August 26th, 2013 | by Ray Flowers | 
They were waiting for me in Big Sur. I camped over the weekend at Big Sur in California. Some quick thoughts before I get to the baseball.
(1) I didn’t find Bigfoot. Probably cause I didn’t look. I’m sure Bigfoot exists.
(2) Toasting marshmallows is amazing. Add in some peanut butter to your smore and you’ve got a pure delicacy.
(3) Southern Comfort is a fantastic camping companion.
(4) I’m about two inches taller than the standard sleeping is set for (I should have just taken my old one that fits my massive height).
(5) It’s nice to detach from the rat race, even if it’s only for a few days.
Back at it…
Dustin Ackley has finally found his groove at the big league level. Maybe. He’s certainly worth starting in virtually every format at the moment as he’s hit .330 over his last 26 games and .370 with a .959 OPS over his last 16 games. Don’t forget, he qualifies at second base an in the outfield.
Ian Desmond went 20/20 last year with 25 homers and 21 steals. Has anyone noticed that with two homers in his last two games he’s now a single homer and four thefts from a second straight 20/20 effort?
Nick Franklin has been missing time of late because of a knee laceration. It looks like he might have left his bat on the sidelines as well. In 16 games in August he’s hit .129 with 23 punchouts. Ouch is right. He’s also only gone deep one time in August and he doesn’t have a steal since June. He’s on a 140 game pace of 22 homers, 10 steals and 78 RBIs so we can cut the rookie some slack, but that .235/.304/.418 slash line hardly inspires confidence.
Freddie Freeman‘s overall numbers are mighty impressive this season: .313-16-85-69. What makes those numbers seem even more impressive is that he’s accomplished all of that in only 116 games. His .390 OBP is fantastic, and he’s been hot of late with five of his last eight games leading to at least two hits. A borderline superstar, just as I said he would be before the year started in his Player Profile.
Scooter Gennett is owned in two percent of leagues at Fleaflicker.com. Two percent. With Rickie Weeks done for the year (hamstring), you would think that more would have added Gennett cause it looked like he would get full-time work. Well now is the time to add him if he’s still sitting out there. He’s not a great hitter an at under 160 lbs he’s not going to blasting balls into the seats with regularity, but have you seen his August numbers? They deserve a mention, and then some – .387-4-9-9 with a 1.088 OPS over 62 at-bats.
Brandon Phillips has 95 RBIs, the second best mark in the NL (Paul Goldschmidt has 101). Phillips is three off his career best mark, and he needs just two more bombs to reach 18 for the season, a number he’s produced every year since 2007. Too bad he’s hitting just .266 and has stolen only four bags after swiping at least 14 each of the past seven years.
Finally, did you hear how I’m about to take on a machine for fantasy football supremacy?
By Ray Flowers
Tags: Brandon Phillips, Dustin Ackley, Freddie Freeman, Ian Desmond, Nick Franklin, Scooter Gennett
More...
They were waiting for me in Big Sur. I camped over the weekend at Big Sur in California. Some quick thoughts before I get to the baseball.
(1) I didn’t find Bigfoot. Probably cause I didn’t look. I’m sure Bigfoot exists.
(2) Toasting marshmallows is amazing. Add in some peanut butter to your smore and you’ve got a pure delicacy.
(3) Southern Comfort is a fantastic camping companion.
(4) I’m about two inches taller than the standard sleeping is set for (I should have just taken my old one that fits my massive height).
(5) It’s nice to detach from the rat race, even if it’s only for a few days.
Back at it…
Dustin Ackley has finally found his groove at the big league level. Maybe. He’s certainly worth starting in virtually every format at the moment as he’s hit .330 over his last 26 games and .370 with a .959 OPS over his last 16 games. Don’t forget, he qualifies at second base an in the outfield.
Ian Desmond went 20/20 last year with 25 homers and 21 steals. Has anyone noticed that with two homers in his last two games he’s now a single homer and four thefts from a second straight 20/20 effort?
Nick Franklin has been missing time of late because of a knee laceration. It looks like he might have left his bat on the sidelines as well. In 16 games in August he’s hit .129 with 23 punchouts. Ouch is right. He’s also only gone deep one time in August and he doesn’t have a steal since June. He’s on a 140 game pace of 22 homers, 10 steals and 78 RBIs so we can cut the rookie some slack, but that .235/.304/.418 slash line hardly inspires confidence.
Freddie Freeman‘s overall numbers are mighty impressive this season: .313-16-85-69. What makes those numbers seem even more impressive is that he’s accomplished all of that in only 116 games. His .390 OBP is fantastic, and he’s been hot of late with five of his last eight games leading to at least two hits. A borderline superstar, just as I said he would be before the year started in his Player Profile.
Scooter Gennett is owned in two percent of leagues at Fleaflicker.com. Two percent. With Rickie Weeks done for the year (hamstring), you would think that more would have added Gennett cause it looked like he would get full-time work. Well now is the time to add him if he’s still sitting out there. He’s not a great hitter an at under 160 lbs he’s not going to blasting balls into the seats with regularity, but have you seen his August numbers? They deserve a mention, and then some – .387-4-9-9 with a 1.088 OPS over 62 at-bats.
Brandon Phillips has 95 RBIs, the second best mark in the NL (Paul Goldschmidt has 101). Phillips is three off his career best mark, and he needs just two more bombs to reach 18 for the season, a number he’s produced every year since 2007. Too bad he’s hitting just .266 and has stolen only four bags after swiping at least 14 each of the past seven years.
Finally, did you hear how I’m about to take on a machine for fantasy football supremacy?
By Ray Flowers
Tags: Brandon Phillips, Dustin Ackley, Freddie Freeman, Ian Desmond, Nick Franklin, Scooter Gennett
More...
