Today, I’ll take a look around MLB. (1) The latest on Carlos Beltran’s knee surgery. (2) Brad Lidge has second surgery this off-season. (3) Adam LaRoche signs with D’backs. (4) Josh Johnson wants 4 years. Will he get it? (5) Johnny Damon to Braves? (6) Joel Zumaya agrees to deal. (7) Jermaine Dye to Cubs? (8) Dodgers need starting pitching.
By Ray Flowers
Random homers, tipping pitches, idiotic lineup changes, injuries, playoff races and even a little NFL talk. That’s right. I’m a one stop shop in this entry.
Garrett Atkins went deep on Thursday, his first home run at Coors Field since April 25th. How the hell does anyone, let alone a perennial 20 homer bat like Atkins, go over four months between home runs at home? Simply amazing, though I’m still more shocked to see that he is hitting just .227 on the year, this after batting .329, .301 and .286 the past three years. Talk about a guy who needs a change of scenery.
Looks like Jeremy Hermida might be done for the year with that troublesome right oblique strain as he has yet to do much of anything other than shower and shave for the past week. “We’ve done as much as we can for it. It’s unfortunately one of those injuries you can’t really rush,” Hermida said. As a result, Cameron Maybin becomes a potentially big play down the stretch for those that held on to him all year or took a chance on picking him up when he was recalled recently. Over the 21 at-bats since he was recalled Maybin has seven hits leading to a .333 average, and he has gone deep once while scoring seven runs. As encouraging, he seems to have a much better grasp of what he is doing at the dish as he has walked six times with only five strikeouts, this after posting eight walks against 31 strikeouts earlier in the year. Now that’s progress.
Luke Hochevar has found out why he has been hit so hard of late- he has been tipping his pitches. So now we know why his ERA is over eight in his last eight starts. Either that or because he is just awful. I think I might lean toward option #2.
I’m glad the Phillies finally decided to bench Brad Lidge and replace him with Ryan Madson (you can read about it in Around the Horn). Oh yeah, I’m also happy that I benched Madson this week because of some struggles of late (four earned runs in his last five innings) in favor of Brandon Lyon who was supposed to take over closing duties with Fernando Rodney serving a suspension for the Tigers. Of course, Rodney appealed the suspension remaining active, and Madson was given the closing role in Philly. I’m two saves from moving into third place overall in my National Fantasy Baseball Championship league, so care to guess how many saves I’ve lost out on this week? Two of course. Ever feel like no matter what move you make that it just won’t work? So frustrating. Where is my ripple? I know it’s around here someplace.
Is it possible that the Rockies won’t just win the Wild Card in the National League, but that they will catch the Dodgers for the NL West title? Crazy as it sounds, the Rockies are now closer to the Dodgers (two games behind) and than the Giants are to them in the Wild Card standings (4.5 games back). No team has every gone from 15.5 games down in a season to capture the division title. The Rockies could be the first.
NFL BLOTTER
For those of you counting the seconds for the NFL to get under way —
Michael Crabtree remains on the sidelines, still unsigned as the NFL regular season begins. Don’t know how that makes any sense at all. Maybe he is being advised by Alex Rodriguez.
The Cowboys have the most expensive ticket in the NFL this season at $159.65 according to Team Marketing Report’s survey. To compare, the average NFL ticket will set you back about $75. There is no truth to the rumor that Cowboys games are twice as fun, that the team will be twice as good, or that the seats are twice as comfortable. You will get to look at a massively oversized television screen that hangs above the field and interrupts play when hit by punts though. Only in Texas.
By Ray Flowers
In today’s The Day in Baseball entry, I’ll highlight the plight of an all-time great, alert you to a guy who has been crazy hot of late, and point out a decision, about four months in coming, that might actually, finally, end up coming to fruition.
Did you catch Marlon Byrd’s act over the past two days? In case you didn’t, let me review it for you. Byrd played in three games, went deep twice, knocked in seven runners and produced nine hits. Yeah, he is pretty much en fuego right now.
