Finding Keepers: Cleveland Indians: 10/18/2010

The Cleveland Indians should have two very solid keeper candidates but unfortunately that's not the case going into the 2011 season. OF Shin-Soo Choo finished the season as the 10th-best outfielder and 24th-ranked player overall according to ESPN's Player Rater with his .300/81/22/90/22 line yet his 2011 season is in jeopardy due to his two-year commitment to the South Korean military needing to be filled. Keep an eye on this situation over the winter to see how it all players out. Hopefully there's a clear direction before your league's keepers need to be locked in.

C Carlos Santana's much anticipated debut happened on June 11th and he proceeded to put up very good numbers (.260/23/6/22/3) in 46 games before having his season ended in a home plate collision that left him with a seriously injured knee. Reports are that he will be ready for the start of next season but knee injuries and catching don't mix well. Any catcher with the ability to hit 20+ home runs and steal some bases is definitely worth a keeper tag, especially in deep mixed leagues and 2-catcher formats.

I don't see anyone else on the Indians roster that I'd be willing to use a keeper selection on for the 2011 season. Do you agree/disagree with my assessment of their roster? If so, open up the discussion by leaving me a comment. Also, help spread the word about COSFBA by using the "Share" option on this post. Much appreciated!

Finding Keepers: Chicago Cubs: 10/17/2010

Not a whole lot went well on the field for the Chicago Cubs this season, but several things did from the fantasy baseball perspective. The first being SS Starlin Castro's arrival. At just 20 years old, Castro burst onto the fantasy baseball scene on May 7th with a 2-5, triple, home run, six RBI debut. He finished the season with a .300 average, 53 runs, 3 home runs, 41 RBI and 10 stolen bases in 125 games. If I'm keeping Castro (and I suggest you do too), I'm hoping for a .300+ average with 10+ homers and 15+ stolen bases batting out of the number two hole in the Cubs 2011 line up.

If you're thinking of keeping an elite closer (or at least a closer with elite numbers), CL Carlos Marmol is definitely worthy of a spot. I recently picked Marmol as my NL Reliever of the Year, and had the Cubs won closer to 90 games, he could have been the top reliever in the game. Marmol had 38 saves in the Cubs 75 wins. That could have translated to 45-46 saves on a 90 win team (such as San Diego or San Francisco). His 138 Ks in 77.2 IPs translates into an astonishing 16 K/9. WOW! A point of concern is always going to be his high BB/9 (6.0), though.

Is a catcher with 20+ HR/80+RBI potential with a .270 average warrant a keeper selection? C Geovany Soto only played in 105 games this season yet still managed to be the 8th overall ranked catcher on ESPN's Player Rater with his .280/17/53 line. We all drank the ROY juice in 2008 and were royally disappointed in 2009. Which Geovany shows up in 2011? That level of doubt makes his a risky keeper. I'm rolling the dice that under a new manager, Soto thrives in 2011.

2010 Fantasy Baseball Awards: 10/09/2010

The 2010 regular season is now behind us and it's time to hand out some hardware. The Baseball Bloggers Alliance has new names for the awards we all know and love and I'll be handing them out from a fantasy perspective. And the winners are...

The Connie Mack Award for AL Manager of the Year: Joe Maddon, TB

Joe Maddon manages the Rays like a true fantasy baseball god. Position flexibility is the best friend of every good fantasy baseball manager and Maddon gets the most out of his roster. Ben Zobrist played 15 games at 1B, 56 at 2B, 2 at 3B, 1 in LF, 14 in CF and 104 in RF. He used Sean Rodriguez at 1B for 3 games, 94 at 2B, 7 at 3B, 5 at SS, 5 in LF, 9 in CF and 8 in RF. He batted his catcher, John Jaso, in the leadoff spot for 169 at bats (+ 30 walks) to the tune of a .380 on-base percentage. Toss in guys like Reid Brignac (2B/SS/RF) and Willy Aybar (1B/2B/3B) and you can see why Maddon is taking home this award.
2nd Place: Ron Washington, TEX
3rd Place: Ron Gardenhire, MIN

