Crusty Dusty's

[DOUGHBOYS]

GM'shave wised up. Kind of.
They used to give players long deals in order to roster their good years.
The oldest player in baseball is a testament to this.
The oldest player in baseball still has two years left on his contract.
Albert Pujols has been in the accumulation phase of his career for awhile now.
We can almost say that all of his Angels years have been more about accumulation than production.
But you know what?
Look at this...

.261/79/15/47/5

.244/55/23/93/3

Should there be 12 rounds of difference between those numbers?
There is.
The first set of numbers are Joey Votto's. The second, Pujols.
ADP has these two all wrong.
Both are going to do what they do.
Pujols will keep accumulating.
Votto, listening to sabrmetricians in thinking that RBI are not a worthwhile statistic.
They are to us!

Speaking of older players, here is a list of the top 10 oldest players in baseball...

1. Pujols
2. Rich Hill
3. Erick Kratz
4. Nelson Cruz
5. Oliver Perez
6. Adam Wainwright
7. Yadier Molina
8. Shin Soo Choo
9. J.A. Happ
10. Darren O'Day

That list of Crusty Dusty dudes is full of fantasy relevance.
Hill is getting away with throwing three months a year instead of six.
Cruz is hanging on more like Barry Bonds than Pujols.
Molina is accumulating and still one of the best defensive catchers in baseball.
Ask ANY pitcher who they would rather throw to, Gary Sanchez or Molina and you will hear laughter over the question itself.
Choo and Happ still relevant too.
That list is surprising.

Let's talk about Cruz more... While it is obvious to me that he has been taking undetectable PED's for awhile,... it works.
Cruz has followed the Sammy Sosa path of a career.
Both were as highly thought of for their speed as well as power when prospects.
In fact, as late as 2009, Cruz had a 20/20 year.
In 2013, he was caught taking PED's.
Since then, Cruz has been one step ahead with his maskers.
In his aged 34-39 years, Cruz has averaged over 40 homers a year.
He never hit 40 homers before then.
And like Bonds and Sosa, Cruz's head has become balding and huge.
It's funny, fans think less of players who get caught taking PED's
As fantasy players, we think A LOT less of these players if he's caught after we drafted him.
It's something for us to ponder when considering Cruz for our team.
He already has one strike against him.
To be caught again would render him droppable. Especially this year, if there is a baseball year.

[DOUGHBOYS]

Just for fun (and for validation) I did a comparison of three players mentioned above.
I took Pujols aged 35-40 years, Cruz's 34-39 years of age, and Joey Votto's 3--35 years of age.
These are the last six years of each of their careers.
Three players, each with their own agenda.
For Cruz, it is taking PED's and furthering his career by artificial means.
For Pujols, it is now accumulation. Pujols practices hitting balls out of the strike zone for RBI.
For Votto, it is about reaching base. He practices NOT going out of the zone for pitches.

Here are there numbers for the last six seasons (or since Cruz got serious about taking a wayward turn)

Cruz (age 34-39)- 285/85/41/105/2

Pujols (age 35-40)- .253/67/26/96/3

Votto-(age 30-35) .295/80/21/69/5

Some conclusions....

Cheaters DO prosper, if not caught....

Say anything you want about Pujols, but the guy knows how to drive in a run...

Votto's theory of hitting is already outdated. ESPECIALLY for fantasy purposes. He should be scoring lots more runs than both other players.
He is not.
Reaching first base more than other players does NOT mean scoring more than other players. It's just better than an out. That's all.
His RBI, laughable.
And this is with a five year age difference.
Votto will slow down even more and score less runs over his next five years. A career change is needed.
Either cheat like Cruz or attack the ball like Pujols.
Both are preferable to seeing a guy with backup-catcher speed trying to score from first base after a walk.

(And yes, I always feel better after a Joey Votto rant)

[DOUGHBOYS]

Columbo style...(For those not knowing 'Columbo'..... google him)

One more thing.....

During every Spring Training, I watch Votto closely.
Hoping he'll drop the crap of walking over hitting.
It is not to be this year kids.
He even complained to a Spring Training Umpire over a called strike on a 3-1 pitch....oh boy.
And get these stats, albeit over a short period of time, but speaking to his methodology....
2-21, NO extra base hits and NINE walks.
As they say, he was in mid-season form.