Nobody predicted the rise of the Tampa Bay Rays.  Soon after the All-Star break when injuries hit the Rays and they appeared to be free falling, most experts and pundits wrote them off.  But as to thumb their noses to the so called experts, the Rays quickly rebounded and here in the last week of the season, are still in first place - still holding off the World Champions Boston Red Sox.  They have shown the poise and perseverance required to win, and this season maybe the breakout party for the Rays that is long overdue.

So as the Jays and Yankees battle for third place, there is little consolation for the Yankee ball club or fans to finish third.  Anything other than a World Championship is considered a failure - especially when sporting the highest payroll in baseball.  If the Jays do win the series and the Yankees end up in 4th place, it may as well mark the end of this Yankee dynasty’s reign.  The Jays, Rays and Red Sox have much younger teams that have shown they are on the upswing.  The Yankees, although still sporting perennial All-Stars, are past their prime and will probably need to go into rebuilding mode in the next few years to get back on track.  As the last game at the historic Yankee Stadium was played last Sunday, the event may also symbolically mark the end of this Yankee era.  It was fun while it lasted.

Now many fantasy generals will frown and even mock the use of the auto-draft tool, as it takes away the whole skills and research of building your team, not to mention putting your own personal touch.  The draft is arguably the single most important managerial task that you need to perform as the general manager of your fantasy team, any screw-up here can severely hamper your team’s performance for the rest of the season.  All of these are great points, and are points that I also subscribe to.  However, it is also for these reasons that sometimes the auto-draft option just makes sense.  It all comes down to two main factors: time and emotion.

Time - For the hard-core fantasy sports fanatic, this is not an issue - they will spend the hours required to dig through stats, read up on prospects and sleepers, and have a list of possible hidden gems come draft day.  However, for the rest of us, this isn’t an option.  As much as we do love fantasy sports, the time and effort to get a substantial return for our research is just not plausible.  Given that, instead of making informed selections based on knowledge and stats, we use our gut and the “celebrity factor” such as how well we know or heard of the player.

Emotion - In any type of investment when emotion is put into the mix, it can really screw up your decision-making and ultimately your returns.  This is no different when drafting players for your fantasy team.  Your players or picks are your investments and when made soundly with the proper research and evaluation, you can generally expect decent returns.  However, if all of your picks were based on emotion - how well known the player is, does he play for your favorite team, etc, you will most likely dread the returns you’ll see at the end of the season.

The beauty of the auto-draft is that it takes these two elements out of the equation.  Most auto-drafts are quite sophisticated and along with applying the algorithms of the best player based on stats and need, you can also add your own rankings and player preferences to the mix.  In my opinion, this combination gives you the ultimate tool to succeed when draft day comes.  On a personal level, I have used the auto-draft option for my past couple of leagues and have been satisfied with the results.  Where was the extra time that I saved from all the hours doing research used?  Watching the game, of course.  Time well spent, indeed.

For a weekly fantasy stats compilation, visit: www.rotobaseballguru.com

The Jays seem to relish in playing spoilers in September.  Although I don’t have the stats in front of me, I do recall that September is usually a good performing month for the Jays, and so far with a 5-0 record to start September, the Jays look to continue that trend.  But the bigger question is, does this all really matter?  Even with all of the great recent play, the Jays are once again not playing any meaningful games in September.  Although they may mathematically be still in it, the reality is that the Jays management is getting a better feel of what they have and what the future will hold.  From what I have seen so far, the future should be bright.

With a 1-2-3 of Vernon Wells, Alex Rios and Adam Lind in the outfield, the Jays will have a young and solid group, that if playing up to their potential, will rival any other outfield tandem in the AL East.  They have shown this year that they have the top pitching staff, but that will take a bit of a hit next year with the wide known speculation that A.J. Burnett will opt out of his contract and walk away for greener pastures.  I have also been quite impressed by 20 year old September call-up, Travis Snider, who is eating up Major League pitching like he was back in Triple A Syracuse.  Finally, there’s the Cito Gaston factor.  Although there were many critics of his re-hiring back in June, the results that he has brought to the Jays since he replaced John Gibbons cannot be ignored.

Gaston and his staff has slowly but surely began to bring the bats around and given them confidence to deliver in the clutch, the critical weakness of team all year.  Although he’s not magician, it’s been night and day at times the way the Jays hitters approach their at-bats and there has been a gradual improvement till this point.  All of the recent results, plus the whole aura of being the only manager to bring Toronto a championship in baseball - has earned Gaston an extension to his contract until next year.

As a Jays fan, I maybe disappointed with another September of meaningless baseball, but with Gaston in charge, the players that we have locked up, and ultimately the progress that the team has made in the past few months … I am shockingly optimistic of what we can do next year.  But until then, at least I know there will be entertaining September baseball to watch!

