Jul 31 2009
After rejecting a trade the first time around, the Chi Sox made another pitch for the Padres ace and this time Peavy did not exercise his no trade clause and will be headed to the Windy City.
White Sox get Jake Peavy:
Its a great move for the White Sox in the long term, but Peavy is currently injured and its still not 100% clear as to whether he'll pitch again this season. His agent seems pretty confident that he'll pitch in August. For Peavy owners who were hoping to get their ace back, he'll now be in an unfamiliar hitters league. His strikeout numbers will probably be about the same and his wins will go up, but his ERA will take a hit.
Jul 31 2009
In a move that makes no sense for the Reds, they acquire third baseman Scott Rolen in exchange for Edwin Encarnacion.
Reds get Scott Rolen:
As an Rolen owner, you hate to see him leave the good lineup he was a part of in Toronto. However, playing for the Reds in the Great American Ballpark should help his power numbers which have been pretty low considering how great he's swinging the bat. This move to the NL and to Cincy should boost his numbers and make him one of the more valuable third basemen the remainder of the season.
Blue Jays get Edwin Encarnacion:
The Jays get a few prospects as well, but Encarnacion has been an underachiever his whole career so I'm not really sure as to why they would pull the trigger on this deal.
Jul 31 2009
Former Pirates first baseman Adam LaRoche will head back to his old team. No, not the Pirates, his other old team, the Atlanta Braves.
Braves get Adam LaRoche:
With the Red Sox acquiring Victor Martinez, the Sox really didn't need LaRoche around anymore. I hope he got in that cup of coffee with Jason Bay because that's about how long he was there for. He'll now be reunited with Nate McLouth in Atlanta where LaRoche had his best years including a 32 HR, 90 RBI season in '06. His value has the potential to skyrocket on the Braves for the remainder of this season. LaRoche has always been a big second half player and playing on a good offensive club like the Braves could help his numbers.
Red Sox get Casey Kotchman:
I really thought the Braves had the better first baseman in Kotchman over LaRoche. However, now Kotchman's value will hit rock bottom as he'll be stuck behind Youkilis and Martinez at first base.
Jul 31 2009
The logjam at firstbase just got more crowded with the acquisition of Victor Martinez from the Indians.
Red Sox gets Victor Martinez:
A nice move by the Sox. They add another good bat to their lineup and possibly get some power out of their catcher position as he could take over as their full time catcher if Mike Lowell stays in the lineup. Martinez is a good contact hitter with a little bit of power. He's been a great fantasy catcher over the years, especially now as he's not playing the position but is still eligible for it. The move from the Indians to the Red Sox boosts his value as he should have more guys on base in Boston than he did in Cleveland.
With this trade I'm assuming this will kill any chance of the Red Sox landing Adrian Gonzalez.
Jul 30 2009
The Pirates have completed their self destruction with the trade of All Star 2B Freddy Sanchez to the Giants.
Giants get Freddy Sanchez:
The good news here is that next time Freddy Sanchez gets a hit it will be for a team that has a snowball's chance in making the playoffs. Since winning the batting title in 2006, Freddy has been a shadow of his former self but maybe a change in scenery and a realistic chance at making the playoffs will re-ignite his bat and round him back into Silver Slugger form. Since 2B is one of those tough positions to fill, taking a chance on him isn't a bad idea. At his best he'll contribute a lot of hits, runs and have a solid BA.
Jul 29 2009
1. Larry Fitzgerald - When adjectives like "unstoppable" and "uncoverable" are used to describe a wide receiver, how could they rank anywhere other than first? Pitt product Larry Fitzgerald didn't single handedly drag the Cardinals from mediocrity to champions... but he came pretty darn close. The NFC champion Cardinals have remained intact and have a soft schedule coming into 2009. Another big season for Fitzgerald is as close to a lock as you can get.
(Photo by Getty Images)
2. Andre Johnson - Its about time for people to wake up to the truth. Maybe its because he plays for the Texans, but nobody mentions Johnson when talking about the elite receivers of the NFL. It has to stop. Johnson caught over 100 passes in two of the last three years and has over 1000 yards. The one year he did not reach 100+ receptions, he only played in 9 games. He was on pace to catch well over 100 passes.
3. Randy Moss - Nobody missed Tom Brady more than Randy Moss last year. After setting the single season record in TD receptions with 24, his TD number dropped to 11 and he barely reached 1000 receiving yards. Even Brady back at the helm, Moss won't be as good as he was in '07, but he should be much better than he was in '08.
4. Reggie Wayne - With Marvin Harrison gone, Wayne becomes Peyton Manning's go-to-guy. In '07, when Harrison was out for most of the season, he caught 104 passes and scored 10 TDs. I expect to see similar numbers in '09.
