I expect a nice bounce back year from Sizemore. And Sizemore’s pics got nothing on Oden’s.

ARod is a no-brainer, obviously, and then Tulo vs. Upton is tough. Very tough. I hate doing this, but this is so close, I recommend going with your gut. Tulo typically goes a bit earlier in drafts, but that shouldn’t matter too much. Ugh. I say go with your first instinct and Upton, especially since it’s a keeper league and this guy could be a universal top-five pick in 2011.

Crazy how good Randy Johnson used to be.

You could very well be right about Glaus. At least he shouldn’t cost too much in fantasy leagues to find out. But I do admit, his BA may not make him worth the trouble, even if the power returns.

I’d keep Franklin for $5 or less, but I’d also be trying to trade him furiously.

Last I heard about Villalona is that he paid off the victim’s family, who then refused to cooperate with authorities, and it sounded like he’d eventually get off. But the SF organization will almost certainly want nothing to do with him regardless, b/c it’s clear (at least on most accounts) that he truly did commit murder.

I agree with you regarding Halladay, but I don’t think his current ADP is a reliable and accurate indicator of where he will really go in most drafts this season. I’d be very surprised if he’s still available in the 3rd round in my 13-team redraft league; if he is I’ll take him there without thinking twice. I just can’t see myself taking him with my 2nd round pick no matter where I end up picking, and I expect him to be gone sometime that round.

I fully expect his strikeouts to go up facing the opposing pitcher three times a game, which leads me to my first question. Do you have any idea what Halladay did between 2007 and 2008 that caused the substantial jump in his strikeouts? I clearly remember that I was actually a little down on Halladay going into 2008 because of his unimpressive strikeout rate. So he doesn’t end up on any of my teams that season as he strikes out over 200. Ahh, fantasy…

If they give odds for stuff like this I think Halladay should be the favorite over Lincecum to win the 2010 NL Cy Young. The biggest reason being that if they have comparable seasons you know the writers will figure out some way to lean towards Halladay since Lincecum has already won it the past two seasons. This potential scenario so clearly reminds me of Randy Johnson and Curt Schilling in 2002. I remember that Cy Young Race vividly.

Their stats were almost identical going into September. Schilling was 21-5 with a 2.79 ERA and 275 K’s in 221 IP; Johnson was 19-5 with a 2.63 ERA and 285 K’s in 219 IP. They were clearly the two best pitchers in the league. There was no doubt in my mind, however, that at that point in the season Schilling was the odds-on favorite to win the Cy Young–partly because he was clearly the sentimental favorite among the writers because he had yet to win the award and partly because Johnson had won it the last two seasons. I was 100% convinced that even if they had finished the season with the same W-L record and Johnson had finished the season with a lower ERA and more K’s that the writers would still figure out some way to give Schilling the award. As it turned out, Schilling went 2-2 with a 5.87 ERA in September while Johnson finished 5-0 with a 0.66 ERA (not a misprint). When all was said and done Johnson had outpitched Schilling in every important way: W-L record, K’s, ERA was almost a full run lower at the end of the season (2.32 to 3.23),…Schilling did have a better WHIP than Johnson that season, but I doubt the writers have ever looked at that category when deciding their Cy Young votes. Because of Johnson’s finish and their final numbers there was no way that Schilling could win the award over Johnson now without the writers looking biased if not outright incompetent. Johnson ended up winning unanimously, but I’m still convinced Schilling would have won the award if his final numbers had been closer to Johnson’s.

Carlos Beltran is one of my favorite players. I’m getting concerned that these nagging injuries in his 30’s could dampen his coming seasons to the point where he won’t make the cut for the Hall of Fame. I think that would be a real shame; he has been one of the very best players in the game for a decade, but his career totals could very well end up a little underwhelming.

I love Pablo Sandoval. He is the one hitter in the Giants line-up who’s always worth watching, and on an offense like the Giants’ he really sticks out (as I’m sure you know, much better than I do). His ADP on Mock Draft Central is 42. I don’t see any way in hell he’ll last until pick #42 in my league. I’d rather have him on my team than Jimmy Rollins. My analytical side has such a hard time accepting him as a true .330 hitter, but the baseball fan in me is hoping that he is one.

Here’s one time I’m going to follow my instincts and flat out disagree with you DDD. I’m telling you, the best Troy Glaus will do this season is a .235 BA with about 20 home runs–and I actually think that is optimistic. Your argument makes all the sense in the world, but I’m pretty sure I’ve watched Glaus play more than you have since his early days with the Angels. I’ve always like Glaus as a player, but I don’t think he’ll stay any healthier playing 1B instead 3B, and taking into consideration his age, injury history, and size, I don’t think he’ll ever be a good major league player again. Above replacement level maybe, but not good.

Regarding Ryan Franklin, have you thought about the conundrum his owners are faced with in keeper leagues? I’m almost sure he went for peanuts, if he was drafted at all, in almost every league last season. Think of all the guys out there who own the Cardinals’ closer at a single digit salary, most likely under $5. I agree with you that there is no way he will be on any my teams this season, but it would be hard not to keep him for less than $5 in any format.

I know you’re a Giants fan. What’s the latest you’ve heard on Angel Villalona? Is there any feasible chance he plays in the minors this season and stays on track to make his major league debut in a couple of years?

Sure you’ve seen this, but enjoy if not. Watch it all – BALLS funny…

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tqQB2J7NXRI

I celebrate his entire catalog.

“I probably hate some of your stuff. Pretty sure that’s why there is whole bunch of different kinds of music. Note to self no more musictweet”

“Fuh-get it, Matt. It’s Twitter.”