MVP: Gabe Kapler .291 .310 .582 .892 4-13-12-32 2-10-1
Runner-Up: Mike Cameron .269 .367 .654 1.021 3-7-6-17 4-8-0
Comments: I am using the two as a group. This has been a bright spot for the Brewers to start the season. Together they remind me of John Lowenstein/Gary Roenicke without the 25-game suspension and the fact one of the Brewers is not a left-handed hitter… other than that… I am cool.
LVP: Ryan Braun .268 .304 .465 .768 5-23-13-59 7-28-1
Bottom-Up: Prince Fielder .257 .372 .431 .803 4-20-16-47 19-18-0
Comments: both players do not belong on this list but given where they went in drafts… Their numbers do not add up to their production.
Runner-Up: Carlos Gomez .271 .297 .374 .671 1-8-17-40 3-26-13
Comments: If Morneau played somewhere other than, a state recognized for lakes they have (I am on record here to say that Minnesota does not have 10,000 lakes. Maybe they more or less… but not 10,000 exactly) he would be an All-Star regularly.
LVP: Delmon Young .263 .306 .307 .613 0-9-15-35 7-21-6
Bottom-Up: Jason Kubel .245 .264 .396 .660 4-17-11-42 3-22-0
Comments: Both players came into this season as great sleepers in AL-only leagues… yet both have been big disappointments for Fantasy owners but Minnesota is a top their division as I write tonight. Go figure.
New York Yankees
MVP: Johnny Damon .295 .394 .527 .921 4-14-25-59 19-20-5
Runner-Up: Bobby Abreu .306 .363 .452 .815 4-21-15-56 11-24-2
Comments: Damon is quietly putting up good Fantasy numbers, while Abreu is the glue right now that is holding the lineup together.
Runner-Up: Pat Burrell .330 .459 .687 1.147 9-30-20-73 26-24-0
Comments: Without Chipper Jones in the NL, Utley is the MVP. How do you not like Utley? Pat’s bat is hotter than Fergie in a bikini. Check her out in the May 5th edition of In Touch Weekly.
LVP: Ryan Howard .167 .294 .351 .645 6-14-16-40 21-45-0
Comments: I have officially given up on LaRoche. Pittsburgh fans know what I mean.
San Diego Padres
MVP: Adrian Gonzalez .302 .355 .556 .911 8-23-19-70 10-27-0
Runner-Up: See Above
Comments: In a big home ballpark, Gonzalez is putting up some nice numbers. I have him in a league that I cannot even trade him in because my knuckle-headed friends would rather hold onto David Ortiz or Carlos Pena.
Bottom-Up: Carlos Pena .215 .323 .421 .743 7-17-15-45 13-35-0
Comments: Longoria will eventually hit. I think he is over-matched at times and looks like he has no plan at the plate. He has had some great at-bats (see Roy Holladay) but they are few and far in-between.
Texas Rangers
MVP: Josh Hamilton .300 .347 .531 .878 6-33-16-69 11-19-0
Comments: Talk about getting a second chance in life and taking advantage of it… Hamilton and Bradley both have been solid in the middle of that lineup.
Bottom-Up: Ben Broussard .159 .225 .268 .493 3-8-8-22 5-20-0
Comments: Maybe it is unfair for me to put Blalock on this list, but coming into this season, he insisted he was healthy and proved once again that we should never trust a player’s opinion of himself unless we are in the company of Rickey Henderson.
Toronto Blue Jays
MVP: Alex Rios .310 .379 .474 .853 3-15-20-55 14-25-8
Runner-Up: Vernon Wells .273 .341 .405 .746 4-22-17-49 12-15-1
Comments: I just traded for Wells. What do you think of this trade; Wells and Giambi for Cust and Jenks?
LVP: Frank Thomas .167 .306 .333 .639 3-11-7-20 11-13-0
Bottom-Up: Aaron Hill .264 .323 .388 .712 2-13-11-47 9-16-2
Comments: Why would you want “The Big Attitude” on your team?
Washington Nationals
MVP: Christian Guzman .309 .331 .463 .794 3-14-20-63 5-12-0
Runner-Up: Felipe Lopez .281 .349 .344 .693 1-12-12-33 10-14-4
Comments: I have nothing for this team. New ballpark, same crowds.
LVP: Ryan Zimmerman .217 .252 .333 .585 3-14-12-43 6-23-0
In the blog I will give you, each MLB teams Fantasy MVP and runner-up along with the teams LVP and bottom-up. I actually did some research on this, so please enjoy.
Editor’s note; statistics are retro to May 4, 2008 and are courtesy of ESPN. I will use the following sequence of stats for you to follow AVG, OBP, SLG, OPS, HR, RBI, R, TB, BB, K, and SB.
I will focus solely on offense today and tomorrow. Maybe a pitching column next week?
