Quick Hit: 2017 Fantasy Baseball Awards

The 2017 season is coming to a close and the 2017 fantasy season has all but concluded here so let’s take a look at who won you your respective leagues and who will be taking home the 2017 Fantasy Baseball major awards.

If you drafted Aaron Judge or Giancarlo Stanton this season you were probably very happy with your pick. Why? Chicks, and fantasy owners, dig the long ball and both players have surpassed 50 home runs this season for their respective teams. One of these two have to win the Fantasy MVP and I think, all bias aside, that Judge has to ultimately take home the award. Judge hits home runs, sure, but he also takes his walks and has a great on-base percentage and RBI total. Sure, Judge is going to strikeout a lot but like in the game and in Fantasy Baseball an out is an out no matter how you record it. Cody Bellinger and Elvis Andrus should also get at least some consideration after strong fantasy seasons.

It is easy to load up your pitching staff with Clayton Kershaw, Max Scherzer, Corey Kluber, Chris Sale or other perennial All-Star pitchers but it is usually those diamond in the rough type guys that wins you your league and three names in particular stood out for me this season in fantasy. Alex Wood of the Los Angeles Dodgers, Luis Severino of the New York Yankees and Ervin Santana of the Minnesota Twins. Where would the Twins be without Santana this season? Not in the AL Wild Card Game, you can bet that, and the same may be said for the Yankees and their sudden emerging ace Severino. Wood though may have shocked the world with his start to the 2017 season heading into the All-Star break with an 11-0 record. Wood is now an MLB 15-game winner with a sub-3.00 ERA and a miniscule WHIP making him an absolute steal for any owner that drafted him or picked him up via trade or off of waivers.

The final award we will hand out for Fantasy Baseball this season will be the Rookie of the Year. I am going to cheat a little bit and I am going to leave Judge off the list since I already handed him the MVP award and instead take the time to honor and showcase the season that Whit Merrifield had for the Kansas City Royals. No one knew the name Merrifield before Raul Mondesi Jr. began the 2017 season with a  .114 batting average as the team’s starting second baseman pushing the team to call up Merrifield from Triple-A. Merrifield has done nothing but impress since his late April call up stealing over 30 bases and pushing 20 home runs and 80 RBI keeping the Royals in the playoff chase all season long.

According to the USA Today here are the Top 15 players for your 2018 Draft. Yes, it’s early but it’s never too early for some to start preparing for next season. Enjoy.

1.     OF Mike Trout, Los Angeles Angels
2. 2B Jose Altuve, Houston Astros
3. 1B Paul Goldschmidt, Arizona Diamondbacks
4. OF Charlie Blackmon, Colorado Rockies
5. 3B Nolan Arenado, Colorado Rockies
6. SS Trea Turner, Washington Nationals
7. OF Bryce Harper, Washington Nationals
8. SP Clayton Kershaw, Los Angeles Dodgers
9. OF Giancarlo Stanton, Miami Marlins
10. SP Max Scherzer, Washington Nationals
11. OF Mookie Betts, Boston Red Sox
12. 3B Kris Bryant, Chicago Cubs
13. 1B Joey Votto, Cincinnati Reds
14. 3B Josh Donaldson, Toronto Blue Jays
15. SS Carlos Correa, Houston Astros

Recap: Rangers 10, Yankees 1

There are nights when everything goes well, and then there are nights when nothing goes well.

Tuesday's Yankees game fit neatly into the latter category.

Luis Severino got hammered for six earned runs in three innings, and the Yankees fell 10-1 to the Rangers without much of a fight.

The Rangers took a 1-0 lead in the first on a Prince Fielder RBI single, but it was in the third when the home team really pulled away.

After Severino logged the first two outs with ease, Texas put two on with back-to-back hits -- prompting Severino to load the bases with an intentional walk of Fielder. The strategy failed, however; the next man up, Ian Desmond, drew a walk of his own, and from there the floodgates were opened.

Mitch Moreland ripped a two-run single to center, Severino let another run cross on a wild pitch, and Elvis Andrus plated one more with line-drive to left.

Before you knew it, the Yankees were down 6-0 and Severino was on his way to a third straight loss.

