With September Call Ups It’s Not Too Late to Win Your Fantasy League

The calendar says September which means time is running out both on the 2016 regular season and in your fantasy league which ends a bit before the regular season does. Things may look grim for some teams right now and they may look equally as grim in your fantasy league but have no fear, September call ups are here. What does that mean for you? Well it’s simple, all 30 MLB teams went from having 25 players at their disposal to having 40 options now giving you more opportunities to mix and match. Need stolen bases? Well teams like the Yankees have players like Eric Young Jr. whose sole purpose on the roster is to steal bases and pinch run. Need home runs? Pick up a guy like Aaron Judge who should hit plenty with more than a few strikeouts thrown in the middle. These are just two of many examples of how September call ups can aid you in pushing and potentially winning your fantasy league this season. It’s not too late but it’s getting late, early.

Need Power?

Randal Grichuk had a productive August and it should continue in September for the power hitting Red Birds. Ryan Schimpf has also handled hitting in Petco Park well and has put up impressive power numbers as a second baseman. He, like Aaron Judge, will strikeout a ton though so it’s a double-edged sword.

Need Stolen Bases?

Take your pick. Keon Broxton of Milwaukee steals a ton of bases and gets on base at a .360 OBP clip while Ender Inciarte is a contact hitter with a lot of speed for Atlanta. Nick Franklin of the Tampa Bay Rays is doing enough to remain in the conversation while the Yankees should give Eric Young Jr. plenty of base stealing opportunities with Brian McCann and others in the lineup.

Need Veteran Pitching?

Ivan Nova has been terrific for the Pittsburgh Pirates posting a 2.87 ERA and 0.99 WHIP. Where was this guy when he was with the Yankees? Alex Cobb is also back and will be making his second start in almost two years tonight for the Rays.

Need Rookies?

Byron Buxton has been disappointing to date in his MLB career but he has impressed since his latest call up. Yoan Moncada has impressed as well and should play every day for the remainder on the season. Moncada will strikeout a lot but he adds a lot to almost every other category.

Fantasy Baseball: Who are the St. Louis Cardinals?

The St. Louis Cardinals are one of those teams you have to either love or hate, there probably isn’t much room for middle ground. It seems like no injury, down season or loss in free agency affects this team and it seems like the Cardinals are always right there in the thick of things in the National League. This is done by building a team around depth, versatility and through a trusted and strong farm system. This is something the New York Yankees have just recently tried to do inside their own organization and this is something that you can use to your advantage while playing Fantasy Baseball if you use your head and a little bit of patience. 

Since it’s Prospects Month here on the blog we won’t be talking about the new arrival of Mike Leake or the return of Adam Wainwright. We will instead focus on their young core of players and/or their prospects that could make a big splash around June or July when the next wave of the future usually comes around. 

Matt Carpenter is a huge fantasy player that still a lot of people don’t know about for whatever reason. Carpenter found a power stroke he hasn’t seen before in his career during the 2015 campaign and should regress a bit. That doesn’t mean he will hit less than 20 home runs this season which could be a great addition to your squad. Same can be said for Kolten Wong and his potential 20 home run and 20 stolen base potential next season. 

Speaking of home runs the Cardinals young outfielder Randal Grichuk can give you 30 home run power in St. Louis with enough at bats next season. The problem is he’s likely to hit around .250 - .260 doing it so he shouldn’t be relied upon there. If you need the home runs and RBI though Grichuk should be an interesting later round pick up. 

Finally we have a long shot but still someone you should keep your eye on for that second half push, Alex Reyes. Reyes will serve a 50 game suspension next season and begin his season in Double-A but he is one of the best, if not the best, minor league pitcher in the minor leagues right now and could be up throwing heat later in the year. Keep an eye out for him as the long summer begins to take its toll on some pitchers as he could be the reinforcements your team needs late for that final push to the postseason. 

There you have it, the young guys and prospects from the St. Louis Cardinals organization that can help you win your fantasy league. If this helps you out then give it a share and help someone else out too, I would just advise against sharing it with people within your own league. Just a thought J

Looking Back At My 2015 Rookie of the Year Predictions

Earlier in the season, like every season, I made a fool of myself making a pre-season prediction of who I thought would win the American League and National League Rookie of the Year Awards. I personally thought I had two legit predictions in the Cleveland Indians shortstop Francisco Lindor and the Chicago Cubs star Kris Bryant but almost a full season away it looks like I may once again go 0-2. HERE is the original post, or just see below.

The Rookie of the Year award is probably far and away the hardest to predict every single season, and I show that almost every single season with the wrong predictions. A ton can happen between now and the end of the 2015 season and a lot of it comes out of nowhere. There is always the Josh Harrison that comes out of nowhere that I didn’t see coming and there is always the disappointment in Billy Hamilton that, well, disappointed me. Then there is always the rookie that gets kept down in Triple-A for too long and doesn’t have enough time to showcase enough to win the award and then there is always the guy that wins a job out of camp and shocks the baseball world for three or four months to win the award. I am going to take my best shot at these predictions but I am warning you not to go all Pete Rose and bet on the game because it is very likely I will be completely off base when we revisit this post in November.

For the American League I chose Francisco Lindor of the Cleveland Indians almost by default. I wanted to go with Rusney Castillo of the Boston Red Sox simply because Lindor is a glove first type shortstop but the Indians lineup should be deeper than last season and much improved. Lindor, even hitting near the bottom of the order, should be able to use his speed and his legs to get him a few base hits and keep a respectable average, runs scored, stolen base and RBI count. Lindor may not run away with the award but I think at the end of the day he takes it home for Cleveland.


For the National League Kris Bryant of the Chicago Cubs is becoming a household name after hitting an absolute ton of home runs in the Cactus League this spring. Bryant is the obvious pick and the safe pick but I honestly don’t know enough about the various farms around the league to go against him. I almost wanted to go with his teammate Jorge Soler just because it would be bold and different but then he went and swatted eight home runs in a few weeks’ time and I knew I had to go with Bryant in 2015.

Who expected Carlos Correa to come up and dominate as quickly and as well as he did in the American League? Well obviously I didn't. I had Lindor breaking camp with the Indians and using that extra couple of months of playing time to steal the award but Cleveland had other plans starting him in Triple-A. Oh well, maybe next year (not likely).

I am going to be 100% honest here I never even heard the name Matt Duffy before the 2015 season. I don't pay that close of attention to the San Francisco Giants, or all the non-Yankees teams to be honest, but Duffy has made me change that stance a bit. Duffy is quietly having a better season, in my opinion and I'm sure I'm not the only one, than Kris Bryant, Randal Grichuk, Jung-ho Kang, Joc Pederson and Kyle Schwarber.