<![CDATA[Mr. Fantasy Freak Your Home For Fantasy Sports News And Updates - Keep Invisible but NEVER erase]]>Sat, 18 May 2013 23:26:31 -0800Weebly<![CDATA[Ladd Davies' Archives]]>Fri, 27 Jul 2012 23:52:46 GMThttp://mrfantasyfreak.com/8/post/2012/07/ladd-davies-archives.html
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Ladd Davies

July 2012 - Present
 

Ladd joined the site July 27th, 2012. He is a husband, father, a christian and a dynamite writer. Ladd will contribute fantasy sports articles. If you want help making tough fantasy trades or pickups just ask Ladd. 

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<![CDATA[Kenneth Teape's Archives]]>Sun, 15 Jul 2012 02:52:36 GMThttp://mrfantasyfreak.com/8/post/2012/07/kenneth-teapes-archives.html
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Kenneth Teape

July 2012 - Present
 

Kenneth joined the site July 14, 2012 and will provide the "Week in Review" articles and more. Kenneth studies Media Communications. Teape is very knowledgeable about all sports and is especially gifted when it comes to writing. He currently resides in New York so if your a Knicks fan be sure to follow him on twitter.


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<![CDATA[Ross Vader's Archives]]>Thu, 12 Jul 2012 00:45:48 GMThttp://mrfantasyfreak.com/8/post/2012/07/ross-vaders-archives.html
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Ross Vader

May 2012 - Present
 

Ross is a numbers guy but don't let that fool you as he has a strong opinion on player management and trends. He is a "Freak" when it comes to baseball statistics and minor league prospects. He admits to being a bit bias as he focuses on baseball 90% of the time but he is a college ball player so who can blame him? Feel free to find Ross on twitter.

Find Ross on Twitter
@Ross_Vader

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<![CDATA[Alex Wiesner's Archives]]>Thu, 07 Jun 2012 07:21:10 GMThttp://mrfantasyfreak.com/8/post/2012/06/alex-wiesners-archives.html
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Alex Wiesner

January 2012 - Present
 

 
Fun Fantasy Reads

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To The Right
 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

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2012-2013 Fantasy Football Draft Guide



NFL

Articles


Preseason Articles

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

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2012 NBA Draft Grades



NBA

Articles


Preseason Articles

 
 
 
 
 
 
 

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Fantasy Affect of a Long Postseason



NHL

Articles

 
Preseason Articles

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

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Tweet Alex @Awies28

Poll Section

July - August 2012 coming soon...
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
See the original website HERE
 
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<![CDATA[Mr. Fantasy Freak Archives]]>Thu, 07 Jun 2012 07:14:35 GMThttp://mrfantasyfreak.com/8/post/2012/06/mr-fantasy-freak-archives.html
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Bullpen Backpack

May 2012 - Present
 

Bullpen Backpack joined the site on June 1st, 2012. The Backpack offers a fan perspective to the fantasy sports world. Fun, funny and informative. Finding the humor and the sad reality in fantasy sports. He is worth your time, stop by and have a conversation with "The Pack" on twitter.

 
Recent Articles




 
Find B.P. on Twitter
@BullpenBackpack

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<![CDATA[Mid May NL East Fantasy Update]]>Fri, 11 May 2012 07:44:19 GMThttp://mrfantasyfreak.com/8/post/2012/05/mid-may-nl-east-fantasy-update.html
We're approaching mid May and about to head into summer baseball as well basketball and hockey championships. I want to give some of our friends and followers (@untalentedMR on twitter) an update on our podcasts and website. Mike and I have to commute over 3 hours in order to do a show together during the summer months, so we won't be doing any shows, together live, for a while. I do plan on releasing a podcast this weekend and, if he is free, I'm sure Mr. Fantasy Freak will chime in over the phone. To replace him for the time being, I will have a handful of guest host (including our IT guy, Jaxon) and some other fantasy geeks and nerds (like myself) joining the show. I will of course do a handful of shortened solo shows in between those (I'm sure Mr. Fantasy Freak will as well). In other news, I finally got the okay to do an interview with a childhood friend, over the phone during a show. If your wondering what the okay was, his father (and agent) told my father he would do it. Now, if your wondering who this mystery interviewee will be, it is non-other than Tennessee Titan's corner, Alterraun Verner. I haven't talked to him since his senior year at UCLA so this will be a treat for our listeners and for myself as well. I haven't set up a time to conduct the interview yet, so please be patient. 

Getting back to some actual fantasy news and updates, one of my biggest story lines entering the season was the new look Miami Marlins. I wanted to give my readers a fantasy update on the Marlins and every NL East team, in my...

                                 Mid May NL East Fantasy Update 
                   (It's not the catchiest title but hang in here, I'll try to be funny in a bit.)


Injury Updates

Ryan Howard PHI 1B
Here's a funny joke to get things started, the Phillies have hit 22 home runs this season as a team (tied for 25th worse). Josh Hamilton has 15 by himself. Replacement first basemen, Lance Nix, has a calf injury and is most likely headed to the DL and Jim Thome is already on the DL. This may very well mean that Ty Wiggington and John Mayberry Jr. will get the call to play first base until Howard returns. Those don't sound like ideal first baseman for a championship contending team.

Back to Howard, he just recently took swings for the first time since spring training. To give you an idea on what that means, he basically just started spring training over again. If your expecting him to return in a month you may be out of luck. I'm thinking more along the lines of 6-8 weeks, if not longer.

Chase Utley PHI 2B
The Phillies injury woes continue with Utley. Chase has been taking batting practice and doing some light fielding work but, he doesn't feel like he is ready to play in games. He will have to play a few weeks of minor league ball to ensure he is at full strength before returning to the big league club. My best guess is 4-5 weeks.

