ROCKIES RAISE FENCES

It’s finally time to downgrade Rockies after the team announced they would raise the outfield fence height in 2016. The world is ending. Grab the hottest person sitting next to you and get naked. It’s clearly the end.

Let’s not be alarmists (though grabbing a hottie sitting next to you and getting naked is never a bad idea if you ask me). Yes, the fences are going up in Colorado. Consider me non-plussed. Here is what we know.

The fences will be raised from eight to 16 feet “from the center-field end of the visiting bullpen to the right-field out-of-town scoreboard.” There is also an area in near the left field foul pole where the fence will be raised up by five feet.

So let me ask you – does this matter?

The data, from the article listed above, looked at 577 home runs at Coors the last three seasons. The club, through general manager Jeff Bridich, thinks the changes will help pitchers a bit. "We know exactly where all of those have left the ballpark and touched down, and some of the areas that we addressed were the high home run areas. It was targeted and educated adjustments."

All depends how you hit the ball. Charlie Blackmon, who hits line drives, would have lost a couple of the seven homers he hit at home last season. Meanwhile, Carlos Gonzalez, who lofts the ball into the seats, would have lost one of the 24 homers he hit at home.

In the end it helps pitchers and hurts batters. In the end I won’t rank any Rockies’ hitter any differently. Neither should you.

 

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RYU – WHY BOTHER?

Hyun-Jin Ryu has nice talent. Through 56 big league starts he has a 3.17 ERA and 1.20 WHIP. Turning 29 on April 2nd, he profiles as a potential 3rd or 4th starter in mixed leagues. You shouldn’t draft him in the top 23/24 rounds. Honestly, I wouldn’t even be drafting him at this point. Limited to zero innings last season because of shoulder woes, he had surgery for a labrum issue, he’s already dealing with a setback. Ryu experienced some shoulder discomfort when throwing and he’s been backed off for at least a few days. "There's definitely no pain," Ryu said. "A little typical soreness. I'm very happy and satisfied with the timetable.” Right. Uh huh. No. Not buying it. The last time Ryu threw 195 innings was 2007. He’s thrown 152 innings the past two seasons. Nope, not interested.

Speaking of the Dodgers, guess who is also hurt? Of course it’s Brett Anderson. He tweaked his back while throwing BP Tuesday and he’s now having tests run. Anderson had shoulder surgery back in 2014. He’s a total disaster.

 

  • Two men had Isolated Power marks of .300 last season. They were Bryce Harper (.319) and Chris Davis (.300). Sixteen men failed to post a mark of .100 with the worst offender being Alcides Escobar at .064. That’s just dreadful.

 

GETTING NERVOUS WITH GARDNER

Brett Gardner is a very stable option offensively. Each of the six seasons he’s had more than 50 games played he’s stolen at least 20 bases. He’s also gone 17/21 and 16/20 the last two seasons (homers/steals). Moreover, he’s scored at least 80 runs in each of the five seasons in which he’s appeared in 140 games. His average has languished in the .250’s the past two seasons, but he’s consistently productive. However, he will be 33 this season (August) which is a bit of a concern, but more concerning is the fact that he has a wrist issue that is still bothering him. Gardner hurt himself in the Wild Card game last October (bone bruise) and he’s still working his way back to full activity. Folks, it’s March. The plan currently has him returning to action on March 14th. Until I see that happen, and he looks good in his return, I have to downgrade Gardner, and so should you. 

Make sure to pick up your copy of the 2016 MLB Draft Guide which includes more than 600 Players Ranked, auction values, rookie reports, hitting and pitching targets as well as all the info you need if you’re ready to start playing DFS.

DYSON INJURY

Jarrod Dyson suffered a strained oblique Wednesday. Turns out that estimates are pinning his return date as... six weeks from now. He will obviously miss the start of the regular season and it sounds likely Paulo Orlando will open the year as the right fielder with Travis Snider waiting in the wings. Why should you care? If you don’t know why make sure you read Is Dyson Better Than Hamilton?

 

This is so absurd. Is it even funny? Probably not unless you have a twisted mind.


 

 

Ray Flowers can be heard Monday through Friday, 7 PM EDT and Friday on SiriusXM Fantasy Sports Radio (Sirius 210, XM 87). You can also hear Ray Sunday nights at 6 PM on the channel talking fantasy sports. Follow Ray’s work at Fantasy Alarm and on Twitter (@baseballguys).