The American League has been owned by the Gameday Gamblers over the last three seasons. With three straight pennants and two World Series titles, everyone has their eyes on beating him. With a strong pitching staff, one that may lead the JLB in 2012, it could be tough to do it this year, but a lot of teams are positioning themselves to take down the mighty evil steroid-laced empire, Gameday Gamblers. ... Oh, he's fired up now.
Enjoy.
American League East
N.J. Bombers
2011 Record/Finish: 223-187-70/American League East Champion
Owner’s All-Time Record: 895-792-305 (.526)
Bats ★★★★☆
Perhaps for the Bombers, I should rename this category, “Feet” to replace the title “Bats,” because clearly, the Bombers put an emphasis on speed. Last season, he broke JLB single-season records in triples (55) and stolen bases (229). He actually blew away the old stolen base record of 184. He’s keeping four guys who combined for 169 of those steals, Ian Kinsler, Jose Reyes, Jacoby Ellsbury and Michael Bourn. That number alone was 23 more steals than any other team had in the JLB last season. With those four guys, he also led the JLB in 2011 with 871 runs, and all four of those player should be near 100 runs again. Picking up the rest of the offense will be Evan Longoria, Jay Bruce and Paul Goldschmidt. The first two have proven themselves, but the latter, Goldschmidt, still needs to work on his average. The Bombers also have one of the great young center field prospects in Starling Marte, who could crack the lineup in Pittsburgh this season — not in center, but perhaps in one of the corner outfield spots. This offense is missing a left fielder and a catcher. Travis d’Arnaud is a great prospect, but he might not see the at-bats if J.P. Arencibia continues to hit like he has in the spring. Still, the Double-A MVP, d’Arnaud will eventually be the Bombers’ catcher of the future.
Arms ★★★☆☆
Jered Weaver is the king of this staff, and NL Rookie of the Year Craig Kimbrel, Heath Bell and David Robertson will lock down a bullpen that is almost set for the Bombers. Starting pitching is what will need to be addressed by the Bombers right away in the draft. Jaime Garcia had a great season last year, but I’d worry about what we’ve seen with pitchers who have pitched all the way to late October. Garcia jumped from 163 innings to 194 last year, and he seems to be a candidate for a “dead arm” season — the kind of years we’ve seen from pitchers who went deep into October, a la Cole Hamels, Tim Lincecum. The Bombers does have some youth in Manuel Banuelos, Trevor Bauer and Drew Pomeranz, but all three are not projected to be in their respective rotations this season. Depending on how the draft goes, one or two of these guys could be trade bait come mid-summer if the Bombers are in contention for a division title or a wild card spot.
Sex Panthers
2011 Record/Finish: 220-187-73/Second in American League East
Owner’s All-Time Record: 863-807-322 (.514)
Bats ★★★★☆
Albert Pujols has been the anchor to this club since it began, and with a solid lineup heading into 2012, the Panthers will have a chance to compete for the AL East crown — a title she missed out on by 1½ games last season. To do so, this lineup will need to get production from Freddy Sanchez and Nick Markakis, who have been dealing with injuries. Shane Victorino will be solid again and Delmon Young is having a blast in the power lineup in Detroit. Martin Prado and Derek Jeter will certainly provide more than 150 hits this season. She also has a trio of young hitters in catcher Jonathan Lucroy, DH Jesus Montero and LF, CF Michael Brantley.
Arms ★★☆☆☆
Josh Johnson returns, but one has to wonder how many innings can he put in this season. So that means, the Panthers will need some big support from C.J. Wilson and Trevor Cahill. Both pitchers are in new places this season; Wilson is the fourth on a strong Angels staff, and Cahill is in Arizona with what became a strong staff last season with the emergence of Ian Kennedy and Daniel Hudson. I think Cahill could have a real strong season this year for the Diamondbacks. Also returning from the Diamondbacks staff is Josh Collmenter who had a decent rookie season, going 10-10 with a 3.38 ERA. The key to a great season this year, though, will be Phil Hughes and Mike Leake. Hughes is battling to stay in the rotation and Leake needs to develop more. At 24 with two years of major league experience, Leake is a pivotal piece for the Reds division title hopes, and the same goes for the Panthers. In the bullpen, there’s Antonio Bastardo, a lefty specialist. To say the Panthers need help here is an understatement. Missing the division title by 1½ games, it could be tough if it comes down to that again, especially if the culprit is the bullpen. Clearly, with the offense set, the Panthers are coming up firing in the draft, taking pitcher after pitcher after pitcher.