Cliff Lee PHI SP
Lee came of the DL and pitched Tuesday (May 9th). He was on a pitch count (ended with 84 pitches) but went 6 innings and had 6 strikeouts while only allowing two runs. His next scheduled start is May 15th against the Houston Astros. 

Jayson Werth WSH OF
I wrote an article about fantasy replacement pickups if you were a Werth owner. He has a broken wrist and will miss at least 12 weeks.

I heard Nationals management went to Bryce Harper and asked him to heal Werth's wrist with his special 19 year old powers... Amazingly nothing happened.

Drew Storen WSH RP
Storen has missed the entire season so far, don't pay for saves, but is scheduled to begin a throwing program by the end of the week. Drew could return to the Nationals as early as mid June.

Did you catch my subliminal message in there? I will force feed the "Don't pay for saves" theory to all of my followers and readers. 

Brad Lidge WSH RP
Lidge has missed ample time with a sports hernia. Expect an early June return and more than likely a late June exit again. 

Mike Pelfrey NYM SP
Pelfrey had succesful Tommy John surgery and now has begun the long rehab process. Good Luck Pelfrey. This season Mike had a 2.29 ERA, 1.42 WHIP and 13 strikeouts in 19.2 innings pitched.

Chipper Jones ATL 3B
Jones has been playing off and on all year due to his knee, or lack there of his knee. Jones is actually putting together a great season (.295, 5 HR, 21 RBI, 14 runs). He's most likely available in your league, go pick him up.

I'm willing to bet that by the time you read this he will be on the DL with a strained back. The story will be, Jones went to reach across the couch for the television remote which led to severe old man pains... You're 40 years old!

Heath Bell MIA RP
There's no real injury here, unless you count "zero confidence in himself or from his manageritous"

Bell has to show Ozzie Guillen that he can be consistent before the Venezuelan manger puts him back into the closer's role, until then look for Steve Cishek (2 blown saves already) or Edward Mujica to get the save chances (Mujica is also from Venezuela).

On a side note: One of my best friends is graduating from college this Saturday. He is from Venezuela and has been nothing short of another great brother in my life. He hopes to one day become an athletic trainer for a major league ball club and with his dual language skills and 4.0 GPA he is well on his way.

Enough with my sad sob stories, let's talk some fantasy (cut to a picture of me doing my best Mel Gibson Braveheart impersonation speech to about 20 fantasy geeks as we ride off to a public library to discuss Big Papi's high batting average).




Sleeper Pickups and Trends

Vance Worley PHI SP
This year Worley has a 2-2 record with a 2.84 ERA and a 1.34 WHIP. He has been stellar at night this season posting a 0.90 ERA when the sun goes down compared to a 5.00 ERA when the sun is high in the sky. Worley as a whole has been solid this season with 36 strikeouts in 38 innings. I think that Worley is a solid spot start and is a borderline rosterable pitcher, just below my "Nolasco Line." With his next starts most likely being at home against San Diego (today) and at the Chicago Cubs (May 16th) I'm buying in for the time being. You can always cut him and move on, it's just my opinion!

Placido Polanco PHI 3B
If you were hit with the injury bug at third base (Longoria, Youkilis or Sandoval) then Polanco may be worth a short term look. Over his past 4 games he is 7 for 17 and is still hitting a respectable .275 on the young season. He is a career .300 hitter but has not had a season with over 10 homers since 2004 and a double digit steal season since 2003. Polanco is no more than a positive batting average on your team that will hit 2nd in the Phillies line up. 

Hunter Pence PHI OF
Pence is the Phillies best hitter this season. He has 4 home runs in his last 6 games and 7 total on the year. He is a career .291 hitter so, his current .262 should rise as the season progresses. Pence is only hitting .200 this year against lefties, over the past three seasons he's managed a .300 average versus south paws so, theoretically Pence is due to come out of this "slump" shortly.

Ross Detwiler WSH SP
You know about Strasburg, Zimmermann, Gonzalez and even Edwin Jackson but how much do you know about their number 5 guy? Detwiler has delivered more than reputable numbers this season. He has a 3-2 record, 2.10 ERA and a 1.02 WHIP. Ross has 25 strikeouts through his first 6 starts this year, to only 9 walks. I think he can continue his success and pitching as a number 5 in that rotation will only continue to benefit the 26 year old.

Henry Rodriguez WSH RP
With both Storen and Lidge down for another month, Rodriguez looks to continue his solid season. He's converted 7 of 9 save chances, although he did blow 2 of the last 3 prior to Thursday's perfect 9th. Rodriguez is a lock to get saves for the first place Nationals until either Storen or Lidge return and cause a ruckus. 

Bryce Harper WSH OF
I can't write an article without mentioning Harper. He has a .265 average to go along with 1 steal (he stole home) and 5 RBI's. The power will come but what impresses me most is his plate discipline. 

Adam LaRoche WSH 1B
After missing 4 games in early May, LaRoche appears to be fine going 4 for his last 8 with two bombs. On the season Adam has a .327 average, 6 homers and 21 runs batted in. He's worth a look in your flex or utility roster spots. 

R.A. Dickey NYM SP
Despite his 8 run outing against the Braves on April 18th, the knuckle baller has been tremendous this year. This season he has a 3.76 ERA (2.12 ERA if you take out the April 18th blowout). Dickey is more than capable of putting up solid numbers, over the past two seasons he hasn't had an ERA over 3.28 as a member of the New York Mets.  

Andres Torres NYM OF
I'm buying back in on Andres Torres. He got hurt during the first game of the season and since returning, all he's done is hit. This season Torres has a .333 average with 1 homer and 1 steal. He's played in 8 games since returning on My 30th and has already accounted for 8 RBI's and 8 runs scored. He's most likely available in your league.

Ike Davis NYM 1B
A horrible start so far this year but I'm not giving up all hope on the young first baseman. Davis may continue his early struggles but he still has more home runs (4) than Albert Pujols, David Wright, Troy Tulowitzki, Justin Upton, Brett Lawrie and Adrian Gonzalez.

