to try and deal League for whatever you can.
Curtis Granderson was activated from the disabled list and went 0-3 with one run scored in his return last night.
Zack Greinke (collarbone) has been activated from the disabled list and will start against the Washington Nationals tonight.
Andrew Bailey (biceps) should rejoin the Red Sox within the next week. Make sure he’s not available on your waiver wire.
Coco Crisp (hamstring) has been activated from the disabled list and leadoff against the Rangers tonight.
Ryan Madson is expected to be activated from the disabled list later this week, and while we don’t know if he’ll replace Ernesto Frieri as the Angels’ closer or not, it might not be the worst idea to see if Madson is available in your league.
Jose Altuve has been placed on the bereavement list and will miss at least the next three games following the death of his grandmother. Altuve said that the jaw injury he suffered in Monday’s game wouldn’t have kept him out of the lineup otherwise, so it sounds like he shouldn’t miss more than a few games here.

3 Up, 3 Down, and Throwing Darts

Alexi Ogando at Oakland A’s

Max Scherzer vs. Cleveland Indians

Shelby Miller vs. New York Mets

3 Down

Ryan Vogelsong at Toronto Blue Jays

Shaun Marcum at St. Louis Cardinals

Tim Hudson at Arizona Diamondbacks

Throwing Darts

Phil Hughes vs. Seattle Mariners

Ross Detwiler at Los Angeles Dodgers

Mike Leake at Miami Marlins

Swings and Misses

Aramis Ramirez is 20-for-51 (.392) with two home runs in his career against today’s starter, Wandy Rodriguez.
Ryan Braun is 16-for-42 (.381) with four home runs in his career against today’s starter, Wandy Rodriguez.
(Don’t start Wandy Rodriguez today)
Small sample-size, but Josh Hamilton is 4-for-4 (1.000) with one home run in his career against today’s starter, Wade Davis.

Misses

Pedro Alvarez is hitless in 15 career at-bats against today’s starter, Yovani Gallardo.
Carlos Gomez is 4-for-29 (.138) in his career against today’s starter, Wandy Rodriguez.
David Ortiz is 5-for-25 (.200) in his career against today’s starter, David Price.

Fantasy Baseball: Daily Notes for Tuesday, May 14th

By Trader X on May 14, 2013
This entry is filed under Fantasy Baseball and tagged batting splits, closers, daily fantasy sports, daily gaming, daily notes, fantasy baseball, Injuries, mlb, prospects, streaming pitchers.

Aaron Hicks wasn’t just flashing the leather last night…

Aaron Hicks: 2-3, 3 R, 2 HR, 3 RBI
Billy Butler: 5-5, 2 R, 5 RBI
Jean Segura: 3-5, RBI, 3 steals
Justin Masterson: 9.0 IP, 4 H, 0 ER, 3 BB, 9 K’s, W
Travis Wood: 7.0 IP, 2 H, 0 ER, 3 BB, 2 Ks, W

Honorable Mention: Norichika Aoki, Justin Morneau, Andy Dirks, Brian McCann, Ryan Zimmerman, Chris Johnson, Justin Upton, Alfonso Soriano, Matt Holliday, Jordan Zimmerman, Anibal Sanchez, Marco Estrada, A.J. Griffin, Mike Minor, David Phelps, Trevor Bauer

5 Bad Nights

Bud Norris: 5.0 IP, 9 H, 7 ER, BB, 2 Ks
Wade Miley: 5.0 IP, 6 H, 6 ER, 2 BB, K
Justin Grimm: 5.0 IP, 7 H, 5 ER, 2 BB, 3 Ks
Mark Reynolds: 0-5
Carlos Santana: 0-5

Dishonorable Mention: Mike Moustakas, Danny Espinosa, Robinson Cano, Brett Gardner, Asdrubal Cabrera, Joe Blanton, Juan Nicasio, Josh Beckett

Daily Grab Bag

Check back here for daily updates on injuries, closer battles, player news, and anything else that might affect your fantasy baseball team.