The Connie Mack Award for NL Manager of the Year: Bobby Cox, ATL

Bobby Cox managed his Braves to the NL Wild Card and probably helped many fantasy managers win their leagues with the likes of fantasy no-names such as 1B/2B/3B Martin Prado and 2B/3B/SS/LF/RF Omar Infante. Cox is single-handedly responsible for convincing Billy Wagner to come to Atlanta to be his closer and Wagner responded big time (7-2, 37 SV, 1.43 ERA, 0.87 WHIP). Add potential NL Rookie of the Year Jason Heyward and NL Comeback Player of the Year Tim Hudson into the mix and you can see why Bobby Cox is taking home this award.
2nd Place: Bruce Bochy, SF
3rd Place: Bud Black, SD

The Willie Mays Award for AL Rookie of the Year: RP Neftali Feliz, TEX

I hate the mantra, "Don't pay for saves", because sometimes saves are worth paying top dollar for (Mariano Rivera, for one). For those owners that were able to get Neftali Feliz at the end of their drafts (ADP 222.5), they struck fantasy gold. Frank Francisco opened the season as the Texas Rangers' closer and promptly blew two saves (April 8th and 10th). Feliz recorded his first save on April 12th and never looked back, converting 40 of 43 save opportunities the season.
2nd Place: Austin Jackson, DET
3rd Place: Brennan Boesch, DET

The Willie Mays Award for NL Rookie of the Year: C Buster Posey, SF

Most people would agree that this award was a two-horse race, Jason Heyward and Buster Posey. Looking at it from a fantasy perspective, their numbers were relatively similar. The differences are that Posey put his numbers (.305/18/67) in 108 games while Heyward put up his numbers (.277/18/72) in 142 games. Also, Hayward's ADP was 114.1 while Posey was virtually undrafted. Lastly, Posey put up premium numbers for a catcher and finished 3rd overall for his position while Heyward finished as the 40th ranked outfielder.
2nd Place: Jason Heyward, ATL
3rd Place: Jaime Garcia, STL

Line of the Day: 10/03/2010

OF Matt Kemp, LAD was 1-for-3 with a home run, two RBI, a run and a walk in the Dodgers 3-1 win over the Arizona Diamondbacks. The home run ended Kemp's season with a streak of five consecutive games with a home run (with 12 RBI) and maybe gives fantasy owners hope for better things to come in 2011. Kemp's ADP was 8.8 in 2010 but left most fantasy owners feeling disappointed with the .249 batting average even though he reached a career-high in home runs with 28. Even his 19 stolen bases leave more to be desired when you consider he was caught stealing 15 times (net +4). Kemp has the ability to be a serious 30/30 threat but his issues aren't so much between the lines as they are between his ears.

Agree? Disagree? Nominate your own Line of the Day player using the comments section or hitting me up on Twitter.

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Line of the Day: 10/02/2010

2B Robinson Cano, NYY was 6-for-8 with two doubles, a home run, two RBI, two runs, two walks and a stolen base in the Yankees' split of a doubleheader with the Boston Red Sox. If Cano is trying to make a lasting impression with MVP voters, it's working. He's 9/23 (.391 BA, 14 total bases) with a home run, four RBI, three runs and a stolen base over the last seven days. His overall .320/103/29/108/3 line will definitely keep him in the discussion.

Agree? Disagree? Nominate your own Line of the Day player using the comments section or hitting me up on Twitter.

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Line of the Day: 10/01/2010

1B Daric Barton, OAK was 3-for-4 with a double, two home runs, six RBI and two runs in a 9-0 win over the Seattle Mariners. Barton racked up his first career grand slam and a career-high six RBI before departing in the seventh inning with a strained quad. He entered Friday tied for the major league lead in walks (110) and ranked sixth in the American League in on-base percentage (.393). If your fantasy league uses either of these stats, Barton's value on your roster is golden.

Agree? Disagree? Nominate your own Line of the Day player using the comments section or hitting me up on Twitter.

Like what you see here on COSFBA? Think a friend or family member might enjoy it too? Please use one of the "share" options below to help spread the word about COSFBA. Much appreciated.