Here are the first 15 teams in ABC order... I know it sounds like a first-grader but Jackson-Five might be running through your head too... you will hate me later.
Arizona Diamondbacks
MVP: Conor Jackson .343 .421 .590 1.102 5-25-27-62 11-10-2
Runner-Up: J. Upton .342 .402 .559 .960 5-16-19-62 13-30-0
Comments: Jackson has been a beast while Upton needs to up the SB total to get his true value.
LVP: Eric Byrnes .242 .316 .417 .732 3-15-29-50 11-16-3
Bottom-Up: Chris Snyder .243 .375 .414 .789 1-15-17-29 13-21-0
Comments: Snyder’s numbers are not that bad but he came into this season primed to take over the catching duties for this team and with so much offense around him he should be posting better numbers. Byrnes is just off to a slow start.
Atlanta Braves
MVP: Chipper Jones .425 .472 .717 1.189 9-27-22-81 12-10-0
Runner-Up: Brian McCann .291 .358 .555 .912 6-17-17-61 12-9-0
Comments: Jones is MVP of the NL at this point. Who in their right mind would not take McCann’s numbers at the 2 position?
LVP: Mark Teixeira .267 .348 .442 .790 4-18-17-53 14-18-0
Bottom-Up: Jeff Francour .276 .311 .455 .766 3-20-16-56 6-12-0
Comments: Isn’t great to know that some jerk like me thinks the Braves worst two fantasy players are Tex and Francour?
Baltimore Orioles
MVP: Nick Markakis .273 .403 .473 .876 6-14-19-52 23-27-6
Comments: Ellsbury is my choice because he brings more to the table than I anticipated at the beginning of the season. He has been lights-out since day 1.
LVP: David Ortiz .216 .316 .379 .695 5-24-19-44 16-20-0
Bottom-Up: Jason Varitek .267 .315 .453 .769 3-11-7-39 4-22-0
Comments: If you want to throw-up in your own mouth check out Big Papi’s splits on home vs. road. To see V-Tek play this way is sad because I feel he was a true general on the field and a clutch player. Does Boston have another catcher ready in the minors?
Chicago White Sox
MVP: Carlos Quentin .283 .421 .609 1.030 8-22-22-56 15-17-2
Runner-Up: Joe Crede .248 .313 .585 .817 7-22-12-51 9-14-0
Comments: Quentin has been a pleasant surprise for Fantasy owners, while Crede might not have the batting average you want, he has hit big in the clutch (2 grand slams).
LVP: Nick Swisher .210 .354 .324 .678 3-8-20-34 23-29-1
Comments: Did any one else expect bigger things from Swisher? Swisher so far is a big bust! Cabrera has a pass for the same cruise Swisher is on … The S. S. Minnow.
Comments: Ramriez is the best Fantasy player in the NL… easily! Willingham flies so far under the radar. I would take Willingham over Francour any day.
LVP: Cody Ross .164 .186 .273 .459 1-5-2-15 2-8-1
Bottom-Up: Luis Gonzalez .226 .324 .403 .727 3-5-5-25 9-13-1
Comments: I feel I need to apologize to the Cody Ross family for printing his stats. NOT!
Comments: Most under-rated player in the AL is Casey Kotchman. He has been a better run producer than VLad.
LVP: Garrett Anderson .221 .258 328 .586 2-11-14-40 6-21-1
Bottom-Up: Vladimir Guerrero .256 .336 .402 .738 3-14-15-47 13-21-1
Comments: Be afraid… be very afraid
LA Dodgers
MVP: Rafael Furcal .369 .453 .585 1.038 4-15-33-76 19-15-8
Runner-Up: Matt Kemp .324 .348 .495 .843 2-22-18-52 5-30-7
Comments: Matt Kemp is one of the brightest stars in the NL right now!
LVP: Andruw Jones .163 .274 .255 .539 1-4-14-25 15-34 0
Bottom-Up: See Above…
Comments: I would like to take this opportunity to apologize on the behalf of Mr. Jones for playing like a softball player waiting to get to the bar to get his free pitcher of Miller Fat Me UP!
Anita Marks is my fifth favorite Marks… Groucho, Harpo, Chico and Zeppo rank 1-4
Jimmy V told us to ‘Never Give UP’… I say ‘Always Give Down’…
I can’t image life without peanut butter and jelly…
I would give my right eye to see like Wade Boggs…
Nick Markakis is my favorite Greek player since Clay Bellinger…
Boiled eggs are better fried…
Betty Rubble… I like to Stegosaurus her Plateosaurus
I have no idea what the Jimi Hendrix Experience is like, but if it’s under $15… I want two
My new favorite game… Connect Four
It makes more sense to have the pitcher wear a helmet… not coaches
I’ll take my chances with John Daly as my partner in quarters…
There’s no better GM in Fantasy Baseball than Ray (a friend of mine) O’Brocki…
My new favorite shirt… t-shirt $20… tickets to the race $150… three beers $27… seeing Jeff Gordon in the wall... priceless!