In relief of the youngster, Ivan Nova was solid, working four innings and allowing three earned runs. His outing saved the rest of the bullpen -- with the exception of Chasen Shreve -- from similar mop-up duty, keeping the club's late-inning duo of Dellin Betances and Andrew Miller available for Wednesday's finale.

But that's about the only positive the Yankees can salvage from this blowout.

The Yanks' bats managed just four hits in eight innings against right-hander A.J. Griffin, who walked one and struck out five. Their lone run came in the seventh, when Mark Teixeira cracked a single with runners on the corners.

Needless to say, the Yankees will be hoping for a better result in the rubber game.

WHAT IT MEANS: The Yankees suffered their worst defeat of the season, dropping their record to 8-11. They are 0-4 this year with Severino on the mound.

NEXT UP: The Yankees and Rangers wrap up this series on Wednesday. CC Sabathia (1-1, 5.28 ERA) and Martin Perez (0-2, 4.50 ERA) are slated to be your starters, with first pitch set for 8:05 p.m. ET.

Andrus to Yankees Not Likely to Happen

Though the idea of the Yankees acquiring Rangers' SS Elvis Andrus this offseason may sound exciting, a source in contact with The New York Daily News' Mark Feinsand says it's unlikely.

Or, rather, the source said the exchange happening is the "longest of long shots." According to it, the Yankees have no interest in taking on the length or cost of Andrus' contract, which doesn't even start until next seaason.

From Feinsand's report:

"A source told the Daily News a trade for the Rangers’ 26-year-old shortstop is nothing but the longest of long shots, as the Yankees have no interest taking on his massive contract.

One executive believes it would take “a huge leap of faith” to deal for Andrus, who signed an eight-year, $120 million extension with the Rangers that begins this upcoming season."

The Yankees were rumored to be "intrigued" by Andrus a few days ago, and with good reason. Andrus is still relatively young, has made two All-Star teams since 2009, and is a .272 career hitter. 

Nonetheless, it appears the Yankees just don't see him as worth the price. Expect them to now turn to cheaper options (probably Stephen Drew, but nothing's guaranteed) to fill the position.

The Last Time the Yankees Acquired a Texas Rangers Shortstop

News broke yesterday on the blog that the New York Yankees would at least kick the tires on acquiring Texas Rangers shortstop Elvis Andrus in a trade this winter. It is no secret that the Yankees are in the market for a shortstop and it’s also no mystery why most of the rumors regarding the position have been via trades. The free agent market is dry at the position and so it the farm system. Do we not remember the last time the Yankees acquired a shortstop from the Texas Rangers after the team had a change of heart after handing out a lofty contract?

The Yankees acquired Alex Rodriguez from the Rangers before the 2004 season for Alfonso Soriano and others while Texas kicked in a ton of cash. Truth be told that was a great deal for the Yankees as Texas was paying a huge chunk of Rodriguez’s salary while New York was getting MVP caliber seasons and awards out of their new third baseman. It wasn’t until A Rod opted out during the World Series and subsequently signed a new 10 year deal that the deal went sour but I digress, should the Yankees really bail out the Texas Rangers once again? In a word, and reluctantly, yes.

Basically Andrus is being paid for the eight eight seasons through the 2022 season at $120 million, or an AAV of $15 million. If the Yankees can pay a 40 year old Derek Jeter $17 million then I see Andrus as an absolute steal at a $2 million savings. This is before Texas presumably eats some salary to help the trade move along. Andrus is 27 years old and while he has his question marks and concerns attached to him honestly, who doesn’t?

Sure you could give Stephen Drew a one year pillow contract but then what? The shortstop free agent market looks worse next season then it does this season. The Yankees best and closest shortstop prospects are in A Ball and won’t be ready by 2016. A fresh team with a new atmosphere can do wonders for a players especially when they are playing for the New York Yankees. I don’t necessarily worry about him coming into camp 15 lbs. overweight last spring and I don’t worry that he is just a .272 career hitter. Andrus would make this team exponentially better and is probably the best shortstop that has been made available this winter, including Troy Tulowitzki, and if New York can snag him for a reasonable prospects deal I would do it in a heartbeat.

