Shuffle Up: Carlos Gomez, the real deal

Source: Roto Arcade by Scott Pianowski

When it comes to fake baseball, the outfield is where the fun is. The first couple of rounds will always include some of these stat-grabbing giants, and yet the waiver wire in an average mixer consistently offers something for the discerning shopper. Add it all up and there's a lot to digest.

The prices you see in this piece are roughly how I rank the roto-eligible outfielders going forward. What we've seen to this point is merely an audition; if you want a list of the top players to this point, there are plenty of places you can access that.

Don't obsess over the prices in a vacuum: what really matters is how the players relate to one another. Assume a 5x5 scoring format, as always, and players at the same price

Shuffle Up: Carlos Gomez, the read deal

Source: Roto Arcade by Scott Pianowski

When it comes to fake baseball, the outfield is where the fun is. The first couple of rounds will always include some of these stat-grabbing giants, and yet the waiver wire in an average mixer consistently offers something for the discerning shopper. Add it all up and there's a lot to digest.

The prices you see in this piece are roughly how I rank the roto-eligible outfielders going forward. What we've seen to this point is merely an audition; if you want a list of the top players to this point, there are plenty of places you can access that.

Don't obsess over the prices in a vacuum: what really matters is how the players relate to one another. Assume a 5x5 scoring format, as always, and players at the same price

The Oracle Joins the Fantasy Beat

Source: Baseball Guys by Ray Flowers

The man, myth and legend Ray Flowers joins Justin Fensterman and Trevor Ray on “The Fantasy Beat” to give his take on the young 2013 fantasy baseball season. The guys talked about hitters and pitchers who have garnered a lot of attention over the last few weeks.

Brandon Crawford, Josh Rutledge, Michael Cuddyer, Paul Maholm, Ross Detwiler, Bartolo Colon, John Buck, Giancarlo Stanton, Justin Ruggiano

Ruggiano’s ninth inning blast downs Reds - Justin Ruggiano | FLA

Source: Rotoworld Baseball

Justin Ruggiano blasted a solo home run off Aroldis Chapman in the ninth inning on Friday, powering the Marlins to a 2-1 victory over the Reds.

Ruggiano scratched Saturday with tight groin - Justin Ruggiano | FLA

Source: Rotoworld Baseball

Justin Ruggiano was scratched from Saturday's starting lineup because of tightness in his right groin.

Over/Under: Is this the year Fowler finally keeps pace?

Source: Roto Arcade by Brad Evans

Fantasy is a speculative game. Predict the future, and you look like a genius. Don't, and you're painfully human. Gazing into the crystal ball, here's our view on 10 intriguing over/unders.

Dexter Fowler, out to a scorching start launching four homers in just under 40 at-bats, combined HRs/SBs on season 37.5

Scott – I have a handful of Fowler shares this year, so my heart wants to push this number up. But UNDER is the logical call; I don't want to bet on the come when it's not warranted. Road games are generally an issue for the Rockies (the ball simply doesn't break as much in the mile-high air), and Fowler's never learned the craft of base stealing (a shame given his raw

Closing Time: Dan Haren throws batting practice

Source: Roto Arcade by Scott Pianowski

Let's say this for Dan Haren, he faced the music. He sat in front of his locker, handled the questions, gave thoughtful answers. He said he felt good on the mound in his season debut.

Imagine how the Reds must have felt.

Cincinnati clocked four homers off Haren (six in all) in a 15-0 beat down Friday evening. Haren's always been gopher-prone, even in his salad days, but I don't see how anyone can be particularly optimistic about him right now. Haren's injury-plagued 2012 season came out to a 4.33 ERA and 1.29 WHIP over 176.2 messy innings, and he was hit hard during

Justin Ruggiano (OF-MIA)

Source: TG Fantasy Baseball

Closing Time: Picking on the Marlins; hello again to Trevor Bauer (Roto Arcade) - Not every Closing Time has a deep and developed opening theme. Sometimes we simply load up the bullets and go where they take us. • If you're a regular streamer in fantasy baseball, you surely took note of Houston's opening series against Texas. The Astros struck out 43 times in the three games, and look like an appealing target for the 2013 season. We discussed this at length in the Yu Darvish celebration piece on Wednesday. This doesn't make Houston a one-stop shop for the Stream Police, of course. Take a look at what the Miami Marlins did – and didn't do – in their opening-week washout against the Nationals. Miami scored just one run in the

Closing Time: Picking on the Marlins; hello again to Trevor Bauer

Source: Roto Arcade by Scott Pianowski

Not every closing time has a deep and developed opening theme. Sometimes we simply load up the bullets and go where they take us.