If you missed it, Adam Jones’ season is over as he was transferred to the 60-day DL with a sprained ankle. It shouldn’t require surgery, or be a long term issue, but the team realized that he would likely need something like three weeks to recover, and that would basically take them to the end of the year (plus, putting him on the 60-day DL allows the club to add another player to the roster). As a result of the injury Jones falls just short of his first 20 homer season, he finishes with 19 long balls, though a .277-19-70-83-10 season certainly isn’t anything to be upset about in his second full season.
I wouldn’t be at all surprised to see Tim Lincecum return to the hill this weekend. He was in the dugout on Tuesday after being forced to miss the start because of a sore lower back, and he was caught smiling and moving around fairly well. As for the Giants offense, there is no word when it might be back in action. In nine games in September the G-men have recorded more than three runs just twice. Pathetic.
Could it finally be happening? Could The World’s Biggest Idiot, aka Phillies’ manager Charlie Manuel, finally be conceding that he is destroying the moral of his club by continuing to throw Brad Lidge out there in the ninth inning? “…I want to be loyal to him and things like that, but at the same time, like I told him last night, winning the game is the first priority.” Ryan Madson owners can rejoice. It looks like you might get a handful of saves out of the man you have held on to for months waiting for the Phillies to do the right thing. Of course, Brett Myers could end up swooping in to pick up a few saves chances as well, so perhaps Madson owners shouldn’t be too excited after all.
Albert Pujols hit two bombs today and is just three homers short of his first 50 season. Just spit balling here, but is it possible that 20 years from now we will be talking about Pujols as the greatest “steroid free” home run hitter of all-time? Let’s play a little game of what if. (1) Pujols is just 29 years old. (2) In nine seasons he has never hit fewer than 32 home runs in a season. (3) He has averaged 40 home runs a season over his nine year career. (4) If Pujols plays another 10 years while averaging 35 homers a season he will end up with something along the lines of 720 home runs. That would still leave him behind Hank Aaron and his 755 home runs. Just goes to show you how amazingly consistent that Mr. Aaron was in his career.
Huston Street continues to make progress with that sore biceps muscle, but the latest word out of Colorado is that he still isn’t likely to return to action this week as previously hoped. In his place, the Rockies will continue to go with Franklin Morales who has converted 5-straight save chances in his last five appearances during which time he has allowed only five base runners and not a single run. Overall Morales has a 2.60 ERA, a.1.13 WHIP and 36 Ks in 34.2 ABs, and that’s pretty darn good no matter where you are pitching.
Trivia Question: How many straight seasons has Braden Looper won at least 11 games? The answer is three – each of his seasons as a starter. Do you know how many NL hurlers have won at least 11 games each of the past three seasons if we include this season? Try seven (including Lopper): Jamie Moyer, Derek Lowe, Adam Wainwright, Ted Lilly, Jason Marquis and Chad Billingsley.
By Ray Flowers
Yet another one of those days here on Wednesday with some oddities around the diamond. I’ll hit on a few things rather quickly before offering yet another diatribe about the stupidity that is being allowed to fester in the City of Brotherly Love.
Jamey Carroll had three hits on Wednesday, and for those of you haven’t bothered to look at his work this season you might be surprised to see that he is hitting .290 with 42 runs scored in just 224 ABs. AL-only leaguers who called his name out for two or three bucks on draft day have certainly gotten their money’s worth.
You don’t hear many people talking about Travis Hafner anymore, and with good reason. The once proud hitter who socked at least 24 home runs with 100 or more RBI in 4-straight seasons (2004-07) was atrocious last season in a year filled with injury (he hit .197 in 198 ABs). This year he has been much better hitting .278 with 13 homers and 38 RBI in 252 ABs, but it just looks like he will never be able to work his way back to the top of the mountain because of continued issues with his shoulder. “I don’t think he’s hurt, but there have been lasting affects from the surgery and the rehab,” manager Eric Wedge said. “I think he needs some down time to be 100 percent.”
