Ed Jones writes exclusively for CloudFantasy. Email him here

Farhan Latif writes exclusively for CloudFantasy.  Email him here

“We had some schmuck (himself) in New York who paid him (right fielder Carlos Beltran) based on that one series (in his 2004 postseason with the Houston Astros where he had 8 homeruns in 12 games).  He’s 65 to 70 percent of what he was.”  They paid him a seven-year, $119 million deal so that was a huge mistake and a fairly obvious one.

“Really good kid (David Wright).  A very good player.  Not a superstar.”  I always thought that, I mean just because people in New York love him doesn’t make him a superstar.

These were just some of the New York Mets owner’s, Fred Wilpon, thoughts on his best players
in an extensive article in The New Yorker.  Good reading indeed.  Fantasy Baseball Players look to see some of these guys traded soon for maybe even pennies on the dollar.

Ed Jones writes exclusively for CloudFantasy. Email him here

When was the last time the Giants had a superstar shortstop?  Let’s take a walk down memory lane and see what we find.  Royce Clayton, Edgar Renteria, Tito Fuentes are just a few of the names.  In the Giants history, they have not had a super shortstop since the 1920s and 1930s.  Do any of you remember the name Travis Jackson?  He was a .291 hitter, who hit 135 home runs, and had 580 steals.

It is time the Giants upgraded that position, but they still are lacking power.  I think this may be the year that the Giants may try to trade some of their pitching to get some bats.  The Giants proved last year that they could win with
pitching, but I believe a well balanced team will have a better shot at creating a dynasty.  The Braves of the 1990s did it with three star pitchers, and the Giants have that now.  Does anyone have a pink slip they want to give Miguel Tejada?  Count your days sir, because they are numbered.

Harrison Ellman writes exclusively for CloudFantasy.  Email him here

I hope Manny comes back tell’s MLB what they need to know so he can continue playing.  So what if he has to miss 20-30 games or however amount?  He hasn’t lost enought to justify retiring.  And going 1 for 16 and while getting booed by your hometeam isn’t that bad.  The season has just started and we all aren’t quick starters.  The booing give me a break your the new power hitter in town they are just mad they haven’t got to see the real Manny show yet.

Fantasy Baseball Players I wouldn’t drop Manny just yet, he might come back but do make sure and not start him till you get word of his coming back.  Cloud Fantasy will keep you in the loop about future developments.

Farhan Latif writes exclusively for CloudFantasy.  Email him here

I just drafted the 2011 Fantasy Baseball Dream Team and want to share with you how you too can draft like a pro.  First off do an auction style draft so you can pick and choose which players you really want instead of being forced to take the best player available when your draft spots pop up.  I knew good outfielders come a dime a dozen this season so I waited till the second half of the draft to select any.  In the mean time I wanted my two favorite sluggers to start things off: Albert Pujols and A-Rod.  After I got those two the plan was to fill out the team mostly with good pitchers with the rest of the the first half of my draft picks then move on to infielders for the 3rd quarter and outfielders for the 4th quarter. 

Fortunately, I bought Albert Pujols and A-Rod with my first two picks.  After that I bought Buster Posey based on my estimation he will do even better next year due to his personal growth and also due to his teammates maturing as well.  Plus they aren’t that many good catchers out there, let alone a good catcher who keeps getting better and better.

After getting 3 hitters I knew I had to get down to the business of pitching so I took the best pictcher in the game, Tim Lincecum, followed it with one of the very many Philadelphia Phillies Aces in Cole Hamels and even went wild and got the best closer in the game, Brian Wilson.

After my first six picks (or buys in this case) I knew I had a solid foundation so I just filled out the rest of the team following my intial gameplan to the T.

After picking all of my players I had a great sense of pride seeing all the studs on my roster.  But a few hours later I noticed that I had a lack of stolen bases and of backups at a few positons so I hit the waiver wire. 

