Fantasy Baseball – Previews And Rankings For Week 7
Every Sunday I’ll be giving my preview for the week ahead for Fantasy Baseball. I’ll be taking a look at which players have performed the best over the past week, who you should avoid, the best games of the week, and some key two start pitchers to stream.
Two start pitchers:
Derek Lowe – Generally I like to avoid guys with 1:1 K:BB ratios in Fantasy Baseball. However, given that Lowe is facing off against the Minnesota Twins and the Miami Marlins, it’s a safe play to use him for the upcoming week. The Twins rank 28th in the majors in runs scored, while the Marlins rank 24th. Derek Lowe stands to gain two wins this week, and that’s what makes him a great pickup.
Christian Friedrich – If you’re looking for a long term option, then don’t hesitate to pick up Friedrich. He dominated the San Diego Padres in his last start, going 6 innings while striking out 7, allowing 1 ER. In the minors he struck out over a batter an inning, thanks to his 92 MPH fastball and wicked slider. This week he’ll be facing the San Francisco Giants and the Seattle Mariners, two teams with below average offences.
Three batters on absolute fire:
Josh Hamilton – It’s hard to believe just how amazing Josh Hamilton has been this week. To no surprise, he’s the #1 ranked Fantasy Baseball player over the past week, hitting 464 with 9 HR, 10 runs scored and 16 RBI. It’s actually been a fantastic week for several Fantasy Baseball players, but given the legendary performance of Josh Hamilton I can’t blame anybody for not noticing the other stars in the game.
Carlos Beltran – He’s quietly been one of the best players in the game, but it’s time to give him his due. This week he hit 400 with 5 homers, 12 RBI and 6 runs scored. Believe it or not, but he’s been one of the three best Fantasy Baseball players in the game, ranking third in standard Yahoo! Sports leagues. If you’re wondering why the St. Louis Cardinals are still winning without Albert Pujols, just look at the production they’re getting out of Beltran.
Josh Reddick – There were so many quality players this week, including Brandon Inge, David Wright, Andrew McCutchen and Dustin Pedroia. But Josh Reddick was better than all of them, hitting 409 with 3 homers, 9 runs scored, 8 RBI and a stolen base. Reddick also had a multi home run game, driving in 5 while hitting 2 homers in a losing effort against the Detroit Tigers. Looks like the Oakland Athletics have gotten a fantastic return so far on their Andrew Bailey trade.
Three hitters who couldn’t hit the broad side of a barn:
Pedro Alvarez – One week he’s a superstar slugger, the next he’s 1/19 with a one scored. Has there been a more frustrating prospect in the last few years?
Chris Davis – Maybe he should stick to pitching, because lately he hasn’t been able to do much with the bat. Davis is 2 for his last 20, and that’s not going to cut it from a corner infielder.
Carlos Pena – He got off to a fantastic start, but he’s cooled down in the last few weeks. He’s 1/20 over the past week with a pair of runs scored, and it’s a big reason why the Tampa Bay Rays find themselves two games out of first.
Three pitchers you don’t want to mess with:
Carlos Zambrano – Looks like a change of scenery was all Big Z needed. Zambrano threw a complete game shutout in his last start, striking out 9 to beat the Houston Astros. Carlos Zambrano has an ERA of 1.98 through 6 starts, an unbelievable turn around for a guy the Chicago Cubs couldn’t wait to get rid of.
Zack Greinke - He got outdueled in his last start, but it’s tough to complain when a pitcher gets 11 K’s while allowing only 2 hits in 8 innings. He’s an elite starter in Fantasy Baseball, and the wins will come eventually.
Brandon McCarthy – He’s turned his career around with Oakland, and he continues to dominate for them. This week he went 7 innings, striking out 10 while earning the win. Going back to 2011, McCarthy has a 3.14 ERA over 223 innings. It’s time we start treating him like an elite Fantasy Baseball pitcher.
Three pitchers hitters can’t wait to face:
Phillip Humber – Ever since the perfect game he’s been a disaster. In his last start he didn’t make it out of the third inning, allowing 8 runs on 9 hits. Maybe he’s trying to be a little too perfect.
Josh Beckett – The hits keep on coming for the Boston Red Sox. Beckett got crushed by the Cleveland Indians, failing to get even 8 batters out. He allowed 7 runs on 7 hits, including two home runs. The lack of velocity is killing Beckett, and you have to wonder if he’s hiding an injury.
Matt Moore – He’s struggling with his command and teams are taking advantage of it. Right now the Rays need to get him out of the majors because teams are treating him like batting practice. Over his last nine innings he’s allowed 12 runs (9 earned), and there’s a good chance the Rays would be in first for now if not for the struggles of Matt Moore.
Matchup of the week:
Baltimore Orioles vs Washington Nationals (May 18-20)
Who would have thought that a matchup between the O’s and the Nats would be a game people would be dying to see? And yet here we are, with the Washington Nationals holding a half game lead over the Atlanta Braves and the Baltimore Orioles with a 2 game lead over the Tampa Bay Rays. This could be an explosive series, as these are two of the hottest teams in baseball.
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