Yardbarker: Hanley Ramirez

Marlins cancel shuttle

Fri, 25 Jul 2008 19:38:53 -0500

MIAMI, FL — The Florida Marlins have announced that they are canceling the eco-friendly shuttle that the team launched a couple weeks ago, due to a general lack of interest. “It’s not worth it to cart Dan Uggla back and forth from the park by himself,” said Fredi Gonzalez, the Marlins manager. “I mean, Uggs is [...]

MLB Status Check (7/24)

Fri, 25 Jul 2008 06:39:25 -0500

Screaming Sports' Billy Smith checks in on some of the mega-hyped offseason stars, as well as the not-so-hyped offseason stars. Who is living up to it? Who isn't? And who is coming out of left field? Billy has all of those answers for you.

MLB Busts of the Week - Week 16

Tue, 22 Jul 2008 07:11:36 -0500

Which fantasy studs dropped the ball last week? And which "sleepers" fell short of their hyped billing? Screaming Sports' Andrew Thibodeau runs down an eight-player list of fantasy bombs.

MLB Top 50 fantasy players - July 18

Sat, 19 Jul 2008 15:50:15 -0500

Foxsports.com fantasy writer Gerritt Ritt's list of the Top 50 fantasy players in MLB. Josh Hamilton leads in RBI and is hitting more than .300 makes him the first half's top fantasy player. These rankings are updated weekly during the MLB season.

