The only recent movement in baseball's off-season has been sideways or downward rather than moving any player or team's prospects upward.
The Rangers' bad news is that LHP Derek Holland could miss half of this season. He underwent arthroscopic surgery on his left knee after a fall in his home.
Rockies OF Carlos Gonzalez had his appendix removed, but that doesn't seem likely to cost him any playing time in 2014. Other injuries? Those seem probable, given his history.
The Nationals signed RHP Stephen Strasburg to a one-year contract for $3.975 million plus incentives, to avoid arbitration.
The Yankees designated OF Vernon Wells for assignment, officially to clear room on their 40-man roster. For what? Unless it's Masahiro Tanaka, the move could be no more than addition by subtraction, removing Wells from consideration in a crowded outfield picture. Too bad for them that they'll still be on the hook for most if not all of his contract. Most likely, Wells will simply go into the pile of mostly scrap-heap free agents. He would fit in there.
* * *
Hockey. I'm still treading water in third place, at 67 points. Five out of second place. I'm above average in every category except for goals against average (10th) and save percentage (ninth). I just recently realized that we have a limit for games played -- for forwards, defensemen, utility players and goalies. I can't find on the ESPN site a breakdown of games played by position. But the total games played seems to indicate that the league's top three teams could be on a pace to run out of games before the season ends. There is a gap down to the other seven teams, but guess who they would catch first if they're playing longer into the season. I think that even though the first-place team has more games played than anyone, it's so far ahead that none of us could catch up.
The games limit makes it most important to build a lead in the "average" categories -- GAA, save percentage and ATOI -- as well as plus/minus. If you run out of games at any position, those "average" figures wouldn't change. And they'd have to add a positive performance in plus/minus. Someone would have to outperform you in those categories. In the other seven categories, just showing up every day would build the totals and allow them to pass the teams with exhausted player limits. Not sure whether I could devise a strategy for limiting games played during the time remaining this season, but if I do, I'll pass it along. But I will observe the stretch run, and have a strategy before next season.
* * *
Basketball. Before I fell asleep at about 9:30 last night, I had a 5-1-2 lead this week. Right now, it's 7-1. If all of this week's matchups remain the same -- and I probably shouldn't be saying or even thinking this because it could jinx me -- I would move into third place (from fourth) but just two games out of first place (seven games coming into the week).
Several categories are close. I'm trailing by three steals, lead by one 3-pointer, two blocks and five assists. I currently have just two players active for Sunday. My opponent has three, but two are point guards. I might have to pick up a viable point guard of my own, one who's playing Sunday, to protect my lead. I'll figure that out more after Saturday's games.
* * *
Turns out I placed third in a Pittsburgh bowl pool. My winnings will pretty much cover my entry fees in the bowl and NFL playoff pools I entered.
Just realized I don't have any choice in the AMFL playoffs. I have eight players on my roster: Chagers QBs (hoping it's all Philip Rivers), D'Angelo Williams and Danny Woodhead at RB, Keenan Allen and Danny Amendola at WR, Vernon Davis at TE, Patriots Ks (Stephen Gostkowski) and Seahawks D/ST. This is a scoring-only league. This week is our league semifinals. The two winners in the top-division playoffs advance to the two-week AMFL Super Bowl. For this week at least, I have to hope the Chargers' offense performs well. There's a good chance against the Broncos. Also a good chance San Diego would lose 45-42. That would be OK as long as I could win and advance, and get good draft picks for the conference finals and big game 48.
Showing posts with label Stephen Strasburg. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Stephen Strasburg. Show all posts
Saturday, January 11, 2014
Tuesday, December 3, 2013
Ellsbury following Damon's footsteps to New York?
Tuesday's flurry of moves continued into the evening, with the biggest
individual move of the day -- CF Jacoby Ellsbury's reported agreement on a
7-year, $153-million contract with the Yankees. If this sounds familiar, it
sort of echoes Johnny Damon's career path, except that Ellsbury is younger than
Damon was when he moved from Boston.
It seems likely that Brett Gardner would move to Yankee Stadium's spacious left field, that OF Vernon Wells would hit the road again and OFs Ichiro Suzuki and Alfonso Soriano would fight it out to see who plays in the field and who joins the DH picture.
Another apparently imminent free-agent signing would have 1B Justin Morneau moving to the Rockies for 2 years and $13 million.
