Category: Baseball

Former Top Yankee Pick taken First Overall

It’s been a special week for Gerrit Cole, as he was nabbed by the Pirates with the first pick overall of the 2011 MLB Amateur Draft.  As special as it was, it was not unique for him personally.  After all, the 6’4, 220-lbs college junior was drafted back following his High School career in 2008 by the New York Yankees with the 28th overall pick.

The Yankees were reportedly ready to offer the high school athlete upwards of $4 million, but Cole decided to follow through with his collegiate scholarship to UCLA. There has even been a picture published in local newspapers showing the 11-year-old Gerrit Cole holding a sign proclaiming himself a “Yankee Fan Today Tomorrow Forever,” from the front row of Bank One Ballpark during the 2001 World Series. Though Cole grew up a Yankee’s fan, he has made it clear that he does not regret the decision to join the UCLA Bruins.

No better justification of his decision came last night when Cole was taken with the No. 1 overall selection in the 2011 MLB Draft by the Pittsburg Pirates. Scouts swarmed the stands as Cole delivered his high-90 mph fastball, sharp slider and improving changeup, gaining him 376 strikeouts over 322 1/3 innings, during his three-year tenure with UCLA. Pittsburgh praised their pick despite Cole’s pedestrian numbers his senior year (a 6-8 record, with a 3.31 ERA).  The Bucs are banking that Cole will enjoy a winning career once he takes the mound in the Major Leagues.

* Written By Matt Sbordone (@SbordoneZone), Bloomberg Sports

Major League Baseball Rookie Report: Lawrie, Gordon, Ackley, Rizzo, Jennings, and Weeks

The Rookie Report

Dee Gordon, SS, Dodgers

This 23-year old shortstop may have been rushed a bit to the Majors because of the injury to Rafael Furcal.  Gordon is by all means a speedster, who has swiped 50-plus bases in back-to-back seasons in the Minor Leagues.

 

His lack of power actually plays well at the pitcher-friendly Dodgers Stadium, where deep flies often die at the warning track.  Gordon just has to prove that he can get on base and make the plays at shortstop.  Gordon was batting .315 through 50 games before his call up to the Majors.  If in need of speed, he’s an intriguing fantasy pickup.

 

Brett Lawrie, 2B/3B, Blue Jays

Lawrie is everything that Blue Jays fans could ever have dreamed of.  Just 21 years old, this former first round pick is a British Columbia native who boasts all five tools, particularly power and speed.  Though playing in the Las Vegas desert inflates his statistics a bit, you cannot ignore his 15 home runs, 49 RBI, and .354 batting clip through 52 games.

 

Lawrie was expected to be called up this week before a recent beaning set him back a week.  There’s still a chance that Lawrie gets the call to man third base, a position that has become a black hole for the Blue Jays since Jose Bautista moved to the outfield.

 

Dustin Ackley, 2B

The second overall pick of the 2009 draft, Ackley has made some solid improvements in his second season in the Minor Leagues.  There is not a particular statistic that jumps out at you when studying Ackley’s performance, but he is solid across the board.

 

He is an incredibly patient batter with some pop and speed.  Ackley is also a middle infielder, and despite rumors of a move to the outfield, he is likely to man second base when he earns his call up to the Big Leagues.

 

Anthony Rizzo, 1B, Padres

Mired in last place, the Padres are certainly feeling the effects of letting Adrian Gonzalez go to the Red Sox.  On the other hand, through the trade they acquired a monster bat that is tearing up the Minor Leagues and ready for a promotion to the Majors.

 

We’re talking about 21-year old first baseman Anthony Rizzo, who is currently batting .365 with 16 home runs and 63 RBI through just 52 games at Triple-A.  The numbers are a bit surprising, considering Rizzo has never hit for average before, but at this point, the Padres can’t afford to let the Brad Hawpe/Jorge Cantu platoon continue at first base considering both veterans are batting less than .240 this season.

 

Desmond Jennings, OF, Rays

One of the most hyped prospects in all of baseball, Desmond Jennings may have been a bit overrated, considering people were talking about him as a sure-fire replacement of Carl Crawford as early as last season.  The comparisons are understandable since both talents have a similar skill-set, but Crawford was an MVP caliber player while Jennings is just trying to get his career started.

 

In his first taste of the Majors last season Jennings hit just .190 with two steals in 17 games.  The Rays deemed Jennings not ready to man left-field in the Major Leagues, so he is playing at the Triple-A level for a third year in a row.  The good news is that Jennings has become more patient at the plate and is starting to drive the ball with more power.  He has been far from dominant, but considering the Sam Fuld experiment is starting to go flat, Jennings would be an upgrade.

 

Jemile Weeks, 2B, A’s

If you missed out on acquiring Rickie Weeks for your fantasy team, you ought to get to know his younger brother Jemile Weeks.  A first round pick out of Miami, Weeks is also a second baseman who will get to fill in for the injured Mark Ellis.

 

Weeks has yet to develop the power of his older brother, but he can supply Oakland with some much-needed offense.  Through 44 games at Triple-A, Weeks boasts a .321 average with four triples and nine stolen bases.  The big question now is whether Bob Geren will provide Weeks with some regular at bats, or if he’s merely an insurance option behind Scott Sizemore and Adam Rosales.

