I am getting married in a week.
You may have already known this because you noticed a slowdown in articles this past week and thought to yourself…”It’s OK, he’s probably off getting married somewhere.” Well, you were right, and it’s getting close to crunch time.
But you don’t care about my life, you just want my mediocre-sometimes-misleading fantasy advice.
Going with the marriage theme I singled out a group of players that you should be married to for the rest of the season and also players whom you should divorce before the pre-nup kicks in.
Match Made in Heaven
Robinson Cano, 2B, New York Yankees
Cano is off to a torrid start and in case you haven’t been paying attention he’s this good. He poses the skills to win a batting title and can knock out 25 home runs in that bandbox of a stadium he calls home. Add in the fact that he plays in the best lineup in the majors and you have a .300/25/100/90 line that you can take to the bank.
Kelly Johnson, 2B, Arizona Diamonbacks
Before the season we talked about Kelly Johnson as a nice bounce back candidate and after a month and a half Kelly Johnson has put up elite numbers with 11 homers, 26 runs and 23 RBI. Am I buying the sudden power? Only a little, but I can see Johnson hitting 25 home runs with 10-15 steals and a .275 batting average, which is definitely more than I would have said at the beginning of the season.
Jayson Heyward, OF, Atlanta Braves
If you asked me before the season where Heyward would rank among all outfielders I would have said 35-40. Now, I think Heyward has a shot at ending the season in the 25-30 range with upside even higher. He’s young, so there will be a slump or two to endure, but his 29:22 K:BB ratio shows what great discipline he has at the plate.
Divorce Court (not the TV show)
Justin Morneau, 1B, Minnesota Twins
Justin Morneau is playing over his head right now and you could probably sell an owner that he is a top five first baseman. I say there is no way he ends the season in the top five and I’ll take it one step further…Morneau will finish the season outside the top SEVEN. You heard me right. Morneau is more likely to bat .280 than .320 and 30 homers rather than 35 homers so sell him while you can and cash yourself a pretty penny.
Vladimir Guerrero, UTIL, Texas Rangers
Another hot start by a guy who will definitely slow down come the summer months. He is 35 years old and will start to fatigue more as the season grows older. Plus, the hot Texas weather won’t help keep him fresh either.
Pickup of the week
Hank Blalock, 1B, Tampa Bay Rays
Do you remember how many home runs Hank Blalock hit just last year? If you guessed 25 then you are correct. Blalock definitely has power (32 HR in 2004) and shouldn’t kill you in the batting average category although he did hit .235 last year. He will be getting regular playing time at DH for the Rays and with that great offense around him there could be some good RBI opportunities. Blalock is prone to going on hot streaks for a month at a time and he’s worth a flier in 10-team mix leagues, but don’t be afraid to jump ship if he shows signs of slumping.
On the Mend
Grady Sizemore, OF, Cleveland Indians
The Indians placed Grady Sizemore on the 15-day DL with a bruised left knee, but it’s more likely that he is on the DL with a bruised ego. And it’s not just the left side of his ego, but the front, back and right side too. Sizemore is following his down 2009 season with an even worse 2010 campaign as he has yet to hit a home run and is batting a paltry .211 with 13 RBI. He has slumped so far that I would leave him outside my top 100 for hitters and that’s saying a lot considering he was a potential top 10 player going into the 2009 season. Oh, how things have changed.
Down on the Farm
Alex Gordon, 3B, Kansas City Royals
Gordon better be collecting those frequent flier miles because with the way he’s hitting in Triple-A the Royals will most definitely bring him back up for another shot. In 14 games, Gordon has a triple slash line of .385/.536/1.286 including five homers and 14 RBI. However, the best sign of all is his 14:15 K:BB ratio, which shows that he is approaching his at-bats better and if he can bring that approach to the major leagues we could see a potential breakout candidate for the second half. Or we could just be disappointed…again.
Morneau and Guerrero may be preparing a nice dish of roasted crow for you, George. July will be telling, especially for Vlad.
Hope the wedding went well!