(1) Lance Berkman to Yankees. Deal to be finalized on Saturday.
(2) Edwin Jackson moved to White Sox for Daniel Hudson. Where will Adam Dunn now end up?
(3) Rangers add Cristian Guzman because of injury to Ian Kinsler.
(4) Blue Jays to hold on to Jose Bautista.
(5) Brewers to keep Corey Hart and Prince Fielder.
(6) Mike Jacobs added to Blue Jays organization.
By Ray Flowers
I’m going to be blowing up RumorZone.com today with up to the minute breaking news on everything MLB trade related. Make sure you click over to the site to catch my updates on all the deals that go down, as well as the rumors of potential deals that could be coming to fruition soon.
By Ray Flowers
(1) Rangers pick up Jorge Cantu.
(2) Padres bring in Miguel Tejada.
(3) Phillies officially get Roy Oswalt.
(4) Brett Wallace on the move – yet again.
(5) Kerry Wood likely back on Friday. Sorry Chris Perez owners.
(6) Andrew Bailey likely to DL. Michael Wuertz and Craig Breslow to fore?
By Ray Flowers
Wednesday is always an odd day. Memories of last weekend are fading, and you’re still days away from heading out on the town with your homies to cause some trouble, so you’re basically just laying in wait for something to happen. What I’m saying is that it’s a no-man’s kinda day. As a result, it’s hardly a shock that there is no real theme with the players I’m going to discuss other than the fact that they have all been performing pretty well of late.
Josh Hamilton is a beast. How crazy good has he been? Since the start of June he has hit .434 with 14 homers and 47 RBI in 49 games. Those are numbers that wind up leading you to the MVP award. Sick.
Matt Garza, who has come a long way since he was a Twins’ rookie wearing a My Little Pony backpack (yeah, that’s him in the photo above), tossed the fifth no-hitter of the season on Monday night. Do you know what the record is for one season? In 1884, yeah it was a totally different game back then I know, there where eight no-hitters (the last time there were five no-hitters in a season was 1991). Moreover, since the Rays’ fell in no-hitters twice this season, they became only the third team in baseball history to be involved in three no-hitters in a single season. The other two teams were the White Sox and the St. Louis Browns — in 1917. As for Garza, he has offered a slight up tick in his performance compared to last season. He is 11-5 and that is great, though his ERA is up a smidge from 3.95 last year to 4.06 this season, while his WHIP is a virtual match (1.26 to 1.24). The only real negative in the fantasy game is that he has seen his K-rate dwindle substantially from 8.38 per nine last season down to 6.78 which is below his 7.19 career mark. If he were to pick up the whiffs we could be looking at a top-25 pitcher the rest of the way.
The single season triple record is 36 by Chief Wilson in 1912. No on in baseball even has nine triples this season.
Brandon Morrow – welcome to the world of fantasy relevance. On May 31st he had a 6.00 ERA and was having a devil of a time throwing strikes. Since that point he has made nine starts going just 3-2, but his ratios have improved dramatically. His WHIP has gone down to 1.29, a big step for a guy who had a 1.58 mark over his first 11 appearances, and his ERA has plummeted down to 3.21. Why the success? He’s maintained his K/9 mark mark with an impressive 9.48 mark but his walk rate has tanked – which in this case is obviously a great thing. After walking 34 batters in his first 57 innings – good for a 5.37 BB/9 mark – he has walked a mere 19 hitters in his last 56 innings leading to a 3.05 mark. Basically he has gone from being Oliver Perez to being a better than big league pitcher in terms of his control. The Blue Jays might limit his workload as the season wears on, and his final season numbers likely won’t look that great, but don’t forget about how good Morrow can be when he’s throwing strikes when you do participate in your draft in 2011.
Javier Vazquez has been a massive letdown this season with a 9-7 record, a 4.54 ERA and a 1.24 WHIP. However, should he be viewed that way? He was never going to repeat his performance from last season (15-10, 2.87 ERA, 1.03 WHIP), especially when he went to the AL. Also, his production has been a near match for his work with the Yankees back in 2004 (14-10, 4.91 ERA, 1.29 WHIP). At the same time if you were an astute wheeler and dealer, you may have come out way ahead here. Through six starts this season he was 1-4 with a 8.10 ERA in a truly dreadful start to the year. However, he has been nails since that point going 8-3 with a 3.16 ERA, 1.03 WHIP and a 6.90 K/9 mark. That’s difference making production from the righty. Don’t be afraid to look beyond a player’s season long numbers when you’re trying to figure out his value for the rest of the season.
By Ray Flowers
(1) Stephen Strasburg scratched from start.
(2) Dan Haren (forearm) checks out OK.
(3) Huston Street injured in BP – scary situation.
(4) Adam Dunn and Nationals at standstill in contract talks?
