Welcome back to a whole new season of the RHL Report. We bring you Sports news with a RHL slant. This week on the show, Julie Buehler has the news and notes Big James in the “Fastest 30 seconds of Nascar”, Missie Nicole, Julia Titova as James’ wife, Circusdave Unfiltered Is bitching about nothing, the return of Dr. Daren Newfield and the RHL writers. Check out all the action at Redhottlocks.com
I want to apologize to my loyal followers at BEONDECK for not posting anything new lately. My focus has been 1o0% on my favorite basketball team – UCONN HUSKIES – as they have made it to the Final Four! But, its time to get down to business and focus in on Opening Day. I’m sure by now you had your fantasy draft and you are either excited about your chances at winning at title or your already scratching your head. Unfortunately, I left my draft scratching my head. I had three goals in my NL-Only league draft – acquire Dan Uggla, acquire more speed, and add roster flexibility. I failed on all three. It would be easy to panic, but remember that fantasy baseball is a marathon, not a sprint. If you find yourself in my situation, take a step back and let the first couple weeks unfold. If your able to make a few small adjustments, by all means attack the free agent wire.
As teams prepare to travel north to open the season Thursday, there have been several headlines that have caught my attention. Here are some of those that need our attention:
Welcome back to a whole new season of the RHL Report. We bring you Sports news with a RHL slant. This week on the show, Julie Buehler has the news and notes, Ashley Ignelzi for the Foxyfrenzy.com, Big James in the “Fastest 30 seconds of Nascar”, Missie Nicole with the Tweet of the week, Julia Titova as James’ wife, Circusdave Unfiltered Is Bitching about nothing, the RHL writers. Check out all the action at Redhottlocks.com
Here is this week’s Cactus League Round Up:
Arizona Diamondbacks: An interesting announcement from D’backs camp this week. Ian Kennedy has been named the Diamondbacks Opening Day starter. Kennedy was 9-10 record with a 3.80 ERA in 32 starts last season. Daniel Hudson will start the second game of the season followed by Joe Saunders. Armando Galarraga, Barry Enright and Aaron Heilman are competing for the final two spots in the rotation. After looking at that list of names, maybe Kennedy is not such a surprise. Its going to be a long season in the desert.
Chicago White Sox: Jake Peavy continues to make good progress in camp. Ozzie Guillen has gone as far as saying that Peavy has been the most impressive starter in camp. Chris Sale continues to struggle with his command and does not look to be the White Sox closer starting the season.
Chicago Cubs: Matt Garza enjoyed his best outing of the spring on Monday. Garza pitched four strong innings giving up a run on three hits. Garza will start the season as the Cubs #3 started following Ryan Dempster and Carlos Zambrano.
Colorado Rockies: Ian Stewart returned to action on Wednesday for the Rockies. Stewart had suffered a sprained right knee in the first Cactus League game this year. Now that he is healthy, Stewart’s biggest obstacle will be to stay that way and he is probably in for another low batting average. He has 30-home run potential and 90-RBI over a full season. Right-hander Jhoulys Chacin pitched five solid innings on Monday. Chacin will have a fantasy impact whether he is starting or coming out of the bullpen in 2011.
Cincinnati Reds: Edison Volquez pitched five scoreless innings and he continues to make solid progress in his rehab. Johnny Cueto has been cleared to throw this week. He was diagnosed with stiffness of the forearm and biceps and told not to throw. He could make a start next week.
Cleveland Indians:Grady Sizemore ran the bases for the first time this year. Sizemore will not start the season with the Indians, but could be ready to join them in April or May.
Kansas City Royals: Alex Gordon hit his third home run in March on Wednesday. Gordon’s performance can give fantasy owners some hope that he will break camp with the Royals to start the season.
Los Angeles Dodgers: Jon Garland and Vicente Padilla are progressing slowly after sustaining injuries this spring. Padilla is throwing off flat ground and Garland was able to sneeze without his strained oblique muscle hurting. He will be out at least a month.
Los Angeles Angels: Kendrys Morales is holding out hope that he will be ready for the Angels opener this year.