Mid Season Report

Thu, 17 Jul 2008 23:54:07 -0500

The first half of the 2008 Major League Baseball season has been full of surprises, from the Tigers to the Rays to the Padres to the Braves. Most surprising of all, at least to the Phillies faithful, is that at the All Star break the Phillies were in first place atop the National League East. The Phillies are currently a half a game ahead of the Mets and one a half games up on the Marlins. Lets go through the majors and recap the season so far. AL East Perhaps the biggest story in the majors this year is the surprising play of the Tampa Bay Rays, who at the break were just half a game behind the first place Red Sox, and that's with a seven game losing streak. The Rays have been bolstered by one of the most talented young lineups in the majors in years, as well as some timely defense and a great, young rotation led by ace Scott Kazmir. They are definitely the Cinderella, the darlings of the 2008 season, much to the chagrin to their division rivals the Red Sox. Boston fans are upset that some of the media focus and the limelight has been diverted from their beloved Sox. The reigning champs continue to be one of the best teams in baseball, despite losing pitcher Curt Schilling for the year (and perhaps for good) and a decline in production from slugger David Ortiz (including a stint on the disabled list). It looks like this could be the first time in years that the New York Yankees won't make the playoffs. They currently sit six games back of Boston and it just looks like there is too much talent in Tampa and Boston for the Yanks to make up enough ground. That being said, I am loathe to ever count the Yankees out of anything. Red Sox win division. If it wasn't for the Rays, the debacle in the AL Central would be the biggest story of the season. The Tigers, whom I picked to win the World Series, are a disappointing .500 on the season. Even more surprising, the Indians are in last place, 12 games under .500. The Chicago White Sox are sitting pretty atop the Central at 14 games over .500, led by 10 game winner, and former Phillie, Gavin Floyd. Erratic closer Bobby Jenks, despite being on the DL, has 18 saves with a 1.95 ERA. On offense, the White Sox have a tandem of heavy hitting outfielders in Jermaine Dye and Carlos Quentin. I have to admit, I'm not overly impressed by the White Sox. In large part, I think they have overachieved so far this season. I think they will come back to earth, which will leave an opening for the Minnesota Twins to step in and take the division. The Twins, led by first baseman Justin Morneau, DH Jason Kubel, and catcher Joe Mauer, are right on the tail of the White Sox, just a game and a half back, and with star pitcher Francisco Liriano waiting in the wings of AAA, the Twins are poised to move into the post Santana era. Twins win the division. AL West Until the Texas Rangers find someone who can pitch (Vicente Padilla currently leads the team in wins with 10), the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim are the prohibitive favorites to win the division for years to come. The Rangers can hit, led by the top individual story of the year Josh Hamilton, Ian Kinsler and Milton Bradley, but their pitching is a joke. They boast a rotation of Kevin Millwood, Padilla, Jamey Wright and Kason Gabbard. Until they can get at least one pitcher, they could have all the offense in the world, they still won't be able to compete with Los Angeles. The Angels' pitching rotation, which boasts John Lackey, Ervin Santana, Joe Saunders and Jered Weaver, not to mention closer Francisco Rodriguez who is on pace to shatter the single season saves record, is arguably the best in the majors. Their offense, while not being the power heavy lineup that Texas or Boston has, plays small ball like no other team in the majors. The obvious offensive leader is Vladimir Guerrero, accompanied by Torii Hunter. But the offense works so well because of intelligent baseball guy like Chone Figgins, Howie Kendrick, and Garret Anderson. The Oakland Athletics have basically traded themselves out of contention and the Seattle Mariners have the worst record in baseball. Needless to say, Angels win the division. I think the Rays win the AL Wild card this year. They are too talented to fall behind the likes of the White Sox or Rangers. In the end however, the Red Sox have too much experience and skill to be taken down. They beat the Angels to go on to the World Series. NL West Many commentators are calling this the NL Worst, and it's hard to argue with that. After starting out red hot, division leading Arizona is now one game below .500. That's right. The division leader has a losing record. Need I say more? The reigning NL Champion Colorado Rockies are fourth in the division with a record of 39-57, topped only by the San Diego Padres, an incomprehensible 37-58. The Dodgers are one game back of the Diamondbacks, trailed by the San Francisco Giants in third place. This division is a crapshoot at this point, but the Diamondbacks' pitching, led by Brandon Webb and Dan Haren is just too good and the offense is not going to continue to struggle in the mighty fashion it has over the past month or so. With up and coming stars like Mark Reynolds, Conor Jackson and Chris Young, the Diamondbacks are going to eventually right their ship. Arizona wins the division. NL Central This is the best division in baseball. The Cubs are tied with the Angels for the best record in baseball. Four and a half games behind them are the Cardinals, with the Brewers just a half game behind them. All three of these teams are going to be better in the second half. The Cubs traded for Rich Harden last week, and the Brewers added reigning AL Cy Young Award winner CC Sabathia. The Cardinals are getting ready for the return of Adam Wainwright and former Cy Young Chris Carpenter. Both pitchers are aces on almost any other team in the majors. The Cubs and Brewers already have bona fide aces on their teams in Carlos Zambrano and Ben Sheets, respectively. This is, without a doubt, the toughest division in baseball in some time. I think the Cubs are ultimately the most complete team in the league, and certainly the division. Now let me just say, here and now, there is no way Ryan Dempster continues to pitch this well. He just isn't this good. He will come back down to earth. But even with The Dumpster coming back to reality, the Cubs are bolstered by some serviceable pitching in Ted Lilly and Jason Marquis, in addition to Zambrano and Harden. On offense, the Cubs' lineup reads like it's very own All Star roster, led by Derek Lee, Alfonso Soriano, Aramis Ramirez, and Geovany Soto. Cubs win the division. NL East The Phillies came into today with a half game lead over the Mets. The Marlins sit just one game behind the Mets. It is a division up for grabs to say the least. The Marlins boast a talented, young roster rivaled by only Tampa Bay and Arizona. Led by Hanley Ramirez, Mike Jacobs, Dan Uggla and Josh Willingham, they have an offense that puts the in a position to win every night. That being said, their pitching is thin, with Ricky Nolasco leading the team with 10 wins and a 3.70 ERA. The Braves are most likely looking to scrap this year and go into rebuilding mood, if only temporarily. First baseman Mark Teixeira is a free agent at the end of this year and chances are that the Braves are going to move him before the trade deadline. Their pitching is pretty banged up, and old. John Smoltz, Tom Glavine and Mike Hampton are all currently on the disabled list. Not to mention that they are six and a half games out of first place. The Mets pose the biggest threat to the Phillies' playoff hopes. Winners of nine straight coming into the break, the Mets are batting .320 as a team during that time. They also only gave up a total of 19 runs over the same span. They are hot, no doubt, led by Carlos Delgado, Carlos Beltran, and Fernando Tatis. But therein lies the problem for the Mets. They have been winning in large part as a result of the contributions of usual bench players like Tatis, Endy Chavez, and Damion Easley. The Mets' pitching is also suspect after you get past Johan Santana and John Maine, neither of whom have been stellar this season. After having a impressive season last year, Oliver Perez is 6-5 with a 4.44 ERA. His record is somewhat deceiving, as he has been wildly inconsistent this year. Pedro Martinez continues to battle being really old. Originally set to return this week, his next start is being skipped. I just don't think the Mets have the talent to overcome a Phils team with a much more potent offense and what could end up being a more stable pitching rotation. The Phillies acquired Joe Blanton from the Athletics Thursday, and while Blanton has not had much of a year so far this season (5-12, 4.96 ERA), he has show some real talent and a change of location could be all he needs to break out. More importantly, the addition of Blanton means that Adam Eaton is out of the starting rotation. Brett Myers is progressing nicely in AAA and is set to return to face the Mets on July 23rd. JA Happ threw a no hitter today in his minor league start and it is only a matter of time before he is brought up to the major leagues for good. The biggest cause for concern for the Mets is that the Phils' struggles have in large part been due to a lack of offense. This coming from one of the most offensively talented teams in the league. Jimmy Rollins, Chasey Utley and Geoff Jenkins are eventually going to turn things around. Ryan Howard continues to lead the league in home runs and RBIs. Pat Burrell is going to eclipse his usual 30 home runs and 100 RBIs. And that's without the possible addition of another bat, like Matt Holliday or Jason Bay. I say this with the caveat that I generally have no faith in the Phillies in ever winning anything, and at the risk of tempting fate, I pick the Phillies to win the division. I pick the Brewers to win the NL Wild Card this year. I'm going to be very cliche and pick the Cubs to win the NL Pennant over the Brewers. I think unless the Phillies add a serious starting pitcher, ala Erik Bedard, they are not going to be able to compete with the Brewers in the playoffs. That will bring us to the ESPN's ultimate dream, a Red Sox Cubs World Series. Bristol could fawn all over the lovable losers from Chicago and Boston. Seriously though, just thinking about it makes me want to throw up. Boston wins, again. (Just threw up again) Should be a very exciting second half. Continue to check out Hot Stove Philly as we bring you all the latest scores, trades, rumors, and general sports drama.