• If you're a regular streamer in fantasy baseball, you surely took note of Houston's opening series against Texas. The Astros struck out 43 times as a club in the three games, and look like an appealing target for the 2013 season. We discussed this at length in the Yu Darvish celebration piece on Wednesday.

This doesn't make Houston a one-stop shop for the Stream Police, of course. Take a look at what the Miami Marlins did – and didn't do – in their

Shuffle Up: Choose your sophomore, Mike Trout vs. Bryce Harper

Source: Roto Arcade by Scott Pianowski

The outfield is the fun place to go shopping in fantasy baseball. Power, sure, you'll find it here. Plenty of guys run. A few players do everything. And the two most exciting young position players in the game happen to reside here, too. Everyone likes picking out their outfield.

The goal today is to rank all the mixed-league worthy outfielders going forward in 5x5 fantasy value, 2013 only. Don't read too much into the dollar values in a vacuum - they're merely used as a tool to compare players. And when commodities share the same price, they're considered even. (Players on the DL and minor-league prospects are not eligible for ranking.)

I reserve the right to tweak this list as the day goes along,

Coghlan, Ruggiano to platoon in CF for Fish - Chris Coghlan | FLA

Source: Rotoworld Baseball

The Marlins will use Chris Coghlan and Justin Ruggiano in a platoon in center field at the start of the season.

What’s In My Wallet, 2013: Up Goes Todd Frazier

Source: Roto Arcade by Scott Pianowski

The first thing to know about this exercise is that it's mostly out of context. I'm in a bunch of leagues every year (too many, really, but it's a labor of love) and they come from all angles. Mixed leagues. Mono leagues. Keeper leagues (well, one). Redraft leagues. Drafts and auctions, with the player-penetration level constantly changing.

At this time of year I like to look back (though I'm not done drafting) and see what players I've landed more than once. Repeated ownership generally means I like a player, at least more than my opponents do - but it's obviously a lot more complicated than that. And sometimes I find myself missing on players I actually do like a lot because of circumstances I can't really control (I only have

ADP Analysis of the Mock Draft Army's First Draft -- Part 2

Source: RotoSynthesis

For those of you just joining our program, allow me to re-direct you to the article from Wednesday where we introduced you to the Mock Draft Army, a rotating group of fantasy baseball writers looking to provide you with legitimate mock drafts to help you in your draft prep. The Army had its first draft last Tuesday, a 28-round, standard 5x5 mixed league draft consisting of seven writers and five readers and we started to bring you some ADP analysis as a way to understand some of the rising and falling trends we’ve been witnessing over the last several weeks.

In that piece, we covered most of the first half of the draft – two four-round blocks to be exact. We compared those draft numbers with the ADP

Justin Ruggiano (back) aims to play Saturday - Justin Ruggiano | FLA

Source: Rotoworld Baseball

Justin Ruggiano (back) is aiming to make his Grapefruit League debut on Saturday.

Justin Ruggiano 10 days away from game action - Justin Ruggiano | FLA

Source: Rotoworld Baseball

Justin Ruggiano (back) is still about 10 days away from game action.

Justin Ruggiano: (Back) Hopes To Begin Activities Next Week

Source: RotoWire.com MLB

Justin Ruggiano: Ruggiano (back) is hoping to resume full baseball activities by the end of next week, according to MLB.com. Visit RotoWire.com for more analysis on this update.