Colorado already was a major player Tuesday, dispatching CF Dexter Fowler to the Astros for CF Brandon Barnes and RHP Jordan Lyles.
The Rockies, on a smaller level than the Athletics but with greater needs, may have helped themselves in several places. Despite Morneau's disappointing stretch run with the Pirates, he still has more tread on his tires than the 2013 1B, Todd Helton. To avoid Morneau's difficulty hitting lefties, Colorado could give C Wilin Rosario more playing time by putting him at first against southpaws. OF Michael Cuddyer, who spent plenty of time at first during his career season, can go back to right field. Barnes would replace the more athletic Fowler in center field, which looks like a win for Houston. Lyles was just 7-9 with a 5.59 ERA for the last-place Astros. He might not be able to do even that well at Coors Field, but that still could be an improvement over some of the cast of characters who started games for the '13 Rockies.
In addition to jettisoning RHP Jim Johnson to Oakland for discredited 2B Jemile Weeks and a player to be named, the Orioles avoided arbitration with OF Nolan Reimold by signing him to a 1-year contract for $1 million. Reimold already will be 30 next season and, really, how much has he done in the majors.
The Tigers continued to be active players in the market. They reportedly are giving RHP Joe Nathan a 2-year contract to fill a sinkhole as their closer. Detroit's rotation won't be quite as good, because they traded RHP Doug Fister, a 14-game winner, to the Nationals for utility infielder Steve Lombardozzi (not the original, a 2B for the Twins when they won the 1987 World Series, but his son) and LHPs Ian Krol and Robbie Ray. Krol reached the majors in 2013 without much distinction (3.95 ERA in Washington's bullpen). As a starter, Ray was a combined 11-5 with a 3.36 ERA in high A and Double-A.
Fister always has ranked high in my Rule of 25 listing of pitchers' true ability (aiming for a .250 opponents' average and 2.5:1 K/W ratio), even when he was losing games for Seattle. The soon-to-be 30-year-old had more than three strikeouts for every walk, and earned 54 per cent of his outs on ground balls. Those stats helped lead to a 14-9 record and 3.67 ERA.
His new home park may not be as pitcher-friendly, but he'll remain a vital cog in a deep rotation in Washington that would include RHPs Stephen Strasburg and Jordan Zimmerman and LHP Gio Gonzalez.
Detroit also made a bargain-basement signing to avoid arbitration with OF/IF Don Kelly. He will receive $1 million for 2014.
The Yankees freed up some loose change to help pay Ellsbury when they traded C Chris Stewart to the Pirates for a PTBN. Pittsburgh and Stewart reportedly agreed on a $1-million contract for him to back up C Russell Martin as he did in New York. The loser in that transaction was C Michael McKenry, who was designated for assignment.
Still a few player moves needing comments. I'll do those after I get home. Maybe Wednesday if I'm tired tonight.
It seems likely that Brett Gardner would move to Yankee Stadium's spacious left field, that OF Vernon Wells would hit the road again and OFs Ichiro Suzuki and Alfonso Soriano would fight it out to see who plays in the field and who joins the DH picture.
Another apparently imminent free-agent signing would have 1B Justin Morneau moving to the Rockies for 2 years and $13 million.
Colorado already was a major player Tuesday, dispatching CF Dexter Fowler to the Astros for CF Brandon Barnes and RHP Jordan Lyles.
The Rockies, on a smaller level than the Athletics but with greater needs, may have helped themselves in several places. Despite Morneau's disappointing stretch run with the Pirates, he still has more tread on his tires than the 2013 1B, Todd Helton. To avoid Morneau's difficulty hitting lefties, Colorado could give C Wilin Rosario more playing time by putting him at first against southpaws. OF Michael Cuddyer, who spent plenty of time at first during his career season, can go back to right field. Barnes would replace the more athletic Fowler in center field, which looks like a win for Houston. Lyles was just 7-9 with a 5.59 ERA for the last-place Astros. He might not be able to do even that well at Coors Field, but that still could be an improvement over some of the cast of characters who started games for the '13 Rockies.
In addition to jettisoning RHP Jim Johnson to Oakland for discredited 2B Jemile Weeks and a player to be named, the Orioles avoided arbitration with OF Nolan Reimold by signing him to a 1-year contract for $1 million. Reimold already will be 30 next season and, really, how much has he done in the majors.
