We're bringing plenty of fantasy baseball coverage on a daily basis, and have just recently started publishing some early 2012 fantasy football rankings, so in case you missed them, here are the links:
Minor League Prospect Coverage
Minor League Level Review (Low-A): Francisco Lindor Cruising, Dylan Bundy Throws 5 - Fake Teams
Prospect Preview: Tyrell Jenkins - Fake Teams
Coming Soon To A Stadium Near You: Anthony Rizzo, 1B, Chicago Cubs - Fake Teams
Low Level Prospect Review: Matt Barnes, RHP, Boston Red Sox - Fake Teams
Fantasy Football Rankings
Fantasy Football 2012 Rankings: Wide Receiver Part I - Fake Teams
Fantasy Football 2012 Rankings: Quarterbacks - Fake Teams
Fantasy Football 2012 Rankings: Running Back Part I - Fake Teams
More links after the jump:
EDIT: Welp, just like that, Bauer has been promoted to AAA (per Ray's comment below) and this is NOT happening. :(
As a Mariners fan, let me tell you that I was among the stunned when the M's took Danny Hultzen with the 2nd overall pick in the 2011 draft. We had been led to believe that this guy was "not elite" and that he was a "safe pick" that might only be a number three starter. Seattle took Hultzen over a host of other good-looking prospects such as Bubba Starling, Francisco Lindor, and the number three overall pick, Trevor Bauer.
Many people had felt that Bauer was a better prospect than teammate and number one pick Gerrit Cole, and drew comparisons to Tim Lincecum based on size and delivery. The last thing I need as an M's fan is to hear more crap about how we passed on University of Washington's Lincecum and were we doing it again?
I think that it's fair to say that Hultzen was undersold at the draft and just because people might not have had him rated that high in their minds, he was still going to be a top-10 pick. He's left-handed, polished, near-MLB ready, 6'3", 200 lbs, who already thrives on his change-up. Bauer is more exciting, probably has a higher ceiling, and works with a four-seam and a two-seam fastball at different speeds plus an excellent curve.
Tonight, whether it's fair or not, they'll face off and be compared to one another based on who has the better game.
This seasons stats:
Hultzen: 37.2 innings, 36 K, 23 BB, 1.91 ERA, 17 hits allowed, 51% groundballs, 3.45 FIP, .178 BABIP against.
Bauer: 48.1 innings, 60 K, 26 BB, 1.68 ERA, 33 hits allowed, 47% groundballs, 2.63 FIP, .288 BABIP against.
Both pitchers could stand to walk fewer hitters and Hultzen's control has been unbelievably bad in his last two starts, walking 11 batters in 11.1 innings and thriving off of a low BABIP that has kept very few balls from dropping in for hits this season. He has failed to go more than five innings in three of his seven starts, but only three earned runs have scored in his last six trips to the mound.
Bauer is coming off of perhaps his best start of the season, after striking out nine and walking one in seven innings of work. He gave up one hit in seven innings in his start previous to that, but walked five and struck out five. These guys are facing off at 5:05 PST tonight and could be pitching in the majors at some point this season, but it will help if they can refine their command.
Gameday Audio can be found here.
I can be found on Twitter, if you please.
To preface, I really tried to hold off writing about Myers, since Jason had covered him earlier this month, but given his hitting binge and subsequent promotion to Triple-A, he fit the profile of a "Waiting in the Wings" hitter too well. I link to Jason's article below, and you should absolutely read it.
Wil Myers - RF - Royals - Myers was drafted in the third round of of the 2009 draft out of Wesleyan Christian Academy. He had first round talent but dropped due to $2 million demands, which the Royals did not hesitate to meet. Myers was drafted as a catcher, and played there during his first two seasons, before transitioning to the outfield in 2011. The transition had less to do with Myers' defensive deficiencies as it did with his prowess with the bat, and expediting his path to the major leagues. That plan didn't pay off as Myers struggled through a knee injury that later got infected, and clearly affected his 2011 season. While his first crack at Double-A didn't go smoothly, Myers proved his health in the Arizona Fall League, and has abused Texas League pitchers so badly that they all breathed a sigh of relief when Kansas City promoted Myers to Triple-A Omaha yesterday.
Read more on Wil Myers both after the jump and here, where Jason Hunt wrote about him previously...
Reds setup man Aroldis Chapman has been dominating major league batters since the start of spring training, but is still setting up for Sean Marshall. To me, he should either be closing or in the starting rotation. In 19.1 innings this season, he has given up just 6 hits, walked 5, struck out 34 , and has yet to give up a run. Teammate Mike Leake has struggled to start the season, and he had a solid start last night to remain in the starting rotation for at least one more start. But, there are hints that Chapman will eventually end up in the Reds rotation this season. The longer the season goes with Chapman throwing one inning here, two innings there, the longer it will take to get him stretched out to start.
Indians outfielder Shin-Soo Choo was recently moved to the leadoff spot in the lineup, and leading off appears to agree with him. He went 3-5 with 2 runs scored last night. He is now hitting .261-.380-.391 with 2 HRs, 14 RBI, 17 runs, 5 stolen bases and a solid 28-17 strikeout to walk ratio in 115 at bats thus far. He had a disappointing 2011 season and is a year removed from two straight 20-20 seasons, so there is more power in the bat. The fact that he is leading off now could result in a few more stolen base opportunities this season.
