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Here’s an early peek at the RotoAce 2012 fantasy baseball rankings for starting pitcher. (more…)
Archive for the ‘Texas Rangers’ Category
Early fantasy baseball rankings: Third Base
Here’s an early peek at the RotoAce 2012 fantasy baseball rankings for third base.
1. Jose Bautista (left): No. 1 overall on ESPN’s player rater for last year, he’s already produced one encore for his breakout 2010 season, so who are we to doubt he can do it again. The batting average is likely to fall back below .300, but the power numbers are as elite as they come.
2. Evan Longoria: The Rays star missed a full month yet still managed 31 homers and 99 RBIs, so a healthy season could see him rise to the top of the third base rankings if he can get his average back up. (more…)
Early Fantasy Baseball Rankings: Second Base
Here’s an early peek at the RotoAce 2012 fantasy baseball rankings for second base.
1. Robinson Cano (left): The Yankees’ most consistent hitter is a safe bet to turn in elite numbers everywhere except steals, and even there he turned in a career-high eight last season. The 29-year-old is a slam dunk to be a top-10 overall pick.
2. Dustin Pedroia: Bouncing back from a 2010 season half-ruined by a fractured ankle, Boston’s sparkplug put up career highs in homers, RBIs and steals. Entering his age-28 season, Pedroia is at the height of his powers. (more…)
Early Fantasy Baseball Rankings: First Base
Here’s an early peek at the RotoAce 2012 fantasy baseball rankings for first base.
1. Miguel Cabrera (left): It’s finally time for a changing of the guard, as the Tigers’ slugger moves into the top spot that Albert Pujols has inhabited for pretty much the past decade. Cabrera is smack-dab in the middle of his prime entering his age-28 season while Pujols is embarking on the backside of his career going into his age-32 season. Cabrera won the AL batting crown with a .344 mark and is a safe bet to keep up his trek to Cooperstown.
2. Adrian Gonzalez: Gonzalez didn’t enjoy the power surge many experts were forecasting when leaving San Diego’s Petco Park for Boston’s Fenway Park, but he still put up a fantastic .338-108-27-117-1 line. If the homers pick up, Gonzo could be the No. 1 first baseman in 2012. (more…)
Early fantasy baseball rankings: Catcher
Here’s an early peek at the RotoAce 2012 fantasy baseball rankings for catcher.
1. Brian McCann (left): With our No. 1 going down for the season (Victor Martinez), McCann assumes the top spot. He’s as consistent as they come (between 18-24 homers and 71-94 RBIs in each of his six full seasons) and is in his prime entering his age-28 season.
2. Carlos Santana: The .239 average may have disappointed in his first full season, but the counting numbers (27 homers, 84 runs, 79 RBIs, 5 steals) were elite and could get better as he turns just 25 in the first week of the ’12 season. His high walk rate and .291 career minor league average are good signs that his average will be on the rise and give the Indians slugger a chance at the top spot. It helps that the Indians keep his bat in the lineup by playing him at first base when he’s not catching. (more…)
StockWatch: Saturday, July 23
Yahoo for our ownership percentages are in parentheses. From games of Saturday, July 23.
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Gaby Sanchez (28%) ended a month-long power outage with a bang, hitting three homers in two games after not going deep since June 21. The 27-year-old went 3-for-4 with two homers and four RBIs on Saturday. Sanchez is a solid first-base option capable of a hot month, but his hot start has him being slightly overvalued. This may be a good time to sell high if you have a surplus at first.
Emilio Bonaficio (82%) is showing that the light can go on for even lesser talents such as this 26-year-old utilityman. Bonafacio went 2-fo4 with two runs and a steal on Saturday, raising his average to .293 amid his 23-game hitting streak. He has 16 steals in his past 21 games, making him one of the biggest surprises of the fantasy season. While there is no power or RBIs to be had here and his career .262 average warns of an impending downturn, Bonafacio can be a useful piece because of his wheels and his versatility (SS, 3B and OF eligibility). (more…)
StockWatch: Saturday, July 16
Yahoo for our ownership percentages are in parentheses. From games of Saturday, July 16.