Update: September 9th, 2008

The Jays have run their winning streak to a whopping 10 games in a row!  This is their longest streak since the franchise record 11 game win streak back in 1998 between the strech of Aug. 27-Sept. 7.  Although it will still take a miracle for the Jays to make it into the playoffs, this is a fun ride that we should all enjoy while it lasts.  Let’s go Blue Jays!

So what does this wealth of hitting translate to in fantasy terms?  Taking a look at the weekly top hitters of the past week, we see that Blue Jays and White Sox hitters take up five of the Top 10 spots.  In fact, if we expanded the rankings a couple of spots, we would have been able to add in Marco Scutaro (Tor - 2B,3B,SS,OF) to the number 12 spot.  Producing a hitting line of - 6 runs, 2 doubles,  2 HRs, 7 RBIs, .400 BA, .448 OBP, Scutaro just barely missed breaking the Top 10 for the week.

With both the Blue Jays and White Sox hitting so well, it is not surprising that their hitters dominated the weekly top hitter rankings for the past week.  Hitting is contagious and when a team gets on a roll the likes of what these two clubs have gone on, fantasy owners of players on these clubs cannot help but smile and enjoy the ride.  Let the good times roll!

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Unlike Michael Phelps, which had the American media machine hyping him up and making him a household name, Usain Bolt was a virtual unknown coming from the small island of Jamaica.  There was no real hype around him and to the casual fan and most of the people watching the Olympics, the name of Usain Bolt was not known to anybody before his 100m race.  In fact for that race, it was his country man, Asafa Powell that was widely viewed as the favorite to come away with the gold.  That quickly changed after Usain Bolt obliterated the field and won the 100m in world record time of 9.69 seconds - earning him the nickname of “Lightning Bolt”.

As if earning the title of “World’s Fastest Man” was not enough, lightning struck twice more at the Bird’s Nest (the venue where the track and field events were held) with Bolt winning gold in the 200m sprint as well as the 4×100m relay in world record times.  This is a feat that has never before been accomplished before and may never be touched again.  In the journey of winning the sprint triple crown and doing so in such dominating and flamboyant fashion, Usain Bolt has made people pay attention to track again.  After being plagued with an era of drug abuse and steroid use, Usain Bolt did what many previously thought was impossible and he did it in such an electrifying way that you cannot help but appreciate it.  Track and field needed a hero and Usain Bolt came to the calling.

Some circles, including IOC President Jacques Rogges, has criticized Bolt for his flamboyant victory celebrations and indicated that as unsportsmanlike and showing up the other athletes.  As a fan however, I would disagree with this statement and have no issues with how Bolt has celebrated.  It is no different than many other celebrations that I have seen in professional sports such as a victory dance after a football player scores a touchdown or when a hockey player scores a goal.  Even at the Olympics, I have seen many other athletes (mainly the Americans) celebrate in a similar fashion as well.

No, Usain Bolt’s character shouldn’t be questioned here and his celebrations are a genuine display of the joy he felt as well as acknowledging the incredible feats that he accomplished.  And to show the type of character he is, after winning his 3 gold medals, Bolt donated 50k USD of his sponsorship money to the Red Cross of China in a joint event with Chinese beauty and Miss World 2007, Zhang Zilin.

From unknown to international celebrity in a span of a week, success and fame does have it’s price.  But with Bolt’s personality and desire for the flair, I am sure he will rise to the occasion. 

After Phelps succeeded in his goal of winning 8 gold medals in these Olympic games, the media was hot and heavy in asking any and all athletes regarding their thoughts on this incredible feat.  When the question was posed to Van Koeverden, he gave the standard praise and pleasantries to Phelps, but also added a slight caveat to his response.  He stated that although Phelp’s feat was incredible, swimming is a sport where you could basically excel in one technique or discipline, and have multiple opportunities to win a medal.  For example, if you were a brilliant short to middle distance freestyler, you have to opportunities to win 6 medals of basically the same discipline: 50m, 100m, 200m, 4×100m Freestyle, 4×100 IM, 4×200 IM.  There really isn’t any other sport that rewards an athlete so many opportunities to basically excel at the same thing.  Furthermore, Van Koeverden indicated that if his sport of kayaking had additional events of varying distances i.e. 1500m, 2000m, 2500m, 4×500m relay, etc, he would be in the running for 5 to 6 medals as well.  Given Van Koeverden’s recent dominance of the sport and his world record time in his qualifying heat, I have no qualms with the little trashing talk and confidence that Van Koeverden exuberated.  In fact, as Canadians I feel that we are too “polite” at times and don’t necessarily have that killer instinct necessarily to succeed in competition and we are all too often in the “just happy to be here” mentality when it comes to the Olympics.  Sure that maybe the safe thing to say, but in all honesty athletes live and breathe to compete and along with that, to win.  So the rhetoric behind not wanting or caring about winning is really a farce.  So let’s call a spade a spade and I would step up and applaud all competitors that are willing to take the beats when they talk the talk but don’t walk the walk.