Joe Crede remains out of the starting lineup with his back injury. I’m about as shocked to hear that Crede is sidelined by injury as I am that the Nationals have the worst record in baseball. In another shocking development, the Mets placed yet another player on the DL in hurler Oliver Perez. The mercurial lefty will have surgery to repair a patella tendon in his knee that has given him trouble all year, and as a result his season is over. There is not truth to the rumor that Mr. Met will end up on the DL with a strained oblique suffered while tossing peanuts to the fans.
Brad Lidge blew yet another game on Tuesday night, yet brain-dead manager Charlie Manuel says he is sticking with his beleaguered hurler. “He’s got to stay with it,” Manuel said. “He’s got to keep going. I mean, what the hell? That’s all we can do. … That’s where we’re at. That’s our closer. I’ve said that all along. That’s the guy we give the ball to in the ninth inning.” Look Mr. Manuel, you are turning into a laughing stock with your inability to make the move that should have been made months ago. In fact, way back on May 24th in A Change is Needed I suggested the obvious, turning to Ryan Madson, and I hit on that situation yet again about a week and a half ago in Philly Flop. Yet despite all of the data Manuel continues to run Lidge out there in the ninth inning, and it seems like he is pretty steadfast in his position despite an utter avalanche of information suggesting that this decision could preclude the team from once again reaching the World Series. If Tuesday night’s outing isn’t the straw that breaks the camels back – Lidge needed just seven pitches to allow three runs on his way to his sixth loss and ninth blown save – then there simply isn’t ever going to be a reason deemed worthy enough by Mr. Manuel to do the prudent thing and replace Lidge with Madson.
The Rockies continue to win, and they are just two games behind the Dodgers for the NL West lead heading into action on Wednesday night. No team in baseball history has ever come back from a 15.5 game deficit in season to capture a division title (the 1914 Braves came back from a 15 game deficit), but the Rockies could be the first. Since June 3rd, when they were a season worst 12 games under .500, the club has gone 52-22, good enough for a .703 winning percentage. Some truly amazingly things are happening on Colorado.
By Ray Flowers
Photo Credit: Mr. Met and the esteemed Ryan Houston.
Want to know the main reason that the Phillies won’t be hoisting the World Championship trophy at the end of October? I’ve got one simple reason and it is this – former ace reliever Brad Lidge, is flat out AWFUL. I’m sometimes accused of dealing in hyperbole – defined as “an exaggeration for emphasis” – but in this case my words are directly on point. Don’t take my word for it, here are the numbers.
Since the All-Star break this season Lidge has appeared in 14 games covering 11.2 IP:
0-1, 7.71 ERA, 1.80 WHIP, 1.00 K/BB, 5 SVs with 2 blown saves.
Amazed at the profound struggles? How could you be when you consider how awful he was before the All-Star break. In 35 games covering 32 IP, here are the numbers:
0-4, 7.03 ERA, 1.84 WHIP, 1.95 K/BB, 18 SVs with 6 blown saves.
That’s right, anyway you cut it Lidge has been atrocious all season long. Let’s compare his numbers this season with his career marks before the start of 2009.
2009: 7.21 ERA, 1.83 WHIP, 9.48 K/9, 5.77 BB/9, 1.64 K/BB, .299 BAA
Career: 3.10 ERA, 1.20 WHIP, 12.50 K/9, 3.92 BB/9, 3.19 K/BB, .216 BAA
So Lidge has doubled his ERA, has seen his WHIP go up about about 33 percent, has seen his K/9 mark lose three batters per nine while his K/BB rate has dropped by almost 50 percent. So are you still trying to tell me that there isn’t something wrong here? Sure he has been a bit snake bitten, that’s the only way you can figure it when his 17 percent line drive rate is four percentage points below his career mark yet his BABIP is sky-high at .353, but come on now. He has been awful virtually all year. Sure he was 48-for-48 in converting saves, but that was 2008 Charlie Manuel. If you want to avoid destroying the playoffs chances of possibly the most gifted team in the league, you need to immediately remove Lidge from the closers role. Mr. Manuel, the manager of the Phillies for those of you who didn’t know, it’s not good when your closer has five loses and eight blown saves. That’s a (-13) since he doesn’t have a single victory this season.
