Pujols has been struggling…
In order to be a great fantasy owner you must be able to predict and project how well players will do down the road. Owners have to see production before it is performed by players otherwise you might miss out on that player, it might be too late and another owner in your league snatched him before you. In my newest article I have decided to somewhat predict the future. I have put together a handful of things that I believe will happen in the month of May, a lot of statements in which you may be shaking your head now but when we look back on June 1st I will say “I told you so”.
Mark my words, Albert Pujols will hit 6+ homeruns in the month of May:
Since signing with the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim Albert Pujols has struggled big time. Pujols is batting .217 has 0 homeruns and 4 RBI, Phat Albert isn’t even batting his weight! Worst of all Pujols isn’t walking either; his OBP is currently at .265 he has struck out more times than he has walked (K- 14, BB-6). The 250 million dollar man is ranked #31 in points at the first base position in my fantasy baseball format. To stress how poorly that is, there are only 30 teams in the league. I’m predicting Pujols will hit 6+ homeruns, 6 homeruns in the month of April would have left Pujols in the top five for first basemen. My logic here is, the guy is too good to be struggling for so long. He has never hit less than 32 homeruns in a single season and has only batted below .300 once and that was 2011 when he batted .299. Pujols was in a little bit of a funk last season at the beginning of the year as well. I’m saying Albert gets settled in and started raking for the Angels.
Mark my words, Jose Bautista will get his average above .240 before the end of May:
It doesn’t look like a bold prediction because .240 doesn’t seem like high average but for the struggling Jose Bautista that is going to be tough goal. Bautista is batting .180 to begin the season; he has 15 hits in 83 at bats. Meaning if he gets the same number of plate appearances in the month of May he will have to go 25/83, he will have to bat .300. Joey Bats has been struggling but he has still found a way to get himself on base. His on base percentage is currently at .320, .140 higher than his average, the highest differential in the Majors. Bautista is one of the best sluggers in the bigs and he goes through a lot of streaks throughout the season. I’m saying his streak begins this month and he ups his lousy .180 average to a respectable .240 by the end of May.
Mark my words, former Yankee A.J. Burnett has a lower ERA than Yankee ace C.C. Sabathia in the month of May:
It seems like just yesterday A.J. Burnett signed his 5 year 82.5 million dollar contract, one in which the Yankees more than just regretted. Burnett put up some terrible numbers in the pinstripes, in three seasons with the Yankees his earned run average was never below 4.00 and was above 5.00 in the final two years. The right hander ended his stint with the Yanks with a 34-35 record. Luckily for Yankee fans Burnett is now a Pittsburgh Pirate. The 35 year old says he is now in the best shape of his life. Now that Burnett is in the National League I think he will have an easier time getting guys out. He has always had the stuff to get guys out and has a high number of strikeouts every season. I’m predicting that he out pitches New York Yankee ace C.C. Sabathia in the month of May. Sabathia posted a 2.99 ERA in 2011 and his career worst ERA as a Yankee is better than Burnett’s best with any club. This month Burnett raises some eye brows.
Mark my words, Japanese pitcher Hiroki Kuroda records more wins than Japanese Phenom Yu Darvish, in the month of May:
For whatever reason Hiroki Kuroda doesn’t get as much love from his home town as fellow Japanese pitchers Daisuke Matsuzaka and Yu Darvish do. Kuroda is coming off his best season in the major leagues. Last season Kuroda won 13 games and posted a 3.07 ERA and because of his big year he was signed by the New York Yankees. He has continued his success in 2012, an owns a 3.69 ERA. Still, Kuroda isn’t getting the attention quite like Yu Darvish of the Texas Rangers. Darvish was considered one of the best professional Japanese pitchers prior to joining the MLB. Darvish has met all expectations; he has been dazzling all season long. Darvish is 4-0 with a 2.82 ERA and he outpitched Kuroda and the Yankees on April 24th in a pitcher’s duel. Although Darvish has been sharp as a tack Kuroda will out pitch him in the month of May and earn his club more wins.
Mark my words, I had to put this one in… My boy Edwin Encarnacion remains the highest scoring 3B and is ranked #1 in total points for 3b come June 1st:
I’m going to bask in this one as long as Edwin Encarnacion stays hot. No one thought Encarnacion was going to have a great season, everyone brushed him away because his numbers have never been high. Owners never gave him a chance. I drafted Encarnacion in the last round of my draft. The Toronto Blue Jay cleanup hitter is currently ranked #1 among third basemen in fantasy baseball with impressive numbers. He is batting .322, has 8 homeruns and 21 RBI. He has homered in four consecutive games. In order for Encarnacion to stay on top of the third base list he will have to hold off the likes of Miguel Cabrera, Hanley Ramirez, and red hot Pablo Sandoval. Encarnacion will stay locked in throughout the month of May, as I predicted earlier this season a 25+ homer season at this pace E5 is going way over that.
Mark my words, Jose Reyes gets more hits in the month of May than league leader Derek Jeter:
This prediction doesn’t look too far-fetched until you dive into the statistics. Derek Jeter is currently leading the league with the most hits at 37, Jose Reyes on that other hand is in a mighty slump batting .219 and has less than half the amount of hits Jeter does with 18 total. Jeter is showing off an impressive .390 batting average at the conclusion of the first month. Last season Jeter batted .296 and the season before that .270, that’s the reason I see Jeter coming back to earth this month. Jeter is now 37 years young and keeping up a .390 average will be tough to do. Reyes on the other hand is young and struggling big time. Reyes was a huge acquisition for the new look Miami Marlins however he has started off the season slow. Reyes has been slumping so much that he has been removed from the lead-off spot earlier this season, but has since regained that position. I’m saying Reyes gets back on track for the Marlins, and Jeter comes back to earth as Reyes out hits the 37 year old shortstop.
Mark my words, Alfredo Aceves records the most saves in the AL, in the month of May:
The Red Sox got off to a brutal start to the season starting 4-10, and believe it or not Aceves’ start to the season was even worse. Aceves left Detroit after the first series of the year with an unlimited ERA because he failed to record an out. Aceves also left that season with an 0-1 record. Looking at the Sox schedule to come I like what I see and I see a lot of wins, which means a lot of save opportunities for Aceves. Aceves has cooled down a bit since the beginning of the year although his ERA wouldn’t say so at 10.80. Mark my words, Aceves will lead the AL in saves in the month of May.
Mark my words, In the month of May, Matt Kemp has a higher total of stolen bases than homeruns hit:
Matt Kemp of the Los Angeles Dodgers has put together one of the most impressive seasons in a single month of all time. Kemp batted .416, homered 12 times and batted in 25. I’m not saying Kemp will slow down in the month of May however I’m saying he will be more active on the base paths. In the month of April Kemp only had 2 stolen bases and was caught stealing twice however in 2011 Kemp had 40 stolen bases. Kemp will continue his hot streak because he is that damn good but he will show fantasy owners even more of what he’s got, this time with his feet.
Mark my words, Gio Gonzalez finishes the month of May undefeated:
Gio Gonzalez has been sharp since putting on his new jersey in 2012. Gonzalez was dealt from Oakland to Washington in the offseason. The talented left hander is currently sporting a 2-1 record with a 1.80 ERA. Since his first outing in which he allowed 4 runs he has only allowed 2 runs over four games. Gonzalez has been slicing through National League lineups and mark my words this will continue when he finishes the month of May with an undefeated record.
Mark my words, the Miami Heat are still in the NBA Playoffs:
I know it’s not fantasy baseball related however I needed to give myself a gimme somewhere right?
Conner Patch, Fantasy Insider @ConnerPatch68
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