Is it me or does Frank Caliendo do a better John Madden than John Madden…
My favorite uniform… French Maids!
-------------------- You can't sit on a lead and run a few plays
into the line and just kill the clock. You've got to throw the ball
over the #### plate and give the other man his chance. That's why
baseball is the greatest game of them all. ~Earl Weaver
With less than 72 hours before the first pitch of the 2008 Baseball
season for the Orioles, I wanted to examine the team as well as the
team playing 45 minutes away in Washington.
Many an expert
have predicted the Orioles to finish fifth in their division and lose
close to or more than 100 games. Meanwhile the team in Washington could
be in a similar situation. The Nationals have played to a .463(225-261)
winning percentage since the 2005 season. The Orioles during the same
stretch have played at a .438(213-273) clip. OUCH! I will now stick a
hot poker in my ear.
So I was thinking which team will be
worse this season… or does it really matter? Well I kind of do think it
matters. It matters because in the three seasons that the Expos became
the Nationals they have won more games than the Birds. What in the hell
is going on around here?
If you have Peter Angelos’s email address, please forward that last paragraph to him. Thank you.
I
will now play judge and jury to determine which team will win more
games this season. Let’s admit it… Both teams will suck again this
year… and next. But for the purpose of this blog I will break each
position down to determine an edge in that area.
Catchers:
Ramon Hernandez vs Paul Lo Duca. Hernandez has to stay healthy this
year for the Orioles to produce some runs. Hernandez has the ability to
post .270-18-72 like number. Lo Duca handles pitchers well and get
timely hits. He was one of many players mentioned in the Mitchell
Report. I give the edge to Lo Duca. He has more phone number and
connections to take the edge off than Hernandez. EDGE: Nationals.
First
Baseman: Kevin Millar vs Dmitri Young. “Cowboy Up” vs “The Meathook”.
Classic WWE match. Millar is by far the most fun spirited ball player I
can remember watching. Millar when hot… is a very dangerous hitter. The
problem is he doesn’t stay hot for months. He may have a breakout week
instead of a month. Young might have his playing time reduced if Nick
Johnson is healthy. Young was the Nationals best player last season.
EDGE: Push
Second Baseman: Brian Roberts (for now) vs Ronnie
Belliard. B-Rob is one of the best lead-off hitters in the game and
causes havoc on the base paths like no other Oriole. How long will be
here? My guess… All-Star break. Belliard, a reject from the Indian
organization, is having a great Spring Training to hold off Felipe
Lopez for the job. The Orioles have a big edge here, but that all will
change sometime this Summer. EDGE: Baltimore (for now).
Third
Baseman: Melvin Mora vs Ryan Zimmerman. I might be wrong but I think
Mora has more kids than hits last season. Well that’s the way it felt.
Zimmerman is a ball player plain and simple. He plays the game like it
is suppose to be played. No contest at the position. EDGE: Nationals.
Shortstop:
Luis Hernandez vs Cristian Guzman. If you were to put Guzman up against
every other starting shortstop in MLB, the other team probably has the
edge. The Orioles have no real shortstop at this time. You could see
Freddie Bynum or Brandon Fahey playing there some this year. You could
put all their abilities together and mold them into one shortstop and
Guzman still wins. EDGE: Nationals.
Outfield: Luke Scott, Adam
Jones and Nick Markakis vs Elijah Dukes, Lastings Milledge and Austin
Kearns. I got goose pimples just typing the three Oriole names. If you
take them as a group or try and break them down by outfield position,
the conclusion will be the same. The Birds have the better outfielders
today. I like Scott more than Dukes. I like Jones more than Milledge
and I love Markakis over Kearns. This group of outfielders is the
strongest the Orioles have seen since mid 1990’s. This group of
outfielders will be worth the $9 I will spend on a ticket. EDGE:
Baltimore
Bench: The brightest star bench player for the Orioles
is Scott Moore. You could say Aubrey Huff, but I say HORSESH*T. Take
that Aubrey. The best the Nationals offer come from two players; Nick
Johnson and Willie Harris. Neither teams bench will scare opposing
pitchers or managers. EDGE: Push
Starting Pitchers: Jeremy
Guthrie, Steve Trachsel, Daniel Cabrera and Adam Loewen vs Odalis
Perez, Jason Bergmann, Tim Redding and Matt Chico. I’m only going with
the first four starters because quite frankly each teams number five
starter is not worth the time. Since I’m a homer and not afraid to
admit that, I like the Birds first four better than the Nationals. The
combine record for the four National pitchers 105-127 with an ERA of
4.75. The Birds… 196-214 with an ERA of 4.60. The X factor for the
Orioles this season will be Adam Loewen and Daniel Cabrera. You pretty
much know what to expect from Guthrie and Trachsel. If the Birds are to
win 72 games like I predict, I need Loewen and Cabrera to stay healthy
and win 12-15 each. EDGE: Baltimore
Relief Pitchers: George
Sherrill, Jamie Walker and Chad Bradford vs Chad Cordero, Jon Rauch and
Luis Ayala. If the Orioles bullpen can just be middle of the road good
we have a great chance to compete everyday. If the bullpen pitches the
way it has over the last 9 years… look out below. The Nationals have
Cordero to hold the fort down. There is a chance he will be dealt later
this season to make room for Jon Rauch to become the closer. Sherrill
will be closing games for the first time in his career. He feels like
he can handle the job and so do I. The Birds have way to many good arms
for the Nationals to compete with us. EDGE: Baltimore
So there
you have it. After breaking each position down it becomes clearer who
has the better team this season. The Boston Redsox. Sorry. I meant the
Los Angeles Dodgers. Sorry again. Couldn’t help myself.