Here is a little historical perspective.
The worst ERA of all-time for a season of at least 25 saves was the 7.11 mark of Shawn Chacon during the 2004 season when he racked up 35 saves for the Rockies. Of course the Rockies weren’t any good at 68-94. The only other season of 25 saves with an ERA above six is the 2003 season of Mike Williams (28 saves, 6.14 ERA). He pitched for two teams that season, the 75-87 Pirates and the Phillies who went 86-76 (he had only three of those saves with the Phils).
The point is that what Lidge is doing is historically bad, and honestly, that is actually being rather kind.
Who should the Phils go with in the ninth inning? The same man they should have been using to close out games for the past three months – Ryan Madson. Just look at his numbers.
2.95 ERA, 1.19 WHIP, 9.16 K/9, 3.11 K/BB over 58 innings
Madson is also throwing three miles per hour harder than ever before at 95 per mph with his fastball, and that my friends is certainly encouraging.
So Mr. Manuel do yourself, your team, your city a favor – get Lidge out of the ninth inning before he costs your team their season. And for goodness sakes get Ryan Madson in there – I’ve been waiting on you to do the right thing with him all season so I can get me some cheap saves.
By Ray Flowers
It’s Friday, so forgive me. I’m all over the map as we wrap down the week. I’ve got a cold and I’m tired, but I also have plenty of fun scheduled for the weekend starting tonight with Game 7 of the NHL Finals (you can read more about that below). So proceed with caution moving forward – hopefully you won’t nauseous as I’ll be jumping around from sport to sport in today’s entry.
Emilio Bonifacio will hit ninth in the batting order in interleague play with the Marlins using a designated hitter for their pitcher. Since his red hot start that included 16 hits in his first 33 ABs (.485) Emilio hasn’t hit like he belongs in the big leagues with a 50-for-219 stretch that has produced a .228 batting average. Emilio may stay in the ninth hole once the club returns to the NL brand of ball, that is if the Marlins decide to use their pitcher in the eighth hole like Tony La Russa. Chris Coghlan figures to continue to hold down the leadoff role for the club with his .350 OBP this season, a number that is .365 in his 12 games in his current role at the top of the order.
Ryan Madson since Brad Lidge was placed on the DL: two appearances, no runs, two saves. Like a cool drink on a hot day.
It came out a few days ago, but did you see the report in the USA Today that said it’s not wind conditions that is leading to all the home runs at Yankee stadium, the real reason is that the dimensions of the part are so small? “The wall structure is slightly different than the old park,” AccuWeather said. “The main difference involves curvature. The gentle curve from right field to center field seen in original Yankee Stadium has largely been eliminated at the new stadium… Not only is the famed short porch even shorter in the new stadium, but the walls themselves are not as tall.” AccuWeather reported that 20 of the first 105 home runs hit at the new ball yard would not have gone out of old Yankee Stadium. This is significant in that the new yard is on pace to surrender 293 home runs this season, a total that is just 10 homers off the major league record which is held by Coors Field in Colorado in 1999.
I’m pretty sure that when Joe Mauer was out of the spotlight his body became inhabited by the spirit of Ted Williams. Mauer hit his 13th home run of the season Friday, and with three more RBI he now has 39 ribbies in 39 games. Despite missing the entire month of April, Mauer is not only the top catcher in baseball in standard 12 team mixed leagues according to the Player Rater, he is also one of the to-10 offensive weapons in the game at the time of this writing. That’s utterly amazing.
