With the fantasy league going so well, I’ve forgotten that I started this blog to actually write about real baseball. So I’m going to knock off the rust, spew some opinions, and hopefully start some discussion.

Last year I wrote a post titled 5 Reasons I Hate the J.D. Drew Signing. This was one of the first things I wrote, and the interesting thing about it is that it was actually referenced on TheSportingNews.com.

So in an attempt to get thefoulline.com back out in the world of baseball opinions, here is an update on the same theme.

6 Reasons I Hate Julio Lugo:

1. He’s a career .271 hitter that’s being paid $9 million a year. The Sox could have kept Orlando Cabrera for the same amount of cash.

2. He looks like a velociraptor when he’s getting ready to hit.

3. A major league leading 11 errors so far in only 35 games played.

4. He runs like a bowlegged donkey.

5. He complains about the Boston media… to the Boston media… when they write negative things about him. Memo to Julio: You’re not in Tampa Bay anymore.

6. Julio wears #23. This number should be reserved for great athletes. Guys like Michael Jordan, Don Mattingly, Lebron James, Pete Maravich and Ryne Sandberg have all worn this number with a certain distinction. Lugo should wear #67 until he proves worthy.

This list could be endless. What would you add?

After five fairly predictable weeks, week six shows that any team can win at any time. After correctly picking only one of the five games this past week, I’m not going to attempt predictions this week, but I would really like to hear from the other GMs and get their take on this upcoming week.

In lieu of predictions, here’s my updated evaluation of all the teams in the league.

Bostonbad boys: The Bad Boys have really had some great point production from Dice K, Ervin Santana, and Ryan Dempster. After adding the red-hot Larry Jones to the lineup, which already features RBI machine Josh Hamilton, this is a team headed in the right direction.

SarasotaRedRays: Now, this is a good looking team getting optimal production from everyone in the lineup. Every night someone new seems to step up and give some major offense. One night it’s Dan Uggla, the next it’s Geovany Soto. With an underrated pitching staff and a lineup dead set on proving themselves, these guys are going to be tough week in and week out.

Lessthanzero: This team is the Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde of the league. One week they put up 350 points and crush a team, the next they put up 260 and lose. I’m not sure what to make of these guys. They have a bunch of young talent that may be going through some growing pains, but LTZ is definitely a lot better than their 2-4 record indicates.

MyBestefforts: This is the battle of the brothers-in-law this week. Best Efforts have some great players on their team, including Lance Berkman and Miguel Cabrera, and they have the potential to put up some big numbers every week. But this GM is going to need a better performance this week from his pitching staff if he hopes to return to past weeks’ form.

Yankeehaters: These guys are obviously paper champions. They look great on paper but have failed to show up for the past several weeks. Since I’ve already traded pretty much my entire lineup, and have gradually weakened my team, I vow not to trade any players this week and hopefully let them work it out. We’ll see how that goes.

Love Boat Captains: The Captain Stubings of the league are currently riding a five-game winning streak, thanks to the newfound power stroke of Kevin Youkilis and a steady pitching staff. These girls suffered a bad break this week with the loss of the coolest guy in baseball, Vernon Wells. Ginger is going to need her outfielders to pick up Vern’s points if she plans on winning six in a row.

Rogers syringe: After a shakeup this past week, this team came out and played some solid ball. RS may feature the best outfield in the league, with Carl Crawford, Ichiro, and Carlos Lee. These guys, behind some quality pitching from Brian Bannister and Tim Wakefield, put up 295 points and may be on the way to reversing their early season woes.

The Showstoppers: This team had solid points from everyone in the lineup and was a couple of rain games away from challenging LBC. If Matt can improve his pitching staff, and finally find someone to take Hideki Matsui off his hands, he will be solid competition each week.

Boston Braves: What else is there to say about the team that took out the last of the undefeated? I don’t think these guys have played up to their potential yet. BB has had an interesting pitching carousel that has paid off for him, but Ryan Howard and Man-Ram have both been pretty quiet. When these two wake up, and they will sooner than later, Boston Braves will be tough to beat.

Chickenheads: The birds have been snakebit the past couple of weeks. First A-Rod goes out with a leg injury, and then two pitchers combine for -11 points this past week. This group has too much talent for the losing trend to continue. Things can only get better.

It’s been a lot of fun so far. Good luck to everyone this week!

Has it been five weeks already?