Andrus does not change the whole dynamic of the team and the middle of the order like a Hanley Ramirez would but he would inject speed on the base paths, flexibility in the field, and a gritty average at the plate. The Yankees are building a team with all three of those components and Andrus fits all three of those components, add the fact that New York would get his entire prime and can move him to second or third base if need be by the end of the contract this seems like a no-brainer to me. Get it done. 

Rumor: Yankees "Intrigued" By Rangers SS Andrus

The Yankees are "at least intrigued" by Rangers SS Elvis Andrus, The New York Post's Joel Sherman reports. 

Andrus, who has played for Texas since his rookie year of 2009, is a .272 career hitter. He was an integral part of the the teams who took home AL pennants in 2010 and 2011, and has appeared in two All-Star games. 

However, he does have some negatives.

From Sherman's article:

"Andrus’ eight-year, $120 million extension does not even begin until next season and runs through at least 2022. Texas would love to unload that deal as it searches this market for starting pitching. The Rangers can go inexpensive in the middle infield with some combination of Rougned Odor, Jurickson Profar and Luis Sardinas. However, they would be more comfortable doing that if they knew for sure Profar was going to be healthy moving forward after missing all of 2014 after tearing (then re-tearing) a muscle in his shoulder."

Indeed, Andrus will cost the Yankees a good amount of money. According to Sherman, he also showed up to spring training overweight this year, something that may have factored into his being caught steeling 15 times (most in the league) over the course of the schedule.

So yes, in some ways, it certainly seems that Andrus isn't someone worth acquring. Nonetheless, since he's still a relatively young 27 and probably a better offensive contributor than Stephen Drew, it's still a possibility that the Yankees' will make a run at him this winter, as expensive as he is.

What do you guys think?

If Brian Cashman Isn’t Already Calling the Texas Rangers He Should Be

If Brian Cashman hasn’t already made the phone call to the Texas Rangers about a potential trade then maybe he should be because his job is likely depending on it. The Rangers recently announced that ace starting pitcher Yu Darvish, third baseman Adrian Beltre, shortstop Elvis Andrus, and Shin-Soo Choo all cleared waivers and can be traded to any team for the rest of the season. Also by the end of the week Neal Cotts is likely to have cleared as well which begs the question, does Brian Cashman have one more blockbuster in him that may potentially save his job?

The biggest obstacle in any potential trade is that the Rangers think they can and plan to contend in 2015 with ¾ of the team back healthy next season. The Rangers are unlikely to want to unload any of the aforementioned players except for maybe Cotts. Cotts would be a nice rental for New York but would not be enough to push the team over the edge. Beltre would be a nice addition and is definitely a bat you make room for but would not be as high on the priority list in my book as a Choo or an Andrus would be. Choo would bring a ton of on base percentage to the team and give Joe Girardi three options to play center field at any given day. The Yankees may have the best outfield defense in all of baseball with the addition of Choo. Andrus could easily be the shortstop of the future replacing Derek Jeter next season and replacing Stephen Drew at second base for this season.

It is probably a pipe dream for any of these players to come to New York but the rotation would be scary good again with a healthy Michael Pineda, Masahiro Tanaka, and Yu Darvish to join Hiroki Kuroda, Brandon McCarthy, and Shane Greene. The infield defense would shine with the addition of Andrus and the offense may finally get the jolt it needs with any of Choo or Beltre. It’s unlikely but Cashman better be on the phones now because once again, his job more than likely depends on it. 

Phelps Falls Apart in Fifth as Yankees Drop Opener in Texas

Derek Jeter collected three hits to pass Carl Yastrzemski on the all-time list and Brett Gardner homered twice off Yu Darvish, but due to a memorable collapse by David Phelps in the bottom of the fifth the Yankees dissapointingly dropped tonight's series opener to the Rangers 4-2.

Going into that aforementioned fifth frame, somewhat surprisingly, New York led Texas 2-0 on those solo shots from Gardner, making a big W to begin the week seem likely.

Unfortunetaly, though, that wouldn't prove to be the case, with the Rangers beginning a tough-to-watch rally with two outs and a man on second.

