Undervalued – C Wilin Rosario: Rosario emerged big time behind the plate for the Rockies in 2012, hitting .270/.312/.530 with 28 homers and 71 RBI in 426 plate appearances. Though Coors Field certainly gave his numbers a boost the fact he managed to still hit 10 homeruns and post a .448 slugging percentage on the road shows that he is the real deal. He’s definitely on the radar of many fantasy owners heading into 2013, but he still not ranked high enough by most. The potential for 30 homeruns is there and this will likely be the last year Rosario’s not a top five pick at the position for some time.

Overvalued – OF Dexter Fowler: For years we’ve been hearing the hype about how Fowler can deliver double-digit power and speed numbers and in 2012 he finally started to deliver. He posted career highs with 13 homers and a 12.1 walk rate. He definitely is a player that can offer something to all five categories, but he’s not going to get to 20 homers or 20 stolen bases and he’s likely to bat somewhere between .270 and .280 rather than the .300 clip he hit at a year ago. Not a bad complimentary piece for your lineup, just don’t overpay to get him.

Sleeper – 2B Josh Rutledge: The 23-year old went right from AA to the big leagues last season and despite only having 291 plate appearances as a rookie last year, Rutledge hit .274/.306/.469 with eight homers, seven steals and 37 RBI. The only thing keeping him from being much higher in our rankings is due to the fact he’s so young the Rockies could opt to put him back in the minors at some point if he endures a sophomore slump. Don’t count on it though. He needs to improve on his strikeout rate (54 strikeouts; only 9 walks) to take the next step.

Bust – 1B Todd Helton: Despite the fact that he’s still atop the Rockies’ depth chart at first base, veteran Todd Helton can no longer be viewed as a fantasy asset.  He turns 40 this August and 2013 will likely be his last season. Helton batted just .238/.343/.400 in 69 games last year and hasn’t gotten to the 20-homer mark since 2005. Outside of NL-only formats owners should avoid him at all costs.

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2010 Rewind: 83-79, third place NL West. Due mostly to a woeful road record, the Rockies missed the playoffs in a very competitive NL West. With a lot of youth and some dominant players on both offense and pitching, the Rockies have what it takes to contend.

The Good: Two elite, MVP-like players. Carlos Gonzalez and Troy Tulowitzki are two of the youngest, most talented players in baseball and they lead the Rockies’ potent offensive lineup. And you can’t talk about the good of the Rockies without mentioning their ace Ubaldo Jimenez. Few teams can boast such a legitimate ace. He sported a 19-8 record with a 2.88 ERA and even threw a no hitter a year ago. These three young players form an impressive nucleus for years to come.

The Bad: Bottom of the lineup. Right fielder Seth Smith is going to have to prove that he’s not a first half wonder in order to hold onto his position. He drove in only 14 RBIs after the All-Star break. That is unacceptable and will have to be improved upon or the Rockies will have no choice but to make a move. Catcher Chris Iannetta has the starting catching job, but will need to produce much better offensive numbers in order to stabilize the catching position, an area the Rockies have struggled with throughout the years.

Biggest Loss: The Rockies had an uneventful offseason. No major moves as the Rockies believe they have the foundation to succeed. Some young players from the minors are coming up to add depth.

Best Addition:  Ty Wigginton. You know it was a quiet offseason when this well-traveled utility man is your best addition. Wigginton has 20-HR potential and can help spell the young 3B Ian Stewart, who struggled against left-handed pitching.

Fantasy Slant: Obviously, CarGo and Tulowitzki are the elite fantasy players in the Rockies’ lineup along with Jimenez from the mound, but the Rockies have a lot of young players who warrant close consideration. Dexter Fowler is the Rockies starting centerfielder. He’s a great speed option as a fourth outfielder your fantasy squad. Ian Stewart is still only 26-years-old. He has bouts of inconsistency, but should he ever figure it all out he could be a 30+ HR guy for your fantasy squad. Watch Iannetta’s performance as the Rockies have super prospect Wilin Rosario waiting in the wings. Rosario will start in the minors, but an injury or major slump from Iannetta could lead to a mid-season call up for the power-hitting catcher.

Final Take: The NL West is very balanced (outside of the Diamondbacks) so it’s up for grabs. The Rockies did very little to improve their team, but will their young talent come of age. If so, expect an improvement on last year. As it stands now, I’m not seeing enough to foresee too much of a difference from last season though…2011 Record: 82-78, 3rd place, NL West

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The MLB regular season came to end Sunday which also indicates the end of the race for National League MVP. Most figure that the race is down the three players - Carlos Gonzalez, Albert Pujols, and Joey Votto. Pujols has the name recognition and that will be tough to overcome, but Votto is the only candidate to actually advance to the postseason and has a distinct advantage in two popular statistical categories with and OBP and slugging percentage.

The final voting takes place now, but the winner will not be annoucned for nearly a month from now.

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The National League West is by far the best race in baseball right now with three teams – the Padres, Dodgers and Rockies battling it out for the division crown with two weeks to go.

The three teams are separated by just one game heading into Sunday’s action, but no team is hotter right now than Colorado. The Rockies have posted a 13-4 mark in September in large part to the historic tear of shortstop Troy Tulowitzki.

Tulowitzki hit two more home runs in Saturday’s win over the Dodgers. He now has 14 home runs in September alone, a new Rockies record for home runs in a month. He’s tied Albert Belle and Barry Bonds for most homers ever in a 15-game span. The Rockies still have 14 games to go.

He’s hit three home runs in two days against the Dodgers. And he has four multi-homer games this season, all in the last 10 games.

If the shortstop has anything to say about the Rockies will prevail.

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Through a month plus of baseball no pitcher has helped fantasy owners more than the Rockies’ Ubaldo Jimenez. 

The 26-year old right hander already has pitched a no hitter and has been so good that despite allowing just one run in seven innings in Monday’s win over the Padres his ERA actually went up.

He’s 6-0 with 0.871 ERA and 1.016 WHIP and has fanned 44 batters while walking just 16 in 41.3 innings of work.

Jimenez has emerged as a legitimate fantasy ace is the early leader for the NL Cy Young award.

Often when a breakout player gets off to a fast start I say sell high, but Jimenez is only getting better. Owners should hold on to him at all costs as he will continue to pay big dividends.

***

LOOKING BACK: In my fantasy baseball league starting pitching is king.  We keep five players every year. I already had Roy Halladay and C.C. Sabathia and had a chance to acquire Cliff Lee (right after he got dealt to Philadelphia) and Johnny Damon, who was CF eligible. I traded away Jimenez. Lee helped lift me to three more high weeks, a scoring title, and the league championship.  However, I hate seeing Jimenez live up to my expectations.

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from MLB.com:

The Reds remain in the running for free-agent shortstop Orlando Cabrera, and it appears there are only two other suitors -- the Rockies and Nationals -- a Major League source told MLB.com on Thursday night.

Cincinnati has definitely made an offer to Cabrera, who is also considering Colorado and Washington. It did not appear that any of the three teams were close to reaching a deal on Thursday.

COMPLETE ARTICLE

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