He's hitting .281 on the road. His 0.061 average at home concerns me but, a lot of his home games have been against solid pitchings staffs such as: Wahington (2.70 team ERA, best in MLB), San Francisco (3.38 team ERA, 10th best in MLB) and Miami (3.16 team ERA, 3rd best in MLB), as well as Arizona and Atlanta (both teams with young talented arms).

Kirk Nieuwenhuis NYM OF
I told you to buy low on Kirk. Through 102 at bats he has a .302 average with 2 home runs and 16 runs scored. I'm a believer.

Daniel Murphy NYM 1B 2B 3B
Murphy doesn't offer a lot of power or speed but his .312 average is the real deal. He is a career .294 hitter. 

Carlos Zambrano MIA SP
Big Z has been unlucky this season with only 1 win to his name but the veteran righty maintains a 1.98 ERA with a superb 1.02 WHIP. Zambrano has had 5 of his first 6 starts labeled as quality outings and his next start is at home against the Mets. I think Zambrano is worth a pickup in every league, especially if your hurting for pitching.

Ricky Nolasco MIA SP
One of my fantasy Kryptonites, Nolasco has been solid this year with a 4-0 record, 2.72 ERA and a 1.11 WHIP. The key to Nolasco's success has been getting ahead of hitters. This season when he jumps out to a 0-1 count, opponents are hitting .186 off him. When he falls behind to a 1-0 count batters are hitting a robust .288 off him. He is having a solid year.

Read about my "Nolasco Line"

Mark Buehrle MIA SP
Mark deserves some credit as well due to his 2.83 ERA and 1.09 WHIP. The old lefty isn't exciting but if your looking for ground ball outs you'll find them with the 33 year old. 

One place you won't find ground ball outs is in Jose Reyes' glove. The big money contract free agent already has 6 errors in his first 29 games as a Marlin. I know I would have made more than 6 errors in 29 games but I would have been a lot cheaper. I also think I would have had enough luck to hit over .230, unlike Reyes.

Josh Johnson MIA SP
This year Johnson has a 5.87 ERA, 1.70 WHIP and an 0-4 record. Look at the Marlin pitchers listed above, now think where they were drafted in your league compared to Josh Johnson? Enough said. 

Hanley Ramirez MIA SS 3B
HanRam has solid counting numbers this year and his .220 average is just a bad case of luck. Ramirez has a .236 BABIP, which I'm sure will trend upwards.

Jose Reyes MIA SS
Reyes has a slightly higher .252 BABIP but he never has been a power hitter so the slugging percentages concern me as he is not lifting the ball as much this season. Reyes has a career high 49.5% ground ball rate and a career low 29.9% fly ball rate. Once Reyes begins to put some lift under the ball he will begin to turn things around.

Hopefully he can turn things around before he gets hurt. I swear Jose gets hurt on purpose just to enjoy the nightlife. First it was the New York nightlife and now it will be Miami, I'm expecting him to get hurt right about the time when the Heat make it to the finals. I know I called the Bulls to come out of the east but come on, I can't predict an injury like that.

Giancarlo Stanton MIA OF
On May 1st I said to buy low on this guy. Here's proof. I hope you listened.

Omar Infante MIA 2B
Infante is on pace for a career year and I'm a believer. He already has 6 homers, 15 RBI, 16 runs with a .313 average. I'm all in on Omar and with his .304 BABIP I don't think luck has anything to do with it. It's actually his 47.1% fly ball rate and the fact he is attacking the junk thrown at him. This year he is seeing a career low 50.8% fastballs and the rest are off speed (17.6% are sliders, 6.4% are cutters, 9.7% are curveballs, 10.6% are changeups, 4.8% are either splitters or knuckleballs).

If your wondering where I get my stats from, I use fangraphs.

Emilio Bonifacio MIA 3B SS OF
Bonifacio has been getting dropped in some fantasy leagues now. My advice: go pick him up asap. He has 15 steals with a .238 average. This is just a case of him not being aggressive early on in the 2012 season. He is swinging at a career low 36.9% of pitches. Once he begins to attack pitchers, he will be up his average closer to his career .266 mark.

Tim Hudson ATL SP
Hudson had a bad outing against the Rockies on May 4th where he gave up 6 runs in 6 innings. In that game he served up 5 runs in the first. If you take away his bad first inning and couple it with the rest of his stats he's thrown 17 innings and only given up 4 earned runs. Feel good with Hudson on your team. He is still a ground ball machine. Go get him if he's available.

Brandon Beachy ATL SP
Brandon has been stellar this season with 27 K's in 39 innings of work. Beachy has a sub 1 WHIP and 1.62 ERA so far this season. The 25 year old is the perfect example of the Braves farm system spitting out young talented arms. 

Jason Heyward ATL OF
In his 3rd season as a pro the Say Hey Kid has come to play. Heyward has begun to lift the ball with more frequency this season, a 42.7% fly ball rate and a very impressive 20% line drive rate (his previous career high line drive rate was 17.8%). Heyward has the natural strength to hit the ball out of the park and as long his is fly ball rate remains high he will be a candidate for a 25 home run season in 2012. He also has 9 steals in 11 attempts. 




Thanks for reading. If you have any questions or want to chat fantasy sports with me then hit me on twitter @Awies28

Alex Wiesner ]]>
<![CDATA[May 8th Relief Rankings]]>Tue, 08 May 2012 23:15:58 GMThttp://mrfantasyfreak.com/8/post/2012/05/may-8th-relief-rankings.html
My May 8th relief rankings will be the relief equivalent of my Hitter Ranks and Pitcher Ranks. This list is a combination of my current perception of these bull pen arms and my preseason rankings which can be found at the bottom of my Draft Day Manifesto. Like my two previous articles, you need to have one question in mind: If I was drafting today do these rankings make sense? Like always, I will try to back my rankings with some statistics that better explain my picks. If you think I missed out on someone or have your favorite closer ranked too low, hit me on twitter @Awies28

May 9th Relief Ranks
1. Craig Kimbrel ATL
2. Jonathan Papelbon PHI
3. John Axford MIL

Kimbrel, Papelbon and Axford are about as elite as they come and this year have combined for only one blown save (Kimbrel on May 2nd vs. PHI). Kimbrel has 19 K's in 11 innings this year. I always preach, don't pay for saves but these guys are worth it. Axford currently has a career high swinging strike rate of 12.2% which is nearly 3% higher than last season when he totaled 46 saves for the Brew Crew.

