Hitters with more extra-base hits than Josh Hamilton

Source: Fake Teams by Kenneth Arthur

The Angels signed Josh Hamilton away from the Rangers with much fanfare and speculation that LA's time was starting just as Texas' time was ending. Texas faced uncertainty in replacing hitters like Hamilton and Mike Napoli in the lineup, and rolling out guys that simply don't normally show that "MVP dominance" that a once-in-awhile player like Hamilton possesses.

Predicting baseball is dumb.

With Hamilton listed as the every day centerfielder for the

Napoli has two-homer day, BoSox down Jays - Mike Napoli | BOS

Source: Rotoworld Baseball

Mike Napoli hit two home runs and tallied four RBI as the Red Sox pounded the Blue Jays on Wednesday.

The Razzball Podcast — The One Where We Hit On Some Hitters (Non-Sexually; Except For Rudy With Bryce Harper)

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

Rudy loves him some Bryce Harper, but don't we all (now)? The question on March 20th from Brandon Funston was, "(You picked) Bryce Harper, Round 1, Pick 13 … That's about 20 picks higher than the brilliant (sic) minds that compose the Yahoo! ADP. Would you please tell our constituents why they are selling Boy Wonder short? What is a realistic best-case roto line for Harper in '13?" Besides Harper, our team in F&F looks putrid right now, so there's that. So There's That, Part II: There's More; Our ERA is at a one and WHIP is at a one due to Marmol and Axford crapping the bed, then asking us to sleep in said bed, but we own Verlander, so we should get better. In the podcast, Rudy goes over where he'd draft Harper now if he had

Fantasy baseball Weekly Planner: Which hot starters to sell now

Source: SI.com

Baseball can be a fickle game. If you have played fantasy long enough you know this all too well. Now that the first four weeks of the season are in the books, it can be a good time to sell-high on some hot starters. It's also a good time to have some fun with some ridiculous on-pace numbers: -Braves outfielder Justin Upton is on pace for 88 homers. -Nationals outfielder Bryce Harper is on pace for 60 homers. -Red Sox first baseman Mike Napoli is on pace for 190 RBI. -Tigers outfielder Austin Jackson is on pace for 169 runs scored. -Red Sox outfielder Jacoby Ellsbury is on pace for 77 steals. -Rangers starting pitcher Yu Darvish in on pace for 330 strikeouts. -Breakout starting pitchers Matt Moore and Clay Buchholz are on pace for 35 victories. -Orioles closer Jim Johnson is on pace for 70 saves.

Draft Day Challenge, April 25

Source: Baseball Guys by Ray Flowers

Fantasy baseball is about adapting to change, whether it’s do to injury or performance. Keeping up with the Jones’, DraftDay.com has decided to change things up in their partnership with BaseballGuys by offering a new contest for you to enter in daily fantasy baseball.

*** After detailing the game I’ll list for you some of the best plays of the day at the bottom of the piece.

MLB Rapid Fire Game at DraftDay
There are five 1-on-1 matchups for Friday’s MLB Games (this

Roto Roundup: Jesse Biddle, Matt Moore, Mike Napoli and Others

Source: Fake Teams by Ray Guilfoyle

There were two game postponed due to snow on Monday; one in Minnesota and one in Colorado. It was cold here in New Jersey today. I can't imagine snow this late in April though.

Jesse Biddle: next big strikeout starter?

Phillies pitching prospect Jesse Biddle had perhaps his best start in the minors ever last night. Here is a tweet from Matt Gelb from the Philadelphia inquirer:

Big night for Phillies top prospect. RT @mldrago: Jesse Biddle: 7 IP, 1 H, 2 BB, 0 R, 16 Ks; 104 pitches, 74 strikes.

— Matt Gelb

Mostly MLB Notes: Max Scherzer and Bryce Harper making the leap

Source: Roto Arcade by Dalton Del Don

Max Scherzer has a ridiculous 30 Ks over 19.0 innings this season, as he’s become baseball’s premier strikeout pitcher. He finished second to Justin Verlander in the category last year, recording only eight fewer strikeouts in 50.2 fewer innings thanks to a major league leading 11.08 K/9 rate. Scherzer dealt with some shoulder issues late last season, and while cleaned up, his delivery remains somewhat violent, but he sure appears healthy now. Scherzer has allowed a 20.5 LD%, but with so few groundballs (35.9 GB%), his .385 BABIP looks especially unlucky. In fact, among the 15 starters with the lowest groundball rates this season (Scherzer’s is the 11th lowest), only two others have a

Mike Napoli hits grand slam, knocks in five - Mike Napoli | BOS

Source: Rotoworld Baseball

AL co-player of the week Mike Napoli had a grand slam and an RBI double to lead the Red Sox to a 9-5 win over the A's on Sunday.

