Thursday is the first day when all of the players from every major league have reported to spring training.
Wednesday's biggest signing was RHP Homer Bailey with a 6-year, $105-million contract extension with the Reds. I expect Bailey to have a big year, but I'd kind of want him to have that big year before I started shelling out cash equal to what Mark Zuckerberg makes by the time he wakes up in the morning.
Bailey has pitched in the majors each of the last seven seasons, with a career record of 49-45. His best production so far has been his 13 wins in 2012.
In addition, the Orioles made official RHP Ubaldo Jimenez's 4-year, $50-million contract and the Giants avoided arbitration with 1B Brandon Belt by agreeing on a $2.9-million salary for 2014.
-- Another Opening Day starter: LHP Francisco Liriano for the Pirates. I would expect RHP Gerrit Cole to be Pittsburgh's ace by season's end.
-- I've mentioned position battles at second base, but there also are a number of teams looking for a starting third baseman.
Part of the problem is injuries. Brewers 3B Aramis Ramirez, who missed much of last season because of an injured left knee. He underwent surgery in December to remove a non-cancerous polyp from his colon, and he's at least 35 years old. In Toronto, the question is whether 3B Brett Lawrie can avoid injuries such as the strained right oblique muscle that cost him time last year.
There's also 3B/1B Mat Gamel. Once a promising Brewers prospect, he underwent surgery on his right knee in both 2012 and '13. After he injured the knee in the Braves' camp, they have released him.
Rookie 3B Cody Asche is penciled in as the Phillies' starter, with his strongest competition from a more promising but less ready rookie, 3B/1B Maikel Franco. At best, Asche could have average production for his position. This looks like a situation ripe for acquiring a surplus third baseman from another team, or perhaps an overpriced offer to 3B Michael Young to come back out of retirement.
* * *
Basketball. Carmelo Anthony scores 42 points but goes 8 for 12 at the foul line? Or I'd trade a bunch of Ricky Rubio's 17 assists Wednesday and trade them for the four free throws in six attempts. The result is that I'm still trailing in free thrown percentage, but still leading 7-1.
Showing posts with label Ubaldo Jimenez. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Ubaldo Jimenez. Show all posts
Thursday, February 20, 2014
Tuesday, February 18, 2014
Orioles making over pitching staff
Who says you can't change your team even as you're going to spring training?
Clearly not the Orioles and manager Buck Showalter.
They announced a 3-year, $5.75-million contract with RHP Suk-min Yoon, and apparently are within a passed physical of adding RHP Ubaldo Jimenez for four years and $50 million.
Yoon most likely would pitch out of the bullpen, where he would be one bad game removed from a "Suck-min" headline. I'm wary of Jimenez because his pitching motion has so many ways to get out of whack and also possibly hurt his arm.
-- With money that might have gone to Jimenez, the Indians avoided arbitration with RHP Justin Masterson by signing him to a contract for this season at $9.7625 million. What? They couldn't afford another measly $237,500 to bring him up to $10 million?
-- The Rangers apparently have gone into camp with a three-way battle among RHPs Neftali Feliz, Tanner Scheppers and Joakim Soria. I was encouraged about Soria last season until a couple of really bad September outings. Texas must not be too excited about Scheppers, because he was the headliner among a group of nine mostly marginal major leaguers signed for a year at or slightly above the $500,000 minimum. Scheppers will receive $515,000. If he does become the Rangers' closer, let's hope he doesn't spend too much of his money in The Flats in Cleveland.
-- Additional second base battles.
In Washington, it's shaping up as 2012 discovery Danny Espinosa and 2013 find Anthony Rendon. If neither matches his breakout season, it could be a long year for the Nationals and their pitchers.
The Yankees' front-runner is Brian "Can't Avoid Injury" Roberts. Other options could be Kelly "Can't Field" Johnson, Brendan "Can't Hit" Ryan and Eduardo "Can't Play Third or Short" Nunez. If a team has four second basemen, it really has no second baseman.
The spaghetti method -- take a bunch of players at one position to spring training, throw them at the all and hope one of them sticks -- really works only with pitchers. Among a group of five or six pitchers, one of them will get lucky enough to get some batters out -- at least through spring training, and even then he could become a liability during the regular season.
-- With New Age manager Brad Ausmus, the Tigers will join the growing trend of major league teams using analytics and probability to align fielders and improve their defense. Ausmus and analytics both begin with A. The new skipper's staff includes a guy named Matt Martin as defensive coordinator. Detroit also will be emphasizing speed more this season, with 2B Ian Kinsler and OF Rajai Davis (on a platoon basis) in their starting lineup. Prediction: Kinsler will steal more bases this season than Prince Fielder will.
-- It will be a surprise if the Tigers don't run away with the AL Central this year. Division rivals are making defensive changes by moving catchers to first base (Twins' Joe Mauer) and third base (Indians' Carlos Santana). Santana might be more agile than catcher-turned-third baseman Pablo Sandoval.
-- Looking ahead six weeks, the Blue Jays named RHP R.A. Dickey as their Opening Day starter.
* * *
Basketball. The NBA started up tonight, and I learned that I didn't win Week 16 by an 8-0 margin. Apparently, Week 16 is continuing from the short last week through the short this week -- even though this is a short week loaded with games. And my lead for the week now is down to 7-1; I've fallen behind in free throw percentage.
There were good performances from my roster tonight. The Suns' Gerald Green poured in 36 points, including six 3s. Carmelo Anthony had another (yawn!) double double with 22 points and 11 rebounds.
Clearly not the Orioles and manager Buck Showalter.
They announced a 3-year, $5.75-million contract with RHP Suk-min Yoon, and apparently are within a passed physical of adding RHP Ubaldo Jimenez for four years and $50 million.
Yoon most likely would pitch out of the bullpen, where he would be one bad game removed from a "Suck-min" headline. I'm wary of Jimenez because his pitching motion has so many ways to get out of whack and also possibly hurt his arm.
-- With money that might have gone to Jimenez, the Indians avoided arbitration with RHP Justin Masterson by signing him to a contract for this season at $9.7625 million. What? They couldn't afford another measly $237,500 to bring him up to $10 million?
