Sunday, April 13, 2008

Looking at my Masters Hot Picks and Top Fraud

Ok...so I'm going to look back and see how I did on the Masters--my predictions, my team's performance, etc.

So, I said that the hot picks were Tiger (of course), Phil Mickelson, Vijay Singh, Steve Stricker, and Ian Poulter. Here's how we did:

Tiger--2nd place.
Mickelson--Tied for 5th.
Singh--Tied for 14th.
Stricker--Missed cut.
Poulter--Tied for 25th.

So, I picked 3 in the top 15--not bad at all. I probably would have had 4 if Poulter hadn't gone into a nosedive on the back 9, so he was my pick for the final round fraud. And Stricker...not making the cut? Picking him and then him getting an MC (missed cut) kinda makes me a fraud also. Bad pick.

On the fraud side, we had Rory Sabbatini, Jim Furyk, and Ernie Els. Here we did a little better:

Furyk--Tied 33rd.
Sabbatini--Missed cut.
Els--Missed cut.

So...we were 3 for 3 on the fraud side. Not bad. Hope I helped someone.

And, just for kicks, here was my fantasy team for the tournament:

Mickelson
Poulter
Boo Weekley
Nick Watney
Justin Leonard

So, all 5 of my guys made the cut. Not a bad week at all.

www.toddlokken.com

Wednesday, April 09, 2008

Masters Hot Pick(s) & Fraud(s)

The hottest ticket of the year is here--the 2008 Masters. Fantasy players should be thinking about who is hot, who isn't, and who is just a fantasy fraud for this tournament. So, starting out with the hot picks, here are some thoughts on who could win and who could be in the top 5:

Tiger Woods--No comment necessary

Phil Mickelson--Again, not much comment necessary (as long as he keeps his head in the game).

Vijay Singh--Is his game coming back?

Steve Stricker--He's been playing well under the radar.

Ian Poulter--Seems to do well in majors.

And the not-so-hot picks (the fantasy fraud list):

Rory Sabbatini--Great golfer, is playing well, but just needs to beat Tiger (so he can quit hearing about his comments). However, he did win the par 3 tournament, so tradition is against him. He putted well in the par 3, so no one can accuse him of scamming out a win.

Jim Furyk--Probably this week's biggest fraud. Furyk is a great golfer, but he is accused of not having the long game for Augusta.

Ernie Els--Getting better, and the family issues are getting better as well. But, the guess here is that he isn't ready to take Augusta.

Obviously, luck plays into the tournament, (except for Tiger). There is no reason to pick against him, but there are players who can challenge and perhaps beat him this year. However, that seems to rely more on Tiger falling apart than someone else stepping up.

Todd Lokken's Fantasy Baseball Frauds

Top three frauds for the fantasy baseball season? The three nominated frauds are Barry Zito, Eric Chavez, and Mike Hampton.

This is what makes fantasy baseball great. All three players were no doubt drafted in most leagues, and all three are way down on their expected performance. In fact, both Hampton and Zito are behind Chris Volstad and Manny Parra thus far in 2008.

While the performance of both Zito and Hampton is directly related to the Hampton's health and Zito's inexplicable loss of velocity, Chavez is simply broken down. It looks like he will be on the shelf for another month, giving fantasy owners zero help through April.

Although it may not be fair to judge players with just one week gone by, it should be pointed out that each of these players were expected to perform much better this year (versus 2007). If they do not perform one week, the team may be ok. Two weeks of poor stats places a fantasy team in an early hole. Three weeks? You may want to start looking at next year.

Strategic Fantasy Sports provides fantasy analysis and strategy for players of fantasy sports. For more information, see http://www.toddlokken.com.

Tuesday, April 08, 2008

Forgot

Not that you are going to find much at the website--I kind of got sidetracked. Nonetheless, I think I'm going to take a look at the NFL draft, and then maybe switch this into a few different sports blogs. Probably not that interesting...but I just feel like writing. I'm also going to look at what I did a couple of years ago, and try to get an idea of who was a fraud in the first round and who wasn't. Ferguson right now seems like a fraud with the Jets...well...maybe that is a bit harsh. Maybe he was just picked a bit early. But, there are a couple of frauds in the top 10, so I'll look at them, and compare to what I picked. woo-hoo.

Thursday, June 29, 2006

Just a catch up

I haven't posted in a while. Not much to say, but I am getting some web pages up:

http://www.toddlokken.biz

Until next time.

Tuesday, April 18, 2006

Todd Lokken's Guide to the NFL Draft

Even though there will be many changes between now and April 29th, Todd Lokken, President of Strategic Fantasy Football has taken a look at the top ten picks in this year’s draft. “Many players coming out of school still have a chance to improve their position through individual workouts, while others could bottom out with poor results at the same workouts,” says Lokken. Therefore, with a month to go, here is a look at the top 10 picks:

1) Houston Texans: Reggie Bush, RB—USC. Lokken’s analysis: “No way Houston trades this pick, and Bush has been the target since the middle of the 2005 college season.”