The Tigers continued to be active players in the market. They reportedly are giving RHP Joe Nathan a 2-year contract to fill a sinkhole as their closer. Detroit's rotation won't be quite as good, because they traded RHP Doug Fister, a 14-game winner, to the Nationals for utility infielder Steve Lombardozzi (not the original, a 2B for the Twins when they won the 1987 World Series, but his son) and LHPs Ian Krol and Robbie Ray. Krol reached the majors in 2013 without much distinction (3.95 ERA in Washington's bullpen). As a starter, Ray was a combined 11-5 with a 3.36 ERA in high A and Double-A.
Fister always has ranked high in my Rule of 25 listing of pitchers' true ability (aiming for a .250 opponents' average and 2.5:1 K/W ratio), even when he was losing games for Seattle. The soon-to-be 30-year-old had more than three strikeouts for every walk, and earned 54 per cent of his outs on ground balls. Those stats helped lead to a 14-9 record and 3.67 ERA.
His new home park may not be as pitcher-friendly, but he'll remain a vital cog in a deep rotation in Washington that would include RHPs Stephen Strasburg and Jordan Zimmerman and LHP Gio Gonzalez.
Detroit also made a bargain-basement signing to avoid arbitration with OF/IF Don Kelly. He will receive $1 million for 2014.
The Yankees freed up some loose change to help pay Ellsbury when they traded C Chris Stewart to the Pirates for a PTBN. Pittsburgh and Stewart reportedly agreed on a $1-million contract for him to back up C Russell Martin as he did in New York. The loser in that transaction was C Michael McKenry, who was designated for assignment.
Still a few player moves needing comments. I'll do those after I get home. Maybe Wednesday if I'm tired tonight.
Monday, May 3, 2010
High scores mixed in with stellar pitching performances
Here’s our usual Monday Email containing a Weekend Update and who’s Hot and Not. It’s going out to the whole list for two reasons:
1. We haven’t finished forming the subscribers’ mailing list.
2. It doesn’t hurt to let those who haven’t yet subscribed see what they’re missing.
Just so you know, this is your last chance to subscribe at a reduced rate for the remainder of 2010. See below to find out how.
Subscriptions will include Articles such as our “Pitchers (and Hitters) to Keep and Avoid.” Last year, our recommendation of Rockies LHP Jorge De La Rosa in itself was worth the cost of what you’d pay, and he was only one of our picks that were on the money. Choosing him was inspired; he was 0-6 when we recommended him, and 16-3 thereafter.
You also would have access to whatever content we’re able to get on to the fantasybaseballscout.com web site.
Subscribers will be able to ask questions specific to their fantasy teams and leagues, and receive answers through these Emails, the web site or personal Emails.
Hot
The weekly Hot and Not for batters is based on 20 at-bats for batting average, and at least a .280 BA for the other categories.
Pos. Player, Team H-AB BA HR-RBI SB
OF Austin Jackson, Tigers 15-30 .500 0-2 2
2B Adam Rosales, Athletics 10-21 .476 1-4 0
1B Albert Pujols, Cardinals 10-21 .476 0-7 1
3B David Freese, Cardinals 12-26 .462 3-11 0
OF Torii Hunter, Angels 9-20 .450 2-6 0
2B Robinson Cano, Yankees 11-25 .440 4-7 0
OF Austin Kearns, Indians 11-25 .440 2-8 1
3B Adrian Beltre, Red Sox 11-25 .440 0-3 0
SS/2B Asdrubal Cabrera, Indians 11-25 .440 0-1 0
C John Buck, Blue Jays 9-21 .429 3-7 0
Home runs – Cano, Dodgers OF Andre Ethier, White Sox 1B Paul Konerko, Marlins SS Hanley Ramirez and Cubs OF Alfonso Soriano 4.
RBI – Freese 11; Ethier, Konerko, Soriano, Rockies OF Carlos Gonzalez and Diamondbacks 1B Adam LaRoche 10; Mets 3B David Wright 9; Kearns, Ramirez, Pirates C Ryan Doumit and Yankees SS Derek Jeter 8.
Stolen bases – White Sox OF Alex Rios 4; Gonzalez, Athletics OF Rajai Davis, Rockies OF Dexter Fowler and Padres OF Tony Gwynn 3.
Runs – Jackson 8; Ethier, Soriano, Rays 3B Evan Longoria, Orioles OF Nick Markakis and Yankees OF/1B Nick Swisher 7.