Justin Ruggiano needs MRI for ailing back - Justin Ruggiano | FLA

Source: Rotoworld Baseball

Justin Ruggiano underwent an MRI on his sore lower back Thursday.

Baseball HQ: A recipe for batters' non-roster invitee success

Source: KFFL.com MLB

Non-roster invitees can turn the tide in reality and fantasy baseball. Who'll be the 2013 editions of Brandon Moss, Juan Pierre and Justin Ruggiano?

2013 Rankings: Outfielders

Source: Fantasy Baseball 365

You can find a bit of everything in the outfield. There are players who contribute across the board, and others who make waves in single categories. There are established veterans with lengthy track records, and young players on the cusp of becoming superstars. Oh, and the position is also home to two players who are going one and two overall in many fantasy drafts.

Rank First Name Last

Jose Reyes (SS-TOR)

Source: TG Fantasy Baseball

Justin Ruggiano disputes Fox’s Ken Rosenthal on Twitter that ‘Marlins need CF’ (Big League Stew) - Be careful what you say on Twitter. You never know who might be reading. That's the lesson after bow-tied reporter Ken Rosenthal of Fox Sports said Thursday that the Florida Marlins needed to upgrade their outfield. Rosenthal's communique, brought on partly by the Braves' recent signing of B.J. Upton and the Marlins' recent money motivated housecleaning, was kind of snarky, too. The Marlins, of course, wouldn't be interested in spending $75 million like Atlanta did after shedding the likes of Jose Reyes, Josh Johnson, Mark Buehrle and Emilio Bonifacio. Rosenthal's somewhat snarky tweet prompted a response — from Justin Ruggiano,

OPS Fantasy Leagues: Surprisingly High Sluggers

Source: Razzball by grey@razzball.com (Grey Albright)

This week I was curious to look at what I call surprisingly high sluggers. No, I’m not talking about Geovany Soto. These are players who have at least a .500 slugging this year and fewer than 20 home runs. In order to try to limit some of the outliers, I only looked at players who had at least 300 plate appearances this year. They are listed from highest to lowest slugging.

Joey Votto – Too bad he had to miss a month and a half due to injuries. He was well on his way an extremely productive season, since he posted the highest OPS of his career in 2012. Earlier in the year I talked about how his walk rate was improving and he’s managed to maintain that improvement for the entire year. Just look at his walk

Wednesday Was Don’t Take The Hump Day

Source: Razzball by grey@razzball.com (Grey Albright)

Did anyone pitch well yesterday?  Clayton Richard (3 2/3 IP, 4 ER, 10 baserunners, 2 Ks) went in Petco.  Hodgepadre, why do you let me down the last week of the season?  Do I not feed you after midnight like you ask?  Every time Martin Perez (2/3 IP, 5 ER) nodded for a sign from Napoli, Perez dispensed runs.  Carlos Villanueva, aka Chuck Newtown, got run out of town.  Kyle Kendrick (2 IP, 4 ER) confused me.  I always thought people turned back into a pumpkin at midnight Eastern Standard Time.  Justin Masterson (4 2/3 IP, 4 ER), well, he’s been kinda miserable all year.  You can tell from the bolded name, I wanna talk briefly about Martin Perez for 2013 fantasy baseball.  He looks rough around the edges,

Ruggiano out for season with shoulder sprain - Justin Ruggiano | FLA

Source: Rotoworld Baseball

Justin Ruggiano (shoulder) has indeed been shut down for the remainder of the 2012 season.

Justin Ruggiano: (Shoulder) Likely Done For Season

Source: RotoWire.com MLB

Justin Ruggiano: Manager Ozzie Guillen said he doesn't expect Ruggiano (shoulder) to play again this season, the Palm Beach Post reports. Visit RotoWire.com for more analysis on this update.

