Week 7, 2019 Newsletter

Prospect Palooza (Pioneer League Week 7)

By: Eric Hannmann

I recently joked in the group chat that this week was pretty easy to recap and while it is a pretty simple week in theory it also was a big week for debuts, which is what this recap will center on. It really is only fitting after the debut of the power rankings vote this week which shockingly made many feel like the famous Seinfeld character Izzy Mandelbaum “You think you’re better than me?!” Let’s start with the Week 7 Recap!

Week 7 Results

Joliet Pen Manatees 268.00 vs. NYC Midtown Uniforms 337.00

It is always an interesting week when Brendan and Jason square off. Lots of chatter from both parties about how their offense sucked throughout and despite that Jason received solid weeks from Carlos Santana (30.50) and Eduardo Escobar (36.00) while Brendan had 4 20 point batters including C.J. Cron-enberg (27.00) (Rick and Morty Season 4 coming in November!) Overall the difference in the matchup was a balanced pitching attack for Brendan and I am not lying when I say it was lead by Jordan Lyles (30.00). And while Jason was saying it was Too Little Too Late in the stretch run of the week, he also said “Get Out (Leave) right now!” to Nick Vincent (-12.00) and Wilmer Font (-14.00) who really were the reasons this thing got out of hand. Time will tell if he says the same to Miles Mikolas (-22.00).

Nobody Paddack 226.50 vs. LongBeachInSalenCats 370.35

The aforementioned power rankings really had Logan feeling cheated and he came out to match Brendan’s win (both 6-1) while having a top-3 week in points as well. Johnny’s prospects of winning sort of were dim on the onset when Chris Paddack (0.00) lost to the Dodgers while his former ace in 2018 Chris Sale (42.00) had a 17 strikeout game for Logan. Luis Castillo (20.00) was the only player to get to the 20-point mark for Johnny while Logan had 6 players with at least 20 including Freddie Freeman (31.50) who continues to prove he is more than just SHAZAM’s best friend. Mike Soraka (23.00) lowered is ERA to 0.98 and is the real deal. There is not much drama in the LBIC.

Team Filler 356.25 vs. Anders’s Team 199.75

If this doesn’t show parity in the league I don’t know what will. Not too often does a 1-5 team beat a 5-1 team this convincingly. Tone’s team may have just been asleep for the first month and a half. It sure has been good to have Anthony Rendon (36.50) and Shohei Ohtani (17.50) back in his lineup. That pitching staff flashed brilliance all week lead by Oakland Athletics Chris Bassitt (30.00) and Frankie Montas (33.00). As for Anders’s Team, when Trevor Bauer (-5) lets up 7 runs to the Orioles you know it is a rough week. Ders, I will channel my inner Adam DeMamp here; “Feel better and take it sleazy.”

Be So Means 330.75 vs. Rhys’ Pieces 239.00

When reports were confused, Casey so nicely pointed out in the group chat that Gio Urshela took a foul ball off a sensitive area. However the nut punch he should be talking about is yet another blowout matchup. Casey acquired Tommy La Stella (24.00) on a claim last week and he was integral to the W. La Stella really has his groove going this year as he now has more HR’s this season then he had in his first 5 seasons combined. Domingo Germán (25.00) continues to pitch lights out and Danny Duffy’s (28.00) success seems like a mirage but it was real to Ecc this week. Mike had a pretty balanced offensive attack with the exception of his namesake. The pitching staff was not great with relievers Will Smith (25.00) and Hector Neris (24.00) ending up as his top 2 performers.

Daddy WarBuxton 379.75 vs. Weed Piranhas 249.50

It was a tough week for Trent as even cell towers had it out against him, and he wasn’t able to get Sandy Alcantara’s 40-point start in his lineup. It would not have won him the matchup but definitely matters when it comes to a playoff tiebreak for points for. Trent does have the best pitcher in fantasy baseball, Justin Verlander (29.00), and also was able to add Zach Davies (21.00) this week. Gleyber Torres (21.00) showed up this week to remind Eric of the Hader trade of 2018, the fact he was kept for a 19th and that his 3^rd keeper from this season, David Dahl (-6.00) has no holiday named after him like Gleyber Day. Overall a breakout week from Byron Buxton (34.00) as well as the fact only 2 active pitchers did not get double digits propelled Eric to victory.

I Got Wood 211.25 vs. NextGenerationBomber 300.25

To quote Drunk Mike “Fuck off Brendan.” Wait what? He did have a point at the time as Aaron did stream Erik Swanson (-18.00) and Ivan Nova (-23.00) and yes he still was up and eventually won convincingly. That was thanks to the likes of Noah Syndergaard (35.00) who seems to have shed the Endgame weight with many better performances since he traded for him, as well as Rich Hill (31.00). Also want to point out that Aaron currently has 4 catchers on his squad and is winning matchups. Somewhere RyFlo is sipping tea. But to the real story of the week for Aaron…Vladimir Guerrero Jr. (35.00) finally showed up, hitting his first HR’s in the largest ballpark he was at to that date, Oracle Park that is. He added 2 more at Guaranteed Rate Field and Mike might what to talk to Guaranteed Rate about a mortgage on the season as he can’t afford too many more performances like this and may find himself running out of real estate in the playoff race. Okay, I took that one a little too far and it is still early for him. He’ll look for Trent Thornton (33.00), Robbie Ray (23.00) and Lorenzo Cain (26.50) to keep up their personal success.