Konerko was the American League Player of the Week; Freese won the same award in the National League.
Repeaters on a Hot list are Cano, Konerko and Longoria. Wright was on a Not list in each of the previous two weeks, and Jackson was on last week’s Not list.
Requirements for pitchers to make these lists are 7 innings pitched for ERA and WHIP, 10 strikeouts in K:W ratio and an ERA under 4.00.
Hand Pitcher, Team IP W-L ERA WHIP K:W
RHP Colby Lewis, Rangers 9.0 0-0 0.00 0.44 10:1
RHP A.J. Burnett, Yankees 8.0 1-0 0.00 0.50 4:1
RHP Jhoulys Chacin, Rockies 8.0 1-0 0.00 0.50 9:3
RHP Matt Cain, Giants 8.0 1-0 0.00 0.50 8:3
RHP Doug Fister, Mariners 8.0 0-0 0.00 0.38 3:0
LHP Jon Lester, Red Sox 7.0 1-0 0.00 0.43 11:2
LHP Jaime Garcia, Cardinals 7.0 1-0 0.00 0.71 5:1
LHP Cliff Lee, Mariners 7.0 0-0 0.00 0.43 8:0
RHP Zack Greinke, Royals 15.0 0-1 0.60 0.67 11:0
RHP Justin Verlander, Tigers 14.0 1-1 0.64 0.71 14:3
Wins – Orioles RHP Matt Albers, Cardinals RHP Chris Carpenter, Rays RHP Wade Davis, Brewers RHP Yovani Gallardo, Padres RHP Jon Garland, Marlins RHP Joshua Johnson and Twins LHP Francisco Liriano 2.
Saves – Padres RHP Heath Bell 3-for-3; Nationals RHP Matt Capps, Reds RHP Francisco Cordero, Rangers RHP Frank Francisco, Red Sox RHP Jonathan Papelbon, Orioles RHP Alfredo Simon, Royals RHP Joakim Soria, Rays RHP Rafael Soriano and Tigers RHP Jose Valverde 2-2.
WHIP – Fister 0.38; Lee and Lester 0.43; Lewis 0.44; Giants RHP Tim Lincecum 0.48; Burnett, Cain, Chacin and Braves RHP Tommy Hanson 0.50; Marlins RHP Chris Volstad 0.56.
K:W ratio – Marlins RHP Clay Hensley 13:0; Greinke 11:0; Reds RHP Aaron Harang and Rays RHP James Shields 12:1; Lincecum and Phillies RHP Roy Halladay 11:1; Lewis 10:1; Lester 11:2; Cardinals RHP Kyle Lohse 10:2; Liriano 19:4.
Repeaters on pitching Hot lists were Pettitte, Pelfrey, Rodney, Carpenter and Sanchez.
Not
Pos. Player, Team H-AB BA HR-RBI SB
SS/3B Ronny Cedeno, Pirates 1-21 .048 1-1 0
3B Chipper Jones, Braves 1-20 .050 0-1 0
1B Casey Kotchman, Mariners 2-23 .087 0-0 0
SS Yuniesky Betancourt, Royals 3-26 .115 0-1 0
OF Jose Guillen, Royals 3-25 .120 0-2 0
2B Rickie Weeks, Brewers 4-32 .125 1-2 1
C Russell Martin, Dodgers 3-24 .125 1-2 0
OF Juan Pierre, White Sox 3-22 .136 0-0 1
3B/OF Mark Teahen, White Sox 3-21 .143 0-0 0
OF Hideki Matsui, Angels 3-21 .143 0-2 0
OF Josh Willingham, Nationals 3-21 .143 0-2 0
This week’s (dis)honorable mention goes to Rays C Dioner Navarro, who was 0-for-10.
W:K ratio (10 or more strikeouts) – Astros OF Michael Bourn 0:10; Padres 3B/OF Chase Headley 1:12; Tigers 3B Brandon Inge 1:11; Nationals 1B/OF Adam Dunn 1:10; Padres OF Max Venable 3:12; Weeks 4:15; Guillen and Padres OF Kyle Blanks 3:11; Mariners OF Franklin Gutierrez 4:12; Diamondbacks OF Justin Upton 5:11.