Bad News Bears
2011 Record/Finish: 166-242-72/Third in American League East
Owner’s All-Time Record: 677-983-335 (.423)
Bats ★★★☆☆
Oh, the Bad News Bears. Alex smiles when you ask him about his fantasy baseball team. "I have a fantasy baseball team?" he quips. He sets his roster. He stays up to date. And I’m sure deep down, he wants to make the playoffs some day. But just when, oh, when will that day be? Well, looking at this lineup, it may be soon. The anchors are Dustin Pedroia (2B), Aramis Ramirez (3B) and Justin Upton (RF). I really like Upton to have an MVP-like season, and Pedroia should put up his usual All-Star numbers. So, that means it’s up to the rest of the guys to get it going. Pedro Alvarez is highly touted, but he did nothing last season — he did so little that the Pirates demoted him. That's like having the Bad News Bears drop a player without the advice from Big League Choo. Mark Trumbo is moving to third base thanks to King Albert, so that will make three 3B for the Bears in 2013, but it’s a big bat to keep in the lineup. Carlos Pena returns to Tampa Bay so HRs and RBIs will come from him, and speed should come from Desmond Jennings who is going to get the chance to be the everyday left fielder for the Rays. The Bears also bring back Ben Zobrist, Stephen Drew and Melky Cabrera, who I like to hit for average in San Francisco. More youth is coming in catcher Austin Romine and shortstop Jose Iglesias. The only issue with that is, Iglesias is an All-Star fielder, but he hasn’t produced at the plate — and with fantasy revolving around the plate, Iglesias’ fantasy value isn’t great right now. Romine won't find his name on the lineup card much with Russell Martin there, so the Bears will need to draft a catcher, too.
Arms ★★☆☆☆
Goodbye Matt Garza and Ryan Dempster. Hello Ivan Nova. After a 16-win campaign, Nova sticks around as the minor league option, along with a trio of Yankees pitchers, CC Sabathia, Hiroki Kuroda and Mariano Rivera. Rick Porcello also makes a return in 2012, which provides the Bears with a decent group of pitchers, but seeing that he’s keeping just five pitchers — the lowest number of any team in the JLB — he’ll be like the Panthers, drafting pitchers early, after he gets that catcher. The biggest thing for the Bears is that with three Yankees starters and another in Detroit, he’s set to get the wins.
American League West
Gameday Gamblers
2011 Record/Finish: 246-177-57/American League West Champion, American League pennant
Owner’s All-Time Record: 938-190-281 (.541)
Bats ☆☆☆☆☆
Take this second to envision Parker flipping out. It’s a hilarious sight, because he just saw zero stars and gasped. Zero stars? Consider it an asterisk. With guys like Alex Rodriguez and Ryan Braun, two PED users, who doesn’t want to give this squad an automatic zero for cheating? In actuality, I’m giving his bats four stars, all-be-it, four juiced-up stars. OK, in all seriousness, this lineup is looking nice. Joe Mauer appears to be back. Joey Votto is a beast. Brandon Phillips hits for average and racks up numbers in several categories. A-Rod is still useful. Jose Bautista is a wrecking ball who will get 40-plus homers (Parker will project 50, maybe 60). And Mike Moustakas is a future All-Star. The only weak links are Alexei Ramirez at short and Drew Stubbs in center. Stubbs needs to cut out on the strikeouts and get on base more, especially considering the fact that he's the lead-off hitter. I expect the Gamblers to find some decent backups for these two in case they don't pan out.
