Beyond the Boxscore–Fantasy MLB News and Notes 4/29/08 Injury Notes, Pitching Good and Bad, Sell High

Roy Halladay has got a lot to complain about. He has now gone the distance in four consecutive starts, and his record during this time? 1-3. Granted, they weren’t your traditional complete games (he gave up four runs in one, and five in another), but when your pitcher goes all the way, you gotta score enough runs to get him the win. Halladay has been extremely durable this year, but I am concerned given his injury history and all the innings that he is putting on his arm early in the season. If you own him, maybe test the market for his value.

Yanks rook Phil Hughes is having a tough season. Hughes has not only had a tough time going deep into games (only lasting through six once), but he is getting tattooed pretty regularly, and Tuesday was no different. Hughes threw 82 pitches in just 3.2 innings and he gave up six runs. Hughes even uncorked two wild pitches. I still believe that Hughes will find his confidence at some point during the year and pitch well, but I don’t know when that will be.

Johnny Cueto had another one of those “bump in the road” games tonight. He had been rotating bad start and good start for his last four, but this is two pretty bad ones in a row. Cueto gave up six runs in just 1.2 innings for his shortest outing of the year. The next start will be a big one for Cueto to see what he is made of. Can he bounce back from back to back bad starts to get back on track? Or will he go down the path of many young pitchers before him, and collapse under some adversity?

Marlins rookie Andrew Miller looked like he had turned the corner his last time out, but he was awful again tonight. Miller lasted just three innings again (he is yet to go past five innings yet), and gave up six earned and didn’t strike out a batter. He got off the hook for the loss by a good comeback by the Marlins, but his ERA is now over nine and he would need to put together a good month before I could recommend putting him on your roster.

All the pitching Tuesday was bad. Red Sox starter Jon Lester was amazing Tuesday. Lester went eight shutout innings, gave up just one hit and fanned six. Lester has been no better than average so far this season, but the talent is there, and when he throws games like this it shows what is possible when the guy learns to be consistent.

Arizona minor league phenom Max Scherzer made his major league debut tonight, and boy did he make some noise. Mad Max went 4.1 innings, didn’t give up a hit or a walk and struck out seven. If he is going to be this good, I guarantee the Diamondbacks will find a way to give him starts. I didn’t turn on the TV until after he was relieved, but they showed his strikeouts afterwards, and he had a really live fastball with some movement on it. He could make a big fantasy impact in 2008.

Any excuse to write about Boof Bonser, I will take it. The Boofer was nasty tonight, going seven innings, only giving up one run and whiffing eight. Bonser has been good in 2008 outside of one bad start, and is getting close to be worth owning in all leagues. He strikes out a pretty good number, and although the Twins aren’t great, they aren’t so bad that they often waste solid efforts from their starters.

Freakin Nate McLouth just won’t go away. I sound frustrated with him today because the owner I am playing in a head to head league has Nate. McLouth led off the game today at Shea with his seventh homer of the year, and now has driven in 22 runs, while hitting .327. I keep thinking that you should sell high before he comes back to earth, but McLouth keeps hitting. Can he keep this up all year? I still don’t think so.

Stop the presses, Andruw Jones got a hit. Jones seems to be in a competition with Barry Zito for worst contract ever, as his batting average continues to be well below the Mendoza line. He is averaging over a strike out per game, and has just four RBI in 25 games. It is time for you to cut ties with Jones if you can find anything on the waiver wire worthwhile. Jones may still turn it around, but this is a long drawn out slump that he is stuck in.

Injury Notes

It has just been announced that Alex Rodriguez will be sent to the DL after the game against the Tigers tonight. This is a devastating blow to his fantasy teams, as he was certainly your first round pick. Hopefully this rest will be what he needs to get back healthy, and back on the field.

Troy Tulowitzki left the game tonight in the first inning with some sort of leg injury. The last play that he was a part of was a grounder up the middle that he pretty much just waved at on the way by him and he was taken out of the game after that. Too soon for details, but stay tuned on a guy who was really in a funk anyway.

Scott Kazmir has been told that he will be pitching for the Rays this Sunday against the Red Sox. Kazmir was 0-1 with a 3.55 ERA during his three rehab starts, but more importantly he got through them pain free. I am still nervous about Kazmir, but if you have him, you have to plug him back into your lineup when he is set to come off the DL, and hope he gets back to the form that showed him leading the AL in strikeouts.

