First Quarter Report - NL East
Jun 1st, 2007 by winabango
Over the last week I have been taking a look at the first quarter of the baseball season. Now it is time to move on to the National League. Today I am starting with the East. The Mets are showing that they are THE team to beat in the National League. My beloved Phillies are toying with me, and the Braves are good as always. Here are some observations from the NL East:
Surprise Player
Kelly Johnson, 2B ATL - This has been my best pick in late rounds of the draft. His defense has been solid, and he has shown a good mix of power (7 HR) and speed (5 SB) from a leadoff hitter. He has also produced 40 runs scored, which means has has done a great job of getting on base. Another candidate to for surprise player would have also been Tim Hudson.
Disappointing Player
Ryan Zimmerman, 3B WAS - The super rookie from last year has done nothing but struggle this year. Not having any offensive help will also do that. Austin Kearns can also be listed here, but most owners did not use a high pick on Kearns like they did for Zimmerman. Over the last few weeks Zimmerman has begun to heat it up a bit, but his first quarter performance was terrible.
Most Costly Injury to Owners
Ryan Howard, 1B PHI - What can I say about Howard that no one else has said. He has all types of injuries and struggles a the plate this year, and most owners used a first round pick on him. The Phillies were worried about someone to protect Howard in the lineup. Maybe they should have found someone to protect him from getting injured
Player to Watch
Andruw Jones, OF ATL - I am not sure as to what to think about Jones. His track record indicates that he will have a monster 2nd quarter to the year. However, He has only hit just over .230 since last August. That is more of a trend instead of a slump. I think if you have him on your roster, be patient, unless you get a fantastic offer for him.
Team Stats
Most runs scored - Philadelphia (274)
Most Homeruns - Florida (60)
Most Walks - Philadelphia (214)
Most Strikeouts - Florida (461)
Lowest Team ERA - New York (3.35)
Lowest Opponent Batting AVE - New York (.307)
Most Strikeouts - Philadelphia (387)
Best Fielding Percentage - New York (.989)
Most Double Plays - Philadelphia (54)
Most Errors - Florida (47)
As my two year-old son says: “Yeah Phillies” Their offense and starting pitching aresolid, but the stupid bullpen is killing me. The Met’s low team ERA is not a fluke. Reyes, Beltran, and Valentine (when healthy) create the best defense up the middle of any team. The Phillies and Braves also have solid defense up the middle. That means that all three of those teams are good teams to do pitch-and-ditch with there lower tier starters, unless they are facing each other. However, if they are facing the weak Nationals, then go for it.
Let me first say that I am impressed (and appreciative!) that you’ve kept up with your blogs. A lot of fantasy baseball blogs have fizzled for all sorts of reasons but you’ve kept up, so major props for your diligence. I been following your tips in one of my leagues and it’s helped me out..especially your suggestion of Reggie Willits.
On a different note, I’m considering dropping a few players in a super-deep league (20 teams, 23 man rosters (3 bench)..keeper league)…B.Giles, Cust, Billy Butler, Henry Owens and Andrew Miller all on the chopping block.
We play w/hitting walks, hitting strikeouts and also holds, but w/a shallow bench, I need to consistently weigh the pros and cons of holding the young guns like Butler and Miller.
Would you dump any of those guys for: Stairs, Doumit, or Andy Laroche?? Also, what do you predict for Zach Duke, Kerry Wood, and Messenger (now that he’s in SF)?
Thanks in advance for all your help.
Rick,
Thanks for the compliments. I have done my best to keep up with things even with a newborn that is only a month old.
At this point I would cut bait with Cust and Owens right now. Cust will be losing playing time shortly, and Benitez will prevent from Owens closing anytime soon. Right now I like Stairs (short term) and LaRoche (long term). I am not sold on Duke. He doesn’t have a strikeout pitch, and the Pirates defense is not good enough to keep his BABIP down.
Kelly
Hi Kelly,
I agree with Rick…you have done a real good job here and offer very to the point and insightful analysis. Allow me to offer up these runner-ups to your quarterly awards:
Surprise player: JJ Hardy…I never expected this monster start!
Disappointing Player: This could be a pretty long list, but I will go with Konerko. Another Chicago player, albeit a different team, would be Soriano. Of all the disappointing players, these two take the cake.
Costly to injury: Chris Carpenter. Many a staff was anchored with Carp and he is likely done for the year.
Player to Watch: Has to be Pronk! Hafner is only at about 60% of the production people expected this year, but he has started to right the ship. I expect big things from here on out.
Just my humble opinion.
Thanks
Ed