MLB Fantasy Baseball: Postscript to the 2008 Season

Good times this season, but they all must come to an end. It's time to wrap up the action and go over what happened over the last six months. Grab a beer, pull up a chair, and join the fun. The Degenerates of the Roundtable have much to discuss with you. 

Top Five Surprises

1. Cliff Lee - How can you not say that the performance he put on this season was inspiring for fantasy owners? Lee ended the season with 22 wins after being demoted at the end of last year. It goes to show that it is entirely possible to find pitching on waivers each year. Lee wasn't even drafted in most formats.
2. Dustin Pedroia and Kevin Youkilis- We're lumping these guys together. Pedroia was a decent second basemen last year, but this year, he took it to another level. He should be considered a top-five second baseman in all drafts heading in to next season. Youkilis shook off second-half issues this year to end the season with over 100 RBI and nearly 30 home runs. Add to that, he'll have eligibility at both corners next year.
3. Ryan Ludwick- Ludwick hit .299 with 37 home runs this season, far exceeding any and all expectations that had been set for the St. Louis outfielder. Ludwick will be hard-pressed to repeat this accomplishment, but we didn't expect this to begin with. It's all gravy. Look to him as a third outfielder next season and be thrilled when he performs better.
4. Aubrey Huff - I was pretty sure this guy was left for dead. All he did this season was go .304/32/108 for the Orioles. Many people, present company included, didn't anticipate Huff keeping the pace up all season long. He was nice to ride for a bit, but the smart owners kept him close all season long and got a productive utility man out of the deal.
5. Josh Hamilton - He has been a nice story for two years, now we should just call him a ballplayer. Hamilton went .304/32/130 for the season, leading the Rangers in most offensive categories. Hamilton missed time with Cincinnati due to injuries, but this really shows what the guy can do when healthy.

Honorable Mention: Nate McLouth, Ryan Doumit, Carlos Delgado, Justin Duchscherer and Xavier Nady

Top Five Disappointments

1. Erik Bedard- His season was nearly over before it started. Bedard struggled in adapting to Seattle and had a horrendous first month to the season. He spent some time early in the season on the DL, before being shut down for the season. Hopefully he comes back stronger, but this was a disaster.
2. Aaron Harang - I know, he doesn't have the same cache as the elite players, but Harang was pegged by many to be a top-75 player and top-25 pitcher. He finished just inside the top-1000 players overall. Harang accounted for six wins and an ERA of 4.78 to go with a 1.38 WHIP. Not what you wanted when you drafted the guy.
3. Andruw Jones and Rafael Furcal- The first of two tandems on this board. Furcal makes this list because of injuries more than anything else. Statistically, he was just fine when he was in the lineup, and likely would have been all season. You just can't produce from the DL, and he was valued very highly entering the year. Andruw Jones proved that even in L.A., he sucks. You have to try to get Dodgers fans to boo, yet he managed to do just that. In 209 at-bats, he hit .158 with just three home runs.
4. Jeff Francoeur - He was thought to be a top-100 player, but ended up hitting just .240 for the season and was even sent down at one point. He hit only 11 home runs and drove in 71 for the Braves. Nothing about this season was good, similar to how he finished 2007. Fool me once...fool me twice...
5. Victor Martinez and Travis Hafner- More injuries, but these two were struggling even before that. Martinez didn't homer until his return from the DL in early September, struggling through the early part to the season with an elbow injury. The emergence of Kelly Shoppach will make this offseason interesting at catcher for Cleveland. Hafner received just under 200 at-bats this season and hit about as well as Jones, clocking in at .197. The Indians were even hesitant to call him up at the end of the year, according to some reports.

Dishonorable Mention: Josh Beckett, Javier Vazquez, Justin Verlander, Fausto Carmona, and Chone Figgins

Five Rookies that Got Our Attention

1. Jay Bruce - He came up with a big-time reputation and was hot as could be for the first month of the season. Bruce struggled hitting lefties for most of the season, but still settled in at .254/21/52 for the season. He will only get better.
2. Evan Longoria - Certainly should be the A.L. Rookie of the Year, and likely the fantasy Rookie of the Year as well. He hit .272/27/85 and missed some time with an injury at the end of the season.
3. Brad Ziegler - He came on like wildfire, starting his career with a string of shutout appearances. Ziegler supplanted an injured and ineffective Huston Street by the end of the year in the Oakland bullpen. Don't be surprised to see him holding down the same role next year.
4. Geovany Soto - He became one of the best offensive catchers in baseball without really even having to try. Soto hit .286 and knocked 23 home runs to go with 86 RBI in leading the Cubs to the division title. He was a force behind the plate as much as he was at it.
5. Clayton Kershaw - We didn't see much of him, and he did struggle early. The fact is, though, that the kid has stuff. His performances at home were incredibly solid, and he came on much better during his second stint with the Dodgers.