Doubront Directs Sawxshank Redemption

Source: Razzball by grey@razzball.com (Grey Albright)

Yesterday, Felix Doubront went 7 IP, 1 ER, 6 baserunners, 11 Ks and rose The Walking Dead in Boston.  I wonder if Stephen King helped recruit Doubront for the Red Sox.  I wonder if there’s going to be a Red Sox team next year or if they’ll just merge with their Pawtucket minor league team.   I wish I could tell you that the Red Sox fought the good fight, and the Sisters let them be.  Damn you, Morgan Freeman Voice Over, taking over my brain!   Doubront’s actually been an under-the-radar bright spot for the Po’ Sawx.  Through 28 starts and 154 IP, his xFIP is under 4 (ERA is 4.91, which makes him seem gross) and his K-rate is above 9.  Striking out a guy per inning and an xFIP far below his ERA should

Justin Ruggiano (shoulder) out indefinitely - Justin Ruggiano | FLA

Source: Rotoworld Baseball

Justin Ruggiano is out indefinitely with a sprained right shoulder.

The Straily Show Is Back

Source: Razzball by grey@razzball.com (Grey Albright)

Brandon McCarthy had surgery and is likely done for the year.  I’m sure no one wants to see McCarthy leave the rotation like that, even Daniel Straily.  It reminds me of the time in Little League when I finally got a chance to play because Billy Brunswick had chicken pox.  The team all said Billy should’ve been out there and Grey was the chicken and the pox on our team.  It’s hard to play 2nd base when you’re crying into your mitt, but as I held the mitt to my face, and peeked out the grooves, I glanced down and the mitt’s laces showed a mustache on my shadow, so it wasn’t all bad.  Hopefully, there’s a happy ending to the McCarthy/Straily story too.  Since Straily was sent down at the end of August

Hasta Bautista

Source: Razzball by grey@razzball.com (Grey Albright)

It’s a wrap for Jose Bautista in 2012.  See you around like a donut in 2013.  It’s far from breaking news that he’s done for the year.  It looked like it was headed that way for the last few days.  As an aptly-named, pessimistic Polish man would be named, Bummerooski.  He didn’t have the year you grew accustomed to after having a few years that you weren’t accustomed to. (Or maybe it’s, Bautista had a season you were expecting if he didn’t have the years you weren’t expecting?  Or maybe, he had a season you knew was coming because of seasons you didn’t know were coming?  I’ve painted myself into a logic corner and I’m getting hungry.)  Too bad the Jays weren’t in the pennant race,

F-Herfection

Source: Razzball by grey@razzball.com (Grey Albright)

Felix Hernandez joined Philip Humber and Matt Cain in the Perfect Game club this year, shutting down the Rays in Seattle yesterday.  If only it was against the Yankees and Ichiro (hitting 9th) was the last hitter and Ichiro bunted.  Oh, the Internet drama!  Or is it a total dramacracy?  What are the kids saying nowadays?  For a while King Felix looked out of shape.  Oh, uneasy lies the head that wears a crown made from Snickers wrappers.  But he checked his Ho Hos at the door and, after a 2011 year where a higher BABIP led to a rise in ratios (3.47/1.22), F-Her is back down to 2010 levels (2.60/1.06) and a not that shabby 11 wins, considering

Ruggiano exits game with oblique strain - Justin Ruggiano | FLA

Source: Rotoworld Baseball

Justin Ruggiano left Wednesday's game against the Phillies after three innings with a right oblique strain.

Machado Man Hits 2 HR, Oh Yeah!

Source: Razzball by grey@razzball.com (Grey Albright)

Baltimore Orioles’ top prospect Manny Machado showed us exactly why he’s their top prospect last night, putting on an impressive display of power in just his second major league game with two home runs and four RBIs. OMGDROPEVERYTHINGANDGOPICKHIMUP!!! Well, not exactly. All the ‘perts say that Machado isn’t MLB-ready, as evidenced by his .266/.350/.431 line in the minors this year. But Machado is projected to be a stud as soon as next year, so… why not this year? He’s already the youngest player ever to have a multi-homer game. In addition, he’s got 2 hits in each of his first two games starting at third base and if he keeps it up he should be batting in the heart of that Baltimore line up in no time. I

Fantasy Baseball: Is Now the Time to Buy Tommy Milone?

