9.05.2014

Finishing Strong in Baseball

So by now it’s you against 2-3 other managers for the league championship.  Well done.  OK, now what?  Which players do you ride to a championship?  Which players do you discard?

Well, my young apprentice.  Here are the answers.
  • Mookie Betts: REAL. Go get him especially if he has SS eligibility in your league.
  • Alex Rios: FAKE. Just a bad year for him. Drop.
  • Desmond Jennings: FAKE. You can’t count potential.
  • Carlos Beltran: FAKE. Hard to hit with one good knee.
  • Aaron Sanchez: REAL. He’ll get you 3 saves this month with great peripherals.
  • Devin Mesoraco: REAL. He’s over his slump. Get him in your lineup.
  • Adam Dunn: REAL. Yes, I’m serious. Fresh start for him in a playoff race.
  • Luis Valbuena: REAL. Take advantage of the middle infielder power.
  • Kennys Vargas: REAL. Take him only if you like power (and a lot of it).
  • Jay Bruce: FAKE. Why did I draft this guy so early?
  • Chris Tillman: REAL. Last couple starts were average but the stuff is there.
  • Steve Pearce: REAL. He's back from a minor injury. Get him in your lineup.
  • Josh Hamilton: FAKE. Good guy. But will not help you.
  • Brock Holt: REAL. Position eligibility allows you to fill lineup every day.
  • Jason Hammel: REAL. Seems to have righted the ship.
  • Miguel González: REAL. He’s not really this good but you don’t care.
  • Kole Calhoun: REAL. Love this guy.  He cooled off but coming back.
  • J.J. Hardy: REAL. Streaky player. Ride him to your championship.
  • Eric O'Flaherty: REAL. Eventually he’ll get a couple save chances.
  • Mike Trout: FAKE. OK, I did that one just for fun.
  • Corey Dickerson: REAL. Breakout year.
  • Eric Hosmer: FAKE. Not his year. Time to move on.
  • Will Myers: See Hosmer, Eric.
  • Mark Trumbo: FAKE. He left his bat in a hotel somewhere.
  • Billy Butler: FAKE. He and Eric Hosmer having the same year.
  • Brandon Phillips: FAKE. Why is this guy rostered on so many teams?
  • Justin Verlander: FAKE. Should not be rostered in any format.
  • Gio Gonzalez: FAKE. Not as good without the Miami connection.
  • Mat Latos: FAKE. Drop him this year. Draft him next year.

Big name guys who are bad right now but may still help you.

·  Hanley Ramirez
·  David Wright (Why is he drafted so high every year?)
·  Jason Kipnis
·  Dustin Pedroia
·  Adam Wainwright
·  Kenley Jansen
·  Glen Perkins
·  Sonny Gray

The purpose of this exercise is to get you thinking about who can help you NOW.  Reputations, pre-season rankings – none of it matters anymore.  Drop the under-performing ‘name’ players and pick up productive ‘no name’ players.  Your team will be glad you did.

This post also available at rotoprofessor.com.

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