One pitcher comes off the DL, another goes on. John Smoltz will be returning to the DL with inflammation in the rotator cuff and severly inflamed biceps tendon. It was diagnosed that it could be cured without surgery, but there has been no timetable for his return. Put him on your injury list, and wait to see if fantasy waste Chuck James, or hot prospect Jo Jo Reyes are called up to take his spot.

Ben Sheets made his first start since coming off the DL, and was far from impressive but still improved his record to 4-0. Sheets threw 108 pitches in five innings, gave up just three earned runs, but walked seven batters. I have been advising anyone who asks me that owns Sheets to try to find an owner in your league that will trade for him and get him off of your team. The fact that he got another win most likely keeps his trade value higher than it should, so take advantage while he still has value.

Quick Hitters

Nats 3B Ryan Zimmerman hit his first homer tonight since the first weekend of the season. Zimmerman has been in a pretty good slump since that first weekend, and his owners are hoping that this is the key to getting him back on track. I was pretty high on Zim going into the season, but now it is looking like last year’s numbers might be what we should expect. If you’ve got him, play him, if you don’t maybe you can buy him at a very low point.

Orioles closer George Sherrill collected his 10^th save of the year tonight and was tied for the league lead until K-Rod notched his 11^th just a few minutes ago. This is completely unexpected from a guy who was setting up in Seattle until he was traded for Erik Bedard and was anointed closer. You might want to try to sell high, but I am confident that Sherrill will nail down most chances presented to him, it is just a matter of how many chances the Orioles will give him.

Mike Cameron’s 25 game suspension for stimulant use is up, and he was back in the lineup for the Brewers. You pretty much know what to expect from Cameron, a decent amount of pop, and a lot of strikeouts.

Yankees 2B Robinson Cano connected on his second homer tonight, and with all the injuries that the Yanks have endured the last week or so, they need him to start contributing more than ever.

Mets’ RF Ryan Church continues to be one of the sleeper stories of the year. Church is still hitting over .315 and connected on his third homer of the season and is closing in on 20 RBI. No one could’ve expected this when they traded Lastings Milledge for Church and Schneider, but right now that trade is looking great for the Mets. He is certainly worth owning while he has a hot bat, but I would be trying to sell high if at all possible.

Angels starter Joe Saunders moved to 5-0 tonight after another incredibly strong start. Saunders threw eight shutout innings and whiffed five. It is the fourth time that Saunders has thrown eight innings, as he continues his improbable season. He is definitely a sell high candidate, but if you can’t find a taker keep running Saunders out there and enjoy it while it lasts. He has the talent to be a good fantasy starter, but he will certainly take a step back from the unheard of start he is on.

As always, your questions about your team (adds, drops, trades, etc) and comments are welcome at fightingchancefantasy@gmail.com. I guarantee an answer within 18 hours.

Beyond the Boxscore–Fantasy MLB News and Notes 4/22/08 Aces, Rookies, Injuries, more

A couple of aces have shown on Tuesday, that maybe they still have it. In Detroit, Justin Verlander might not have been dominant, but right now he’ll take it. Verlander threw six innings giving up just one run and striking out three against the Rangers. After the way he started the season, Justin and his fantasy owners must be breathing a sigh of relief that he was able to pitch so well. After being talked about as someone potentially to drop after his last awful start, C.C. Sabathia came back with a vengeance Tuesday against the Royals. Sabathia went six shutout innings and struck out 11, and is in line to take the win. As I have said previously, I don’t expect him to come close to last year’s Cy Young statistics, but he should be more than a .500 pitcher this season.

Not that Ted Lilly would be described as an ace, but another guy that fantasy owners were starting to think of parting ways with had a turn around start himself. Lilly collected his first win of the season giving up just one run in six innings, while striking out four. Like Verlander, he wasn’t dominant (he did walk four), but it was good to see a guy that some players put some big stock in having a good time out.

It was good news/bad news for the Brewers on Tuesday. The good news was young gun Manny Parra had a better outing than his last couple. Parra has struggled going deep into games, and that continued as he only lasted five innings. But, he did give up only three runs today, and was in line for the win….until the bad news game into the game. After converting give straight save chances, Eric Gagne has now blown two in a row. He continues to show that it was most likely foolish for the Brewers to sign him to that ridiculous contract.