(5) Gil Meche has shoulder surgery, done for year.
(6) Jason Bay suffering from concussion.
(7) Troy Tulowitzki returns to action.
(8) Nate McLouth sent to minors.
By Ray Flowers
On Sunday Andre Dawson was officially inducted into the Hall of Fame. An eight time All-Star who is one of only three men in big league history to hit 400 homers while also stealing at least 300 bases (Barry Bonds and Willie Mays are the others), Dawson also has one of the worst OBP (.323) of any player in the Hall of Fame. In fact, it’s the worst mark of any outfielder enshrined at Cooperstown, .020 points below the .343 mark of Lou Brock. Should Dawson have been elected to the HOF? I tackled that very question in The Case of Andre Dawson. If that piece doesn’t cause you some pause about whether or not the athletic outfielder should have been enshrined, perhaps Dawson vs. Alomar will prove to you, once an for all, that not only does Roberto Alomar deserve to be in the Hall of Fame but that Dawson’s credentials might be a little thin.
I actually wrote up a series of piece on players who were eligible for induction into the Hall of Fame this year, and here are those links:
Edgar Martinez – Is there Room for a DH?
HOF: Tim Raines.
Is McGriff Hall Worthy?
HOF: Mammoth McGwire Misunderstood?
HOF: Who Am I?
Any here are my final thoughts where I discussed the 2010 voting results.
Has anyone pointed you toward one of the best sites on the internet? No, I’m not talking about something that has porn in it, you certainly already have your favorites bookmarked for your adult entertainment, or BaseballGuys.com (since you’ve already found it), I’m referring to Rumorzone.com. It’s a collaborative effort from Fanball.com, and we’re tracking all the latest rumors in the world of sports for the four major sports at that location (MLB, NFL, NBA and NHL). Don’t forget to bookmark it.
Ubaldo Jimenez is awful. There, I said it, and don’t for a second try and tell me you weren’t thinking the same thing. On June 7th, a mere eight starts ago, Ubaldo had a 0.93 ERA. Heck, on June 18th it was still 1.15. However, the past six outings haven’t looked anything like his first 14 trips to the hill. Here are the numbers:
7.64 ERA, 1.52 WHIP, 8.73 K/9, 5.18 BB/9, 1.68 K/BB
The ERA is horrific, the WHIP is terrible, and that walk rate is godawful leading to a decidedly sub par K/BB mark that is well below the big league average of 2.10.
So what happened? It’s called regression people, ever heard of it? Did you really drink so much of that Ubaldo Cool Aid that you actually thought he was going to challenge Bob Gibson’s NL ERA mark of 1.12? Come on now. Did you think he was gonna keep his ERA under 2.00 all year long? I got news for you, that’s only happened twice in baseball since the 21st century began (Pedro Martinez had a 1.74 mark in 2000 and Roger Clemens posted a 1.87 mark in 2005). Again, you kid right?
The truth is that Ubaldo is simply returning to the level of “dominance” instead of the “historic” pace that he flashed early on. He still has a 2.75 ERA, his WHIP is just 1.12, he has nearly a K per inning (120 in 134.1) and he is still 15-2. How rare is that combination? If he maintains that pace for 34 starts this season we’d be looking at something like 25 wins, 200 Ks and a 2.75 ERA. How many pitchers have reached all three of those levels since 2000? It’s a small group of — zero. If we go back to 1990 there still isn’t one member of the group. How about 1980? Still none. You have to go all the way back to to Ron Guidry in 1978 to find a pitcher who reach all three milestones (25-3, 1.74 ERA, 248 Ks).
The bottom line with Ubaldo is that you should cut the guy some slack. Still, I hope you listened when I suggested you sell high on the flamethrower from Colorado because that window for peak value in a trade has been closed completely.
By Ray Flowers
(1) David DeJesus out for the year with injured thumb.
(2) It’s true, Brian Roberts is back.
(3) Carl Crawford returns to the starting lineup.
(4) Justin Masterson could be shut down in September.
(5) Rangers could get Rich Harden and Derek Holland back soon.
(6) J.A. Happ to return to Phillies because of injury to Jamie Moyer.
(7) The Royals have recalled Alex Gordon. Should you care? Read Five Questions to find out (there is also more in that piece about Roberts return and what to do with Happ).
By Ray Flowers
(1) Angels deal for Alberto Callaspo, give up Sean O’Sullivan and William Smith. Rick Ankiel activated.
(2) Jamie Moyer has sprained UCL (grade 2), might need TJ Surgery.
(3) Roy Oswalt, Dan Haren, Brett Myers, Ted Lilly on the block.
(4) Edison Volquez lit up by Nationals.
(5) Josh Johnson, 13-straight starts two or fewer earned runs.
(6) Bobby Jenks removed from closers role.