4. Jason Motte STL
5. Joel Hanrahan PIT
6. Rafeal Betancourt COL

Rafeal Betancourt was in my 50 Crazy Predictions list to reach 45 saves for the Rockies this year. That may not happen but it looks like he has cemented himself as an elite closer moving forward. Joel Hanrahan has continued last season's success (40 for 44 in save opportunities in 2010) by staying perfect in 2012 (5 for 5 this year). I have some concerns with Joel as he already has 8 walks in 9 innings so far this season (16 walks in 68.2 innings last year).

7. Henry Rodriguez WAS
8. Kenley Jansen LAD
9. Jim Johnson BAL

Jim Johnson is my biggest surprise this season, as are the Orioles currently sitting in first place in the AL East. Johnson has yet to allow a run this season and is 8 for 8 in save chances. Kenley Jansen has recently been named the new closer in LA replacing Javy Guerra. Jansen offers high upside with his great strikeout rate (14.58 K/9) and his low 90's electric fastball. Henry Rodriguez is filling in for the injured Drew Storen and has been lights out for the Nationals. Rodriguez is 6 for 7 in save chances as he possesses a high 90's heater that he can blow by hitters. I'm high on Jansen and Rodriguez moving forward this season.

10. Joe Nathan TEX
11. Sean Marshall CIN

Sean Marshall just missed out of my top 10. If any of my current top 10 guys falter then look for Marshall to take their spot. This season Marshall has 12.19 K/9 rate and is getting 70.4% ground balls this season. He has a 4.35 ERA and a 1.35 WHIP but to his credit, he is getting unlucky (BABIP of .385). Sean is another closer that has a solid offense in front of him that should give him a lot of save opportunities as the season progresses.

12. Fernando Rodney TB
13. Chris Perez CLE
14. J.J. Putz ARI
15. Santiago Casilla SF
16. Brett Myers HOU

Myers may be dealt at some point this season but for now he is putting up stellar numbers at the back end of the Astros pen. Myers has converted all 7 of his chances this season and has a 0.58 WHIP and a 1.04 ERA. Santiago Casilla appears to have the Giants closer role on lock down after the Brian Wilson injury. Casilla isn't a high strikeout guy but he gets the job done for the Gigantes. Fernando Rodney, like Jim Johnson, has been another pleasant surprise this season in the AL East. Rodney took over for the injured Kyle Farnsworth and to this point has a 0.66 ERA, 0.66 WHIP and 9 saves in 9 chances.

17. Brandon League SEA
18. Frank Francisco NYM
19. Grant Balfour OAK
20. Aroldis Chapman CIN

There has been a lot of talk about moving Chapman to the rotation and rightfully so. Aroldis has 11 appearances this year and has totaled 25 strikeouts to only 4 walks. He has yet to allow a run and although Chapman's eventual move to the rotation is imminent he still offers solid value as a late reliever. I'm down on Brandon League right now and with 2 blown saves in his last 4 chances he falls pretty far down on my board. League has his lowest strikeout rate since his sophomore season (5.14 K/9 this year) and a high walk rate of 3.86/9 (his highest since 2008).

21. Chris Sale CHW
22. Jonathan Broxton KC

Chris Sale has been moved back into the closer's role after a short stint in the rotation. Last season as a closer Sale had 8 saves in 10 chances. He has "closer stuff" and is more than capable of holding the job for the rest of the season.

23. David Robertson NYY
24. Rafael Soriano NYY
25. Steve Cishek MIA

Pitchers 23-25 are all potential candidates to replace their teams injured (Rivera) or slumping (Bell) closers.

26. Alfredo Aceves BOS
27. Matt Capps MIN
28. Scott Downs LAA
29. Mike Adams TEX
30. Andrew Cashner SD

It gets ugly here at the end. Andrew Cashner has been named the replacement closer for the recently DL'd Huston Street in San Diego. Matt Capps is this year's poster boy for the "Dirty Fuentes" (06010 listeners know what I'm talking about)



There it is, my current top 30 relief pitchers at this point in the season. Come back in two weeks to see my updated relief rankings. Like always, feel free to hit me on twitter @Awies28 

Alex Wiesner
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<![CDATA[May 8th Starting Pitcher Ranks]]>Tue, 08 May 2012 08:11:55 GMThttp://mrfantasyfreak.com/8/post/2012/05/may-8th-starting-pitcher-ranks.html
My May 8th Starting Pitcher ranks will be similar to my Hitter Ranks. These rankings will be a combination of my preseason projections, found at the bottom of my Draft Day Manifesto, and my current perception of these strike throwers. Some of these pitchers are throwing out of their mind and, like my hitter ranks, I will try to give you some underlying stats that should back up their performances with some statistical anomalies. I have a lot of faith in a handful of pitchers to turn things around including Brewer's ace Yovani Gallardo and Boston's Jon Lester. Consider this list to be how I would value current pitchers as if I was drafting my fantasy team today. All of my rankings are based off of 5x5 roto scoring. Come back tomorrow to see my relief rankings. If you want to discuss my starting pitcher rankings feel free to hit me on twitter @Awies28

May 8th Starting Pitcher Ranks
1. Jered Weaver LAA
2. Justin Verlander DET
3. Clayton Kershaw LAD
4. Roy Halladay PHI
5. Cole Hamels PHI
6. Felix Hernandez SEA

Weaver was My AL Cy Young Pick and over his last 15 innings he's allowed 3 hits and 1 run. In 32.2 home innings pitched this season, Weaver has only allowed 3 runs and has 30 strikeouts. Justin Verlander has continued to build on last season's numbers and with 42 strikeouts in 45.1 innings pitched as Verlander is on his way to another 200 strikeout season (Has had 3 in a row). The strikeout rate for Halladay is down a bit this season and with the noted decrease in velocity there are some concerns here about Doc but his teammate Cole Hamels looks great. So far this year, Hamels has a 44/6 K/BB ratio and with no notable outlying stats I'd say Cole may end up climbing my rankings when I release my 2nd edition in two weeks.

