Jason Hammel

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The Baltimore Orioles: No longer for the Birds!

Posted by fantasyfurnace on May 20, 2012
Posted in: MLB. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , . 10 Comments

The baseball season is now officially 25% over, and if you stop and take a look at the the standings of all the teams in both leagues, one team glares out so stunningly, that you find yourself squinting and staring at the listings a second time; The Baltimore Orioles! I knew that they had been doing fairly well, but not this good!

Here are some facts about the perennial laughing stocks of the A.L. East: As of Sunday, they have the best record in the American League. They have the second best record in the major leagues behind the L.A. Dodgers. Want more? They have the best road record of any team in MLB and have the longest winning streak going, currently at five. If they can somehow manage to keep this pace up for the final 3/4 of the season they would end up with 108 wins!

What makes some of these numbers so fascinating, is where the Orioles have been over the last decade. They have finished in last place in the American League East every year over the last four. In the last ten they have finished second to last five times and, when they’ve had their best season of the decade, (2004) they finished in third place-23 games out of first.

So how and why have they been doing so well this year? You would have to start with the job that Buck Showalter has done with this club in a relatively short amount of time- a club devoid of many ‘superstar’ status type ballplayers. He is one of the more cerebral managers  that there has ever been in MLB.

Orioles mananger Buck Showalter has taken a perennial last place team and has them at 13 games over .500 after a quarter season of baseball. Photo:Gary Bogdon/SI

If you’ll recall, Showalter took the Yankees, in the bottom half of their division, and led them into first place right before the strike shortened 1994 season. While at the helm, in Arizona, the Diamondbacks made their first ever appearance in the playoffs in just their second year of existence. Ironically, Showalter left both clubs in the seasons just prior to both of them winning the World Series!

Baltimore has been winning with the long ball much the same way that Earl Weaver did throughout his time with the club. With just 9 stolen bases among the entire team, one can see that they are not built for speed…

OFAdam Jones has been on a tear all year and although he is just one season removed from hitting a career high 25 HR he is currently on pace to reach 56! OF Nick Markakis will probably match his career HR mark and although batting just .258, he is a career .294 hitter so he’s due to come on soon. Then there’s J.J. Hardy who is on track to repeat his 30 HR and 80 RBI from a season ago.

#10 OF Adam Jones has a team high 14 home runs this season. Photo:(AP Photo/Bill Kostroun

As far as the Oriole’s pitching is concerned, they boast four RP with ERA’s under 2.00; Darren O’Day 1.37, Luis Ayala 1.64, Pedro Strop (a featured RP on Fantasy Furnace) 1.14, and closer Jim Johnson 0.92 with 15 saves-none blown. Throw in Taiwanese rookie Wei-Yin Chen at 4-0 and Jason Hammel 5-1 and you have quite a formidable team.

If Baltimore continues to soar in the standings, (they are 13 games over .500 as of Saturday), the early favorite for A.L. Manager of the year, has to be Buck Showalter who has already garnered that title twice before. And if the Red Sox and Yankees currently in last & second to last place respectively in the A.L. East continue to struggle, it will allow the Orioles to gain a strong hold on their first place position. No, you can’t say that this team is ‘for the birds’ any longer…

FANTASY BASEBALL-Week 5 Waiver Wire Pickups

Posted by fantasyfurnace on May 1, 2012
Posted in: MLB. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , . Leave a comment

As we enter week 5 in fantasy baseball, we turn the calendar on April and go in to month two of the long baseball season.  We’ve watched some amazing things happen so far like Matt Kemp hitting 12 HR, collecting 25 RBI, and batting .417, while the $250 million man, Albert Pujols, has driven in 4 runs, has no HR and is batting 200 points less than Kemp at .217. Some of the pitchers that were drafted early like Cliff Lee, Daniel Hudson, Rick Dempster, Drew Storen, Brian Wilson, and Andrew Bailey have all found a place on the DL.