Caught stealing – Giants OF/3B Mark DeRosa 0-for-2; Pierre 1-3: Bourn, Indians OF Shin-soo Choo and Mariners OF Ichiro Suzuki 2-4; Rockies OF Dexter Fowler and White Sox OF/1B Andruw Jones 3-5.
There were no repeaters on the hitters’ Not list. Bourn and Guillen both dropped down from the Hot list a week earlier.
Hand Pitcher, Team IP W-L ERA WHIP K:W
RHP Edwin Jackson, D-backs 6.1 0-2 25.58 3.95 2:3
RHP Ben Sheets, Athletics 7.1 0-2 20.86 3.00 4:3
RHP Bud Norris, Astros 9.2 0-2 11.17 2.28 9:8
LHP Zach Duke, Pirates 10.0 0-2 10.80 2.40 9:6
LHP Dana Eveland, Blue Jays 9.2 0-1 10.24 2.28 4:6
RHP Mat Latos, Padres 8.2 0-2 9.35 2.19 8:6
LHP Johan Santana, Mets 9.2 1-1 9.31 1.76 7:5
RHP Josh Beckett, Red Sox 10.0 0-0 9.00 1.80 9:3
LHP David Huff, Indians 10.1 0-2 7.84 2.25 6:3
LHP John Lannan, Nationals 11.0 0-1 7.36 2.00 3:8
The pitchers eligible for this list all started twice during the week
Losses – Duke, Huff, Jackson, Latos, Norris, Sheets, White Sox LHP Mark Buehrle, Mariners RHP Felix Hernandez and Yankees RHP David Robertson 2.
Blown saves – Brewers RHP Trevor Hoffman 1-for-3.
News and Notes
The Nationals will decide after a bullpen session Tuesday in Harrisburg, Pa., whether to advance RHP Stephen Strasburg from the Double-A Senators to Triple-A Syracuse.
In two extra-inning losses to the Rangers over the weekend, the Mariners totaled only one run in 23 innings. Friday’s loss happened after OF Eric Byrnes missed a squeeze bunt, allowing a runner to be put out at home plate. As a result, Seattle has released Byrnes and demoted SS Matt Tuiasosopo to Triple-A Tacoma, and brought SS Josh Wilson and OF Ryan Langerhans back up from the Rainiers.
A couple of players relatively new to their teams are helping out. In the Blue Jays’ 9-3 victory over the Athletics Sunday, OF Fred Lewis had a home run, three RBI and a stolen base. Making his major league debut, C Wilson Ramos went 4-for-5 in the Twins’ 8-3 win over the Indians.
The Marlins defeated the Nationals 9-3 with SS Hanley Ramirez slamming two homers and driving in four runs and RHP Josh Johnson improving his record to 3-1.
9-3 was a popular score Sunday. Andre Ethier also had two homers and four RBI to help the Dodgers beat the Pirates by that margin.
Remember Cubs LF Alfonso Soriano? He slammed two homers and drove in – guess what – four runs in a 10-5 victory over the Diamondbacks.
The Orioles completed an unlikely sweep of the Red Sox by winning 3-2 on a 10th-inning double by 2B/3B/1B Ty Wigginton.
The Diamondbacks’ choice to start tonight’s game was RHP Cesar Valdez. The 25-year-old began this season 1-1 with a 3.80 ERA for Triple-A Reno. I was impressed with Valdez when I saw him in the high Class A California League for Visalia. The Modesto lineup he defeated that night including injury-rehabbing SS Troy Tulowitzki. To make room for Valdez, Arizona optioned to Reno RHP Kevin Mulvey, who had been another candidate to move into the rotation.
In closing
This is a regular feature of our Emails and blog posts. It lets you know who’s getting saves. Equally important is telling you who’s blowing saves or putting his job in jeopardy by getting shaky saves. There’s also a FREE Article on the old fantasybaseballscout.com web site letting you know which pitcher or pitchers each team is using to close games. It will be updated whenever there’s a change or speculation about a change in a team’s closer.
There were few close games Sunday. As a result, there were just two saves – in the two best-pitched games on both sides. Rays RHP Rafael Soriano picked up his sixth save in a 1-0 victory over the Royals that included just seven hits by both sides. Tampa Bay RHP Wade Davis out-dueled Kansas City RHP Zack Greinke in that game. Rangers RHP Neftali Feliz recorded his fifth save on what’s listed as his 22nd birthday. Texas won 3-1 in 11 innings at Seattle, with OF David Murphy breaking a 1-1 tie on a sacrifice fly. The starting pitchers were Rangers LHP C.J. Wilson and Mariners RHP Doug Fister, who both have pitched very well this season.