Arms ★★★★★
No joking here. A sixth star may even have been warranted. The Gamblers return six solid starters. Well, five if Michael Pineda doesn’t make the Yankees’ rotation. With three Opening Day starters, including NL Cy Young winner Clayton Kershaw, the Gamblers are keeping a projected 1,354 strikeouts. Nice. James Shields had a heck of a season last season and though he will struggle to duplicate such success, his little regression will still be better than most pitchers. Stephen Strasburg will continue his trek back from Tommy John, so there are some questions there, like can he be the pitcher we saw in his Major League debut. Madison Bumgarner and Daniel Hudson are also coming back, and there is a lot of potential there with both of those pitchers. Bumgarner is for real and I wouldn't be surprised if we're talking more about him this season than Matt Cain. The Gamblers also have a closer from a predicted division winner, the Tigers' Jose Valverde. With such a great staff assembled, the Gamblers should be able to focus on hitting with its first couple picks — but we should all know that he’s going to be stubborn and take pitching anyway. Perhaps he's in a sturdy enough situation to take a risk — or shall I say, gamble? — on Yu Darvish with his first-round pick? One thing is for sure: This is World Series or bust for the Gamblers this season. Of the four pitchers — Strasburg, Bumgarner, Pineda and Hudson — being kept under the minor league tag, only Pineda will qualify in 2013. But he can worry about that after the wins his third title, or so he hopes.
Big League Choo
2011 Record/Finish: 201-195-84/Second in American League West
Owner’s All-Time Record: 201-195-84 (.506)
Bats ★★★★☆
Big League Choo has made some pretty good moves. He gave up a lot last season to get Adrian Gonzalez, but he’s set at first base. He made some moves to get Mike Napoli and J.P. Arencibia in the offseason. He made a trade last season that fielded him a future center fielder in Mike Trout. And with Robinson Cano at second, Josh Hamilton in center, Shin-Soo Choo in right Curtis Granderson in center and Brett Gardner in left, he’s looking pretty good. He’s got an even mix of power and speed and things are starting to look up. The only question marks are at shortstop, where he needs a player, and at third base where Lonnie Chisenhall isn’t exactly the All-Star player you want. A backup will be necessary just in case Chisenhall puts up the .255 average he did last year.
Arms ★☆☆☆☆
Yeah, you’re reading it right. One star. For as good as Choo’s moves were on the batter’s side, his pitching moves were, well, not as impressive. Ubaldo Jimenez is yesterday’s news. People need to stop expecting the Ubaldo we saw during a torrid 12-week span to start the 2010 season. That guy isn’t coming back. We need to accept him for what he is and that’s a 4.00 ERA pitcher with command issues. Alexi Ogando also came over in the Jimenez trade, and Ogando had a second-half drop-off. He started 9-3 with a 2.92 ERA last year and then he fell off the charts, going 4-5 with a 4.48 ERA. Then there’s Chris Carpenter who is in serious trouble of missing a good chunk of time with back and neck issues. That leaves Doug Fister, who is dealing with a hand injury and Cory Luebke, who was 6-10 with 139.2 innings. Luebke will likely be limited in innings this season because the Padres will not want him to go too far past 180 innings. So, you can see what I think Choo will address in the draft. Pitching. If not in the draft, perhaps in more trades.
Jerkin’ My Kurkjian
2011 Record/Finish: 149-250-81/Third in American League West
Owner’s All-Time Record: New owner
Bats ★★★☆☆
There’s some work to do, but things are looking good for the newest JLB owner. Moves to grab Zack Cozart, Brett Jackson, Alex Gordon, Yonder Alonso and Adam Lind really defined the offseason for Jerkin. He put together a strong core group of players and I like what they’ll have to offer. Gordon broke out last year — finally — and if he can continue his success, Jerkin has a left fielder for a while. And if not, well, Alonso will fit in perfectly in left. I really like Alonso to be a solid .300 hitter, even in Petco. The power will be down, but he can still drive doubles to the gap and rack up the RBIs. Other keepers Miguel Montero, Mark Teixeira, Dan Uggla, David Ortiz and Dexter Fowler fill out the lineup nicely. I like Fowler to come around this season, but still, with a good number of younger players, the Jerkin may be a year away from competing with the reigning division champion Gameday Gamblers. Still, the Gamblers have to worry a bit.
Arms ★★★☆☆
The aforementioned moves did not just bring in bats. Justin Masterson, Vinnie Pestano, Javy Guerra and Tommy Hanson all came over in trades, too. Joining them will be keepers Max Scherzer and Josh Beckett. Scherzer could take another step forward this season and Beckett quietly had a good season last year, going 13-7 with a 2.89 ERA. Together, the four starters are a decent rotation to enter to the draft, while it appears the Jerkin is working on leading the League in holds with Pestano and Guerra earning keeper slots. It’s not a bad move, one I’ve successfully used before. Give up saves and cut down on blown saves, and go heavy on holds. Could be the Jerkin’s 2012 plan.