7. Matt Cain SF
8. Zack Greinke MIL
9. CC Sabathia NYY
10. Stephen Strasburg WAS
11. Cliff Lee PHI
12. David Price TB
13. Madison Bumgarner SF
14. James Shields TB
15. Yu Darvish TEX
16. Matt Garza CHC

I'm still sticking with Greinke to win the NL Cy Young. If you take away his one bad start (April 12th @CHC) then he has 31.1 innings pitched with 30 strikeouts and 8 earned runs. He gave up 8 runs in the one bad outing at Wrigley field. Matt Cain is proving once again why he is the most underrated pitcher in all of baseball. Cain has a 2.38 ERA, a 0.73 WHIP and of course, a 1-2 record. I put Cliff Lee on this list just outside the top 10 because I have some concerns with his delayed bull pen sessions during his DL stint. If Lee is healthy he would be in the top 10. Yu Darvish is healthy, and performing better than many expected. Darvish is 4-1 with a 2.54 ERA. He has shown some control issues early on allowing 21 walks in 39 innings but he just edges out Matt Garza for a top 15 spot. 

17. Dan Haren LAA
18. C.J. Wilson LAA
19. Gio Gonzalez WAS
20. Ian Kennedy ARI
21. Jordan Zimmermann WAS

I think that right now the Washington Nationals have the best staff in all of baseball. We know about Strasburg but, many people outside of D.C. don't know about Gio and Jordan. Gonzalez came over from Oakland this off season and, in my opinion, has the best left handed curveball in all of baseball. Did I mention he tops out at 96 mph. Zimmermann is a control freak and was my preseason pick to have a monster breakout year. To this point Jordan Zimmermann has a 2.29 ERA, a 0.99 WHIP and arguably nothing to show for it with a 1-3 record. I hope Zimmermann doesn't become the next Matt Cain because that's what it looks like (great pitcher with a bad record due to lack of run support). 

22. Ricky Romero TOR
23. Brandon Beachy ATL
24. Jon Lester BOS
25. Tim Lincecum SF
26. Cory Luebke SD

I could bash Lincecum again but... Okay I will. Big time Timmy Jim has allowed 17 walks in 31.2 innings this year. I know a lot of people thought he got back on track after his April 23rd start against the Mets but, he's still walked 8 batters in the 13 innings since, only striking out 9. Lincecum's velocity remains down at this point as well. Jon Lester is struggling and it goes back to his 4.14 BB/9 rate this season. Lester is a clear bounce back candidate in my mind because he is a creature of habit. Lester's left on base percentage of 67.7% is well below his 76.1% career rate. He is also striking batters out at a 16.3% rate well below his career 22% rate. Once these two numbers begin to trend in the right direction he should have top 20 value, making him a solid buy low guy. 

27. Anibal Sanchez MIA
28. Jeremy Hellickson TB
29. Brandon Morrow TOR
30. Johnny Cueto CIN
31. Josh Beckett BOS
32. Shaun Marcum MIL
33. Yovani Gallardo MIL
34. Jake Peavy CHW

Brandon Morrow has altered his value this year from strikeout machine to an above average strikeout guy with a solid ERA, WHIP and with 3 wins, he remains among my top 30. Morrow has dropped his K/9 rate from last season (10.19 last season, 6.26 this year) but with an 88.7% strand rate he seems to have made the necessary adjustments to be considered a great #3 fantasy starter. Don't buy all in on Morrow as he has a very lucky .202 BABIP which is more than likely going to regress. Yovani Gallardo is in the middle of one of the worst stretches in his career with a 5.79 ERA, 1.65 WHIP and a 1-3 record. I'm still buying low on Yovani for the simple fact that his BABIP against is .360 and his strikeout and walk rates are close to his career averages. I think this is just Gallardo getting unlucky on balls in play (only 13 of his 40 hits allowed have gone for extra bases). Jake Peavy on the other hand is getting lucky with a .218 BABIP and a 77.6% strand rate both are somewhat uncharacteristic since he's put on a White Sox uniform. Peavy does have solid K rates and with a 1.19 BB/9 rate he appears to have found his control so the eventual BABIP regression won't hit him as hard as it will Brandon Morrow.

35. Tommy Hanson ATL
36. Adam Wainwright STL
37. Matt Latos CIN
38. Wandy Rodriguez HOU
39. Brandon McCarthy OAK

I have Tommy Hanson in here because he is still putting up solid numbers despite being on the brink of a shoulder tear that he has been dealing with for about a year now. As long as he is on the mound, Hanson is ownable in every fantasy league. Wandy Rodriguez continues to defy his haters, this season he is doing it along the lines of a 2.14 ERA, 1.08 WHIP and a 3-3 record for a team that should be fighting not to lose 100 games by season's end. Way-Rod has been impressive and so far this season is throwing into a career high number of ground balls which should keep his home run prone stuff from leaving the park as often as it did in the past. I'm beginning to buy in on Wandy.