I first dropped outfielder Magglio Ordonez who has some impressive stats (.303, 12 HR’s, 56 Runs, 59 RBI’s and 1 Stolen Base) for outfielder Scott Podsednik (.297, 6 HR’s, 63 Runs, 51 RBI’s and 35 Stolen Bases).  Taking a look over their stats it’s clear Podsednik has far superior stats without even taking into account his massive advantage in Stolen Bases: 35 to 1.

I then dropped outfielder Pat Burrell (.252, 20 HR’s, 50 Runs, 64 RBI’s and 0 Stolen Bases) who I feel might not get enough at bats this season and replaced him with catcher Miguel Olivo (.269, 14 HR’s, 55 Runs, 58 RBI’s and 7 Stolen Bases).  If you compare their numbers alone it’s clear Olivo was the better player last year and it doesn’t hurt I am only losing 6 Home runs, gaining .17 of batting average and 7 stolen bases plus I had no backup catchers.

After that I dropped 3rd Baseman Edwin Encarnacion (.244, 21 HR’s, 47 Runs, 51 RBI’s and 1 Stolen Base) for 2nd Basemen/ Short Stop Marco Scutaro (.275, 11 HR’s, 92 Runs, 56 RBI’s and 5 Stolen Bases).  This works on two levels again since I had no backup 2nd Basemen and Scutaro has a .31 higher Batting Average, almost double the Runs, 5 more RBI’s, 4 more Runs and 4 more Stolen Bases while only providing 1o more Home Runs.

Now looking over my team I can find no flaws anywhere on the roster.  There are still plenty of Home Runs, high Batting Average, plenty of Runs, RBI’s, Stolen Bases and all the batters I feel will get the necessary at bats.  There is also at least one backup at every position.  Finally there is an excellent pitching staff in terms of all the big names and their stats: ERA, Wins, K’s, Saves and of course they pitched enough innings will continue to do so.  So that my friends is how I assembled the 2011 Fantasy Baseball Dream Team.

Farhan Latif writes exclusively for CloudFantasy.  Email him here

It’s time to play Fantasy Baseball and Cloud Fantasy’s very own Harrison Ellman has been kind enough to grace us with another article.  This time he is going to tell you the MLB Fantasy Difference Makers for this coming up season.  Draft your Fantasy Baseball Team accordingly.

Catcher – Joe Mauer (Minnesota Twins)

The closest competitor might be Buster Posey, but he has eligibility at first base, so I don’t want to put him there. Let’s go over the offensive statistics where Mauer led all MLB catchers. 88 runs, 43 doubles, .327 avg, and .402 obp. Let’s throw out rbi, where he was two off the lead. (held by Victor Martinez’s 79) Mauer is a stud, will always be a stud, and should be the number one catcher off the board on all drafts.

First Base – Joey Votto (Cincinnati Reds)

Most of you would be amazed that I am not choosing Albert Pujols; the potential number one pick in most drafts. Let’s look closer at the numbers between the two players. Votto had a line of .324 avg, .424 obp, .600 slg, 37 hr, 113 rbi, and 91 bb. Pujols posted a line of .312 ba, .414 obp, .596 slg, 42 hr, 118 rbi, and 103 bb. Votto is right there with Pujols, and could be got a lot later in the first round or even the second round if you are lucky. Let’s not forget that Pujols has a contract extension on his mind for the upcoming season.

Second Base – Robinson Cano (New York Yankees)

I also think this selection is a no brainer. Utley is batting some injuries, Kinsler always pulls a hamstring each year, and Pedroia is Pedroia. Cano is in a star studded lineup with a short porch on each foul line for him to take advantage of. The ball flies out of the new “House that Ruth Built,” as you can see by 29 hr last year. Look for Cano’s average to possibly be higher than .319 which he hit last year, and he may get to 30 hr this year. Good luck to any second baseman that tries to get close to those numbers.

Shortstop – Troy Tulowitzki (Colorado Rockies)

Tulo!! Tulo!! I can’t believe I’m saying that, being a Giants fan, but look at his numbers compared to the god-like Hanley Ramirez. Tulo scored three less runs, hit four more doubles, hit six more hr, 19 more rbi, 21 less sb, and 15 points higher on his average. Hanley has been going number one in most drafts, but Tulo has a better team, and plays in a better ballpark for hitters. Let’s not forget that Tulo missed time last year, and went on a hot power surge last summer. He will put up numbers comparable to Hanley, and should be taken higher in most drafts.