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CC Sabathia (98%) is showing what elite aces do – go on monster rolls that carry fantasy pitching staffs. The big lefty held the Blue Jays to three hits and one run in eight innings with three walks and eight strikeouts for his seventh win in seven starts. In his past five starts, Sabathia has a 0.45 ERA with 50 strikeouts in 39.2 IP. Sabathia has been a big second-half pitcher many times in the past, so jump aboard and ride that train.
Javier Vazquez (28%) is back. We declared him dead back in mid-May when his ERA rocketed to 7.55, and he was still stinking in mid-June with a 7.09 ERA. Vazquez posted his first double-digit strikeout game in over two years with 10 Ks against the Cubs on Saturday, allowing four hits and three runs with no walks in a 13-3 win. In his past six starts, Vazquez is 3-2 with a 1.39 ERA and a 29-3 K-BB ratio in 37.1 IP. Vazquez’s resurgence has coincided with an uptick in his lost velocity – his average fastball has gone from 88.4 mph in April to 88.8 in May to 90.5 in June to 90.8 so far in July. He averaged 91.1 mph in 2009 with the Braves when he contended for the NL Cy Young, so see if you can still buy low because of his 5.14 season ERA. (more…)
StockWatch: Thursday, July 14
Yahoo for our ownership percentages are in parentheses. From games of Thursday, July 14.
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Derek Holland (26%) hurled his second straight shutout, limiting the Mariners to five hits with one walk and eight strikeouts. These two gems come on the heels of a miserable two-start stretch that saw him give up a combined 12 runs (eight earned) and 16 hits in 6.2 innings. We’d like to see Holland do this against someone other than the light-hitting Mariners and Athletics before we go recommending him, but he has the talent for a breakout.
Ian Stewart (17%) went 3-for-5 and is 5-for-8 in his past two games to almost double his average from .079 to .141. Stewart has started seven straight games since returning from exile in Colorado Springs and has enough power potential to pick up in deep mixed leagues. He hit a combined 43 homers in 811 ABs over the past two seasons, yet he’s only scratched the surface of the tremendous potential he’s had since the Rockies drafted him in the first round back in 2003. Stewart had regained his power stroke in Triple-A, clubbing 14 homers in 167 ABs, so now it’s time he starts hitting in the majors again. (more…)
StockWatch: Wednesday, July 6
Yahoo for our ownership percentages are in parentheses. From the games of July 6.
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Michael Young (97%) went 3-for-4 for a third straight day, raising his average to .328. Young is hitting .284 in 197 ABs as a DH and .385 in 148 ABs when he starts in the field. He’s hitting in the middle of the Rangers lineup, so the 58 RBIs put him on pace for only his second 100-RBI campaign. But his seven homers are off pace from the 21 and 22 he hit the past two seasons, respectively. Third base has become so thin that Young is an elite option there and as a bonus he’s added eligibility at first and second base too.
Justin Masterson (69%) is finally doing his impression of a healthy Brandon Webb that so many were predicting for the sinkerball expert back when he came up with the Red Sox in 2008, lowering his season ERA to 2.66 with eight shutout innings against the Yankees on Wednesday. Masterson held the mighty Yankees lineup to three hits while walking two and striking out six. Masterson has allowed just one earned run in his past 22.2 IP with a 16-5 K-BB ratio. His xFIP of 3.55 is almost a full run higher than his ERA, but a lot of that is due to a low 4.3% HR/FB that is possible for him to come close to sustaining with his nasty sinker. Masterson’s FIP of 3.08 may be a closer prediction to what his ERA can be from here on out, which combined with his solid 6.4 K/9 makes him an excellent No. 3 SP in deep mixed leagues. (more…)
