Fantasy Baseball 2008

Jacoby Ellsbury | OF | Boston Red Sox | AL
What we said: “Look for Ellsbury to solidify himself at the lead off spot, hit for average, steal bases, and score a lot of runs.”
Half way point: Hitting .269, tied for 10th in runs scored with 60, and leads the league in stolen bases with 35. At one point, it looked like he was going to end up swiping 100 bags, but slowed down a bit in June when his batting average dropped and wasn’t getting on base to steal those bases.
Did we get it right? I’d say so. Although the average is a bit low, he’s doing everything we’ve predicted: hitting leadoff, stealing bases, scoring runs, and winning the heart of ever pink hat wearing Red Sox female at Fenway. And this does not seem to change because despite his most recenty hitting slump, Francona has repeatedly said he would stand by the Red Sox rookie, and not remove him from the top of the order.

Phil Hughes | SP | New York Yankees | AL
What we said: “Look for Hughes to be in the 15 win range this season and provide an excellent source of K’s and WHIP.”
Half way point: 0-4 record, 9.00ERA, 2.14WHIP in 6 starts. He went 6 innings only once. He’s been sidelined since the end of April with a broken rib. And the only thing keeping Hal Steinbrenner from going Joey from Real World Hollywood on us is Johan Santana’s mediocre first half.
Did we get it right? Nope. Even if on his blog he says that he’s throwing and feels great, Joe Girardi is saying that he’ll probably be back some time in late August. He has no fantasy value at this point for this season.

Ubaldo Jiménez | SP | Colorado Rockies | NL
What we said: “He’ll be a good source of Ks and his ERA and WHIP are not going to hurt you and if he continues to develop like most scouts believe he could wind up being a steal while holding down the 3rd or 4th starter spot on your fantasy staff.”
Half way point: 4-9 record, 4.22ERA, 1.54WHIP, 94K. Started the season rather unspectacularly, but has thrown in some good outings as of late.
Did we get it right? Let’s wait and see. He’s definitely not a 3rd or 4th starter on your fantasy staff at this point, but seeing how the entire Colorado staff and team has been a big disappointment so far this year, maybe Jiménez and Colorado we will go on another magical run like they did last year. Er, maybe not.

Nick Swisher | OF | Chicago White Sox | AL
What we said: “Swisher has been on the cusp of a breakout for a couple years now. One of the stars of Moneyball has never gotten his average above .265 but he is still a solid source of OPS, R, HR and RBI.”
Half way point: .754OPS, 55R, 12HR 41 RBI. When he was hovering just above the mendoza line in batting average in the beginning of June, hitting .236 at the break doesn’t sound so bad does it?
Did we get it right? No. He’s on pace to produce the same number’s he’s had all his career. We expected more from him, we were wrong.

Johnny Damon | OF, DH
Bobby Abreu | OF
Jason Giambi | 1B, DH
New York Yankees | AL
What we said: “Look for Abreu to not have his early season slide. Look for Giambi to get most of the teams ABs at DH as Matsui is still hobbled by his knee injury. And look for Abreu and especially Damon to run a lot more under new manager Joe Girardi’s aggressive NL style of play.”
Half way point: Abreu started the season strong, but is on pace for similar numbers he had last year. Giambi, after struggling early on, grew a mustache and almost became an all star. And Johhny Damon is hitting .319 although on pace for the same amount of steals he had last year.
Did we get it right? We think so. Especially Giambi, who was probably available on everyone’s waiver wire when he was hitting .150 in May, but has put up fantastic power numbers since.

Ryan Garko | 1B | Cleveland Indians | AL
What we said: “He looks to be firmly entrenched as the teams 5th hitter and will be a nice consistent source of Rs, HRs and RBIs throughout the year. His AVG and OPS are also above average.”
Half way point: 33R, 7HR, 45RBI, .241AVG, .668OPS. Currently hitting towards the bottom of the order and struggling for playing time on a Cleveland team without Travis Hafner and Victor Martinez.
Did we get it right? Dead wrong. Garko had one solid week in early June and that was about it.

James Loney | 1B | Los Angeles Dodgers | NL
What we said: “Loney is currently being drafted after the likes of Todd Helton, Alex Gordon and Carlos Pena and has more upside than all three of those players”
Half way point: James Loney: .291AVG, 7HR, 50RBI, 43R compared to
Carlos Pena: .236AVG, 14HR, 47RBI, 38R
Alex Gordon: .253AVG, 11HR, 45RBI, 49R
Todd Helton: .266AVG, 7HR, 29RBI, 39R
Did we get it right? Yes. Compared to those guys drafted ahead of him, he has almost identical RBI and runs numbers, less HRs but a much higher batting average. You would have done well if you saved your higher pick and waited for Loney.