Third Base – Evan Longoria (Tampa Bay Rays)

Longoria is the main power bat left in the Rays lineup since Carlos Pena signed with the Cubs. Okay, we know they have Manny, but we all know that Manny will be Manny sooner or later. I know that Jose Bautista qualifies at third, but do we really think he will hit 50 bombs again? I could see Longoria’s average rise over .300 this year, as well as hitting 30 home runs. If you are the gambling man, you may want to try Beltre in Texas, but you should remember that he is not in a contract year. The safe bet is Longoria, and you will be happy with the results.

Outfield – Carlos Gonzalez (Colorado Rockies), Carl Crawford (Boston Red Sox), and Josh Hamilton (Texas Rangers)

You may ask where Mr. Braun, Ryan that is is, he is number four on my list and I will explain why.  First off, Carlos Gonzalez will be a 30/30 guy next year, 30 homers and steals. You never know, he could pull a Barry Bonds and be 40/40 for all we know. He hit 34 hr and swiped 26 bags. You can’t forget his .326 avg and 117 rbi either. Crawford will have the spotlight on him and in an extremely dangerous lineup.

The Pesky pole in right field at Fenway will be friendly to Crawford, and he may hit 25 home runs this year. He hit 19 bombs in Tampa last year, but we all know that Crawford is on this list because he stole 47 bags. His average took a dip to .307 from recent years, look for that to increase. He could score over 120 runs hitting in front of the newly acquired Adrian Gonzalez.

Finally, we come to Josh Hamilton. The reason I put him ahead of Braun was his .359 average. The home run and rbi numbers are a wash, but that average, especially with a home run hitter, is hard to come by. Hamilton will miss out on not having his sidekick, Clint Hurdle around, since he left to manage the Pirates. I think Hamilton will want to prove to everyone that the Rangers are not a one and done team by making the World Series last year. Hamilton will be in the race for the Triple Crown by the end of the season, you heard it here folks!

Pitchers – Roy Halladay (Philadelphia Phillies), Felix Hernandez (Seattle Mariners), and Tim Lincecum (San Francisco Giants)

Halladay is usually the number one pitcher off the board on most drafts. I don’t want to bet if he will throw a no hitter again, but I will bet on that he will be as dominant as last year. He has the lineup, even without Jayson Werth, and the nasty stuff to baffle hitters; after all, we do call him Doc. I would guess that 20 wins, mid 2.00 era, and 200 plus strikeouts would be in the Cards for Mr. Halladay.

King Felix is the number two player that we associate with Seattle. Sorry King, but Ichiro is still number one. Hernandez’s stuff is straight up nasty, and is going to get even nastier as he matures as a pitcher on the big league level. I hope that he gets at least 15 wins this year, it is a shame that he only had 13 last year. 12 losses as well, that is unheard of for a pitcher to win the Cy Young. A whip of 1.06 is also a stat that is mindboggling. Expect nothing less from the King himself the 2011 season.

Finally we get to Timmmmmyyy!! I know that Lincecum had a rough month last year, but I’d like to put emphasis on his last start of the 2010 season. November 1, 2010, an eight inning performance, three hits allowed, one earned run, two walks, and ten strikeouts against the Texas Rangers. I could see his era end up in the mid 2.00 level, as well as 250 strikeouts. You never know if the Giants offense will score, but with a slim Kung Fu Panda, he could win 20 games this year.

Harrison Ellman writes exclusively for CloudFantasy.  Email him here

Editors Note:  The intro was written by Farhan Latif.  And yes, we are all wondering why no A-Rod as a MLB Fantasy Difference Maker.

“I am sure it will be mentioned and debated but from my standpoint I know who is in the Hall of Fame.  A lot of them don’t belong in the Hall of Fame.  If someone wants to debate me, check the stats.  I wanted to retire after I played for the Mets.  My family said wait one year, that there was no need to rush it.  I gave it a year and now it’s time to say goodbye.”