There were some real surprises this week. First of all, The Showstoppers finally showed up to play and handily destroyed Roger’s Syringe in the only game I predicted incorrectly. (Dylan now owes Matt Mc a round.) Secondly, the Boston Braves were beaten by a girl, by just under 100 points. Ouch. And finally, we may have seen the emergence of Mybestefforts as a solid team.

So since last week’s predictions were so popular, here are my picks for Week 6. But before I start, let’s see who is still the only undefeated team in the league, oh… there it is, the one, the only Yankeehaters.

Love Boat Captains (4-1) vs. The Showstoppers (2-3)
My initial reaction to this game was that The Showstoppers were going to beat the Love Boat Captains in a nail-biter. CBS Sportsline seemed to agree to it being close as well, predicting a 390-388 win for LBC. But after careful review, I have determined that there is no way in hell the The Showstoppers will win this one. Showstopper hitters David Wright, Ryan Braun, and Grady Sizemore are coming alive at the plate, but I feel the geezer combo of Andy Petitte and Randy Johnson are going to be no match for the extremely deep pitching staff of the LBCs. The LBCs could afford to improve their catcher, but that’s like throwing deck chairs off the Titanic, it doesn’t really matter.
Prediction: Love Boat Captains 355-320

Boston Braves (3-2) vs. Yankeehaters (5-0):
I would have been worried if these two teams played last week, but after seeing the Boston Braves get whipped by a girl, my anxiety has been relieved. I know the Braves’ Man-Ram, Aramis Ramirez, and the whole pitching staff underperformed last week. But after looking at his lineup, I’m kind of surprised that this team is above .500. Team Yankeehaters, on the other hand, had a poor performance by most of the pitchers and still won by 45 points. Those performances will not be repeated this week. Also, with the triumphant return of Jimmy Rollins later this week, the rich are getting richer. This will be a blow-out.
Prediction: Yankeehaters 390-278

Chickenheads vs. Roger’s Syringe
I though about ignoring this game this week, since both teams are in the midst of big losing streaks, but someone is going to come out of this game a winner, so let’s see how they stack up. First up, Chickenheads. How is it that a team with Mauer, Pujols, A-Rod, Hardy, Beltran and a better-than-average pitching staff stinks it up so bad? I have no idea, but I don’t think that it’s going to take much to beat Roger’s Syringe this week.

Speaking of Roger’s Syringe, the too-many-shortstops-and-middle-relievers experiment has officially failed. The good news is that there is still time to turn it around. Here are some free tips guaranteed to improve your team: #1, Release Julio Lugo and Orlando Cabrera. No one is going to trade for either one of these guys. If something happens to your starting SS, you will be able to find an adequate replacement via free agency. #2, Release Manny Corpas and Hideki Okajima. These two guys have not had the save opportunities that people expected. They put up low points and are taking up roster spots. #3, Make a trade for a couple of decent pitchers. You have a few trading chips on your team and there are some good alternatives out there. Make some adjustments before it’s too late. You have a rematch with The Showstoppers on May 26th, your chance to shut Matt up.
Prediction: Chickenheads 328-255

MyBestEfforts 3-2 vs. Bostonbad boys 1-4
Since MyBestEfforts has been turned over to new management, they have looked pretty impressive. Riding a two-game winning streak, they face perennial losers Boston (not so) bad boys. CBS Sportsline is predicting a BBB win. There is no way in hell that this is going to happen. MyBestEfforts is getting solid production from the entire lineup, although I’m interested to see how they replace the injured Troy Tulowitzki in the lineup. Even without him, this is a walk in the park. Bostonbad boys stink.
Prediction: Mybest efforts 348-310

SarasotaRedRays vs. Lessthanzero
This is thefoulline.com game of the week. After another impressive week, I’m starting to think that the SRR hitters may be for real. I think that the SRR are going to regret giving up on Johnny Cueto so early, especially after a poor performance from their pitching staff this week, but I do appreciate them dropping him. LTZ has been getting good numbers from everyone in the lineup. Dropping Phil Hughes and getting Eric Bedard off the DL is going to pay huge dividends. If SRR’s astronaut players return to earth this week, it could be a blow-out. If not, it should be a fun one to watch.
Prediction: Lessthanzero 370-362

These are my predictions. I would love to hear your comments. Please keep them clean.

