Cory Luebke Player Projection No. 73 | Fantasy Baseball Hot Stove
Cory Luebke has mercurial value thus far. I view him as $20 SP. Invest.
What They're Saying: CBS Sportsline - #39 Starting Pitcher; Tristan Cockcroft of ESPN.com - #44 Starting Pitcher & #157 in the Top 250 Players; RotoChamp - #68 in the Top 300 Players; Mock Draft Central - #40 Starting Pitcher and #137 Overall Projection: Wins will still be tough to come by, but there aren't any obvious reasons to think he is going to pitch worse than last season. 11 W, 3.18 ERA, 170 K, 1.10 WHIP in 155 IP
Bullpen Banter: What Are The Chances Chris Perez Loses His Job In Cleveland? | Rotoprofessor
Chis Perez will not be on any of my teams. The underlying stats were downright awful last year. Bullpenn Bantter does a great job outlining why Perez is a risky play.
Perez should be considered one of the riskiest closing options for fantasy owners in my mind. I know the overall numbers in 2011 were fine (3.32 ERA, 1.21 WHIP, 36 SV), but the underlying numbers are eye opening. Granted, we don’t look at luck as much with relief pitchers due to the small sample sizes but are we really to believe his .234 BABIP? If everything else remains equal, a decrease in the luck department will cause his other numbers to implode.
More love for Addison Reed love below. While Reed could be a solid pick as you third closer, be careful. People are underestimating lefty Matt Thornton . From a fantasy standpoint, Addison Reed is a great reliever to have on any fantasy team. Even if Reed doesn't open the season as the closer, he'll more than likely be closing by the All-Star break (if not sooner). If he starts the season as a setup man in the eighth inning, his peripheral numbers make him valuable. Reed will also have added value for those owners who play in leagues where "Holds" is a category. Draft him in the later rounds with confidence that he'll be closing soon enough.
The Disappointments of Youth: Travis Snider | FanGraphs Fantasy Baseball
I drafted Snider in the 27th round in my NFBC draft and hold. There is still upside here...
For redrafters, taking Snider this year is a gamble, as you’re hoping he reverses almost every trend he showed last year with a better walk rate, strikeout rate, lower groundball rate, and higher line drive rate. Impossible? No, not entirely, but you’re hoping against hope. Roll the dice if you’re feeling lucky, but have fail-safes in place behind him.
Three Up: Alex Rodriguez, Evan Longoria, Chase HeadleyThree Down: Michael Young, Ryan Roberts, Emilio Bonifacio
We all know that Trout will be a beast is he continues to develop, but temper your expectations for 2012. He may be the odd man out in the crowded Angels OF. I am looking for him to only emerge in Sept.
Prospect #1: OF Mike Trout Background with Player: My eyes; industry sources. Who: It’s a little cheap to include Trout in these rankings; after all, he belongs at the major league level in 2012 and already accrued 40 games there in 2011. But this is my series and I can do what I want, and what I want to do is wax poetic about Mike Trout. The 20-year-old prospect is not a mystery to man; he has been on the prospect landscape since a breakout debut campaign in 2009 put him on the map and an even greater sophomore season peeled back the layers of his superiority and left the baseball world with a top tier talent. Trout can do just about everything on a baseball field, with elite speed, a near-elite hit tool, plus power potential, a plus-plus glove, and enough arm to grade around average. That’s a legit five-tool talent, and while we are being honest here, if given a choice of any prospect in baseball to build a team around, I’d take Trout over Harper, I’d take Trout over Moore, and I’d take Trout over Profar. I’ve only seen the kid play five times in two years, but each time his performance triggered an internal existential debate: Is Mike Trout the archetype of the modern player? Is Mike Trout a baseball deity?