Promotion
To subscribe for our five-times-weekly Emails and anything else we're able to provide this season, Email us at lary@fantasybaseballscout.com. Through today, Sunday, May 2, you can subscribe for just $20, a 20 per cent savings from our established price of $25.
Include your name, address, phone number and the Email address where you would like to receive the Emails. PayPal then would send you an invoice that would allow you to pay in one step.
1. We haven’t finished forming the subscribers’ mailing list.
2. It doesn’t hurt to let those who haven’t yet subscribed see what they’re missing.
Just so you know, this is your last chance to subscribe at a reduced rate for the remainder of 2010. See below to find out how.
Subscriptions will include Articles such as our “Pitchers (and Hitters) to Keep and Avoid.” Last year, our recommendation of Rockies LHP Jorge De La Rosa in itself was worth the cost of what you’d pay, and he was only one of our picks that were on the money. Choosing him was inspired; he was 0-6 when we recommended him, and 16-3 thereafter.
You also would have access to whatever content we’re able to get on to the fantasybaseballscout.com web site.
Subscribers will be able to ask questions specific to their fantasy teams and leagues, and receive answers through these Emails, the web site or personal Emails.
Hot
The weekly Hot and Not for batters is based on 20 at-bats for batting average, and at least a .280 BA for the other categories.
Pos. Player, Team H-AB BA HR-RBI SB
OF Austin Jackson, Tigers 15-30 .500 0-2 2
2B Adam Rosales, Athletics 10-21 .476 1-4 0
1B Albert Pujols, Cardinals 10-21 .476 0-7 1
3B David Freese, Cardinals 12-26 .462 3-11 0
OF Torii Hunter, Angels 9-20 .450 2-6 0
2B Robinson Cano, Yankees 11-25 .440 4-7 0
OF Austin Kearns, Indians 11-25 .440 2-8 1
3B Adrian Beltre, Red Sox 11-25 .440 0-3 0
SS/2B Asdrubal Cabrera, Indians 11-25 .440 0-1 0
C John Buck, Blue Jays 9-21 .429 3-7 0
Home runs – Cano, Dodgers OF Andre Ethier, White Sox 1B Paul Konerko, Marlins SS Hanley Ramirez and Cubs OF Alfonso Soriano 4.
RBI – Freese 11; Ethier, Konerko, Soriano, Rockies OF Carlos Gonzalez and Diamondbacks 1B Adam LaRoche 10; Mets 3B David Wright 9; Kearns, Ramirez, Pirates C Ryan Doumit and Yankees SS Derek Jeter 8.
Stolen bases – White Sox OF Alex Rios 4; Gonzalez, Athletics OF Rajai Davis, Rockies OF Dexter Fowler and Padres OF Tony Gwynn 3.
Runs – Jackson 8; Ethier, Soriano, Rays 3B Evan Longoria, Orioles OF Nick Markakis and Yankees OF/1B Nick Swisher 7.
Konerko was the American League Player of the Week; Freese won the same award in the National League.
Repeaters on a Hot list are Cano, Konerko and Longoria. Wright was on a Not list in each of the previous two weeks, and Jackson was on last week’s Not list.
Requirements for pitchers to make these lists are 7 innings pitched for ERA and WHIP, 10 strikeouts in K:W ratio and an ERA under 4.00.
Hand Pitcher, Team IP W-L ERA WHIP K:W
RHP Colby Lewis, Rangers 9.0 0-0 0.00 0.44 10:1
RHP A.J. Burnett, Yankees 8.0 1-0 0.00 0.50 4:1
RHP Jhoulys Chacin, Rockies 8.0 1-0 0.00 0.50 9:3
RHP Matt Cain, Giants 8.0 1-0 0.00 0.50 8:3
RHP Doug Fister, Mariners 8.0 0-0 0.00 0.38 3:0
LHP Jon Lester, Red Sox 7.0 1-0 0.00 0.43 11:2
LHP Jaime Garcia, Cardinals 7.0 1-0 0.00 0.71 5:1
LHP Cliff Lee, Mariners 7.0 0-0 0.00 0.43 8:0
RHP Zack Greinke, Royals 15.0 0-1 0.60 0.67 11:0
RHP Justin Verlander, Tigers 14.0 1-1 0.64 0.71 14:3
Wins – Orioles RHP Matt Albers, Cardinals RHP Chris Carpenter, Rays RHP Wade Davis, Brewers RHP Yovani Gallardo, Padres RHP Jon Garland, Marlins RHP Joshua Johnson and Twins LHP Francisco Liriano 2.