Thefoulline.com quick hits:

• Jacoby Ellsbury and Dustin Pedroia are the best 1-2 punch in baseball. It seems like every game Ellsbury slaps a single, promptly steals second, and then is driven in by Pedroia. They’ve made the top of the Red Sox order fun to watch.
• Miguel Tejada promised a sick kid with Muscular Dystrophy that he would hit a homerun for him, and then he went out and hit one. I don’t care how old Tejada pretends to be, that was a classy move.
• All is right in the universe tonight after the Sox bounced back and swept the Rays.
• That sound you are hearing is the sound of Rays fans jumping off the bandwagon.
• Announcers should be biased towards their team, but the Rays’ combo of Dewayne Staats and Joe Magrane take it to a whole other level. Listening to these two idiots go on and on over all the calls that go against the Rays makes me want to cut my ears off. Not to mention, Dewayne’s hair looks like a rat’s nest.

• To further prove that Terry Francona reads thefoulline.com, after writing about the Sox’s offensive woes, they went and put up 26 runs on the Rays during the three-game series.
• Tomorrow is the most popular day of the week, Fantasy recap day! Let’s see if my predictions hold up.

After watching the Red Sox this past week, I was under the impression that their offense was still stuck in Fort Myers. The dynamic duo of Ellsbury and Pedroia have looked lousy. Big Papi is a shell of his former self and has resorted to diving head first into first base in an attempt to get on, and Manny Ramirez has more stolen bases than extra base hits. I’m tired of the 2-1, or 3-0 games. I want the Sox offense to look more like a beer league softball team.

I can understand the Red Sox struggling against Roy Halladay or James Shields, these guys are good pitchers. What bothers me is when Boston’s potent offense is held in check by the likes of Edwin Jackson and Jon Garland.

But all my worrying was for naught. After doing a little research I found that Boston’s offense is right where it should be. Check out these numbers:

Batting Average: 1st in AL
Hits: 1st in AL
Runs: Tied for 2nd
RBIs: Tied for 2nd

The Red Sox also have Man-Ram leading the league in batting average and slugging % and in 2nd in homeruns and hits.

If Boston can only stay healthy for the rest of the year, they have the potential to put up some great numbers.

Thefoulline.com quick hits:

• After the latest Roger Clemens scandal, it may be time for him to pick up Mike Tyson and O.J. Simpson and move to Siberia. America is officially sick of your crap. I can’t see how this guy could sink any lower.
• Thefoulline.com staff would like to wish Alex Rodriguex and Jorge Posada a speedy recovery from their recent ailments. Fourth place in the division just isn’t the same without them.
• Surprising no one, J.D. Drew is sitting out after nicking himself shaving. Or something.
• Boston faces Blue Jays pitcher Dustin McGowan tonight. McGowan has pitched really well against Boston in the past and has the best sideburns in the league.
• Dustin Pedroia’s diving stop in the 9th inning of last night’s game reminded me of when he saved Clay Buchholz’s no-hitter last year. D-Ped does not get the recognition he deserves for his defense. He’ll make the All-Star team this year.
• Has anyone else noticed that Jonathan Papelbon always gives a fist-bump to a Boston police officer when he enters the game? Anyhow, check out this article. It’s pretty cool.

With the fourth week of thefoulline.com fantasy baseball league behind us, I think we can divide the teams into three tiers:

The Good: Yankeehaters, Love Boat Captains, Boston Braves
The Bad: Chickenheads, MyBestefforts, SarasotaRedRays
The Ugly: Lessthanzero, The Showstoppers, Rogers Syringe, bostonbad boys

Since I am the only undefeated team and still have the highest one week point total at 443.67 (so close, Boston Braves, with 443 this week), instead of giving the week in review, I’m going to share my predictions for the upcoming week’s match-ups.

Chickenheads vs. Mybestefforts
This is a battle of the 2-2 teams. One of these two are going to join the upper echelon of the league, and the other may be have to dig themselves out of a huge hole if they hope to make it to the playoffs. Chickenheads pitcher John Smoltz may miss his next start, which alone may be enough for MyBestefforts to prevail. Both of these GMs have kept their teams pretty much unchanged all season. Maybe another mediocre week will inspire them to make a deal.
Prediction: MyBestefforts

Rogers Syringe vs. The Showstoppers
This battle of the basement dwellers is going to be interesting. Both teams have decent offensive players and inconsistent pitching. This may be the first tie game of the year, but since I have to pick someone to win…
Prediction: Rogers Syringe