Draft Day Challenge, April 18

Source: Baseball Guys by Ray Flowers

Daily baseball is all the rage in the fantasy sports world, so I will be covering the game a couple of times a week here at BaseballGuys.com. To that end, I’ve partnered with DraftDay.com to give all my wonderful followers, that’s you, the chance to play the game on a daily basis. On Tuesday and Thursday’s here at the site, every week, I’ll be giving you some insight

Draft Day Challenge, April 16

Source: Baseball Guys by Ray Flowers

Daily baseball is all the rage in the fantasy sports world, so I will be covering the game a couple of times a week here at BaseballGuys.com. To that end, I’ve partnered with DraftDay.com to give all my wonderful followers, that’s you, the chance to play the game on a daily basis. On Tuesday and Thursday’s here at the site, every week, I’ll be giving you some insight into the mind

Shuffle Up: John Buck, flushing hero

Source: Roto Arcade by Scott Pianowski

You probably know the Shuffle Up rules by now, but we'll go through a refresher course just in case.

The prices below are my catcher rankings for the rest of the season. Don't obsess over the prices in a vacuum; what matters is how the players relate to one another. Commodities at the same dollar figure are considered even.

Assumptions: 5x5 scoring, mixed-league format. Players who are currently disabled or in the minors are not eligible for ranks. The value on that type of player is largely context-driven, anyway; Yasmani Grandal could be a valuable stash in some pools and next-to-worthless in some other groups.

I'll add comments as the day goes along and I reserve the right to tweak this list during the

Mostly MLB Notes: A 2013 Season Preview

Source: Roto Arcade by Dalton Del Don

Editor’s note: I wanted to get this posted much earlier, but I had my first kid recently (well, technically my wife had her), so that’s my excuse for the delay.

National League East

1. Washington Nationals
2. Atlanta Braves (WILD CARD)
3. Philadelphia Phillies
4. New York Mets
5. Miami Marlins

Comments/Fantasy Predictions: Both Stephen Strasburg and Bryce Harper are top-15 fantasy players, while Dan Haren is a top-25 starting pitcher. Ryan Zimmerman proves to be a better pick than Evan Longoria, while Drew

Fantasy Baseball 2013: The Love List

Source: Roto Arcade by Scott Pianowski

The snarky comments will have to wait for another day. The red pens won't come out of the desk drawer today. It's time to get shiny, happy and target-driven on blog, unveiling a handful of players we can't wait to point-and-click on. Make sure you've got these guys queued up.

The 2013 Love List will keep us together. Who wants to ride shotgun?

[Baseball 2013 from Yahoo! Fantasy Sports: Join a league today!]

In the

A.L. Tout Wars recap: Pedroia, Longoria, Mo, Moose and an abundance of Astros

Source: Roto Arcade by Andy Behrens

First, some history: Back in 1887, at the inaugural Tout Wars auction (held at an opium parlor, now defunct), the first player nominated was Pretzels Getzien, staff ace of the Detroit Wolverines. Pretzels was coming off a 30-11 season. He went for $13, sold to Ernie Lanigan of the nascent Sporting News. It wasn't a great buy, but tolerable. Getzien won 29 games in '87, third highest total in the league, but his ratios were merely adequate.

Fortunately for Lanigan, he also spent $24 on right-hander

A.L. Tout Wars recap: Pedroia, Longoria, Mo, Moose, and an abundance of Astros

Source: Roto Arcade by Andy Behrens

First, some history: Back in 1887, at the inaugural Tout Wars auction (held at an opium parlor, now defunct), the first player nominated was Pretzels Getzien, staff ace of the Detroit Wolverines. Pretzels was coming off a 30-11 season. He went for $13, sold to Ernie Lanigan of the nascent Sporting News. It wasn't a great buy, but tolerable. Getzien won 29 games in '87, third highest total in the league, but his ratios were merely adequate.