Enjoy.
American League East
N.J. Bombers
2011 Record/Finish: 223-187-70/American League East Champion
Owner’s All-Time Record: 895-792-305 (.526)
Bats ★★★★☆
Perhaps for the Bombers, I should rename this category, “Feet” to replace the title “Bats,” because clearly, the Bombers put an emphasis on speed. Last season, he broke JLB single-season records in triples (55) and stolen bases (229). He actually blew away the old stolen base record of 184. He’s keeping four guys who combined for 169 of those steals, Ian Kinsler, Jose Reyes, Jacoby Ellsbury and Michael Bourn. That number alone was 23 more steals than any other team had in the JLB last season. With those four guys, he also led the JLB in 2011 with 871 runs, and all four of those player should be near 100 runs again. Picking up the rest of the offense will be Evan Longoria, Jay Bruce and Paul Goldschmidt. The first two have proven themselves, but the latter, Goldschmidt, still needs to work on his average. The Bombers also have one of the great young center field prospects in Starling Marte, who could crack the lineup in Pittsburgh this season — not in center, but perhaps in one of the corner outfield spots. This offense is missing a left fielder and a catcher. Travis d’Arnaud is a great prospect, but he might not see the at-bats if J.P. Arencibia continues to hit like he has in the spring. Still, the Double-A MVP, d’Arnaud will eventually be the Bombers’ catcher of the future.
Arms ★★★☆☆
Jered Weaver is the king of this staff, and NL Rookie of the Year Craig Kimbrel, Heath Bell and David Robertson will lock down a bullpen that is almost set for the Bombers. Starting pitching is what will need to be addressed by the Bombers right away in the draft. Jaime Garcia had a great season last year, but I’d worry about what we’ve seen with pitchers who have pitched all the way to late October. Garcia jumped from 163 innings to 194 last year, and he seems to be a candidate for a “dead arm” season — the kind of years we’ve seen from pitchers who went deep into October, a la Cole Hamels, Tim Lincecum. The Bombers does have some youth in Manuel Banuelos, Trevor Bauer and Drew Pomeranz, but all three are not projected to be in their respective rotations this season. Depending on how the draft goes, one or two of these guys could be trade bait come mid-summer if the Bombers are in contention for a division title or a wild card spot.
Sex Panthers
2011 Record/Finish: 220-187-73/Second in American League East
Owner’s All-Time Record: 863-807-322 (.514)
Bats ★★★★☆
Albert Pujols has been the anchor to this club since it began, and with a solid lineup heading into 2012, the Panthers will have a chance to compete for the AL East crown — a title she missed out on by 1½ games last season. To do so, this lineup will need to get production from Freddy Sanchez and Nick Markakis, who have been dealing with injuries. Shane Victorino will be solid again and Delmon Young is having a blast in the power lineup in Detroit. Martin Prado and Derek Jeter will certainly provide more than 150 hits this season. She also has a trio of young hitters in catcher Jonathan Lucroy, DH Jesus Montero and LF, CF Michael Brantley.
Arms ★★☆☆☆
Josh Johnson returns, but one has to wonder how many innings can he put in this season. So that means, the Panthers will need some big support from C.J. Wilson and Trevor Cahill. Both pitchers are in new places this season; Wilson is the fourth on a strong Angels staff, and Cahill is in Arizona with what became a strong staff last season with the emergence of Ian Kennedy and Daniel Hudson. I think Cahill could have a real strong season this year for the Diamondbacks. Also returning from the Diamondbacks staff is Josh Collmenter who had a decent rookie season, going 10-10 with a 3.38 ERA. The key to a great season this year, though, will be Phil Hughes and Mike Leake. Hughes is battling to stay in the rotation and Leake needs to develop more. At 24 with two years of major league experience, Leake is a pivotal piece for the Reds division title hopes, and the same goes for the Panthers. In the bullpen, there’s Antonio Bastardo, a lefty specialist. To say the Panthers need help here is an understatement. Missing the division title by 1½ games, it could be tough if it comes down to that again, especially if the culprit is the bullpen. Clearly, with the offense set, the Panthers are coming up firing in the draft, taking pitcher after pitcher after pitcher.