Boston Braves vs. Love Boat Captains
This is thefoulline.com fantasy game of the week. Both of these teams are playing great ball and have a ton of talent. The new additions of Francisco Rodriguez and Cole Hamels are going to make LBC tough week in and week out. The Boston Braves, on the other hand, may have found the secret formula to put up 400+ points every week. This one is going to go down to the wire.
Prediction: Love Boat Captains

YankeeHaters vs. SarasotaRedRays
These two teams made a blockbuster deal earlier in the week and are currently heading in different directions in the standings. The YankeeHaters added a #1 pitcher in Carlos Zambrano, along with some needed power with the additions of Matt Holliday and Prince Fielder. Curtis Granderson is finally off the DL and will continue to put up big numbers. SarasotaRedRays added the hot-hitting Derek Lee and Evan Longoria to help their poor offensive performance this past week, but they’ll need to have the week of their lives if they hope to win this one.
Prediction: YankeeHaters in a landslide.

Lessthanzero vs. Bostonbad boys
These two 1-3 teams are mirror images of each other. LTZ has a good offensive team with a mediocre pitching staff, and Bostonbad Boys have a good pitching staff with a decent offense. This may come down to the BBB not having a utility player in their lineup. This one is the coin-flip game of the week. Heads LZT, tails BBB…
Prediction: Lessthanzero

Living in Southwest Florida, I’ve always felt that I should try and adopt the Tampa Bay (Devil) Rays as my second favorite baseball team. After all, their tickets are cheap, parking is free, and they have a group of young players that could turn them into a winner in the years to come. But after attending today’s Red Sox-Rays game, I didn’t gain a newfound respect for this team. I found the complete opposite - disdain.

Just when I thought that the Yankees had the biggest fair-weathered fans around, here come the Rays to challenge them for the title. The Rays have sold out their stadium 10 times… ever. In past years, they couldn’t have filled the place even if they offered up free all-you-can-drink beer and the chance to play shortstop for the team. Even at the start of this season, the Rays were playing to half a stadium. But now that they’ve won a few games in a row, everyone and his sister are fans. And man, are they obnoxious.

For some stupid reason, instead of cheering when their team makes a good play, Rays fans ring cowbells. Why do they do this? I have no idea, but it sucks, and it irritates the hell out of me. Another thing that pisses me off is the retarded Rays fans that were talking smack like they just won a playoff game. The Rays just swept a team that was decimated by an Ebola-strength flu epidemic. They can stick their brooms up their asses. Let’s check out their record when the All-Star game rolls around.

Am I bitter that the Sox were just swept? Maybe a little.

Do I think that the Rays will challenge the Sox in the AL East this year? No way.

Are the Rays now public enemy #2 to Red Sox Nation South? Definitely!

And then there was one. After another exciting week of fantasy baseball, there remains only one undefeated team, the Yankeehaters. The Chickenheads proved to be a two-week wonder and were dominated by the Boston Braves. The SarasotaRedRays ran into the buzz saw known as Roger’s Syringe and lost a closely contested game. The good news is that there is only one winless team. The even better news is that I’m playing the Bostonbad boys this week. 4-0, here I come.

Since my team is undefeated, and I am the only one to put 400+ points up in one week, I am obviously the best general manager. So in the hopes of leveling the playing field, I am going to impart my wisdom on how to improve the other teams in the league.

You are welcome.

