What the Hell Happened to Baseball Reference?

I was a Baseball Reference advocate. No, more than that. I was a Baseball Reference ambassador. I loved their site. I loved the basic and complex statistics they offered. I loved the site's simplicity; it wasn't bogged down with videos or advertisements or video advertisements (I'm looking at you, Yahoo/ESPN/CBS/basically all other sports websites). It was my go-to site for looking up stats, coming up with trivia (I'm a huge nerd), doing research for blog posts and radio shows, everything. It was (and for now, still is) the site that I linked to when I wrote blog posts.

Recently, however, the site has torpedoed. It still offers the same statistics as before, as well as even more advanced metrics and bonus content like HOF predictors, ELO ratings, and more. But they've added three prominent ads to almost every non-home page: one big video ad in the middle, and two sometimes flash animation and sometimes regular banner ads on the sides.

They. Are. Awful.

When I was writing my recent post on Bret Saberhagen, I (as usual) wanted to link to any relevant pages in my article. That mostly includes direct player links, and they linked to the player's associated page on www.baseball-reference.com. Simple enough, right? Well, no. Any time I opened more than one tab from Baseball Reference, the concurrent advertisement streams sent my Firefox into a tizzy. I opened Internet Explorer to test if it was just my browser, but encountered the same bogged down results.

This is a computer on which I've simultaneously run Skyrim and Just Cause 2, in case you were wondering if it might be a hardware issue. I would think opening a couple browser windows wouldn't make my machine fart out its brains.

I sent an email reporting this experience to the webmasters of the site, without any response. And I guess I don't necessarily need any sort of response...except that a site can't exist if people don't go there. Or it can (as this blog has proven time and time again), but it becomes irrelevant and loses any value, intrinsic or financial. I don't know how much traffic I drive to Baseball Reference, but I know it's more than zero. And I'm open to making another contribution to their cause (Joe and Joe Sports at one point sponsored a couple of pages on basketball-reference.com). I'm always open to supporting people who make a great product.

But baseball-reference.com, in its current form, is not a great product. It's, inexplicably, a product that used to be great, but managed to manage its way out of greatness.

I've browsed the site, and I've found a subscription option for $20 that gives you an ad-free experience, which would be great if I didn't write a blog. I'm posting links here to pages that I'm encouraging people to click. I'm having conscience issues when I think about nudging my readers into that miserable browsing experience.

A little more recently, I posted an article comparing the Orioles and Royals player-by-player, and I still used links to baseball-reference.com. I'm reticent to give up on them. They've been such a tremendous resource for me for so long that I want to believe that it'll get better. But it's been really, really bad for a couple weeks now. I'm not sure what to do.

So, I invite you to help me out. I've already sent a message explaining my experience, but if you've noticed the same, or if you listened to me rant and tested it out to see what I'm talking about, I'd ask you to let the site know about it. Their feedback form is here.

My hope would be that we can help this site find a different way to monetize that isn't so destructive for people trying to use the site. I'd be happy to shell out some money to that end, but only if I'm referring people to the great Baseball Reference of old.

The new one isn't worth it.

The Baseball Story of Bret Saberhagen

This past week, Phil Hughes set an all-time record for strikeout-to-walk ratio for a season, breaking Bret Saberhagen's twenty-year-old record. That got me thinking about Bret Saberhagen, which led us here. Rock and roll.

It should be noted that, while advanced statistics support claims that Saberhagen was an exceptional pitcher, he doesn't have any actual connection to the term sabermetrics.

Immediate Dividends

Saberhagen was drafted straight out of Grover Cleveland High School in Reseda, California by the Kansas City Royals in 1982. He blew away hitters at single- and double-A in 1983, compiling a 16-7 record with a cumulative 2.55 ERA and 1.13 WHIP in 27 starts. Unsurprisingly, Saberhagen broke camp with the major league ballclub in 1984.

Saberhagen was effective as a rookie as well. He went 10-11 with 3.48/1.10, and that WHIP is what's most impressive. Not many rookies are able to control innings as well as he did, and he did so with tremendous control and pitching to contact. He walked just 36 batters in 157.2 innings in his rookie season, a great rate for anyone and an amazing rate for such a young pitcher (he was 19 entering the season). As I mentioned at the beginning, that's kind of Saberhagen's thing, not walking guys.

Interestingly, Saberhagen didn't receive a single vote for Rookie of the Year. Granted, his numbers weren't tremendous, and the top two vote-getters absolutely deserved the lion's share: Alvin Davis won the ROY with .284-27-116, and Mark Langston finished second with 17-10, 3.40, and 204 strikeouts in 225 innings. But among the guys who managed to nab a single vote were Ron Romanick (12-12, 3.76, 87 K in 229.2 IP) and Saberhagen's teammate Mark Gubicza (10-14, 4.05, 111 K in 189.0 IP).

The only explanation I can think of is that innings pitched was a real barn-burner back in the early 80s. Although I don't think the innings disparity makes up for how much better Saberhagen was than Romanick and Gubicza, I'm okay with innings pitched getting a little more credit as a statistic. We talk all the time about the value of guys getting deep into games, giving their bullpens a break. Maybe we should acknowledge that effort in the raw statistics that give us that information.

Anywho, back to Sabes, who didn't let his lack of ROY votes get him down. Like, at all.

Winning, Winning, Winning

In 1985, Bret Saberhagen had a banner year. He started perfectly fine, with a record of 7-4 and an ERA of 3.23 through the end of June. But that's when he turned it on. Here's a list of amazing things that Saberhagen did in 17 starts from July 3rd through October 5th:

• posted a win-loss record of 13-2
• threw seven complete games, including a 10-inning game on August 19 against the Tigers
• pitched into the ninth inning or beyond in 10 different games
• walked two or fewer batters in every start
• yielded an absurdly low .256 OBP to opposing batters

Oh, and the Royals went from two games over .500 to twenty games over .500, edging the California Angels (I just love typing that) by a single game for the AL West crown. Saberhagen had a rough series against the Toronto Blue Jays in the ALCS, going only 4.1 and 3.0 innings in his two starts, but the Royals were able to squeak into the World Series with George Brett basically willing them there.

Then, after dropping the first two games at home to the St. Louis Cardinals, Dick Howser gave the ball to Saberhagen, and Bret answered with a complete game one run, six-hit win. Then in game seven, under the brightest lights, Saberhagen posted another complete game, this time a shutout. His two masterpieces earned him the World Series MVP award; his dominance all season earned him the 1985 Cy Young Award.

From 1986-1988, Saberhagen had his share of ups and downs. He won 18 games in 1987, but then gave up more hits than anyone in the league in 1988.

Then in 1989, Saberhagen was brilliant. Once again he was phenomenal after the All-Star break. From July 14 on, he went 15-2, receiving the decision in every start. By the end of the year, he led the AL in...everything?

• 23 wins
• .793 winning percentage
• 2.16 ERA
• 12 complete games
• 262.1 innings pitched
• 0.96 WHIP
• 4.49 K/BB ratio

He received 27 of 28 first place votes to win his second Cy Young Award (some crackhead gave Dave Stewart a vote).

Dethroned

The legacy of Bret Saberhagen, though, is inconsistency. He missed time in 1990 and 1991 with various ailments, though he did throw his only no-hitter in August of 1991, and the last no-hitter in Kansas City Royal history to date.

That offseason, Saberhagen's time with the Royals ended (get the "dethroned" title now?) as he was traded to the New York Mets along with Bill Pecota for Gregg Jefferies, Kevin McReynolds, and Keith Miller in a fierce collection of mostly irrelevant players. Saberhagen was solid for the Mets when he was able to stay healthy, maintaining his disdain for free passes. In 524.1 innings with New York, he issued just 77 total walks. In the strike-shortened 1994, he set the aforementioned previous record for best strikeout-to-walk ratio in a season at 11.00. But he also never managed more than 25 starts, again due to a variety of ailments, or perhaps just one big one that hadn't been detected yet...

Saberhagen was traded again in the middle of the 1995 season, this time to the playoff-bound Colorado Rockies, ruining fantasy owners everywhere. His ERA at the time of the trade was 3.35, but ballooned up to 4.18 in nine starts for the Rockies. Colorado still made the playoffs, but lost in the divisional round to the Braves. Saberhagen was no help, yielding six runs in 4 innings in his only start.

An Injury Unlike Any Other

Then, leading into 1996, Saberhagen found himself extremely bothered by an unresponsive shoulder injury. After multiple tests, he was found to have a torn anterior capsule in his pitching shoulder. Up to that point, surgery had been conducted to repair this injury exactly zero times. The reason you don't really hear about it is that the injury actually isn't often "successful." Among the folks who've had the surgery are a litany of "hey remember how good ____ was" names: Rich Harden, Mark Prior, Chien-Ming Wang, Johan Santana.

That said, Saberhagen actually recovered fairly well from the surgery. He missed all of the 1996 season and entered free agency. The Boston Red Sox signed him to a $500k contract for the year, and he missed most of the 1997 season as well, coming in for six starts starting in August. He wasn't impressive by any stretch (6.58 ERA, 1.54 WHIP), but the BoSox saw enough to keep him around, and it paid off handsomely. Over the next two seasons with Boston, he'd go 25-14 in 53 closely-monitored starts, and earning another award for his cabinet: 1998's Comeback Player of the Year.

Unfortunately, the year 2000 was not a new start for Saberhagen, as he encountered more shoulder problems and underwent another shoulder surgery. The Red Sox stood by him through it all, but this spelled the beginning of the end. Sabes made three starts for Boston in 2001, but it was clear he simply didn't have it, and he retired at the end of the season.

Of course, in those 15 innings, he didn't walk a batter.

Final Statistics
Career win-loss record: 167-117
Career ERA: 3.34
Career WHIP: 1.14
Career K/BB ratio: 3.64
Career complete games: 76
2 Cy Young Awards (1985, 1989)
1 World Series MVP Award (1985)
Career earnings: $47,688,230

The Baseball Story of...Freddy Sanchez

This is a new series I'm going to try to run with for a little while. I'm not sure how it's going to play out, but it seemed like an interesting idea, so I figured I'd give it a shot. If it goes well, I'll do more. If not, this'll probably be the last one you see.

The rules of "The Baseball Story of..." will be as follows:

1. The player can't be a Hall of Famer. They can be players who were good for a stretch, but if a player looks like he has any chance at making the Hall of Fame, he's ineligible for this series.
2. The player has to have won something. Whether it's a Cy Young, a home run title, or a World Series MVP, the guy has to have been noteworthy at some point. I'll bold the mention of it in the article, so you can see it at a glance.

