"March 2015" Monthly Archives

  • Entertainment
    And, Now ... Predictions! By Kyle Elfrink

    It would be patently unfair for me to post all these columns over the previous two months without providing the lifeblood of preseason anticipation ... Predictions! I'll right that wrong today. With the 2015 season less than a week away,...

  • Entertainment
    Preseason Prep - March 31st

    Justin Verlander (SP-DET). Verlander is questionable both to make his next spring start and to be ready for his first start of the regular season after being lifted from his most recent start with soreness in his triceps. While this...

  • Entertainment
    Preseason Prep - March 29th

    Chicago Cubs Jorge Soler - Lets talk about Soler power. No, not solar power, but (Jorge) Soler's power. Overshadowed by teammate and mega prospect, Kris Bryant, Jorge Soler has quietly put together an impressive Spring Training. Through 15 games, the...

  • Entertainment
    From Spring Bump, to Summer Jump?, (Part 2) By Kyle Elfrink

    (Note: This is a continuation from Part 1, which was published on 3-27-15) NL Outfielders Eric Young, Jr., Atlanta Young, Jr., is back on radars after appearing to win the early-season centerfield spot in Atlanta. His defense is spotty, his...

  • Entertainment
    Preseason Prep - March 28th, 2015

    Twins Brian Dozier's Power/speed Combo Brian Dozier has been on the fantasy map for a couple seasons now, with an 18/14 HR/SB season in 2013 followed up with a 23/21 pairing in 2014. Now headed into 2015, Dozier is a...

  • Entertainment
    From Spring Bump, to Summer Jump?, (Part 1) By Kyle Elfrink

    Let's agree from the start ... there will not be an extensive Kris Bryant discussion in this particular piece! The Cub slugger has hijacked all of the Spring scuttlebutt with his power-laden showcase down in Arizona (up to 71 homers...

  • Entertainment
    Pre-Season Report- March 27, 2015

    New York Yankees Replacing Mariano- Not necessarily a one man job I know it's a year late on the "Replacing Rivera" storyline, but after almost two decades of being the most stable fantasy closer in baseball, the Yankees closer situation...

  • Entertainment
    Preseason Prep-March 26, 2015

    Cincinnati Reds Has Johnny Cueto established himself as one of the best pitchers in baseball? Johnny Cueto was brilliant in 2014. Cueto went 20-9 and posted a 2.25 ERA over 243.2 IP. Cueto had been labeled as a health risk...

  • Entertainment
    Preseason Prep- March 25, 2015

    Notes from the Grapefruit and Cactus leagues... Down the homestretch With less than two weeks to go until Opening Day, some positional battles are becoming clearer. For the Rangers the main unsettled spots are left field, left handed reliever, and...

  • Entertainment
    Preseason Prep 3-24-15

    As we drive deeper into the Spring Training season, we will be looking at a few players from each of a trio of teams, the Padres, Cardinals and the Blue Jays. These 3 teams have the ability to be very...

  • Entertainment
    The LACK of Pitching by Kyle Elfrink

    There are a pair of things that we can all agree on as we arrive on the doorstep of 2015 ... 1. Mike Trout is the unquestioned number-1 overall pick and, 2. There's a ton of pitching to be found...

  • Entertainment
    Preseason Prep - March 23, 2015

    Bruce Rondon (RP-DET). Rondon's name is one to keep in mind as a possible closer-in-waiting. Despite missing the 2014 season due to TJ surgery, Rondon has hit 100 MPH with his fastball during spring training and posted solid numbers in...

  • Entertainment
    Preseason Prep - March 22, 2015

    Archie Bradley and As The Diamonbacks' Rotation Turns A day after general manager Dave Stewart declared that Bradley wasn't "Major League Ready," the former top pitching prospect tossed 4 solid innings, allowing 2 unearned runs on 5 hits while striking...

  • Entertainment
    Preseason Prep - March 21st, 2015

    Minnesota Twins Twins' top power threat: Oswaldo Arcia The 23-year old Twins' outfielder has yet to go deep in Spring Training this season, but he has a pair of doubles, and is hitting for a good average (.364). Granted, Arcia...

  • Entertainment
    Preseason Prep - March 20th, 2015

    Rene Rivera - I feel like I left a bit unsaid a few weeks ago regarding Rivera, whose 318 ABs last season were his highest total since 2007. Rivera was pushed to the majors (and into a backup role) right...

  • Entertainment
    Preseason Prep - March 19th

    Rising Stars: Mookie Betts (BOS-CF) - Let's start things off with one of the hottest batters in spring training, Mookie Betts. In 29 at bats Betts already has 13 hits, seven of which have gone for extra bases. If the...

  • Entertainment
    Preseason Prep - March 18th

    San Diego Padres: Kevin Quackenbush (RP - SD) - Going into the 2014 season as a relatively unknown commodity, Kevin Quackenbush proved his worth down the stretch and is now in the conversation to be the primary set-up man for...

  • Entertainment
    Preseason Prep March 17th

    Andrelton Simmons - Simmons turned in a huge day at the plate Saturday launching his first homer of the spring while going 3-for-3 on the day. Simmons was terrible last year (worse than the player formerly known as BJ Upton...