Billy Butler | DH | Kansas City Royals | AL
What we said: “Look for Butler to hit .290 this year with 20HR, 80R and 90RBI which for a later round 1B/DH pick is very serviceable”
Half way point: He’s hitting .249, 2HR, 19R, and 15RBI. Pretty low totals all around. But hey, he was in the minors for a month, so it’s not all his fault.
Did we get it right? No, but a lot of other people didn’t too. A dark horse on many pre-season fantasy sleepers lists, Billy Butler was sent down for the month of June, and came back up just to lower is average by 10 points more. But you know what Billy, it’s so damn hard for us at SportsOverdose to quit you.

Delmon Young | OF | Minnesota Twins | AL
What we said: “While still a young player the change of scenery will serve Delmon well as the Twins are committed to him as a future source of run production in the middle of their lineup.”
Half way point: Hitting .286, with 3HR, 36RBI, 47R, and 10SB. Apparently the change of scenery didn’t do a damn thing.
Did we get it right? No. His first home run came 2 months into the season, and Young has been hitting comfortably in the 6th spot much of the season. The 10 stolen bases so far are a pleasant surprise, but you have to wonder what kind of numbers he could have put up if he was still hitting in that young, talented, Tampa Bay lineup.

Geovany Soto | C | Chicago Cubs | NL
What we said: “Expect him to climb into the top tier of offensive catchers in 2008 and will be a nice later round grab in fantasy drafts”
Half way point: Amongst all major league catchers, he ranks 1st in HRs, 2nd in RBIs, and OPS, and 5th in AVG.
Did we get it right? Yes. There’s no better feeling in the world then when your pre-season sleeper pick goes to the all star game. But then again, which Cub isn’t going to the all star game? (And if you answered Cub’s middle reliever Carlos Marmol, you’re actually wrong).

Francisco Liriano | SP | Minnesota Twins | AL
What we said: “But a year removed from arm surgery Liriano will be the ace of the Twins staff and has the potential to regain his status as a top 5 fantasy performer.”
Half way point: These numbers are a bit ugly: 0-3, 11.32ERA, 2.71WHIP, 7K in 3 starts.
Did we get it right? Not so far, but we will be and here’s why: Liriano has been dominating in his rehab outings, with the Minneapolis Star-Tribune reporting he’s “walked three and struck out 24 over his last three starts. And he’s on a run of 21.1 scoreless innings.” Liriano during spring training looked awful, and I think the Twins rushed him back too soon. He’s had a lot of time to work himself back now, and see him returning to the rotation and back to form after the all star break.

Mike Mussina | SP | New York Yankees | AL
What we said: “Look for Mussina to approach 13-15 wins with an ERA in the low 4s and respectable K and WHIP numbers.”
Half way point: 11 wins, 3.61ERA, 1.23WHIP. Wait, are these 2001 Mike Mussina numbers?
Did we get it right? Yes, more so that we ever hoped. Mussina continues to be the most reliable starter in the Yankee rotation.

Dan Haren | SP | Arizona Diamondbacks | AL
What we said: “He’s not a sleeper in the traditional sense since most people expect him to have another outstanding season but if I’m choosing between Haren and other top shelf pitchers in the same class, I’m going with Haren.”
Half way point: He’s 8-5, 2.72ERA, 112K, and a 0.95WHIP.
Did we get it right? Yes, but it was a gimmie. Haren is putting up top tier starter’s numbers, but that was expected. It’s not like we picked Edinson Vólquez here.

Raúl Ibanez | OF | Seattle Mariners | AL
What we said: “You can basically pencil Ibanez in for .290AVG, 90R, 25HR and 100RBI which while certainly not top 10 for outfielders is still great production.”
Half way point: Hitting .273 with 41R, 11HR and 55RBI on an awful Seattle team.
Did we get it right? Yes, if only because he’s been doing it all year with the likes of Jose Vidro and Richie Sexon hitting behind him in that lineup.

Ryan Zimmerman | 3B | Washington Nationals | NL
What we said: “Look for Zimmerman to become a household name in his third full season in the big leagues and be one of the few bright spots in what will be another disappointing season for the Nationals.”
Half way point: Hitting .287 with 8HR and 27RBI and on the DL since late May.
Did we get it right? No, but we did get the disappointing season for the Nationals thing right. Zimmerman didn’t exactly become a household name, but he was starting to heat up until he got hurt. He could provide a nice second half jolt for you team.

Robinson Cano | 2B | New York Yankees | AL
What we said: “Joe Girardi will get Cano into the top 5 in this lineup as he has none of Joe Torre’s loyalty to the aging veterans. Look for Cano to be around .320AVG, 100R, 25HR, 100RBI this season.”
Half way point: Hitting mostly towards the bottom of the order, Cano has a .246AVG, 36R, 6HR, and 38RBI.
Did we get it right? Not even close. We probably overstated ourselves just a bit, especially when he was hitting below .200 for a month and half to start the season which really hurt his numbers. He probably won’t approach anywhere near his career numbers this year, let alone surpass them, and for that, we are sorry. But hey, at least we were right about those other Yankees on the list - well the ones not named Phil Hughes anyway.