-- The Rangers apparently have gone into camp with a three-way battle among RHPs Neftali Feliz, Tanner Scheppers and Joakim Soria. I was encouraged about Soria last season until a couple of really bad September outings. Texas must not be too excited about Scheppers, because he was the headliner among a group of nine mostly marginal major leaguers signed for a year at or slightly above the $500,000 minimum. Scheppers will receive $515,000. If he does become the Rangers' closer, let's hope he doesn't spend too much of his money in The Flats in Cleveland.
-- Additional second base battles.
In Washington, it's shaping up as 2012 discovery Danny Espinosa and 2013 find Anthony Rendon. If neither matches his breakout season, it could be a long year for the Nationals and their pitchers.
The Yankees' front-runner is Brian "Can't Avoid Injury" Roberts. Other options could be Kelly "Can't Field" Johnson, Brendan "Can't Hit" Ryan and Eduardo "Can't Play Third or Short" Nunez. If a team has four second basemen, it really has no second baseman.
The spaghetti method -- take a bunch of players at one position to spring training, throw them at the all and hope one of them sticks -- really works only with pitchers. Among a group of five or six pitchers, one of them will get lucky enough to get some batters out -- at least through spring training, and even then he could become a liability during the regular season.
-- With New Age manager Brad Ausmus, the Tigers will join the growing trend of major league teams using analytics and probability to align fielders and improve their defense. Ausmus and analytics both begin with A. The new skipper's staff includes a guy named Matt Martin as defensive coordinator. Detroit also will be emphasizing speed more this season, with 2B Ian Kinsler and OF Rajai Davis (on a platoon basis) in their starting lineup. Prediction: Kinsler will steal more bases this season than Prince Fielder will.
-- It will be a surprise if the Tigers don't run away with the AL Central this year. Division rivals are making defensive changes by moving catchers to first base (Twins' Joe Mauer) and third base (Indians' Carlos Santana). Santana might be more agile than catcher-turned-third baseman Pablo Sandoval.
-- Looking ahead six weeks, the Blue Jays named RHP R.A. Dickey as their Opening Day starter.
* * *
Basketball. The NBA started up tonight, and I learned that I didn't win Week 16 by an 8-0 margin. Apparently, Week 16 is continuing from the short last week through the short this week -- even though this is a short week loaded with games. And my lead for the week now is down to 7-1; I've fallen behind in free throw percentage.
There were good performances from my roster tonight. The Suns' Gerald Green poured in 36 points, including six 3s. Carmelo Anthony had another (yawn!) double double with 22 points and 11 rebounds.
Wednesday, January 29, 2014
Peace of mind could help Chapman's performance
There's some baseball news today. Not necessarily real meaty stuff for fantasy purposes, but there could be some clues to mental states that could affect performance.
The Reds and LHP Aroldis Chapman agreed to avoid arbitration by splitting the difference between their requested salary figures with a $5-million contract for this season. The amicable settlement could do a lot more for the closer's pitching than the extra $400,000 he'll receive.
Some day the Drew brothers could become a case study for young athletes who've been told how good they are and had their butts kissed for so long that they believe they're better than they are and somehow above the fray of petty matters such as living a life. Of course, nobody ever listens to such cautionary tales.
Since J.D. Drew turned down a contract offer as a No. 1 overall draft pick and signed as the next year's No. 1, he and SS Stephen Drew have had a litany of issues in negotiations, scads of games missed because of injuries, travels from team to team and potentially shorter careers than expected. (For the purposes of this discussion, Tim Drew doesn't count because he was never very highly regarded or effective.)
On the other hand, the Drews and their agents got their money up front, so perhaps the brothers don't care that they had to go to work only for a few years.
The latest Stephen Drew news is that he still hasn't signed. MLB.com pointed out that the primary unsigned free agents such as Drew, OF Nelson Cruz, DH Kendrys Morales and RHPs Ubaldo Jimenez and Ervin Santana haven't signed because they would cost the team signing them a draft pick. The baseball draft is hardly an exact science, so second-round, supplementary and even first-round picks aren't a given. But all five players in this paragraph are flawed in their own ways.
1B Yuniesky Betancourt is off the free-agent market. He has signed a guaranteed one-year contract to play in Japan. That sounds like a definite winner, doesn't it? It's not as if he'll face a steady diet of off-speed pitches that he can't hit over there. Or will he?
* * *
Basketball. My lead is down to 6-2 this week. I'm now behind in rebounds and assists. I could have as many as eight players in the lineup Wednesday to seven for my opponent. He appears to have a lot of rebounders in the lineup. Ricky Rubio should be able to help me in assists, and I hope that rebounder Joakim Noah has recovered from the illness that caused him to miss his last game.
* * *
Hockey. Lost half a point in both power-play points and goalie wins. My only goalie in action Tuesday was Tim Thomas. His former team, the Bruins, roughed him up for six goals, dropping me even farther into last place in GAA and save percentage. For the record, Thomas didn't win either. It's a good thing I didn't use Jonas Gustavsson; he gave up five goals and lost.
The Reds and LHP Aroldis Chapman agreed to avoid arbitration by splitting the difference between their requested salary figures with a $5-million contract for this season. The amicable settlement could do a lot more for the closer's pitching than the extra $400,000 he'll receive.
Some day the Drew brothers could become a case study for young athletes who've been told how good they are and had their butts kissed for so long that they believe they're better than they are and somehow above the fray of petty matters such as living a life. Of course, nobody ever listens to such cautionary tales.
Since J.D. Drew turned down a contract offer as a No. 1 overall draft pick and signed as the next year's No. 1, he and SS Stephen Drew have had a litany of issues in negotiations, scads of games missed because of injuries, travels from team to team and potentially shorter careers than expected. (For the purposes of this discussion, Tim Drew doesn't count because he was never very highly regarded or effective.)
On the other hand, the Drews and their agents got their money up front, so perhaps the brothers don't care that they had to go to work only for a few years.
The latest Stephen Drew news is that he still hasn't signed. MLB.com pointed out that the primary unsigned free agents such as Drew, OF Nelson Cruz, DH Kendrys Morales and RHPs Ubaldo Jimenez and Ervin Santana haven't signed because they would cost the team signing them a draft pick. The baseball draft is hardly an exact science, so second-round, supplementary and even first-round picks aren't a given. But all five players in this paragraph are flawed in their own ways.