Tigers outfielder Austin Jackson went 2-3 with an RBI and 2 runs scored last night, but was removed from the game in 5th inning with a mild abdominal strain. Jackson is enjoying a solid bounce back season so far, and it would be ashame to see his hot start interrupted by an injury.
More Roto Roundup after the jump:
With the weather starting to warm up across most of the minor leagues, we're starting to see some of these hitters get going a bit more than they were in April. Every other Wednesday I take a look at some of the top prospects in the Low-A leagues, and we could be looking at a number of top 10 and top 20 prospects at the end of the season. All stats are courtesy of Baseball Reference.
Midwest League
Francisco Lindor (CLE) - .312/.358/.475, 23 R, 5 2B, 3 3B, 4 HR, 17 RBI, 11 for 15 SB, 10 BB, 19 K
Lindor has been hitting better of late, and I'm wondering if by this time next month he will already be at High-A. There really has not been any question about his defense at shortstop, and if he continues to hit like this he may need a greater challenge.
Miguel Sano (MIN) - .293/.410/.639, 27 R, 9 2B, 2 3B, 11 HR, 35 RBI, 2 for 3 SB, 23 BB, 42 K
Sano is leading the league in home runs so far, and I'm guessing we could see record numbers from him. I believe the Twins will leave Sano down in Low-A for the entirety of the season, to allow him to work on his defense at 3B.
We're bringing plenty of fantasy baseball coverage on a daily basis, and have just recently started publishing some early 2012 fantasy football rankings, so in case you missed them, here are the links:
Fantasy Football
Fantasy Football 2012 Rankings: Running Back Part I - Fake Teams
Fantasy Football 2012 Rankings: Quarterbacks - Fake Teams
Fantasy Football 2012 Rankings: Wide Receiver Part I - Fake Teams
Fantasy Football Rankings Reaction: ESPN - Fake Teams
Fantasy Baseball
Seesaw Report: May 6-12 - Fake Teams
Two-Start Pitchers: Week of May 14-20 - Fake Teams
Don't Believe The Hype: Third Basemen Everywhere Edition - Fake Teams
Ahead of the Curve: The Changing Landscape of Matchups - Fake Teams
Detroit Tigers: Drew Smyly Has Been Lucky AND Good - Fake Teams
Danny Duffy Tears His UCL - Fake Teams
Options For A Royal Rotation - Fake Teams
Head-to-Head Points League Strategy: Waiver Wire Week 8 - Fake Teams
Double Play Depth: The Fountain of Youth, or Luck - Fake Teams
More links after the jump:
Every week I give pick-up suggestions for leagues that are of the deeper variety. These suggestions aren't for everyone because that would just be dumb. These leagues are usually scrapping the bottom of the waiver wire looking for the week's useful guy or an injury replacement for a few days or even weeks. So turn your attention to the few suggestions I have this week.
Alex Cobb SP TB - While nothing has been announced for Jeff Niemann's next scheduled start, I fully expect Alex to jump up and take it. In 9 starts last year, he went 3-2 with a 3.42 ERA and a mid 6 K/9. In the minors his K/9 average hovers above 9, so the skill is there but tempered to some degree. Like any young pitcher walks are the teenage acne that they must fend off. He gets 2 starts in the next week starting Saturday vs the Braves and a friday tilt next week in Beantown.
Daniel Nava OF BOS - You ever sit at a craps table and leave when your hot and a on streak. Me neither. Well that's what this is a "heater", he is hitting and hitting a ton. He is 8-15 since being called up with a lot of counting stats. Now no one expects it to last but isn't it more fun to gamble on a guy like this then cheer when someone like Delmon Young goes 1-4 and we say "Hey it's a good start"
More after the jump.
Remember Jesus Flores? I don't mean that you recall that there's a catcher named Jesus Flores who backs up Wilson Ramos for the Nationals. No, I'm talking about when he was giving us something to be excited about, before injuries and the acquisition and emergence of Ramos made it tougher for Flores to become what we had envisioned.
In his short 2009 stint, Flores hit .301/.371/.505, with four homers in 106 plate appearances. Now, no one expected him to replicate that exactly -- his minor-league numbers had their moments, but weren't that good, by any means. But the chance to see how much of that he could approximate in 2010 never came, as he missed the entire season and then logged just 91 plate appearances as a backup in 2011. His 2012 season has started off just as poorly, with the backstop amassing an OPS+ of just 40.
The thing is, with Wilson Ramos out for the year and Sandy Leon injured in his very first game in the majors, it's basically up to Flores to catch the majority of the games unless the Nationals go out to acquire someone else, or decide to give the 33-year-old Carlos Maldonado all the playing time. In NL-only leagues, Flores doesn't need to approach a 900 OPS to have value. Playing everyday might help him get out of the rut he's been in since his return from labrum surgery, and the further he gets from that procedure, the better he might feel as well.
That's just speculation, of course, but catching is thin enough that taking a risk on Flores hitting might end up being worth it. At this point, if you've already lost Ramos in a 12- or 14-team NL-only setup, you're close to just punting catcher altogether. But give Flores a shot, and hope he's even half the player he was in 2009, or the player who slugged .422 during his six seasons in the minors. He's been bad enough that owners might not be jumping on him, so even if he's a stash, grab him while you can just in case.
Let me make this clear, though: in mixed leagues, you don't want anything to do with Flores. The chances of him becoming something productive again aren't that great, and it's only the desperation of a dual-catcher, NL-only existence that makes him have even the iota of appeal that he does.