Red Sawks rookie Jacoby Ellsbury is really heating up now. After having two consecutive two-hit, two-steal games, Jacoby added another 2-fer, as he hit two homers on Tuesday. Ellsbury came into the season with the hype that he was a strong candidate for the Rookie of the Year, and after he couldn’t get a start in the beginning of the season, he was cut in many leagues. Well, get yourself running to the waiver wire to see if this guy is available in your league, he could be a 20/50 kind of guy.

The greatest hitter of all time, Nate McLouth, finally had his season beginning hitting streak come to an end. McLouth was up to 19 games before he took the 0-fer tonight. He did still walk twice, so he continues to find ways on base even if he doesn’t hit. I have been urging you to try to sell high on McLouth, as his past performance doesn’t show this type of production in his future.

Injury Notes

Alex Rodriguez was not in the lineup today for the Yankees due to a combination of his second child being born, and a quad injury. It was reported on Baseball Tonight that he is due to rejoin the lineup on Thursday.

Red Sox pitcher Josh Beckett was scratched from his start due to neck pain. This appears to have just been a giant precaution, and manager Terry Francona has said that Beckett will make his next scheduled start.

That giant sigh of relief you hear is coming from Seattle. The Mariners activated closer J.J. Putz from the disabled list today, and free agent prize Eric Bedard is due to come of the DL on Saturday. Get both of these guys back into your lineups immediately.

Cubs OF Alfonso Soriano has targeted May 1^st as his return to action after missing time with a strained calf suffered when making his signature hop when catching a fly ball. Get ready to get him back into your lineup.

Quick Hitters

Reds rookie pitcher Edinson Volquez continues to impress. Volquez improved to 3-0 Tuesday, with a commanding seven innings with seven strikeouts. Volquez gave up just one run, and his season ERA sits at just 1.21. He was a highly touted prospect for the Rangers, so he shouldn’t be considered a flash in the pan.

Rickie Weeks has got to be one of the more frustrating players to own. Weeks will go 0-4 with 3 Ks two or three times a week, but then he has a game like he did on Tuesday and you go back to thinking that he could be an impact player. Weeks had three hits including a triple, drove in three runs with that triple, and stole his fifth base of the year. These are the days that you try to find someone to bite on a trade with Weeks, or you will have no hair left by the end of the year.

Angels 1B Casey Kotchman is showing signs of living up to his potential. Kotchman hit his fifth homer of the season, and is now batting .315. Casey now has 15 RBI, and could be looking at a .300/22/85 kind of season.

Marlins 3B Jorge Cantu is starting to really look like that guy we knew three years ago. Cantu went 3-4 on Tuesday, and hit his third homer of the season. Jorge also has 7 doubles in his first 20 games, and should be a good option toward the bottom of your roster as a sleeper. Pick him up if you have some dead weight on your team.

Nats SP John Lannan has been great in three of his first four starts. Lannan followed up a one run, 11 strikeout performance, with seven shutout innings with four Ks against the Braves. It is time to give this guy a serious look to see if he should have a spot on your roster. He had a pretty good 2007 in the minors, so he might be for real although I’m not ready to make that statement just yet.

Braves Old Man River John Smoltz joined the exclusive 3,000 strikeout club Tuesday, but unfortunately his team could score any runs for him. Smoltz gave up just one run in seven innings and fanned 10. He continues to defy Mother Nature and pitches great.

As always, your questions about your team (adds, drops, trades, etc) and comments are welcome at fightingchancefantasy@gmail.com. I guarantee an answer within 18 hours.

 

Beyond the Boxscore–Fantasy MLB News and Notes 4/20/08 Hochevar, Big Papi, Dodgers Outfield, Injury Report, and more

Yankees 3B Alex Rodriguez left the game today with a quadricps injury. He said he felt it in his swing, and then as he ran down the baseline, he felt a “twinge.” Rodriguez has been an incredibly durable player throughout his career, so it is tough to gauge how long this might keep him out of action. Complicating matters further, his wife is about to give birth to a child which would most likely keep him out of action a couple of days. Although there has been no definite reports, it wouldn’t surprise me to see A-Rod miss a few games as a precaution while he visits that classy wife of his in the hospital. She will be a very good mother, who doesn’t need a mother who would wear a shirt that said f#!k you across the back? Remember that last year? Disgusting.