I touched on the moron that is Chad Ochocinco the other day in Woe is Me, but this guy just cannot stay out of harms way – he simply cannot help himself. According to the Cincinnati Enquirer Johnson has gotten three tattoos on his face (look for a link to a picture on the right side). Yes, I said face. He has two crosses on his right cheekbone, on the left side of his face he has a map of Florida, and on the bridge of his nose he has the letters “OC” for his name. Good to know that if he ever passes out drunk people will know that he is a Christian who lives in Florida and likes to drink Orange Juice.
Kevin Slowey had a huge game on Friday as he struck out 10 Cubs on his way to his ninth victory of the year against only two loses. That gives him a run of six quality starts in seven outings, and in that time he has lowered his ERA from 5.50 to 4.23.
Game 7 of the NHL Finals is about an hour away. Are you as excited about the tilt as I am? Probably not, but if you want a little extra NHL knowledge in regards to the series and Game 7 in particular click on the link to may latest NHL article titled Western Conference Review. There is nothing like the majesty and tension of an NHL Game 7, and with this one being in the Finals, do yourself a favor and watch the game on NBC or CBC even if you aren’t a hockey fan. Trust me, you won’t be disappointed, and perhaps you can approximate the thrill that the players will be experiencing tonight if you merely think back to your childhood when you used to screw around with your friends setting up that Game 7 scenario so that you could win the Cup for your club. Someone will get to turn that dream into reality tonight.
By Ray Flowers
Today was the day that dreams were made. Kids who have spent their whole life dreaming of what it would be like to have their shot at major league glory took that first step on this day as the 2009 MLB First Player Draft began. Here are some of my thoughts after watching the first round on television.
* The Nationals didn’t screw it up and took Stephen Strasburg with the first overall pick in the draft. The kid has amazing stuff including a fastball that normally resides in the 96-98 mph range and has been clocked as high as 103 mph (that’s not a misprint). Not just a tools guy, Strasburg’s results in college were phenomenal this year including the fact that in just 109 innings he posted a 1.32 ERA, racked up 195 Ks (that’s a K/9 mark of over 16 folks), and walked just 19 batters leading to a 13-1 record. Yeah, on top of the heat and the massive strikeout totals this kid just throws darts leading to a 10.26 K/BB mark. Could he be effective in the big leagues today? Quite possibly. However, the question at this point isn’t about his talent, it’s about how long it will take him to sign with the Nationals since his agent is Scott Boras. Mr. Boras has been thought to be pushing for something along the lines of at least $20 million to sign the flamethrower with some reports tossing out the $50 million figure. Newsflash Mr. Boras – this isn’t the NFL, players don’t get that much dough on their first deals in baseball. Will the Nats pony up that much dough if that’s really what Strasburg is looking for? I know he might be a once in a generation talent, but a 6-year deal for $50, if the reports are accurate, would be just crazy for a guy without a single pitch in a big league uniform. Just my two cents.
* How many times can someone use the word “signability?” Seriously, we get it. Some guys want a lot of dough, more than teams want to pay, but really, can’t we use some other term? Is it just me or does signability sound like a word someone made up one night when they had pulled back one too many beers?
* I love the MLB studios where the draft was held. Looks just like a real baseball field with a diamond, outfield walls etc. Great look.
* Nine of the first 12 picks were pitchers this year, and 15 of the first 22. I know you build championships with pitching so it makes sense from that angle but with all the arm problems that hurlers have anymore would you want to build your franchise around an 18 year old fresh off his high school graduation? Seems to me that it might be a better idea to go with a position player that early, but like Anakin Skywalker in Star Wars it seems like the lure of the “dark side” is often too powerful to pass up (Anakin becomes Darth Vader for those of you who don’t know Star Wars, and shame on you if you don’t).
* Is Bud Selig a robot? I know I’m always on the guy, but really, how could you not be? He cannot pronounce Cincinnati or Los Angeles, said this was the 19– draft, and looked like he was reading a teleprompter every time he made an announcement. He caught himself in mid-sentence with the year snafu, and we all say stupid things at times, but really it’s 2009 Bud so get your head out of that place where the sun doesn’t shine.