Bad News Bears
2011 Record/Finish: 166-242-72/Third in American League East
Owner’s All-Time Record: 677-983-335 (.423)
Bats ★★★☆☆
Oh, the Bad News Bears. Alex smiles when you ask him about his fantasy baseball team. "I have a fantasy baseball team?" he quips. He sets his roster. He stays up to date. And I’m sure deep down, he wants to make the playoffs some day. But just when, oh, when will that day be? Well, looking at this lineup, it may be soon. The anchors are Dustin Pedroia (2B), Aramis Ramirez (3B) and Justin Upton (RF). I really like Upton to have an MVP-like season, and Pedroia should put up his usual All-Star numbers. So, that means it’s up to the rest of the guys to get it going. Pedro Alvarez is highly touted, but he did nothing last season — he did so little that the Pirates demoted him. That's like having the Bad News Bears drop a player without the advice from Big League Choo. Mark Trumbo is moving to third base thanks to King Albert, so that will make three 3B for the Bears in 2013, but it’s a big bat to keep in the lineup. Carlos Pena returns to Tampa Bay so HRs and RBIs will come from him, and speed should come from Desmond Jennings who is going to get the chance to be the everyday left fielder for the Rays. The Bears also bring back Ben Zobrist, Stephen Drew and Melky Cabrera, who I like to hit for average in San Francisco. More youth is coming in catcher Austin Romine and shortstop Jose Iglesias. The only issue with that is, Iglesias is an All-Star fielder, but he hasn’t produced at the plate — and with fantasy revolving around the plate, Iglesias’ fantasy value isn’t great right now. Romine won't find his name on the lineup card much with Russell Martin there, so the Bears will need to draft a catcher, too.
Arms ★★☆☆☆
Goodbye Matt Garza and Ryan Dempster. Hello Ivan Nova. After a 16-win campaign, Nova sticks around as the minor league option, along with a trio of Yankees pitchers, CC Sabathia, Hiroki Kuroda and Mariano Rivera. Rick Porcello also makes a return in 2012, which provides the Bears with a decent group of pitchers, but seeing that he’s keeping just five pitchers — the lowest number of any team in the JLB — he’ll be like the Panthers, drafting pitchers early, after he gets that catcher. The biggest thing for the Bears is that with three Yankees starters and another in Detroit, he’s set to get the wins.
American League West
Gameday Gamblers
2011 Record/Finish: 246-177-57/American League West Champion, American League pennant
Owner’s All-Time Record: 938-190-281 (.541)
Bats ☆☆☆☆☆
Take this second to envision Parker flipping out. It’s a hilarious sight, because he just saw zero stars and gasped. Zero stars? Consider it an asterisk. With guys like Alex Rodriguez and Ryan Braun, two PED users, who doesn’t want to give this squad an automatic zero for cheating? In actuality, I’m giving his bats four stars, all-be-it, four juiced-up stars. OK, in all seriousness, this lineup is looking nice. Joe Mauer appears to be back. Joey Votto is a beast. Brandon Phillips hits for average and racks up numbers in several categories. A-Rod is still useful. Jose Bautista is a wrecking ball who will get 40-plus homers (Parker will project 50, maybe 60). And Mike Moustakas is a future All-Star. The only weak links are Alexei Ramirez at short and Drew Stubbs in center. Stubbs needs to cut out on the strikeouts and get on base more, especially considering the fact that he's the lead-off hitter. I expect the Gamblers to find some decent backups for these two in case they don't pan out.
Arms ★★★★★
No joking here. A sixth star may even have been warranted. The Gamblers return six solid starters. Well, five if Michael Pineda doesn’t make the Yankees’ rotation. With three Opening Day starters, including NL Cy Young winner Clayton Kershaw, the Gamblers are keeping a projected 1,354 strikeouts. Nice. James Shields had a heck of a season last season and though he will struggle to duplicate such success, his little regression will still be better than most pitchers. Stephen Strasburg will continue his trek back from Tommy John, so there are some questions there, like can he be the pitcher we saw in his Major League debut. Madison Bumgarner and Daniel Hudson are also coming back, and there is a lot of potential there with both of those pitchers. Bumgarner is for real and I wouldn't be surprised if we're talking more about him this season than Matt Cain. The Gamblers also have a closer from a predicted division winner, the Tigers' Jose Valverde. With such a great staff assembled, the Gamblers should be able to focus on hitting with its first couple picks — but we should all know that he’s going to be stubborn and take pitching anyway. Perhaps he's in a sturdy enough situation to take a risk — or shall I say, gamble? — on Yu Darvish with his first-round pick? One thing is for sure: This is World Series or bust for the Gamblers this season. Of the four pitchers — Strasburg, Bumgarner, Pineda and Hudson — being kept under the minor league tag, only Pineda will qualify in 2013. But he can worry about that after the wins his third title, or so he hopes.