Fortunately for Lanigan, he also spent $24 on right-hander

A.L. Tout Wars recap: Pedroia, Longoria, Mo, Moose, and more

Source: Roto Arcade by Andy Behrens

First, some history: Back in 1887, at the inaugural Tout Wars auction (held at an opium parlor, now defunct), the first player nominated was Pretzels Getzien, staff ace of the Detroit Wolverines. Pretzels was coming off a 30-11 season. He went for $13, sold to Ernie Lanigan of the nascent Sporting News. It wasn't a great buy, but tolerable. Getzien won 29 games in '87, third highest total

A.L. Tout Wars recap: Pedroia, Longoria, Mo, Moose and more

Source: Roto Arcade by Andy Behrens

First, some history: Back in 1887, at the inaugural Tout Wars auction (held at an opium parlor, now defunct), the first player nominated was Pretzels Getzien, staff ace of the Detroit Wolverines. Pretzels was coming off a 30-11 season. He went for $13, sold to Ernie Lanigan of the nascent Sporting News. It wasn't a great buy, but tolerable. Getzien won 29 games in '87, third highest total

2013 SiriusXM Fantasy Sports Radio – Experts Draft

Source: Baseball Guys by Ray Flowers

I just keep doing fantasy baseball drafts don’t I? Seems like every time I wake up I get my bowl of cereal, my Red Bull (sometimes there is vodka in it), answer a plethora of tweets and emails, and then I end up being in a draft of some kind. Which draft am I talking about in this article? It’s the SiriusXM Fantasy Sports Radio draft, populated by the genius minds of the network. How did my team turn out? Before I get to that, here are the rules.

12 team mixed

Anth's Catcher Rankings

Source: Fake Teams by AnthonyCalanni

1. Buster Posey
2. Carlos Santana
3. Matt Wieters
4. Joe Mauer
5. Yadier Molina
6. Miguel Montero
7. Mike Napoli
8. Brian McCann
9. Wilin Rosario
10. Jesus Montero
11. Jonathon Lucroy
12. Salvador Perez
13. J.P. Arencibia
14. A.J. Pierzynski
15. Ryan Doumit
16. Jarrod Saltalamacchia
17. Carlos Ruiz
18. Alex Avila
19. Russell Martin
20. A.J. Ellis

Fantasy Baseball 2013: Catcher Primer

Source: Roto Arcade by Andy Behrens

There are basically only two ways that a fantasy owner can avoid injuries at this position: Either you can draft a catcher-eligible player who spends most of his time at another spot — perhaps someone like Mike Napoli or Victor Martinez (both of whom have injury histories) — or you can simply get lucky.

And that's pretty much it. There's a strong chance that your fantasy catcher — whoever he is, wherever you draft him — is going to get hurt. This roster spot presents greater injury risk than any other everyday position. The physical demands at backstop are unlike those we find anywhere else on the defensive spectrum. Only six major league catchers managed to reach 500 at-bats last season, and only five appeared in

2013′s Top 5 American League Rookie of the Year Candidates

Source: Fantasy Baseball Dugout by BeeZee

American League Rookie of the Year candidates will be plentiful for the 2013 season. Several young prospects saw brief looks with their major league clubs late last season while others look to make their mark in the big leagues starting this spring.

Here are five names to watch out for who could be vying for Rookie of the Year Award honors at the end of the season.

1. Danny Hultzen: Seattle Mariners

Selected by the Mariners with the second overall pick in the 2011 MLB draft, left-handed pitcher Danny Hultzen made a strong debut in his first professional season. He posted a 3.05 ERA in 25 starts

Mike Napoli passes all tests in spring debut - Mike Napoli | BOS

Source: Rotoworld Baseball

Mike Napoli (hips) passed every possible test during his spring debut on Friday, fielding his position well, aggressively running the bases, and delivering with the bat.

Spring Training Notes

Source: Baseball Guys by Ray Flowers

Major league baseball is rocking and rolling with Spring Training underway, so now is a good time to take a little trip around the league to hit on a few of the stories making the rounds.

Mike Carp has been dealt from the

MRI confirms Napoli's AVN hasn't worsened - Mike Napoli | BOS

Source: Rotoworld Baseball

Alex Speier of WEEI.com reports that an MRI this week confirmed that Mike Napoli's hip condition hasn’t worsened.

Tip Drill: The Buster Posey Problem

Source: Roto Arcade by Scott Pianowski

The catcher position is the hard knock life area for baseball. The poor backstops lumber around with heavy equipment, while kamikaze baserunners treat them like a crash test dummies. Catchers spend six months in an uncomfortable crouch, blocking pitches in the dirt and waiting for the next foul tip to ding them up. Let's offer them some tea and sympathy.

