Roto Reality: Roll Call – Two Months In

     Around this time of year, every fantasy baseball league hits a little bit of a swoon.  You’ve got your die hards that keep the fantasy fires burning with their roster moves, waiver wire pick ups, trash and trade talks, and general overall enthusiasm for the game.  Then you’ve got your casual participants — the guys that will make the occasional roster move when necessary, engage in a little bit of trade talk, but for the most part, just ride out the hand they’ve been dealt.  And finally, there are the dead teams.  These are the guys who join the fantasy baseball league because they want to feel like part of the group, whether they know anything about the game or not or not.  They are completely gung ho heading into the fantasy baseball drafts, are active on the waiver wire for about a week, talk all sorts of sh*t for a little while and then usually disappear as quickly as their teams do.  Call it a fantasy caste system, the haves and have-nots, whatever, but usually you can tell who’s who and who will be sitting in the catbird seat by the end of the season.  So for today, we’re going to check in with The Gentlemen’s Game League and look at everyone, team by team, so we can get another look at who’s who two months in and moving forward…

     To start it off, Let’s take a quick look at the current standings, make a few notes and then take a look at the owners and what we can probably expect from each one.  I must say that I am a bit surprised as to what the standings look lik eright now, but there’s still plenty of baseball to go.  No one is out of it, and no one is running away with it either.

     Based on my early season (and by that I mean week 1) predictions, there are two real surprises.  Ok, three if you want to count the fact that The Move Maestro does not lead the league in roster moves.  But since he has taken some of my advice and has been nice and patient, it’s no wonder that he is in the middle of the pack for moves while sitting on top of the standings after two months.  For that I say, good job, Bob!

     But the two real surprises for me have to be the fact that the defending champs, Rock n Roll, sit in dead last (5.5 games out of a playoff spot) despite having, what appeared to be, the best team in the league, post-draft and that Poo Holes, while nearly completely inactive on the waiver wire, is sitting comfortably in second place.  I had him pegged for a 6th place finish, but, while there’s still plenty of time, his team seems to be firing on all cylinders here.

     So let’s take some time to visit each team, talk about some of what they’ve done (or not done) and see where they’re likely headed.

The Move Maestro

Projected Finish: 5th

     When I first looked at The Move Maestro’s roster back in early April, my biggest concern for him was the heavy reliance on the young and unproven.  Names like Miguel Montero, Jason Heyward, Alcides Escobar, Carlos Gonzalez, and Tommy Hanson adorned the roster and while there was plenty of proven talent in there like Matt Kemp, Miguel Cabrera and Manny Ramirez, the rookies (and a number of sophomores) were taking center stage.  Well, I can’t really argue with his strategy, although the only rookies getting playing time for him are Hanson and Heyward.  Montero sits on his DL, while Escobar and, surprisingly, Gonzalez are back in the player pool.  The league only starts 3 outfielders, so with Vernon Wells, Kemp and Heyward in there, there wasn’t much room left for Gonzalez.   However, taking up a bench spot right now is Michael Stanton, so it’s not like he’s abandoning his original philosophy.

     While his offense continues to churn out the power, The Move Maestro is definitely struggling in stolen bases, however, it hasn’t been a facotr as he has dominated in the other categories and is walking away with weekly victories.  He could probably be doing a little better with some stronger pitching right now.  He seems to be giving away the strikeouts category on a weekly basis and he’s sitting right about at .500 for all the others.  Having Dan Haren, Josh Johnson, and Matt Garza is nice, but he’s going to have to step it up with another top starter if he’s going to want to compete in things like WHIP, ERA, Wins and QS.

     All in all, The Move Maestro seems strong.  He’s very active on the waiver wire, quite chatty on the message board and should remain in contention for the remainder of the year.

Poo Holes

Projected Finish:  6th

     Just like Prince Albert himself, Cole, manager of Poo Holes, seems to be the strong silent type.  While he is not active on the message board or on the free agent waiver wire, Cole’s team is doing all the talking necessary.  Despite the struggles of such players as Jason Bay, Derrek Lee, Nick Markakis, and even from Albert Pujols, Cole’s squad has been dominating on the offensive front.  He lags in the HR and SB departments, but everywhere else, his team is rock solid.  There were also a few nice pickups in Starlin Castro and Alberto Callaspo, but, fo rthe most part, the team is no different from that on Draft Day.