* Oh yeah, there is also this note. I opined on my thoughts on the Phillies stupidly hanging on to the belief that the ninth inning answer for the club right now was Brad Lidge despite the mountain of evidence that said otherwise on May 24th in my piece titled A Change is Needed. Now, a mere two and a half weeks later, the Phillies finally listened. Lidge has been placed on the DL with a knee issue, and into the ninth inning role goes Ryan Madson who has been the vastly superior hurler this season. To read my thoughts on what Madson brings in great depth, read my latest IMPACT REPORT. Bout time Phils.
By Ray Flowers
What is wrong with this picture? One Philadelphia Phillies’ hurler has dominated time after time he has been called upon out of the pen. Another, with a long history or success and coming of an unequaled run of 48-for-48 in converting saves last season (including the playoffs) has been pitching so poorly that he has made Troy Percival and his 6.35 ERA and 1.68 WHIP actually look palatable – and it ain’t.
On Sunday, Brad Lidge blew yet another save chance, his fourth of the year, though the Phillies did come back to beat the Yankees in extra innings (4-3 in 11). How bad has Lidge been? About all you need to know is that he allowed one run in his inning of work, that’s a one day ERA of 9.00 folks, and his overall ERA actually dropped 0.01 down to 9.15. That’s just awful. The outing against the Yankees also continued what must be considered the worst month of his career. Just take a gander at just how pathetic Lidge has been this May.
Though he has four saves, he also has three blown saves and has a loss.
If that isn’t bad enough, check out the ratios.
10.64 ERA, 2.36 WHIP, 6.55 K/9, 1.00 K/BB in 11 IP
That spells U-G-L-Y in any language.
Certainly Lidge has been a force in the past, and he had a huge hand in the team capturing the title last season, but at the same time what you did in the past really doesn’t matter – this is a what have you done for me lately game. Lidge, who has allowed a least a run in eight of his last 11 games and 10 of 15, clearly doesn’t deserve to pitching in the ninth inning, and in fact you could certainly make the argument that he doesn’t even belong on the staff right now. His knee has given him some trouble this year, and whether or not that is the reason for his recent struggles, the club would be better off just saying that it is and placing him on the DL as perhaps some time away would allow him to fix what ails him.
Another reason this makes sense is that setup man Ryan Madson he been tremendous this year. In addition to the nine holds he has recorded, Madson owns a 2.95 ERA, 1.08 WHIP, 9.70 K/9 mark and a strong 3.83 K/BB rate. Those are the numbers of a borderline elite closer my friends. Even better, he has been consistently solid allowing a run to score in just one of his last 15 appearances. In addition, after averaging 91.7 mph on his fastball in his career, he bumped that number up to 92.9 last season. Not content with that increase, Ryan has taken things to a whole other level this season with an average fastball of 94.9 mph (his slider is coming in at 89.9). Good luck hitting that when his control is on.
Look, I’m not one for making snap decisions or for bailing on a guy that has proven over the years to be good at his job, but at some point you have to look at what is right in front of your face an honestly assess the situation, something they clearly aren’t doing in Philadelphia. Sooner or later they will be forced to admit what is visible to anyone who has seen him pitch or has looked at the results: Brad Lidge should not be closing for the Phillies right now because of his profound struggles. With Ryan Madson pitching so well it just doesn’t make any sense for Philly not to make the switch to Madson in the 9th until Lidge is able to figure things out.
By Ray Flowers
Today I’m going to explain why it makes sense to trust yourself, and why your first “call” is likely the one that you should almost always go with. I’ll also touch on the plight of the injured Athletics, and a couple of NFL quick hitters that I just had to voice my thoughts on.
