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Fantasy Waiver Wire – Week 1 (April 4th – April 15th)
Bounce back year?
I’m not over reacting to anything I swear. (Okay I may a little)
I realize that the fantasy week started earlier than April 4th, but for all-purpose sake, you didn’t pay attention and the games really started when they were played on American ground. Now is the appropriate time to chant “USA USA USA USA.”
Okay, enough patriotism let us get to the point. Here at The Waiver Wire, we discuss a lot of different topics ranging from sports to attempting to get pop singer Carly Rae Jepsen to interview with us (Spam her Twitter saying she should). Honestly though, where else should you get your fantasy waiver wire pick up advice other than us? Don’t answer that. The point of this column is to help you find free agents that are available on the waiver wire. Every player I discuss will be owned in less than 60% of ESPN fantasy leagues and might be worth a pick up given the right situation.
Batters
J.P. Arencibia, C – (Owned 55.8% of leagues) – While everyone may over react to the HR he hit in the 16th to end the longest Opening Day game ever against Cleveland, Arencibia is still a good player and could provide you home run power if one of your catchers starts out in a slump. Take note that Arencibia will kill your BA.
Fantasy Sleepers and Busts
With baseball season quickly approaching and most fantasy drafts taking place over the next two weeks, it is time for everyone’s favorite segment sleepers and busts! As an expert fantasy analyst I highly suggest you take my advice on information I am most likely to be wrong about. All ADP’s are according to Mockdraftcentral.com.
Sleepers
Hanley Ramirez -SS/soon to be 3B ( ADP 18) – I know, a sleeper in the first two rounds is not technically a sleeper but I strongly feel that Hanley is first round talent this year. All reports coming out of spring training report Hanley being in the best shape of his life and that he has taken on a new attitude towards baseball. Not to mention that through two weeks of spring training Hanley is hitting .474/.583/.895 which is a small sample size but I believe is a vision of what can be achieved this year. Hanley has to potential to be a top 5 fantasy contributor this year and the number one shortstop overall by the end of the year.
Shin-Soo Choo – OF ( ADP 63) – The ChooChoo train had a down year last due to some cold streaks and injuries but I expect him to rebound. He is a very unsexy player but I think he will provide fantasy owners who chose to draft him 20/20 with an average of .280 – .290.
Lance Berkman – OF (ADP 95) – Was last year a fluke? Does losing Puljos hurt him that much? I do not believe last year was a fluke and losing Puljos in the line-up does hurt Berkman’s value but I don’t think it hurts this much. I would much rather have Berkman than Jason Werth, Michael Cuddyer and Corey Hart who are all being taken before him.
Matt Moore – SP (ADP 104) – Just kidding, how can anyone call Matt Moore a sleeper at this point? After what he did to Texas in the playoffs, everyone is excited to see what he can do over a season.
For Burnett it is now or never
Burnett has the chance to erase the memories of a dreadful season in game 4
After a summer of listening to nothing but sports radio in New York, I can honestly say the most discussed topic other than the NFL lockout was AJ Burnett in the playoff rotation. After all that complaining, Yankee fans have been put into a situation where the fate of their season is in the hands of the man they loathe to accept. Burnett posted an ERA of 5.15 on the season and a WHIP of 1.43, putting Yankee fans in arms with the consideration of him costing them a playoff game.
Burnett will have the pressure on him tonight against a hungry Tigers offense. “It’s big,” Burnett said of pitching ALDS Game 4 in Detroit. “I’m looking forward to it. Hopefully there’s another (start), but I’ll be ready. I’m looking forward to going out and helping this team. Give us a chance to get a W.”
Ryan’s gut call predictions
2011 Playoff Predictions/GUT CALLS
I’m going to keep this short and sweet.
AL
Rays vs. Rangers
I really feel like there is something special about the Rays this year, they really have the no one believes in us feel. I think that magic and good young pitching along with fantastic defense carries over to the post season and we see one of the great playoff runs in our lifetime.
Rays in 4
Yankees vs. Tigers
Although Verlander has been unreal this whole year I believe that the Yankees will steal one from him and the series will be theirs for the keeping
Yankees in 4
The Greatest Night in baseball.
Speechless. Unbelievable. There are few words to accurately describe what took place last night in the world of major league baseball. Although, I do have one thing to say: I cannot wait to see the movie.
Before I drove home from class, I took a glance at my phone and saw the Rays were down 7-0 and a part of me thought, ” Aw man, I really thought there was something special about that team.” It just seemed like all was set up for them, as if there were no way they could miss the playoffs. Meanwhile in Baltimore, the Red Sox seemed to be obeying Murphy’s Law as per usual during their collapse. This I conincidentally find ironic because Papelbon’s entrance music is by Dropkick Murphy’s although that is besides the point. Pedroia had been battling all week and seemed to possess what little heart the Sox had left. His solo home run shot put his team in prime position to win heading into the heart of their slowly collapsing bullpen.
What happened next was the single greatest hour of regular season baseball and the reason why sports are so great.
FanSaloon.com