Sheffield is one of the last exciting personalitys in baseball and now he has retired.  Baseball is losing it’s luster bit by bit.  Let’s look at his career stats: 509 home runs, 1,676 RBIs and a .292 career batting average.    Think about those stats.  All-Time he is 24th on home runs and 25th on RBIs.

His career was long and solid, 22 years for 9 teams.  Hall of Fame, of course.  It’s not like he was a system player of some sort.  He put up BIG numbers for soo many teams in both leagues.  A 9-time All-Star (1992–93, 1996, 1998–2000, 2003–05).  A 5-time Silver Slugger Award Winner (1992, 1996, 2003–05).  He was the first player to hit at least 25 home runs for 6 different teams.  He was also one of 2 players in MLB history, along with Fred McGriff, to have 30 or more home runs in one season for 5 different teams (Los Angeles Dodgers [×3]; New York Yankees [×2]; Atlanta Braves [×1]; Florida Marlins [×1]; San Diego Padres [×1]).

So what if the man couldn’t behave himself to save his life?  He kept it interesting.  He also gave us some good quotes, quite insightful.  Sheffield has often put himself in controversial situations with his confrontational attitude, which sometimes leads to remarks construed as offensive but don’t we love that stuff.  

We all remember in the June 2007 issue of GQ Magazine, Sheffield (a Detroit Tiger at the time) was quoted saying that there are more Latin baseball players than black players because Latinos are easier to control:

And my favorite quote of his of all time, during an July 2007 interview with HBO’s Real Sports, Sheffield said that Yankees manager Joe Torre treated black players differently than white players during his time there.  He also said that he thought that biracial Yankees player Derek Jeter wasn’t “all the way black.”

Then some people are mad about steriods which everyone was doing in the 90′s.  Sheffield was named in the Mitchell report on PED use in Major League Baseball, but Sheffield said his inclusion in the report should not cloud his candidacy for the Hall of Fame.  On page 116 of the report, Sheffield is among the players who are alleged to have purchased “the cream” and “the clear” from BALCO founder Victor Conte.  On page 136, a FedEx receipt from Sheffield to BALCO found during a 2003 search of trainer Greg Anderson’s condominium is referenced.  On that same page, an excerpt from Sheffield’s book “Inside Power” where he acknowledges receiving a bill from BALCO for “vitamins” is mentioned. His testimony before the BALCO grand jury — he testified not knowing whether “the cream” contained steroids — is also referenced.  “The thing about the Mitchell report is that I cringe about it because the guy who wrote the report didn’t talk to me.  If he talked to me I would respect that no matter what. But I cringe on that because he didn’t.”

Let Sheff in the Hall, he has the stats for numerous teams.  Can’t be a bunch of fuddy duddys about his gangster rapping personality.  He brought a flair and a sense of self that has been rarely qualed in the history of sports.

Farhan Latif writes exclusively for CloudFantasy.  Emai him here

They signed him to a one year $8 Million Contract.   The Orioles have a track record of doing this, signing aging sluggers to huge contracts that never pan out.  I do hope I am wrong about Vlad but $8 is alot.  There is still a chance he can recapture last year’s first half production but even I wouldn’t have paid him a penny over $5 Million.  

I mean there is a huge difference between a .319 batting average, 20 home runs, 75 rbi’s, 55 runs, 4 steals and 30 strikeouts compared to a .278 batting average, 9 homeruns, 40 rbi’s, 29 runs, 4 steals and 30 strikeouts.  And the post season was even worse with a .220 batting average, 0 home runs, 6 rbi’s, 4 runs, 0 steals and 16 strikeouts.  Even in the All-Star Game he went 0 for 2 with a strikeout so basically the first half was awesome then his game went straight downhill.  And let’s not forget the man no longer has any speed so he isn’t very nimble on the base pads or in the outfield so you are paying for offensive production only as a primarily designated hitter.

Farhan Latif writes exclusively for CloudFantasy.  Email him here

Farhan Latif writes exclusively for CloudFantasy.  Email him here