Saves – Padres RHP Heath Bell 3-for-3; Nationals RHP Matt Capps, Reds RHP Francisco Cordero, Rangers RHP Frank Francisco, Red Sox RHP Jonathan Papelbon, Orioles RHP Alfredo Simon, Royals RHP Joakim Soria, Rays RHP Rafael Soriano and Tigers RHP Jose Valverde 2-2.
WHIP – Fister 0.38; Lee and Lester 0.43; Lewis 0.44; Giants RHP Tim Lincecum 0.48; Burnett, Cain, Chacin and Braves RHP Tommy Hanson 0.50; Marlins RHP Chris Volstad 0.56.
K:W ratio – Marlins RHP Clay Hensley 13:0; Greinke 11:0; Reds RHP Aaron Harang and Rays RHP James Shields 12:1; Lincecum and Phillies RHP Roy Halladay 11:1; Lewis 10:1; Lester 11:2; Cardinals RHP Kyle Lohse 10:2; Liriano 19:4.
Repeaters on pitching Hot lists were Pettitte, Pelfrey, Rodney, Carpenter and Sanchez.
Not
Pos. Player, Team H-AB BA HR-RBI SB
SS/3B Ronny Cedeno, Pirates 1-21 .048 1-1 0
3B Chipper Jones, Braves 1-20 .050 0-1 0
1B Casey Kotchman, Mariners 2-23 .087 0-0 0
SS Yuniesky Betancourt, Royals 3-26 .115 0-1 0
OF Jose Guillen, Royals 3-25 .120 0-2 0
2B Rickie Weeks, Brewers 4-32 .125 1-2 1
C Russell Martin, Dodgers 3-24 .125 1-2 0
OF Juan Pierre, White Sox 3-22 .136 0-0 1
3B/OF Mark Teahen, White Sox 3-21 .143 0-0 0
OF Hideki Matsui, Angels 3-21 .143 0-2 0
OF Josh Willingham, Nationals 3-21 .143 0-2 0
This week’s (dis)honorable mention goes to Rays C Dioner Navarro, who was 0-for-10.
W:K ratio (10 or more strikeouts) – Astros OF Michael Bourn 0:10; Padres 3B/OF Chase Headley 1:12; Tigers 3B Brandon Inge 1:11; Nationals 1B/OF Adam Dunn 1:10; Padres OF Max Venable 3:12; Weeks 4:15; Guillen and Padres OF Kyle Blanks 3:11; Mariners OF Franklin Gutierrez 4:12; Diamondbacks OF Justin Upton 5:11.
Caught stealing – Giants OF/3B Mark DeRosa 0-for-2; Pierre 1-3: Bourn, Indians OF Shin-soo Choo and Mariners OF Ichiro Suzuki 2-4; Rockies OF Dexter Fowler and White Sox OF/1B Andruw Jones 3-5.
There were no repeaters on the hitters’ Not list. Bourn and Guillen both dropped down from the Hot list a week earlier.
Hand Pitcher, Team IP W-L ERA WHIP K:W
RHP Edwin Jackson, D-backs 6.1 0-2 25.58 3.95 2:3
RHP Ben Sheets, Athletics 7.1 0-2 20.86 3.00 4:3
RHP Bud Norris, Astros 9.2 0-2 11.17 2.28 9:8
LHP Zach Duke, Pirates 10.0 0-2 10.80 2.40 9:6
LHP Dana Eveland, Blue Jays 9.2 0-1 10.24 2.28 4:6
RHP Mat Latos, Padres 8.2 0-2 9.35 2.19 8:6
LHP Johan Santana, Mets 9.2 1-1 9.31 1.76 7:5
RHP Josh Beckett, Red Sox 10.0 0-0 9.00 1.80 9:3
LHP David Huff, Indians 10.1 0-2 7.84 2.25 6:3
LHP John Lannan, Nationals 11.0 0-1 7.36 2.00 3:8
The pitchers eligible for this list all started twice during the week
Losses – Duke, Huff, Jackson, Latos, Norris, Sheets, White Sox LHP Mark Buehrle, Mariners RHP Felix Hernandez and Yankees RHP David Robertson 2.