1B Yuniesky Betancourt is off the free-agent market. He has signed a guaranteed one-year contract to play in Japan. That sounds like a definite winner, doesn't it? It's not as if he'll face a steady diet of off-speed pitches that he can't hit over there. Or will he?
* * *
Basketball. My lead is down to 6-2 this week. I'm now behind in rebounds and assists. I could have as many as eight players in the lineup Wednesday to seven for my opponent. He appears to have a lot of rebounders in the lineup. Ricky Rubio should be able to help me in assists, and I hope that rebounder Joakim Noah has recovered from the illness that caused him to miss his last game.
* * *
Hockey. Lost half a point in both power-play points and goalie wins. My only goalie in action Tuesday was Tim Thomas. His former team, the Bruins, roughed him up for six goals, dropping me even farther into last place in GAA and save percentage. For the record, Thomas didn't win either. It's a good thing I didn't use Jonas Gustavsson; he gave up five goals and lost.
Wednesday, December 25, 2013
Rakuten reportedly is posting Tanaka; let the bidding begin
Finished wrapping the last present. Waiting for everyone else to get up to open presents. Funny how much later you could sleep in when the youngest person in the house is 15 as opposed to, say, 7.
Christmas is probably just another Wednesday in Japan, but it's a big day for Japanese ballplayers here in North America.
The big news is a report that the Rakuten Golden Eagles have agreed to post RHP Masahiro Tanaka. He'll draw the new, discounted maximum posting fee from a number of major league teams.
You'll see the list of the usual big-spending teams, primarily the Yankees and Dodgers, along with the Diamondbacks and most of the American League West -- Angels, Mariners, Rangers -- as the leading candidates to sign Tanaka. He's listed as 25 years old, and I think I short-changed him on his 2013 ERA in an earlier post. It was 1.27, not 1.37.
Also, in an earlier post I indicated that the AL West as a group seems to be downplaying mobility in their outfield defense. That could make it even more desirable for them to sign one of the best pitching prospects from the Eastern Hemisphere before their opponents do. Actually, I'd expect a number of teams to put up the relatively cheap posting fee -- less than 40% of what the Rangers paid for the right to negotiate exclusively with Yu Darvish. What would it hurt for an aspiring team of limited means such as the Pirates or Royals -- or the D-backs, for that matter -- to make a splash by coming hard in the open competition for Tanaka's services. They wouldn't have to pay the fee or the contract amount with Tanaka until he signs.
And when the other available pitching is headed by RHPs Matt Garza, Ubaldo Jimenez, Ervin Santana and Bronson Arroyo, Tanaka will come at a higher premium than Darvish's 6 years and $60 million.
Tanaka isn't the only Japanese player in the spotlight. Over there on the edge of the stage is infielder Munenori Kawasaki, who re-signed with the Blue Jays. Kawasaki made a name for himself with his oddball, flaky antics captured on social-media video than with his .229 batting average. Seems like a good guy to have around a clubhouse, though.
Merry Christmas/happy holidays. Like Munenori-san, I know how to cover my bases.
Christmas is probably just another Wednesday in Japan, but it's a big day for Japanese ballplayers here in North America.
The big news is a report that the Rakuten Golden Eagles have agreed to post RHP Masahiro Tanaka. He'll draw the new, discounted maximum posting fee from a number of major league teams.
You'll see the list of the usual big-spending teams, primarily the Yankees and Dodgers, along with the Diamondbacks and most of the American League West -- Angels, Mariners, Rangers -- as the leading candidates to sign Tanaka. He's listed as 25 years old, and I think I short-changed him on his 2013 ERA in an earlier post. It was 1.27, not 1.37.
Also, in an earlier post I indicated that the AL West as a group seems to be downplaying mobility in their outfield defense. That could make it even more desirable for them to sign one of the best pitching prospects from the Eastern Hemisphere before their opponents do. Actually, I'd expect a number of teams to put up the relatively cheap posting fee -- less than 40% of what the Rangers paid for the right to negotiate exclusively with Yu Darvish. What would it hurt for an aspiring team of limited means such as the Pirates or Royals -- or the D-backs, for that matter -- to make a splash by coming hard in the open competition for Tanaka's services. They wouldn't have to pay the fee or the contract amount with Tanaka until he signs.
And when the other available pitching is headed by RHPs Matt Garza, Ubaldo Jimenez, Ervin Santana and Bronson Arroyo, Tanaka will come at a higher premium than Darvish's 6 years and $60 million.
Tanaka isn't the only Japanese player in the spotlight. Over there on the edge of the stage is infielder Munenori Kawasaki, who re-signed with the Blue Jays. Kawasaki made a name for himself with his oddball, flaky antics captured on social-media video than with his .229 batting average. Seems like a good guy to have around a clubhouse, though.
Merry Christmas/happy holidays. Like Munenori-san, I know how to cover my bases.
Monday, April 19, 2010
Jeter, Podsednik, Garza, Jimenez stay hot
The Monday morning updates review what happened over the weekend and indicates which batters and pitchers are hot – and which are not.
NOTE: We have extended the free period for these Emails again – through Sunday, April 25. After that date, the Emails would go only to those who subscribe.
Before then, we’ll tell you how you can subscribe to receive these Emails five or more times per week, along with timely Articles and other information that will be added to the fantasybaseballscout.com web site.
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Hot
The weekly Hot and Not for batters is based on 20 at-bats for batting average, and at least a .280 BA for the other categories.
Pos. Player, Team H-AB BA HR-RBI SB
SS Derek Jeter, Yankees 11-22 .500 3-7 0
C Ivan Rodriguez, Nationals 10-21 .476 0-7 1
2B Dan Uggla, Marlins 13-28 .464 2-7 0
OF Jose Guillen, Royals 12-26 .462 3-5 1
SS Yuniesky Betancourt, Royals 11-24 .458 1-3 0
1B James Loney, Dodgers 11-24 .458 0-0 1
3B/2B Casey McGehee, Brewers 10-22 .455 2-6 0
OF Ryan Ludwick, Cardinals 11-25 .440 1-3 0
OF Andre Ethier, Dodgers 11-26 .423 3-9 0
OF Ryan Braun, Brewers 11-26 .423 2-8 1
The two .458 batters present a contrast. Betancourt isn’t likely to be on this list often. Loney is a high-average threat, but LA no doubt would want more run production from its first baseman.
