Travis Hafner

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10 of the most interesting ‘Facts & Stats’ in MLB today…

Posted by fantasyfurnace on May 25, 2013
Posted in: MLB. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , . 3 Comments

With the major league baseball season about a quarter over as we head towards the Memorial Day Weekend, we came up with some interesting facts and stats that you may (or may not) be aware of. They are random and shouldn’t have too much bearing on your rosters as they’re just here to hopefully make you say, “Wow, I didn’t know that!” We featured this last season and it was a huge success so back by popular demand, here are some of this season’s most interesting facts & stats…

DID YOU KNOW as of Saturday, May 25th, 2013…

1. That 34 year old Vernon Wells and 35 year old Carlos Beltran have more home runs (20) so far this season than Jay Bruce, Josh Hamilton and Ryan Howard…combined (each has 6)?

2. That in their last four games, the Baltimore Orioles have hit 13 home runs?

3. That Yankees DH Travis Hafner, who doesn’t play everyday, has the third most RBIs on the team?

4. That David Price. Matt Cain, Roy Halladay, Josh Johnson and Josh Beckett ALL have ERAs above 5.00?

5. That SP Jason Marquis leads the National League with 28 walks but is just 2 wins shy of Jordan Zimmerman and Matt Moore  who lead the major leagues in wins with 8?

6. That  Jimmy Rollins, Denard Span, and Drew Stubbs combined, have less stolen bases than Everth Cabrera (18)?

7. That Kevin Kouzmanoff is the only player to hit a grand slam home run on the very first pitch he ever saw as a major leaguer? It was done against Edison Volquez in the 1st inning vs the Texas Rangers on September 2, 2006.

Kevin Kouzmanoff, now with the Pods, was with the INdians when he hit a Grand Slam on the very 1st pitch of his MLB career. Photo: AP

Kevin Kouzmanoff, now with the Pods, was with the Indians when he hit a Grand Slam on the very 1st pitch of his MLB career. Photo: AP

8. That SP Brandon McCarthy has given up just one run over his last three games (24 innings)?

9. That Baltimore’s Chris Davis leads the major leagues in homes runs with 16 and that Manny Machado, also of the Orioles, leads the majors with 21 doubles?

10. That on May 22, Mike Trout hit for the cycle, a feat accomplished by under 300 players in the history of MLB? He was the youngest to do so in the A.L. at 21 years, 9 months, and 16 days. Mel Ott who achieved the cycle in 1929 at age 20 — is the youngest overall.

Phenom #27 gets a hold of one here like he did when he went for the cycle earlier this week. Photo: Kelvin Kuo/US Presswire

L.A. Angels phenom Mike Trout, #27, gets ahold of one here like he did when he went for the cycle earlier this week. Photo: Kelvin Kuo/US Presswire

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Fantasy Baseball- This Week’s Waiver Wire Pickups

Posted by fantasyfurnace on April 14, 2013
Posted in: MLB. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , . 3 Comments

The season just began and the injury bug has spread throughout the league. The smarter, more experienced owners have already come up with contingency plans. It isn’t too late to tap the resources of the waiver wire while other owneres are still napping.

In the case of Jose Reyes (ankle) who will probably not be returning until the All-Star break, and who will be to hard to replace with someone of equal talent, the following short stops have been ‘added’ just in Yahoo! leagues:

Jean Segura-Brewers-7542 adds

Marwin Gonzalez-Astros-5859 adds

Jhonny Peralta-Tigers-5211 adds

Jed Lowrie-Athletics-4934 adds

Pete Kozma-Cardinals-3869 adds

*We like Marwin Gonzalez who is available in 90% of leagues as well as Jhonny Peralta who is also widely available (75% of leagues). Stay away from Pete Kozma on the Cardinals unless you are in very deep roto leagues and are in desperate need of a SS as he does not have much power and doesn’t steal any bases.

Chris Carter-1B,OF-Astros- The A’s gave up on Carter in the off season after spending three years as a bench player. What we like about the 26 year old is his home run power. Last season he averaged one round-tripper for every 13.6 at bats (16 HRs in 218 ABs). His downside is his batting average. Even though he is currently hitting .289 he will not be able to sustain such a high % over the long haul. Carter also has dual position eligibility which could come in handy in deeper and A.L. only leagues.

#22 Chris Carter, who came over to the Astros from the A's for Jed Lowrie, has a lot of pop to his bat but hasn't hit for average. Photo: Christian Petersen, Getty Images)

#22 Chris Carter, who came over to the Astros from the A’s for Jed Lowrie, has a lot of pop to his bat but hasn’t hit for average. Photo: Christian Petersen, Getty Images

Travis Hafner-UTIL-Yankees- Best known while playing 10 seasons with the Indians, Haf is filling in for all the bats (and power) that are missing from The Yankees lineup with Teixeira, Granderson, Jeter, and A-Rod all injured. The 35 year old is just two seasons removed from hitting 29 homers in just 118 games. If healthy, Hafner can still bring it however his UTIL status always presents a challenge in some leagues. He has a career .278 batting average and is off to a great start having crushed 3 HRs in just 33 ABs.

Nate Schierholtz-OF-Cubs- For the time being, we are recommending Schieholtz to N.L. league owners only as he is platooning with Scott Hairston in right field. Even though he is seeing slightly more ABs than Hairston, we won’t tout him as someone to grab in all leagues just yet.  If (and when) Schierholtz is given the everyday starting job, he can provide you with 15 HR/15SB potential, but for now, even with his .363 BA, 2 homers, and 2 stolen bases to start this season, we would suggest taking out a flier on him and waiting especially for those in mixed leagues.

#19 Nate Schierholtz celebrates with teammate Anthony Rizzo after hitting a 2-run HR. He has 2 on the year to go along with2 SB & a .363 BA. Photo: Associated Press

#19 Nate Schierholtz celebrates with teammate Anthony Rizzo after hitting a 2-run HR. He has 2 homers on the year to go along with 2 SB & a .363 BA. Photo: Associated Press

Santiago Casilla-RP-Giants- For those of you in deeper leagues and in need of saves even if they are sporatic, keep an eye on Casilla while he fills in occasionally for full time closer Sergio Romo. Manager Bruce Bochy has intimated that he won’t play Romo more than a few days consecutively and plans to rest him more since blowing Friday’s game vs the Cubs. You could realize as many as 3-4 saves a month with Casilla, which could help those starving for saves no matter where they come from.