     While not as dominant as the hitting, Poo Holes’ pitching has been very sound.  Anchored by starters like Ubaldo Jimenez, Felix Hernandez and Jon Lester, alongside closers Joakim Soria and Jose Valverde, Poo Holes has been solid acorss the board, with the exception of strikeouts.  However, having faced teams using the revolving door strategy for pitchers, it’s a categoryhe has been able to concede without too much concern.  

     Like my granddaddy used to say, ”If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.”  Poo Holes has a strong squad and despite his lack of activity, the results are there.  Barring injury, he might just be able to run wire to wire without having made any substantial moves and still make a strong playoff appearance.

The Masterbatters

Projected Finish:  4th

     So far, The Masterbatters are right where I expected them to be.  Dean isn’t much of a big talker, but he doesn’t need to be as hi steam is performing admirably.  The injury bug bit them in the middle infield as neither Brian Roberts or Asdrubal Cabrera have lived up to any of their projections, but with savvy pick ups like Kelly Johnson and Stephen Drew, Dean’s squad is performing very well.  With solid players like Ichiro Suzuki, Bobby Abreu, Justin Upton and Evan Longoria, The Masterbatters have dominated in offensive categories like doubles, stolen bases, total bases and batting average, while sitting on the losing end in the power department.  That can easily be rectified with the trade of one of these balanced players such as Alex Rios (great pickup in early May) in exchange for a more specialized power player.  But aside from that, the offense is strong.

     The pitching front is a bit of a different story.  Dean has adopted, in part, the revolving door plan for his staff and it is not working out as well as I’m sure he had hoped.  While dominating onl yin strikeouts, The Masterbatters are delinquent in ERA, WHIP and wins, while just barely getting by in the saves and quality starts departments.  He might, rather than go for power, look for some better quality starting pitching as guys like Jon Garland, Mike Leake, Ryan Dempster and Carlos Silva aren’t going to cut it in a league this size over the long haul.  He is going to need someone in there to anchor his staff.

     The Masterbatters are looking good so far, but unless they fix that pitching, they could be headed for a fall in the standings.  They don’t have a lot of changes to make, but they’re not going to be able to continue at this pace the whole year with what they have.  A tweak deal here or there will be just what the doctor ordered.

Just a Little Outside

Projected Finish: 2nd

     Now as far as league participation goes, Ken is one of the best.  The banter between him, The Move Maestro and Rock n Roll has been a constant on the message board and he is leading the league in roster moves.  Not only that, but Ken and I have been in communication more than my wife and I have been.  Emails with updates, questions and analysis flow in multiple times a week, which leads me to believe that either Ken is single or is married to a saint who understands his obsession passion for the game.  As for his team, well, he’s sporting a .500+ record and seems to have put together a very solid pitching staff that has carried his team to where it is today.

     Offensively, JALO could stand some improvement.  He’s on the losing end in almost every category, despite owning such studs as Carl Crawford, Hanley Ramirez, Ryan Howard and Brian McCann.  His addition of the hot hitting Vladimir Guerrero was great, and after a long enough wait, he finally cut bait on Chone Figgins.  I don’t think he needs to make much in th eway of chnges though as the return of both Andre Ethier and Curtis Granderson should help ignite his team’s hitting.  If not, then a trade will be necessary becaus ethe type of help needed will not be found on the waiver wire.

      But leading the team to it’s fine showing in the standings is a pitching staff anchored by Roy Halladay and Justin Verlander.  He also made some great pick ups in Ricky Romero and Phil Hughes and now has Stephen Strasburg getting ready for his June 8th debut.  I could be jumping the gun a little here, but from where I sit, it looks like JALO might not be making too many more moves.  Of course, with a league leading 27 right now, I could be sorely mistaken.

Pine Tar

Projected Finish: 3rd

     One of the things I discussed about Pine Tar early on, was his need for several players to rebound from either injury or poor seasons in 2009.  Names like Geovany Soto, David Wright, Grady Sizemore, Jose Reyes, B.J. Upton and Francisco Liriano adorned his roster and, while each of them are studly in their own right, they all need a big showing in 2010.  Well, there were some mixed results and while not all of them are pulling their weight just yet, they are still on his roster as I’m sure he’s hoping for a strong second half from them all.  He’s getting the necessary power from his team to dominate in the HR and RBI categories, but is struggling in total bases and batting average mightily.  Pine Tar also seems to be struggling in the speed department despite a strong showing from Elvis Andrus this year.  One thing he might consider is dealing either Reyes or Andrus and utilize Billy Butler and his high BA in the utility slot.  If they can deal one of those guys for another speed guy with a good average, then the benching of Upton might help.