40. Ted Lilly LAD
41. Jaime Garcia STL
42. Johan Santana NYM
43. Matt Moore TB

Like I said last week Matt Moore is on the cusp of making my sell high list. That night he went out and threw a gem, on May 6th (his next start) he got rocked (vs. OAK, 8 earned runs). I'm officially selling high (name recognition and high rookie status) on Matt Moore if I'm in a one year league. 

44. Daniel Hudson ARI- DL
45. Erik Bedard PIT
46. Jason Hammel BAL
47. Kyle Lohse STL
48. Lance Lynn STL
49. Drew Smyly DET
50. Ricky Nolasco MIA


Erik Bedard has pitched out of his mind this season but a lack of run support has his value about 10 spots lower than he deserves. Bedard has a 2.65 ERA, 1.41 WHIP and 37 strikeouts in 34 innings. You may not think he can keep this up but here is why I think he will surprise many of his doubters; he has a .355 BABIP. If you can't tell I put a lot of my thought process in using BABIP, as I am a true believer in its value. Once his BABIP regresses his numbers may actually get better. He won't win the Cy Young Mathew Berry (cut to a picture of him about to block me from twitter) but he is worthy of a roster spot in any format.



That was my top 50 starters to this point in the season. I feel that if you roster a pitcher that did not make this list, they are droppable in a standard 10 team mix league. This is my official top 50 and I draw the line at Ricky Nolasco. I call it the...

 "Nolasco Line"

Thanks for reading and if you want to discuss my rankings more feel free to hit me on twitter or email the show at mrfantasyfreak@yahoo.com



@Awies28

Alex Wiesner ]]>
<![CDATA[May 7th Hitter Rankings]]>Mon, 07 May 2012 02:55:49 GMThttp://mrfantasyfreak.com/8/post/2012/05/may-7th-hitter-rankings.html
My May 7th hitter rankings are a combination of my preseason projections, which can be found at the bottom of my Draft Day Manifesto, and my current perception of how hitters are batting right now. Obviously Pujols is in a horrific slump but that doesn't mean I won't give him some credit (mostly hope) that he'll turn things around. These rankings are strictly my opinion but I will try to back a lot of my choices with some underlying stats that may or may not help continue a certain player's success. My hope with this piece is to give you my perception on how players are hitting and whether or not to believe it's for real. My suggestion to you, is to not base your fantasy roster off of this piece because if you had a specific strategy entering the year it's still to early to give up on it, I mean we're only in week 5 of the fantasy season. As you read this you need to have one question in mind: If I was drafting today does this pick/rank make sense? Keep in mind this is based off of 5x5 roto scoring.


May 7th Hitter Ranks
1. Matt Kemp LA OF
2. Ryan Braun MIL OF
3. Miguel Cabrera DET 1B/3B
4. Joey Votto CIN 1B
5. Troy Tulowitzki COL SS
6. Carlos Gonzalez COL OF

You're pretty much splitting hairs here with 2-6. I think Kemp is far and away the best player in the game. Of course he was My NL MVP Pick

7. Adrian Gonzalez BOS 1B
8. Jose Bautista TOR OF
9. Dustin Pedroia BOS 2B
10. Josh Hamilton TEX OF

At this pace, if he stays healthy, Hamilton should run away with the AL MVP but asking him to stay healthy for a full 162 is like asking Adam Dunn to strikeout less than 100 times a season, not going to happen. At this point in the year, Jose Bautista has only accumulated 5 home runs but he's hitting under .200 (with a BABIP under .165), I'm expecting the average to rise to around .260 and then the power will follow. Adrian Gonzalez was My AL MVP Pick and although he has gotten off to a slow power start I'm not concerned. His current isolated power rate is below .120, that trend will not continue as he has a career isolated power rate (entering the season) of .220.  

Wait I got one more. Asking Hamilton to stay healthy is like asking Amare Stoudemire not to punch glass. I like to make jokes. 

11. Ian Kinsler TEX 2B
12. Hanley Ramirez MIA SS/3B
13. Prince Fielder DET 1B
14. Curtis Granderson NYY OF
15. Robinson Cano NYY 2B
16. Jay Bruce CIN OF

Same jokes for Hamilton apply to his teammate Ian Kinsler. Kinsler is one of about 7 guys that can challenge for a 30/30 season if he is on the field for the whole year. Hanley Ramirez has solid counting numbers this year so far (5HR, 6SB, 15Runs, 19RBI) but the batting average (.219 entering Sunday) is killing his value. If I was drafting today I think his position versatility takes his value through the roof in the second round but I'm not reaching for him in the first round. Robinson Cano, who is on my beloved Yankees, is struggling but I think his numbers will be there at the end of the year. So far Cano is hitting .190 off of lefties this season which is a significant difference than his .303 aveage versus south paws over the past 3 seasons. As his average rises so to will his overall value. Curtis Granderson already has 9 home runs but is hitting .284. I don't expect the average to remain this high so expect a decrease in his HR/AB rate. He is still a solid lock for 30 bombs but he hasn't hit over .262 since 2008.

17. David Wright NYM 3B
18. Justin Upton ARI OF
19. Starlin Castro CHC SS 
20. Adrian Beltre TEX 3B
21. Michael Bourn ATL OF
22. Giancarlo Stanton MIA OF

I'm going to say this time and again, I Was Right!!! (Stanton). David Wright is one of the few elite third baseman that hasn't landed on the DL yet this year (Longoria, Zimmerman to name a few). I think that as long as Wright is healthy he is a top 20 player. Starlin Castro is the biggest surprise in my top 20, more specifically his stolen base numbers. He already has 11 thefts in his first 27 games. He had 32 total in his first 283 career games. I think the attempts remain high and Castro will challenge 40 steals in 2012.

