We haven't seen a week like this in quite a long time. It is, in my opinion, the perfect week for some fantasy owners. Some players are playing their hearts out while others looks fizzled out and are in prolonged slumps. Of course if you own a player in a slump then you aren't happy, but if you own one of the players that are on fire then you're dancing for joy, especially if your opponent has one or more of the mentioned slumping players. Things don't stop at that though. There are a few players who have gone from peasants to kings in just a short amount of time. Players that looked like scraps of garbage who now look like top players in the league. This feature of MLB Status Check consists of three categories, each containing three players. The categories are for those that were drafted early who are playing well, those that were drafted early who are not playing well, and those that may not have even been drafted who are on fire as of late. Each player deserves recognition, but there are a few on this list who deserve even more praise, if that's even possible.
Lived up to the hype:
1.) Alex Rodriguez (3B - New York Yankees) - A-Rod is always the center of everything it seems. Yes, by now everyone knows about the Madonna thing, but who cares because this is about baseball. It just so happens that he's also managed to be the center of the baseball world as well this week. He's put up some terrific numbers on the week. It may be worth to note that he's doing well even though he's having a ton of mental pressure due to what was mentioned above. A-Rod definitely seems like a stronger player, mentally, then he has in recent years. He's drowning out the gossip and is just playing baseball, and doing it quite well. He was the consensus number one pick in the draft and this week he did not disappoint. He's had a very productive season, especially since he missed around 20 games because of a quad injury. A-Rod looks pretty locked in right now and the entire team is hot which only means even more fantasy opportunities for A-Rod.
9/23, 7 runs, 2 HR, 8 RBI, 2 SB, .391 AVG
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2.) CC Sabathia (SP - Milwaukee Brewers) - Sabathia is a man on a mission. It looks like he's trying to single handedly earn himself the biggest pitching contract of all time when he reaches the free agent market next year. Sabathia has been phenomenal for the Brewers. They gave up a lot to get him, but he is putting up some amazing numbers while helping the Brewers gun for the playoffs. Sabathia is 4-0 in his four starts. That may sound impressive, but what is more impressive is that the last three of those four wins were complete games. He has given up a grand total of five earned runs in 33 innings. Simply amazing. Sabathia shows no signs of slowing down. Count your blessings if you held onto him after his April struggles. He now looks like the best pitcher in the NL.
2 wins, 0 losses, 1 complete game, 1 shutout, 18 IP, 17 K, 0.50 ERA, 0.50 WHIP
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3.) David Wright (3B - New York Mets) - Wright just missed out on matching A-Rod's numbers, literally. He was about as close as humanly possible. However, since his numbers were so good he deserves recognition for his performance this week. Wright is one of the best young players in the league. I may be a bit bias against the Mets as a team, but I can honestly say that Wright is one of my favorite players in the league. He may be a bit overrated at times, but he really does have a ton of talent. This week he proved why he's such a good fantasy players. He was a first round pick for a reason. He's a great third baseman, but he's still second to A-Rod.
8/21, 8 runs, 2 HR, 7 RBI, 2 SB, .381 AVG
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Failed to live up to the hype:
1.) Hanley Ramirez (SS - Florida Marlins) - What is going on? Hanley is the best fantasy shortstop, but he has been absolutely horrible as of late. There was talk that he may have a shoulder injury, but he played in the All-Star game and did pretty well. However, all of a sudden he just cannot get a hit to save his life. His slump was 0-15 at one point, but now it's even worse. He's still one of the best shortstops in the league and he will definitely rebound. However, this isn't exactly what fantasy owners like seeing from a guy who was a clear top five pick.