Home runs – Phillies 2B Chase Utley 5; Dodgers OF Matt Kemp and Orioles 3B/1B Ty Wigginton 4; Ethier, Guillen, Jeter, Indians OF Shin-soo Choo, White Sox OF/1B Andruw Jones and Rays 1B Carlos Pena 1.
RBI – Choo 11; Wigginton 10; Ethier, Pena and Twins OF/1B Michael Cuddyer 9; Braun, Kemp, Utley and Royals 3B/2B Alberto Callaspo 8.
Stolen bases – Yankees OF Brett Gardner, White Sox OF Juan Pierre, Cubs SS Ryan Theriot and Reds 1B Joey Votto 4; Podsednik, Rays OF Carl Crawford, White Sox OF Alex Rios and Twins OF Denard Span 3.
Runs – Kemp, Span and Utley 8; Guillen, Rodriguez, Uggla, Giants 1B/3B Aubrey Huff, Rays 3B Evan Longoria and Nationals OF Josh Willingham 7.
Gardner, Jeter and Podsednik were on a Hot list for the second consecutive week.
Requirements for pitchers to make these lists are 7 innings pitched for ERA and WHIP, 10 strikeouts in K:W ratio and an ERA under 4.00 for the other categories.
Hand Pitcher, Team IP W-L ERA WHIP K:W
RHP Justin Duchscherer, Athletics 13.0 1-0 0.00 1.00 9:4
RHP Livan Hernandez, Nationals 9.0 1-0 0.00 0.67 3:2
RHP Ubaldo Jimenez, Rockies 9.0 1-0 0.00 0.67 7:6
RHP Doug Fister, Mariners 8.0 1-0 0.00 0.38 4:0
LHP Jonathan Sanchez, Giants 8.0 1-0 0.00 0.75 11:3
LHP Joe Saunders, Angels 8.0 1-0 0.00 0.75 2:1
RHP Mike Pelfrey, Mets 8.0 1-0 0.00 0.88 6:1
RHP Brad Penny, Cardinals 7.0 1-0 0.00 0.43 4:0
RHP Roy Oswalt, Astros 7.0 1-0 0.00 0.71 6:0
RHP Carlos Silva, Cubs 7.0 1-0 0.00 0.71 5:0
Of the 121 pitchers with an 0.00 ERA for the week, 16 threw at least seven innings. Pelfrey also earned a save for pitching a scoreless 20th inning in Saturday’s 2-1 victory over the Cardinals
Wins – Rays RHPs Lance Cormier and Matt Garza, Padres RHP Kevin Correia, Yankees LHP Andy Pettitte and Cardinals RHP Adam Wainwright.
Saves – Mariners RHP David Aardsma, Yankees RHP Mariano Rivera, Angels RHP Fernando Rodney and Rays RHP Rafael Soriano 3-for-3.
WHIP – Fister 0.38; Penny and Cardinals LHP Jaime Garcia 0.43; Yankees LHP C.C. Sabathia 0.50; Indians LHP David Huff 0.56.
K:W ratio – Phillies LHP Cole Hamels 14:1; Marlins RHP Josh Johnson 10:1; Wainwright 16:3; Blue Jays LHP Davis Romero 18:4; Sanchez 11:3; Cardinals RHP Chris Carpenter 10:3; Angels RHP Ervin Santana 13:5; Rangers RHP Colby Lewis 10:4/
Pitchers repeating n a Hot list were Aardsma; Garza; Jimenez, who pitched a no-hitter Saturday, and Oswalt. Saunders jumped from the Not list to Hot in a week’s time.
Not
Pos. Player, Team H-AB BA HR-RBI SB
1B Lyle Overbay, Blue Jays 2-27 .074 0-2 0
OF Carlos Lee, Astros 2-25 .080 0-0 0
OF Dexter Fowler, Rockies 2-25 .080 0-0 1
SS Jason Bartlett, Rays 2-23 .087 0-0 0
C Dioner Navarro, Rays 2-21 .095 0-0 0
1B Mark Teixeira, Yankees 2-20 .100 1-3 0
OF Carlos Quentin, White Sox 3-27 .111 1-8 0
SS Edgar Renteria, Giants 3-24 .125 0-1 0
OF Rajai Davis, Athletics 4-31 .129 0-1 3
SS Jose Reyes, Mets 4-31 .129 0-2 1
This week’s (dis)honorable mention goes to Marlins OF/2B Chris Coghlan 0-for-19, Pirates 1B Jeff Clement 0-15, Astros 2B Kazuo Matsui 0-11, and Tigers SS Ramon Santiago 0-10. Receiving a special dishonorable mention is Rangers C Taylor Teagarden. He was just 0-for-6 for the week, but all six at-bats were strikeouts, giving him a season total of 0-for-18 with 13 Ks.
W:K ratio – Rangers OF Nelson Cruz and Diamondbacks OF Justin Upton 1:10; Mets OF Jason Bay 2:11; Marlins OF Cameron Maybin 3:10; Mets 3B David Wright 9:10.
Caught stealing – Dodgers OF Matt Kemp 1-for-3.
Teagarden has been on a Not list three consecutive weeks (including spring training), and Overbay has been cold two weeks in a row. Cruz, Davis, Quentin and Renteria all were on a Hot list the previous week. Quentin wasn’t a total washout during the last week; he managed to drive in eight runs with just three hits.