Austin Jackson was placed on the 15-day DL with a hamstring injury and prospect Avisail Garcia has been called up to replace Jackson in the lineup.
Jose Altuve left last night’s Astros game after suffered a sublexed jaw in a collision with Jimmy Paredes. There is no timetable for Altuve’s injury, but Altuve thinks he’ll be able to play today so it looks like disaster may have been averted here.
It’s not official yet, but it looks like Wei-Yin Chen will be headed to the disabled list with a strained oblique.
It’s looking very likely that Curtis Granderson (forearm) will make his season debut tonight when the Yankees take on Seattle.
Chris Perez was unavailable to pitch on Sunday because of soreness in his right shoulder. It doesn’t look like he’ll miss time, but it might be smart to grab Joe Smith (Vinnie Pestano is on the DL) if you’re absolutely desperate for saves.

3 Up, 3 Down, and Throwing Darts

Clayton Kershaw vs. Washington Nationals

C.C. Sabathia vs. Seattle Mariners

Doug Fister vs. Houston Astros

3 Down

Bartolo Colon vs. Texas Rangers

Dillon Gee at St. Louis Cardinals

Ricky Nolasco vs. Cincinnati Reds

Throwing Darts

Chris Tillman vs. San Diego Padres

Scott Kazmir at Philadelphia Phillies

Andrew Cashner at Baltimore Orioles

Swings and Misses

Andre Ethier is 20-for-47 (.426) with two home runs in his career against today’s starter, Dan Haren.
Billy Butler is 6-for-13 (.462) with two home runs in his career against today’s starter, Jason Vargas.
Robinson Cano is 15-for-41 (.366) with two home runs in his career against today’s starter, Felix Hernandez.
Adrian Beltre is 18-for-57 (.316) with five home runs in his career against today’s starter, Bartolo Colon.

Misses

Josh Willingham is 1-for-18 (.056) in his career against today’s starter, Jake Peavy.
Hunter Pence is 3-for-19 (.158) in his career against today’s starter, R.A. Dickey.
Brandon Phillips is 4-for-25 (.160) in his career against today’s starter, Ricky Nolasco.
Nelson Cruz is 1-for-10 (.100) in his career against today’s starter, Bartolo Colon.

Fantasy Baseball: Daily Notes for Monday, May 13th

By Trader X on May 13, 2013
This entry is filed under Fantasy Baseball and tagged chris sale, curtis granderson, daily fantasy sports, daily gaming, daily notes, fantasy baseball, jason heyward, mlb, neil walker.

A near no-hitter will always get you featured here

5 Good Nights, 5 Bad Nights

Jose Bautista: 2-4, 3 R, 2 HR, 3 RBI
Adrian Beltre: 4-5, 2 R, HR, 4 RBI
Alexei Ramirez: 3-4, R, 2 RBI, 2 steals
Chris Sale: 9.0 IP, H, 0 ER, 7 K’s, W
Tim Lincecum: 7.0 IP, 2 H, 0 ER, 3 BB, 7 Ks, W

Honorable Mention: Vernon Wells, Emilio Bonifacio, Mike Baxter, Troy Tulowitzki, Chris Davis, Kendry Morales, Chris Carter, Donald Lutz, Leury Garcia, Jorge De La Rosa, Brandon McCarthy, Hiroki Kuroda, Kyle Kendrick, Gio Gonzalez, Matt Harvey, Bronson Arroyo, Joe Saunders, Chris Capuano, Scott Feldman, Roberto Hernandez, Rick Porcello, Nick Tepesch, Jeanmar Gomez, Wei-Yin Chen

5 Bad Nights

Heath Bell: 0.2 IP, 4 H, 2 ER
Brandon League: 1.0 IP, 3 H, 2 ER
Jordan Lyles: 4.0 IP, 11 H, 8 ER, 3 BB, K
Victor Martinez: 0-5
Nick Swisher: 0-5

Dishonorable Mention: Martin Prado, J.P. Arencibia, Matt Reynolds, Scott Diamond, Ryan Dempster, Sergio Romo, Jose Valverde, Tommy Milone, Jaime Garcia, Ervin Santana, Eric Stults, Kris Medlen

Daily Grab Bag

Check back here for daily updates on injuries, closer battles, player news, and anything else that might affect your fantasy baseball team.