23. Paul Konerko CHW OF
24. Adam Jones BAL OF
25. David Ortiz BOS DH
26. Andrew McCutchen PIT OF
27. Mark Teixeira NYY 1B
28. Jose Reyes MIA SS
29. Dan Uggla ATL 2B
30. Matt Weiters BAL C
31. Matt Holliday STL OF
32. Mike Napoli TEX C

Mark Teixeira has and always will be a slow starter so I have no major concerns with the Yankees' slugger. I feel the same way about Andrew McCutchen. The Pirates center fielder doesn't have a home run yet but he does have 5 steals and an average close to .300, he will be fine. I have Matt Weiters as my first catcher on the list followed closely by Mike Napoli. I think Weiters is for real (.289, 7HR, 18RBI, 10BB in 90 at bats) and is about to take over the #1 fantasy catcher spot and, at age 25, he may not give it up for a long time.

33. Elvis Andrus TEX SS
34. Desmond Jennings TB OF
35. Brett Lawrie TOR 3B
36. Eric Hosmer KC 1B
37. Carlos Santana CLE 1B/C

Numbers 33-37 are all under 26 years old. I think all 5 of these kids are future All Star starters but for this season we will witness a lot of ups and downs. I think Andrus and Jennings can reach 50 steals this season and Lawrie, Hosmer and Santana can hit over 20 homers if they stay healthy. Take a good look, these are the future faces of major league baseball.

38. Shane Victorino PHI OF
39. Jason Heyward ATL OF
40. Albert Pujols LAA 1B

Here he is. It took over 100 at bats to get his first bomb but on Sunday May 6th he went deep off of Toronto's Drew Hutchison. He, Hutchison, is no Ricky Romero but a dirty bird is a dirty bird (cut to a picture of Jamal Anderson) regardless of who it's off of. Albert Pujols-1 Bryce Harper-0

41. Hunter Pence PHI OF
42. Carlos Beltran STL OF
43. Evan Longoria TB 3B- DL
44. Nelson Cruz TEX OF
45. Billy Butler KC DH
46. Corey Hart MIL OF 
47. Andre Ethier LAD OF
48. Michael Cuddyer COL 1B/OF

I was high on Cuddyer entering the year and I'm even higher on him now. So far he has 3 homers, 18 RBI's, 2 steals, 17 runs to go along with a .283 average. Cuddyer will continue to have success as long as he hits behind Cargo and Tulo. I put Evan Longoria on here with the hopes that when he returns he will be at 100% and continue his fantastic season. Longoria had a .329 average with an incredible .433 on base percentage.

49. Derek Jeter NYY SS
50. Alex Rodriguez NYY 3B
51. Brian McCann ATL C
52. Michael Young TEX 1B/3B/DH
53. Jayson Werth WAS OF
54. Ben Zobrist TB 2B/OF 
55. Brandon Phillips CIN 2B
56. Buster Posey SF C
57. Asdrubal Cabrera CLE SS
58. Alex Gordon KC OF
59. Pablo Sandoval SF 3B- DL
60. Jimmy Rollins PHI SS
61. Freddie Freeman ATL 1B
62. Nick Swisher NYY OF
63. Shin-Soo Choo CLE OF
64. Joe Mauer MIN C
65. Melky Cabrera SF OF
66. Edwin Encarnacion TOR 1B/3B/DH

E5 will not continue this, more here, but for the time being he is a top 5 fantasy player so enjoy the ride. A lot of players in the 49-66 range have gotten off to slow starts but I feel it's a combination of getting unlucky and/or pressing. Alex Gordon tried to pull everything early in the season but over the past 7 days he has hit .375 with 4 of his 9 hits going for extra bases. Ben Zobrist is seeing 4.18 pitches per at bat showing his patience but is only hitting .190 thus far. I'm blaming Zobrist's sluggish start on his .206 BABIP and not being as aggressive (only swinging 35.9% of the time, 40.6% last year). Zobrist still has a .342 OBP and a 17.9% walk rate, both of these underlying stats should bring his numbers up, it's just a matter of time. Derek Jeter has gotten off to the best start in his career but I'm selling high.

67. David Freese STL 3B 
68. Howard Kendrick LAA 2B/OF
69. Ryan Zimmerman WAS 3B- DL
70. Ichiro Suzuki SEA OF
71. Brett Gardenr NYY OF- DL
72. Lance Berkman STL OF/1B- DL
73. B.J. Upton TB OF
74. Cameron Maybin SD OF

Cameron Maybin has 9 steals entering Sunday's game. He also has a .194 average leading me to believe he may actually see an increased amount of steals once his average comes back to his career .250 mark. Maybin should reach 40 steals again this season but I think he may challenge for 50 as long as his career high 14.9% walk rate continues.

75. Alex Avila DET C
76. Martin Prado ATL 3B/OF
77. Matt Joyce TB OF
78. Miguel Montero ARI C
79. Nick Markakis BAL OF
80. Jesus Montero SEA DH/C

Jesus Montero has finally gained catcher eligibility and is already ranked as my 9th best stopper. Montero looks to challenge for 20 homers which may be top 5 for all fantasy catchers come season end. Martin Prado has always been a personal favorite of mine. I think Prado will challenge double digit home runs and steals, he's on pace for 11 of each right now.

81. Chris Young ARI OF- DL
82. Josh Willingham MIN OF
83. Jason Kipnis CLE 2B
84. Emilio Bonifacio MIA 3B/SS/OF
85. Yadier Molina STL C
86. Mike Moustakes KC 3B

Chris Young's injury put a stop to one of the most incredible starts to a season I've seen for a while. If it wasn't for Kemp's unthinkable production, Young would have been talked about a lot more. This is a great time to buy low (I just sent out a trade offer for him). Before the injury he hit .410 with 5 homers, 13 RBI, 8 runs and 2 steals. That was all done in 11 games or even more impressive, just 39 at bats. He had .500 OBP and was slugging .897, which is double his career mark. Josh Willingham also got off to a hot start (4 HR in first 6 games) but has since cooled (1 HR in his last 18 games). 