The big news of the day was the promotion in Kansas City of SP Luke Hochevar. Fighting Chance Fantasy was all over the breaking news, giving you a crack at adding him to your roster before your competition got to him. I was very excited about his potential, and picked him up in three different leagues. And then he got shelled. Hochevar cruised for 3.2 innings, before getting in trouble with two out in the fourth, when a 1-1 game quickly turned into a 5-1 game. That is the other problem with young pitchers, if they don’t walk everybody, they are prone to the big inning. However, I’m not coming off the bandwagon just yet. Hochevar will start again Friday against the Indians, and let’s hope for better results.

Is Jed Lowrie going to stick with the Red Sox in this callup? The answer is most likely no, but he certainly is making a strong case for himself. Lowrie hit two doubles today and drove in his fifth run in just his third major league game. He is now batting .417 and even if he doesn’t stick around this time, he is certainly putting the pressure on Julio Lugo to perform this year. Lowrie is also filling in at third base while Mike Lowell is on the DL.

David Ortiz has raised his batting average 49 points in the last three days. Big Papi also drove in a run for the third consecutive day, as he looks like he is batting his way out of this season beginning funk. Even though it was a weak homer, that grand slam Friday night was just what the doctor ordered. Ortiz was 2-4 on Sunday, and should be back on track to put up gaudy fantasy numbers again in 2008.

He has been pegged as a problem child, but Marlins’ hurler Scott Olsen is off to a flying start. Olsen improved to 3-0 after allowing just one run over seven innings with three strikeouts. The potential has always been there, but it has been his attitude that has gotten him in trouble in previous years. Olsen could be quite the sleeper if he can keep up this type of production, and should find his way on to a roster in your league after today’s performance.

Four guys hit two home runs today around the majors. In Philly, Mr. Super-Awesome Chase Utley continued his barrage of statistics going deep in the first, and again in the fifth. He is now batting .342, took over the ML HR league lead with his eighth, and has 17 RBI. Not much more you can say, he is one of the best. Hanley Ramirez further proved he was worthy of that high draft pick, as he hit his fourth and fifth homers of the season. After stealing three bases in the last two days, Ramirez decided to flex his muscles on Sunday. He has now driven in 14 runs, and is hitting .366. Hanley does it all, and is proving himself as one of the top two or three guys in fantasy baseball at age 24. After committing an error that put his team behind, Edwin Encarnacion knew he had to make up for it with his bat. Edwin did just that as he started the rally against Eric Gagne that would give the Reds the win in 10 innings. Encarnacion also hit one in the fifth inning to bring his season total to four. He has been a little bit of a disappointment to fantasy owners who thought he might break out this year, perhaps this will be a starting point to an improvement in his production. The Pirates catcher Ryan Doumit finishes this group of double tater guys. He still isn’t seeing everyday at bats over Ronny Paulino, but is making his case for that. With his two solo shots today, Doumit is now hitting .320 to Paulino’s .240, but it is Paulino’s defense that continues to keep him in the lineup. Monitor this situation if you have a crappy catcher. Doumit has some offensive potential, so if he starts playing everyday, he is worth a look.

The Dodgers outfield situation is probably the most frustrating situation in fantasy baseball in 2008. Andruw Jones, Matt Kemp, Andre Eithier, and Juan Pierre all want to play everyday, however this isn’t beer league softball, there is no shortfielder. The funny thing is, the one guy who is struggling the most, Jones, is the one who almost never sits. But I suppose a $100 million contract will help your PT. The other three are all hitting over .280, while Jones flounders at .169. Let us all thank Scott Boras for negotiating another huge contract for a guy who just doesn’t produce like he should. If you own one of these four guys, you have to hold on to them, they all have too much potential to be cut. This isn’t the holy thing to do, but all you can do is root for an injury to one of the other guys who aren’t on your team.

Injury News

Reigning NL MVP Jimmy Rollins has hit the DL for the first time in his career. A day after actually getting an at bat in a game, Rollins and the Phillies decided that they needed to sit him for two weeks, and bring up someone that they knew would be able to play. Rollins was having a good start to the season, and this is a blow to his fantasy owners. All you can do is wait two weeks, and plug him back into your lineup then. For those who don’t own him, is he available cheap in your league?