Michael Cuddyer was placed on the 15-day DL with a bulging disc in his neck.
Curtis Granderson (forearm) has fared well in four rehab games at Triple-A Scranton and could return to the lineup tomorrow night.
Neil Walker (hand) is expected to be activated from the 15-day DL today.
Jason Heyward (appendectomy) has experienced some general soreness during his rehab stint, but is still expected to join the Braves sometime this week.
Zack Greinke (collarbone) is expected to return to the Dodgers this week and start against the Nationals on Wednesday.
Rajai Davis was placed on the 15-day DL with a strained oblique.
Jake Westbrook was placed on the 15-day DL with elbow inflammation.

3 Up, 3 Down, and Throwing Darts

Jordan Zimmerman at Los Angeles Dodgers

Anibal Sanchez vs. Houston Astros

Hisashi Iwakuma vs. Oakland Athletics

3 Down

A.J. Griffin vs. Texas Rangers

Josh Beckett vs. Washington Nationals

Bud Norris at Detroit Tigers

Throwing Darts

Justin Grimm at Oakland A’s

Hector Santiago at Minnesota Twins

Trevor Bauer vs. New York Yankees

Swings and Misses

Andrew McCutchen is 7-for-19 (.368) with two home runs in his career against today’s starter, Marco Estrada.
Ryan Braun is 6-for-14 (.429) in his career against today’s starter, A.J. Burnett.
Robinson Cano is 8-for-19 (.421) in his career against today’s starter, Justin Masterson.

Misses

Brett Gardner is 1-for-11 (.091) in 11 career at-bats against today’s starter, Justin Masterson.
Yuniesky Betancourt is 4-for-23 (.174) in his career against today’s starter, A. J. Burnett.
Adam LaRoche is 3-for-18 (.167) in his career against today’s starter, Josh Beckett.

Fantasy Baseball: STAT Scout

By Trader X on May 10, 2013
This entry is filed under Fantasy Baseball and tagged a's, categories, fantasy baseball, josh donaldson, mlb, oakland, padres, RBI, san diego, yonder alonso.

Can Josh Donaldson keep up his 100+ RBI pace?

By Paul Giordano

Consistently coming up short in a specific stat category? Not sure of who to go after to help your team compete? Well then this page will be your new best friend.

This week in STAT Scout:

RBI

League leader – Miggy (99%): 37 RBI

Shallow leagues – Josh Donaldson (58% owned): 24 RBI

Josh Donaldson has really burst onto the scene this season. He has earned everyday third base responsibilities on a hot team in Oakland. Donaldson, like most other Athletics, fits into multiple spots in the lineup. Typically he hits right in the heart of the order, recently he is hitting behind the slugger Cespedes.

On the Plus side, along with driving in a lot of runs Donaldson can provide you with a solid BA (.302) and a good OBP of .385.

On the other hand, Josh will not hit for amazing power. He has just 4 homers on the season. In addition to that once he gets on base, like most third baseman, he is not too much of a threat to go. He has 3 steal attempts this season and has been successful twice.

Overall, Donaldson is probably playing a little over his head right now. I don’t know if the average will stay in the 300 range, which will obviously then affect his RBI count. When Oakland gets healthy his spot in the lineup might be effected as well. Overall I would say he is worth a pickup in most leagues.

Deep Leagues -Yonder Alonso (21% owned): 22 RBI

Yonder Alonso is having a very under the radar season thus far. Yonder typically hits in the 5 spot for the Padres, and plays a position (1B) that has a lot of under producing stars so far this season.

On top of driving in runs, there is not much else that really pops of the page for Alonso. He is hitting .275 for the season which is par for his career, so that is probably sustainable. His power numbers are below average but still there. Yonder has 4 homers and 6 two baggers on the young season.

As a negative, he plays for the Padres which is not a good team. Yonder won’t exactly get up with the bases full of teammates on a nightly basis. Additionally, Yonder wont score you a lot of runs, as he has only stepped on the dish 13 times this season.

Overall, in some deeper leagues, you might want to give Yonder Alonso a look. He is seemingly coming up big in the RBI category this year. He does play a position that does not have some of its bigger stars producing. So if you need a bump in RBI’s this week pick up Alonso.

Next week on STAT Scout we will take a look at some speedsters and examine steals.

By Paul Giordano

Paul is a 20th century history teacher from Westchester, New York. He currently coaches basketball at the varsity level and has coached softball and football in the past. He is an avid sports fan who is going for the fantasy triple crown this year, he won his football and basketball championships – now it’s time for baseball season.