Source: Bleacher Report MLB

After striking out 10 Yankee batters over seven scoreless innings on July 20th, Oakland A’s pitcher Tommy Milone was 9-6 with a 3.34 ERA. In his past three starts, against Toronto twice and Tampa, he has been battered for 16 earned runs in 19 innings (7.58 ERA).

He dropped all three of his starts to even his record at 9-9 and his ERA ballooned to 3.91.

That rough patch has led to many a fantasy owner jumping ship. The question is, should you swoop him up?

He certainly has use as a streamer at the very least. In his home starts, Milone is 5-3 with a 2.13 ERA and 0.92 WHIP. On the road it has been a different story, as he’s 4-6 with a 5.77 and a 1.53 WHIP.

He has also been hit hard during day games (5.68

Lawrie’s Unprime Rib

Source: Razzball by grey@razzball.com (Grey Albright)

It’s time for us as a people to start makin’ some changes.  Let’s change the way we eat, let’s change the way we live and let’s change the way we treat each other.  You see the old way wasn’t working so it’s on us to do what we gotta do, to survive.  If that means cutting loose Brett Lawrie with his DL stint, then so be it.  This year he has a 59/9/40/.282/13 line.  Right now, I’m throwing up a “W” with my hands, which is the 14-year-old girl gang sign for Whatever.  Yunel Escobar called, he wants his stats back.  Yu Darvish called and said he’s got the wrong number.  Kelly Johnson called and said, “What’s up, Yunel?”  I then disconnected the phone cause it’s getting too many

Oriole Fans Cry For Their MaMa

Source: Razzball by grey@razzball.com (Grey Albright)

And another rookie is called up.  It’s raining rookies that I will pick up for a few days and then drop if they don’t pan out in a matter of three days.  First, let’s see what our prospect writer, Scott, said just four days ago about Manny Machado, “Machado’s line on the year at Double-A isn’t pretty:  .266/.350/.431, 10 HR.  Still, he’s not slipping much in mid-season prospect rankings, as scouts and pundits continue to believe in his tools.  At just 20 years old, there’s ample time for him to play up to his potential, and I’m inclined to agree with the masses — Machado is still a future fantasy stud.  Like Grey after a long hot shower.”  Whoa, must’ve missed that last line.  What I

You Two Had Been Gian So Long

Source: Razzball by grey@razzball.com (Grey Albright)

Desperate housewives and team owners rejoice – Evan Longoria is back and he has the mysterious, bedroom-eyed Giancarlo Stanton with him.  Woo-hoo!  Tommy Hutton be my Marlins docent and read me Giancarlo’s stat line.  No, a little to the right.  Ah, yeah, that’s the stuff.  Bad wheels sidelined both these 2nd round picks and I imagine a lot of teams that drafted these two are down in the scrap heap, but this has to be a sweet moment for those of you who managed to keep your teams in contention and can now add these guys back into your lineups.  Enjoy it (I know Rudy is on his RCL team), because it’s still a big question mark whether either of these guys flash the power that warranted

Fantasy Baseball: Can Carlos Lee Be a Factor?

Source: Bleacher Report MLB

During Carlos Lee’s current 11-game hitting streak, he has raised his average from .270 to .292. His OPS has increased from .719 to .757. There is still a chance that he can be moved, which puts his fantasy value up in the air. Should you be counting on Lee for your fantasy team?

I say “why not.” If he gets moved to a contender and finds himself in a platoon role, then you can act accordingly, but until them you might as well ride the hot hand.

Hot is exactly what he’s been. During his hitting streak, he is hitting .474 with three runs and 10 RBI. He has failed to hit a home run during the stretch, but he has three doubles and four walks.

Since

Justin Ruggiano: (Back) Returns to Lineup

Source: RotoWire.com MLB

Justin Ruggiano: Ruggiano (back) will return to the lineup to face the Nationals on Sunday, Joe Frisaro of MLB.com reports. Visit RotoWire.com for more analysis on this update.

Fantasy Baseball: Should You Be Looking at Hisashi Iwakuma?