Perhaps it was only karma then, that after Van Koeverden made his not-so Canadian comments, he went out and had probably his worst race of the past four years, coming 2nd last (8th out of 9 competitors) in the finals of the K-1 1000m event, where he was heavily favoured to win gold.  He had no explanation for his disappointing performance, other than stating that he just didn’t have it that day and was clearly devastated by the results.

Canadians don’t trash talk, because when they do, they usually choke when it comes time to back it up.  I have no explanation for it, other than the theory that there are larger powers at play here.  Regardless of the conspiracy theory though, the story did have a luke-warm ending, as Van Koeverden bounced back from his dismal performance and earned a silver medal in the K-1 500m, another event that he was favoured to win gold in and most recently set a world record in his qualifying heat. 

This was not the result that Van Koeverden, hoped, trained and competed for … however the result is still something that he, and Canada, can be proud of.  He made a good point during one of his closing interviews that in sport, there is never ever guarantees.  Just because you are picked to be the favourite, you still need to show up and compete at your best on that day, to meet the expectations that has been set on you.  Perhaps this is the truest statement that he made, and very typically Canadian.  Maybe if he did not make those statements regarding Phelps, things would have ended up differently.  You never know … karma can be a very powerful force!

Regardless of the disappointing results, Canada is still very proud of you Adam … and yes, that’s very Canadian for me to say that as well.

Now that may seem a bit dramatic, however there is substance to that claim.  There is reason why his coach could not hold back tears during the post-race press conference when explaining Liu’s injury.  There is reason why just about every member of the Chinese media were in tears during that interview.  There is a reason why the crowd at the Bird’s Nest (the Olympic stadium hosting the event) let out a shriek when they heard of Liu’s withdrawal and after moments of stunned silence, they exited the stadium.  There is a reason why volunteers and security personnel alike where seen in tears around the stadium.

When Liu Xiang won the gold in the 110-meter hurdles 4 years ago in Athens, it was the first time a Chinese male won a gold medal in track and field.  In a sport where it’s been widely believed that the physique of a typical Asian does not stack up with the rest of the world, Liu Xiang was able to bust this myth and capture the hearts of an entire nation.  Every day since that memorable feat, the expectation and desire for Liu Xiang to repeat in Beijing, the capital of the nation he represents, grew to an immeasurable size.  You see, the Chinese are a very proud people.  As a Canadian born Chinese, I can speak to that first hand from my own upbringing and the traits of my parents.  In a time where China itself is beginning to seek acceptance on the global stage, Liu Xiang’s previous accomplishments represented the possibility for hope, and breaking through the typical misconceptions and stereotypes.  Here was a Chinese man succeeding in a genre, let alone sport, where none other has done so before him.  Whether it’s fair or not, the burden and expectation of an entire nation was on Liu Xiang this time around, willing him to show to the world once more that China does belong on the global stage.

With this in mind, and the knowledge that the entire nation was behind him, Liu Xiang pushed forward.  He willed himself to bear the pain of his injury and decided to at least give the race a try, even though he was sporting an injury to his Achilles tendon that should have kept him out for at least a month.  When it was all said and done, there was no fairy tale ending this time around.  No heroic feats that could bend the reality of the situation.  No, in the end there was only tears and disappointment, as well as the constant what-if and what could have been.  Alas, at times Olympic moments may be magical and uplifting, but like any other fairy tale relationship, it can also break your heart.  Keep your head up Liu Xiang, the nation still loves you.

That being said, from a fantasy perspective, there has been nothing disappointing about Matt Holliday and his consistent reliable production for his adoring fantasy managers.  Holliday has already been highlighted in a previous article regarding his ability to make a repeat appearance in the weekly top hitters list, a feat that was only matched by Milwaukee Brewers young slugger Ryan Braun.

As if that accomplishment wasn’t enough, Holliday continued to make the Weekly Top 10 Rankings in the following week, placing 3rd on the July 27th - August 2nd list.  So what does all of that production equate to from a fantasy production?  Here the line for Holliday’s numbers for the past 30 days:

Matt Holliday (Col - OF) - 35 runs, 10 doubles, 9 HRs, 21 RBIs, 6 stolen bases, .375 BA and .476 OBP

That’s good enough to rank him as the top fantasy player according to Yahoo stats for the past month.  Not too shabby for a guy that doesn’t have too much to play for on a team that has given up on the season and started thinking about next year.