Milwaukee Brewers: Ryan Braun returned to game action after missing time with a muscle strain. Zack Greinke is still riding the stationary bike, but hopes to throw soon.
Oakland Athletics: A’s closer, Andrew Bailey has been diagnosed with a forearm strain. The A’s will rely on Brian Fuentes and Grant Balfour while Bailey is out.
San Diego Padres: Mat Latos is beginning to find his control. Latos has struggled this spring.
San Francisco Giants: Pablo Sandoval continues to have a great spring. Brandon Belt nearly hit for the cycle on Wednesday.
Seattle Mariners:Erik Bedard pitched in an intra-squad game on Tuesday. He struck out six, but did give up two home runs to minor league hitters. He continues to work his way back from shoulder surgery.
Texas Rangers:All the back and forth for Neftali Feliz appears to be back on starting. After saying he wanted to remain the closer, he now says he wants to start. This creates two problems for the Rangers. First, if Feliz leaves a game with a 2-1 lead, who will hold the lead. Second, that is eight less innings the Rangers will have Feliz. Leave him as the closer!
Here is this week’s Grapefruit League update:
Atlanta Braves: After getting knocked around in his first four outings, new Braves closer Craig Kimbrel threw a perfect inning today. Chipper Jones has had a pretty decent spring so far, hitting decently (.269, 1 HR, 3 RBI in 26 AB), but mostly appearing at DH.
Baltimore Orioles: Derek Lee has yet to play in a game after off season wrist surgery, is struggling with tendinitis but a recent MRI came back clean. If needed, Luke Scott is ready to play first base if Lee can’t to start the season. Brian Roberts has been sidelined the last couple days with back spasm. On the heels of being limited to just 59 games in 2010, its easy to assume that people think it’s a major issue, but its not. He has had back spasms throughout his career.
Boston Red Sox: Daisuke Matsuzaka has given up 10 earned runs over his last 6 2/3 innings, but Francona says its too early to be concerned. Josh Beckett (concussion), pitched well in his first game back – one run in 3 2/3 innings.
Florida Marlins: Mike Stanton at least 10 days from returning from injury. In the meantime, he’ll play some minor league games to rehab.
New York Yankees: There is alot of competition these days in Yankees camp. Bartolo Colon, Freddy Garcia, Sergio Mitre and Ivan Nova are all competing to complete the starting rotation for the Yankees.
New York Mets: Jason Bay, coming back from post-concussion symptoms, has 7 hits in 18 spring ABs. He appears to be fine. Oliver Perez was informed that he will not be apart of the starting rotation and will be apart of the Mets bullpen. This is the first step towards Perez being released. Francisco Rodriguez is off to a great start this spring. He is not a Tier 1 closer anymore, but definitely a Tier 2 and should have a nice season.
St. Louis Cardinals: Cardinals starter Kyle McClellan is making his case to be apart of the Cardinals rotation. In his most recent outing, McClellan limited the Braves one run in four innings. McClellan is bidding to be the 5th starter in the Cardinals rotation.
Philadelphia Phillies: Domonic Brown had wrist surgery Tuesday. Brown will miss 4-6 weeks and Ben Francisco will start in right field for the Phillies on Opening Day. Shortly before his final at-bat of spring training, Brown made the decision to go back to his normal swing. Chase Utley is suffering from patellar tendinitis and bone inflammation, but that he hasn’t responded to “non-operative care,” including that cortisone shot, as he had in the past. If Utley isn’t ready for Opening Day Wilson Valdez will most likely be the Phillies’ second baseman. Ruben Amaro Jr. does expect Utley to play this season.
Tampa Bay Rays: The bullpen situation is starting to come together for the Rays. Kyle Farnsworth and Joel Peralta are the leading candidates for the closer spot, but Jake McGee is in the mix as well.
Toronto Blue Jays: Yunel Escobar is swinging a hot bat so far this spring. In 21 AB, he has a .476 BA. Jose Bautista is homerless through 18 at bats.