A friend and I were reminiscing about old trades in our fantasy baseball league, and he reminded me of a trade that centered around Freddy Sanchez for Hanley Ramirez. While Hanley's career has been up and down, he's still very relevant in fantasy circles. But Freddy Sanchez, I had completely forgotten about. So, I did a little research, and with that completed, here and now, I give you:

The Baseball Story of Freddy Sanchez.

Boston Red Sox

Sanchez began his career in the Red Sox organization. He was drafted by the Atlanta Braves in the 30th round out of high school, but elected not to sign. After a college career at three different schools (culminating at Oklahoma State), he was again drafted in the 11th round by the BoSox.

If there's one thing you can say for sure about Freddy Sanchez, it's that he was too good for minor league baseball. He hit .288 in low A ball in 2000, and then never dipped below .300 again before making the majors. Sanchez didn't have it quite so easy in the big leagues though. In two brief stints with the Red Sox, he hit just .220 with only a pair of doubles and zero homers in 52 plate appearances. Luckily that wasn't the end of his story, because the Steel City saw something they liked.

Pittsburgh Pirates

In the summer of 2003, the Red Sox were chasing the Yankees, and they wanted to beef up their rotation. They acquired Jeff Suppan from the Pirates, who was having the best season of his career to-date. He boasted averages of 3.73/1.26, going 10-7 for another bad Pirates team. They sent Sanchez along with Mike Gonzalez to Pittsburgh for Suppan, Brandon Lyon, and Anastacio Martinez. Lyon and Martinez had marginal careers, Martinez's being far more marginal. Suppan was pretty bad for the Red Sox, his ERA jumping nearly two runs after the move to the junior circuit, and he went unused during the 2003 postseason.

Meanwhile in Pittsburgh, Sanchez spent most of 2003 and 2004 on the disabled list due to an ankle injury. The following season, however, was a coming out party of sorts. Sanchez got into 132 games, playing second, third, and short. He finished third on the team in hits, doubles, and triples, and second on the team in batting average.

Sanchez became a national story in 2006. He won the NL batting title at .344, and tied with Grady Sizemore to lead the majors with 53 doubles. He managed to make the All-Star team that year as a reserve. He also received 5 vote points in the NL MVP race, putting him just 383 points behind winner Ryan Howard (come on, you had to expect me to troll a little).

Sanchez continued a similar level of production for the next few years. He made two more All-Star teams with Pittsburgh, in 2007 and 2009. Later in 2009, the Giants were hurting at second base. They'd tried Emmanuel Burriss, Matt Downs, and Kevin Frandsen, but they batted a combined .210 that season. They just needed someone who wasn't a drag on their offense. So...

San Francisco Giants

...they traded minor leaguer Tim Alderson to the Pirates for Sanchez. Some Giants fans hated this trade apparently, though the content of that blog post makes me think it was irrational (a guy who has trouble striking out batters in the minors doesn't project to be a particularly good major leaguer). Alderson was a first round pick in 2007, but he'd yet to blow people away in the minors, and as I mentioned above, the Giants were a dead zone at second base.

Sanchez hit .284 the rest of the way with San Francisco, though he failed to display much pop; he had only two extra-base hits in his 25 games with the Giants in 2009. The next year was more of the same for Sanchez, though he was able to crank a few more doubles, more along his career pace. He was by no means vital, but he was an everyday player for a team that would eventually go on to win the World Series, putting a bow on a solid career so far.

Unfortunately for Sanchez, that title did somewhat put a bow on his career. He suffered a serious shoulder injury in 2011 diving for a ground ball. After attempting to rehab it for about 8 weeks, he eventually decided to get season-ending surgery. Sanchez was hitting .289 at the time.

Freddy started 2012 still on the disabled list, and just before the All-Star break, Sanchez underwent back surgery, which again ended his season, and eventually his career. He was granted free agency at the end of the season, and hasn't played since.

The most recent news on him was in January of this year, when he stated that he hadn't officially retired from baseball yet, and was still open to the possibility of coming back. While I wouldn't hold out much hope for that, and despite the fact that Sanchez played mostly for two teams I don't really care for, I hold no ill will towards Freddy, and wish him the best.

Final (?) Statistics
Career batting average: .297
Career runs: 434
Career hits: 1,012
Career doubles: 215
Career home runs: 48
Career earnings: $32,117,000

Why I'm Taking Hanley Over Pujols

As you might have been able to tell from the title of this post, I'm assuming some level of knowledge with regards to fantasy baseball among readers of this article. If you're uninterested in fantasy baseball, you're probably better off waiting until April, when the NFL draft comes around, and the NHL season draws to a close.

Every list I look at has Albert Pujols as its #1 player. He's the consensus first player that should come off the board in every league. And really, you can never go wrong acquiring Albert Pujols. He's a megastar, unquestionably the best hitter in baseball. He gives you batting average, runs, home runs, and RBI, all in spades, and even tosses in a couple steals, because why not?

But if it's me with the #1 overall pick, or setting up a top __ list, or deciding how to allocate my auction funds, Hanley Ramirez is at the top of my rankings. Since it'd be a pretty boring post if I didn't, I'll explain why.

(By the way, this article assumes a 12-team league. In a 10-team league, position eligibility loses some of its importance, and I think makes it a dead heat between Hanley and Pujols).

We'll start with a look at their stats. These are their average 5x5 stats over the past five years (starting with Hanley's first full season):

Ramirez: .313, 112 runs, 25 HR, 78 RBI, 39 SB
Pujols: .330, 111 runs, 41 HR, 122 RBI, 9 SB

Obviously you're ecstatic with either of those lines. Hanley gives you across the board plus production other than RBI, and Pujols will post outstanding numbers in four different categories. Based purely on numbers, you're probably leaning towards Pujols, and that's perfectly reasonable. You're thinking, "Oh, I can just draft Michael Bourn in the 11th round to take care of my steals." And you can, of course you can. I won't ever say that taking Pujols first overall is a bad pick. It's a safe pick, a sure thing, and you'd be following the advice of all the experts.

But not my advice (notice how I just labeled myself a non-expert...oops!). I'm assuming you've all done ten or twelve fantasy baseball drafts, yes? When you're going through your draft, true or false, you much more often find yourself trying to find a reasonable steals guy to draft than a reasonable power guy to draft?

Of course it's steals. The thing about steals guys is that, when it comes to baseball, they're actually not all that valuable. Sure, speed is nice, and if you can be a very effective basestealer, you can put yourself into a position to score a lot of runs. But a bopper will always be more valuable, have a more solidified lineup spot, and thus, be a safer pick in the middle rounds. Think about guys like Dave Roberts and Eric Young, speed guys who disappeared because their speed wasn't enough to keep them playing every day.

The speed of Hanley acts as a counter-weight to Pujols' power numbers. Now, Pujols still has a 17 point edge in batting average. What position does he play again? First base? And Hanley plays...shortstop, that's right. But is position eligibility something you even want to take into account at the top of the draft?

Umm...yes? Why is Robinson Cano's average draft position 9.9? Because it's so impossible to find a .315 hitter who gets 25 HR, 100 RBI, and 100 runs? Kevin Youkilis is going 19 picks later. Vlad Guerrero is going 107 picks later. The reason Cano is so enticing (beyond his talent) is that he's a second baseman.

To wrap it all up, what position would rather be in 22 picks: you've got a huge-hitting 1B and holes at all the tougher positions to fill, or you've got a do-everything SS, and can wait for the right 1B at the right time in the draft? As a bit of reference, here are a couple guys at each position, their numbers from last year, and their average draft position (ignoring guys whose ADP is less than 24, since theoretically they won't be available, and guys with multiple position eligibility):

1B

• Kevin Youkilis* (.307, 77 R, 19 HR, 62 RBI in 102 games) - ADP of 28.6
  
• Adam Dunn (.260, 85 R, 38 HR, 103 RBI) - ADP of 50.6
• Kendry Morales (.290, 29 R, 11 HR, 39 RBI in 51 games) - ADP of 59.6
• Justin Morneau (.345, 53 R, 18 HR, 56 RBI in 81 games) - ADP of 60.3
• Billy Butler (.318, 77 R, 15 HR, 78 RBI) - ADP of 66.5
  
• Paul Konerko (.312, 89 R, 39 HR, 111 RBI) - ADP of 93.4
  

SS

• Jose Reyes (.282, 83 R, 11 HR, 54 RBI, 30 SB in 133 games) - ADP of 27.2
• Jimmy Rollins (.243, 48 R, 8 HR, 41 RBI, 17 SB in 88 games) - ADP of 44.6
• Derek Jeter (.270, 111 R, 10 HR, 67 RBI, 18 SB) - ADP of 52.5
• Alexei Ramirez (.282, 83 R, 18 HR, 70 RBI, 13 SB) - ADP of 70.2
• Elvis Andrus (.265, 88 R, 0 HR, 35 RB, 32 SB) - ADP of 99.3
• Stephen Drew (.278, 83 R, 15 HR, 61 RBI, 10 SB) - ADP of 100.4
  

*Youkilis is slated to start at 3B for the Red Sox, so I'd reckon part of his value comes from that additional pending position eligibility.

The ultimate scenario would be if Jose Reyes were to fall to your second round pick, but there's just no way you could count on that. And if you miss out on Reyes, you're sifting through the bargain bin at shortstop. Meanwhile, you should be able to get Morales or Morneau with your 5th round pick (#49), or Konerko all the way down in the 7th (#73). Or, if you wanted to just ignore 1B for a while, both Derrek Lee and Adam LaRoche had at least 19 HR, 75 R, and 80 RBI, and they're both going after pick #200, putting their draft spot somewhere in the middle of the 16th round.

You know what shortstop falls in that area? Yunel Escobar (.256, 60 R, 4 HR, 35 RBI, 6 SB in 135 games).

Take Hanley. Unless you're in the same league as me, and I've got the #2 pick. In that scenario, Albert Pujols is a no-brainer. :)

A New Feature?

As you may remember, I have a distinct sentiment when it comes to Lavar Arrington and his suitability as a radio host. If you don't remember, and choose not to click the link because you're lazy, let me sum it up for you: I think he's terrible.