Hand Pitcher, Team IP W-L ERA WHIP K:W
RHP Jason Marquis, Nationals 4.1 0-2 27.00 3.00 1:3
RHP Gavin Floyd, White Sox 7.0 0-2 14.14 3.00 7:6
LHP Doug Davis, Brewers 8.0 0-1 12.38 2.63 9:3
RHP John Maine, Mets 8.0 0-1 12.38 2.50 8:7
LHP Jon Lester, Red Sox 11.0 0-2 9.00 2.00 10:6
RHP Jair Jurrjens, Braves 11.1 0-1 8.74 1.59 10:5
LHP Brian Tallet, Blue Jays 11.0 0-1 8.18 1.45 6:3
RHP Joel Pineiro, Angels 9.1 1-1 7.71 1.71 6:1
RHP Bronson Arroyo, Reds 12.0 0-1 7.50 1.25 10:4
RHP Johnny Cueto, Reds 10.0 0-0 6.30 1.90 6:5
The pitchers eligible for this list all started twice during the week
Losses – Floyd, Lester, Marquis and Brewers RHP LaTroy Hawkins 2.
Blown saves – Hawkins, Diamondbacks RHPs Aaron Heilman and Chad Qualls, and Rockies LHP Franklin Morales 0-for-2; Orioles RHP Jim Johnson 1-3.
In closing
This is a regular feature of our Emails and blog posts. It lets you know who’s getting saves. Equally important is telling you who’s blowing saves or putting his job in jeopardy by getting shaky saves. There’s also a FREE Article on the old fantasybaseballscout.com web site letting you know which pitcher or pitchers each team is using to close games. It will be updated whenever there’s a change or speculation about a change in a team’s closer.
There were some sloppy and unorthodox saves Sunday.
Indians RHP Chris Perez relieved LHP Tony Sipp with one out in the top of the ninth inning against the White Sox with Cleveland ahead 7-3. Perez allowed one inherited runner to score but retired two batters for his fourth save. Pirates RHP Octavio Dotel’s third save came even though he allowed Reds OF Jay Bruce’s second home run of the game and season. Pittsburgh won at home 5-3. Padres RHP Heath Bell had his third save despite a pitching line of 121102 in a 5-3 victory at Arizona.
Royals RHP Joakim Soria entered their game at Minnesota with two out and a runner on base with KC leading 7-5 in the eighth inning. The Royals finished with a 10-5 win, and Soria received his third save with a line of 1 1/3 00002. Orioles RHP had a 6-3 lead when RHP Jim Johnson entered the game to start the bottom of the eighth inning at Oakland. Baltimore scored twice to win 8-3, and Johnson earned his first save of 2010 with a line of 210002.
Others credited with saves were Yankees RHP Mariano Rivera, fifth, 5-2 over the Rangers; the third saves for Marlins RHP Leo Nunez (1-0 at Philadelphia) and Tigers RHP Jose Valverde (4-2 at Seattle); Astros RHP Matt Lindstrom’s second, 3-2 at Wrigley Field in 10 innings, and Dodgers RHP Jonathan Broxton’s first, 2-1 against the Giants.
NOTE: We have extended the free period for these Emails again – through Sunday, April 25. After that date, the Emails would go only to those who subscribe.
Before then, we’ll tell you how you can subscribe to receive these Emails five or more times per week, along with timely Articles and other information that will be added to the fantasybaseballscout.com web site.
Subscriptions will include Articles such as our “Pitchers (and Hitters) to Keep and Avoid.” Last year, our recommendation of Rockies LHP Jorge De La Rosa in itself was worth the cost of what you’d pay, and he was only one of our picks that were on the money. Choosing him was inspired; he was 0-6 when we recommended him, and 16-3 thereafter.
You also would have access to whatever content we’re able to get on to the fantasybaseballscout.com web site.
Let us know of your interest and what you’d like to see by Emailing lary@fantasybaseballscout.com.
Subscribers will be able to ask questions specific to their fantasy teams and leagues, and receive answers through these Emails, the web site or personal Emails.
Hot
The weekly Hot and Not for batters is based on 20 at-bats for batting average, and at least a .280 BA for the other categories.
Pos. Player, Team H-AB BA HR-RBI SB
SS Derek Jeter, Yankees 11-22 .500 3-7 0
C Ivan Rodriguez, Nationals 10-21 .476 0-7 1
2B Dan Uggla, Marlins 13-28 .464 2-7 0
OF Jose Guillen, Royals 12-26 .462 3-5 1
SS Yuniesky Betancourt, Royals 11-24 .458 1-3 0
1B James Loney, Dodgers 11-24 .458 0-0 1
3B/2B Casey McGehee, Brewers 10-22 .455 2-6 0
OF Ryan Ludwick, Cardinals 11-25 .440 1-3 0
OF Andre Ethier, Dodgers 11-26 .423 3-9 0
OF Ryan Braun, Brewers 11-26 .423 2-8 1
The two .458 batters present a contrast. Betancourt isn’t likely to be on this list often. Loney is a high-average threat, but LA no doubt would want more run production from its first baseman.
Home runs – Phillies 2B Chase Utley 5; Dodgers OF Matt Kemp and Orioles 3B/1B Ty Wigginton 4; Ethier, Guillen, Jeter, Indians OF Shin-soo Choo, White Sox OF/1B Andruw Jones and Rays 1B Carlos Pena 1.
RBI – Choo 11; Wigginton 10; Ethier, Pena and Twins OF/1B Michael Cuddyer 9; Braun, Kemp, Utley and Royals 3B/2B Alberto Callaspo 8.
Stolen bases – Yankees OF Brett Gardner, White Sox OF Juan Pierre, Cubs SS Ryan Theriot and Reds 1B Joey Votto 4; Podsednik, Rays OF Carl Crawford, White Sox OF Alex Rios and Twins OF Denard Span 3.
Runs – Kemp, Span and Utley 8; Guillen, Rodriguez, Uggla, Giants 1B/3B Aubrey Huff, Rays 3B Evan Longoria and Nationals OF Josh Willingham 7.
Gardner, Jeter and Podsednik were on a Hot list for the second consecutive week.
Requirements for pitchers to make these lists are 7 innings pitched for ERA and WHIP, 10 strikeouts in K:W ratio and an ERA under 4.00 for the other categories.