3/24, 2 runs, 0 HR, 0 RBI, 0 SB, .125 AVG
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2.) Francisco Cordero (RP - Cincinnati Reds) - I predicted Cordero to rebound from his slump, but this is getting ridiculous. He's getting several opportunities to pick up some easy saves, but he just can't seem to even get the easy ones. His numbers were absolutely dreadful this week. In fact, his numbers are so bad that there's a chance that they could hurt some fantasy owners' pitching stats to the point where there's no way for them to win some categories such as ERA and WHIP. He's been that bad. Hopefully he rebounds because he does have great stuff, but it seems his mentality is extremely fragile. This is exactly the opposite of what the Reds paid for and now Cordero is hurting both the Reds organization and fantasy owners alike.
0 wins, 2 losses, 2 saves, 3.1 IP, 2 K, 18.90 ERA, 4.80 WHIP
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3.) Chase Utley (2B - Philadelphia Phillies) - Chase had a tremendous first half, especially for a second baseman. He's got a very compact swing that he can somehow generate a ton of power from. The result was a surprising amount of homeruns. Fantasy owners loved it, Phillies fans loved it, but all of a sudden it seems like he's a completely different player since coming back from the break. His slump isn't as bad as some, such as Hanley Ramirez, but he is showing absolutely no power right now from a fantasy standpoint. Utley is a terrific player, but fantasy owners expect much more considering what he was able to do in the first half. He should rebound soon. He's definitely too good to not put up some great numbers.
5/19, 1 run, 0 HR, 1 RBI, 0 SB, .263 AVG
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Keep an eye on:
1.) Melvin Mora (3B - Baltimore Orioles) - Mora has been on a tear for a bit now. He was a player to watch last week as well. However, it was thought that he would return to Earth and start hitting like a .250 player again. Wrong. Mora has been on an absolute non-stop tear lately. He's hitting for a great clip, he's showing power, and he's driving in runs like they're going out of style. I honestly don't believe he can keep this up for too much longer, but it sure is fun to watch him continue to produce day in and day out. Mora has always had a lot of talent, and power that you wouldn't expect when you looked at him, so it's nice to see him put up such great numbers. He's been a pleasant surprise lately and I'm sure there are owners out there who could use a solid third baseman. If he's somehow still available in some leagues then pick him up, now.
13/26, 6 runs, 4 HR, 15 RBI, 0 SB, .500 AVG
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2.) Mike Mussina (SP - New York Yankees) - Mooooooose! That's what Yankee Stadium has sounded like this year when Mussina takes the mound. He clearly looks like the odds on favorite to win comeback player of the year. He was horrible last year and then his first four games this year were absolutely horrible. Then all of a sudden he started pitching better; throwing tailing fastballs inside to lefties, outside breaking balls to righties, and first strike pitches to both. He is tied for first wins in the league, he's got a lower ERA than CC Sabathia, and he is the number one reason that the Yankees are still in the race for the playoffs. Mussina can no longer throw above 90 mph, but he can pitch. He proved that against the Twins by shutting them out for eight innings. He has been a tremendous pickup for some and, if he's still available, pick him up. Moose is on the loose.
2 wins, 0 losses, 14 IP, 13 K, 0.64 ERA, 1.07 WHIP
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3.) Robinson Cano (2B - New York Yankees) - Cano is another Yankee who went from being absolutely horrible to absolutely terrific. Mussina went from being an afterthought to the Yankees new "ace", while Cano went from an afterthought to one of the best offensive players on a deep team. Cano apparently spent his entire All-Star break in the Dominican Republic studying game film with his dad. It seems like just what Robbie needed because he is not the same hitter he was earlier. He is harder to jam now, he's not rolling his wrists over, and he's not pulling out of pitches that are away. Now he's fisting pitches that would normally jam him and ducks them in for bloopers, plus he's waiting on off-speed stuff and driving it instead of going up there hacking and trying to hit every pitch out. Cano is an improved player and he's a notorious second half player. In his career he is a .280 hitter before the half and a .340 hitter after it. Hopefully he continues hitting well because the Yankees need it in the worst way. What do ya know, Cano?!
14/27, 5 runs, 2 HR, 7 RBI, 0 SB, .519 AVG