Fantasy
The Wire Troll: Hideki Matsui Has Awoken
The Athletics signed Matsui in the offseason, hoping for middle of the order power production. After a horrible first half, he’s finally finding his stroke. Since the middle of July, he’s 24-for-52 with three homers and 17 RBI. Godzilla has returned!
31Jul2011 | Roto Rob | 0 comments | Continued
MLB Today: The Resurrection of Micah Owings
Now all of a sudden, he’s re-emerged with value for the D-Backs. Owings has mostly been a long reliever this year, but he looked really strong in his start last Sunday, earning himself the fifth starter job in Arizona for the time being. Saturday Owings gets the Dodgers – a really good match up, especially in LA where the Dodgers have been unable to generate any offense this year.
30Jul2011 | Roto Rob | 0 comments | Continued
Minor Matters: Brad Peacock is on the Doorstep of the Majors
On Wednesday, in just his third start for Triple-A Syracuse, Peacock took a no-hitter into the eighth inning, winding up with seven shutout frames of one-hit ball with seven Ks and four walks. Peacock was roughed up in his debut for Syracuse, but in the past two starts, he’s only given up five hits and one earned run in 12 IP, fanning 11 and walking five.
28Jul2011 | Roto Rob | 0 comments | Continued
Minor Matters: D.J. Mitchell Ready for the Call
In his first full season at Triple-A, the 24-year-old has been quite impressive, especially lately, tossing extremely strong starts in four of his last five outings. All Mitchell has done in July is go 3-0 (including two shutouts) with a 1.07 ERA and just 12 hits allowed in 25 1/3 IP with 25 strikeouts. That’ll get your attention.
26Jul2011 | Roto Rob | 0 comments | Continued
Podcast: Jose Altuve Arrives in Houston
Is he the answer or does Arizona try to fill the hole at shortstop through a trade?
25Jul2011 | Roto Rob | 0 comments | Continued
The Wire Troll: The Return of Desmond Jennings
The Rays are going with a six-man rotation for now with Cobb being the beneficiary of this change. In 35 IP with Tampa Bay, he’s allowed 29 hits and 16 walks with 22 strikeouts and is sporting a solid 3.09 ERA and 1.29 WHIP. In his past four starts, Cobb has given up only five earned runs. Now that his playing time is secure — at least for the time being — he makes for a solid play in all formats.
24Jul2011 | Roto Rob | 0 comments | Continued
Minor Matters: George Kontos Plagued by Recent Inconsistency
He was looking filthy good in the first few months of the season (2-0, 2.65 in April; 1.08 in May; and 1.93 in June with 26 Ks in 23 1/3 IP), but has definitely hit a snag in July. Kontos started the month brilliantly, tossing four innings of one-hit shutout with five Ks and no walks in his second start of the season, but he was rocked in his next outing (four hits, three earned runs and a walk in one inning). Four days later on July 10, Kontos tossed two shutout frames, but then he got hammered again on July 16. He looked strong on the 19th, hurling 2 2/3 IP of shutout ball with four strikeouts, but on Friday night, the evil Kontos showed up again, getting rocked for three earned runs in 3 1/3 IP to suffer the loss and drop his record below .500. In fairness, he was looking sharp to begin the outing, before hitting the wall on a very hot night.
23Jul2011 | Roto Rob | 0 comments | Continued
MLB Today: Last Chance to Enter RotoRob-DraftStreet Freeroll
However, Paulie has suddenly gone hitless in his last nine at-bats, taking his second half BA down to .182. Combine that with the fact that he has just one extra-base hit in five games against the Indians this season and you might be better off going with a cheaper option at first base in the freeroll.
22Jul2011 | Roto Rob | 0 comments | Continued
Contest: DraftStreet Offers RotoRob Readers a Free Chance to Compete
RotoRob has teamed up with DraftStreet.com to offer our readers a chance to compete in an exclusive, one-night showdown. By now, you’ve probably heard of the proliferation of sites offering one-day leagues, and DraftStreet has been kind enough to offer RotoRob readers this free contest.
20Jul2011 | Roto Rob | 0 comments | Continued
MLB Today: Michael Young is Still a Ranger and Still Raking
Yet Mr. Please Move From SS to 2B to 3B to DH is not only still raking away enough to be invited to his seventh All-Star Game last week, but he’s adopted a major leadership role in Texas, taking some of the young players under his wing to help build them into better players.
19Jul2011 | Roto Rob | 0 comments | Continued
The Wire Troll: Brandon Allen Gets his Chance
On July 2, Holland was pounded by the Marlins and was unable to get out of the first inning. What does he do to follow up that stinker? Holland goes out and tosses not one, but two complete game shutouts and strikes out 15 in the process. He’s been wildly inconsistent, but when he’s been on, he’s been very good. The 24-year-old southpaw has all the tools to be successful, he simply has to demonstrate them on a more consistent basis. We’re betting we see the stud starter and not his evil twin more often than not in the future.
17Jul2011 | Roto Rob | 0 comments | Continued
Minor Matters: Leonys Martin Living up to the Hype
The Rangers recently made a foray into the International market, outbidding the Boston Red Sox for the services of 23-year-old Cuban ex-pat Martin. He signed a five-year deal worth $15.5 million with a $5 million signing bonus. The scouting reports indicated he had a strong arm with plus speed and line drive potential. Martin was immediately dispatched to the Double-A Frisco Roughriders in the Texas League. He made his debut May 12 and certainly lived up to all expectations, smacking four homers with 24 RBI, 10 steals and a sweet .348 BA in 112 at-bats.
16Jul2011 | Roto Rob | 0 comments | Continued
The Mid-Season Wire Troll All-Star Team
The 24-year-old has been an offensive force for the Tigers in 2011 and is currently ranked in the top 10 in every offensive category at his position including RBI, in which he has an outstanding 46. Not bad for a catcher that was owned in less than 10 per cent of CBS leagues at the end of Week One.
14Jul2011 | Roto Rob | 0 comments | Continued
Best Convo Update: A Chat with Alex Anthopoulos
McFarland cites Anthopolous as his inspiration to pursue a career in baseball. Last summer, the recent university grad began working for the Vancouver Canadians, the Low-A affiliate of the Blue Jays, in ticket sales. McFarland is hoping to work his way up to the bigs, just like Anthopolous did.
11Jul2011 | Roto Rob | 0 comments | Continued
The Wire Troll: The Arrival of Mike Trout
The All-Star break starts this week, giving Fantasy owners an opportunity to seriously analyze their squads. We’re now over halfway home and the categories and areas for point gains should be well defined. Spend the time wisely assessing your Fantasy team and get the trade offers going. Just a quick heads up for those playing in weekly leagues at ESPN you will be setting your rosters for a full two weeks. Without further ado, let’s give this week’s wire pickups the once over.
10Jul2011 | Roto Rob | 0 comments | Continued