Hand Pitcher, Team IP W-L ERA WHIP K:W
RHP Justin Duchscherer, Athletics 13.0 1-0 0.00 1.00 9:4
RHP Livan Hernandez, Nationals 9.0 1-0 0.00 0.67 3:2
RHP Ubaldo Jimenez, Rockies 9.0 1-0 0.00 0.67 7:6
RHP Doug Fister, Mariners 8.0 1-0 0.00 0.38 4:0
LHP Jonathan Sanchez, Giants 8.0 1-0 0.00 0.75 11:3
LHP Joe Saunders, Angels 8.0 1-0 0.00 0.75 2:1
RHP Mike Pelfrey, Mets 8.0 1-0 0.00 0.88 6:1
RHP Brad Penny, Cardinals 7.0 1-0 0.00 0.43 4:0
RHP Roy Oswalt, Astros 7.0 1-0 0.00 0.71 6:0
RHP Carlos Silva, Cubs 7.0 1-0 0.00 0.71 5:0
Of the 121 pitchers with an 0.00 ERA for the week, 16 threw at least seven innings. Pelfrey also earned a save for pitching a scoreless 20th inning in Saturday’s 2-1 victory over the Cardinals
Wins – Rays RHPs Lance Cormier and Matt Garza, Padres RHP Kevin Correia, Yankees LHP Andy Pettitte and Cardinals RHP Adam Wainwright.
Saves – Mariners RHP David Aardsma, Yankees RHP Mariano Rivera, Angels RHP Fernando Rodney and Rays RHP Rafael Soriano 3-for-3.
WHIP – Fister 0.38; Penny and Cardinals LHP Jaime Garcia 0.43; Yankees LHP C.C. Sabathia 0.50; Indians LHP David Huff 0.56.
K:W ratio – Phillies LHP Cole Hamels 14:1; Marlins RHP Josh Johnson 10:1; Wainwright 16:3; Blue Jays LHP Davis Romero 18:4; Sanchez 11:3; Cardinals RHP Chris Carpenter 10:3; Angels RHP Ervin Santana 13:5; Rangers RHP Colby Lewis 10:4/
Pitchers repeating n a Hot list were Aardsma; Garza; Jimenez, who pitched a no-hitter Saturday, and Oswalt. Saunders jumped from the Not list to Hot in a week’s time.
Not
Pos. Player, Team H-AB BA HR-RBI SB
1B Lyle Overbay, Blue Jays 2-27 .074 0-2 0
OF Carlos Lee, Astros 2-25 .080 0-0 0
OF Dexter Fowler, Rockies 2-25 .080 0-0 1
SS Jason Bartlett, Rays 2-23 .087 0-0 0
C Dioner Navarro, Rays 2-21 .095 0-0 0
1B Mark Teixeira, Yankees 2-20 .100 1-3 0
OF Carlos Quentin, White Sox 3-27 .111 1-8 0
SS Edgar Renteria, Giants 3-24 .125 0-1 0
OF Rajai Davis, Athletics 4-31 .129 0-1 3
SS Jose Reyes, Mets 4-31 .129 0-2 1
This week’s (dis)honorable mention goes to Marlins OF/2B Chris Coghlan 0-for-19, Pirates 1B Jeff Clement 0-15, Astros 2B Kazuo Matsui 0-11, and Tigers SS Ramon Santiago 0-10. Receiving a special dishonorable mention is Rangers C Taylor Teagarden. He was just 0-for-6 for the week, but all six at-bats were strikeouts, giving him a season total of 0-for-18 with 13 Ks.
W:K ratio – Rangers OF Nelson Cruz and Diamondbacks OF Justin Upton 1:10; Mets OF Jason Bay 2:11; Marlins OF Cameron Maybin 3:10; Mets 3B David Wright 9:10.
Caught stealing – Dodgers OF Matt Kemp 1-for-3.
Teagarden has been on a Not list three consecutive weeks (including spring training), and Overbay has been cold two weeks in a row. Cruz, Davis, Quentin and Renteria all were on a Hot list the previous week. Quentin wasn’t a total washout during the last week; he managed to drive in eight runs with just three hits.
Hand Pitcher, Team IP W-L ERA WHIP K:W
RHP Jason Marquis, Nationals 4.1 0-2 27.00 3.00 1:3
RHP Gavin Floyd, White Sox 7.0 0-2 14.14 3.00 7:6
LHP Doug Davis, Brewers 8.0 0-1 12.38 2.63 9:3
RHP John Maine, Mets 8.0 0-1 12.38 2.50 8:7
LHP Jon Lester, Red Sox 11.0 0-2 9.00 2.00 10:6
RHP Jair Jurrjens, Braves 11.1 0-1 8.74 1.59 10:5
LHP Brian Tallet, Blue Jays 11.0 0-1 8.18 1.45 6:3
RHP Joel Pineiro, Angels 9.1 1-1 7.71 1.71 6:1
RHP Bronson Arroyo, Reds 12.0 0-1 7.50 1.25 10:4
RHP Johnny Cueto, Reds 10.0 0-0 6.30 1.90 6:5
The pitchers eligible for this list all started twice during the week
Losses – Floyd, Lester, Marquis and Brewers RHP LaTroy Hawkins 2.
Blown saves – Hawkins, Diamondbacks RHPs Aaron Heilman and Chad Qualls, and Rockies LHP Franklin Morales 0-for-2; Orioles RHP Jim Johnson 1-3.
In closing
This is a regular feature of our Emails and blog posts. It lets you know who’s getting saves. Equally important is telling you who’s blowing saves or putting his job in jeopardy by getting shaky saves. There’s also a FREE Article on the old fantasybaseballscout.com web site letting you know which pitcher or pitchers each team is using to close games. It will be updated whenever there’s a change or speculation about a change in a team’s closer.
There were some sloppy and unorthodox saves Sunday.
Indians RHP Chris Perez relieved LHP Tony Sipp with one out in the top of the ninth inning against the White Sox with Cleveland ahead 7-3. Perez allowed one inherited runner to score but retired two batters for his fourth save. Pirates RHP Octavio Dotel’s third save came even though he allowed Reds OF Jay Bruce’s second home run of the game and season. Pittsburgh won at home 5-3. Padres RHP Heath Bell had his third save despite a pitching line of 121102 in a 5-3 victory at Arizona.