But let's not take these poor guys in the first round of any fantasy draft.

[Baseball 2013 from Yahoo! Fantasy Sports: Join a league today!]

2013 Rankings: First Basemen

Source: Fantasy Baseball 365

Next up in the positional rankings is first base. The position offers a lot of offensive talent, young and old. Players will be drafted out of this player pool to fill more than first base, they'll also fill corner infield spots and utility positions as well. 

Rank First Name Last Name Organization 1 Albert Pujols Angels 2 Joey Votto Reds 3 Prince Fielder Tigers 4 Edwin Encarnacion Blue

Pressing Questions: The Boston Red Sox

Source: Roto Arcade by Scott Pianowski

The 2011 Red Sox crash landed in the final frames; chicken and beer seldom break anyone's fall. The 2012 Olde Town Team was a beat-the-traffic special, dead in the water before high tide.

Last year's messy results speak for themselves. Boston finished dead last in the AL East (69-93), its first basement tape since 1992. The offense didn't score (734 runs, worst showing in two decades), the pitchers couldn't get people out (4.72 ERA, 1.37 WHIP, 190 homers allowed), and too many players couldn't stay healthy. If you came to Fenway Park in the summer, you were there for the park, the atmosphere or the opponent. (I attended one game and spent three innings in the concession area talking Fantasy Football with my buddy Cuozzo.

2013 Rankings: Catchers

Source: Fantasy Baseball 365

Fantasy draft time is just around the corner for many folks. That means it is time to start rolling out the position rankngs for draft prep. I'll be posting the rankings without commentary. Feel free to discuss the rankings in the comments below.

Ranking First Name Last

Mike Napoli (C/1B-BOS)

Source: TG Fantasy Baseball

Napoli's hip issues held up deal with Red Sox (The SportsXchange). Turns out, Bo knows all about Mike Napoli's hip problem. Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com

Sox diagnosed Napoli with avascular necrosis - Mike Napoli | BOS

Source: Rotoworld Baseball

Mike Napoli was diagnosed with avascular necrosis during his pre-signing physical with the Red Sox.

BoSox finalize one-year deal with Mike Napoli - Mike Napoli | BOS

Source: Rotoworld Baseball

Red Sox signed 1B/C Mike Napoli to a one-year, $5 million contract.

Mike Napoli: Joins Red Sox...Again

Source: RotoWire.com MLB

Mike Napoli: Napoli (hip) and the Red Sox agreed to a $5 million contract on Thursday, WEEI Boston reports. The deal could reach $13 million if Napoli avoids spending time on the DL due to his hip injury. Visit RotoWire.com for more analysis on this update.

Red Sox, Napoli agree on one-year, $5M deal - Mike Napoli | TEX

Source: Rotoworld Baseball

Rob Bradford of WEEI.com reports that the Red Sox and Mike Napoli have reached an agreement on a one-year, $5 million contract.

Red Sox, Napoli agree on one-year deal - Mike Napoli | TEX

Source: Rotoworld Baseball

Rob Bradford of WEEI.com reports that the Red Sox and Mike Napoli have reached an agreement on a one-year contract.

Sox, Napoli progressing toward one-year deal - Mike Napoli | TEX

Source: Rotoworld Baseball

Jim Bowden of ESPN.com and SiriusXM reports that the Red Sox are making "significant progress" toward a one-year free agent contract with Mike Napoli.

BoSox, Napoli making progress in negotiations - Mike Napoli | TEX

Source: Rotoworld Baseball

CBS Sports' Jon Heyman reports that the Red Sox and Mike Napoli have made progress in negotiations and that a resolution will likely be reached by next week at the latest.

MLB: Monday Madness

Source: Baseball Guys by Ray Flowers

I love the Player Profiles, digging deep into a player and trying to ferret out whether or not expectations are too high or too low for the guy. Alas, I don’t want to become monotonous in the way that I cover the world of baseball, so I’m throwing a change up. Today I’m gonna touch on a handful of stories that have cropped up over the last 24-48 hours and give my take on players as diverse as

BoSox want to reduce Napoli's deal to 1 year - Mike Napoli | TEX

Source: Rotoworld Baseball

According to Jim Bowden of ESPN.com and MLB Network Radio on Sirius XM, the Red Sox would like to sign Mike Napoli to a one-year contract.

