Panzram
05-24-2004, 07:08 PM
Who's Hot and Who's Not
by Tim Ronaldson, KFFL
Monday May 24, 2004
Baseball is a game of streaks, and with 162 games in the regular season, players are naturally going to go through upswings and downswings that could make or break a fantasy owner's season. It's always hard to bench that star player on your team, but unlike fantasy football where certain players are must start every week, fantasy baseball presents you with the realistic decision of benching a stud player during a slump and starting that no-name journeyman who is tearing up the league. It is important not only to know who's hot or not now but also to be able to predict who WILL be hot and who WON'T be for the upcoming weeks. Throughout the season, KFFL.com's Who's Hot and Who's Not report will bring you the latest trends from around the league to key in on when making your important lineup decisions each week.
The following is a breakdown of some players who are clicking and others that are going through the doldrums. After just one week of play, you shouldn't be overly concerned with those players struggling, as cold weather climates can often affect player performance. However, those who are playing well now could be on the road to a great season.
WHO'S HOT
1B Paul Konerko, Chicago White Sox - After going hitless in five of his first six games of May, Konerko has turned it around lately and is on a hot streak. In his last two series, spanning seven games, Konerko hit .423 with 2 home runs, 9 RBIs and 7 runs scored. He seemed to be seeing the ball better at the plate as well, as he drew five walks compared to four strikeouts. In contrast, he drew only five walks compared to nine strikeouts in the first eight games of the month, through May 8. Hitting primarily sixth in a potent White Sox lineup gives Konerko plenty of opportunities to knock in runs, and recently he has done that. Konerko and the Sox wrapped up a four-game weekend series with the Minnesota Twins and will play three scheduled games against the Texas Rangers and Anaheim Angels the rest of the week.
OF Bobby Abreu, Philadelphia Phillies - Like the rest of the Phillies, Abreu got off to a slow start this season, but he has done a 180-degree switch in the month of May. After batting just .256 in the season's first month, Abreu has since raised his average for the month of May by nearly 100 points to .352. He is on a 12-game hitting streak and has hit safely in 14 of his last 15 games dating back to May 7. Even more impressive than his hitting streak, though, was his streak of scoring a run in each of his last 11 games, which was broken Sunday, May 23. In his last four series (12 games); Abreu batted .452 with 4 HRs, 13 RBIs, 18 runs and 6 stolen bases. Even with 1B Jim Thome (finger) and 2B Placido Polanco (quadriceps) out of the lineup, the Phillies have found ways to score runs, especially at home. This coming week, they have an odd schedule of two road games followed by four home games, so Abreu should have a chance to continue his red-hot ways.
SP Mark Buehrle, Chicago White Sox - Sticking to the theme of players turning it around after rough starts, Buehrle makes our list and is the second Chicago White Sox player to do so. In his last three starts, Buehrle has made all of his fantasy owners happy, especially those who picked him up for a cheap price in a trade or on the free-agent wire. Buehrle has won each of those starts, going 3-0 with a 0.87 ERA and a 1.06 WHIP. He has gone at least 6.2 innings in each of those starts, striking out a total of 21 batters compared to only 4 walks. Buehrle has seemed to find his rhythm in the entire month of May, with a 3-0 record, 1.91 ERA, 1.24 WHIP and 32 strikeouts in 33 innings pitched. His next start should come Thursday, May 27 against the Texas Rangers - a team he has yet to face this year.
SP Randy Johnson, Arizona Diamondbacks - What a week Johnson had! He became the first pitcher since former major-leaguer David Cone to throw a perfect game when he did so against the Atlanta Braves Tuesday, May 18. He was obviously untouched with no hits allowed, no walks and no batters reaching base, and to top it off, Johnson struck out 13 batters in the process. He followed that up with an impressive outing against the Florida Marlins Sunday, May 23, allowing 2 earned runs on 4 hits, 1 walk and 5 strikeouts in 7 innings to pick up his second win of the week. In those two games, he combined for a 2-0 record with a 1.13 ERA, 0.31 WHIP and 18 strikeouts in 16 innings. This is the Johnson fantasy owners know and love - if you own him that is. Johnson's next start should come Friday, May 28 at Los Angeles to face the Dodgers - a team he hasn't faced this year. However, it will be played in a very pitcher-friendly Dodger Stadium, so Johnson could keep rolling.
WHO'S NOT
OF Randy Winn, Seattle Mariners - Winn has been consistent this season, but the problem is that he has been consistently bad. Unfortunately for his fantasy owners - if there are still any out there - he hasn't hit any kind of stride lately. In his last three series (eight games); Winn has just four hits, "good" for a .121 average. He has also "contributed" with no HRs, 1 RBI, 1 run scored and no stolen bases in that time. He seems to have no pitch selection at all, as he struck out five times in that span and hasn't drawn a walk since May 4 - an absolutely terrible stat for a player who used to be a top-of-the-order guy. If Seattle had any better option to play in centerfield - or if they can find one - Winn might be finding his way onto the bench.