What's kind of amazing is how frequently he says something irrational, obnoxious, or downright wrong. So amazing, in fact, that I'm debating adding a new feature to our blog here, where I listen to the Lavar Arrington Show for 30-60 minutes a day, and coming on here to offer you my analysis. I could use an outlet for relieving some stress, so I'm going to consider it.

And, at least for right now, I'm going to offer you another of their gems; and yes, I'm lumping in his co-host Chad Dukes, who stood by Arrington's argument that, wait for it...

"...Donovan McNabb deserves consideration as NFL MVP."

I pride myself on having pretty intelligent readers, so I'm sure you don't need me to outline why this is ludicrous, but on the off chance you're unsure, or aren't much of a football fan, or are Lavar Arrington, let me give you all the data you'll need.

The first point Arrington brought up was that McNabb has offered leadership that the Redskins haven't seen in a long time. I agree. That doesn't make a player the league MVP; that can make him the team's MVP. Furthermore, I think you'd be hard-pressed to say LaRon Landry hasn't been at least as important to the Redskins' success as McNabb.

Which brings me to Lavar's second point: the Redskins' "success." The team is 3-2. We're all glad they're 3-2, somewhere between glad and ecstatic, but still, they're a single game above .500, and they haven't played in a game yet that we didn't have to watch to the very end, except for the beating we saw our team get in St. Louis. Let's not talk about McNabb leading the team to the promised land just yet.

I will give Arrington a little bit of credit, though. The one point he was halfway willing to concede was that McNabb's stats aren't the best in football. Well, thanks for almost yielding that point, Lavar, but because it's the strongest evidence out there for why someone else should be the league MVP, let's have another look at those pesky "statistics." And, for kicks, we'll only look at quarterbacks, even though there are players at other positions who warrant more consideration than McNabb.

The quarterbacks whose teams have the best records in the league:

• T1 - Mark Sanchez, New York Jets (4-1)
• T1 - Joe Flacco, Baltimore Ravens (4-1)
• T1 - Jay Cutler/Todd Collins, Chicago Bears (4-1)
• T1 - Matt Ryan, Atlanta Falcons, (4-1)
• T5 - Josh Freeman, Tampa Bay Buccaneers (3-1)
• T5 - Matt Cassel, Kansas City Chiefs (3-1)
• T5 - Tom Brady, New England Patriots (3-1)
• T5 - Ben Roethlisberger/Charlie Batch/Dennis Dixon, Pittsburgh Steelers (3-1)

Then there are ten more teams tied for 9th at 3-2, a group that includes McNabb as well as Aaron Rodgers, Drew Brees, Eli Manning, Peyton Manning, Matt Schaub, and Vince Young, as well as the two-headed monster of Michael Vick and Kevin Kolb.

The quarterbacks with the highest passer ratings in the NFL:

1. Tom Brady, New England Patriots - 109.0
2. Michael Vick, Philadelphia Eagles - 108.8
3. Philip Rivers, San Diego Chargers - 105.4
4. Peyton Manning, Indianapolis Colts - 102.6
5. Jay Cutler, Chicago Bears - 102.2
6. Ryan Fitzpatrick, Buffalo Bills - 99.9
7. Kyle Orton, Denver Broncos - 97.8
8. Drew Brees, New Orleans Saints - 95.7
9. Vince Young, Tennessee Titans - 95.1
10. Tony Romo, Dallas Cowboys - 92.7

I could keep going until we got to McNabb, but for two reasons, I won't. First, I'd have to go all the way down to twenty-first, which puts him in the bottom half of eligible quarterbacks. Second, I'd have to put Seneca Wallace on the list ahead of McNabb, and I made a blood oath to never make a list that highlights Seneca Wallace as a good football player.

Is McNabb doing well? I have to say yes. He's opened up the long ball like we haven't seen here since we were dabbling with Jeff freakin' George. Redskins football has become more exciting than it's been in a long time, the team looks like they can play with most other teams, and there's no doubting that McNabb is a valuable locker room and press room guy. But an MVP? God no.

My biggest problem with his performance this year is that the Redskins aren't scoring points. They have the ninth-worst scoring offense and the second worst third down conversion rate in football, despite having the seventh-most prolific passing attack in the league. That means they're never marching down the field (which any fellow Skins fan knows as well as I do just from watching the games); they make a couple big passes downfield each game, and get a touchdown or two off of them. But mostly, they come up short.

Here's some interesting information. As I said, the Redskins have the seventh highest pass output per game in the NFL. The Redskins average 88.6 yards per game on the ground; the six teams ahead of them in passing output average 84.4 rushing yards per game. But here's the remarkable stat: Washington converts just 26.2% of their third down attempts, yet none of the other six teams has a conversion rate below FORTY PERCENT. But sure, that's an offense that deserves an MVP candidate.

To be fair, here are my personal top ten MVP candidates today:

1. Peyton Manning, Colts - 1609 passing yards, 11 TD, 2 INT
2. Tom Brady, Patriots - 911 passing yards, 9 TD, 2 INT
3. Mark Sanchez, Jets - 902 passing yards, 8 TD, 0 INT
4. Clay Matthews, Packers - 21 tackles, 9.0 sacks, 1 FF
5. Arian Foster, Texans - 718 total yards, 5 TD
6. Philip Rivers, Chargers - 1759 passing yards, 11 TD, 4 INT
7. Osi Umenyiora, Giants - 13 tackles, 6.0 sacks, 5 FF
   
8. Kyle Orton, Broncos - 1733 passing yards, 8 TD, 3 INT
9. Michael Vick, Eagles - 799 passing yards, 6 TD, 0 INT, 187 rushing yards, 1 TD
10. Adrian Peterson, Vikings - 585 total yards, 3 TD

Donovan McNabb would be somewhere around 25.

Twi-Night Doubleheader - Week 26

Fantasy Players of the Week

• AL Hitter: Edwin Encarnacion, 3B, Blue Jays (.471, 6 R, 5 HR, 10 RBI) - Encarnacion is one of six everyday players in the Blue Jays' 2010 lineup who is a threat to hit 25 homers going forward. Honestly, if they keep this group together and shore up their bullpen, the Jays could be scary next season.
  
• NL Hitter: Ben Francisco, OF, Phillies (.412, 4 R, 2 HR, 6 RBI, 2 SB) - I would have liked to have picked Matt Kemp, the longtime Rider who homered in each of the last five games of the season, but the batting average and the power/speed combo from Francisco has a lot of value.
  
• AL Pitcher: David Price, SP, Rays (1 W, 9 K, 0.00/0.67) - Price has had a great year, which was not wholly unpredictable, either. The guy has top-tier stuff. Honorable mention for Neftali Feliz, who had a win and two saves in three scoreless innings of relief.
  
• NL Pitcher: Nelson Figueroa, SP, Astros (2 W, 13 K, 0.00/1.34) - Kind of a high WHIP, but he's one of only three guys with two wins over the past seven days. And 13 strikeouts is nothing to sneeze at.
  

Upcoming Posts

Over the next couple of days, I should have a few different posts for you, including:

• MLB playoff predictions
• My end-of-season awards ballot
• This week's Redskins Report Card

So, look forward to that.

Twi-Night Doubleheader - Week 24

Fantasy Players of the Week

• AL Hitter: Shin-Soo Choo, OF, Indians (.458, 8 R, 4 HR, 11 RBI, 2 SB) - This is the kind of across-the-board production you expected out of Choo when you drafted him. Granted, three of his home runs and seven of his RBI were in one game, but hey, you started him, right? Right?
  
• NL Hitter: Troy Tulowitzki, SS, Rockies (.381, 8 R, 5 HR, 14 RBI) - In all honesty, I might take Jayson Werth's week (.417, 9 R, 4 HR, 10 RBI, 2 SB) over Tulowitzki's, but it's at least a tie with Tulo at shortstop. Plus, I wanted to mention that Tulowitzki has 34 RBI in September...with over a week to go. Ridickydonk.
  
• AL Pitchers: Ervin Santana (1 W, 13 K, 1.06/0.76) and Jered Weaver (2 W, 9 K, 1.98/0.88), SPs, Angels - It's nice to see that, even though the Angels are all but eliminated from the playoff hunt, these guys are pitching their asses off. And they're both under the control of the Angels until 2013, so there's plenty of reason for optimism going forward.
  
• NL Pitcher: Matt Cain, SP, Giants (1 W, 7 K, 0.00/0.46) - Cain offered a couple of fantastic starts as the Giants head into the home stretch towards the playoffs. They're a game up in the division, and they'll need their stacked pitching staff (Cain, Tim Lincecum, Jonathan Sanchez, and Barry Zito) to lead the way. Lord knows their offense can't do it.
  

2010's Biggest Disappointments (Non-Injury)

As you may remember from last week's post, I talked about the players who've come out of nowhere to be fantasy forces this season. But just as often, players are highly rated at the beginning of the season, but end up being very disappointing. Some of those have been due to injury (Kevin Youkilis, Jacoby Ellsbury...gosh, no wonder Boston is gonna miss the playoffs), and I won't be talking about them. Let's focus on the guys who appear to have let us down for no good reason.

Once again, I'll be mentioning where these players were drafted in our keeper league (though a lot of them just rate as "keepers," which can only really mean they were viewed as being roughly among the top 96 players).

• Aaron Hill, 2B, Blue Jays (.209, 64 R, 24 HR, 63 RBI, 1 SB), keeper - Hill was a huge surprise in 2009, posting career-highs nearly across the board. This year, he's been able to hold onto his power, but his batting average and on-base percentage have plummeted, resulting in considerably lessened run production. No idea what to think of him next year.
• Derrek Lee, 1B, Cubs/Braves, (.258, 77 R, 18 HR, 73 RBI, 1 SB), keeper - The most shocking part of Lee's 2010 swoon is that his batting average dropped so much. He came in as a .284 career hitter, and hadn't dropped below .270 in a decade. Lee can blame Aramis Ramirez a little bit, but he's also in his 14th major league season. It's possible he's just slowing down.
• Adam Lind, OF, Blue Jays (.234, 54 R, 22 HR, 71 RBI), keeper - Lind has played mostly designated hitter this year, but he's been more of a designated fly-outter, perhaps due to reduced plate discipline. He passed last year's strikeout total in mid-August, and he's on pace for 17 fewer walks than last year. I'll say this, though: if Toronto can ever get their offense firing on all cylinders, they're going to be scary.
  
