Ranking players on what they have done so far isn’t too much help for fantasy owners, is it? While it’s great to know what someone has done, what we care about more is where we think they are heading. While these rankings do take a players performance to date into account, where we think they are going is weighted much more into the equation.

With that in mind, let’s take a look at our current Top 15 catchers (number in parenthesis is their final preseason ranking):

1) Paul Goldschmidt – Arizona Diamondbacks (7)
Can he maintain his current 25.5% HR/FB? Probably not, though we all knew he had significantly more power than he showed last season (20 HR). With that coming out, coupled with his ability to ht .300 and steal bases (18 in 2012, 4 thus far in 2013) he is a complete player in the mold of Albert Pujols in his prime. Is anyone going to complain about that? He’s entrenching himself as one of the elite players in the game, let alone first baseman.

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It was another wild game around the league.  Fernando Rodney imploded again.  Justin Verlander has hit an uncharacteristic slide.  Danny Espinosa & Dustin Ackley continue to frustrate fantasy owners.  Let’s look at these stories and all the rest from yesterday’s games:

• It hasn’t been a very good stretch for Justin Verlander.  He lasted 5.0 IP yesterday allowing 5 ER on 10 H and 1 BB, striking out 9.  He now hasn’t gone more than 5 innings in three straight starts.  In his past two starts he’s allowed 13 ER over 7.2 IP.  Are we concerned?  Not yet, though it is eye popping.
• Vance Worley got shelled, allowing 8 ER on 10 H and 2 BB, striking out 3, over 3.2 IP.  Among the damage was three home runs, including a grand slam from Evan Gattis (1-3, 1 HR, 4 RBI, 1 R).  He is now 1-5 with a 7.21 ERA and has allowed 4 ER or more in five of his ten starts.  Just to make matters worse, he has struck out more than 3 just once.  He’s already been demoted to Triple-A and, with Kyle Gibson faring well at Triple-A, he could easily get the first crack at the rotation. Read the rest of this entry »

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by Ivar G. Anderson

Everybody loves a good middle infield prospect, right?  I know I do.  This installment let us examine a trio of lesser known 2B/SS candidates plugging away in the minors.

Dorssys Paulino SS CLE
At 18 Paulino is a work in progress.  His fielding leaves much to be desired, but the offensive potential is extreme and is what will propel him through the low minors.  He ripped apart pitching in the Rookie league and projects to have good power as he grows into his body.  Although he is currently playing SS, with his offensive production it is easy to see a shift over to third in his future.  Average speed would also portend a move to the corner of the infield as he moves through the Cleveland system.  Plus, he has Francisco Lindor ahead of him at SS in the Indians’ minor league system. Read the rest of this entry »

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by Steven Grindstaff

First base is one of the deepest positions in baseball, but that doesn’t mean that we should ignore everything but the elite options in the game.  What can we expect from some of the surging first basemen around the league?  Let’s take a look:

Mitch Moreland, Texas Rangers
156AB, .295/.345/.577, 10 HR, 24 RBI, 20R
One of the hottest first basemen in MLB resides in Arlington, Texas.  Over the past month Mitch Moreland has put up a .362/.404/.714 triple slash line with 8 HR and 20 RBI.  One stat that pops out immediately is his .282 ISO (career .192).    His flyball distance is an average of 295 feet (2012 = 287, 2011 = 283) and his HR/FB rate is 18.2% (career 14.5%), so it appears he is beginning to show his power.  However don’t expect his current ISO to remain this elevated.

There are some more things to like about Moreland.  His strikeout rate is declining (17%, career 18.8%).  He is also making more contact in the zone (91.4%, career 89.1%) and laying off pitches out of the zone (30.9%, career 32.6%).  Playing in Arlington will definitely help his numbers, not to mention he is hitting fifth in the order while he’s hot.  He should be able to drive in some runs playing in a solid lineup.

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In a week where every team plays seven games, there are going to be opportunities for fantasy owners.  Does quantity necessarily make pitchers good options, though?  It’s when quality, quantity and potential merge together when fantasy owners want to take notice.  Let’s take a look at the best options for fantasy Week 9:

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by Will Overton

Solid night of baseball last night. There were several really strong pitching outings, but the hitters got theirs in last night too. Mike Trout hit for the cycle for the the first time, while we also had a two HR game, several multi-hit games and a multi-SB game.

