That Sean Manaea Guy Huh?

(Photo Credit to Fox Sports MLB, check out their Facebook!)

Yeah I’d say he’s pretty good too. Holy crap what a night the first no hitter in the season! Manaea had 10 K’s on the night vs the Boston Red Sox on what was a dominant performance. Not only that but he was #1 on the 5 hot pitchers on the waiver wire linked here: https://ultimatefanaticsblog.com/2018/04/08/5-great-pitchers-you-may-not-have-drafted/ 

Back at the time of posting, his ownership rate was 56.8% and to be fair, before the time of posting, he was on my personal team. Now his ownership rate is 80.5%, a 23.7% increase! Tonight, he scored 47 points with his complete game, 10 K no hitter. 47 points! Simply unreal!

Not only that, but he did it vs the Boston Red Sox, who came off of crushing the Angels and was on a major hot streak. Honestly, with this outing, you can plug and play with confidence. Hopefully he’s on your roster cause no he’s a hot commodity. Congratulations to Sean Manaea, For pushing your fantasy team and mine, and for the first no hitter of the season! Hopefully it’s the first of many.

5 Great Pitchers You May Not Have Drafted

The first weekend of baseball usually won’t be like the rest of the season. Some of these players, like Mitch Haniger and Colin Moran, are having great starts to the season and the same goes for pitchers. Take it from a man that has won a fantasy league before. The league is won not by the draft, but from the WAIVER WIRE! Yes that’s right, the guys that weren’t drafted can impact the final result.

Again take it from me, I plucked Aaron Judge, Cody Bellinger and Luis Severino from the waiver wire, they, and especially Judge, helped propel me to victory, especially in the playoffs.

This past week, there were actually some studs, like Kluber and Keuchel, who haven’t been performing to their usual standards. Now I’m not saying you should drop these guys, but these 5 guys are guys you should pick up right now, that should pay off in the very near future for your team. Now what qualifies as a sleeper in this post? Each player must have less than 60% ownership rate, according to the ESPN fantasy league ownership rating system. That means that if that percentage is less than 60%, then less than 60% of all fantasy leagues have that player on a team.

So with that being said, let’s dive right into it!

1. Sean Manaea- Oakland Athletics (ESPN Fantasy Own Rate- 56.8%)

Past 2 starts: 3/30 ( Loss) LAA- 7.1 IP (21 Pts) 4 K’s (4 pts) 1 ER ( -2 pts)= 22 pts, 4/4 TEX (Win) 8.0 IP, 7 K’s, 1 ER= 31 pts.

Manaea had two strong outings against two, to be fair, two teams that don’t have a very strong offense to show for. He also has his next start vs the Dodgers on Tuesday but this should play into his favor since the Dodgers have struggled with left handed pitching in recent years. Manaea is an expert at throwing strikes as well, throughout his two starts this year, he has allowed only one walk. There’s only two possible problems with Manaea, that certainly tainted his draft stock. First off, he plays for the Athletics, which just isn’t a good team, and his velocity isn’t all that impressive, but if you like his location and control, get him and get him now!

2. Ian Kennedy- Kansas City Royals ( ESPN Fantasy Own Rate: 7.4%)

Past 2 starts: 3/31 (No Decision) CWS 6.0 IP (18 pts) 5 K’s (5 Pts) 1 ER (-2 pts)- 21 pts, 4/7 (Win) CLE 6.0 IP 8 K’s 0 ER

Ian Kennedy dominated the Cleveland Indians offense on Saturday, that alone is reason enough to pluck him off the wire. Kennedy has also put up plenty of strikeouts in a short amount of time. He can strike batters out and he can give you at least 6 consistent innings. That is something you can’t take for granted going down the road. His next start is Thursday vs the Angels. Don’t be surprised if he drops off a little bit, but he is still a good streaming start as of now. Hopefully his excellent start will continue.

3. Mike Foltynewicz- Atlanta Braves (ESPN Fantasy Own Rate: 26.6%)

Past 2 starts: 3/30 (No Decision) PHI 5.0 IP (15 pts) 2 ER (-4 pts) 7 K’s (7pts)= 16 pts, 4/4 (Win) 5.1 IP 1 ER 8 K’s

Folty throughout the years has shown sparks of greatness but then has subsided to strains of mediocrity. It should be expected of him to have a much better season this year than in years past. Keep in mind he is hurling on a very hot Braves team that is sure to give him some run support in his next start vs the Nationals again this Tuesday. He quieted a strong Nationals lineup in his previous start, striking them out on command. If he can get anywhere close, and even if he can last a bit longer, like until the 6th inning, I’d see his value increasing steadily.