(7) Brian Roberts could return as early as Friday.
(8) Jacoby Ellsbury takes BP.
By Ray Flowers
(1) Clayton Kershaw suspended, then appeals suspension.
(2) Brett Myers, 20 starts, 20 outings of at least six innings.
(3) Jose Bautista, David DeJesus, Jayson Werth, Prince Fielder, Jorge Cantu, Adam LaRoche rumors heating up.
(4) Mets looking to bolster bullpen.
(5) Pedro Martinez will not pitch in 2010.
(6) Scott Sizemore to play third base for Tigers.
(7) Carl Crawford doesn’t wear a cup.
By Ray Flowers
On Monday I profiled Barry Zito, you can find that write up at The Case of Barry Zito, after seeing him twirl a gem on Friday night against the Mets. There wasn’t just one lefty who was dealing it on that night as Jonathan Niese of the Mets allowed a mere run in seven innings of work. He wasn’t quite as good as Zito who tossed eight shutout innings, but Niese was good enough that I thought it would be wise to revisit my take on his value heading into the second half because to this set of eyeballs he looked very, very good on that night.
Niese, who actually possesses a repertoire that is fairly close to the one that is featured by Zito (with the addition of about three to four mph on his fastball), has been extremely effective of late. If you remove his horrible outing on June 22nd when he allowed six runs in just 4.2 innings against the Tigers, Niese has thrown up 7-straight “quality starts.” In that time he has allowed two or fewer earned runs five times, and over his last four starts, despite a 2-2 record, he has a 1.63 ERA, 1.05 WHIP, 8.13 K/9 and a 3.57 K/BB ratio. Yeah, he hasn’t just been good, he has been Kim Kardashian in a bikini hot. Speaking of Kim, I’m not going to sit here and say that she isn’t a looker, but would I be insane to suggest that her sister Kourtney is actually hotter? Back to baseball.
If I’m going to suggest paying close attention to Zito in the second half as I did in the previous piece, I’d be stupid not to offer the same advice with Niese, especially when you compare the performance of each to the other.
Niese: 3.44 ERA, 1.36 WHIP, 7.17 K/9, 2.48 K/BB, 1.55 GB/FB
Zito: 3.51 ERA, 1.26 WHIP, 6.66 K/9, 1.90 K/BB, 0.82 GB/FB
Neither lefty is a strikeout machine, but I much prefer the 7+ mark of Niese to the mark in the 6′s level of Zito. I also like the profile of Niese more given that his GB/FB ratio is greatly enhanced compared to the fly ball tendencies of Mr. Zito.
Is it possible that I haven’t been willing to give Niese his due? Based upon what my eyes saw last week, and the review of the numbers I just quickly went through, it’s fairly evident that my New York bias has precluded me from noticing that the young lefty from the Mets is pitching at a pretty high level right now and that he shouldn’t be on waivers in mixed leagues.
Fun with Numbers
Last week in Numbers: A Look Back, I took a look at some of the outstanding numbers posted by Hall of Fame ballplayers. I wanted to close the piece today with another couple of noteworthy accomplishments from the annals of the game.
* In 1890 Amos Rousie walked an all-time record 289 batters in a season in his second year as a professional. You can forgive that walk total given that he worked 548.2 innings that season. Oh yeah, he also completed 56 of his 62 starts for the New York Giants. Last season the entire National League completed 77 games.
* Speaking of innings pitched, how does that mark of 548.2 rank in the history of the game? Try just 37th. In fact, there have been 13 seasons in big league history in which a hurler tossed more than 600 innings with the record being 680 by Will White in 1879. That year White completed every single one of his 75 starts on his way to 43 victories for the Cincinnati Reds. One other note. He was pretty stingy with a 1.99 ERA and a 1.10 WHIP.
* No pitcher in the history of the game was harder to hit than Nolan Ryan. Over the course of his career he allowed 6.56 hits per nine innings. For context, Mariano Rivera has posted a mark of 6.92 in his career.
By Ray Flowers
The FSWA winner of the Best Baseball Series of 2011, BaseballGuys.com is the only source you will need for your fantasy baseball knowledge. OK, you might need other sources, but BaseballGuys.com should be on your daily list of must reads for the insights an analysis it provides on the world of baseball.
The co-host of The Drive on Sirius 210, XM 87 (M-F, 5-8 PM EDT), Ray Flowers has spent years squirreled away studying the inner workings of the fantasy game to the detriment of his personal life (yep ladies, that means he is still single if you are interested). Specializing in baseball, football and hockey, some consider him an expert in all three. Ray's work can also be found as feature writer for: Daily Joust, Fantasy Alarm, Rotoinfo, Rotowire and Sports Illustrated.
You can contact Ray through e-mail at fantasyfandom@yahoo(dot)com or on Twitter.