If you missed out on last night’s action here is a roundup of all the need to know facts:

• After going just 1 – 12 in his last four games it looked like Mike Trout might be headed for a slump, but he put the brakes on that last night. Trout continues to do amazing things as a hitter, last night adding hitting for the cycle to his resume. Trout went 4 – 5 in the game, knocking in five and even stealing a base for good measure. He now has both nine HR’s and nine SB’s.
• On the hill and feeling the love from Mike Trout last night was Jerome Williams. The converter reliever threw eight scoreless innings allowing six hits and two walks while striking out six. Williams was shaky in his first start of the season, but has been solid his last three allowing only 4 R in 20.2 IP. The Angels backend of the rotation has been a revolving door so far this season, so if he continues to pitch well I don’t see him returning to the pen. Read the rest of this entry »

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It has been a disappointing start to 2013 for Yoenis Cespedes, hitting .211 with 8 HR and 21 RBI. It’s safe to say that he’s better than that, especially given his .209 BABIP, but just making a blanket statement would be a little bit hasty. Lets dive into the numbers and see how things look and if a rebound is a certainty.

Part if the problem may be that he’s been not only swinging for the fences this season, but popping the ball up at an alarming rate. According to Fangraphs, through Sunday he is the owners of a 54.3% overall flyball rate and 19.6% infield fly ball rate. Last season he was at 39.9% and 14.8%, respectively. Couple that increase with his 13.8% line drive rate and it is not surprising that his BABIP is well below average.

Before we hit the panic button, the numbers have been significantly better in May. His line drive rate is 20.4% and his infield fly ball rate is down to 11.1%. We would expect significantly better numbers in regards to his BABIP, yet it is sitting at .180 for the month.

He coud be trying to swing for the fences (54.3% overall fly ball rate), but that’s hardly enough to justify his number. One point for a big-time bounce back on the horizon.

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Looking for a closer on the hot seat?  Here’s a few situations that are definitely worth monitoring (all stats are through Sunday):

Fernando Rodney – Tampa Bay Rays
While he arguably enjoyed one of the best seasons ever for a relief pitcher in 2012, there were numerous red flags that had to get our attention:

• A walk rate of 1.81 (had been under 4.00 once in the previous six seasons and twice in his nine year career)
• Luck was on his side (.220 BABIP & 89.4% strand rate)

This season neither of those things are there and new concerns have been added. Sure he is striking out batters at an elite rate, but he has had blowups with his control (15 BB over 16.1 IP), is posting realistic metrics (.270 BABIP, 75.4% strand rate) and is just being hit hard overall (28.9% line drive rate).

Could he settle down and restore his claim on the closers role? Absolutely, but it is far from a guarantee.

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Has Patrick Corbin emerged as one of the elite starting pitchers in the Majors?  How did Jake Odorizzi and Jurickson Profar fare in their 2013 debuts?  Is Cole Hamels this year’s Cliff Lee?  Let’s answer these questions and all the rest from yesterday’s games:

• Patrick Corbin was stellar once again, this time shutting down the Rockies in Coors Field.  He went the distance allowing 1 ER on 3 H and 1 BB, striking out 10, to improve to 7-0 with a 1.44 ERA and 0.98 WHIP.  While he’s going to regress (.246 BABIP, 88.2% strand rate), he has shown a solid strikeout rate (7.36 K/9), good control (2.60 BB/9) and a decent groundball pitcher (49.7% groundball rate).  In other words, while the numbers are going to fall he should continue to be a viable option.
• Those who jumped on the Scott Kazmir bandwagon after his gem on May 9 against the A’s (10 K over 6.0 IP), are you ready to jump off yet?  He allowed 5 ER on 7 H and 2 BB, striking out 2, over 3.0 IP yesterday against the Mariners.  In his last two starts he’s now allowed 9 ER over 8.0 innings, striking out just 5.  He was a nice story, but he’s an impossible option to trust. Read the rest of this entry »

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It is hard to call a 2010 second round draft pick an unknown, but Nelson certainly hadn’t generated much buzz prior to 2013. This season, however, everything has been clicking in the early season.

Over his first nine starts (47.1 IP) he has posted a 3.04 ERA, 1.29 WHIP, 9.13 K/9 and 2.09 BB/9. The last two are the most important, because he had not shown this much upside in prior seasons. In fact, in 10 starts at Double-A in 2012 he posted marks of 8.22 and 7.24, respectively.

Baseball America, who ranked him as the team’s fifth best prospect prior to th season, said:

“An imposing figure on the mound, Nelson often overpowers hitters with a 92-94 mph fastball that he can run up to 96. He also throws an effective two-seamer in the low 90s that has good sink and induces weak groundouts. He has become more consistent with his sharp 84-86 mph slider, which he uses to shut down righthanders, and more confident with his fringy changeup. He also did a better job repeating his herky-jerky delivery last year until the shoulder fatigue set in.”

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