The Athletics can’t hit (they are last in the AL with a .233 batting average and just 75 runs scored), and they are also dealing with injuries all over the infield to the likes of Nomar Garciaparra and Mark Ellis (both have calf concerns) and the never ending health concerns of Eric Chavez. All of this likely means that Bobby Crosby could return to the lineup on a daily basis, especially if both Garciaparra and Ellis end up with long stays on the sidelines (they will at least be DL’d for 15-days). Crosby isn’t hitting his weight this season (.179 in 28 ABs), this after hitting .226 in 2207 and .237 in 2008. The A’s are in bad shape if they have to given Crosby 400+ ABs this season. Heck, if they give the at-bats to Jack Hannahan are they any better off since he owns a career line of .229/.317/.360 in 595 ABs?
Don’t you hate it when you don’t trust yourself? This weekend in the $100,000 NFBC tournament, I had a decision to make on who to add to my pitching staff when the A’s finally announced that Joey Devine was done for the year with elbow surgery. With Devine’s injury, he was the top closer I took on draft day, I’m left without a full-time closer in the 15 team league (30 players per squad). Ryan Franklin has been a great find, he was taken in the 25th round, but it’s tough to call him a full-time closer with the way Tony La Russa manages the Cardinals.
Anyway, I had to make a decision on who to add to my squad, knowing that I badly needed saves. I had three main choices I was considering: J.P. Howell, Santiago Casilla and Ryan Madson. Clearly Howell isn’t in line for saves in Tampa, but it was still hard to ignore his performance since the start of last season that includes some great work that I detailed in my Chopping Block article, including the best ERA in baseball since the start of the 2008 season amongst hurlers who have thrown at least 95-innings. Madson, he has been a lock the past two years producing an identical ERA of 3.05, and WHIP marks of 1.27 and 1.23. Solid skills, and a stable role, but no saves with Brad Lidge around. That left me with Casilla as my top choice since I have little faith at all that Brad Ziegler will be able to hold down the closers role all year. Casilla is off to a solid start with a 1.59 ERA and 0.79 WHIP in his 11.1 innings, and he has allowed only three hits. If he can avoid his late season failures that have become too common place, and Ziegler is slowly figured out by batters as I assume he will be, then Casilla becomes a very sneaky and cheap pickup with saves potential (I only spent $12 out of a $1,000 FAAB budget to grab him). Now comes word that Lidge is dealing with a knee injury that shouldn’t, but could, end up with him spending some time on the DL. In fact, according to our injury expert Rick Wilton, this type of injury not only often leads to a stint on the DL, it even ends up leading to surgery in a minority of cases (you can read more about his injury analysis in The Baseball Injury Report.
All of this just goes to show you that trusting your gut is always the right move. In this case, that would have been to take Madson or Howell who are likely to me much more stable options than Casilla. If Lidge ends up needing time on the DL, care to guess how much Madson will go for in FAAB this week? I’m betting the bidding would hit at least hits triple digits. Oh, and yeah, that was a report you read this morning on Casilla injuring his calf on Tuesday night right? He will likely be shut down for a couple of days as a result. What is it I always preach– take skill over role? I should have taken my own advice.
I love how the Raiders do their own thing without a care in the world about what others think. Too bad they are never right.
Some team is going to give Michael Vick a shot once his prison sentence and NFL suspension are completed. Not only do I hope that team receives coal in their stocking come the holiday season, I hope the organization goes into a tailspin and doesn’t make the playoffs for a decade. The man is a deplorable human being, and for once I would like the owners in the NFL to stand up for what is right versus what could make them money. I can tell you this – there will be a whole lot of P.E.T.A (People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals) rallies everywhere Vick goes, and there rightly should be. Sometimes P.E.T.A is way too rabid for my tastes, but in this case, I stand with them.
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 SiriusXM Fantasy Sports Radio (Sirius 210, XM 87: M-F at 5-8 PM EDT), Ray has spent years squirreled away studying the inner workings of the fantasy game to the detriment of his personal life. 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: Fantasy Alarm, Rotoinfo, Rotowire and Sports Illustrated.
You can contact Ray through e-mail at fantasyfandom@yahoo(dot)com or on Twitter.