First Half Fantasy MVP Awards

Thu, 17 Jul 2008 21:40:47 -0500

Check out the first half, fantasy baseball MVP's from every position.

The Best Hitters Up to the All Star Break

Thu, 17 Jul 2008 12:30:36 -0500

This one surprised me, I was expecting to see either Atlanta's 3B Chipper Jones* or CF Josh Hamilton** of the Rangers on top of this list, but instead, we find Houston's 1B Lance Berkman** just edging out Hamilton. In fact, Jones doesn't even make this top 20 list as he has begun to come down to earth. The big difference between Hamilton and Berkman seems to be stolen bases, average and OBP as the differences in runs scored HRs and RBIs seem to offset themselves. Rounding out the remaining top 5 spots are the Ranger's 2B Ian Kinsler*, Phillies 1B Ryan Howard and their 2B Chase Utley**. Please, no booing, he doesn't like it and I can't say that I blame him. Numbers 6 to 20 are as follows: the Marlins SS Hanley Ramirez**, Pirates CF Nate McLouth*, Mets CF Carlos Beltran, White Sox LF Carlos Quentin*, Indians CF Grady Sizemore* and the Mets 3B David Wright*. Then we have the Mets SS Jose Reyes, the Cardinals OF Ryan Ludwick*, Padres 1B Adrian Gonzalez* and Brewers LF Ryan Braun**. Then there were the Cubs 1B Carlos Lee and the Reds 2B Brandon Phillips who are both having All Star type of years, but hey, they can't all play in the game. Returning to the All Star cast is Marlins 2B Dan Uggla* who might have wished that Phillips was selected in his place (his 3 errors in the game set a new All Star game record) and Cubs 3B Aramis Ramirez*. Lastly, we have D'Backs 3B Mark Reynolds. The Fall Guys These are the players in which I expect to fall out of this top 20 list by the end of the season: Lance Berkman**: I may be wrong, he may just slip to the end of this list due to his great first half. I still do not see him maintaining these type of numbers for a whole year, same thing applies to these next four players except that I do not expect to see them on this list at all come October: Nate McLouth*, Carlos Quentin*, Dan Uggla* and Mark Reynolds. The Real Deals These are the players in which I think will either keep up these numbers, fall just shy of them or might even improve upon them. Josh Hamilton** may not hit 40 HRs and knock in 180 RBIs, but he should be good for at least 35 HRs (and may still hit 40) and 120-130 RBIs with a .300+ average and .360+ OBP. I expect Howards' average to climb back to a more respectable figure (like say maybe .250) and Utley* will make a MVP run. Hanley Ramirez** and Grady Sizemore* are right on track to where they should be but I don't think they'll go 40/40, the HRs may not get that high. Beltran, Reyes, Wright*, Phillips, Lee and Aramis Ramirez* should also all stay the course with their current numbers. *All of these players where reserves on the 2008 All Star team. **All of these players where elected or selected starters in the 2008 All Star game.

