This could be the beginning of a big turnaround for Justin Verlander. After finally having a start worth talking about his last time out, Verlander had his best start of the season on Tuesday to collect just his second win. The Tigers ace lasted six innings, allowed just one run, one walk, and also fanned seven. This is the kind of performance that we were expecting out of Verlander all season long. For those of you who bought low, or exercised extreme patience look like they will start to be rewarded.

Has Daniel Cabrera turned into a must-own pitcher? After giving up just two runs in seven innings to the Yankees, Cabrera improved his record to an incredible (for him, anyway) 5-1. More incredible than his record, he has walked just three batters in his last four starts! It has long been said that if Danny could ever get his control down he has the stuff to be one of the top pitchers in baseball. That may be a little strong but, this is certainly looking like a career year.

Although he isn’t pitching deep into games, the Marlins’ Mark Hendrickson is another guy having a career year. With another strong showing on Tuesday, Hendrickson improved to 6-2 with an ERA under 4.00. I would definitely be trying to sell high if you own Hendrickson, I am waiting for the bottom to fall out of this story. Hendrickson has only had one season in his career that he wasn’t under .500, he’s not breaking out now.

Justin Masterson got another spot start for the Red Sox, and again, made the most of his opportunity. Masterson threw 6.2 innings of one run, four hit ball as he collected his first win. He also walked three but struck out five. If there is ever a time where he will be in the Sox rotation for a longer period of time he is worth adding to your rotation, but at this point he won’t see enough starts to be worth it.

Brewers’ rookie Manny Parra threw his second consecutive good start on Tuesday, and might be heading back to the form that had him lighting up Spring Training. Parra threw 5.2 shutout innings while walking only one and striking out six. Parra’s talent was never in question, and now it looks like he is getting past his rookie jitters and is back to throwing the ball. If you have some dead weight, he is worth adding now. If not, give him another start or two to see if this can continue.

Cole Hamels hasn’t allowed a run in 16 innings now after his seven shutout inning performance tonight. Hamels is cementing himself as one of the best pitchers in baseball, and if he can avoid his yearly short trip to the DL, he could be in the mix for the Cy Young Award. Hamels struck out 11 in his seven innings tonight, and now has 65 Ks in 72.1 innings. His price tag may be a little high now after his consecutive great performances, but he is a guy I would try to get on my team as soon as possible via trade.

John Lackey had another impressive start as he looks like he is in midseason form after coming off the disabled list. He has allowed just two runs in his 14 innings, and continues to be one of the more underrated pitchers in fantasy baseball. There should be no reason that he is available in your league, but see what his owner is looking for in return.

Orioles rookie Adam Jones is starting to put it together a little. Jones went 4-5 on Tuesday, and now has 11 hits in his last six games. He still isn’t hitting for the power we expected, but some young players take some time getting out of the box. Jones was the centerpiece of the Erik Bedard trade and has a ton of talent. Unless you need an injury replacement, I wouldn’t add Jones yet. But keep a very close eye on him. If he keeps this up a few more days, grab him. Those of you in keeper leagues, if he’s still out there, I would grab him right away.

With another save chance for C.J. Wilson blown, don’t be surprised if the Rangers turn to Eddie Guardado in the 9th inning. This is not definite right now, so unless you are desperate for saves this is just a situation to watch, not worth action yet.

Injury News

Before we get to the bad news, there is some good news.

Alex Rodriguez returned to the Yankee lineup tonight, but it wasn’t good enough to get them a win, or a significant number of runs. The important thing is that A-Rod is back and get him back into your lineups immediately.

That’s it for good news.

Reigning NL Cy Young Winner Jake Peavy was placed on the DL on Tuesday, and he could be there a while. Peavy is experiencing pain and swelling in his elbow, but it seems they caught this before it got to be a real problem. Peavy had a similar injury a couple of years ago and it cost him four weeks. For right now, that is what I would expect him to miss, so start making alternate plans for him right away.

Is this the explanation for it all? Andruw Jones has torn cartiledge in his knee, which if it involves surgery to repair, will cost him 4-6 weeks. It’s almost nice to find out that Jones is injured, perhaps it is the reason he has been so incredibly terrible this season. I wouldn’t stash Jones unless you have the spot, I would just let him go. The good news about this is that you can now expect the Dodgers outfield to consist of Kemp, Ethier, and Pierre everyday until Jones is ready to return.

Derek Jeter was hit on the wrist with a pitch tonight and left the game immediately. The good news is that the x-rays came back negative. It wouldn’t shock me to see him miss a couple of games, but at least as of now it doesn’t seem like a trip to the disabled list is in his future. The Yanks, and his fantasy owners dodged a huge bullet.

Marlins OF Josh Willingham could miss another month with the herniated disk in his back. This is a shame because it looked like Willingham was on his way to his best season. Continue to keep him stashed and hope he is able to return sooner than this projection.

With the return of Doug Davis on the horizon, it appears that rookie phenom Max Scherzer may be out of a starting job very soon. Davis is expected back early next week, so Scherzer may have made his last start until someone gets hurt again. Fantasy owners are hoping for Randy Johnson’s creaky back to start acting up any minute to keep Scherzer starting games.

As always, your questions (adds, drops, trades) and comments are welcome at fightingchancefantasy@gmail.com. I guarantee a response within 18 hours. Don’t forget to check me out at mlbfrontoffice.com on Tuesdays under In The News. Also go to fantasybaseballsearch.com to find me in the Gurus Blog.