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2003/2005: The best MLB drafts ever?

Posted by fantasyfurnace on June 27, 2012
Posted in: MLB. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , , . 4 Comments

Historically, and logically, in the sport with the most rounds in a draft, 50, MLB drafts not only attract the least attention of all major sports, but usually result in players never becoming very well-known, let alone All-Stars. In most cases, the majority of those drafted never even stay in the bigs throughout their careers.

After digging through almost 25 years of MLB drafts, and combing through the countless careers of those drafted, it became quite apparent that there really has never been such a solidly stacked bunch of players drafted in MLB as the ones in 2005; although 2003, one of the strangest drafts, came in a close second. What amazes me is that even with the hundreds of scouts throughout the country, spending most of their time, well…scouting, that they would come up with better classes of players entering MLB drafts. And would do so consistently…

Those who are lucky enough to get selected on draft day in MLB will seldom be that prolific as to help teams get transformed into contenders. However, if there was ever a draft where a team could be so dramatically improved that they actually go from being irrelevant to competitors, then once again, 2005 was that year and that draft.

The two Ryans: Zimmerman (left) and Braun (right) were two of the gems that came out of the 2005 MLB draft. Photo: Greg Fiume/Getty Images North America)

In the top 30 picks of the first round, eight have already played in All-Star games:

Ryan Zimmerman, Ryan Braun, Ricky Romero, Troy Tulowitzki, Andrew McClutchen, Jay Bruce, and  Jacob Ellsbury. Technically, Alex Avila, who made the All-Star team last year was drafted in 2005 but returned to college & was drafted again in 2008. There are others that have become everyday players and who have tendered huge contracts including Alex Gordon, Matt Garza, Matt Joyce, Jeremy Hellickson, Colby Rasmus, Yunel Escobar, Austin Jackson, and Cameron Maybin. How is that for a collection of established and promising players all from that 2005 draft? You could start a team with these guys that would rival most in the league today!

As far as the amount of talented players in a draft, the 2003 draft has been considered by many to be just as good as the one in ’05.  We found it to be a strange and possibly ironic draft because the majority of the stars didn’t go in the first round like they did in ’05. Here are some examples:

  1. Andre Ethier- 62 pick-2nd round
  2. Jonathan Papelbon- 114 pick-4th round
  3. Michael Bourn- 115 pick-4th round
  4. Matt Kemp- 181 pick-6th round
  5. Ian Kinsler-496 pick-17th round
  6. Brian Wilson-723 pick-24th round
  7. Jonny Venters- 907 pick-30th round

    Center fielders Colby Rasmus, Andrew McCutchen and Matt Kemp all came out of the 2003/2005 MLB drafts. Photo: Getty Images

Admittedly, these two drafts were anomalies because it would be a challenge to find this much talent in several drafts. Teams that do their homework, (and if they’re lucky) can find a real ‘diamond in the ruff’ in these drafts. Where, for example, would the L.A. Dodgers and S.F. Giants have been without Kemp or Wilson? And how many more people pay to come to the parks to see players like them?

Problem is that the 2003 & 2005 MLB drafts, as talent laden as there will ever be, are the exceptions and NOT the rules…

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4 Random MLB achievements that you probably didn’t know…

Posted by fantasyfurnace on June 26, 2012
Posted in: MLB. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , . 18 Comments

The MLB season is amazingly getting set to reach the half-way mark as Tuesday most teams will be playing their 75th game of the season. How fast did THAT go by? And so with the All-Star break around the proverbial corner, we thought it only fitting that we come up with some of the more obscure achievements of players and teams as MLB completes it’s third month of games. See how many of these you really knew…but be honest.

1. BEST BATTING AVERAGE WITH 2 STRIKES: Joey Votto- Most of you do know what an outstanding season Votto is having so far this year, but in case you didn’t he has played in 20 games in June and through June 23rd has 10 multi-hit games. What that has done is raise his batting average 31 points from 3.29 to .360!

#19 Cincinatti Reds 1B Joey Votto will be one of those under consideration for MVP honors. Photo: cbssports.com

But aside from being a mega star slugger, here’s something you might not know; through 233 at bats this season, Votto is hitting .266 when he has two strikes on him. The league average is 90 points lower at .176. How’s that for an amazing stat!

2. BEST OFF-SEASON TRADE: Melky Cabrera-What a steal this was! The S. F. Giants should be charged with a felony for the theft they pulled off acquiring Melky Cabrera from the Kansas City Royals! The soon to be 28 year old has been enjoying an MVP season and is one of the main reasons that the Giants are 8 games over .500 and 3 games out of first place in the N.L. West.

For starters Cabrera has the most hits the majors (102) as of Sunday. His .355 batting average which is 73 points higher than his career average, puts him in second place behind the aforementioned Joey Votto (.360). His 49 runs scored ties him for second in the N.L. and third in MLB. Was there any other trade in the off-season bigger than this one?