Royals RHP Joakim Soria entered their game at Minnesota with two out and a runner on base with KC leading 7-5 in the eighth inning. The Royals finished with a 10-5 win, and Soria received his third save with a line of 1 1/3 00002. Orioles RHP had a 6-3 lead when RHP Jim Johnson entered the game to start the bottom of the eighth inning at Oakland. Baltimore scored twice to win 8-3, and Johnson earned his first save of 2010 with a line of 210002.
Others credited with saves were Yankees RHP Mariano Rivera, fifth, 5-2 over the Rangers; the third saves for Marlins RHP Leo Nunez (1-0 at Philadelphia) and Tigers RHP Jose Valverde (4-2 at Seattle); Astros RHP Matt Lindstrom’s second, 3-2 at Wrigley Field in 10 innings, and Dodgers RHP Jonathan Broxton’s first, 2-1 against the Giants.
Friday, March 19, 2010
Oh, Brian, can you see?
Off-season Lasik eye surgery could be beginning to take effect for Braves C Brian McCann. He hit his first two home runs this spring, against RHP Brett Myers and journeyman LHP Tim Byrdak, as Atlanta lost to the Astros 8-5. RF Hunter Pence slugged his third homer for Houston.
Speaking of eyes, in the Stephen Strasburg watch, the Nationals right-hander pitched three scoreless innings, allowing two hits and striking out two in a 7-3 loss to the Cardinals. The winning pitcher was RHP Adam Ottavino, who to date has been overhyped as a prospect. He had a pitching line of 200001 after relieving RHP Adam Wainwright in the fifth inning.
In the Diamondbacks’ 9-3 victory over the Rangers, RF Justin Upton blasted his third homer. Texas LF Josh Hamilton, struggling to avoid injuries this spring, hit his first. Thus far, the second coming of RHP Colby Lewis with the Rangers doesn’t seem much better than the first. They re-signed him after he’d had some success pitching in Japan. However, his spring ERA is 9.95.
You know it’s spring training when the Pirates club the Yankees 10-5. And when 1B/SS Bobby Crosby hits two homers and 2B/OF Delwyn Young hits another, giving each three already this spring. It didn’t hurt for the Bucs that RHP Jonathan Abominablesnowman was pitching in the game. He gave up three runs in two-thirds of an inning, giving him 10 earned runs allowed in two innings, a 45.00 ERA.
The Marlins defeated the Mets 5-1, with RHP John Maine giving up all five of the runs in two-thirds of an inning. That’s a 67.50 ERA.
The Diamondbacks defeated the Rockies 8-7 in Hermosillo, Mexico. RHP Leo Rosales made up for some shaky pitching earlier this spring by recording a save. In his one inning, he gave up a solo homer to 1B Brad Eldred.
In the Cubs’ 8-7 victory over the Angels, RHP Thomas Diamond earned a save. He entered the game with the bases loaded and a two-run lead with two out in the eighth inning. Diamond allowed one runner to score, but held LA/Anaheim scoreless in the ninth. Could closer be his future role?
The Athletics’ corner infielders made news in their 10-3 victory over the Royals. 3B Eric Chavez, now playing first base, went 0-for-3 but the news was that he played on back-to-back days for the first time since last year’s back surgery. Meanwhile, new 3B Kevin Kouzmanoff drove in three runs.
Still hitting home runs for the Rays were 2B Sean Rodriguez, his fourth, and OF Justin Ruggiero, his third. Tampa Bay still lost to the Tigers 9-6.
The Giants pounded four home runs – by 1B Aubrey Huff and OFs Fred Lewis, Aaron Rowand and Nate Schierholtz – but still lost to the Brewers 10-8.
The scoring in the Rockies’ 5-4 win over the Mariners all came after the starting pitchers left the game. For Colorado, RHP Ubaldo Jimenez pitched four scoreless innings, giving him a string of seven shutout innings. In RHP Felix Hernandez’s first appearance this spring, he went 2 2/3 innings without allowing a run for Seattle.
In the Dodgers’ 6-4 victory over the Rangers, Matt Kemp hit his second homer this spring and OF Garret Anderson went 1-for-3, a single against LHP Derek Holland, in his first game as LA’s DH since signing a minor league contract.
The rest of the Dodgers won their final exhibition game in China, 11-1 over the CPBL All-Stars. OF prospect Trayvon Robinson hit a two-run homer, and LF Manny Ramirez and 1B James Loney had three hits apiece. The winning pitcher, RHP Josh Towers, had a pitching line of 341102.
Inside the injuries:
While Mets SS Jose Reyes recovers from a thyroid disorder, which is expected to take 2-8 weeks, they will have rookie Ruben Tejada share time with 2B/SS Alex Cora in Reyes’ place. The timetable on CF Carlos Beltran’s return now has been pushed back as far as Memorial Day.
The Angels were set to go with their regular lineup against the Cubs until SS Erick Aybar reported a stiff arm and RF Bobby Abreu tightness in his side. Both sat out the game.
Cubs 3B Aramis Ramirez went out Saturday because of a sore triceps muscle, and isn’t expected to throw for a couple of more days.
The Red Sox scratched RHP Josh Beckett from his start because he was sick. Instead of disrupting other pitchers’ schedules by moving him back to Monday, the Sox said Beckett wouldn’t pitch in a game until his next scheduled start Friday against the Pirates.
The Royals said CF Rick Ankiel, pulled from Friday’s game because of a sore right ankle (ankiel?), could be out a week. In his absence, they will take an extended look at OF Jason Dyson, who stole 46 bases in 80 games last season between low Class A and Double-A ball.
Dodgers SS Rafael Furcal is trying to prove that he’s 100 per cent ready to play this year. He has played in eight of their last nine games. He said that when he played last season he was leery of reinjuring his back.