5. Calvin Johnson - It may be a bit surprising to see someone from an 0-16 team ranked so high in anything, but consider this, the Lions are always playing from behind and therefore always passing the football. With defenses sitting in the prevent protecting their huge lead, this makes things very easy for the lone bright spot on the Lions. Johnson had over 1300 yards and 12 TDs during last year's winless season. As long as they're bad, he'll rack up tons of garbage stats.
6. TJ Houshmandzadeh - No one made a better career move this past offseason than when Houshmandzadeh left the Bungles for Seattle. Housh was always good for 90+ receptions on the Bengals dreadful offense and caught 92 last year without Carson Palmer for most of the season. I think a Hasselbeck to Housmandzadeh connection will be electric this year.
7. Steve Smith - Smith put together another memorable season with 1,421 yard receiving in just 14 games (101.5 yards per game) . However, with all the success the Panthers have had on the ground, his TD receptions (6) are suffering. If he gets in the end zone more, he's right up there with Andre Johnson.
8. Marques Colston - The tall receiver from Harrisburg had a bit of an off year in '08. After pulling in 98 passes and 11 TDs the year before, he struggled with injuries and it affected his performance. It wasn't until later in the season that he started to look like himself again. I wouldn't worry about his '08 performance. He's the top receiver on the number one passing attack in the league, as long as he stays healthy, he'll produce.
9. Anquan Boldin - It may be surprising to see the Cardinals second receiver ahead of a lot of other teams best receivers, but you can't argue with the numbers. Boldin pulled in 89 passes for 1038 yards and 11 TDs while only playing in 12 games. Next to the Saints, the Cardinals have the most lethal passing attack in the NFL. Having Boldin is just as good as having a number one from another team.
10. Roddy White - Going into last year, everyone was saying his numbers from '07 were a fluke and that he wouldn't do it again. They were almost right. He ended '08 with 5 more catches, 180 more yards and 1 more TD reception. With the Falcons looking to open up the passing game a little more, White's numbers will probably increase yet again.
11. Terrell Owens - Ohhh TO why? Why Buffalo? Was that really the best place to go? You were ranked number one last year in my WR rankings, now you're 11th. You can't really ignore Owens on draft day. He's way too talented and he'll make Trent Edwards look a lot better than he actually is, but towards the end of the year they play a lot of home games and I'm a little skeptical as to how well he'll perform in Buffalo in late November and December.
12. Greg Jennings - Since coming into the league, Jennings has just been getting better and better. Last year, he had great chemistry with Aaron Rodgers and it led to a career year in receptions and yards.
13. Chad Ochocinco - Last year was a down year for Ochocinco (I hate typing that) and it most likely had everything to do with Carson Palmer being out of the lineup. He's back now and supposedly at 100%. It will be interesting to see if these two still have chemistry. The Bengals will most likely be losing a lot of games again this year and will in turn be forced to pass often.
14. Torry Holt - No team is more hungry for a quality WR than the Jacksonville Jaguars and I believe they may finally have one. He's not what he once was, but for the Jaguars he should be plenty. Holt had a awful season on a terrible Rams team in '08. Don't think he drop in numbers has to do with his age, he has plenty left in the tank.
15. Brandon Marshall - With Jay Cutler in the Windy City, I don't expect Marshall's numbers to be anywhere near what they used to be. However, you cannot discount a guy that's caught for over 100 passes and 1200 yards in each of the last two years. He's still a great receiver and if he can prevent his personal life and personal feelings for the Broncos organization from getting in the way, he should turn in a solid season.
16. Roy Williams - One of the many Lions first round busts was traded to the Cowboys last year, but he was a complete non-factor in their offense. With Roy starting with the team from the very start, I expect things to be differently. He's currently first on the WR depth chart and if he can play at all like he did with the Lions, he should have a big year with Romo throwing him passes.
17. Hines Ward - Old reliable for the Steelers has been just that for his fantasy owners too. Ward doesn't make the big play, but he does catch a lot of passes and get his fair share of TD passes. If your drafting him to be the best receiver on your team, then you're asking too much, but if he's 2nd or 3rd, you should be happy with the return.
18. DeSean Jackson - Besides dropping the ball on the one yard line because he thought he was in the end zone, Jackson's rookie year was a lot better than most rookie wide outs. He caught 62 passes for 912 yards and will only get better and better with time.
19. Wes Welker - Tom Brady was missing? Welker didn't notice. If he had caught one additional ten yard pass last year, he would have had the exact same number of catches and receiving yards as he did when Brady was there in '07. One difference was he just had 3 TDs. Hopefully he'll find his way back to the end zone with Brady.
20. Vincent Jackson - As predicted here on the Fantasy Factor last year, Vincent Jackson had a breakout season in '08. He's not big on quantity as he is quality. Jackson only caught 59 passes, but had over 1,000 yard receiving (18.6 per catch) and 7 TDs. While its great to see him excel with the big play, I would like to see him either rack up more yards or score a few more TDs.