My Bronx Boo's and Cheers

Wed, 16 Jul 2008 18:27:26 -0500

Heads up, this article is about to be as unprofessional as Tim McCarver. No paragraphs? Unbelievable! Speaking of McCarver, why didn't Joe Buck throw him out of the booth? McCarver stumbled through yet another broadcast, constantly slipping up and making suggestions that simply weren't true. For instance, after Hanley Ramirez's errant throw [...]

Random All Star Festivities Thoughts

Tue, 15 Jul 2008 18:32:56 -0500

You know me and my random thoughts that seem to go in many tangeants. Well it seems that I have a lot of things to talk about during the All-Star Break but unfortunately nothing of great substance. So here's a few quick hits to let you know what's going on at The BearDown during the slowest sports week of the year.

MLB Fantasy Minute - Week 15

Tue, 15 Jul 2008 08:01:17 -0500

Screaming Sports' Phil Yoon breaks out his famed MLB Fantasy Minute and breaks down the MLB's top five stories. Slow and steady wins the pitching race. Fill-in closers are getting the job done. And is Ryan Howard a fantasy MVP? Mr. Yoon has all if it covered and much more.

Roto Reference First Half Fantasy All-Stars

Mon, 14 Jul 2008 23:32:58 -0500

*Hint* Josh Hamilton isn't just a Home Run Derby Wonder!

Break Work: One Sentence to Sum Up Each MLB Team

Mon, 14 Jul 2008 18:13:52 -0500

LA Angels (57-38): Pitching, Pitching, Pitching has the Angels tied for the best record in baseball.

Chicago Cubs (57-38): The Cubs are also tied for the best record, their reason though is that they never ever lose at Wrigley.

Boston (57-40): The youth pitching is once again paying off major dividends for the Sox who behind JD Drew have regained the AL East lead despite the absence of Papi.

Tampa Bay (55-39): If the Rays played all their games at the Trop they would probably be 30 games over .500.

Chicago Sox (54-40): Anybody who said that they saw Carlos Quentin having 70 rbi at the break to help the ChiSox to first place is a liar.

Minnesota (53-42): The Twinkies have gotten solid pitching from a bunch of youngsters and should be bringing Liriano up to increase the push to the division.

St. Louis (53-43): Ludwick and Ankiel both have 20 homers getting the Cardinals to a spot where they probably shouldn't be.

Milwaukee (52-43): CC has already shown his worth in one 1 week, with him and Sheets leading the rotation the Brewers look to be in the hunt for both the Wild Card and the division.

Philadelphia (52-44): After Cole Hamels there's a big gap in the starting rotation that needs to be addressed.

Oakland (51-44): Selling off pitchers despite being 7 games above .500 seems like giving up to me.

NY Mets (51-44): A 9 game winning streak to close out the first half of the season certainly makes the future look brighter.

NY Yankees (50-45): For some reason despite having all stars at every position the Yankees get shut out a lot.

Florida (50-45): Hanley Ramirez is a golden god who can be stopped by no one.

Texas (50-46): Check that, Josh Hamilton is a platinum god who can be stopped by no one.

Detroit (47-47): Dug themselves out of a hole when their bats finally started to heat up, poised for a second half explosion.

Toronto (47-48): The Blue Jays have been terribly inconsistent despite Roy Halladay being a beast.

Arizona (47-48): Starting the NL Western theme the reason the Diamondbacks are under .500 is because they don't have any good hitters.

LA Dodgers (46-49): Rafael Furcal has been a massive kick in the junk to both my fantasy team and the Dodgers who really really really need him in the lineup to score runs.

Baltimore (45-48): Um, I really have no idea how the Orioles are only slightly below .500 this season and I'm guessing they don't either.

Cincinnati (46-50): Edinson Volquez's dominating season has been balanced out by Bronson Arroyo and Aaron Haraang's poor seasons.

Atlanta (45-50): Injuries to the starting rotation and bullpen and an inability to win on the road has plagued the Braves this year.

Pittsburgh (44-50): Snell and Gorzy were both solid last season, this year they both have ERAs well above 6.