  • Entertainment
    ADP: The Head-to-Head Decisions by Kyle Elfrink

    Anyone who has even been in the same zip code of a fantasy baseball draft has heard of the 'Closer's Run.' It's the moment when someone decides to breach the dam, take that first closer of the draft, and, thus,...

  • Entertainment
    Preseason Prep - March 16th, 2015

    Ian Desmond is definitely a position where you can get a leg up on your competition these days, because if you include Hanley Ramirez, there are still only 4 guys that clearly should be off the board in the first...

  • Entertainment
    Preseason Prep-March 14, 2015

    Cincinnati Reds What to expect from Joey Votto in 2015? Joey Votto had an injury plagued 2014 season. His quad injury never seemed to heal up and forced him to the DL. Votto only played in 62 games, but is...

  • Entertainment
    Mentioning the Unmentioned by Kyle Elfrink

    How many times a week do you think, "If I could just hit the rewind button and do it again."? Dozens? Fantasy baseball players LIVE the "If I Coulda' Game." It could be a misstep that you made on a...

  • Entertainment
    Preseason Prep - March 12th, 2015

    Minnesota Twins Phil Hughes' breakout: More to come or regression? A year after going 4-14 with a 5.19 ERA, Phil Hughes had a record-setting 2014 in which he won 16 games, posted a 3.52 ERA, threw over 200 innings with...

  • Entertainment
    Players to watch this spring

    We all know that Spring Training stats don't matter, and it's pretty much true. Springs stats have very little correlation with what happens during the upcoming season, whether it's because of small sample size, minor league competition, or players working...

  • Entertainment
    EAV$, INF$, and LABR by Kyle Elfrink

    Baseball offers a linguistic world of abbreviations, acronyms, and short-hand. Seriously, each spring most of us wake up to our first rounds of draft prep only to spend a good half-day scavenging through all the new tools of analysis that...

  • Entertainment
    Preseason Prep March 10th

    Atlanta Braves Jace Peterson, Pulling away from the pack? - Okay, maybe it's too early to say he's pulling ahead in the Braves' second base competition but Peterson is off to an excellent start to spring training. He's hitting a...

  • Entertainment
    Preseason Prep- March 9, 2015

    Notes from the Grapefruit and Cactus leagues... It's déjà vu all over again The Rangers lost approximately 9 million games to injury right now. The big news this weekend is that they have started picking up right where they left...

  • Entertainment
    Evaluating the Sabermetrics Behind Relievers

    During the year, I write "A Closer Look" for our in-season analysis subscribers. It's a weekly column that takes Fantistics' advanced statistical perspective and applies it specifically to the closing position. I'm a firm believer that relievers can be an...

  • Entertainment
    Preseason Prep - March 8th, 2015

    St Louis Cardinals Trevor Rosenthal (CL) - Closer Controversy? Trevor Rosenthal saved an impressive 46 games in 2014 but his lack of control resulted in 6 blown saves. After posting a 2.39 BB/9 rate in 2013 he ballooned to 5.37...

  • Entertainment
    Preseason Prep - March 6, 2015

    Hunter Pence (OF-SF) - And here come the injuries. The Giants announced Thursday that they fear Pence has a broken forearm. No timetable had been established at the time this was written, but it's probably a safe bet that he'll...

  • Entertainment
    The Importance of Lineup Positioning by Kyle Elfrink

    Howie Kendrick is one of the few current players in MLB who has at least 100 plate appearances at every single spot in the batting order over the span of his career. Beyond that, he is also one of the...

  • Entertainment
    Preseason Prep - March 4th

    James Paxton (SEA-SP) - One of my favorite sleepers from last season was James Paxton. Paxton is a hard throwing lefty with the potential to be a top of the rotation pitcher. However, he is a risky fantasy pick as...

  • Entertainment
    Preseason Prep March 3rd

    Congrats everyone, we have made it. Spring Training games officially start tomorrow (if you're reading this on Monday) or today (If you are reading this Tuesday). Atlanta Braves Center Field, The Dumpster Fire - Oh wow, the excitement in Braves...

  • Entertainment
    Preseason Prep - March 2nd, 2015

    Doug Fister - Fister is a major concern for me heading into 2015 after a superficially excellent 2014 (16-6, 2.41 ERA, 1.08 WHIP). Fister was able to succeed last year despite precipitous declines in swinging strike%, GB rate, and velocity...

  • Entertainment
    ADP: Yes, an 'Avulsion Fracture' Does Make a Difference by Kyle Elfrink

    One of the greatest challenges for all of us over the next month will be salvaging useful information from spring camps. Each evening you can go dumpster-diving into a trove of information and reporting from Florida and Arizona. This guy...

  • Entertainment
    An EYE Towards 2015: Exploring a Hitter's BB:K Ratio

    A frequent topic on the Fantistics Insider Baseball Show on Sirius XM Fantasy this spring--besides my love for Mookie Betts--has been the type of contact a batter makes. Knowing if linedrives, groundballs, and flyballs are being hit and at what...