ESPN Insider Gank: Bad Night For Preston Wilson Owners

filed under Fantasy : Baseball

Today’s ESPN Insider Karablog dilligently breaks down the Washington Nationals’ acquisition of gimpy Colorado Rockies’ centerfielder Preston Wilson and how it will impact those unfortunate fantasy owners that actually consider him a legitimate outfielder. Of course, resident fantasy bubble boy Eric Karabell has flared up his Carpal Tunnel Syndrome writing about it on his paid blog. But we’re VIPs at Oddjack and we don’t pay for shee-it. You don’t have to either, after the jump. But if you’re a Mormon, click here.

Big Night of MLB Trading

You know, for some, Wednesday night wasn’t easy. It was the last night of the baseball season in which there won’t be games. What is there for a fantasy baseball player to do if there’s no baseball? I mean, how much Mariska Hargitay on “Law & Order: SVU” can one person watch? OK, don’t answer that. It wasn’t such a tough night after all.
But it wasn’t just difficult for those who can’t go a night sans the national pastime. If you own Preston Wilson on your fantasy team, well, you’ve had better nights. So thanks to the Nationals, Rockies, A’s and Red Sox, we’ve got something to discuss. So let’s.

What the Nats did for fantasy: Kudos to Washington for finally unloading a pitcher it didn’t want (Zach Day, and now you don’t ever want him, either) for a legit power hitter. I have to admit, how a first-place team can keep winning with a Carlos Baerga/Wil Cordero platoon not only at first base but hitting cleanup is a mystery to me. Look for Brad Wilkerson to don the first baseman’s glove and Preston Wilson to roam in center and protect Jose Guillen in the order. Wilson did have 15 home runs for the Rocks, but — and didn’t you know a “but” was coming — as with every Rockie, the home/road splits tell the ugly story. Wilson had 10 of his 15 homers at home, got 34 of his 47 RBI there and hit .281 at Coors Field, only .224 on the road. Check out what current Nat Vinny Castilla did last year at Coors and his current underwhelming stats.

But it’s even worse than that. Wilson was only hitting left-handed pitching, and there’s less of it in the NL East. And ask us how RFK Stadium is for hitters. Go ahead. The Nationals don’t score runs, and by this point of the season we know the park can be blamed for some of this. The Park Factor index tells us that only two places are tougher to score in, San Diego and, for some odd reason, Baltimore. Jose Guillen has 18 home runs this season. Only one has come at home. His slugging percentage is .677 on the road, .350 at home. I think this tells us a lot. You don’t really want Wilson now in fantasy. He’ll hit a bit, but combined with his nasty injury history, it’s hard to predict success here. Wilson has never batted at RFK. Don’t trade for him.

The Wilson trade, combined with the team activating Ryan Church off the DL, also signals a return to bench duty for Marlon Byrd, who wasn’t hitting much anyway. If Nick Johnson ever comes off the DL, then Wilkerson would play left field and Church, who has had a nice season, would have to sit. Don’t be upset if you have Church in keeper leagues, however. Wilson is a free agent come October. And the news on the Johnson front is he’s out indefinitely. It’s possible Washington doesn’t expect his return very soon and that helped force this trade.

What the Rockies did: One might say losing Wilson hurts the guy hitting ahead of him in the batting order, Todd Helton. I’m not buying that. Helton’s having a bad season, and Wilson’s got nothing to do with it. (And Helton’s hot now — and again, not because of Wilson.) Colorado did acquire Eric Byrnes, and he should be an everyday outfielder, and possibly hit fourth or fifth. Byrnes might be more a fourth outfielder in real life. He only hits lefties (.329 vs. .218 against RHP), but the Coors effect helps him, especially since he’s a fly ball hitter. Spend more than a few bucks or a high waiver spot on him in NL-only leagues, and don’t be shocked if he shines. Byrnes went 20-73-17 last season in a pitcher’s park. He has speed. He has power. And he’s exactly the type of guy on a noncontending team who wants a big contract and makes a huge difference in fantasy. Don’t ignore him.

As for poor Day, treat him the same way you did Joe Kennedy, who was lucky enough to be traded to Oakland. You don’t want any Rockies pitcher except Brian Fuentes, the closer. Interestingly enough, you probably won’t want Fuentes when he’s traded, since he’s likely to stop earning save chances wherever he lands.

What the A’s did: Losing Byrnes isn’t a big deal to Oakland since the outfield was set without him with Mark Kotsay in center, and signed for a few more years; Nick Swisher clearly emerging as a power-OPS source in right; and walk machine Bobby Kielty manning left. The DH spot is crowded, with Erubiel Durazo returning soon and Scott Hatteberg losing first-base at-bats to Dan Johnson. So what does this mean for Jay Payton, acquired from Boston for injured reliever Chad Bradford? It means Payton, who complained about playing time, won’t be happy in Oakland. In fact, he should see fewer at-bats. He won’t platoon with Kielty because Kielty hits lefties far better. I think his best chance for playing time is as a defensive replacement. The theory that Payton would play center if Kotsay got dealt to the Yankees is over; Kotsay’s staying. You didn’t own Payton before, don’t start now.

Meanwhile, Kennedy might not be such a bad pitcher, but it’s tough to tell since he has been a Rockie and Devil Ray. Now he’s actually on a decent team, in a decent park. Problem is, he doesn’t have a rotation spot. Kennedy might be on the move again, or he will have to pitch out of the bullpen. I doubt Kirk Saarloos is losing his rotation spot over this trade (3.87 ERA, better than all A’s starters except Rich Harden). Jay Witasick will pitch in the seventh and eighth innings.

What the Red Sox did: Nothing pertaining to this trade. Bradford is a submariner — actually, some say he throws underhanded — and he doesn’t fit into the closer situation over Mike Timlin or this other guy, the one the team activated off the DL on Wednesday. What’s his name? Curt something?

Yes, Curt Schilling is now an active pitcher. He will pitch out of the bullpen this weekend against the Yankees and might even save games. It’s hard to project what will happen after that.

Wow, quite a night for trades. There will be more in the next few weeks. There will be more.