• Bostonbad boys: I would upgrade your outfield. I’m not sold on Griffey Jr. for a whole season. Josh Hamilton is performing well but has yet to play a full season in the majors. I would think about dealing one of your star pitchers for a good outfielder.
• YankeeHaters: This team is close to perfect, with good starters, a solid closer, and an offense that scores in bunches. I would like to see my shortstop stay healthy. I’m pretty happy with this team, although I may be interested in a good outfielder, and I always enjoy a deal.
• Roger’s Syringe: I like the outfield and the reserves that you have on this team. I think that you need a better second baseman and another quality pitcher. Could there be a Scott Kazmir deal in the future?
• Boston Braves: This is going to be the team to beat this week. They have a ton of pitching and 12 starts this week. With Man-Ram and J.D. Drew playing great ball, and a really good infield, they will be a force week in and week out. If they can trade some extra pitching for a good third outfielder, look out.
• Chickenheads: This is another solid team. The only way to improve this team would be to trade both Yankees. I don’t care what you get for them. Team chemistry will definitely improve.
• Love Boat Captains: You know that you have a deep outfield when Jacoby Ellsbury is sitting on your bench. This team could be really good with a more consistent catcher and another #1 starter.
• My Best Efforts: This team has been hit with the injury bug to its pitching staff and suffered another loss this week. They have some pop to their lineup with Miguel Cabrera, Lance Berkman and Alex Rios, but they really need to put a catcher in the lineup that is in the majors. I’m sure that it will help.
• SarasotaRedRays: This guy has done a good job of finding players on the verge of breaking out. He’s added Johhny Cueto, Nate McLouth, and Mark Reynolds, and these “no-names” have performed really well. The big question is whether they can keep it going for a whole season. If not, they may be in trouble.
• The Showstoppers: Where to start… under-performing pitching staff, no real power in the lineup, and a disgruntled owner. I agree with you Matt, blow these guys up and start over. It’s still a long season. You have time to work your Theo magic.
• Lessthanzero: These guys got the shaft this week. They put up 399.5 points… and lost. With the exception of Chocolate Cake Sabathia, they have a rotation that couldn’t be picked out in a police lineup. If they plan to get out of the basement, they need to improve their pitching.

This is just my expert opinion. I’d love to hear what you guys think as we go into week 4.

Good teams find ways to win.

Sometimes it’s a pitcher throwing a complete game to give a tired bullpen the night off, or a great defensive play to keep your team in the lead. In the case of the Red Sox, it’s been back-to-back games with a game-winning home run in the 9th inning.

Thefoulline.com quick hits:

• It already sucks to be a Cleveland Indians fan. It must suck even more when the Red Sox come to town and you know that your team is going to find a way to lose. The Indians have a ton of talent and should be running away with the division, but with a 5-9 record they are one game out of the Central Division cellar. Maybe they need some Lake Erie Midges swarming around their heads to get them back in the groove.
• Did you see the lineup Terry Francona put out last night? Coco, Ellsbury, Lowrie, Lugo, and Cash. I thought they were mailing it in before another Yankees series. I guess even the Sox reserves can beat most teams.

• It was great to see yet another Red Sox prospect live up to the hype. Two years ago it was Jonathan Papelbon. Last year it was Jacoby Ellsbury, Jon Lester, and Manny Delcarmen. After last night’s 3 RBI performance in his first Major League game, it may be time to add Jed Lowrie to the list of legitimate prospects.

• Which reminds me, how are the over-hyped Yankees Phil Hughes and Ian Kennedy working out for New York? Last time I checked, Hughes was was 0-2 with a 9.00 ERA, and Kennedy was 0-1 with an impressive 8.74 ERA. Do you think the Yankees are regretting not dealing these guys for Johan Santana?
• Mike Mussina and Carl Pavano will make a combined $22,071,029 this season.
• Tim Wakefield and Jonathan Papelbon will make a combined $4,775,000 this season.
• To further reinforce how crazy the Steinbrenners are, these idiots actually dug up the “cursed” Ortiz jersey buried in Yankee stadium. News Flash, Hank! The shirt is not the reason your team stinks. It’s the lousy pitching pitching staff, over-hyped prospects, and $28 million cancer playing third base.
• The Red Sox are in first place. Woo-hoo!

Since our friendly neighbor to the north was unintentionally snubbed this week in thefoulline.com’s fantasy baseball week in review, the staff at thefoulline.com would like not only to apologize but also to dedicate this post to a few of the things that are great about Canada.

• Hockey, the second greatest sport in the world.
• Alan Thicke, head of the Seaver family and arguably one of the top six TV dads of all time.
• Molson Ice. Beer is good. Really strong beer is very good.
• More drinkable water then anywhere else in the world.
• The way they can seamlessly incorporate “eh” into every sentence.
• Pamela Anderson’s breasts.
• Two teams in the CFL with the name Roughriders.
• The 55-year-old Canadian Tulip Festival.
• Loonies and Toonies.
• 1 Canadian dollar = 0.985319 U.S. dollars.
• Under-appreciated rock band The Guess Who.
• Survivorman Les Stroud.
• The talented Michael J. Fox, Jim Carrey, and Margaret Atwood.
• The less talented Bryan Adams, Celine Dion and Keanu Reeves.
• Birthplace of the zipper and Trivial Pursuit.

So you see, not only does Canada produce intelligent blog readers, but they have made many important contributions to the world.

Sorry about the slight, Canadian Pirate fan. We hope this fixes things.