In-N-Out The 64/60 Week 2

With Week 2 in the books we have ourselves a contender and pretender at the top, a big mix of teams searching for an identity, and one owner asking what the hell did I do. Another trade is in the books we'll take a look as one got the goods while the other got the screws. A owner attempts to right a wrong and walks away with some weekly honors. And of course we'll review the game recaps of Week 2.

Like Will Farrell franticly stated in Old School, "Let's Not Freak Out Here!!!!", it's hard to start out of the gate slowly in fantasy and remain calm. I typically will not look to make any moves until the first month is in the books. Yet here I was Sunday, after a 4 HR week and a second consecutive poor AVG week, sending out a couple of trade proposals and getting a feel for the market. Given the logjam from teams 3-10 I'm rather certain I'm not the only one with doubt creeping in. Given the amount of research and draft prep I put into this season I'm going to continue to ride this out but I could very well look to make a trade before that self imposed deadline if something catches my fancy. So if anyone out there has that itch send my any and all request for my roster has no one who is untouchable.

The cream of the crop in the early going are the Free Hats and Marshall Maniacs. Regardless of format any team leading any fantasy league after just two weeks is rostering a player who is playing out of there mind. For the Free Hats Michael Morse comes to mind along with John Buck. For the Maniacs Chris Davis and Justin Upton come to mind. While Upton could easily finish the season a Top 10 player I don't see another from this group cracking the Top 40. The question is do either of these teams have staying power? To me H2H formats are less about superstars and more about roster depth and value over replacement player. To give an example take a slash line of .300/40/100/100/20/.900 a no doubt Top 5 Fantasy player. In a roto league those numbers are exactly what they are. In a H2H league the weekly average is .300 AVG with less than 2HR per week on average, just over 4 RBI and Runs per week and a little less than a half a SB. As we all know these are less than spectacular numbers any given week. If you build depth and create value over replacement options then you have more viable offensive players per week you can count on. Using that for my basis that is why I feel the Free Hats are a playoff team while the Maniacs are more of a middle of the road team. In my opinion the Free Hats have one position at or below FA replacement level, my condolonces to the Marwin Gonzalez family. Beltre, Cabrera, and Harper could all be Top 20 players this season, while as many as 10 players on his offense could land in the Top 100. While the pitching still seems lacking in a H2H format a little TLC goes along way in putting a band-aid over some minor defects. The front end of the rotation is solid however lack of closer and overall low number of options could be problematic. However if we've learned anything in the early going it's that Mr. Whitley can make a move. As for the Maniacs consider me a skeptic at this point. Now Brandon before you cry upon your keyboard hear me out. I do feel this team will earn him his best showing thus far in Baseball I consider it more of a middle of the pack squad than among the leagues best. Like the Free Hats they posses depth with only Hafner and Johnson at replacement level. Unlike the Free Hats only Upton posseses Top 10 talent and I see maybe 4 to 5 players capable of producing a Top 100 season. Thanks to a gift from dad the front end of the rotation could be the leagues best with Darvish and Hamels(give it time people). Voglesong and Gallardo are excellent 3 and 4 starters. The three closers certainly are an upgrade over the Free Hats 0 yet the back end of the Manicas rotation are the definition of replacement level with only Cingrani and perhaps Masterson with any level of upside.

Naturally with only two weeks in the books we have a cluster of squads within a handful of games between them. Up to this point the 64/60 hasn't had than season in which 9 teams or more are vying for the six playoff spots. Two thing signal to me that 2013 could be the season. First you have not one team without some type of flaw secondly this could be the year 12 owners finally particiapte from start to finish, Todd's reoccuring two week hiatus not withstanding. Of course countless issues out of ones control could put an end to this but I like the way things are shaping up.

Before we move to the Weekly Recap I would like to send words of encouragement and the most sincere apologies to Bill Fenney on his early season struggles and seemingly endless injury issues. Not a single person in this league appreciates the game more than Fenney. I've applauded his loyalty to the 64/60 countless times and his patience and patronage on draft day is well noted. I really felt his 2013 season was going to be special and while the H2H format will certainly aid in his contention no one wants two of there 5 keepers with the red DL letters after two weeks. Reyes's injury is a killer I felt strongly that 2013 was going to be a Top 10 season for Reyes. Throw in Cespedes and the slow start by Kemp and this offense is punchless. As many as 9 spots are replacement level. On a good note the front end of the pitching goes 3-4 Aces deep and the back end is rather solid. The pieces are there to put something together and patch up this sinking ship before it's too late. For the betterment of the league and for the sake of one of it's best ambassadors I hope 2013 can mean something for the Deathsquad.


Weekly Recap

Free Hat 9 vs. HGH Factory 3. These two kids got together in Week 1 and made magic, Week 2 failed to live up to that and provided us with the weeks biggest blowout. The Free Hats posted solid numbers on offense R/HR/RBI while the ineptittude on offense of the HGH gave two more stats to Whitley. Both teams had good weeks toeing the rubber but in the end it was the Free Hats who escaped with the 4-2 edge.

