The Blue Workhorse

What can we say about Mr. Hanley Ramirez, the preseason number 1 overall player? He just finished a week where a clubbed a couple grand slams and drove in 15 runs. His overall campaign now looks like .333 AVG / 47 R / 11 HR / 51 RBI / 11 SB; however all his owners would like the steals to increase from a guy who has stole 50 in the past.

“Bossman” BJ Upton had another nice week and continues to shine in the month of June. Upton went .348 over the past week with a homer and two steals, upping his total to 28 bags. It looks like the window has passed to buy low on Upton as he finally has things going and displaying that 5 category potential.

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* The Red Sox have finally removed Dice-K from the rotation after another putrid start against the Atlanta Braves where he allowed 6 runs. Matsuzaka has a season ERA of 8.23 and WHIP of 2.20. He has single-handedly destroyed some fantasy pitching staffs, and it looks like the 100 million dollar import will be on the shelf for a while. Examine the starts of John Smoltz, and always remember Clay Bucholtz is always tearing it up in Triple A.

* One thing I love to watch is Andrew McCutchen run the bases. The lighting-quick centerfielder was promoted to the big club after the much dissected Nate McLouth trade. McCutchen has showed up with a bang, hitting .333 and posting a .904 OPS in his first 78 at-bats. Will this type of production last, of course not, but one promising sign is only 14 strikeouts in 82 plate appearances, meaning he putting the bat on the ball.

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Most MLB teams have played roughly 38-40% of their season, and with the season being a little past one-third of the way over, we have enough at bats and innings to decide on which players you can target to help your team win a fantasy title, or which players you might need to sell high, based on a track record of potential second half flop.

We will start the fantasy baseball reports with this installment noting some bigger names that you can possibly get at a discounted rate this summer:
Buy Low
Jimmy Rollins SS PHI

The Philly shortstop and former NL MVP has been off to a terrible start. With a current line of .217 AVG / 5 HR / 25 RBI / 10 SB / .584 OPS, Rollins and his putrid OPS have given fantasy owners fits. However, J-Ro has had two solid second halves each of the past two seasons, and one would think Rollins will bounce back. Even though his overall numbers might be mediocre, an owner might get top 5 production the rest of the way from Rollins.

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The Blue Workhorse 2009 Outlook:
After coming one game shy of the 2007 World Series, the Cleveland Indians came into the 2008 season hoping to get over the hump and reach the fall classic. Things definitely didn’t work out that way as the Indians coasted to an 81-81 finish, traded away ace C.C. Sabathia, and lost sluggers Travis Hafner and Victor Martinez for significant portions of the season due to injuries.

AND…more…including why the Hometown feels…The Cleveland Indians WILL win the World Series…

The Blue Workhorse 2009 Outlook:
It appeared San Francisco was going to take care of their offensive woes when they contemplated the signing of slugger Manny Ramirez, but the two parties could not reach an agreement.

But even without Manny, the Giants did make two key free-agent signings this offseason when they got veteran lefty Randy Johnson and capable shortstop Edgar Renteria.

AND…more…including why the Hometown feels…The San Francisco Giants WILL NOT win the World Series…

The Blue Workhorse 2009 Outlook:
The Baltimore Orioles find themselves rebuilding once again in the ever-tough AL East, perhaps the toughest division is all of Major League Baseball.

After failing to sign Maryland native and prized free agent Mark Teixeira, the Orioles must piece together a starting lineup with young, promising players and average veterans.

AND…more…including why the Hometown feels…The Baltimore Orioles WILL win the World Series…

In regard to the recent photo in a British tabloid, which was recently exposed to every American media outlet, showing Michael Phelps taking a hit from a water bong, I wanted to shed some light on the situation.

For one, Michael, you have 14 freakin’ gold medals, just got back from a memorable Olympic performance, and probably wanted to shed a little steam during your dead period before restarting training. However, being a recognizable figure around the world (because of your talent and goofish appearance), you have to use better judgment in this situation.

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If anyone saw yesterday’s press conference where Mark Sanchez announced he will forgo his senior season at USC and enter the NFL draft, one had to be alarmed. Not necessarily with the decision, but alarmed by the way USC coach Pete Carroll handled the decision.

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