It was a bad day for quad injuries. Similar to A-Rod, Chipper Jones left Sunday’s game with the same injury as he tried to leg out a double. Apparently Larry injured the quad on April 9th and has been playing with some pain. Bobby Cox was quoted as saying that he is questionable for Monday night, but it isn’t something that will keep him out for long. Those of you with daily transactions might want to bench him Monday, and then see what happens from there.

Now to the good news on the injury front. Brewers stud pitcher Yovani Gallardo was great in his first start off the DL. Gallardo went seven, gave up just one run and fanned four. Unfortunately, his team couldn’t score for him today, so he ended up with a no decision, but this was a good reward for his owners that were patient as they waited for him to come off the DL. Put him back on your active roster immediately, and expect big things from Yovani in 2008.

Rays hurler Matt Garza pitched a minor league game today and was pronounced ready to rejoin the rotation. Garza gave up four runs and eight hits in just 3.2 innings, but manager Joe Madden said he would pitch Friday against the Red Sox. He wasn’t off to a good start before the injury, so be cautious on expecting too much from him right away. If he is truly healthy, he could make an impact for the rest of the season.

Astros 2B Kaz Matsui returned to the lineup over the weekend, and if you are in desperate need of middle infield, he could be a good option. After batting near .300 and stealing 30+ bases in just over 100 games in 2007, Matsui might not run as much for Houston, but that tiny ballpark means his power numbers could be a little better.

Further away is Cardinals pitcher Mark Mulder. Mulder threw six shutout innings for the Cardinals AA affiliate, and is supposed to make his third rehab start on Friday. Tony LaRussa has said Mulder will need two more starts before he can prove that he is ready to rejoin the rotation. Mulder is so far away from the time in his career when he was effective, I don’t know how much you can expect from him. But if these two surgeries finally fixed whatever has been ailing him for the last few years, maybe he can return to the pitcher he once was.

Although it wasn’t due to injury, Joba Chamberlain returned to the Yankees bullpen today after tending to his ailing father. Joba didn’t retire a batter, gave up two hits and a run. He has been incredibly effective again this season, and as long as he is right mentally, he should continue to be an effective 8th inning guy, before he gets placed into the rotation at some point in 2008.

Quick Hitters

One day after he trashed the organization, Frank Thomas and the Blue Jays came to a “mutual agreement” to part ways, and the Big Hurt was cut. If you have the roster room, it is ok to stash him, I’m sure some team will scoop him up as their DH. But if you have a shallow roster, it is time to cut him loose.

The best pitcher that gets no fantasy love, Aaron Harang was incredible again. Harang gave up just one run over eight innings, and fanned eight. He gets blown up every fifth or sixth start, but the other outings Harang is just awesome. A low ERA, high strikeouts, and now that the Reds are supposed to start to compete, maybe he can top 15 wins.

Yanks bulldog Andy Pettitte threw a gem on Sunday as he threw seven shutout innings and whiffed five. Considering his rocky offseason, it is more incredible that Pettitte hasn’t allowed more than three runs in any start. Continue to ride Pettitte’s great start, as he should continue to produce as he has for the last 10 years.

Young starter John Danks has had a great start to the season. Outside of one complete stinker, Danks hasn’t allowed more than one run in three of his four starts. Danks threw seven innings of one run ball, fanning eight. Once a member of the Rangers’ DVD trio of pitching prospects, it appears that the change in scenery is what Danks needed. If you need a starter, Danks should be available in your league.

Another young starter, Jair Jurrjens has been a great surprise for the Braves. Jurrjens went seven and struck out eight as he shut down the Dodgers. He has given up two runs or less in three of his four starts and has struck out a decent number of batters as well. Keep an eye on this guy, and if he has one more good start, he is worthy of a roster spot.

A final great appearance by a young pitcher, Dana Eveland continues to surprise and is now sitting at 2-1 with a sub 2.00 ERA. Eveland is still walking guys a little more than you would like to see, but he has been incredibly effective, and if he is still available, see if you can find a spot for him.

If John Bowker could play the Cardinals everyday, and get regular at-bats, he could be the next Albert Pujols. Bowker his his third homer of the season on Sunday, all against St. Louis, and has made the most of the playing time that has been given to him. I don’t think he is worth an add until he gets everyday at-bats.

As always, your questions (adds, drops, trades, etc) and comments are welcome at fightingchancefantasy@gmail.com. I guarantee a response within 18 hours.