4. Tyler Skaggs- Los Angeles Angels (ESPN Fantasy Own Rate: 35.3 %)

Past 2 starts: 3/30 (Win, 5 pts) OAK 6.1 IP (19 pts) 0 ER 5 K’s (5 pts)= 29 pts, 4/4 (No Decision) CLE 4.2 IP 2 ER 5 K’s

There is a slight reason for concern in picking up Skaggs. He has had an injury history and it took him 103 pitches to get 14 outs in his past start against the Indians. Now even though he throws a lot and will be held back due to his injury history, Skaggs is still a pitcher that doesn’t allow a lot of runs.  Runs allowed knock off two points per run allowed in most fantasy scoring systems. skaggs and his ability to go strong for 5 to 6 innings, with a fairly decent Angels team, should be a good pickup for starts to come, especially for his upcoming start against the Texas Rangers.

5. Kyle Gibson- Minnesota Twins (ESPN Fantasy Own Rate: 22.4)

Past 2 starts: 3/31 (Win, 5 pts) BAL 6.0 IP (18 pts) 0 ER 6 K’s (6 pts)= 29 pts, 4/5 ( No Decision) SEA 4.1 IP 1 ER 3 K’s= 14 pts

In his first start of the season, Kyle Gibson carried a no hitter into the 7th inning vs the Orioles, until he was taken off the mound. Any performance over 25 points is certainly nothing to scoff at and it could have gone on longer. His second outing wasn’t as good, but it was still fairly decent. Sure you can judge him primarily off strikeouts but only allowing a single run in two games is quite the achievement. Gibson is due to take a step forward and hopefully pitch deeper into games if he can do what he has been doing and limit allowing home runs, which has dampened his stats throughout his career. He is facing the Astros this upcoming Wednesday, so stream with a sort of caution.

 

 

Top 5 Pitchers For The 2018 Season!

It is finally here! The Top 5 Pitchers have been selected and they might be a little bit controversial but you’ll have to read on to find out. Keep in mind that all 5 of these men are bargain buys. If you draft any one of them, I say you’ve found your ace. So let’s get on it here, coming in at #5 we have:

5. Zack Greinke- Arizona Diamondbacks

2017: 17-7 3.20 ERA 215 Ks

2017 was a rebound year and a successful one at that for Zack Greinke. But you should ignore his rebound stats and look at the two advantages that Greinke has. He has worked on his pitch command and it showed last year, and Chase Field is being modified so it isn’t completely a hitter-friendly ballpark like it has been. Chase Field is planning to install a humidor, which is designed to maintain a steady amount of moisture inside the park, making it more friendly for pitchers. Zack now is a really safe bet and one you should look to draft.

4. Chris Sale- Boston Red Sox

2017: 17-8 2.90 ERA 308 K’s

Listen I don’t have to tell you how great Chris Sale is. The numbers back me up as he was ranked 1st in innings pitched and strikeouts for the AL last year. Any pitcher getting over 300 K’s is clearly doing something right and more. Those are a lot of points that fantasy owners racked up in the past year. If he can get a smidge more of run support, I’m predicting a Cy Young award to go with a 20+ win season. You heard it here first.

3. Corey Kluber- Cleveland Indians

2017: 18-4 2.25 ERA 265 K’s

I think I should keep it short and simple as to why you should take Corey Kluber when he is available. There is a good chance at whatever draft position you’re in, that you won’t be able to draft the Top 2 on the list. So let me start out by saying that the Klubot is the reigning AL Cy Young award winner. Kluber also led the league in wins, ERA and WHIP (also known as walks/hits allowed per innings pitched, his number in that category was 0.87). Kluber also never gets injured and is insanely durable go ahead and draft him right now. You have my guarantee since I drafted him last year and he was a big part of my League Championship Team!

2. Clayton Kershaw- Los Angeles Dodgers

2017: 18-4 2.31 ERA 202 K’s

Kershaw has had an amazing 6+ year run with 3 Cy Young awards has been a model of consistency BUT! His back problems and his run of injury the last 2 years make him high risk high reward. He can either carry your team, or get injured come the end of the season. I mean the numbers are insane but durability is the main question and he should challenge for the #1 spot if he stays durable.

1. Max Scherzer- Washington Nationals

2017: 16-6 2.51 ERA 268 K’s

I mean what else can I say or explain. He successfully defended his Cy Young for the previous year, he has won that award 3 times in the last 5 years and he has lead the league in wins and strikeouts for the past 5 years with 89 and 1,320 respectively. Not only that but he is durable and can put in a lot of innings. Personally, I think he is the perfect pick and my #1 pitcher heading into this season.

Opening Day is tomorrow! Get hyped!