1B Shawn Green, Los Angeles Dodgers - I wonder if the switch from the outfield to the infield is clouding his concentration at the plate? It's probably not the case, but either way, Green is having a tough time hitting anything that's been thrown his way lately, and it has resulted in some time spent on the bench. In his last three series (eight games); Green hit just .156 with no home runs, 1 RBI and 2 runs scored. The Dodgers have lost nine out of their last 10 games, and Green's slump seems to be a part of the problem. He only struck out four times in those eight games, but he also drew just two walks, so his pitch selection might not have been as good as it usually is. Manager Jim Tracy will probably have a hard time keeping a player like Green on the bench for extended periods of time - especially since his other option at first is 1B Robin Ventura - but if Green doesn't turn it around, he could see less playing time.
SP Derek Lowe, Boston Red Sox - Lowe started the season relatively well, at least in the win column, but he has taken a turn for the worse in May. In four starts this month, Lowe has been terrible, going 0-3 with a 7.23 ERA and a 2.04 WHIP. Hitters seem to have figured him out, as they are hitting Lowe all over the place and causing him to try to nip at the corners, which has resulted in a lot of walks. In those four starts, he allowed 27 hits and walked 11 batters compared to only 8 strikeouts in 18.2 innings pitched. It isn't like he has faced volatile offenses either, as outside of the potent Cleveland Indians lineup he has faced the Kansas City Royals, Toronto Blue Jays and Tampa Bay Devil Rays this month.
SP John Thomson, Atlanta Braves - It's safe to say that this isn't what the Braves had in mind when they signed Thomson this offseason. In May, Thomson has been nothing like the pitcher he was in April. He has only lost once in four starts, going 0-1, but all of that was because of the Braves' strong offensive backing. While he only had the one loss, he had a 7.71 ERA and 1.63 WHIP. He had good control of his pitches in that time, walking just four batters compared to 18 strikeouts. However, the problem was that just about everything he threw over the plate got hit, as he allowed 34 hits in 23.1 innings. His biggest downfall, though, was the fact that he gave up five long balls, which helped him give up 20 earned runs.
by Tim Ronaldson, KFFL
Monday May 24, 2004
Baseball is a game of streaks, and with 162 games in the regular season, players are naturally going to go through upswings and downswings that could make or break a fantasy owner's season. It's always hard to bench that star player on your team, but unlike fantasy football where certain players are must start every week, fantasy baseball presents you with the realistic decision of benching a stud player during a slump and starting that no-name journeyman who is tearing up the league. It is important not only to know who's hot or not now but also to be able to predict who WILL be hot and who WON'T be for the upcoming weeks. Throughout the season, KFFL.com's Who's Hot and Who's Not report will bring you the latest trends from around the league to key in on when making your important lineup decisions each week.
The following is a breakdown of some players who are clicking and others that are going through the doldrums. After just one week of play, you shouldn't be overly concerned with those players struggling, as cold weather climates can often affect player performance. However, those who are playing well now could be on the road to a great season.
WHO'S HOT
1B Paul Konerko, Chicago White Sox - After going hitless in five of his first six games of May, Konerko has turned it around lately and is on a hot streak. In his last two series, spanning seven games, Konerko hit .423 with 2 home runs, 9 RBIs and 7 runs scored. He seemed to be seeing the ball better at the plate as well, as he drew five walks compared to four strikeouts. In contrast, he drew only five walks compared to nine strikeouts in the first eight games of the month, through May 8. Hitting primarily sixth in a potent White Sox lineup gives Konerko plenty of opportunities to knock in runs, and recently he has done that. Konerko and the Sox wrapped up a four-game weekend series with the Minnesota Twins and will play three scheduled games against the Texas Rangers and Anaheim Angels the rest of the week.
OF Bobby Abreu, Philadelphia Phillies - Like the rest of the Phillies, Abreu got off to a slow start this season, but he has done a 180-degree switch in the month of May. After batting just .256 in the season's first month, Abreu has since raised his average for the month of May by nearly 100 points to .352. He is on a 12-game hitting streak and has hit safely in 14 of his last 15 games dating back to May 7. Even more impressive than his hitting streak, though, was his streak of scoring a run in each of his last 11 games, which was broken Sunday, May 23. In his last four series (12 games); Abreu batted .452 with 4 HRs, 13 RBIs, 18 runs and 6 stolen bases. Even with 1B Jim Thome (finger) and 2B Placido Polanco (quadriceps) out of the lineup, the Phillies have found ways to score runs, especially at home. This coming week, they have an odd schedule of two road games followed by four home games, so Abreu should have a chance to continue his red-hot ways.