• Mark Reynolds, 1B/3B, Diamondbacks (.203, 77 R, 32 HR, 84 RBI, 7 SB), keeper - Reynolds was a huge producer in 2009, posting big numbers in HR, RBI, SB, and K. Yes, strikeouts. And today, that seems like his undoing. Because when you can't pick out good pitches from bad, you end up costing both your real life team and your fantasy team. Reynolds' 2010 has been a reminder of the risk you run when you punt batting average.
• Aramis Ramirez, 3B, Cubs (.241, 58 R, 23 HR, 76 RBI), keeper - Ramirez was particularly awful before the All-Star break, hitting .207 in 237 at-bats, dragging your average to the bottom of a well. What's particularly heart-breaking about that is that his batting average was a big part of why you draft Ramirez in the first place; he hadn't been below .289 since 2003 (the year before we started our keeper league). Ramirez does have two Middle Earth Fantasy Baseball League titles...maybe he's getting lazy.
  
• Pablo Sandoval, 1B/3B, Giants (.264, 59 R, 12 HR, 60 RBI, 3 SB), keeper - Sandoval was looking like the next...well, I don't know, but the next something good. He hit .330 with pop in 2009, his first full season, and a lot of us thought he might be very good. I do remember thinking that, even though I liked him, he was overrated in drafts, always going well before I'd have taken him. I certainly didn't expect this kind of drop off, though. Here's hoping he turns it around next year.
• Javier Vazquez, SP, Yankees (10 W, 118 K, 5.05/1.37), 1st round - I don't know why I'm saying this was a surprise. We all knew that, with a return to the AL, Vazquez would be back to his old ways. The one thing we can say we're surprised about is that his strikeout rate is way down. He's got the worst K/BB ratio of his career, and the worst K/IP since, wait for it...his other season with the Yankees.
  
• Matt Wieters, C, Orioles (.256, 37 R, 11 HR, 53 RBI), keeper - Wieters had shown enough flash last season that he warranted being kept, based on pedigree and potential. This year, his future is a little more in doubt. He started the year particularly awful, and though he's bounced back a little in the second half, he's not hitting at nearly the clip we'd expect out of a keeper quality catcher.
  

Twi-Night Doubleheader - Week 23

Fantasy Players of the Week

• AL Hitter: Coco Crisp, OF, Athletics (.389, 6 R, 1 HR, 5 RBI, 9 SB) - Yes, you read that correctly. Nine stolen bases for Crisp over the past seven days. He's got 27 steals since the All-Star break, and he's likely made a difference for some team in your fantasy league. I know I sure wish I had grabbed him.
  
• NL Hitter: Troy Tulowitzki, SS, Rockies (.346, 9 R, 6 HR, 11 RBI) - Tulowitzki and Carlos Gonzalez are powering another late-season charge by Colorado. Can you imagine how good the Rockies would be if they could win games in April and May?
  
• AL Pitcher: Justin Verlander, SP, Tigers (2-0, 18 K, 1.80/0.80) - If Verlander could bump his April (1-2, 5.53 ERA), both he and the Tigers would be looking good. As it is, the Tigers are destined for .500, and Verlander will just be another very good pitcher.
  
• NL Pitcher: Brett Myers, SP, Astros (2-0, 18 K, 0.64/0.79) - If you're looking for the best pitcher since the All-Star break, you have to consider Myers. He's having a career year in a low pressure situation in Houston. He'll be virtually impossible to value in next year's draft.
  

I often try to find a way to choose players who aren't also Yahoo's highest ranked players over the past week, but this week, that was impossible. These four guys were a cut above.

2010's Biggest Surprise Performers

Every year, players come out of nowhere to have career years, and help carry their fantasy owners to victory. Vinny Castilla's 131 RBI in 2004, Esteban Loaiza's insane 2003 (21-9, 207 K, 2.90/1.11), and Brett Myers this year, they all came out of nowhere to provide substantial assistance to fantasy teams. Here are a few more guys who've had unexpected explosions this season, along with where they were drafted in our super keeper league:

• Jose Bautista, 3B/OF, Blue Jays (.262, 96 R, 46 HR, 110 RBI, 7 SB), undrafted - In four full seasons (three in Pittsburgh, one in Toronto), he topped out at 16 HR, 63 RBI, and a .254 average. This year, he leads the American League in home runs, and is second in RBI and walks. Not bad for a four-time castoff.
• Trevor Cahill, SP, Athletics (16 W, 98 K, 2.61/1.05), 22nd round - Cahill was the fifth-to-last player drafted, which means that almost every team had 14 chances to nab him. Then, Cahill was waived early, so everyone had another chance to nab him. So...we're all pretty stupid for having not done so.
• Tim Hudson, SP, Braves (15 W, 122 K, 2.62/1.13), 18th round - I still see Hudson as a guy who's unreliable from year to year, and doesn't produce the kinds of strikeouts you'd like out of a starter. But with those wins and ratios, you learn to love the minimal strikeout production.
  
• Aubrey Huff, 1B/OF, Giants (.294, 90 R, 24 HR, 81 RBI, 6 SB), undrafted - Remember back in 2004, when Huff was the next big thing, a hotshot third baseman for the Rays? Or in 2008, when he was a great comeback player for the Orioles? Well, nobody in our league did, where Huff was undrafted, and remained a free agent until June 21st. The Pronks can't justify keeping him, but he's been a solid producer.
• Paul Konerko, 1B, White Sox (.322, 85 R, 36 HR, 104 RBI), undrafted - Is Konerko's power production surprising? Not overwhelming so, he's got two 40-homer campaigns on his resume. But him posting a career-high batting average at 34, after three mediocre years, that's surprising. Still, it's also surprising that the guy keeps going undrafted, when he's shown year after year that he can be a useful source of power.
• Mat Latos, SP, Padres (14 W, 174 K, 2.43/0.99), 18th round - Latos was actually a guy that fantasy experts projected to do pretty well this year (as you can tell by the fact that he was drafted in our league), but nobody expected this kind of performance. He's Yahoo's fourth-rated pitcher, and twelfth-rated player overall. Wowie zowie.
  
• Angel Pagan, OF, Mets (.287, 73 R, 10 HR, 60 RBI, 33 SB), undrafted - I know, for my part, I looked at Pagan several times early this summer, because I needed speed, but my outfield was too heavy for me to justify adding a guy who I'd have trouble starting. Turns out, I probably should've made room. Pagan has been a consistent if not flashy producer, and speed can be tough to acquire.
• Carl Pavano, SP, Twins (16 W, 111 K, 3.47/1.14), undrafted - Perhaps the most insane part of Pavano's very solid season is that the Twins seem to have expected it. They traded for him last season, then made him a reasonable arbitration offer and brought him back for another season. How did they see what apparently nobody else saw...or at least remembered, from his mastery of the Yankees in the 2003 World Series?
  
• Martin Prado, 1B/2B/3B, Braves (.313, 97 R, 15 HR, 65 RBI, 5 SB), undrafted - Prado was interesting to a lot of teams because of his position eligibility, and he was nabbed up in April. That eligibility, along with his consistent production at the top of the Braves' lineup, has made him a valuable part of the AutoWreckers' charge towards the top 3.
  

Twi-Night Doubleheader - Week 21

Fantasy Players of the Week

• AL Hitter: Marcus Thames, OF, Yankees (.429, 7 R, 6 HR, 11 RBI) - I would have liked to have given the award to my very own Alex Rios (.367, 8 R, 2 HR, 8 RBI, 3 SB), but those six home runs are too much to ignore. Thank goodness, by the way. We'd all hate for the Yankees to suffer a power outage with Alex Rodriguez on the shelf.
  
• NL Hitter: Hanley Ramirez, SS, Marlins (.536, 9 R, 3 HR, 7 RBI, 4 SB) - It's rare that you find such a no-brainer pick for the player of the week, and it's particularly surprising when you consider some of the other weeks people have had. Stephen Drew (.500, 11 R, 4 HR, 9 RB) and Carlos Gonzalez (.478, 8 R, 4 HR, 11 RBI) both have been outstanding, but Hanley's obscene batting average and his speed contribution put him a cut above everyone else.
  
• AL Pitcher: Gi0 Gonzalez, SP, Athletics (2-0, 11 K, 1.38/0.92) - It was kind of a tough week to pick the best AL pitcher, because nobody really had crazy strikeouts, which is usually my tie-breaker. Gonzalez was at least second in K's this week, and had a pair of wins and an excellent ERA and WHIP. Kudos must be extended, however, to Rick Porcello, who gave up just one run and just six base-runners over 14 innings in a pair of wins. His paltry 8 strikeouts, though, means you're just pleased, not super-pleased.
  
• NL Pitcher: Carlos Zambrano, SP, Cubs (2-0, 15 K, 0.71/1.11) - Remember when Big Z was yanked from the starting rotation? Now, do you remember when he was a top 10 starting pitcher in fantasy baseball? We're closer to that now than the other thing...well, okay, maybe not. But Zambrano has definitely bounced back from his rough spring.
  

Riders, Ranked

I had an idea for a different feature this week, but it's better suited for closer to the end of the season. So, for kicks, I'm going to rank my entire team, top to bottom. Obviously this is subject to fluctuations, and should only be used for entertainment purposes.

1. Miguel Cabrera, 1B (.342, 94 R, 33 HR, 107 RBI, 3 SB) - Arguably the best hitter in baseball. Notice I said hitter, to eliminate the stolen base aspect of his opponents.
   
2. Matt Kemp, OF (.253, 68 R, 22 HR, 74 RBI, 18 SB) - I'm holding onto the idea that Kemp can be the 30/30 guy I need, but it does seem like discipline may be a problem, plate and otherwise.
   
3. Jon Lester, SP (14 W, 176 K, 3.12/1.18) - Trading for Lester was maybe the most excited I've ever been about acquiring any player. I was jazzed when I traded for Miguel Cabrera, but Lester is the apple of my eye.
   
4. Alex Rios, OF (.295, 78 R, 19 HR, 78 RBI, 28 SB) - I'm glad that, even though I tried my damnedest to get the Pronks to draft Rios, he ignored me.
   
5. Clayton Kershaw, SP (11 W, 180 K, 3.01/1.24) - It looks like pitch count continues to be a problem for Kershaw, because he's stifling opponents, but he can't stay on the mound long enough to pick up wins. I hope he'll find a way to keep striking guys out, but doing so more quickly.
   
6. Prince Fielder, 1B (.269, 80 R, 28 HR, 68 RBI, 1 SB) - The problem with Fielder has always been that, historically, heavy guys are hard to trust. Mo Vaughn, David Wells, Papa Fielder, they all seem to fluctuate a lot in their performances. So yes, this season does worry me some.
   