Pressing Questions: Texas Rangers

Source: Roto Arcade by Brandon Funston

This week, we begin our usual series of MLB fantasy previews, wherein we consider 5-6 key questions surrounding each team. Baseball is coming, gamers. Pitchers and catchers report next month. Fantasy owners report immediately...

For the past several years, the Rangers have been the embodiment of the old adage that “Everything is bigger in Texas.” But this season, that may skew more to the ERA side than the run production side. With Josh Hamilton now sipping Arnold Palmers with Albert Pujols at Club 33, and Mike Napoli, who has finished in the top 6 in HR/AB

MLB Cuts Landlines in Bullpens, Goes Mobile

Source: Fantasy Baseball Dugout by ballparkbob34

Major League Baseball is cutting the landline phone from its dugouts and will now be going mobile…just like the rest of the world.

Sometimes, baseball is, well, just too (well) steeped in tradition.  One tradition you won’t be seeing much longer, however, is the landline phone in the bullpen.  With 34% of American households now cell phone only, MLB bullpens will soon be joining the trend and cutting the landline.  This is the landline bullpen phone that has been around since the 1930′s and the one that nearly cost the St. Louis Cardinals the 2011 World Series against the Rangers.

During the

Red Sox still 'hopeful' of Mike Napoli deal - Mike Napoli | TEX

Source: Rotoworld Baseball

Pete Abraham of the Boston Globe reports that the Red Sox are "still working" on signing Mike Napoli and are "hopeful" of getting it done.

Napoli drawing interest other than Red Sox - Mike Napoli | TEX

Source: Rotoworld Baseball

According to Rob Bradford of WEEI.com, Mike Napoli has drawn interest from at least one team other than the Red Sox.

Napoli, Boston working through 'hip language' - Mike Napoli | TEX

Source: Rotoworld Baseball

According to Jim Bowden of ESPN and SiriusXM, the Red Sox "continue to work through 'hip' language" in Mike Napoli's yet-to-be-finalized three-year contract.

Transaction Analysis: The Signings of E-Jax and Pierzynski

Source: Fantasy Baseball 365

One player was welcomed to Chicago this week when the Cubs signed Edwin Jackson to a four year contract worth $52 million. Another player, A.J. Pierzynski, bid the Windy City adieu leaving the White Sox as a free agent and signing a one year contract with the Rangers. Jackson goes from being an overlooked member of a loaded Nationals rotation in 2012 to being relied on to pitch near the top of the Cubs rotation this year. Pierzynski is coming off a career year and is tasked with helping the Rangers offense cope with the loss of free agents Josh Hamilton and Mike Napoli.

Jackson has been a workhorse over the last five years, totaling just under 1,000 innings, and

Mike Napoli signing delayed due to hip issue - Mike Napoli | TEX

Source: Rotoworld Baseball

FOX Sports' Ken Rosenthal reports that Mike Napoli's three-year, $39 million contract with the Red Sox is being delayed due to a problem with one of his hips.

James Shields (P-KC)

Source: TG Fantasy Baseball

Texas Rangers Rebuilding Already? (Yahoo! Contributor Network) - COMMENTARY | Zack Greinke, James Shields, R.A. Dickey, Justin Upton, Josh Hamilton, Mike Napoli, Koji Uehara, Mike Adams, Ryan Dempster. Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com

Boston's deal with Mike Napoli may fall apart - Mike Napoli | TEX

Source: Rotoworld Baseball

According to FOX Sports' Ken Rosenthal, Boston's deal with Mike Napoli could be in jeopardy due to a physical issue.

Red Sox' deal with Napoli could fall apart - Mike Napoli | TEX

Source: Rotoworld Baseball

According to FOX Sports' Ken Rosenthal, the Red Sox' deal with Mike Napoli could be in jeopardy due to a physical issue.

Winter Meetings Wrap Up

Source: Baseball Guys by Ray Flowers

There were plenty of big names thrown around town, chief among them Josh Hamilton and Zack Greinke, but in the end there were no earth shattering moves at the Baseball Winter Meetings. There were a handful of moves involving useful players however, so let’s take a moment to wrap up the meetings, and the week, by looking at some of that movement.

Joe Blanton, who I’ll have a write up on in the coming days, signed a two year, $15 million

Red Sox freeze out fantasy profits for Shane Victorino, Mike Napoli

Source: KFFL.com MLB

Did Boston show others teams who's "Boss" in signing these two? How should fantasy owners value the Sawx's latest haul?