Source: Bleacher Report MLB

Hisashi Iwakuma turned heads in his last start, striking out 13 batters en route to a 4-1 win over the Toronto Blue Jays. That’s three straight solid outings for the righty as he has gone 1-0 with a 1.89 ERA and a 1.21 WHIP with 23 strikeouts in 19 innings against the Blue Jays, Yankees, and Rays.

His recent success has allowed him to lower his ERA over a full point from 5.13 to 4.10, very impressive considering he was facing two of the top scoring offenses. In his five starts he’s also faced the

FS Lineup Card: Aug. 5-11

Source: Sporting News Fantasy Source Baseball

Here's a look at what to expect from the Fantasy Source this week:

Sunday, Aug. 5: First Pitch. Fantasy Source subscribers should be sure to check out First Pitch every weekday morning by 9 a.m. ET and every Saturday and Sunday by 10 a.m. ET. You'll get a look back at the most notable performances from the day before in our 3 Up, 3 Down section, then a look ahead to the upcoming day with splits to exploit, weather watch and a ranking of every SP. Make First Pitch part of your daily fantasy baseball routine.

Monday, Aug. 6:

Fantasy Baseball: Should You Be Looking at Hisashi Iwakuma?

Source: Bleacher Report MLB

Hisashi Iwakuma turned heads in his last start, striking out 13 batters en route to a 4-1 win over the Toronto Blue Jays. That’s three straight solid outings for the righty as he has gone 1-0 with a 1.89 ERA and a 1.21 WHIP with 23 strikeouts in 19 innings against the Blue Jays, Yankees, and Rays.

His recent success has allowed him to lower his ERA over a full point from 5.13 to 4.10, very impressive considering he was facing two of the top scoring offenses. In his five starts he’s also faced the

Justin Ruggiano: (Back) Out of Lineup for Game 1 Friday

Source: RotoWire.com MLB

Justin Ruggiano: Ruggiano (back) remains out of the lineup for Game 1 of Friday's doubleheader against the Nationals, Joe Capozzi of the Palm Beach Post reports. Visit RotoWire.com for more analysis on this update.

Justin Ruggiano: Back Spasms

Source: RotoWire.com MLB

Justin Ruggiano: Ruggiano has been out the past two games with back spasms, MLB.com's Joe Frisaro reports. Visit RotoWire.com for more analysis on this update.

Fantasy Baseball: Is Lorenzo Cain Able?

Source: Bleacher Report MLB

In 22 games and 73 at-bats, Kansas City outfielder Lorenzo Cain has had some mixed success. Is he able to make a contribution to your fantasy team?

Cain is hitting just .260 with a meager .301 on-base percentage. He has four walks compared to 16 strikeouts. His decent .452 slugging percentage, thanks to seven of his 19 hits going for extra bases, at least gets his OPS (.753) to a respectable level.

Cain has scored nine runs, slugged three home runs, and stolen a base. Where he has made his mark, though, has been in driving runners in. Cain has knocked in 15 runs in his limited playing time.

He is hitting left-handed pitching fairly well, posting a .318 batting average. Of his seven hits, however, just one went for

Astros Make Nacho Concession Guy Highest Salaried Employee

Source: Razzball by grey@razzball.com (Grey Albright)

You ever go to a flea market and you have no interest in buying anything?  You see some little old lady wearing a sweater, even though it’s 95 degrees, selling a collection of hummels and they’re priced like they’re gold bullion. You pass.  You walk further and see a man with mutton chops selling corn cob pipes, but you already have one.  You’re only at the flea market because your lady friend dragged you there.  You kinda just want to go home — but then!  – then you see someone selling an original Derek and the Dominos vinyl.  It’s a limited edition Layla record from the former republic of Yugoslavia.  There’s scratches all over it and it barely plays, but it’s from 1970 and it says Layla in some weird language

Shuffle Up: How I learned to stop worrying and love Melky Cabrera

Source: Roto Arcade by Scott Pianowski

This week's Shuffle Up experience comes in the outfield. What's happened to this point works as an audition, but we're looking to judge the value for the final two months. Players at the same price are consider even, and all that matters is how the commodities relate to one another - don't obsess over the prices in a vacuum.