7. Ian Kinsler, 2B (.298, 55 R, 6 HR, 38 RBI, 10 SB) - Kinsler is hurt every year. Kinsler is good every year. These are the facts.
   
8. Zack Greinke, SP (8 W, 152 K, 3.81/1.21) - Greinke has come way back down to Earth after last year's Cy Young campaign. But the strikeout rate is still good, and he's got free agency coming up soon...which is a good thing as long as he doesn't go to the AL East. I don't want him having a break down when Yankees fans start booing him.
   
9. Jose Bautista, 3B/OF (.266, 88 R, 42 HR, 99 RBI, 6 SB) - A trade deadline acquisition that was supposed to help me try to make up some points going towards the end of the year. The thing is, he's really been killing the ball all year, and I watched him on TV this weekend. He looks like can hit. Which means it looks like I have to start thinking about whether or not I can keep him.
   
10. Phil Hughes, SP (15 W, 122 K, 4.12/1.25) - He's been the best source of wins on my team, but he's so up and down it kills me. Literally. Figuratively.
    
11. Carlos Lee, OF (.251, 56 R, 19 HR, 77 RBI, 3 SB) - One of my more disappointing players this year (though Chris Davis will take the #1 slot on that list), Lee has finally started to show flashes of what made him a keeper for me in the first place. Too little, too late brother.
    
12. Alexei Ramirez, SS (.287, 70 R, 15 HR, 55 RBI, 8 SB) - I can't see a scenario in which I keep him, but he's been rocket hot recently, and his numbers at shortstop could be intriguing.
    
13. Ian Kennedy, SP (8 W, 140 K, 4.22/1.25) - Initially, he was supposed to just be someone I grabbed for a few starts then waived. Three months later, he's still on my team. I know he doesn't look like a keeper today, but if you add two good starts to his current numbers, he's suddenly very interesting.
    
14. Omar Infante, 2B/3B/SS/OF (.343, 53 R, 7 HR, 38 RBI, 6 SB) - So, Charlie Manuel is apparently pretty smart. The most controversial All-Star pick of my lifetime could, if he gets enough plate appearances, earn himself a batting crown. Another I could never keep, but I can't argue how well he's performed for my team.
    
15. Rajai Davis, OF (.272, 49 R, 5 HR, 41 RBI, 39 SB) - A fairly meaningless trade at the deadline sent Vernon Wells to the Heroes for Davis. It should be of comfort to you, Heroes, that this right where Wells would fit on these rankings today, too.
    
16. David Aardsma, RP (0 W, 25 SV, 46 K, 3.95/1.20) - I could've seen a scenario where I put some blame on Aardsma's shoulders for my disappointing 4th or 5th place finish this year, but really, he's been as good as I should have expected. No, Trevor Hoffman is my villain, and appropriately so.
    
17. Hong-Chih Kuo, RP (3 W, 7 SV, 57 K, 1.29/0.80) - The throw-in on a trade with the Mosquitoes, Kuo is in line for some saves down the stretch as Jonathan Broxton has hit a rocky patch. He's been insanely good in middle-relief, and if he's able to translate that to 9th inning work, look out.
    
18. Matt Thornton, RP (3 W, 5 SV, 64 K, 2.66/1.10) - Thornton may be on the DL, and he's had a couple of rough outings, but overall he's been excellent. I was excited to be able to acquire him mid-season, and guys like him and Benoit have reminded me of the value of elite middle relievers.
    
19. Kevin Gregg, RP (1 W, 30 SV, 52 K, 3.35/1.32) - I picked up Gregg back when I thought I had an outside shot at the title this year. Oh well.
    
20. Stephen Drew, SS (.276, 70 R, 12 HR, 50 RBI, 6 SB) - Drew literally joined my team today. He's been on fire, so that's cool, but he's basically just a guy to sit on for the rest of the season.
    
21. Ryan Theriot, 2B/SS (.290, 63 R, 2 HR, 29 RBI, 18 SB) - Theriot had been a target of mine all season as a potential trade acquisition. The trade never happened, but Theriot had a terrible stretch mid-season and became available on waivers. He's not been awesome, but he's been fairly productive when I've had him in my lineup, so that'll do.
    
22. Joel Hanrahan, RP (3 W, 2 SV, 79 K, 3.81/1.11) - With his numbers, you wouldn't have thought he'd be available after being designated the closer for the Pirates. But he had a couple of terrible outings, and the league got scared off. Having been essentially eliminated from contention, I know no fear. Get out there, Hanrahan.
    
23. Joaquin Benoit, RP (0 W, 1 SV, 64 K, 1.49/0.68) - Just a very good middle reliever who's been on at least one or two other teams, as is often the case with very good middle relievers. You always wish they'd have been on your team all season, though. That kind of production over a season is a dream.
    
24. Jake Westbrook, SP (7 W, 107 K, 4.51/1.33) - Yes, I was excited to grab him when he got traded to the Cardinals. And yes, I've started him every time his turn in the rotation has come around. But I know he's worthless long-term. I'm not stupid...well, not that stupid.
    

Twi-Night Doubleheader - Week 20

Fantasy Players of the Week

• AL Hitter: Robinson Cano, 2B, Yankees (.385, 8 R, 4 HR, 14 RBI) - Cano is putting together a nice little season here. His run production has been outstanding all season, but 14 RBI in a week? Obscene.
  
• NL Hitter: Omar Infante, all positions, Braves (.452, 8 R, 3 HR, 5 RBI, 1 SB) - I'm not even kidding; Infante has started at least five games at three infield positions and two outfield positions this year. He was maybe the most controversial All-Star selection ever, but since the break he's hitting .379 with 4 HR, 11 RBI, and 20 R.
  
• AL Pitcher: CC Sabathia, SP, Yankees (2-0, 17 K, 1.38/0.85) - Sabathia continues his fantastic run as a home Yankee, chalking up two more wins and improving his Cy Young resume. I'd have to say he's the front-runner right now, but nobody has been overwhelming in the American League. This looks like a classic RACE TO THE FINISH!
  
• NL Pitcher: Roy Oswalt, SP, Phillies (2-0, 15 K, 1.93/0.86) - Oswalt seems to be trying to remind people that, before the Astros went into the crapper, he was a pretty damn good pitcher. It's nice to see him able to thrive in a pennant race again, and between him, Roy Halladay, and Cole Hamels, Philadelphia has got a pretty daunting rotation to throw at anybody this postseason...if they can just get past the Braves.
  

No bonus coverage this week, folks.

Twi-Night Doubleheader - Week 19

Does it bother you guys when I don't do these posts on Mondays? It should. I'm not going to be any better about it, just saying, you should be pretty pissed.

Fantasy Players of the Week

• AL Hitter: Michael Brantley, OF, Indians (.375, 7 R, 2 HR, 6 RBI, 2 SB) - This is the kind of across-the-board production those of us who were watching Brantley at the beginning of the season were hoping for. The .203 season average and only 143 at-bats...not so much.
  
• NL Hitter: Mike Stanton, OF, Marlins (.556, 5 R, 4 HR, 8 RBI) - That caliber of batting average is always great to see, and when you partner it with as many homers as anyone over the past week, the pick is kind of a no-brainer. As in, pick anyone else and you don't have a brain.
  
• AL Pitcher: Felix Hernandez, SP, Mariners (1-1, 20 K, 0.00/1.09) - Felix was a party to one of the weirder SP games this year on Sunday. He gave up six hits (one home run) and four walks over 6.2 innings, yet allowed zero earned runs. The problem, of course, was six unearned runs, but as fantasy owners, those are just runs that affect your chance at a win. Fantasy-wise, he's your pitcher of the week in the Junior Circuit.
  
• NL Pitcher: R.A. Dickey, SP, Mets (1-0, 7 Ks, 0.00/0.22) - While you could pretty reasonably argue that Wade LeBlanc (2-0, 15 Ks, 2.13/1.03) has had a better past seven days, I'm going with Dickey. He's having a career year, and at this point, with 2.43/1.15 ratios and by far his best ever K/BB ratio (2.4), he should really be on a team in most leagues (he's only 39% owned right now).
  

Buy-Backs

We had an interesting situation crop up in our fantasy baseball keeper league this past weekend, as a result of some new trade clauses. There was a buildup this season over the course of three trades, each including a variation on a concept.

The first trade (completed about 8 weeks ago) included The Usual Suspects sending Daniel Bard and a second-round pick to the Huber Heights Heroes, in exchange for a few pitchers. The trade included the following clause:

If Daniel Bard is kept by any team, the second round pick is sent back to the Suspects, in exchange for their 4th round pick.

Fast forward to last weekend, when two teams (one of them being my own Riders of Rohan) decided to take this concept a step forward. A trade of Jose Bautista, Mariano Rivera, and Kevin Gregg for Jonathan Sanchez and Carlos Marmol included the following additional features:

Riders of Rohan also trade their 10th round pick to Those Guys.

Additionally, after the season has concluded, Those Guys have the option (before 31 December, 2010) to reacquire Jose Bautista in exchange for the 10th round pick, previously acquired from Riders of Rohan.

A few hours later, the following trade was made:

Cleveland Enforcers trade Trevor Hoffman and their 2011 2nd round pick to Huber Heights Heroes for Matt Cain. After the season, Heroes have the option to reacquire Cain in exchange for their 2011 4th round pick.

And we realized we had a problem on our hands. The Enforcers and Heroes' trade was basically just a rental of Matt Cain for the remainder of the season, and most of the league (including the Enforcers and Heroes, by the way) felt the trade was in bad taste.

In the short term, we decided to force renegotiation of both trades from this past weekend. Long term, we're trying to figure out a couple things. How far do we want our brand new "conditional pick" ban to go? Should the Bard trade be revisited? What should the language of our rules addendum say?

I'm asking, what do you think?

Twi-Night Doubleheader - Week 18

After a five-week hiatus (for personal reasons), we're back in business. Because of the hiatus, we'll do a player of the past week and a player of the past month.

Fantasy Players of the Week

• AL Hitter: Mark Teixeira, 1B, Yankees (.320, 5 R, 4 HR, 10 RBI) - Tex is slugging .724 in the month of August, a relief to everyone who drafted him early and watched him meander through the first three months of the season.
  
• NL Hitter: Carlos Gonzalez, OF, Rockies (.423, 7 R, 4 HR, 8 RBI, 3 SB) - Four multi-hit games in a week will generally put you in a good position to make my list.
  