If you want to count a game played in Japan at 6:05 EST as Opening Day... well you must live in Oakland or Boston. I live in Baltimore and our Opening Day starts Monday... like normal baseball teams. Question: How many people believe that Opening Day Monday should be a Holiday?
I want to share two memories from Oriole Opening Day past. I would love to see comments about a memory of your own.
Opening Day 1989: Cal Ripken hits a three-run bomb in the sixth inning off Clemens to put the Birds up by one and we win in extra innings on a Craig Worthington single. The year of “Why Not?” You felt Memorial Stadium rock that day. I bet you heard the crowd as far as Federal Hill when Rip put that Clemens fastball in the bullpen. I was on a bus trip from a pub in Baltimore. I was the youngest by ten years at least. My Uncle Vernon always made sure I went Opening Day. Yet, he never did that for his own son. Weird? Every one should have an Uncle like him. I am lucky to have remembered that afternoon. Where were the people checking for I.D.? Good thing it was a bus trip.
Interesting fact; the first four hitters in the line up that Opening Day; Brady Anderson, Phil Bradley, Steve Finley and Cal Ripken.
Opening Day 1982: Murray hits a granny, Cal put one over the fence for his first ever, Gary Roenicke, and “Disco” Dan Ford hit bombs that great afternoon as we destroy KC and Dennis Leonard 13-5. I sat in the right field bleachers with my sixth grade classmates. I was lucky enough to be on the cover of the News American the next morning! Remember Dempsey tried switch-hitting that year. Funny season. Weaver’s last one before that ill attempt at a comeback. Cal wins ROY. We take Milwaukee to the final game… and “Cakes “gives up two ####s to future HOF’er himself Robin Yount. We lose 10-2. Weaver cries as Howard Cossell sings praise to the “Earl of Baltimore.” We win the World Series the next season with Joe Altobelli and have not been to the big dance since.
Opening Day line up; Bumbry, Dempsey, Ford, Singleton, Murray, Ripken, Roenicke, Sakata and Dauer. Yes… in that order.
Did you know baseball starts Tuesday… in a foreign country… played in the wee hours of the morning EST? Well if you have no idea that this is taking place, you might as well get used to the idea of the MLB season staring in March… in a country that has $$$.. Moreover, INTEREST! That is right other countries have interest in the game of baseball. Baltimore fans seem to be as interested in this season as if this was a wedding for a couple you knew had no chance… because you are the reason they have no chance.
Well with that said, I am interested in this season for one reason only: Predictions.
Here we go…
AL East: Boston Redsox.
AL Central: Cleveland Indians
AL West: Los Angeles of Anaheim of Orange County of the state of California Angles
AL Wild Card: Detroit Tigers
AL Champion: Detroit Tigers
AL MVP: Miguel Cabrera
AL ROY: Evan Longoria (Clay Buchholz a close second).
AL Manager of the Year: Mike Scioscia
AL CY Young: Justin Verlander
NL East: NY Mets
NL Central: Milwaukee Brewers
NL West: Los Angeles Dodgers of Brooklyn, NY past
NL Wild Card: Atlanta Braves
NL Champion: LA Dodgers
NL MVP: Prince Fielder
NL ROY: Hiroki Kuroda
NL Manager of the Year: Joe Torre
NL CY Young: Johan Santana
World Series Winner: LA Dodgers
World Series MVP: Chad Billingsley
Bonus*** The First Manager Canned: Charlie Manuel (by June 1st).
Bonus 2*** The Orioles will win 72 games this year.
Bonus 3*** The Yankees are in for an awful season. Yet they will just miss the playoffs.
Bonus 4*** Erik Bedard wins 15… yet loses 10+ and the Mariners fall short of the playoffs.
