Brewers at 75:1 to win the World Series? Put me down for $100. Great rotation and lineup, but the bullpen concerns me. Factor in a farm system that probably would rank in the mid-20s, and the Brewers might be hard-pressed to find a mid-season upgrade unless they are willing to take on significant salary.
I love the MLB Network, but can someone please tell Mitch Williams that wins aren't everything? He found it absolutely outrageous that Ross Ohlendorf received a 355|PERCENT| raise for a 1-11 record. Yeah, wonder who has the higher IQ.
Please do a YouTube search for "Madden Greg Jennings Broken Leg". Love that guy.
Huge sale at Kohl's this weekend. Got three work shirts for under $30. Oh and yes, I'm married and stuff like this excites me.
Anyone seen "The Town"? Fell asleep watching it last night and wondering if it's worth watching when I'm a bit more alert.
I love Scoresheet Baseball. Check it out if you can.
Can you imagine the Rays with Buster Posey at catcher? Instead, they went with Tim Beckham #1 overall a couple years ago. Hard to criticize that organization, but while hindsight is 20/20 and all, that was a major flub.
Wondering if Daric Barton is the next Kevin Youkilis…. Yeah the power gap is certainly there right now, but if Barton can show 20 homer power, that could translate into .320/.430/.510 at some point.
If I'm in a keeper league, particularly one of the NL-only variety, I'm targeting LA's Kenley Jansen. Electric stuff to say the least, and with Jonathan Broxton set to be a free agent after 2011 and Hong-Chih Kuo's elbow an ongoing concern, Jansen could be the favorite to close in 2012 with a strong 2011.
The Braves are never hesitant to put young players in key positions. Jason Heyward in 2010, Freddie Freeman this year. Then there's Craig Kimbrel. Kimbrel will compete with Jonny Venters for saves in 2011, but I like Kimbrel in this race slightly. The Braves also have left-handers George Sherrill and Eric O'Flaherty, so don't write off Venters quite yet. Then there's Billy Wagner who has yet to officially file his retirement papers. Is Wagner the baseball version of Brett Favre with Andy Pettitte seemingly retired?
Dodgers lineup 2012:
SS Dee Gordon
LF Andre Ethier
RF Matt Kemp
3B Jerry Sands
2B Juan Uribe
Won't happen, but just wanted to write that.
Lindsay Lohan won't serve time, and one of my fantasy teams will be named "Charlie Sheen's Briefcase of Coke". Just two small predictions.
Danny Espinosa whiffs a bit too much for my taste, but he has an outside chance at a 20/20 season this season. I'll be targeting him in most leagues this year, particularly those of the keeper variety. Espinosa homered six times in 103 at-bats for the Nats in 2010. Over 550 at-bats, that's 32 homers. Just sayin'…
Let's see, so far the "best shape of their lives" stories include Pablo Sandoval, John Lackey, and CC Sabathia. There are probably more that I missed, but don't put much stock in these stories. Will dropping 15-30 lbs. help Sandoval from chasing sliders two feet out of the zone?
Most of the projections I've seen have Jose Bautista anywhere between 30 and 35 home runs in 2011 after his magical 2011 season. Perhaps that prognostication turns out to be accurate, but this guy is no Brady Anderson. I'm taking the over on 39 homers.
Things aren't looking too optimistic for the Cardinals re: the Albert Pujols negotiations. Pujols is likely looking for a 10-year deal at $28 million to $30 million per. Basically A-Rod money plus a little more. It's not an unreasonable request, but the Cardinals may not go beyond seven or eight years. I expect Pujols to enter free agency after 2011, as he's already stated that he won't approve any sort of trade this year. The Cubs appear to be the early front-runner for his services, and I'd put the Angels right there as well, but they have to deal with Jered Weaver and Kendry Morales again next year. One also has to wonder whether doling out $21 million a year to Vernon Wells would impact a Pujols offer.
So we're already hearing J.D. Drew and "hamstring" in the same sentence. Bump Ryan Kalish up on your cheatsheets, as he could get significant playing time in RF along with perhaps Mike Cameron.
Brandon League could open 2011 as Seattle's closer given the concerns over David Aardsma's hip. League has the talent to keep that job even once Aardsma is ready. Speaking of the Mariners, I really, really like Michael Pineda. I got to see him pitch a couple times in the PCL last year and he was quite impressive. Looked like he belonged.
I'm willing to give Alex Gordon another shot. Rotowire has Gordon projected to hit .257/.350/.445. Not bad, but certainly nothing special for a left fielder.
Will Venable's 29 stolen bases may eventually represent a career-high, but I like him as a cheap source of speed this year. The 67|PERCENT| contact rate however is abysmal, leaving batting average projections above .250 scarce.
I see where Edinson Volquez turned down a four-year $27 million deal in favor of a one-year pact for $1.6 million. Coming off Tommy John surgery, that is a fireable offense for his agent.
David Freese is an interesting sleeper again this year as the Cardinals' probably starter at third base. Freese has a .360 career OBP in 271 major league at-bats, though he's yet to show the type of power he did in 2008 in hitting 26 homers in 464 Triple-A at-bats. Nick Punto is the biggest threat to Freese's playing time, so that should help his fantasy prospects.