• AL Pitcher: Brandon Morrow, SP, Blue Jays (2-0, 26 K, 3.14/0.84) - Morrow actually had a very average game against Tampa Bay on the 2nd (W, 5 ER, 9 K), but yesterdays' complete game 1-hitter with 17 strikeouts nudges him above Trevor Cahill, who gave up no runs in two starts but managed just 6 K over 17 innings.
  
• NL Pitcher: Ted Lilly, SP, Dodgers (2-0, 11 K, 2.77/0.54) - It was neck-and-neck between Lilly and Tim Hudson (2-0, 9 K, 0.64/0.93), but the extra strikeouts along with the insane 0.54 WHIP set Lilly apart. Also, what an impressive first two starts for Lilly after being traded to L.A. at the deadline. He looks like he'll be a nice acquisition down the stretch.
  

Fantasy Players of the Month

• AL Hitter: Jose Bautista, 3B, Blue Jays (.323, 21 R, 11 HR, 30 RBI, 1 SB) - Admit it. We all expected Bautista to fade away like so many other first-half phenoms. But he's hitting .260 now, after hitting just .233 through July 18th. Since then he's had eight multi-hit games, and his power hasn't faded at all, hitting ten home runs in that stretch. I don't know how to look at him going forward, but he's a superstar hitter right now.
  
• NL Hitter: Carlos Gonzalez, OF, Rockies (.375, 21 R, 9 HR, 20 RBI, 6 SB) - He's had three 4-hit games in the past two weeks, including a game in which he hit for the cycle. Most notable about that game is that his final hit was a walk-off home run. He's clearly not fazed by pressure.
  
• AL Pitcher: Francisco Liriano, SP (4-0, 39 K, 1.62/1.14) - Gavin Floyd has provided a nice rebound for loyal owners (or more likely speculative wavier-wire crawlers), but I'm going with Liriano. The extra strikeouts overcome the difference in ERA and WHIP in my book. The Twins will be counting on Liriano to anchor their staff (with Carl Pavano???) down the stretch.
  
• NL Pitcher: Roy Halladay, SP, Phillies (4-1, 49 K, 2.35/0.89) - As if I needed another reminder of how foolish it was for me to trade Halladay for a second round pick in our keeper league (which translates out to a 10th round pick in a normal league). I got backed into a corner, and nobody would trade for Ian Kinsler...oh who am I kidding, there's no excuse. Enjoy him if you've got him.
  

In case you were wondering, yes, this means I'm back. So look forward to a couple more posts later this week.

Twi-Night Doubleheader - Week 13 (The 2010 Fantasy All-Star Teams)

Every year, we see the All-Star participants, and it's always fun to talk about who should've made the team, and who didn't deserve to be an All-Star. We don't always have an Omar Infante to talk about, but we always have something to talk about.

This year, for the first time ever (and hopefully, assuming my survival, the first of many times), I'll be creating what I believe to be the fantasy All-Star teams in each league. I'll name two players at each infield position, five outfielders, seven starting pitchers, and three relief pitchers, for a total of twenty-five players. It's smaller than the standard All-Star team, but we're fantasy owners; we don't pay attention to half of the players in baseball anyways.

Without further ado, the teams. Eligibility will be determined simply by position eligibility in Yahoo fantasy baseball.

American League

First Basemen

• Miguel Cabrera (.339, 61 R, 20 HR, 71 RBI, 2 SB)
• Justin Morneau (.344, 51 R, 17 HR, 55 RBI)

Second Basemen

• Robinson Cano (.342, 59 R, 16 HR, 55 RBI, 2 SB)
• Dustin Pedroia (.292, 52 R, 12 HR, 41 RBI, 8 SB)

Third Basemen

• Kevin Youkilis (.299, 66 R, 17 HR, 55 RBI, 2 SB)
• Evan Longoria (.296, 49 R, 12 HR, 60 RBI, 12 SB)

Shortstops

• Elvis Andrus (.290, 56 R, 0 HR, 25 RBI, 22 SB)
• Derek Jeter (.281, 55 R, 8 HR, 39 RBI, 9 SB)

Outfielders

• Josh Hamilton (.340, 55 R, 20 HR, 61 RBI, 6 SB)
• Carl Crawford (.320, 63 R, 7 HR, 42 RBI, 29 SB)
• Alex Rios (.299, 49 R, 13 HR, 45 RBI, 22 SB)
  
• Vladimir Guerrero (.328, 52 R, 18 HR, 70 RBI, 4 SB)
• Shin-Soo Choo (.286, 48 R, 13 HR, 43 RBI, 12 SB)

Starting Pitchers

• Jon Lester (10-3, 118 K, 2.76/1.10)
• Jered Weaver (8-3, 124 K, 2.82/1.06)
• Cliff Lee (8-3, 89 K, 2.34/0.95)
• David Price (11-4, 90 K, 2.42/1.20)
• Andy Pettitte (10-2, 78 K, 2.82/1.15)
• Felix Hernandez (6-5, 122 K, 3.01/1.14)
• Clay Buchholz (10-4, 64 K, 2.45/1.25)

Relief Pitchers

• Mariano Rivera (2-1, 19 SV, 32 K, 1.08/0.66)
• Rafael Soriano (2-0, 22 SV, 28 K, 1.42/0.76)
• Jose Valverde (1-1, 18 SV, 33 K, 1.00/0.81)

National League

First Basemen

• Joey Votto (.318, 56 R, 21 HR, 59 RBI, 7 SB)
• Albert Pujols (.305, 48 R, 20 HR, 60 RBI, 9 SB)
  

Second Basemen

• Brandon Phillips (.307, 64 R, 11 HR, 28 RBI, 10 SB)
• Martin Prado (.331, 57 R, 7 HR, 36 RBI, 4 SB)

Third Basemen

• David Wright (.317, 51 R, 14 HR, 64 RBI, 15 SB)
• Scott Rolen (.301, 43 R, 17 HR, 57 RBI)

Shortstops

• Hanley Ramirez (.297, 48 R, 13 HR, 53 RBI, 15 SB)
• Rafael Furcal (.335, 44 R, 5 HR, 30 RBI, 12 SB)

Outfielders

• Carlos Gonzalez (.295, 49 R, 14 HR, 52 RBI, 12 SB)
• Chris B. Young (.268, 46 R, 15 HR, 57 RBI, 16 SB)
• Ryan Braun (.291, 50 R, 11 HR, 51 RBI, 11 SB)
• Matt Kemp (.265, 56 R, 15 HR, 47 RBI, 11 SB)
• Corey Hart (.288, 42 R, 19 HR, 61 RBI, 4 SB)

Starting Pitchers

• Adam Wainwright (12-5, 123 K, 2.24/1.00)
• Ubaldo Jimenez (14-1, 107 K, 2.27/1.08)
• Josh Johnson (8-3, 115 K, 1.82/0.96)
• Roy Halladay (10-7, 119 K, 2.33/1.08)
• Mat Latos (9-4, 91 K, 2.62/0.96)
• Yovani Gallardo (8-4, 122 K, 2.58/1.26)
• Clayton Kershaw (8-4, 116 K, 3.02/1.23)

Relief Pitchers

• Billy Wagner (5-0, 17 SV, 52 K, 1.35/0.93)
• Heath Bell (4-0, 23 SV, 49 K, 1.72/1.34)
• Jonathan Broxton (3-0, 17 SV, 52 K, 2.02/1.07)

Twi-Night Doubleheader - Week 11

Fantasy Players of the Week

• AL Hitter: Dustin Pedroia, 2B, Red Sox (.522, 9 R, 1 HR, 5 RBI, 4 SB) - It's pretty amazing when a guy like Josh Hamilton can hit .593 (16/27) and not be my pick of the week. The reason is Hamilton only matched Pedroia in home runs, and Pedroia had double the steals. Nice week for both, though.
  
• NL Hitter: Matt Holliday, OF, Cardinals (.435, 6 R, 4 HR, 8 RBI) - Apparently Holliday is much more comfortable playing against Oakland than he was playing for them. He went 8/12 with 4 R, 4 HR, and 8 RBI in this past weekend's series against the Athletics.
  
• AL Pitcher: Neftali Feliz, RP, Rangers (0-0, 4 SV, 7 K, 0.00/0.00) - Four perfect saves is about as much as you can ask for out of a reliever, or any pitcher for that matter. CC Sabathia, Max Scherzer, and Carl Pavano (?!?) received consideration for their 2-win weeks. But I'm giving the nod to the Rangers' elite young closer.
  
• NL Pitcher: Josh Johnson, SP, Marlins (1-0, 16 K, 1.20/0.73) - A pair of dominant performances against a couple of high-caliber offenses (Tampa Bay and Texas) are just the two most recent gems tossed by Johnson. He has quietly been creeping up on Ubaldo Jimenez in this year's NL Cy Young race, and it might not be too long before we've got a real fight on our hands.

Wait, What? (Pitchers)

There are some players out there doing far better than you realize. Most of them are on teams, and you're aware that they're ownable right now, but you probably don't know just how good their numbers are. I'll try to fix that.

• Clay Buchholz, SP, Red Sox (10-4, 62 K, 2.47/1.24) - Buchholz is tied for the AL lead in wins, his ERA is .02 higher than David Price, and his WHIP is .01 higher. But Price has gotten most of the ink thus far. Buchholz may not be the most talented starter in Boston, but he's been at least as productive as anybody else on the Sawx.
• Tim Hudson, SP, Braves (7-2, 41 K, 2.34/1.16) - Hudson is one of the guys that people told you what to expect out of in the preseason, and then you said, "Yeah, if I can get him cheap, I should grab him," but then someone took him a little earlier than you were going to, and you said, "Oh well, he can be their two-strikeout-a-game pitcher." And he is a two-strikeout-a-game pitcher, but he's been awful good. You can't afford to have him, Livan Hernandez, and Carlos Silva on the same team, but they're all worth owning.
• Jose Valverde, RP, Tigers (1-1, 16 SV, 27 K, 0.59/0.73) - Remember when Valverde couldn't find work over the offseason? He didn't get signed until late January, but the Tigers seem to have gotten a steal. And if you, like me, have it in your head that Valverde is a wild card, look at his career stats. Since 2007, he's been a lights out closer.
  