2) New Orleans Saints: D’Brickashaw Ferguson, OT—Virginia. “The Saints need a tackle, and Ferguson is the best on the board right now,” says Lokken. However, do not be surprised if the Saints trade this pick and try to get Ferguson later in the top 10.

3) Tennessee Titans: Matt Leinart, QB—USC. Lokken says, “If Leinart had come out last year, he would have been the top pick. However, number 3 isn’t too bad, especially with Steve McNair on the downside of his career.”

4) New York Jets: Vince Young, QB—Texas. “Ok, so the Jets traded for Patrick Ramsey. He is not a long term solution,” says Lokken. “Look for the Jets to still take a QB this year, and imagine Vince Young in the big apple!”

5) Green Bay Packers: AJ Hawk, LB—Ohio State. Lokken’s analysis: “The Packers have had a shoddy defense for some time. Those in Packer country know that the Mike Sherman era allowed the Packers to get worse and worse on defense every year, so this pick is a great start to rebuilding the defense.”

6) San Francisco 49ers: Vernon Davis, TE—Maryland. Lokken analysis: “Since they traded top receiver Brandon Lloyd, the 49ers will be working to surround Alex Smith with quality receivers, and Davis fills that role. Look for him to make an impact fantasy wise in his first year,” says Lokken.

7) Oakland Raiders: Haloti Ngata, DT—Oregon. Lokken analysis: “Oakland would clearly love a QB in this spot, but it is doubtful that Young or Leinart will still be available. While Jay Cutler may be a possibility, it is more likely that Oakland try to trade up (possibly with New Orleans) to grab a QB. If not, then Ngata is the guy.”

8) Buffalo Bills: Broderick Bunkley, DT—Florida State. Lokken analysis: “While Buffalo would love to have Ngata, Oakland will grab him before Buffalo. However, if Oakland does trade up, then Buffalo may certainly wind up with Ngata”, says Lokken.

9) Detroit Lions: Michael Huff, DB—Texas. Lokken analysis: “The Lions need defensive help, and Huff brings instant credibility to the NFL. This should not be much of a surprise.”

10) Arizona Cardinals: Jay Cutler, QB—Vanderbilt. Lokken analysis: “While Dennis Green and the Cardinals in general have a history of surprise at the NFL draft, the current rumor suggests the Cardinals will go with a QB here. That rumor should ring true, as Cutler should be available.”

“Free agency is still in full swing, and couple that with draft workouts, the first round, especially the top 5, is in tremendous flux,” says Lokken. “Look for many things to change before April 29th, and expect many surprises even on draft day.”

Strategic Fantasy Football provides fantasy football analysis and strategy for players of fantasy football. For more information, contact Todd Lokken at 847.985.8566.

About The Author
Todd Lokken publishes articles and reports and provides news, views and information about fantasy sports and at http://www.toddlokken.com.

Monday, April 10, 2006

Todd Lokken from Strategic Fantasy Sports identifies the most dropped and picked up free agents for the first week of the MLB season.

Jonathan Papelbon, who went undrafted in most fantasy baseball leagues, is all of a sudden a hot commodity as he assumes the closer job in Boston. The Red Sox started the season assuming Keith Foulke was the closer, but, Foulke has struggled. “Papelbon has really been a lucky break.” says Todd Lokken, President of Strategic Fantasy Sports. Lokken continues, “Papelbon was supposed to be a starter, but with still struggling, the Red Sox have been able to throw Papelbon into the closer role, and he has saved 3 games already.” Lokken says if you need a closer or if you have Foulke on your roster, switch over to Papelbon as soon as possible. “Don’t wait long, or else he will be gone,” advises Lokken.

The next hot commodity is Miguel Batista, pitcher for the Arizona Diamondbacks. Although he is listed as a relief pitcher in many publications, Batista started this week against the Colorado Rockies, and impressively struck out 11 batters. “While it is hard to tell what a season will look like based upon one performance, fantasy players may want to think about grabbing Batista, especially if they have a pitcher just taking up a roster spot.” says Lokken. According to the CBS Sportsline, Batista was only drafted by about 20% of all teams in fantasy leagues. Lokken says, “if players take a look now, they will see Batista on probably 50% of all rosters, so grab him while he is still there.”

On the flip side, injuries are seriously hurting former fantasy stars, and team owners are making fantasy adjustments accordingly. The most prominent star falling is Dodger ace Eric Gagne, who has just undergone elbow surgery. Lokken says, “Gagne is supposed to be out for just 6 to 8 weeks, but the guess here is that he is done for the season.” Lokken continues, “it’s not worth him taking up a roster spot, and you should find another player quickly.” Danys Baez, who moves into the closer role in Los Angeles, should be the first player looked at.