Washington Nationals: Rookie Danny Espinosa has had a ridiculous spring so far as he’s hitting .407 with 11 RBI and 2 homers in 27 ABs. Espinosa is a solid option in all fantasy formats. Bryce Harper is really impressing the Nationals this Spring with .375 BA 4 RBI in 16 AB. He’s going to start in high Class-A, but without a doubt will be on the fast-track to Washington.
Welcome back to a whole new season of the RHL Report. We bring you Sports news with a RHL slant. This week on the show, Julie Buehler has the news and notes, the sexy Liz Gillmann handles the ads and throws, Big James in the “Fastest 30 seconds of Nascar”, Missie Nicole with the Tweet of the week, Julia Titova as James’ wife, Circusdave Unfiltered Is Bitching about nothing, the RHL writers and Geoff from Beondeck.com. Check out all the action at Redhottlocks.com
Here’s this week’s Cactus League update:
Chicago White Sox: Jake Peavy feels blessed after his spring training debut. Peavy threw two hitless innings on Saturday. For now, Ozzie Guillen has penciled Peavy in as the #5 starter, but nothing is set in stone.
Arizona Diamondbacks: Kirk Gibson wants the team to be more aggressive on the bases this season and Justin Upton is planning to follow his manager’s lead. Upton has the ability to steal 30-40 bases, but a better projection is 20-25 SB. J.J Putz pitched a perfect inning on Monday. Putz is penciled in to start the season as the Diamondbacks closer this season.
Chicago Cubs: Carlos Silva was rocked for the second straight outing this spring. He has now turned to Carlos Zambrano for advice. I don’t know about the rest of you, but that spells disaster to me. Zambrano pitched well on Tuesday. In three games this spring, Zambrano has posted a 1.13 ERA in 8 innings. Is this the new and improved Big Z? Alfonso Soriano reported to camp in great shape and his stats this spring prove it. Soriano is hitting .400 BA, 1 HR, 5 RBI. Keep an eye on him
Cincinnati Reds: Dontrelle Willis pitched two perfect innings as he continues to try and earn a spot in the Reds bullpen. Despite getting hit hard, Dusty Baker thought Homer Bailey threw the ball well on Monday. Bailey last 2 2/3 innings and allowed four runs on six hits, but felt good because his pitch location was good.
Colorado Rockies: Ubaldo Jimenez looked sharp in his second spring training start for the Rockies. Jimenez increased his velocity a bit and looked good doing it. Ian Stewart, sidelined by a sprained right MCL since the Cactus League opener, hopes to return to action late this week.
Kansas City Royals: The Royals are going to be a young and very aggressive team this year. The Royals how to be annoying and aggressive on the bases this season.
Los Angeles Angels: It appears that Kendry Morales availability for opening day is uncertain. Morales is still recovering from a broken leg that he suffered last season while jumping on h0me plate to celebrate an Angels victory. He is still not running at full speed and that has left doubt that he will be ready for Opening Day. Meanwhile, Jered Weaver pitched 3 solid innings on Sunday that included three hits and three strikeouts. Weaver remains the favorite to be named the Opening Day starter for the Angels.
Cleveland Indians: While the Diamondbacks were taking batting practice Monday off of Indians pitching, the one bright spot was third base prospect Lonnie Chisenhall. Chisenhall went 4-for-5. Chisenhall, hitting .550 (11-for-20), had four straight hits before grounding out in the ninth inning.
San Diego Padres: The Padres expect a leadoff upgrade from Cameron Maybin and four other candidates this year. The question is whether Maybin will ever be on base, as he continues to strike out at an alarming rate. He has averaged a .340 OBP since 2008. Jason Bartlett, Orlando Hudson, and Will Venable will also get an opportunity to claim the leadoff spot.
San Francisco Giants: Brandon Belt is off to a super start this spring. His emergence is a victory for the Giants scouts. Belt has made the necessary adjustments and he is have success this spring. Through the first 11 spring training games, Belt has a .280 BA, 1 HR, and 6 RBI. Fantasy owners can expect Belt to break camp with the Giants. Pablo Sandoval continues to lead the Giants is most offensive categories. Through 10 games, he has a .333BA, 2 HR, 7 RBI, and a .630 SLG.