Wait, What? (Hitters)

• Troy Glaus, 1B, Braves (.280, 38 R, 14 HR, 55 RBI) - Guess who's got the most RBI in the NL right now? It's not a difficult question, given that I'm obviously talking about Glaus. He's been a steady source of power for his entire career, so it's not that surprising that he's rediscovered his home run stroke in Atlanta. He is, however, unlikely to keep up the .280 batting average, as he's only hit higher than that once in his 13-year career. He's doing great...sell high if you can.
• Magglio Ordonez, OF, Tigers (.333, 42 R, 9 HR, 47 RBI, 1 SB) - This is twice that Ordonez has scared us with paltry power numbers, only to bounce back with a great batting average and solid pop once again. Maybe the best thing about Ordonez, though, is that getting a .300 average out of him is a lock.
  
• Martin Prado, 1B/2B/3B, Braves (.339, 51 R, 6 HR, 30 RBI, 2 SB) - While he doesn't flash anywhere near elite speed, his ability to get on base and score has made him a reasonable #1 or #2 hitter, where he's spent most of the season in the Braves' lineup. Combine that with his fantastic position eligibility, and he's one of the more valuable waiver-wire-available fantasy commodities so far this season. He's not available on the waiver wire any more. I'm saying he's one of the best guys you could have already picked up off waivers.
• Chris B. Young, OF, Diamondbacks (.278, 35 R, 12 HR, 49 RBI, 12 SB) - After three years of him flashing his power-speed combo with an abysmal batting average, Young seems to have steadied himself a little bit. I still wouldn't ever expect a .300 season, and it's not outrageous to think he'll dip a little bit down to around .260, but if you can get .260 out of a guy who gives you 40-60 combined HR and SB, you take it.
  

Twi-Night Doubleheader - Week 10

Fantasy Players of the Week

• AL Hitter: Josh Hamilton, OF, Rangers (.370, 7 R, 4 HR, 13 RBI) - I was shocked to find out that Hamilton is today the 12th-ranked player in Yahoo's fantasy baseball. After a slow April, he ramped up his production in May, and so far in June has just been pulverizing the ball. His lefty-righty splits are still problematic, but he's playing too well right now to even consider benching him, regardless of opponent.
• NL Hitter: Chris B. Young, OF, Diamondbacks (.333, 6 R, 3 HR, 4 RBI, 3 SB) - While Adam Dunn's four home run week deserved consideration, Young's 3/3 week offered more fantasy value. Young is quietly having a resurgence of sorts, hitting .277 with double-digit home runs and stolen bases. He still strikes out too much, but that's not a fantasy category. And he's doing fine in all of those.
• AL Pitcher: Colby Lewis, SP, Rangers (2-0, 15 Ks, 1.80/0.73) - It looks like it's time for the doubters to step up and admit that Lewis might just be a pretty good pitcher. He was abysmal for Oakland in 2007, and it took him two years to get back to the majors. I watched some of his game against the Brewers yesterday, and he's just pitching his ass off.
• NL Pitcher: Stephen Strasburg, SP, Nationals (2-0, 22 Ks, 2.19/0.89) - Ted Lilly had two great starts, including a near no-hitter last night against the White Sox, but Strasburg is my pick. He had double the strikeouts that Lilly did, and double the wins as well. It's a pretty exciting time in Nats Town, whatever the hell that is.

Hard Luck Losers

We all know about Zack Greinke (2-8, 3.94/1.22) and his inability to buy a win. He's given up zero or one run in three different games, and he's 0-2 in those games. But he's not the only guy who's had a good season but has trouble catching W's.

• Doug Fister, Mariners (3-3, 2.45/0.96) - Fister has given up three or fewer runs in all but one of his ten starts this season. He's currently on the DL with shoulder fatigue, but I think "broken heart" might be the real explanation. And it's not just David Aardsma's vendetta; the offense has averaged only 3.6 runs per game in support of Fister. That's what a "defense first" mentality gets you, Seattle.
• Ted Lilly, Cubs (2-5, 2.90/1.00) - Lilly was three outs away from a no-hitter last night, and the Cubs still almost lost the game due to anemic offense (and Carlos Marmol's love-hate relationship with the strike zone). He was fantastic last year, and has actually been better this season. Outside of the wins, of course.
• Jonathan Sanchez, Giants (4-5, 2.82/1.15) - Sanchez's trouble grabbing wins is actually a little more predictable when you know more about him as a pitcher. He tends to walk a lot of hitters, and strike out a lot of hitters, and that gets his pitch count up in a hurry. But here's a number for you: ten. That's the total number of runs given up by Sanchez in his five losses, including a pair of 1-0 losses.
  

The Orioles are Terrible

There's nothing else here. They're just terrible.

Twi-Night Doubleheader - Week 8

Fantasy Players of the Week

• AL Hitter: Robinson Cano, 2B, Yankees (.483, 8 R, 1 HR, 12 RBI) - It was argued once before that Cano should have been the player of the week, but this time there's no debate. Cano has been thriving, and his kind of production at second base is a particular treat.
  
• NL Hitter: Jose Reyes, SS, Mets (.483, 8 R, 1 HR, 9 RBI 3 SB) - Nine RBI out of Reyes is wholly unexpected and delightful. The rest of it is more along the lines of what you expect out of Reyes, and it's all positive.
  
• AL Pitcher: A.J. Burnett, SP, Yankees (2-0, 13 Ks, 0.69/0.77) - Burnett is very much a feast or famine pitcher, but this week, it's been a buffet of good innings.
  
• NL Pitcher: Ubaldo Jimenez, SP, Rockies (2-0, 12 Ks, 0.00/0.76) - How crazy is it that Roy Halladay throws a perfect game and Jimenez is the best pick for pitcher of the week? Jimenez and Vladimir Guerrero have been the stories of the year for fantasy owners.
  

A Look Back

Remember all those guys I've recommended you pick up over this season? It's fun to see how it's all panned out, so that's what we'll do. Color codings for the wolf: green was good, red was bad, and if I leave it black, it's a push.

Week 1

• J.J. Hardy, SS, Twins: .230, 13 R, 3 HR, 13 RBI
• Kelly Johnson, 2B, Diamondbacks: .275, 35 R, 12 HR, 25 RBI, 5 SB
• Kevin Gregg, RP, Blue Jays: 0-1, 14 SVs, 27 Ks, 3.09/1.33
  
• Franklin Morales, RP, Rockies: 0-3, 3 SVs, 8 Ks, 4.09/1.64

Week 2

• Alberto Callaspo, 2B/3B, Royals: .296, 25 R, 7 HR, 31 RBI, 3 SB
• Ivan Rodriguez, C, Nationals: .325, 13 R, 1 HR, 16 RBI, 2 SB
• Fernando Rodney, RP, Angels: 4-0, 5 SVs, 15 Ks, 3.05/1.45
• Matt Lindstrom, RP, Astros: 1-1, 11 SVs, 18 Ks, 2.05/1.41

Week 3

• Brett Gardner, OF, Yankees: .299, 36 R, 2 HR, 16 RBI, 18 SB
• Scott Rolen, 3B, Reds: .280, 29 R, 11 HR, 32 RBI
• Joel Zumaya, RP, Tigers: 2-0, 1 SV, 31 Ks, 1.84/1.02
  
• Livan Hernandez, SP, Nationals: 4-3, 27 Ks, 2.15/1.10

Week 4

• Kosuke Fukudome, OF, Cubs: .294, 21 R, 6 HR, 23 RBI, 3 SB
• Doug Fister, SP, Mariners: 3-3, 32 Ks, 2.45/0.96
• Jaime Garcia, SP, Cardinals: 5-2, 51 Ks, 1.32/1.19

If any of those guys in green are still available in your league (which I know is true for at least a couple of you), you should strongly consider acquiring them. Yes, even Kelly Johnson.

Twi-Night Doubleheader - Week 7

Fantasy Players of the Week

• AL Hitter: Edwin Encarnacion, 3B, Blue Jays (.368, 7 R, 6 HR, 11 RBI) - Six home runs in a week is crazy, which makes you realize how much crazier it is to hit four home runs in a game. By the way, Encarnacion is only 15% owned. Food for thought.
  
• NL Hitter: Joey Votto, 1B, Reds (.393, 6 R, 2 HR, 8 RBI, 2 SB) - There wasn't really an NL hitter who stood out, but Votto had the best balance among all categories.
  
• AL Pitcher: Neftali Feliz (0-0, 3 SVs, 4 Ks, 0.00/0.23) - While he didn't have a great week, he was virtually flawless in his innings. Gio Gonzalez's 2 very solid wins were good, but I liked the fact that Feliz was just unhittable.
  
• NL Pitcher: Edwin Jackson (2-0, 21 Ks, 2.87/0.77) - After a wholly disappointing month and a half, Jackson had one awesome game, and one not so great game in which he did manage 9 strikeouts. Chances are, though, he was not in your lineup for either.
  

No other commentary this week. We'll get back to the bigger postings next week.

Twi-Night Doubleheader - Week 6

Fantasy Players of the Week

• AL Hitter: Jose Bautista, 3B, Blue Jays (.444, 8 R, 4 HR, 8 RBI) - Our two hitters of the week combined for zero stolen bases, but they both provided power and substantial run production. Bautista is sitting on a .241 batting average, but his power is so prolific that if he could improve just 20 points, he'd likely bring his ownership up from 35% to around 90%.
  
• NL Hitter: Martin Prado, 2B, Braves (.367, 4 R, 3 HR, 11 RBI) - A giant game on Sunday wrapped up a great week for a guy with 1B, 2B, and 3B eligibility. The 2B eligibility should especially help him find a way into your lineup.
  
• AL Pitcher: Jake Westbrook, SP, Indians (2-0, 10 Ks, 1.20/1.13) - Ricky Romero had one great start, and initially he was my pick, but I know how tough it is to pick up wins. The nod goes to Westbrook.
  
• NL Pitcher: Chad Billingsley, SP, Dodgers (2-0, 13 Ks, 1.42/0.95) - The streaky C-Bills had one good start and one great start, lowering his ERA by a full run. Billingsley's owners are hoping it's a sign of things to come.

Who Can You Trust?

Like any season, there are always undrafted players who start off fast, and players drafted early who start off slow. We'll take a look at a couple of each, and give you a recommendation on whether we think these early anomalies are just that, or if they're indicative of how a player will play.

Hot Starts

• Brett Gardner, OF, Yankees (.317, 28 R, 2 HR, 12 RBI, 17 SB) - I think we all sort of suspected that, with regular playing time in New York's lineup, Gardner could be a valuable fantasy commodity. He's proving that to be true, tying for 6th in runs and holding second place in stolen bases. The thing about Gardner's numbers is that they're completely repeatable for him for the rest of the season. Expect him to continue to be productive.
  