87. Aramis Ramirez MIL 3B
88. Rickie Weeks MIL 2B
89. Bryce Harper WAS OF

I'll admit I was against the Harper call up, he has shown great discipline (5 walks in 29 plate appearences leading to a .379 OBP) but don't get to excited it's still a very small sample size. There is a lot of underrated veteran outfielders that didn't make my list that would help your team out just as much that don't come with the hefty fantasy price tag of Harper. 

90. Dee Gordon LAD SS
91. Carlos Pena TB 1B

Gordon and Pena are proving why they are one category studs but the only surprise this year is that they aren't killing your other categories. Pena has a .252 average to go along with his 5 moon shots. Although Gordon's average is at an ugly .223 he did muscle up his first career home run on May 1st and he does 8 RBI's and 13 runs scored. 

92. Austin Jackson DET OF
93. Jose Altuve HOU OF
94. Bryan LaHair CHC 1B
95. Michael Morse WAS OF
96. Yoenis Cespedes OAK OF
97. Mike Trout LAA OF

Players 92-97 all have different concerns. 

Will Jackson continue to hit over .300, it's more than likely he wont. 

Will Yoenis Cespedes keep the power numbers up? It doesn't look like he will only having 1 homer in his last 15 games. 

When Michael Morse returns will he be the same player from last year? The real question should be, will he return at all? 

Of all these players I think Trout has the best future but for this season I'm putting my money on Jose Altuve. Jose is only swinging at 24.1% of pitches out of the strike zone this season down from his 43.7% last year. He has increased his contact rate by 11.3% from last season. One more interesting note is that Altuve has seen 14.7% of pitches thrown at him be curveballs. It would seem that teams believe they can get him out on the "hook" but with his .352 average I'd say Jose has gotten the last laugh up to this point in the season. I'm expecting a bit of a regression, considering his BABIP is .386, but I think Altuve may reach double digit home runs, 25 plus steals, and an average close to .300 by season's end. I'm all in on Altuve. (Write that down)

98. Jacoby Ellsbury BOS OF- DL
99. Chris Davis BAL 1B
100. Adam Dunn CHW DH/1B

I was down on Ellsbury entering the season because I was not buying the power numbers from last year and his injury past concerned me. The injury bug made its second major appearance in Ellsbury's career over the past 3 seasons sidelining him for at least another 6 weeks. I would consider this a buy low opportunity but returning from a shoulder injury is harder than it sounds. If he does return at some point around the All Star break don't pay for Ellsbury's 2011 numbers but rather something along the lines of his 2008 rates. Adam Dunn makes my list for two reasons: I made fun of him earlier in the article and he has 9 home runs in 28 games (42 strikeouts in 100 at bats).



Thanks for reading my May 7th hitter rankings. If you want to discuss some players or wonder why I didn't put one of your sleeper picks on here hit me on twitter @Awies28

Alex Wiesner ]]>
<![CDATA[Mariano Rivera Out]]>Fri, 04 May 2012 04:34:13 GMThttp://mrfantasyfreak.com/8/post/2012/05/mariano-rivera-out.html
Mariano Rivera Out

What does Derrick Rose, Iman Shumpert and Mariano Rivera have in common? They all have torn ACL's. The greatest closer of all time injured himself shagging fly balls in the outfield prior to Thursday's game against the Royals. This may sound a bit confusing to the average baseball fan but a lot of relief pitchers and starters shag balls in the outfield during batting practice prior to the start of the games. Rivera has mentioned it as a great way to stay in shape and now the 42 year old is in the worst shape of his professional career. This very well may be the end to his career as his questionable spring training comments about his future led many to believe he will be hanging up the cleats after the season. If this is the case Rivera will go down as the greatest closer of all time. Mariano will finish his career with 608 saves in 18 spectacular seasons. 

Fantasy Impact:
David Robertson is my pick to take over the closer's role. If Giradrdi goes with the better statistical choice then Robertson is leaps and bounds ahead of Rafael Soriano. Soriano does have more experience as a stopper than Robertson, but many "experts" including myself, have picked Robertson as the clear cut closer for Rivera once he calls it quits. The Yankees may also go out and trade for another arm possibly to fill in as the closer or just another middle reliever allowing everyone in the pen right now to move up a spot in the pecking order. The only issue or risk with moving a proven set-up guy into a closer's role is the concerning affect it may have on his performance due to the immense pressure of replacing Mo? Keep in mind this is the New York Yankees and Robertson has only accounted for 3 saves in his 4 year career. I wouldn't be shocked to see the Yanks go with Soriano due to his experience but I'm excited to see what Robertson can do if he is given the opportunity. 

2012 Statistics:
Robertson NYY- 0.00 ERA, 0.91 WHIP, 4 Holds, 18 strikeouts, 3 walks, 11 innings pitched
Career Saves: 3
Soriano NYY- 2.00 ERA, 1.89 WHIP, 2 Holds, 2-0 record, 8 strikeouts, 6 walks, 9 innings pitched
Career Saves: 90


Possible outside options:
Jonathan Broxton KC- 1.86 ERA, 1.24 WHIP, 5 saves, 7 strikeouts, 4 walks, 9.2 innings pitched
Career Saves: 88
Grant Balfour OAK- 4.73 ERA, 1.13 WHIP, 6 saves, 11 strikeouts, 5 walks, 13.1 innings pitched
Career Saves: 16
Brad Lidge WAS- 5.14 ERA, 2.00 WHIP, 2 saves, 7 strikeouts, 7 walks, 7 innings pitched
Career Saves: 225
Alfredo Simon CIN- 2.79 ERA, 1.55 WHIP, 10 strikeouts, 4 walks, 9.2 innings pitched
Career Saves: 17
Brandon League SEA- 2.77 ERA, 1.31 WHIP, 7 saves, 7 strikeouts, 5 walks, 13 innings pitched
Career Saves: 52




Feel free to hit me on twitter @Awies28

Alex Wiesner ]]>