Assume a 5x5 rotisserie scoring system, because we're reasonable men. And remember that players on your own team don't gain 10-20 percent of bonus value. Keep both cleats on the ground as you negotiate the list.

I welcome your intelligent and respectful feedback; win the debate, win the rank. I'll tweak this list as the day goes along, and I'll try to answer as many worthwhile

Opening Time: After the fire, the Marlins go running

Source: Roto Arcade by Scott Pianowski

The dismantling of the Marlins is well underway, as we all can see. Anibal Sanchez and Omar Infante hit Detroit a couple of days ago. Hanley Ramirez jetted west on Wednesday (with a brief layover in the midwest). More moves are certainly in the works.

What's a Marlin to do in the meantime? Rabbit, run.

While Atlanta rolled past Miami on Wednesday afternoon, 7-1, Ozzie Guillen's men made an interesting statement on the basepaths. The Marlins collected seven stolen bases in seven attempts; Jose Reyes and Donovan Solano bagged two each, and Justin Ruggiano, Emilio Bonifacio and Bryan Petersen

Dodgers Love Trading for Malcontent Ramirezes

Source: Razzball by grey@razzball.com (Grey Albright)

Los Angeles is a town where the only thing better than a great idea is cashing in on the goodwill of that great idea via sequels.  So it is no surprise that the Dodgers released a sequel to their 2009 hit, Malcontent Ramirez.  If you loved Mannywood, you’ll like Hanleywood!  In the first one, a brooding superstar, played by Wesley Snipes, sick of the big city moves to the The Biggest Little City After Reno — Los Angeles — and gets a little help from the people who care, managers, agents and studio people.  In the sequel, a brooding superstar, played by Omar Epps, saves a city in economic ruin by collecting roughly $40 million dollars from his new city for lackluster play.  Can’t wait for the 2015 pickup of Aramis Ramirez

Closing Time: Pull the plug on K-Rod; Marlins open for business

Source: Roto Arcade by Scott Pianowski

Get out the scorebook, it's time for a list. I hope you're a fan of crooked numbers.

Six hits, five runs, six walks, four strikeouts, eight outs, 12 men reaching base. Line drives 40 percent of the time. A .462/.600/.615 slash line. That's the Francisco Rodriguez log since he took over the Milwaukee closing gig last week. Even with two conversions in three attempts, it's been a hot mess.

K-Rod was fortunate enough to skate past the Cardinals twice last week, but he wasn't able to Houdini his way past the Phillies on Monday (despite holding a three-run lead). Three hits and three walks led to four runs. Rodriguez was so distraught about the defeat, he Tweeted

Trade recap: Ichiro to Yanks

Source: Sporting News Fantasy Source Baseball

A strange-looking scene unfolded in Seattle as Ichiro Suzuki walked to the plate in Monday’s Mariners-Yankees game. For the first time in his storied career, Ichiro was not wearing a Mariners uniform, instead donning the Yankees’ road grays following a trade that brought righthanded pitchers D.J. Mitchell and Danny Farquar to Seattle.

The Seattle crowd responded with a standing ovation and Ichiro bowed twice at home plate in respect, and the scene capped a night that also saw the Tigers trade pitching prospect Jacob Turner, catcher Rob Brantly and lefthander Bryan Flynn to Miami for starter Anibal Sanchez and

How I Spent My All Star Break

Source: Razzball by grey@razzball.com (Grey Albright)

Four full days without fantasy baseball!? I know, it was brutal. How are we possibly supposed to keep ourselves occupied when we’re not refreshing our team pages every two minutes? In all seriouslyness, there are plenty of alternatives to constantly monitoring your team, for example: speak to a loved one, watch the all star game (yaaaawn), go outside, play real baseball (have a catch with the old man?), google cat videos, or if you dare not venture too far out of your comfort zone, perhaps you can start to prepare for your fantasy football draft? I hear this Tim Tebow foosballer is quite the fantasy