Top Pitchers #9-6 For The 2018 Season

9. Carlos Carrasco- Cleveland Indians

2017: 18-6 3.29 ERA 226 Ks

Even though he may not be the ace on his team, don’t let that fool you into passing him up. Carrasco is an extremely effective #2 that had his first full year as a starter last year. He has dealt with injury problems and just recently, he was sidelined with a foot injury. Manager Terry Francona has assured the sports world that Carrasco is good to go so why is he not on your roster? AL leader in wins and Top 10 in a variety of categories including strikeouts, innings pitched and ERA. Expect some minor regression but don’t hesitate here.

8. Jacob deGrom- New York Mets

2017: 15-10 3.53 ERA 239 Ks

Literally the only bright spot in a long series of darkness and injuries that was on the Mets team. Jacob improved mightily on the team and he’s gained velocity on his fastball. Expect him to improve even more and sneak into the top 10 or even top 5. Part of that depends on the performance of the team he’s playing on.

7. Luis Severino- New York Yankees

2017: 14-6 2.98 ERA 230 Ks

If you either drafted this guy or picked him up off the waiver wire, honestly congrats to you since you reaped some incredible benefits. The breakout pitcher of the season and a Cy Young candidate, he accrued a 25% strikeout rate and a 50% groundout rate. Simply put, Severino has a good defense behind him and he knows exactly how to get you out. Last year he was aggressive on the mound hurling his fastball which was an average speed of 97.5 MPH! You won’t be drafting him as a sleeper pick but you would be wise to take him.

6. Stephen Strasburg- Washington Nationals

2017: 15-4 2.52 ERA 204 Ks

It’s hard to believe that Strasburg’s career has been 8 years long already. Injuries have left a giant asterisk on his entire career as he has only averaged about 24 starts per season. But since he was healthy throughout the majority of last year, there is less of a risk. He is only 29 years old, and his stats can compete with any other pitcher in the league, we are talking Cy Young worthy numbers. This year, take Strasburg with confidence. I have no doubt he’ll prove me wrong and cement his place in the Top 5 at the end of the year.

Top Pitchers #14-10 For The 2018 Season

14. Yu Darvish- Chicago Cubs

2017: 10-12 3.86 ERA 209 K’s

Don’t let the poor World Series performance dupe you into thinking that Yu Darvish isn’t a premier top 15 maybe even top 10 pitcher this year. He may not have had an impressive record last year but then again last year, he was on a struggling Rangers team. The case of Jose Quintana that I mentioned earlier will be the case for Yu Darvish. Expect a better record and the strikeouts to either stay the same or ascend. The Cubs defense should also help him from an ERA perspective, being one of the best defenses in the league.

13. Marcus Stroman- Toronto Blue Jays

2017: 13-9 3.09 ERA 164 K’s

Stroman will not start on Opening Day due to minor shoulder inflammation but he is still a worthy pick that could go unnoticed in your draft. I believe he is heavily underrated this upcoming year due to his ERA and record with the Blue Jays, who have been on the decline recently. a model of a consistency who is extraordinary at forcing groundballs, he is reliant on his defense but I can see his ERA dropping under 3.00 due to his consistency.

12. Dallas Keuchel- Houston Astros

2017: 14-5 2.90 ERA 125 K’s

Keuchel struggled during the second half of last season posting a 4.24 ERA but even that couldn’t kill his ERA numbers. Coming off of injury in 2016, 2017 was a resurgent year into his better Cy Young winning form in 2015. He can force ground balls and consistent outs better than most pitchers in the league. Obviously the strikeout numbers need to be bolstered but if you want a consistent pitcher that will give you a decent amount of points every start then look no further.

11. Madison Bumgarner- San Francisco Giants

2017: 4-9 3.32 ERA 101 K’s

The only reason why MadBum is outside of the Top 10 is mainly because of his injury that he suffered late into Spring Training. He could miss up to 8 weeks, so if you have the patience to draft him, he might be worth your while as long as his hand isn’t re-injured. Besides the injury, these stats were accumulated after just 13 starts and the rest over the winter helped him plenty in Spring Training. Let’s hope that after recovering from this injury, that he doesn’t have too many bad repercussions.

10. Noah Syndergaard- New York Mets

2017: 1-2 2.97 ERA 34 K’s

After pitching with a partially torn lat the past year, and pitching with a bone spur in his elbow the year before, health seems to be the main question going into this year for Thor. He has the fastest fastball in the land and he can throw really hard really consistently. He mixes up his repertoire by throwing sliders, changeups and curveballs. If he is healthy, with his numbers, he is a candidate for the Cy Young, but if he isn’t, he could be on the DL for a while. Sounds like a make or break pick but again with his numbers, I personally am willing to take the risk.