Roto Roundup: Giancarlo Stanton, Matt Kemp, Mark Trumbo, and others

I had my NL only and AL only auction drafts on Friday and Saturday night, respectively, so I didn't get a chance to write the Roto Roundups this weekend. Here are my thoughts on Sunday's roto action.

Giancarlo Stanton: Ready for a monster season?

I traded Marlins outfielder Giancarlo Stanton in one of my NL only keeper leagues this offseason, and I recall telling you this year was the year to own him, simply due to the fact that I dealt him. I received Oscar Taveras in the deal, giving up Stanton in his last year of his contract and a $5 Devin Mesoraco, so the deal should work out fine as long as Taveras proves he is healthy.

Getting back to Stanton, he is off to a hot start to the 2014 season. After going 1-4 with an RBI and a stolen base on Sunday, he is hitting .345-.406-.655 with two home runs, 7 runs, 12 RBI and 2 stolen bases. He has shown struck out in just 5 of his 29 at bats thus far, so that is an improvement in his strike zone judgment in the early going. If he can limit the strikeouts, we should see his batting average and home runs rise, as a result. Toss in the fact that he has shown the desire to run once he gets on base, and we could see a monster season from him in 2014.

Alex Cobb bounces back

Alex Cobb struggled in his first start of the season last week, giving up four runs and nine base runners in five innings of work, but on Sunday, he looked like the Alex Cobb that I ranked as my #16 starting pitcher for 2014. Cobb shut out the Rangers on three hits, a walk and six strikeouts in seven innings yesterday, but did not factor in the decision, as the Rays failed to score off of Yu Darvish and the Rangers bullpen.

Cobb will match up against Tony Cingrani in his next start in Cincinnati on Saturday afternoon. I can see Cobb winning 13-15 games this season with a low 3ish ERA and 1.10-1.15 WHIP.

Mark Trumbo likes hitting in Coors Field

When power hitters get hot, they hit home runs in bunches, so I guess one could say Diamondbacks outfielder Mark Trumbo is hot? Or locked in. Many felt that Trumbo could hit 40 or more home runs after his trade to the Diamondbacks and the better hitting environment that is Chase Field. We discussed Trumbo when I was a guest on The Fantasy Roundtable podcast last Wednesday night with Patrick DiCaprio and Mike Podhorzer, where I projected Trumbo to just miss 40 home runs this season. I think he can hit 35-37 this season.

Well, he had a pretty damn good weekend in Coors Field, as he went 1-3 with a home run, 2 RBI and two walks in the Diamondbacks 5-3 win on Sunday. He has now homered in four straight games, and now has hit a league leading five home runs this season. He raised his triple slash to .314-.368-.771 with 5 home runs and 13 RBI. He obviously can't keep this up, as he has a lot of swing and miss in his approach at the plate.

Here are my thoughts on a few other players from Sunday's roto action:

If you drafted Twins DH Chris Colabello, and actually had him active in your lineup, then you are a happy camper after week one. Colabello went 2-5 with a run scored and 4 RBI in the Twins 10-7 win over the Indians on Sunday. Colabello is now hitting .391-.417-.696 with a home run, four doubles, and 11 RBI in just 23 at bats thus far. He won't keep this up, but keep him active as long as he is hot, but I would bench him if facing a tough right handed starter.

I was high on Dodgers outfielder Matt Kemp coming into the season, despite other fantasy writers recommending to stay away from him. Last night, Kemp rewarded my optimism as he hit not one, but two home runs in the Dodgers 6-2 win over the Giants. Reports in spring training stated that his power was back, but we really didn't know how true that was, because the reports were based off of batting practice sessions and a few minor league spring training games. Those reports appear to be accurate as Kemp homered to left center field and right center field, and they were no doubters.

Orioles starter Chris Tillman walked into Comerica Park on Sunday to face Justin Verlander. Not an easy task for any starting pitcher, but Tillman had his best stuff working, outdueling Verlander in the Orioles 3-1 win. Tillman gave up just one run on five hits, a walk and five strikeouts in 8.1 innings to win his first game of the season. Tillman has pitched well in both of his starts thus far, giving up just two earned runs on 12 hits in 13.1 innings.

Verlander also pitched well, giving up two runs on five hits, two walks and three strikeouts in eight innings, but it wasn't enough. Verlander is now 0-1 with a 2.57 ERA and a 1.14 WHIP, but owners would like to more strikeouts from him. I know it's early, but Verlander owns a 5-5 strikeout to walk rate in his 14 innings thus far. Not Verlander-like, but it's April.

Mets new closer Jose Valverde is 39 years old and is well know for being wild and blowing saves. Thus far in 2014, he has made three appearances, throwing three innings, striking out six and walking one, while giving up just two hits. I am sure he will blow a save or two this season, and may not last as the Mets closer, but he should be picked up in all leagues at this point.

Brewers outfielder Ryan Braun is dealing with a thumb injury that could or could not result in surgery. He apparently turned down three different surgery choices in the offseason, which makes one wonder what he was thinking. It sounds as if he will play through it, but you should expect him to sit from time to time, and hopefully a DL stint is not needed. He has struggled to start the season, but did go 2-4 with a run scored and a stolen base in Sunday's 4-0 win over the Red Sox. Braun hit well in spring training, so his thumb must have been 100%, but he is hitting just .150-.190-.150 right now. Not what I expected when I spent $45 on him in an NL keeper auction last weekend. As faketeams states below, I also kept Braun at $49 in the UBA NL only keeper league.

I will have a write up on the UBA NL only auction draft later today or tomorrow. I will follow that with my AL only auction keeper draft results as well.

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