MVP- Clay Buchholz 2QS/19/0.00/0.87/11.40


Barboursville Stars 9 vs. The Takeover 3. It's been a rough week in this post for Senior, so I'm happy I can give him a brief moment to celebrate positive accomplishments. On the pitching side of things neither squad had their A game this week but a 4.63 ERA posted by the Takeover simply won't cut it. The Stars were anything but, yet still took the 4-2 edge. Offensively, yes thats right the same offense that is in desperate need of a bat. So much so they will rid themselves of a Top 15 Pitcher and another Top 50 for a player currently on the DL, somehow managed to small ball their way to a .344 AVG, a OPS that started with a number left of the decimal, 50+ Runs and RBI and 18 HR's to boot. Was Week 2 somewhat of a fluke? Perhaps. Yet I still don't have the same image of Senior when it comes to his offensive struggles.

MVP- Prince Fielder .632/2/5/11/0/1.891


Argumentative 9irons 7 vs. The BCFP 4. No need to spend much time on this one. Finally GRC3 breaks the losing streak in the Civil War. To say it was a hard fought battle would be galamorizing the matchup. Truth is neither team performed well outside of the BCFP and their ratio numbers on the mound. The Factory's offense was going through a shutdown last week while the 9irons did exactly what is needed in a H2H format, out perform your opponent. A 5-0-1 edge with the stick earns the 9irons the W. Congrats.

MVP- Jayson Werth .304/1/4/4/2/.795


Lemaster Blasters 7 vs. BC PEDophiles 4. Like I said last week the 64/60 is a better place when Bopp losses. Unlike Mr. Ward, Ev Lemaster did what Ev Lemaster does and finished the job. Once again it wasn't pretty, league average to below average production from both on the offensive side producing a 3-3 split. Pitching was much worse with a 5.59 ERA enough for a categorey win. Those who oppose streaming can use this matchup as their case study of how badly it can turn out. The 4-1-1 edge earned the Lemasters the W and gave everyone in the 64/60 a reason to smile.

MVP- Chris Carter .400/3/5/5/0/1.328


Marshall Maniac 7 vs. Walls Of Jericho 4. We've covered Brandon enough in this post so any additional press may go to his head. In no way do I want him to feel that the In-N-Out post has become his own devotional. The real story here is the defending champ. It has become evident to me that the additional games combined with the month long press circuit that followed victory have played there part in the early season struggles. The brilliant trophy that adornes his bedroom floor is a constant reminder of what greatness is. One year however could simply be explained as luck what seperates a winner from a Champion is his ability to repeat the same success year in and year out. I'm begining to wonder is Bowe by himself is mentally up for the challenge. Call in Barker for reinforcements, don't let pride ruin your season my freind.

MVP- Brandon Phillips .318/3/4/9/0/1.106


Scrote Mashers 6 vs. Tom Emasnki's Deathsquad 4. Unable to finish off the PED's last week Mr. Ward has to settle for a narrow victory over Emanski. Bitter sweet but in the early going you simply just want to get into the W column. Another disappointing matchup from a numbers standpoint as neither team posted typically respectable numbers outside of the 47 Runs by the Scrote's. Just in general it was a rather odd week if you look at the offense and pitching numbers around the league. Overall the offense was pedestrian yet outside of a handful of individual teams the pitching totals didn't mirror the struggling offense. So the Scrote's inch closer to the .500 mark while Emanski is simply left wondering where in the world is Fred McGriff when you need him.

MVP- Joe Mauer .381/1/5/1/0/1.076


Pickup Of The Week- Ervin Santana, Free Hats- Todd Whitley. I may be higher on Santana than most but I liked him coming into the season as a bounce back. Nothing in the early going suggest I was wrong. K rate has been solid and the BB, while not elite, have shown improvement. The best part of the move is what it accomplished, improving the team, which should be the sole purpose behind any move.



Head Scratcher Of The Week- Chris Carter, Lemaster Blaster- Butch Lemaster. Let me first state I don't have an issue with Carter. In fact I really liked him as a cheap power source in the preseason. A poor man's Adam Dunn if you will. 30+HR pop with a best case scenario .250 AVG but more likely .230's. If you drafted Carter this skill set isn't a secret therefore you shouldn't be worried about a .090/0/1/0/0/.153 slash line any given week. If this bothers you then I have no issue dropping Carter and moving on. However don't turn around the next day and put a Waiver Bid for $25 on him after a 3/4 game with a HR when a 0 bid would have won him. FAAB money may not mean much to some but during my years I have come to realize people make odd choices when it comes to their roster. While a slow start from a Matt Kemp type won't land him on the Waiver Wire it's not out of the realm of possibility a Jason Kipnis or Adam Craig type could be yours for the right price. Most people go the entire season and don't spend a dime on FAAB, I just like to know I have Max Bid available when needed.


Trade Evaluation- Barboursville Stars send Cole Hamels, Ryan Voglesong, and Barry Zito to Marshall Maniacs for Curtis Granderson and I presume a free grass cut. Funny how perception differs from person to person. Last week I get outrage over the Verlander deal yet I felt this deal was more lopsided, and I hear nothing. To clarify I don't feel as though a Father and Son have colluded I just feel the Father isn't very bright. Sure the Stars need offense but wouldn't a bat you can place in the lineup today be a better option than a current DL player who is no longer a Top 25 Fantasy Player when healthy. Sure Hamels has started slow still yet your looking at a Top 15 arm who is the better side of a one for one deal. Throw in a solid #3 and a good #4 option in Voglesong and let the landslide begin. Sure Senior did rid himself from a Zito implosion so some value goes back to the Stars but not enough to cover the debt created. Ian Kennedy as your new #2 could make my playoff prediction for the Senior McClung look foolish. Mike there are better ways to make me look bad no need to sabatoge your fantasy season.