Speaking of somebody who has been at the top of his game, Ty Wigginton of the Houston Astros have been on quite a tear this past week, earning him the top spot in the latest weekly rankings.  He’s somebody that you would want to pick up off the waiver wires if he’s still available.  Given that Carlos Lee is basically done for the season, there should be plenty of playing time available for Wigginton, especially if he can keep up any semblance of the torrid pace that he’s been on the past week.  That and the fact that he can qualify for up to four positions (OF, 1B, 2B, 3B) makes him an attractive pick up for the stretch run of your fantasy season.

For weekly new and archived top hitter stats, check out: www.rotobaseballguru.com/weekly-top-hitters-rankings.php

Now that I’ve gotten that off my chest, let’s focus on some of the amazing stories that have developed from the Olympic games in the past week.  I have always been a big fan of the Olympics.  I can still recall watching events from the ‘88 Olympic games in Seoul, in our two bedroom apartment in Canada with my family, all six of us crowding in front of our 24″ CRT television, cheering on both Canada and China in the various events.  I find that the Olympics is one of those television sporting events that will bring people together … family members of various ages will gather around and cheer on the nations as well as athletes that display incredible ability and accomplishments in their respective sports.  The fact that the Olympics can bring people together, regardless of age, interests or beliefs, is one of the reasons why the games are so special.  With that said, let me share some of these Olympic moments that I’ve been fortunate enough to savor and enjoy over the past week:

Michael Phelps - 8 Gold Medals

Phelps did what many would consider impossible, until he proved them otherwise.  I had the opportunity to watch most of Phelp’s final races live, and those that I missed were quickly up on YouTube.  You can say that he was destined to achieve this incredible milestone of winning 8 gold medals in a single Olympics … the comeback of the American 4×100 relay team to overtake the French was the first example of his destiny and the fact that he was able to win the 100 metre butterfly by only 0.01 of a second, grabbing victory from the jaws of defeat, was the second example.  Regardless of your belief, there is no question the amazing feat of Phelp’s accomplishments and it would be one of those moments where many years later you’ll be asked and remember: Where were you when Phelp’s won his recording setting 8th gold in the 2008 Beijing Olympics?  A true Olympic moment indeed.

Usain Bolt - World’s Fastest Man

 
I wasn’t sure what I was more amazed with.  The fact that Usain “Lightning” Bolt obliterated the field in the 100 meter dash to earn his title as the “World’s Fastest Man” or the fact that he obviously eased up in the last 20 to 15 meters and began celebrating his victory and STILL broke the world record.  When he was interviewed after the race, he indicated that if he knew that he was breaking the world record he would have continued pushing forward but since he had already won the race he didn’t feel the need to add insult to injury.

Some may take this as an athlete being too cocky and full of himself, but I didn’t interpret it this way.  Usain is clearly having fun and savoring the moment … dancing and posing for the fans with the Jamaican flag draped over him, becoming an instant hero in his home country.  Through his success and clear display of confidence, there is humility and a feel good feeling that you get that encourages you to cheer him on.  Knowing the fact that he did not go all out during his race leaves the door open for many “what if” scenarios and the audience at the edge of their seats waiting to see what’s to come from this amazing athlete.

These are the top two Olympic moments that I have been able to enjoy from the first week of the Beijing games.  Feel free to share yours and what events that you have savored thus far that would qualify to you as an “Olympic moment”.

Perhaps it is my cynicism of athletes of this age that has lead me to this bias.  The cynicism stems from the fact that most athletes of this era, especially the superstars, have such a larger than life persona and ego that they seriously do believe that everything revolves around them, both on and off the field.  It maybe because of how they dominate the on-field predicaments that they feel that they are entitled to the same treatment and results off the field.  The fact that Brett Favre felt that he was a victim of this whole self-inflicted soap opera is something that I find quite disturbing.  It is this “me first” and “the world revolves around my needs attitude” of these cry baby athletes making multi-million dollar salaries that really turns me off and gives a negative stigma to professional athletes.  What ever happened to playing for the love of the game and there is no “I” in team?  Players like Brett Favre and Roger Clemens should take a lesson from Toronto Maple Leafs own Mats Sundin on how to handle retirement.  If you’re not sure, then say you’re not sure and don’t hold a team hostage by flip-flopping back and forth and expect the team to be accommodating each time you change your mind.

Thank goodness the Olympics are on.  After a few weeks of this ugly soap opera between Favre and the Packers dominating every sports news headline, it’s refreshing to see some real athletes that compete for the sake of competition, for the sport they love and of course, a lot national pride.  Now that’s something that you can cheer for.