Sample Scouting Report:
Ubaldo Jimenez, RHP, Rockies
Ht.: 6-4 Wt.: 200 T: R Age: 26* Inj. Risk: 10 Alt. Pos.: SP
{2010} If there is such a thing as a perfect pitcher for Coors Field, Jimenez could be it. He throws a high-90s fastball and mixes in good off-speed pitches, which generates plenty of strikeouts and reduces the number of balls put in play. During the last two seasons, more than 60 per cent of his outs have come on ground balls. Those don’t ever go out of the park the way even a wind-blown fly ball can. Almost any kind of start could be an improvement over last year, when his April ERA was 7.58. Just think how good he could be if he went to a team playing in a pitchers’ park. Born: Jan. 22, 1984, Dominican Republic*. 2009: Rockies, 218 IP, 15 W, 0 S, 3.47 ERA, 1.23 WHIP, 198 SO.
Projection
IP: 208 W: 15 ERA: 3.62 WHIP: 1.29 S: 0 SO: 187 Value: $14
Speaking of eyes, in the Stephen Strasburg watch, the Nationals right-hander pitched three scoreless innings, allowing two hits and striking out two in a 7-3 loss to the Cardinals. The winning pitcher was RHP Adam Ottavino, who to date has been overhyped as a prospect. He had a pitching line of 200001 after relieving RHP Adam Wainwright in the fifth inning.
In the Diamondbacks’ 9-3 victory over the Rangers, RF Justin Upton blasted his third homer. Texas LF Josh Hamilton, struggling to avoid injuries this spring, hit his first. Thus far, the second coming of RHP Colby Lewis with the Rangers doesn’t seem much better than the first. They re-signed him after he’d had some success pitching in Japan. However, his spring ERA is 9.95.
You know it’s spring training when the Pirates club the Yankees 10-5. And when 1B/SS Bobby Crosby hits two homers and 2B/OF Delwyn Young hits another, giving each three already this spring. It didn’t hurt for the Bucs that RHP Jonathan Abominablesnowman was pitching in the game. He gave up three runs in two-thirds of an inning, giving him 10 earned runs allowed in two innings, a 45.00 ERA.
The Marlins defeated the Mets 5-1, with RHP John Maine giving up all five of the runs in two-thirds of an inning. That’s a 67.50 ERA.
The Diamondbacks defeated the Rockies 8-7 in Hermosillo, Mexico. RHP Leo Rosales made up for some shaky pitching earlier this spring by recording a save. In his one inning, he gave up a solo homer to 1B Brad Eldred.
In the Cubs’ 8-7 victory over the Angels, RHP Thomas Diamond earned a save. He entered the game with the bases loaded and a two-run lead with two out in the eighth inning. Diamond allowed one runner to score, but held LA/Anaheim scoreless in the ninth. Could closer be his future role?
The Athletics’ corner infielders made news in their 10-3 victory over the Royals. 3B Eric Chavez, now playing first base, went 0-for-3 but the news was that he played on back-to-back days for the first time since last year’s back surgery. Meanwhile, new 3B Kevin Kouzmanoff drove in three runs.
Still hitting home runs for the Rays were 2B Sean Rodriguez, his fourth, and OF Justin Ruggiero, his third. Tampa Bay still lost to the Tigers 9-6.
The Giants pounded four home runs – by 1B Aubrey Huff and OFs Fred Lewis, Aaron Rowand and Nate Schierholtz – but still lost to the Brewers 10-8.
The scoring in the Rockies’ 5-4 win over the Mariners all came after the starting pitchers left the game. For Colorado, RHP Ubaldo Jimenez pitched four scoreless innings, giving him a string of seven shutout innings. In RHP Felix Hernandez’s first appearance this spring, he went 2 2/3 innings without allowing a run for Seattle.
In the Dodgers’ 6-4 victory over the Rangers, Matt Kemp hit his second homer this spring and OF Garret Anderson went 1-for-3, a single against LHP Derek Holland, in his first game as LA’s DH since signing a minor league contract.
The rest of the Dodgers won their final exhibition game in China, 11-1 over the CPBL All-Stars. OF prospect Trayvon Robinson hit a two-run homer, and LF Manny Ramirez and 1B James Loney had three hits apiece. The winning pitcher, RHP Josh Towers, had a pitching line of 341102.
Inside the injuries:
While Mets SS Jose Reyes recovers from a thyroid disorder, which is expected to take 2-8 weeks, they will have rookie Ruben Tejada share time with 2B/SS Alex Cora in Reyes’ place. The timetable on CF Carlos Beltran’s return now has been pushed back as far as Memorial Day.
The Angels were set to go with their regular lineup against the Cubs until SS Erick Aybar reported a stiff arm and RF Bobby Abreu tightness in his side. Both sat out the game.
Cubs 3B Aramis Ramirez went out Saturday because of a sore triceps muscle, and isn’t expected to throw for a couple of more days.
The Red Sox scratched RHP Josh Beckett from his start because he was sick. Instead of disrupting other pitchers’ schedules by moving him back to Monday, the Sox said Beckett wouldn’t pitch in a game until his next scheduled start Friday against the Pirates.
The Royals said CF Rick Ankiel, pulled from Friday’s game because of a sore right ankle (ankiel?), could be out a week. In his absence, they will take an extended look at OF Jason Dyson, who stole 46 bases in 80 games last season between low Class A and Double-A ball.
Dodgers SS Rafael Furcal is trying to prove that he’s 100 per cent ready to play this year. He has played in eight of their last nine games. He said that when he played last season he was leery of reinjuring his back.
Sample Scouting Report:
Ubaldo Jimenez, RHP, Rockies
Ht.: 6-4 Wt.: 200 T: R Age: 26* Inj. Risk: 10 Alt. Pos.: SP
{2010} If there is such a thing as a perfect pitcher for Coors Field, Jimenez could be it. He throws a high-90s fastball and mixes in good off-speed pitches, which generates plenty of strikeouts and reduces the number of balls put in play. During the last two seasons, more than 60 per cent of his outs have come on ground balls. Those don’t ever go out of the park the way even a wind-blown fly ball can. Almost any kind of start could be an improvement over last year, when his April ERA was 7.58. Just think how good he could be if he went to a team playing in a pitchers’ park. Born: Jan. 22, 1984, Dominican Republic*. 2009: Rockies, 218 IP, 15 W, 0 S, 3.47 ERA, 1.23 WHIP, 198 SO.
Projection
IP: 208 W: 15 ERA: 3.62 WHIP: 1.29 S: 0 SO: 187 Value: $14
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