BGB Fantasy League 2015 – Week One

The first matchups are complete in this year’s BaseballGB Fantasy League. Which teams are looking like Detroit and Kansas City with hot starts and which teams are looking more like Minnesota?

The early leaders are Jesmond, who handed the Knights a 10-1 loss. Nolan Arenado (2 HR, 7 RBI, 7 R .375 AVG), Carlos Santana and McCutchen (2 HR) carried the load offensively as Jesmond fell a steal shy of a hitting sweep. Carrasco had a win and 10 K and joined Archer and Shelby Miller in not allowing an earned run. Encarnacion and Pujols each hit two homers for the Knights, while the bullpen of Storen, Street, Peralta, Allen and Gregerson combined for eight saves.

JJ’s off to to a flier after thrashing my Isotopes 10-2. JJ had two of baseball’s hottest hitters to thanks, as Adrian Gonzalez (5 HR, 7 RBI, 8 R, .609 AVG) and Todd Frazier (3 HR, 8 RBI) did most of the offensive damage. In a loaded pitching staff, the best performers were Kazmir (W, 10K, 0.00 ERA) and Benoit (2 W, HLD). Adam Jones and Nelson Cruz each hit two homers for my team and Altuve stole two bases. Rodney had a win and two saves, but the rotation was hit by injuries to Holland and (possibly) Alvarez.

The Slugs fell a save shy of a pitching sweep as they defeated Batteries Essential 7-4. James Shields, Tyson Ross and David Price each had a win and double-digit strikeouts while Boxberger, Soria, Cecil and Romo each had either two saves or two holds. Cecil has lost the closing role in Toronto, but Soria is picking up saves in the absence of Detroit’s Joe Nathan. Hanley Ramirez hit .320 for the week, belting three homers and driving in seven and Bautista scored seven runs. The Slugs hit well, with Miguel Cabrera batting .520 for the week, hitting two homers and driving in eight runs. Pappelbon had two saves and Jimmy Nelson already looks a good pickup after his impressive season debut.

Norwich just got the better of Iron Men 7-5 in a close matchup. Corey Dickerson had two homers, nine RBIs and helped take OPS ans Norwich took four offensive categories. New Padre Kimbrel and Rondon each had two saves and Odorizzi, Hahn and Paxton helped take ERA and WHIP. Norwich also have Toronto rookie Castro in their bullpen. J.D. Martinez and Tulowitzki helped Iron Men take RBIs and average, while Keuchel and Wacha each picked up wins, Kluber struck out 17 and Ottavino, O’Day, Farquhar and Watson combined for eight holds.

Another matchup, another 7-5. this time the RBIs got the better of the Maltsters, thanks to an offensive sweep. Pedroia had two homers, while carpenter knocked in five runs and Reyes (.417) and Trout (.400) helped take average. The offense will need a new catcher with Yan Gomes on the DL. The pitching staff is very light on numbers, which could have cost them a few categories, but Teheran and Ventura each had a pair of wins. The Maltsters had three saves each from Holland and Casilla while Scherzer, Greinke and Bauer helped take ERA and WHIP.

The RBIs start the year with a win, defeating the Chasers 6-5. Eight different batters homered for the RBIs, including three for Votto, who also knocked in eight. Rollins had seven RBIs and two steals while Wade Davis picked up the lone save and Fister’s scoreless start made the difference in ERA. Kinsler was the star hitter for the Chasers, scoring 10 times, knocking in seven and hitting .440. Sonny Gray was the pick of the pitchers with a win and and ERA and WHIP of 0.59.

The Riverkings and Sox couldn’t be separated as each team had a sweep. The offensive categories went to the Sox as Salvador Perez hit three homers and drove in eight while fellow Royal Cain hit .4540 with five runs and five RBIs. King Felix and Harvey each had a win as the Riverkings swept the pitching stats. Cueto also didn’t allow an earned run, while Rosenthal had two saves.

PITCHING REMINDER

Remember that you need to meet the 20 inning minimum each week to stand a chance of winning any of the pitching categories. Now that rotations are taking shape with fifth members ready to go, you could be waving goodbye to a lot of category wins if you are currently using a small pitching staff. Now might be the time to look at other teams’ rosters to see if there’s a match for a trade or look at the free agent pool.

WEEK TWO MATCHUPS

Jesmond (1st) v Iron Men (11th)

Beck ‘Nams (2nd) v Chasers (9th)

Slugs (3rd) v Bits & Bytes (5th)

Norwich (4th) v Sox (8th)

RBIs (6th) v Maltsters (10th)

Riverkings (7th) v Isotopes (13th)

Batteries Essential (12th) v Knights (14th)