Selling Kevin Correia’s Wins

By Tommy Rancel //

A quick check of the pitching leaderboards and you’ll find quite a surprise at the top of the wins column. With eight victories in 12 starts, Kevin Correia is two-third of the way to his career-high in victories (12); and it’s early June.

Signed in the offseason by the Pirates to a modest one-year deal, Correia was named Pittsburgh’s opening day starter. Since then he has rattled off a league leading eight wins with 3.40 ERA in 76.2 innings. While Correia has been a pleasant surprise to fantasy owners who picked him up early on, he is a definite sell high candidate.

Correia has been a nice source of wins, ERA, and WHIP; however, he offers little in the way of strikeouts (career low 3.99 K/9) and has some areas where regression may set in. His .265 batting average on balls in play is low, but not flukishly low. In terms of home runs allowed, his 0.82 HR/9 is below is career 1.03 rate while his home run-to-flyball rate of 7.4% should be closer to 10%.

If and when he regresses, it will not be as steep as some might think. Meanwhile, it will certainly lower his value which is at an all-time high. Correia should easily end up with double-digit victories; however, his ERA is likely to spike from the 3.40 level. It shouldn’t go as high as his career mark of 4.46, but somewhere in the low 4.00 range is likely. He has also been the beneficiary of offensive run support with nearly 22% of the Pirates total runs coming with Correia on the mound.

A good team manager is one that is able to identify sell-high opportunities in on area in order to strengthen another area of weakness. Moving Correia at his current value allows for that to happen. In every league, there is someone who is starving for pitching and may be willing to overpay.

If you can get back a productive position player at weak position (shortstop, catcher) for Correia’s early season hot streak, do it now. Looking around the waiver wire, you should be able to replace Correia rather easily with a lesser known player like Josh Collementer in NL-Only leagues or Matt Harrison in mixed formats.

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Fantasy Baseball Waiver Wire Report: Dillon Gee, Mitch Moreland, Allen Craig

 

Miguel Olivo, C, Mariners

A move to Seattle is usually enough to limit your fantasy production for power hitters, but not Miguel Olivo.  The veteran backstop has blasted home runs in three straight games (all at home).  He now boasts seven bombs on the season with 26 RBI, 26 runs, and even two steals.  Olivo has been a model of consistency averaging greater than 16 home runs over the last five seasons.  He’s a solid fantasy pick up. 

 

Dillon Gee, SP, Mets

He’s been treated as a low potential prospect by the Mets over the last few years, a franchise often giving opportunities to Pat Mitsch over Dillon Gee, but this Gee knows how to pitch.  The 25-year old has now made 16 appearances and the numbers are sensational: 8-2 record, 2.90 ERA, and a .209 average against.  Gee is 6-0 this season and is a must-start at home where he is 4-0 with a 1.77 ERA.  His next start will be this weekend at Pittsburgh. 

 

Mitch Moreland, 1B, Rangers

Get to Know Rangers first baseman Mitch Moreland.  The 25-year old left-handed slugger is riding a six-game hit streak with two home runs over that stretch.  Those six-games, by the way, have all come on the road, so this is a bit different than usual for a Rangers pick up.  Moreland was supposed to be a platoon option for the Rangers, but his .313 average ad eight home runs are leading to extended action.  Though he has struggled this season against southpaws, he may get some extra opportunities as the Rangers look to keep his bat in the lineup.

 

Josh Collmenter, SP, Diamondbacks

Similar to the Mets Dillon Gee, Diamondbacks hurler Josh Collmenter has shocked everyone with a stellar start to his Major League career after less than stellar results in the Minor Leagues.  Through 43.1 innings, Collmenter is 4-1 with a 1.25 ERA and 0.67 WHIP.  He hides the ball well in his delivery, which may explain how he has only surrendered runs in three of his 12 appearances this season.  Similar to Gee, Collmenter’s next start will come against the Pirates, which makes him a solid pick-up this week. 

 

Allen Craig, 2B, Cardinals

If you’re looking for a sleeper in the middle infield, I really like Cardinals 26-year old Allen Craig.  He is the ultimate utility man and a heck of a bat.  Through 106 at bats this season, Craig is batting .340 with four home runs, 23 RBI, and four steals.  If this doesn’t sound sustainable to you, consider that in two seasons of Triple-A baseball, Craig hit .321 with 40 home runs and 164 RBI.  He is a fine hitter and he’s finally getting his chance.

(Vid) Behind the Numbers – Confessions of an Autograph Enthusiast

Celebrating the Fan Experience Part 2, Collecting Autographs

Hosts:  Wayne Parillo and Brendan McGrail

Behind the Numbers is a series of conversations and discussions with baseball, blog, sabermetric, and fantasy experts.

Guest: Tom Tomae

At some point all of us have tried to get an autograph from a player. Self professed “autograph enthusiast” Tom Tomae takes us inside the sub-cultures within the autograph collecting world, the time Bernie Williams called security, trying to get David Wright’s signature, and a few tips for people who are hunting for autographs.

Watch the entire episode, or use the links below to jump to the exact point you want.

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