Player News – Page 135 – FantasySP Blog

Rumors of Alfredo Simon Release Are Premature

Rumors had been circulating earlier in the week that Baltimore reliever Alfredo Simon would be released from a Dominican Republic jail within the next 7-10 days, allowing him to participate in spring training and be a part of the Orioles bullpen come Opening Day. Simon, charged with manslaughter in a fatal New Year’s Eve shooting, has been held without bail since January 3. However, city prosecutor Victor Mueses told ESPNDeportes’ Enrique Rojas that Simon will remain behind bars and that they have “strong evidence to incriminate him in this bloody event.”

Analysis: The 6’4 righty, who saved 17 games for a beleaguered O’s pen in 2010, was placed on the team’s Restricted List this past Friday. The stories of his potential release spread quickly, and a level of optimism surfaced among the team as well as the Baltimore faithful. Unfortunately for Simon, these rumors appear to have lacked validity and his future in professional baseball is once again in question. Hopefully this situation is rectified in a timely fashion, and justice is served one way or another.

Projection: Expected to compete for a late-inning role this spring, it now looks as if Simon will be a non-factor for the fans at Camden as well as Fantasy owners. If the newly acquired Kevin Gregg becomes Buck Showalter’s choice to close out games, this most likely leaves the setup man competition between Mike Gonzalez and Koji Uehara. Although the team was high on Simon’s arm and was looking forward to his progression, this new development is certainly not a crushing blow to a roster that has been restocked and should make some noise – even in the AL East. Maintain a watchful eye on how the 8th and 9th inning spots shake out on Buck’s list throughout camp, but scratch Simon’s name off of your depth charts.

Prince Fielder Not Your Typical Bounce Back Candidate

Prince Fielder’s 5 seasons as a full time masher, ISO: .213-.330-.231-.303-.209. Last season he was the 6th biggest NL hitter bust in auction leagues: average cost $38, earned $22.

Analysis: It’s a wonderfully long season for the fan, but a veteran’s greeting at Doug Glanville’s first Spring Training sums it up– welcome to The Show; you’ll never be 100% healthy again. Prince didn’t miss a day on the DL in 2010, but he played through a sore left-hand in April, then a sore left wrist in August.

Projection: 39 HR, 113 R, 135 RBI, 2 SB, .283 BA

Auction Tactics: On Auction Day unspent salary cap is a loss. In order to spend it all you must embrace risk by making at least a couple of big purchases. Typically the best-case scenario is to break even on large investments, but Prince will do better, returning a slight profit.

Ed Davis is a Rebounding Machine

Amir Johnson may be back from an ankle injury and starting at power forward for the Raptors but that hasn’t stopped Ed Davis from getting his minutes.

Analysis: Amir Johnson may have started Tuesday night against the Bobcats but Ed Davis still got 27 minutes, 5 more than Johnson. In Ed Davis’ last four games he’s averaging 11.7 rebounds, 1.25 blocks and 1 steal per game. Davis is also shooting 59 percent from the field on the year and with his minutes up he impacts the field goal percentage category more consistently. With Davis you have an extremely athletic power forward who is a rebounding machine and it shouldn’t surprise you because how many 6’10” guys have a 36 inch vertical? The Raptors are content to give Johnson and Davis over twenty minutes a game and that’s great news for fantasy owners in need of rebound help. Ed Davis is available in ninety-nine, yes that is right, ninety-nine percent of fantasy leagues and he’s a lock for at least 8 rebounds and 1 block every night if not more.

Projection: Davis should average 8-10 rebounds, 1-1.5 blocks, over 55 percent from the field and .5-1 steal per game from here on out. Grab him now before the secret is out.

Which B.J. Upton Will We See This Season?

Over two years removed from left shoulder surgery and sporting newfound mechanical tweaks to his swing, Tampa Bay’s enigmatic speedster has entered camp with what seems to be a rejuvenated confidence.

Analysis: Fantasy owners have heard this before about Upton, and have been subsequently met with major disappointment. After a monster postseason in ’08 where he helped carry the young Rays to the World Series, it appeared that B.J. was ready to harness the bevy of tools he’d been teasing us with glimpses of since his debut as a 19-year-old in 2004. Unfortunately, surgery followed and so did a pair of underachieving campaigns which left a bad taste in the mouths of those who drafted him high. While Upton is always good for stolen bases (he’s averaged 43 over the past 3 years), doubles (38 in 2010), and some pop (18 HRs, 89 RBI last season), he has never managed to put the whole package together for a full stretch. It could be argued that he did this in 2007, compiling a slash line of .300/.386/.508 with 24 HR, 82 RBI, and 22 SB in just 129 games. For a talent such as his, however, we’ve always expected those numbers to get better and better as he got older. To date this hasn’t happened, but let’s not forget that he is still only 26 years old. If the former first-rounder is finally coming around from his 2008 surgery, and if the mechanical changes to his stroke are truly sound, we may finally see the B.J. Upton that Rays fans and his Fantasy owners have been impatiently waiting for.

Projection: Skepticism is abound when murmurs of a breakout year from B.J. Upton are heard. Nevertheless, I am a believer in Joe Maddon’s centerfielder in 2011. The combination of his revamped swing, new attitude, and fully healed shoulder along with the underrated veteran influence of Johnny Damon to his right make this the season where Upton finally puts it all together for 150+ games. Keep in mind that he also has Desmond Jennings nipping at his heels and could find himself fighting for a job if he doesn’t produce. Although this may sound like a familiar broken record from years past, my advice is to grab Upton while nobody is looking – as he’ll certainly fall to the middle rounds in H2H leagues. Roto owners won’t wait as long, because of the guarantee of 35+ stolen bags, so be aware. Call me crazy, but I predict that Upton tops his 2007 production and may even flirt with 30 and 100.

Dan Hamhuis Returns Tonight

After missing five games with a concussion Canucks defenseman Dan Hamhuis will be returning to action tonight against the Canadiens.

Analysis: Hamhuis returns to an injury depleted Canucks blue line where he should see tons of ice and power play time. He’s owned in about twenty percent of fantasy leagues nationwide and can provide a much needed boost to your squad heading into the home stretch. Alex Edler and Kevin Bieksa remain out so Dan Hamhuis will have every chance to re-prove his fantasy worth. Before his injury Hamhuis was a plus 21 in just forty-seven games…absolutely sick. Twenty-three minutes of ice time with 14 assists isn’t anything to sneeze at either. This is a great situation for Hamhuis to put up some quality under the radar numbers in the Canucks final twenty-two games.

Projection: Expect about 8 assists, 24 minutes of ice time, a handful of power play points and a plus 5 rating the rest of the season. What Hamhuis is capable of on the injury plagued Canucks will certainly catch your attention sooner than later.