Player News – Page 116 – FantasySP Blog

Kyle Drabek Impresses

Kyle Drabek or the “guy who came over from Philly” in the Roy Halladay deal pitched a very impressive game today in his 2011 debut with Toronto.

Analysis: It certainly does run in the family for Kyle Drabek. His dad, Doug, won 155 games for four different big league clubs and sported a career ERA south of four. Kyle also has the potential to be a number one starter although he has been delayed due to Tommy John surgery in 2008. His fastabll tops out in the mid 90s, he throws very hard slider and he gets a lot of strikeouts on his breaking ball. Today Drabek pitched seven innings of one run ball against a potent Twins lineup. Drabek was locating his fastball almost at will and struck out seven batters while only allowing a single hit. He isn’t a strikeout artist but he K’s enough batters and limits his walks to really have a positive impact on your WHIP in roto leagues.

Projection: Don’t go banking on a 16 win season after one solid outing although he is a must add in deeper leagues. Drabek should be available on the wire because he went undrafted in many fantasy drafts. You really cannot afford to see more starts this early on in the season to add a guy with his kind of potential. Add him now, keep him or use him as trade bait but don’t let anyone in your league get to this guy first.

Piece of Crap: Vince Carter’s 2011 Fantasy Season

Vince Carter has been in obvious decline over the past few years, but this year has all but sealed his fate. He no longer has the potential to be an impact fantasy player.

Analysis: Carter put up 28 points in his last game on March 30th, but that has not happened with any consistency this year. He is averaging a paltry 14 points a game, which is on par with what Beno Udrih is putting up this season. Carter’s fall from grace has gone further with him shooting roughly 42% from the field. His assists, rebounds, and steals are all down significantly from the last few years too. Carter averaged 22 points, 5 boards, and 4 dimes on his career, but I think it is safe to say he won’t reach those numbers ever again. I was surprised by his fantasy production this year, because I really thought the excellent training staff in Phoenix would whip him into shape. If the same Phoenix staff who got the Shaqtus back in to shape can’t fix Carter than he doesn’t stand a chance. Throw in the fact that he is playing with one of the best pure point guards in the league and, simply put, Carter is a big piece of crap this year.

Projection: Phoenix is not going to make the playoffs this year and Carter will have little reason to finish out the season very strongly. Carter should not still be on your fantasy team, there are plenty of better alternatives on the waiver wire.

Dropping Andrei Kirilenko Is A Must

Andrei Kirilenko will miss his fourth straight game tonight against the Lakers with a left knee injury.

Analysis: The Utah Jazz haven’t officially shut him down but I suspect that is what’s going on. Utah cannot make the playoffs so there is no real urgency to get him back on the court. Kirilenko is also a free agent after this season, so as much as he has been talking about a possible return to action this season it is highly doubtful he will put a new contact at risk playing for essentially nothing. He’s still owned in the majority of fantasy leagues but it is time to dump the multi category small forward.

Pick Up: Speaking of multi category small forwards, Ron Artest is making a comeback in the stat sheet my friends. How about 14 steals and 5 blocks in his last six games, sounds like Andrei Kirilenko type numbers. Ron Ron has also knocked down 10 threes in those six games and his minutes have been about four more than his season average of twenty-nine. Ron Ron is slowly getting into playoff form and with two weeks remaining and the Andrei Kirilenko situation, you’re best served picking up Artest.

Stock Rising- Carlos Gomez

Carlos Gomez homered and stole a base yesterday against the Reds but that isn’t why his stock is on the rise.

Analysis: Carlos Gomez spent most of last year either leading off or hitting in the eight spot, this year is a different story. Gomez hit second in front of one of the most complete hitters in the game today, Ryan Braun. The protection in the lineup should ensure a better chance for a successful season for the ever inconsistent Gomez. Gomez does strikeout entirely too much, nearly 24% of the time for his career but hitting behind Braun should improve that number slightly. Teams won’t be throwing junk at Gomez to hack at like in seasons past because they cannot afford to take the risk of putting runners on base with Ryan Braun at the plate. This may be the perfect “post hype” time to buy in to Gomez’s stock. If he can stick at the two spot in that Brewers batting order you can expect more consistency from the young center fielder.

Projection: It’s hard to project a guy that has had such an up and down, but mostly down career like Carlos Gomez. You should expect his career batting average of .246 to come up at least ten points this year and with it a few more stolen bags due to the Ryan Braun effect. Gomez is still very raw but his double digit power potential with his speed is likely to surface sooner than later.

Blocks and Boards For The Last Two Weeks

There are only two weeks left in the NBA regular season and it’s time to pick up the hot hands in the fantasy basketball world. Enter Golden State big man, Ekpe Udoh.

Analysis: Ekpe Udoh has at least two blocks a game in his last eight contests. Yes, the guy is just plain nasty on the defensive end right now. Add in a steal per game over his last five games and you’re going to get some attention. Udoh has also amassed at least five rebounds in six of his last seven games. He also isn’t that bad from the stripe for a big man, about 70% on the year. Udoh’s field goal percentage isn’t quite at fifty percent which is what you want from your bigs, but he’s not going to hurt you in that department either. There are very few players in the fantasy realm putting up his kind of numbers and are owned in less than ten percent of leagues nationwide. Throw in center and power forward eligibility and you have a winner for the final two weeks of the season.

Projection: Ekpe Udoh along with Serge Ibaka are quickly becoming premier NBA shot blockers. Andris Biedrins will return in a few games for the Warriors but don’t expect Udoh to slow down. Expect two blocks, six boards and just under a steal per game from Udoh the rest of the season.