3. THE CATCHER WHO IS THE HARDEST TO RUN ON: Let’s see if you can guess which one of the following five it is:

  1. Miguel Olivo– Mariners
  2. Buster Posey-Giants
  3. Yadier Molina-Cardinals
  4. Matt Wieters-Orioles
  5. Joe Mauer-Twins

If you guessed #3, Yadier Molina, then you’re correct! Molina is the winner of four straight Gold Gloves and is also the active career leader in caught-stealing percentage 43.7. Molina also leads the league in pickoffs with 41 while his closest rival, who happens to be his brother Jose who catches for the Tampa Bay Rays, is next with 23.

Cardinals Yaduer Molina is clearly the best defensive catcher in the major leagues. Photo:Dilip Vishwanat/Getty Images North America)

4. WORST TEAM IN MLB: Chicago Cubs- They are currently in last place in the N. L. Central Division, 15.5 games behind the 1st place Cincinnati Reds. Since May 15th they have lost 20 of their last 24 games and are 24 games under .500. Their OBP is .302, 28th in the league and their OPS of .686 which ranks them 25th. Their pitching isn’t much better either as they have a team ERA of  4.42 which puts them at 26th in the league. But worst of all they are on target to finish with close to 105 losses; another miserable year for Cub fans…

Even Reds 1B Joey Votto doesn’t think too much of the Cubs’ season… Photo: cubssuck.com

Fantasy Baseball: ‘Lucky’ Week #13 Waiver Wire Pickups

Posted by fantasyfurnace on June 25, 2012
Posted in: MLB. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , . 5 Comments

We’re nearing the halfway point of the season so by now managers should have a pretty good idea of what they will need coming down the home stretch and into the playoffs. In Fantasy leagues we’re more than half-way through the regular season’s as there are usually 22 weeks on the schedule. You should start choosing a bit more wisely now and so we’re here to help with this week’s pickups…

1. Brandon Belt-1B/OF-S.F. Giants– This late season call up last September proved one thing was clear; he has power. He hit 9 home runs in just 187 AB which equates to around 27 in a full season. On June 7th Belt began to play everyday and he has not disappointed. He had a modest 11 game hitting streak snapped on Sunday, and he still has the team’s highest on-base percentage- even though surprisingly he continues to bat seventh in the lineup. Over his last 37 AB he is hitting .405 with 4 HR and 12 RBI. He clearly is worth a flier and should be picked up in 12+ leagues. He is owned in just 32% of leagues.

#9 Giants Brandon Belt seen here ‘belting’ a home run, will hit a whole lot more and, if moved out of the 7th hole, could bring more RBI to team managers. Photo: Jake Roth-US PRESSWIRE

2. Pedro Alvarez- 3B-Pirates– The former second over-all pick in the 2008 draft of the Pittsburgh Pirates, is playing on a team where the bulk of the offense comes from two players; Andrew McClutchen and Pedro Alvarez. As of Sunday they were both tied for the most HR on the team with 13. Over Alvarez’s last 10 games he has scored 10 runs, hit 5 HR, knocked in 11, and has batted .317. Although he’s on pace to hit 28 HR, his only liability is his low batting average. In just under 800 career AB, his average is 5 points higher than his weight; .228. Maybe the surge he’s on now will continue- but just be mindful. For now we recommend Alavarez in deeper and A.L. only leagues. He can be easily had as he’s only owned in 28% of leagues.

3. Michael Fiers-SP/RP-Brewers- This 27 year old who prior to this year had only 2 innings pitched in the majors on his resume, has done an excellent job since getting the starting nod and with Shaun Marcum hitting the disabled list, Fiers will have even more of an opportunity to continue to start. He has started seven games so far this season and has gone 2-2 with a 2.70 ERA to go with a 1.11 WHIP. He also has 14 K’s in his last 15 1/3 innings pitched. However his main strength lies in his 31:5 K:BB ratio. He doesn’t have much velocity on his ball as he barely goes above 90, but his control more than adequate. He should be considered in deeper leagues at this point and in 12+ leagues especially if you’re into streaming and the matchup looks favorable. He is widely available in 95% of leagues.

4. Glen Perkins-RP-Twins-This is a move that should be made by all leagues with managers in needs of saves. Matt Capps, the Twins’ usual closer, has only pitched one inning since June 15th and is more than likely headed to the DL. This should give Perkins an opportunity to keep the role for another 2-3 weeks possibly. He has converted the two save opportunities he’s had and has excellent control as witnessed by his 40 K and 13 BB this season; all coming in relief. Owned in only 10% of leagues at the moment, you can bet that he will be gobbled up at a faster pace over the next several days. Don’t procrastinate, and keep an eye on Capps and monitor his eventual trip to the DL. A ‘Must Add’.

#15 new Twins Closer Glen Perkins becomes a ‘Must Add’ this week for those in need of saves. Photo: Jonathan Daniel/Getty Images

5. Cody Ross-OF-Red Sox- With all the commotion surrounding Kevin Youkilis’ departure from Boston to the White Sox, little know Cody Ross has been slipping through the cracks. Keen managers has taken notice of his performance of late, but for those of you who haven’t, this could be a steal. Even though he’s missed almost a full month with a broken bone in his left foot, Ross had his ninth career multi-homer game on Sunday in a win over the Braves. Since coming off of the DL, he has gone 7 of 22 (.318) with 3 homers and 10 RBI in just 6 games. He is available in 2/3 of most leagues and makes for a great pick up in leagues of 12 or more.