Finally this week, Lokken gives us another falling star: Cleveland’s CC Sabathia. Sabathia, Cleveland’s 300-pound starting pitcher, went on the disabled list after throwing just 2 1/3 innings in Cleveland’s opener against the Chicago White Sox. While Sabathia says it is nothing to worry about, Lokken points out “Sabathia had the same problem last year, and it caused him to miss 6 weeks.” Having a starting pitcher out 6 weeks is deadly in baseball, so Lokken advises Sabathia owners to adjust their rosters accordingly. Grab another starter, possibly Sergio Mitre of the Marlins, if you need additional support. “If you can handle Sabathia going down for an extended period, then hold him, as this ailment will not keep him out the entire season,” says Lokken.

Strategic Fantasy Sports provides fantasy football analysis and strategy for players of fantasy football. For more information, contact Todd Lokken at 847.985.8566, or visit www.toddlokken.com.

This article may be reprinted in full so long as the resource box and the live links are included intact. All rights reserved. Copyright 2006 Strategic Fantasy Sports.

Tuesday, April 04, 2006

NFL Draft

Todd Lokken from Strategic Fantasy Football forecasts the 2006 NFL Draft.

Free agency and athlete workouts have changed much of the draft projections, and don’t be surprised if the New Orleans Saints trade the #2 pick in the draft.

Free agency has changed much of the NFL draft projections. Additionally, the scouting combine changed the fortunes of many prospects, dropping some and moving up others on draft boards.

Even though there will be many changes between now and April 29th, Todd Lokken, President of Strategic Fantasy Football has taken a look at the top ten picks in this year’s draft. “Many players coming out of school still have a chance to improve their position through individual workouts, while others could bottom out with poor results at the same workouts”, says Lokken. Therefore, with a month to go, here is a look at the top 10 picks:

1) Houston Texans: Reggie Bush, RB—USC. No way Houston trades this pick, and Bush has been the target since the middle of the 2005 college season.

2) New Orleans Saints: D’Brickashaw Ferguson, OT—Virginia. “The Saints need a tackle, and Ferguson is the best on the board right now”, says Lokken. However, do not be surprised if the Saints trade this pick and try to get Ferguson later in the top 10.


3) Tennessee Titans: Matt Leinart, QB—USC. Lokken says, “If Leinart had come out last year, he would have been the top pick”. However, number 3 isn’t too bad, especially with Steve McNair on the downside of his career.

4) New York Jets: Vince Young, QB—Texas. “Ok, so the Jets traded for Patrick Ramsey. He is not a long term solution.”, says Lokken. Look for the Jets to still take a QB this year, and imagine Vince Young in the big apple!


5) Green Bay Packers: AJ Hawk, LB—Ohio State. The Packers have had some shoddy defense for some time. Those in Packer country know that the Mike Sherman era allowed the Packers to get worse and worse on defense every year, so this pick is a great start to rebuilding the defense.

6) San Francisco 49ers: Vernon Davis, TE—Maryland. Since they traded top receiver Brandon Lloyd, the 49ers will be working to surround Alex Smith with quality receivers, and Davis fills that role. “Look for him to make an impact fantasy wise in his first year”, says Lokken.


7) Oakland Raiders: Haloti Ngata, DT—Oregon. Oakland would clearly love a QB in this spot, but it is doubtful that Young or Leinart will still be available. While Jay Cutler may be a possibility, it is more likely that Oakland try to trade up (possibly with New Orleans) to grab a QB.

8) Buffalo Bills: Broderick Bunkley, DT—Florida State. While Buffalo would love to have Ngata, Oakland will grab him before Buffalo. “However, if Oakland does move up, then Buffalo may certainly wind up with Ngata”, says Lokken.


9) Detroit Lions: Michael Huff, DB—Texas. The Lions need defensive help, and Huff brings instant credibility to the NFL. This should not be much of a surprise.

10) Arizona Cardinals: Jay Cutler, QB—Vanderbilt. While Dennis Green and the Cardinals in general have a history of surprise at the NFL draft, the current rumor suggests the Cardinals will go with a QB here. That rumor should ring true, as Cutler should be available.

“Free agency is still in full swing, and couple that with draft workouts, the first round, especially the top 5, is in tremendous flux”, says Lokken. “Look for many things to change before April 29th, and expect many surprises even on draft day.”

Strategic Fantasy Football provides fantasy football analysis and strategy for players of fantasy football. For more information, contact Todd Lokken at 847.985.8566.

About The Author

Todd Lokken publishes articles and reports and provides news, views and information about fantasy sports and at http://www.toddlokken.com.

This article may be reprinted in full so long as the resource box and the live links are included intact. All rights reserved. Copyright 2006 Strategic Fantasy Football.

Thursday, March 30, 2006

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SI.com - 2006 Spring Training Previews

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