SP Mark Buehrle, Chicago White Sox - Sticking to the theme of players turning it around after rough starts, Buehrle makes our list and is the second Chicago White Sox player to do so. In his last three starts, Buehrle has made all of his fantasy owners happy, especially those who picked him up for a cheap price in a trade or on the free-agent wire. Buehrle has won each of those starts, going 3-0 with a 0.87 ERA and a 1.06 WHIP. He has gone at least 6.2 innings in each of those starts, striking out a total of 21 batters compared to only 4 walks. Buehrle has seemed to find his rhythm in the entire month of May, with a 3-0 record, 1.91 ERA, 1.24 WHIP and 32 strikeouts in 33 innings pitched. His next start should come Thursday, May 27 against the Texas Rangers - a team he has yet to face this year.
SP Randy Johnson, Arizona Diamondbacks - What a week Johnson had! He became the first pitcher since former major-leaguer David Cone to throw a perfect game when he did so against the Atlanta Braves Tuesday, May 18. He was obviously untouched with no hits allowed, no walks and no batters reaching base, and to top it off, Johnson struck out 13 batters in the process. He followed that up with an impressive outing against the Florida Marlins Sunday, May 23, allowing 2 earned runs on 4 hits, 1 walk and 5 strikeouts in 7 innings to pick up his second win of the week. In those two games, he combined for a 2-0 record with a 1.13 ERA, 0.31 WHIP and 18 strikeouts in 16 innings. This is the Johnson fantasy owners know and love - if you own him that is. Johnson's next start should come Friday, May 28 at Los Angeles to face the Dodgers - a team he hasn't faced this year. However, it will be played in a very pitcher-friendly Dodger Stadium, so Johnson could keep rolling.
WHO'S NOT
OF Randy Winn, Seattle Mariners - Winn has been consistent this season, but the problem is that he has been consistently bad. Unfortunately for his fantasy owners - if there are still any out there - he hasn't hit any kind of stride lately. In his last three series (eight games); Winn has just four hits, "good" for a .121 average. He has also "contributed" with no HRs, 1 RBI, 1 run scored and no stolen bases in that time. He seems to have no pitch selection at all, as he struck out five times in that span and hasn't drawn a walk since May 4 - an absolutely terrible stat for a player who used to be a top-of-the-order guy. If Seattle had any better option to play in centerfield - or if they can find one - Winn might be finding his way onto the bench.
1B Shawn Green, Los Angeles Dodgers - I wonder if the switch from the outfield to the infield is clouding his concentration at the plate? It's probably not the case, but either way, Green is having a tough time hitting anything that's been thrown his way lately, and it has resulted in some time spent on the bench. In his last three series (eight games); Green hit just .156 with no home runs, 1 RBI and 2 runs scored. The Dodgers have lost nine out of their last 10 games, and Green's slump seems to be a part of the problem. He only struck out four times in those eight games, but he also drew just two walks, so his pitch selection might not have been as good as it usually is. Manager Jim Tracy will probably have a hard time keeping a player like Green on the bench for extended periods of time - especially since his other option at first is 1B Robin Ventura - but if Green doesn't turn it around, he could see less playing time.
SP Derek Lowe, Boston Red Sox - Lowe started the season relatively well, at least in the win column, but he has taken a turn for the worse in May. In four starts this month, Lowe has been terrible, going 0-3 with a 7.23 ERA and a 2.04 WHIP. Hitters seem to have figured him out, as they are hitting Lowe all over the place and causing him to try to nip at the corners, which has resulted in a lot of walks. In those four starts, he allowed 27 hits and walked 11 batters compared to only 8 strikeouts in 18.2 innings pitched. It isn't like he has faced volatile offenses either, as outside of the potent Cleveland Indians lineup he has faced the Kansas City Royals, Toronto Blue Jays and Tampa Bay Devil Rays this month.
SP John Thomson, Atlanta Braves - It's safe to say that this isn't what the Braves had in mind when they signed Thomson this offseason. In May, Thomson has been nothing like the pitcher he was in April. He has only lost once in four starts, going 0-1, but all of that was because of the Braves' strong offensive backing. While he only had the one loss, he had a 7.71 ERA and 1.63 WHIP. He had good control of his pitches in that time, walking just four batters compared to 18 strikeouts. However, the problem was that just about everything he threw over the plate got hit, as he allowed 34 hits in 23.1 innings. His biggest downfall, though, was the fact that he gave up five long balls, which helped him give up 20 earned runs.