Posted By:Bretsky on April 10, 2015

Wayne Bretsky and Mark Kaplan celebrate the return of baseball, bringing you the latest news and notes as well as discussing some of the bullpen shifts that we’ve seen over the season’s first week. The guys discuss the hot starts of Adrian Gonzalez and Anthony Gose as well as the brutal debut from Mat Latos. Mark and Bretsky dip into the world of Daily Fantasy Sports to discuss selecting pitchers and give you a couple of strong plays for Friday’s action. The boys also hit the waiver wire and close the show by opening up the mailbag.

Hit up the guys on Twitter @BretskyBall and @DaTrueGuru to join in on the action!

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Box Score Baseball Podcast – So It Begins

News & Notes

• Giants banged up
• Closer volatility

Daily Fantasy Baseball

• Picking your pitching
• Friday recommendations

Waiver Wire Friday

Mailbag!

The Box Score Baseball Podcast theme is written and performed by William “Wild Bill” Hitchcock

Posted By:Bretsky on April 7, 2015

After a couple years layoff, we are resurrecting our old friend —  The 11th Inning Stretch  — a daily breeze through the box score to uncover the hidden gems that will aid your quest to a fantasy championship. We’ll also throw in a couple of DFS selections for those of you testing out the waters on the daily game.

Leading Off

As daily fans across the land rushed to stack the Brew Crew against Rockies Opening Day start Kyle Kendrick, they found themselves on the wrong side of the diamond from the premiere offensive assault. The Rockies brought their big bats on their season opening rod trip, putting up a dime on Kyle Lohse and the Brewers. Third baseman Nolan Arenado led the way with a  3-for-4 efforts, slugging a home run, scoring three times and driving in four. Troy Tulowitzki joined him with three runs scored and Corey Dickerson matched his RBI total with a four steak game as well. A healthy Carlos Gonzalez also chipped in a pair of hits out of the two-hole, giving the Rockies more depth in the lineup than they’ve since the days of Larry Walker and Dante Bichette.

The numbers in that little table thingy above are quite frankly eye-popping and would seem to support the conventional wisdom that this team only hits when at home. Still, it’s important to realize that health has also played a major role on the Rox success over the last several years. Teams that are built around two foundation bats tend to slump when one or the other is not in the lineup and the Rockies have suffered through long stretches without the services of CarGo and Tulo. With a bit of depth added to the lineup in the form of Arenado and Dickerson, the Rockies will be able to keep their studs fresh in the hopes also keeping them healthy.

This is the best looking Rockies lineup we’ve seen in well over a decade and it will be a force both in the thin air of Coors field and when they take the show on the road.

Other Notables

• Alex Rios made a splash in his Royals debut, knocking three hits including a homer and swiping a bag as well. Over the past three season, Rios has put together a .288/.324/.452 slash while averaging 18 home runs and 30 steals per 162 games. There is plenty of gas left in the tank.
• It was more of the same from AL Cy Young winner Corey Kluber as he tossed 7.1 strong inning with seven strikeouts. Kluber was out-duelded by fellow 2015 breakout Dallas Keuchel. We didn’t like the three free passes that Keuchel handed out, but he continues to rack up the ground balls while throwing with confidence.
• Boston’s bats played a bit of homer run derby against Cole Hamels and the Phillies on Opening Day, slugging five long balls — two each for Dustin Pedroia and Hanley Ramirez and one for Mooke Betts. On the flip side, Clay Buchholz dominated a punchless Phillies offense. An encouraging performance for Buchholz for sure, but we’re going to take away from this the ability to stream starters early and often against this miserable Phialdelphia squad.
• Todd Frazier came up with the big hit for the Reds to give them an Opening Day W, but watching Joey Votto collect a pair of hits out of the two-hole and Jay Bruce go deep in the fourth off of lefty Francisco Liriano are the details to note.
• Masahiro Tanaka‘s new arsenal did not have positive results, he failed to get through the fifth inning for just the second time in his career. After taking a flier in a couple of draft where the Yankees ace slipped outside the top-100 picks, I’m still hanging on, but Tanaka is probably a bench-worthy candidate until he turns in a useful start.

Call to the Pen

• Jason Grilli got he nod in post-Kimbrel Atlanta. He showed solid strikeout skills down the stretch last season and should do just fine.
• Chris Hatcher locked down the save for the Dodgers, and should continue to do so as long as he has success in Kenley Jansen‘s absence.