Honorable Mention: Hiroki Kuroda, Alexei Ramirez, Joey Votto, Chris Davis and Jacoby Ellsbury

Top Five Best Streaks

1. J.D. Drew - Drew put many a fantasy team on his back with one of the best June performances on record. He hit .337 for the month and became the hottest guy to own in fantasy baseball for that period.
2. Marcus Thames - Another guy that had a tear in June when it came to hitting home runs. Thames is never going to be a household name, but he helped out many teams for a solid three weeks, spanning the end of June and some of July.
3. Luke Scott- One of our binkies. Scott came out of the box quickly in April and became a player that helped some teams jump out to an early lead. It came around again, moving into the second half of the year. He's not consistent, and is as streaky as they come. For a few weeks a year, he's worth keeping around.
4. Shin-Soo Choo- As many players were fading in the second half, or taking time off to rest injuries, Choo managed to put together a fantasy September to remember. Choo hit over .350 for the month, helping to propel the Indians on their late charge at the Central division. He helped several owners win titles as well.
5. A.J. Burnett - He didn't do it pretty, but Burnett had a streak in August and September that contract-year pitchers need to have. He went through a stretch of wins even against the weirdest of odds. Burnett will provide strikeouts and, with the right offense, provide wins as well. He'll just make you lose your hair while he does it.

Honorable Mention: Carlos Delgado, Jason Kubel

Top 10 if We Drafted Today

1. Alex Rodriguez
2. David Wright
3. Chase Utley
4. Hanley Ramirez
5. Albert Pujols
6. Matt Holliday
7. Jose Reyes
8. Lance Berkman
9. Josh Hamilton
10. Johan Santana

Just Missed: Roy Halladay, Manny Ramirez, Ryan Braun

Fantasy MVP

Albert Pujols. Hard to believe that this is a guy we were all worried about at the beginning of the season. Pujols doesn't get the publicity, even in fantasy circles, for the numbers that he puts up. There was talk all season that he had problems with his elbow and would be shut down at some point. Never happened. All he did was go on to hit 37 home runs, bat .357, and drive in 116. Not too shabby.

Fantasy Cy Young

Cliff Lee. We've already gone over this one. Let us make the point one final time: You can find wins. Drafting pitching early doesn't always make sense. Brandon Webb was good this season, but Lee had as many wins, and his ERA was just as decent, as Webb. Erik Bedard flamed out. Fausto Carmona and Verlander were disasters. You don't always get what you think you will out of studs. Finds like Lee win leagues.

And, finally...

Top Fantasy Trends of 2008

• Home/Road Splits, Part One - In pitching, it was the most dramatic year for this. There were many pitchers that just couldn't pitch outside of their home ballpark. Randy Wolf, Paul Byrd (pre-break), and Greg Maddux were just a few examples.
• Home/Road Splits, Part Two - Hitters were even better at home. There was a decided difference to averages at home as opposed to away in even star players.
• Over-estimating Rookie Value - Many of these guys can't live up to the expectations that were set. Jay Bruce was fine for a rookie, but because he didn't hit .300 with 40 home runs, some owners gave up on him early.
• Ballpark Factors - While part of it was bad offenses, pitchers were much better in San Diego, Seattle, and Oakland. These bigger ballparks created the best opportunities for road pitchers to go in and be competitive. Yes, it certainly helped that the teams that normally played there were offensively challenged.
• Always Trust Your Stars and Have Patience - There were many times over the course of the year that questions were raised on guys like Derek Jeter. Yet, there he is at the end of the season, posting an average near .300. J.J. Hardy was abysmal early on, but rebounded to hit over 20 home runs. To quote Guns and Roses, "All we need is just a little patience."

Hope you enjoyed the season, and we'll chime in as trades and signings dictate that we need to.