Houston (44-51): The questionable starting rotation has not been helped by #1 starters Roy Oswalt's inconsistencies.

Kansas City (43-53): The Royals don't have the worst record in their division which has to be seen as a big positive in KC.

Cleveland (41-53): Victor Martinez and Travis Hafner were terrible disappointments this season, and that was before both got placed on the DL.

San Francisco (40-55): When Fred Lewis, Randy Winn, and Aaron Rowand are your best hitters, you know you're not going to score many runs.

Colorado (39-57): The magical run that was slaughtered by the Red Sox, has remained dead this season.

Seattle (37-58): If anything could go wrong in Seattle, it has.

San Diego (37-58): Once again, hitting is entirely optional for the fathers.

Washington (36-60): A lineup as bad as the Giants and Padres, except with no starting pitching either.

All-Star Lineups

Mon, 14 Jul 2008 13:34:20 -0500

AL Lineup:

1. rf Ichiro Suzuki

2. ss Derek Jeter

3. cf Josh Hamilton

4. 3b Alex Rodriguez

5. lf Manny Ramirez

6. dh Milton Bradley

7. 1b Kevin Youkilis

8. c Joe Mauer

9. 2b Dustin Pedroia

P Cliff Lee

NL

1. ss Hanley Ramirez

2. 2b Chase Utley

3. 1b Lance Berkman

4. dh Albert Pujols

5. 3b Chipper Jones

6. rf Matt Holliday

7. lf Ryan Braun

8. cf Kosuke Fukudome

9. C Geovany Soto

P Ben Sheets

NL Batters Reign Supreme

Sun, 13 Jul 2008 11:10:03 -0500

Yeah, the AL dominates in interleague play, but the NL has the best batters.

Fantasy Baseball Players of the Day - 7/10/08

Fri, 11 Jul 2008 10:29:28 -0500

Thursday, July 10th Justin Morneau went 5 for 5 with 2 Runs, 2 Doubles, a Walk, and an 11th Inning Game-winning HR. Hanley Ramirez went 5 for 6 with 2 Runs, a Double, a HR, and an RBI. Ryan Howard smacked two more HRs with 3 RBI. Fernando Tatis went 3 for 5 with a Run, 2 Doubles, a HR, and 4 RBI. Denard Span and Michael Young each banged out 4 Hits. Ken Griffey, Jr. went 2 for 5 with 2 Runs, a Double, a HR, and RBI. David Ross went 3 for 4 with 2 Runs, 2 HRs, and 2 RBI. Ben Francisco went 3 for 5 with 2 Runs, a HR, and 4 RBI. Howie Kendrick went 3 for 5 with 3 Runs, a Double, 2 HRs, 3 RBI, and a Walk. Nick Punto. Marcus Thames, Jeff Larish, Gabe Kapler, Jeff Keppinger, Joey Votto, Willie Bloomquist, Aaron Lind, Stephen Drew, Chad Tracy, Conor Jackson, Cristian Guzman, Juan Rivera, Ramon Vazquez, Jorge Cantu, and Chris Davis each had 3 Hits. Ryan Braun, David Dellucci, Austin Kearns, and Casey Blake each had 3 RBI. Mike Fontenot scored 3 Runs. Dave Bush pitched a gem allowing 1 Run on 4 Hits in 8 Innings with 13 Ks to improve to 5-8. Jamie Moyer threw 7 strong Innings allowing 1 Run to improve to 8-6 with a 3.95 ERA. R.A. Dickey (7 scoreless Innings, 4 Hits) and Greg Smith (6 scoreless Innings, 4 Hits) each got no-decisions. Aaron Laffey gave up 2 Runs on 4 Hits in 6 Innings to even his record at 5-5 with a 3.45 ERA. Paul Maholm gave up 2 Runs in 8 Innings to improve to 6-5 with a 3.93 ERA. Mike Mussina gave up 2 Runs in a 6 Inning no-decision. Jeremy Guthrie gave up 1 Earned Run on 4 Hits in a 7 Inning no-decision. Dan Haren (8 Innings, 1 Earned Run, 3 Hits, 9 Ks) and Jason Bergmann (7 Innings, 2 Runs) each earned no-decision. Zack Greinke gave up 1 Run with 8 Ks in a 7 Inning no-decision. Mark Buehrle gave up 2 unearned Run in 7 Innings with 8 Ks, but took a Loss.