Wichita SodaMammoths 331.75 vs. 1948 Revisited 390.00

The potential future Nashville roommates finally squared off this week and it quickly turned into the best matchup of the week. We should have seen it coming as they were separated by .25 points coming into the matchup. And as the closest matchup heading into Sunday, 2 points only separated them. However, the finale of the matchup turned into the rest of this weeks matchups and may have been the least polarizing of finales this week between Survivor 38 and GoT. The Big Bang came from Shane Bieber (48.00) who shut down the Orioles on Sunday. Brandon Woodruff (43.00) and Patrick Corbin (33.00) continue to kill it since being acquired and Josh Bell (36.25) is an absolute savage. Ryan tops the scoreboard for the 3^rd consecutive week. Cody’s team shouldn’t be taken lightly though as it has a mean streak like fellow mammoth Manny from Ice Age. I mean I am going to start calling his 3-headed monster of Cody Bellinger (28.00), Christian Yelich (31.75) and Kris Bryant (26.50) Fluffy! Except not even flute or harp music could put them to sleep and even if it did, they would find a new handle for their bat to get going again.

Welcome to the Big Leagues!

“The Big Leagues” (Mike Wazowski voice). I know we saw a lot of trades but this week we also saw a huge crop of young kids get their shot. We’ll recap the many prospects picked up this week, their performances as well as take a peak at a couple others who remain on the bench of some teams. As y’all know, prospects are stashed so early in this league you’d think we all had a Back to the Future 2 like Sports Almanac!

Keston Hiura 2B (Ander’s Team): Ders scooped up this hard-hitting prospect when the Brewers gave him the call as Travis Shaw hit the DL. Early returns see a HR but also 8 K’s, that is a total of 5 points. As Shaw hits Jason’s DL, he claimed Cano who was dropped in the Hiura hysteria. Cano has definitely underperformed so far.

Austin Riley 3B (Be So Means): Riley had been previously stashed by Logan who is definitely watching the world burn and purposely getting names wrong on Starbucks cups until that pain goes away. That could be a while as he has hit 2 HR’s and already has 17 points. He should play even when Inciarte gets back as they need to keep his bat in the lineup.

Brendan Rodgers SS (I GOT WOOD): We won’t talk about the weird early Week 8 trade where the Mikes swapped him. Rodgers playing at Coors made him one of the more tantalizing prospects and he seems here to say as Story missed no games after a knee injury. You know, I will talk about the Mike swap real quick; Ecc had stashed Rodgers almost 2 weeks ago. Ryan McMahon did homer twice Sunday but he could also slide to 1B at times. Rodgers is 1-8 with 4K’s and an RBI, which totals -2 points early on.

Nicky Lopez 2B, SS (NYC Midtown Uniforms): Brendan was quick to @ Trent in the group chat about how this kid was for real. It is a little perplexing Trent did not jump at it himself, as he was the first to show excitement about the call-up in the chat. His playing time is legit as Whit moves to the OF. Early returns are pretty good as he has totaled 15 points and has a good chance at a strong BB:K ratio.

Oscar Mercado OF (On Waivers): Of course this Indian was picked up by RyFlo, but he was dropped later for Jason Kipnis. Mercado has not been in the lineup everyday but has been solid since a rocky debut. He has totaled 9.50 points and his speed has gotten him 2 doubles. However he was caught stealing in his first base stealing attempt.

Willie Calhoun OF (Be So Means): Calhoun did not make his debut this week but he came back to the Majors with a bang. He is 10 for 21 with 2 HR’s and only 1 K good for 27 points. A crowded Rangers OF will need to find him AB’s and even though he has played some 2B the infield is more crowded especially with Elvis Andrus due back soon. A renaissance Hunter Pence could have his playing time challenged.

Honorable Mentions: Shaun Anderson (11 points), Cole Irvin (13 points in his 2^nd start), NA Chance Adams (16 points)

SP’s Forrest Whitley, Dylan Cease (Daddy WarBuxton), Zac Gallen (LongBeachInSalenCats), Jesus Luzardo, Mitch Keller (Rhys’ Pieces): Cease and Gallen were recently stashed. Gallen is ready but after a good performance from Alcantara, the Marlins probably will have to trade a SP for Gallen to get a chance or of course an injury would suffice. Cease is ready and the White Sox have no real MLB options after Manny Bañuelos’ injury but Rick Hahn said he won’t rush his top prospect. Forrest Whitely has struggled at Triple-A and the Astros skipped him for Corbin Martin. He may be more suited for a late season bullpen role in 2019. Mitch Keller may be the most ready and could get the call soon as his most recent start was bumped for a non-injury reason. GM Neal Huntington said he would like him to develop his new slider/cutter pitch first. Luzardo is currently rehabbing and could be an impact pitcher for Oakland in Late June/ Early July.

Yordan Álvarez OF (Be So Means): Last but not least, Álvarez has been stashed by Casey since April 24^th and rightfully so. He has destroyed Triple-A pitching hitting over .400 all season and has an OPS over 1.300. As if the Astros need another great bat! While he will hit low in the lineup most likely when he gets the call, it is an amazing lineup to join for fantasy purposes. Kyle Tucker has been called up before and may be his only obstacle but he should be hitting in Houston yesterday. Unfortunately for him and Casey, Aledmys Diaz and Jake Marisnick have been more than serviceable.