Milwaukee Brewers: Tuesday was not a good day for the Brewers. First, the Brewers announced that Zack Greinke will miss 2-4 weeks with a fractured rib while playing basketball. Greinke was scheduled to be the Opening Day starter for the Brewers, but now will head to the DL. Brewers manager, Ron Roenicke has yet to name a replacement. It a rare spring training brawl, the Brewers and Dodgers had a bench clearing brawl and Prince Fielder was right in the middle of it. Fielder came roaring out of the dugout and tried to get at Ramon Colon, but was unsuccessful.
Oakland Athletics: A’s camp has been pretty quiet, which is good news for them. Andrew Bailey bounced back well from his simulated outing Monday and is currently penciled to pitch for the first time this spring on Thursday. Chris Carter and Michael Taylor, the two young phenoms, really aren’t improving their stock much, particularly Taylor, who is 3-for-23 so far this spring. He’ll get another chance today, but he had some big RBI situations Monday and made weak outs.
Seattle Mariners: Dustin Ackley is comfortably settling into Mariners camp. Despite that comfort, the Mariners do not want to rush him to Seattle.
Texas Rangers: It appears that the experiment to move Neftali Feliz to the Rangers starting rotation is not want he wants to do. He prefers to close and has shared that with management. I have never understood why the Rangers want to move Feliz. To have a young closer with the stuff that Feliz has is rare so why mess with it.
Be sure to check back on Friday for Grapefruit League news and notes.
Remember that not all potential “sleepers” are the same. You should not just focus solely on the next can’t miss prospect tearing up the Arizona Fall League. Fantasy owners need to broaden their search for undervalued commodity. Targeting players in each of the following categories will help ensure that you have all the bases covered heading into the new season.
POST-HYPE SPECIALS
JUSTIN SMOAK, 1B MARINERS – Smoak couldn’t get things going with the Texas Rangers. He struggled offensively and he found himself dealt away last year when Seattle traded Cliff Lee to the Rangers. Things did not go any better for Smoak once he arrived in Seattle as he struck out 23 times with just one walk. After just 16 games, the Mariners sent Smoak down to Triple-A. The Mariners recalled Smoak for the final two weeks of the season and he raked! Smoak hit .340 with three homers and a confidence that he had not had at the major league level. Its a small sample size, but he should be productive for the Mariners and fantasy owners in 2011.
WADE DAVIS, SP RAYS – The latest product of the Tampa Bay pitching factory, Davis got off to a strong start, but faltered from May to June. He rarely got through the fifth inning due to high pitch counts and his 5.03 ERA probably had something to do with it. Things got worse when he found himself on the DL with a strained shoulder, but he returned with an impressive streak of eight straight outings during which he posted a 3.09 ERA with 36 strikeouts.
KEEP AN EYE ON: GORDON BECKHAM, MATT LaPORTA, TRAVIS SNIDER,
DINGED-UP ALL-STARS
CARLOS BELTRAN, OF METS – Several knee injuries kept Beltran out of 179 games over the past two seasons. When he did play, he was limited to what he could do in the outfield. Despite all these concerns, Beltran has a few positives he can point to in 2011. He’ll be more than a year removed from knee procedure and he is in a contract year. In his last walk year in 2004, Beltran had a year to remember (38 HR, 121 R, 104 RBI, 42 SB). Beltran wants one more big payday and will pull out all the stops to get it.
BRANDON WEBB, SP RANGERS – Webb was one of last year’s sleeper picks, but it was clearly unrealistic to expect him to return so quickly from shoulder surgery in August 2009. His value is at an all time low right now. If he proves himself in Spring Training he could be, at worst, a solid No. 2 starter in mixed leagues.
KEEP AN EYE ON: BRIAN ROBERTS, GRADY SIZEMORE, CHRIS YOUNG
FAMILIAR FACES IN NEW PLACES
JAVIER VAZQUEZ, SP MARLINS – Its pretty clear that Vazquez does not belong in New York. After two disastrous go-arounds (2004 & 2010), Vazquez has landed in Florida. In 2009, Vazquez was a 15-game winner with 238 strikeouts for Atlanta.