Big League Choo
2011 Record/Finish: 201-195-84/Second in American League West
Owner’s All-Time Record: 201-195-84 (.506)
Bats ★★★★☆
Big League Choo has made some pretty good moves. He gave up a lot last season to get Adrian Gonzalez, but he’s set at first base. He made some moves to get Mike Napoli and J.P. Arencibia in the offseason. He made a trade last season that fielded him a future center fielder in Mike Trout. And with Robinson Cano at second, Josh Hamilton in center, Shin-Soo Choo in right Curtis Granderson in center and Brett Gardner in left, he’s looking pretty good. He’s got an even mix of power and speed and things are starting to look up. The only question marks are at shortstop, where he needs a player, and at third base where Lonnie Chisenhall isn’t exactly the All-Star player you want. A backup will be necessary just in case Chisenhall puts up the .255 average he did last year.
Arms ★☆☆☆☆
Yeah, you’re reading it right. One star. For as good as Choo’s moves were on the batter’s side, his pitching moves were, well, not as impressive. Ubaldo Jimenez is yesterday’s news. People need to stop expecting the Ubaldo we saw during a torrid 12-week span to start the 2010 season. That guy isn’t coming back. We need to accept him for what he is and that’s a 4.00 ERA pitcher with command issues. Alexi Ogando also came over in the Jimenez trade, and Ogando had a second-half drop-off. He started 9-3 with a 2.92 ERA last year and then he fell off the charts, going 4-5 with a 4.48 ERA. Then there’s Chris Carpenter who is in serious trouble of missing a good chunk of time with back and neck issues. That leaves Doug Fister, who is dealing with a hand injury and Cory Luebke, who was 6-10 with 139.2 innings. Luebke will likely be limited in innings this season because the Padres will not want him to go too far past 180 innings. So, you can see what I think Choo will address in the draft. Pitching. If not in the draft, perhaps in more trades.
Jerkin’ My Kurkjian
2011 Record/Finish: 149-250-81/Third in American League West
Owner’s All-Time Record: New owner
Bats ★★★☆☆
There’s some work to do, but things are looking good for the newest JLB owner. Moves to grab Zack Cozart, Brett Jackson, Alex Gordon, Yonder Alonso and Adam Lind really defined the offseason for Jerkin. He put together a strong core group of players and I like what they’ll have to offer. Gordon broke out last year — finally — and if he can continue his success, Jerkin has a left fielder for a while. And if not, well, Alonso will fit in perfectly in left. I really like Alonso to be a solid .300 hitter, even in Petco. The power will be down, but he can still drive doubles to the gap and rack up the RBIs. Other keepers Miguel Montero, Mark Teixeira, Dan Uggla, David Ortiz and Dexter Fowler fill out the lineup nicely. I like Fowler to come around this season, but still, with a good number of younger players, the Jerkin may be a year away from competing with the reigning division champion Gameday Gamblers. Still, the Gamblers have to worry a bit.
Arms ★★★☆☆
The aforementioned moves did not just bring in bats. Justin Masterson, Vinnie Pestano, Javy Guerra and Tommy Hanson all came over in trades, too. Joining them will be keepers Max Scherzer and Josh Beckett. Scherzer could take another step forward this season and Beckett quietly had a good season last year, going 13-7 with a 2.89 ERA. Together, the four starters are a decent rotation to enter to the draft, while it appears the Jerkin is working on leading the League in holds with Pestano and Guerra earning keeper slots. It’s not a bad move, one I’ve successfully used before. Give up saves and cut down on blown saves, and go heavy on holds. Could be the Jerkin’s 2012 plan.
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