 And so here are some key waiver wire pick ups that you should be considering and who are not widely owned in most leagues:

Gerardo Parra-OF-Diamondbacks- Parra makes for a nice little pickup in all leagues basically for one category; stolen bases. While OF Chris Young is healing from what has been diagnosed as a slight ligament tear in his right shoulder, the speedster will continue his lead-off duties and probably see 3-4 more weeks on the field. In the last two weeks, he has stolen 7 bases, knocked in 10 runs, has 2 HR, and has scored 13 runs. Not bad for a replacement player. So if you have a ‘need for speed’ (and a little more), Parra is available in 75% of leagues.

#8 Gerardo Parra slides in safely in front of the tag by Jose Reyes of the Marlins. The speedster is worth a flier if you need SB. Photo: Sarah Glenn/Getty Images

Chris Davis-1B/3B-Orioles- This 26 year old has been red hot of late after a torrid weekend series versus the Athletics. He’s batting .310, which is bound to come down somewhat, but his power is his strong suit as he has hit 4 HR and driven in 12 in just 67 AB. I was surprised that Texas gave up on him so quickly because less than 2 years before he was traded to Baltimore, in 2009, he belted 21 HR in just 391 AB which equates to 1 HR every 18.6 AB. His dual position eligibility is also a plus. Davis is currently owned in just 35% of Yahoo! leagues and makes a nice add in 12+ leagues.

3B Chris Davis also has 1B eligibility which, together with his power makes him a nice add in most leagues. Photo: fansedge.com

Bryan LaHair-1B/OF-Cubs- Another player on fire is LaHair. Monday he doubled and hit a 2-run home run against the Phillies, which now gives him 5 moon-shots for the season to go along with 14 RBI. More impressive for the 29 year old who has spent most of his career in the minors, is his stellar .390 BA which, coupled with his obvious power, makes him a must add in most leagues. If you’re a gambler, you can think about trading LaHair while he’s got these amazing numbers. Or, if you don’t have him, you can pick him up on waivers which is becoming even harder to do as his stock rises. On Monday he was owned in 51% of leagues. Today it’s up to 62%. Don’t procrastinate-see if he’s still available.

Cubs 1B/OF celebrates with Starlin Castro after LaHair's 2 run HR in the 8th inning vs the Phillies over the weekend. Photo: associated press

Jason Hammel-SP/RP-Orioles- Hammel, who has spent the last three seasons in the thin air of Colorado, has watched his wins and K’s go up while his ERA 1.97, and WHIP 1.03 has dropped significantly since being traded to Baltimore this past winter. He’s 3-1 in the month of April and has fanned 30 in just 32 innings pitched. On Monday versus the Yankees he allowed 2 runs over six innings and struck out five but took the loss. The red hot Red Sox are up next for Hammel so it won’t be an easy task for the 29 year old. He is another player you might consider selling high but would suggest waiting another start or two. His 10 strikeout performance against the White Sox is what impressed me the most and is worth a grab in most leagues. He is available in 50% of leagues.

#39 Jason Hammel got the win over the Minnesota Twins 3-1 on Sunday and lowered his ERA to 1.97 on the season. Photo: GREG FIUME/Getty Images

Pedro Strop-RP-Orioles- Our third Oriole of the week, is a 26 year old fire-baller who can bring it. With closer Jim Johnson securely in place with his 7 saves, 0.00 ERA and 1.15 WHIP, Strop is a nice alternative if you’re lacking in the RP slot and could use an occasional save and/or win. He finished April with a 3-1 record and has added 2 saves to his resume. He also has struck out 14 in 13 innings and has a 2.08 ERA with a 1.08 WHIP which makes him more than serviceable. In Yahoo! leagues, he is currently ranked 70 among all pitchers. He is widely available in 85% of leagues and is definitely worth a flier.

RP Pedro Strop makes for a nice pickup if you're looking for wins, saves, and K's from your RP. Photo: csnbaltimore.com