Injuries and Such

• Buddy Carlyle grabbed the save for the Mets with Jenrry Mejia unable to shake elbow soreness as he warned up in the ninth. Jeurys Familia is the priority add and would likely have garnered the opportunity had he not already pitched in the game.
• Matt Cain was diagnosed with a strained flexor tendon and is headed for the disabled list. Jake Peavy has also been scratched from his start later this week, leaving the San Francisco rotation up in the air. Ryan Vogelsong will fill in one of the spots, but fantasy owners need to keep an eye on Yusmiero Petite, who’s strikeout rate alone makes him mix-league worthy.

Daily Fantasy Deals

Each day we’ll toss out a batter and a pitcher who is making their way into our DFS lineups

Bat

Stephen Vogt: After blasting a three-run shot on Opening Day, Vogt should find himself in the lineup once again with a right-hander of the mound. Vogt offers underrated power and is catcher eligible in the Draft Kings game. For an affordable 7% of your budget, he’s a nice option over more expensive backstops Buster Posey and Jonathan Lucroy.

Arm

Zack Greinke: He’s likely to be among the priciest options at starting pitcher regardless of format, but Greinke has  a nice matchup agains the Padres heavily right-handed lineup in San Diego.

Posted By:Bretsky on April 2, 2015

Wayne Bretsky and Mark Kaplan are counting down the days to the start of the 2015 baseball season, but there’s no need to wait to find out who is going to win it all. The boys reveal their playoff picks, awards winners and hand out some fantasy superlatives. Bretsky and Mark also call out their bust of the year and lay down some bold predictions for the upcoming season. As always, the show closes with a dip in the mailbag.

Hit up the guys on Twitter @BretskyBall and @DaTrueGuru to join in on the action!

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Box Score Baseball Podcast – Get Out Your Crystal Ball

News & Notes

• Anthony Rendon
• Jayson Werth
• J.J. Hardy
• Justin Verlander
• Drew Storen
• Daniel Norris and Aaron Sanchez
• Micah Johnson
• Jake Marisnick
• Carlos Martinez

Playoff Picks and Bold Predictions

Mailbag!

The Box Score Baseball Podcast theme is written and performed by William “Wild Bill” Hitchcock

Posted By:Bretsky on March 25, 2015

Wayne Bretsky and Mark Kaplan make their final preparations for the 2015 Fantasy Baseball Draft Season. The boys recap some news and notes before conveying what they’ve learned so far in drafts and things they plan to alter to build a championship club. As always, the guys dip into the mailbag to help out some listeners to close the show.

Hit up the guys on Twitter @BretskyBall and @DaTrueGuru to join in on the action!

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Box Score Baseball Podcast – Draftin’ Time

News & Notes

• Hector Olivera
• Kris Bryant
• Rubby De La Rosa\
• Victor Martinez and Miguel Cabrera
• Jacoby Ellsbury
• Coco Crisp

What We’ve Learned

• Willing to gamble on…
• Guys we like
• Guys we apparently do not like
• Guys you need to slide up your draft board
• Let someone else have em

Mailbag!

The Box Score Baseball Podcast theme is written and performed by William “Wild Bill” Hitchcock

Posted By:Bretsky on March 11, 2015

Wayne Bretsky and Mark Kaplan force NFL and NBA interests out of the picture and discuss the latest happenings around the MLB that will impact the fantasy world. The boys discuss injuries to Cliff Lee, Marcus Stroman and others before debating the value of some offseason wildcards. Mark relays his strategy for drafting a deep-league squad as the guys recap his defending-champion FSWA team. Finally, the guys answer some trade questions as they dip into the mailbag.

Hit up the guys on Twitter @BretskyBall and @DaTrueGuru to join in on the action!

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Box Score Baseball Podcast – Worst Shape of Our Lives

News & Notes

• Cliff Lee
• Marcus Stroman
• Gavin Floyd
• Coco Crisp
• Jonathan Lucroy

Offseason Wildcards

• Ryan Braun
• Prince Fielder
• Justin Verlander
• George Springer
• Matt Harvey

Building a Team: FSWA Draft Recap

Mailbag!

The Box Score Baseball Podcast theme is written and performed by William “Wild Bill” Hitchcock

Posted By:Bretsky on February 26, 2015

Wayne Bretsky and Mark Kaplan shake off the rust to kick off Season 3 of the Box Score Baseball Podcast. The Boys discuss a couple of early spring injuries, the developing story surrounding Josh Hamilton and recap the offseason moves that will impact fantasy value for the 2015 season.

Hit up the guys on Twitter @BretskyBall and @DaTrueGuru to join in on the action!

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Box Score Baseball Podcast – Worst Shape of Our Lives

News & Notes

• Kenley Jansen
• Victor Martinez and Jonathan Lucroy
• Jayson Werth
• Josh Hamilton

Movers and Shakers

• Top 5 offseason moves
• Players losing value

Mailbag!