To start things off, the ice-cold Elvis Andrus singled in Chris Gimenez, putting Texas on the board in a not-too-stressful way.

Nonetheless, following another knock up the middle from Alex Rios and a double down the left field line from Adrian Beltre that tied it, things became a lot more tough, with another two-run single by newest Yankee-killer J.P. Arencibia only acting as the icing on the cake.

Because from that point on, the punchless Yanks didn't do anything against Darvish (7 IP, 2 ER), causing Phelps and his six frames of four-run ball to eventually take the loss, his first since June 7.

It Is Time To Sell: Brett Gardner

Writing this article really hurts me as a fan of not only the Yankees but of Brett Gardner as well. Gardner has never gotten the respect he deserved since breaking in with the Yankees from having to split time with Melky Cabrera to getting booted out of center field for a lesser defender in Curtis Granderson. Now for him to be included in any kind of trade rumor at his age, salary, and performance is a travesty to him but it makes too much sense not to at this point. Again, much like Hiroki Kuroda's post from yesterday, I realize that this is a pipe dream and I realize that Brett Gardner probably gets claimed and does not clear waivers. It's a pipe dream but, again, so are the Yankees playoff hopes these days so bear with me.

Brett Gardner has been one of the few Yankees that has been in the lineup every day (for the most part) and healthy all season long. Gardner leads the teams in stolen bases, on base percentage, is probably our best defender in the outfield, and the catalyst at the top of the order with his gritty and grinding at bats. He is a lead off hitter and a center fielder and would be the perfect fit on almost any team looking for speed and stolen bases. Gardner is arbitration eligible for the final time next season as well so he would not exactly be a rental player either, which never hurts. What contender would be in the market for a Brett Gardner you say? I'm glad you asked...

First off I cannot see us ever trading to anyone within the division, especially for a guy of the caliber of Brett Gardner, so that is off the table automatically. The Cleveland Indians have a plethora of outfielders so they are out, the Washington Nationals got their man finally when they acquired Denard Span, the Diamondbacks were willing to move Jason Kubel which tells me they would not be in the market for Gardner, and the Cardinals once again seem content to stand pat with hat they have in the farm system. That leaves, as much as it pains me to say this, the Nelson Cruz-less Texas Rangers. An Elvis Andrus for Brett Gardner straight up trade makes a ton of sense for both teams because the Rangers get the outfielder they suddenly need while creating room for Jurickson Profar and the Yankees get their current and future short stop to replace Derek Jeter when he finally decided to hang them up.

Again this is probably a dream and extremely unrealistic but these are just for fun anyway so might as well go all out, no? How good would Andrus look in the pinstripes manning short stop on Opening Day in 2014 or 2015?

Elvis Andrus Signs Extension With Rangers

Elvis Andrus and the Rangers have agreed on an extension that will keep the shortstop in Texas through 2022. The contract includes $120 million of new money for Andrus, upping the total amount to $131.275.

I know a lot of people will be upset by this news, seeing as how Andrus may very well have been the heir to Derek Jeter, as his now old contract was set to expire at the same time Jeter's did.

Justin Verlander, Buster Posey, and Adam Wainwright signed extensions with their respective teams last week. While reporting the news regarding Verlander I wrote the following...

The Yankees should throw their old "we don't negotiate extensions" policy completely out the window. Not only have they already broken that policy in the past, but allowing somebody like Robinson Cano or Phil Hughes to reach free agency could make their price go through the roof. If they are two of the best on the market at their respective positions, then there will be plenty of teams with enough money to drive their price way up (*cough*Dodgers*cough*).

One thing that's brought up quite a bit in regards to Robinson Cano signing an extension is that Robbie is a Scott Boras client, and Boras is not one to let any money slip away. Meaning going to free agency, in order to start a bidding war for his client, seemed inevitable. But the news of Elvis Andrus, also a Boras client, signing an extension with the Rangers gives me reason to think otherwise.

It really looks like the next free agency season is going to involve a ton of money being thrown around. Let's hope Cano, and possibly Hughes, aren't lured away from New York.