• Phil Hughes, SP, Yankees (5-0, 39 Ks in 39 IP, 1.38/0.92) - The talent was always there, and Hughes had a solid spring, but nobody saw this coming. He's given up two or fewer runs in all six of his starts, including starts against the White Sox, Red Sox, and Tigers. I don't expect him to keep up his pace (obviously), but with the offense behind him and a very solid bullpen, I'd expect Hughes to finish with very good numbers.
• Kelly Johnson, 2B, Diamondbacks (.273, 26 R, 11 HR, 23 RBI, 2 SB) - When we looked at the Diamondbacks lineup in the preseason, we all expected them to be pretty good. I don't think any of us expected Johnson to be leading the team in homers at this point in the season, though. He's also already got 12 doubles, meaning he's just making great contact right now. Nothing in his career performance suggests he's anything more than a 15-20 HR guy, so even with this torrid start, I wouldn't expect him to get more than 25 dingers this year.
• Casey McGehee, 3B, Brewers (.311, 20 R, 8 HR, 33 RBI) - McGehee came out of nowhere to be a solid end-of-the-year producer for fantasy owners in 2009, but most people expected him to return to nowhere this season. That hasn't exactly happened. McGehee is second in the NL in RBI. His pedigree doesn't point to this kind of production, but results are results. I'd expect somewhere around 90 R, 25 HR, and 100 RBI, plenty of stats to warrant holding on to him.
• Vernon Wells, OF, Blue Jays (.298, 27 R, 10 HR, 29 RBI, 2 SB) - The former Rider keeper has only lived up to his early career billing twice in his eight-year career. He started off red hot, slapping four home runs in his first three games. We all expected him to disappear shortly after that, but he's kept up steady production all season, and while he's in the middle of a 2/24 stretch, those kinds of slumps are part of baseball. Still, it's hard to trust a guy like Wells who's been disappointing more often than not.
• Ty Wigginton, 2B, Orioles (.320, 20 R, 12 HR, 24 RBI) - All of us have looked at Ty Wigginton at one point or another, which should tell you a couple things. It should tell you that Wigginton has spent plenty of time on the waiver wire in fantasy leagues, and it should tell you that he's a very streaky player. That being said, he's playing every day for the first time in his career, and he's had a couple of 23+ HR seasons with fewer than 450 at-bats, so it's possible that he's actually a 30 HR guy. But I'd try to sell now.
• Barry Zito, SP, Giants (6-1, 34 Ks in 54.1 IP, 2.15/1.09) - Zito was a guy we all wrote off after two completely unexceptional seasons in San Francisco, but it looks like he's finally settling in. Don't forget, his career ERA in Oakland was 3.55, and his career WHIP was 1.25. It's not completely unreasonable to think that it just took a year and a half for him to benefit from the AL/NL shift...not completely unreasonable. Maybe be a little careful, though.

Slow Starts

• Chone Figgins, 2B, Mariners (.182, 15 R, 0 HR, 9 RBI, 8 SB) - Figgins is such a wild card from year to year. From 2005 to 2009, here are his batting averages chronologically: .290, .267, .330, .276, .298. He's stolen at least 30 bases in each of his full seasons, so the steals seem to be on track, partly because he's already got 25 walks, so he's still finding himself on base plenty. If his eye stays this good, I wouldn't be surprised to see his average start to climb back up towards our expected .260-.290 range. You hate to start him while he's hitting under .200, but you hate to miss out on his steals, too. You'll have to weigh that choice for yourself, based on your team's strengths and weaknesses.
  
• Adrian Gonzalez, 1B, Padres (.250, 16 R, 7 HR, 18 RBI) - The numbers aren't terrible, but they're not what you were hoping for out of Gonzalez. Still, I don't see any reason for concern. He's always been kind of a streaky hitter, and the power is still there. Look for him to go on one of his trademark mash-attacks soon.
  
• Aaron Hill, 2B (.183, 14 R, 3 HR, 9 RBI, 1 SB) and Adam Lind, OF (.218, 18 R, 6 HR, 21 RBI), Blue Jays - The two big Blue Jay surprises for fantasy owners last year have gotten off to a rough start in 2010. They were so good last year that we sort of forgot that between them, they had one fantasy relevant season to their names (Hill's 17 HR, 78 RBI, 87 run 2007). That's not to say that we were wrong for expecting big things from either, but tempering expectations was in order. I wouldn't sell them off for nothing right now, but if you get an offer that you would have considered before the season started, it's probably time to take that offer.
• Carlos Lee, OF, Astros (.199, 14 R, 3 HR, 12 RBI, 1 SB) - Lee actually just could be getting older. He'll be 34 in a month, and his diminishing speed has hurt his run totals over the past couple years. The hitting prowess has been there, though, so its absence this season is of concern. He's always been a slow starter, though, hitting .259 in April for his career, and hitting at least .290 in May through September. He's shown some improvement, so I say stay the course and hope he rights the ship.
• Aramis Ramirez, 3B, Cubs (.167, 13 R, 3 HR, 17 RBI) - I have no idea what's happening with Aramis. He's only 31, so I don't think it's his age. He was injured last season, but he was supposedly healthy coming into this year. All we can see is the hitter he's become, and it's not pretty. He's already got 33 strikeouts, and he's on pace for 132 strikeouts. He's never struck out more than 100 times in any season. I can't imagine that he's done, but the numbers are heinous. Don't drop him, but for the love of god, don't play him either.
  
• Grady Sizemore, OF, Indians (.211, 15 R, 0 HR, 13 RBI, 4 SB) - We're starting to see a problem with Sizemore. His batting average dropped three consecutive seasons, and right now he's in line for a fourth, but this one could be fatal. After bopping a career-high 33 homers in 2008, he's still looking for his first in 2010. He's still striking out far too much and not walking nearly enough (35 Ks and just 9 BBs in 128 ABs), and he's slugging a measly .289. Granted, it's early in the season, but everything seems to be heading in the wrong direction for Grady.
  
• Mark Teixeira, 1B, Yankees (.224, 22 R, 7 HR, 29 RBI) - Teixeira, as you'll recall, started off slow last year as well, but ended up competing for the AL MVP crown at the end of the season. There's really no question that he'll turn it around, it's just a matter of when. We may have even already seen it start, as Tex has 2 hits in four of his last five games. No worries.
• Ben Zobrist, all positions, Rays (.269, 14 R, 0 HR, 16 RBI, 6 SB) - The real concern here is a lack of home runs. The one thing we were pretty sure of was that Zobrist's power was legitimate; now we don't know. Chances are, this is just a tough stretch, but we can't be sure of that. He's thankfully running more; his five steals in April were a career-high for any month, and he hasn't been caught stealing yet.

By The Way...

David Aardsma pitched a perfect 9th with two strikeouts on Friday in relief of Doug Fister. So we can probably dismiss any merit we assigned to the concept that Aardsma has it in for Fister. It's also interesting to note that Aardsma's last three appearances were all in relief of Fister. I don't think that means anything, it was just interesting to see.

Twi-Night Doubleheader - Week 4

Four weeks in, and all we've gotten is four weeks older.

Fantasy Players of the Week

AL Hitter: Evan Longoria, 3B, Rays (.417, 7 R, 3 HR, 5 RBI, 2 SB) - Kind of a down week for the American League, but no Longoria owner is unhappy with how his week went.
NL Hitter: Carlos Gonzalez, OF, Diamondbacks (.391, 5 R, 2 HR, 10 RBI, 3 SB) - Looks like I probably should've let my offer of Carlos Lee for Gonzalez sit up there for a bit and force the issue.
AL Pitcher: Francisco Liriano, SP, Twins (2-0, 19 Ks, 1.80/1.07) - Justin Verlander and Zack Greinke also had fantastic weeks, but neither of them pick up a pair of wins. Greinke is particularly perplexing, giving up 1 run over 15 innings and not being able to pick up a victory. The Royals apparently really are that terrible.
NL Pitcher: Josh Johnson, SP, Marlins (2-0, 20 Ks, 1.80/0.73) - Johnson gets the nod over Yovani Gallardo, who also had two wins, but couldn't match Johnson's fantastic WHIP.

Go Pick Up

AL Hitter: Brett Gardner (49%) and Alberto Callaspo (41%) are still sitting out there, just waiting for someone like you to give them a home. Seriously, don't be an idiot. If they're out there in your league, go get them.
NL Hitter: Kosuke Fukudome (41%) - After two completely uninteresting fantasy seasons, Fukudome has started off hot, particularly in the run production categories (14 runs, 17 RBI). I don't expect him to hit .342 this season, but it's possible he's finally settled in against major league pitching, and can be productive for you.
AL Pitcher: Doug Fister (31%) - I guess it's the lack of strikeouts that's keeping you away (16 Ks in 35 IP)? Everything else looks good, and Fister isn't showing any signs of slowing down yet, and now has given up 2 or fewer runs in each of his five starts this season.
NL Pitcher: Jaime Garcia (49%) - I don't want to imply that I think he's the next Chris Carpenter, but he could be the next Barry Zito. Well, without the Cy Young award, probably. But he's got good stuff and he's on a team that should put him in line for plenty of wins.

Top Five Teams Against Whom To Always Start Your SPs

1. Houston Astros - But you already knew that. Even with Berkman returning to the lineup and Carlos Lee starting to heat up, the team is still terrible. Roy Oswalt would have to pitch out of his mind to win 15 games on this team.
   
2. Seattle Mariners - So apparently this "defense first" mentality just makes you lose close games. The Mariners are tied with Houston for the fewest home runs (9) and scored 4 runs over the weekend's three games against Texas.
3. Pittsburgh Pirates - With a team ERA of 6.79, you can usually count on Pittsburgh starters to give up enough runs to give your starter a chance at a win. Just make sure your starter isn't Clayton Kershaw; the Pirates have won both starts against him this season.
4. Kansas City Royals - They're actually in the middle of the pack in slugging percentage, and in the top 10 in batting average, but this hasn't translated into wins or runs. And I have a hard time thinking that the Royals will end up quite so high in those two stats, meaning they're going to get worse.
5. Baltimore Orioles - They've started to right the ship a little bit, but now it looks like Brian Roberts could be out for months. That doesn't bode well for the team with the 5th-fewest runs in baseball.