The Box Score Baseball Podcast theme is written and performed by William “Wild Bill” Hitchcock

Posted By:Bretsky on August 20, 2014

Wayne Bretsky and Mark Kaplan turn their attention to the wide receiver position as they continue to get prepped for fantasy draft season. The boys break down the top tier, lay out the players they are targeting based on ADP value. Mark and Bretsky crank up the hype machine to uncover the youth movement at the position before calling out their wide receiver busts and making a couple of bold predictions.

Hit up the guys on Twitter @BretskyBall and @DaTrueGuru to join in on the action!

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4th Down Fantasy Football – Wide Receiver Preview

The Top Tier

• Do the Bear’s studs belong in the top tier
• How does the next group shape up.

ADP Value

• Pierre Garcon
• Roddy White
• Torrey Smith
• Golden tate
• Eric Decker
• Reggie Wayne
• Kendall Wright
• Terrance Williams
• Brian Hartline

Cranking up the Hype Machine

• Michael Floyd
• Brandin Cooks
• Justin Hunter
• Jordan Matthews

Busts

• Sammy Watkins
• Cordarelle Patterson
• Percy Harvin
• Keenan Allen

Bold Predictions

• Roddy White
• Desean Jackson
• Reggie Wayne
• Andre Johnson
• Michael Crabtree

Title Music: Summon the Rawk – Kevin MacLeod (http://incompetech.com) 

Posted By:Bretsky on August 14, 2014

Wayne Bretsky and Mark Kaplan come to terms with the litany of fantasy stars hitting the disabled list and formulate a plan for the stretch run. The dedicate this week’s episode to patching the gaping hole on your roster to help keep your team afloat.

Hit up the guys on Twitter @BretskyBall and @DaTrueGuru to join in on the action!

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Box Score Baseball Podcast – House of Pain

Injury Replacements

• Andrew McCutchen, Allen Craig, Carlos Gonzalez and George Spring leave you hanging in the outfield
• What middle infielders can replace Hanley Ramirez and Troy Tulowitzki?
• Streaming starter to replace busted arms, Anibal Sanchez, Homer Bailey and Jacob deGrom

Mailbag!

The Box Score Baseball Podcast theme is written and performed by William “Wild Bill” Hitchcock

Posted By:Bretsky on August 7, 2014

Wayne Bretsky and Mark Kaplan catch up with a;ll the happenings around baseball. The boys discuss many of Bretsky’s favorite Phillies hitting the waiver wire, George Springer’s road to recovery, more frustration for Carlos Gonzalez owners and mourn the loss of Paul Goldschmidt and Andrew McCutchen. The boys welcome Javier Baez to the bigs and take a look at some of the most added players in standard leagues before closing the show with a dip into the mailbag.

Hit up the guys on Twitter @BretskyBall and @DaTrueGuru to join in on the action!

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Box Score Baseball Podcast – Baez-ball

News and Notes

• Waiver Season
• Adam Ling begins rehad
• Jarred Cosart scratched
• George Springe rrehabbing
• Gerrit Cole still not ready
• Paul Goldschmidt and Andrew McCutchen leave owners hanging

The Good, the Bad and the Upside

• Good: Matt Kemp
• Bad: Corey Dickerson
• Upside: Javier Baez

The Fixer

• Bretsky loses control

Waiver Wire

• Josh Reddick
• Denard Span
• Javier Baez
• Roberto Hernandez
• Danny Salazar
• Jesse Hahn

Mailbag!

The Box Score Baseball Podcast theme is written and performed by William “Wild Bill” Hitchcock

Posted By:Bretsky on July 30, 2014

Wayne Bretsky and Mark Kaplan weigh in on the latest happenings around baseball, including the approaching trade deadline, a red hot catcher and some prospect bats who have hit an adjustment period. The boys shift through the most added bats on the waiver wire to find some gens and close the show by dipping into the mailbag to analyze some trades from the listeners.

Hit up the guys on Twitter @BretskyBall and @DaTrueGuru to join in on the action!

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Box Score Baseball Podcast – Trade Winds Blowing

News and Notes

• Jake Peavy to the Giants
• Rumors surrounding John Lester
• James Paxton to return Saturday
• Everth Cabrera activated from the DL

The Good, the Bad and the Upside

• Good: Carlos Santana
• Bad: Pitiful prospects
• Upside: Dallas Keuchel

The Fixer

• Bretsky makes some trades while keeping his eye on the prize

Waiver Wire

• Josh Harrison
• Chris Carter
• Lucas Duda
• Josh Rutledge
• John Jaso
• Chase Headley

Mailbag!

The Box Score Baseball Podcast theme is written and performed by William “Wild Bill” Hitchcock