Through the first week and a half of games, here are the MLB leaders in runs scored:
- Texas Rangers – 63
- Cleveland Indians – 61
- St. Louis – 59
I don’t know if the Indians and Cardinals have enough depth in their lineups, and the right combination of experience and youth, to keep up this pace all year; but I do know that the Rangers will. Their offense is firing on cylinders and likely won’t slow down.
Moral of the story: target Texas Rangers…in case you hadn’t already figured that out, especially after last night’s 18-run outburst in Boston.
No one is hotter than Josh Hamilton right now. Find a way to get him in your lineups. (Photo by Keith Allison via Wikimedia Commons)
Here are the MLB leaders in runs allowed:
- Boston Red Sox – 68
- Tampa Bay Rays – 64
- Milwaukee Brewers – 61
- Colorado Rockies – 60
- Minnesota Twins – 59
It should not be surprising that a single 18-run game has skewed these standings. That will happen when the overall sample size of the season is small. But don’t be shocked if the Red Sox end up being a pitching staff you target in daily leagues this year; and by target I mean grab hitters facing them.
The Rays and Brewers will pitch better as the season goes along, especially David Price and Zack Greinke, but the Rockies and Twins do have major pitching issues.
Just a few interesting early-season nuggets before we get into today’s tournaments and picks.
Today’s Fantasy Baseball Daily Tournaments
Here are the tournaments I am entering today. Please join me, or comment if below if you want to go head-to-head. I’m happy to start doing some head-to-head contests against MSF readers. (You even get the benefit of knowing who I like!)
- $2 Entry Tournament – $100 Prize Pool: CLICK HERE
- Freeroll Tournament – $50 Prize Pool: CLICK HERE
To see a listing of all Daily Joust tournaments, click here.
Fantasy Baseball Daily Picks
Guys I Like
Texas Rangers
They won’t score 18 runs again, but they won’t be shut down either by Josh Beckett. The former ace has a 5.68 ERA through two starts this year. Most concerning is that he has only struck out four batters in 12 innings. He also has a 5.03 ERA and .280 BAA against lifetime against the Rangers.
Josh Hamilton in particular is a good play. He is 6-14 with 2 HRs v Beckett. He is also the hottest hitter in baseball right now, Matt Kemp included.
Jordan Zimmerman
The Nationals have the best starting pitching staff in baseball right now, at least by the numbers. Jordan Zimmerman is a big part of that, with a 1.29 ERA and 0.79 WHIP in two starts. Gio Gonzalez locked down the hapless Astros last night. Zimmerman could do it again tonight, and for a pretty good price.
Robinson Cano
Soft-tossing Jason Marquis goes into Yankee Stadium tonight to make his first appearance for the rather terrible Twins. Cano has yet to homer on the year, but despite Marquis’ left-handedness, I still have a feeling this will be a good night to have your lefty Yankees in the lineup against him.
(And for what it’s worth, Andruw Jones is 9-12 lifetime off Marquis with 5 HRs and 14 RBI. He is also coming off a 2-5, HR game last night. If he starts, which he seems to be doing against lefties, he could have major value.)
Troy Tulowitzki
Today is a day where the cost to acquire Tulo is most likely worth it. He is 8-15 lifetime off Padres pitcher Clayton Richard. Three of those hits have gone for home runs and he has driven in 10 runs. Expect some fire works at Coors Field tonight.
Nolan Reimold
He is red hot right now, homering in each of his last four games. The White Sox send Jake Peavy to the hill tonight. While he has decent numbers, he’s also given up a decent amount of solid contact. Unless the White Sox just start pitching around Reimold, he could have another solid evening.
Guys I Don’t Like
Blue Jays and Rays
The Blue Jays have been one of the stingiest teams in baseball this year, giving up just 38 runs, and the Rays’ lineup hasn’t been lighting the world on fire. In 12 career games against the Rays, Brandon Morrow has a 2.26 ERA and .146 BAA.
Similarly, David Price has owned the Blue Jays. He is 9-2 with a 2.06 ERA and .213 BAA. He is coming off a subpar outing against Boston, so I expect a locked-in, ace-like performance from Price.
It should be noted that Jose Bautista is 9-27 lifetime off Price with 4 HRs and homered yesterday. If the price is right consider him, but I don’t like anyone else in this game.
Phillies and Giants
This game is in San Francisco and features Cliff Lee against Matt Cain. Great pitching matchup, but I’ll stay far, far away from the hitters in this game. Neither offense is very good anyway, and it surely will be a low scoring game.
Jose Reyes and Hanley Ramirez
The Marlins face Matt Garza today, who has been dynamite since coming over to the NL. He’s off to a hot start this year too, with 1.23 ERA and 14 Ks in two starts. No one on the Marlins has a particularly strong history against Garza, especially Reyes and Ramirez, who are 1-4 and 3-14 respectively against the Cubs’ ace. This does not seem like a day where these two will live up to the cost of playing them.
Good luck in your daily leagues today everyone!
About Jerod Morris