AARON HARANG, SP PADRES – Harang has not had a good year since 2007 when he won 16 games. There is not a better place for a pitcher to rehab than to move to spacious Petco Park, which is exactly where this San Diego native is going. Now that he is out of the launching pad better known as Great American Ballpark, Harang could be in for a solid year.
KEEP AN EYE ON: OMAR INFANTE, SHAUN MARCUM, RYAN THERIOT
Welcome back to a whole new season of the RHL Report. We bring you Sports news with a RHL slant. This week on the show, Julie Buehler has the news and notes, the sexy Liz Gillmann handles the ads and throws, Jackie Taylor from Thatsportsbabe.com talking NBA, Big James in the “Fastest 30 seconds of Nascar”, Missie Nicole with the Tweet of the week, Julia Titova as James’ wife, Circusdave Unfiltered Is Bitching about the NFL strike, the RHL writers and Geoff from Beondeck.com. Check out all the action at Redhottlocks.com. Oh yeah, special thanks to our Director Daniel Krutchkoff.
March is always an important month for fantasy owners as alot of us are trying to make decisions that will affect our rosters for the year. Those of us that compete in keeper leagues usually have 5-10 players we are allowed to protect from one year to the next. Its tough making decisions on those players that are lower on your list, but have enough value that you don’t want to release them back into the free agent pool.
Here are some important story lines from Florida and Arizona.
1. Dominic Brown vs Ben Francisco - Who will take over for Jayson Werth in right field? This is one of the big questions in Phillies camp this year. So far, its pretty clear who the front runner is after the Phillies first three spring training games. Ben Francisco is hitting .571 with a homer and four RBI. Meanwhile, Dominic Brown has barely put the bat on the ball. He is 0-9 with 6 strikeouts. There is no doubt that Brown has a bright future, but is he ready to take over in 2011? Three games is not much of a sample size for the Phillies or fantasy owners to make that decision. He will continue to get at-bats this spring and the Phillies hope that their five-tool prospect will produce. Even if Brown starts the year in the minors, fantasy owners that have him should keep him on their roster. Be patient with Brown and he will reward you.
2. Pablo Sandoval – Pablo Sandoval is in the midst of a critical spring training for himself. Despite a World Series championship for the San Francisco Giants in 2010, Sandoval’s contributions in the postseason were minimal. His weight affected his ability to perform at the plate and on the field. He knew he had to change his habits and he arrived in Giants camp much trimmer than at the end of last year. He is off to a strong start this spring with a .400 BA, 2 HR, and 5 RBI after the first four games. The Giants need Sandoval to be a big contributor in 2011 and so far he looks to be filling that role.
3. Miguel Cabrera – Had there been no Feb. 15 incident and no delay in his spring training timetable, Miguel Cabrera’s appearance Monday at Marchant Stadium would have been as routine for a baseball superstar. Cabrera was 0-2 with a walk. He did hit two balls hard and Cabrera said he felt good about his first game and the fans reaction to him. Despite being more of a risk after his incident off the field, Cabrera will produce in 2011. Fantasy owners may find that he is on the board a little longer than last year, but don’t let that keep you from drafting him.
4. Josh Beckett – A day after suffering mild concussion symptoms after a batting-practice mishap, Josh Beckett was back at the ballpark. He is scheduled to start on Thursday, but the Red Sox are not ready to commit to that schedule. While Beckett is feeling better and it appears he avoided a serious injury, Beckett needs to be handled with extra care. Drafting Beckett is always a risk due to his history with injuries. If healthy, we all know he can be one of the best pitchers in the American League. But, thats a big IF.
5. Carlos Zambrano - Zambrano has gone on record saying that he is over his anger management issues after attending counseling and feels confident that he will be a big contributor for the Cubs in 2011. Big Z finished 2010 very strong and he was sharp in his first two innings this spring. Maybe this time he is back to being a front-of-the-rotation pitcher, but I need more of a sample size from Zambrano before I feeling confident making him apart of my pitching staff.
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