      The pitching has been about average for Pine Tar although help in the ERA department is a much needed thing.  He’s got quality guys in Liriano and Adam Wainwright but Yovani Gallardo has been brutally inconsistent and I don’t see guys like Colby Lewis and Jonathan Sanchez  getting it done all year.  Pine Tar has been fairly successful in the other categories, across the board, but something tells me he’s going to need atleast one more elite hurler to make the jump in the standings.

     Thus far, as an owner, Kevin is giving it everything he has.   He’s been very active on both the waiver wire and trade front, and who can forget his verbal sparring with JALO over pitching add/drops?  Competitiveness with an edge, Pine Tar is a solid team and with a little juice added in the right spots, he could be a strong contender for the title.

One Man Wolf Pack

Projected Finish:  8th

     While remaining somewhat active on the waiver wire, the Wolf Pack has been able to keep themselves out of the basement which is where I predicted them to finish.  But with some real strong pitching and dominance in the ERA, WHIP and QS departments, Ed has been able to mange a hold on the final playoff spot right now.  With strong performances from Matt Cain, Mike Pelfrey and Barry Zito joining the likes of Johan Santana and Cliff Lee (and the subtraction of Wandy Rodriguez…it’s about time, Ed), the Pack has put itself in a good spot to be able to wait on some of the underperformers at the plate.  Maintaining a strong staff in a league this size is imperative to making the playoffs, I think.

     As for the Pack’s offense, well, there are certainly some guys who could be doing better.  Of course, enduring a Mark Teixeira April can easily put you behind, but Pablo Sandoval is the name that sticks out most for me.  The Kung Fu Panda has not been pulling his enormous weight just yet, but could be on the turnaround as we speak.  On top of that, he’s still got Victor Martinez, Aaron Hill and Hunter Pence who could all be turning things around right now, and then there’s Jimmy Rollins on the DL.  If these guys start clicking at the same time, the Pack could be making a move.

      Ed seems to be another of the strong, silent type as he’s kept off the message boards for the most part.  I’m sure he’s been talking trades here and there, but at this point he might not even have to.  Like I said, once this team is firing on all cylinders, we could all be doing shots of ruffie-laced Jaegermeister on the top of Caesar’s in no time!

Who Dat’s

Projected Finish:  7th

Well, Andrew called it right from the start.  Out fo the gate like a house of fire and then a big fizzle-out due to probable frustration and eventual neglect.  I know that injuries suck and can really put a damper on your season, but there hasn’t been a pick up since Mat Latos on May 17th, there’s no active catcher in the lineup since Jorge Posada went on the DL, and both Jacoby Ellsbury and Brett Anderson are still on the DL despite having returned to the lineup already.

The team could be strong with a little bit of maneuvering, but with no GM taking the reins, this team will drift off to the basement with little hope of making it back.  Every league has its annual donators, and for the Gentlemen’s Game League, Andrew and the Who Dat’s seem to be it.

Rock n Roll

Projected Finish:  1st

     To be honest, I’m still scratching my head here.  Maybe it was the trade of CC Sabathia for an underwhelming Ian Kinsler or the trade of a rebounding Alfonso Soriano for an underperforming John Lackey.  Perhaps Carlos Quentin and Jose Lopez sucking down the batting stats have something to do with it.  Maybe the fact that Jake Peavy blows or that  Cole Hamels isn’t what he used to be, or that The Freak, Tim Lincecum, has been getting bombed lately have something to do with it.  Maybe he’s just run into a string of bad luck in games.  Whatever the case may be, the team is sitting in the basement and the recent loss of Kendry Morales isn’t going to help either. 

     He certainly has the horses to rebound though as Alex Rodriguez, Matt Holliday and Ryan Braun could be in for some monster numbers as we hit the summer.  Casey McGehee isn’t slowing down too much and then there’s also Matt Wieters and Shane Victorino who can help.  Perhaps a trade of one of the big boys is imminent as I know there’s already an offer out there, but something is going to need to improve here. 

     The pitching seems solid although Josh Beckett on the DL isn’t helping and it’d be nice to see Chad Billingsley, Lackey and Hamels step up their games.  Jeff is a solid and very active GM, so don’t go counting this team out just yet.  They don’t need to finish first in the regular season….they just need to make the playoffs.

     So that’s where we’re at right now.  The league seems to be nicely active, save for one team, and there’s plenty of baseball on the way.  No one’s out of it right now and the championship seems like it could be anyone’s for the taking.  Maybe Andrew will drop me a note and we can get the Who Dat’s back into the mix.  If not, then atleast we know one team we don’t have to worry about.

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