Blown saves – Brewers RHP Trevor Hoffman 1-for-3.
News and Notes
The Nationals will decide after a bullpen session Tuesday in Harrisburg, Pa., whether to advance RHP Stephen Strasburg from the Double-A Senators to Triple-A Syracuse.
In two extra-inning losses to the Rangers over the weekend, the Mariners totaled only one run in 23 innings. Friday’s loss happened after OF Eric Byrnes missed a squeeze bunt, allowing a runner to be put out at home plate. As a result, Seattle has released Byrnes and demoted SS Matt Tuiasosopo to Triple-A Tacoma, and brought SS Josh Wilson and OF Ryan Langerhans back up from the Rainiers.
A couple of players relatively new to their teams are helping out. In the Blue Jays’ 9-3 victory over the Athletics Sunday, OF Fred Lewis had a home run, three RBI and a stolen base. Making his major league debut, C Wilson Ramos went 4-for-5 in the Twins’ 8-3 win over the Indians.
The Marlins defeated the Nationals 9-3 with SS Hanley Ramirez slamming two homers and driving in four runs and RHP Josh Johnson improving his record to 3-1.
9-3 was a popular score Sunday. Andre Ethier also had two homers and four RBI to help the Dodgers beat the Pirates by that margin.
Remember Cubs LF Alfonso Soriano? He slammed two homers and drove in – guess what – four runs in a 10-5 victory over the Diamondbacks.
The Orioles completed an unlikely sweep of the Red Sox by winning 3-2 on a 10th-inning double by 2B/3B/1B Ty Wigginton.
The Diamondbacks’ choice to start tonight’s game was RHP Cesar Valdez. The 25-year-old began this season 1-1 with a 3.80 ERA for Triple-A Reno. I was impressed with Valdez when I saw him in the high Class A California League for Visalia. The Modesto lineup he defeated that night including injury-rehabbing SS Troy Tulowitzki. To make room for Valdez, Arizona optioned to Reno RHP Kevin Mulvey, who had been another candidate to move into the rotation.
In closing
This is a regular feature of our Emails and blog posts. It lets you know who’s getting saves. Equally important is telling you who’s blowing saves or putting his job in jeopardy by getting shaky saves. There’s also a FREE Article on the old fantasybaseballscout.com web site letting you know which pitcher or pitchers each team is using to close games. It will be updated whenever there’s a change or speculation about a change in a team’s closer.
There were few close games Sunday. As a result, there were just two saves – in the two best-pitched games on both sides. Rays RHP Rafael Soriano picked up his sixth save in a 1-0 victory over the Royals that included just seven hits by both sides. Tampa Bay RHP Wade Davis out-dueled Kansas City RHP Zack Greinke in that game. Rangers RHP Neftali Feliz recorded his fifth save on what’s listed as his 22nd birthday. Texas won 3-1 in 11 innings at Seattle, with OF David Murphy breaking a 1-1 tie on a sacrifice fly. The starting pitchers were Rangers LHP C.J. Wilson and Mariners RHP Doug Fister, who both have pitched very well this season.
Promotion
To subscribe for our five-times-weekly Emails and anything else we're able to provide this season, Email us at lary@fantasybaseballscout.com. Through today, Sunday, May 2, you can subscribe for just $20, a 20 per cent savings from our established price of $25.
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Sunday, May 2, 2010
Lots of home, sweet home pitchers this week
Here is our Weekly Preview and Pitching Chart for the coming week.
We have received payments from a number of you and are in the process of adding you to a new Email list for this season.
PayPal has sent out requests for payment for those of you who have expressed interest in subscribing to our Emails. We are adding to our new mailing list those of you who have made the payment.
Because the new mailing list hasn’t been set up entirely, we still are sending out free Emails to everyone on our preseason mailing list. That free lunch will end soon. We encourage all of you who have been receiving our Emails to subscribe for the remainder of this year.
You or any of your friends – or even you signing friends as gifts to them – can subscribe. You can see how to subscribe below.
Subscriptions will include Articles such as our “Pitchers (and Hitters) to Keep and Avoid.” Last year, our recommendation of Rockies LHP Jorge De La Rosa in itself was worth the cost of what you’d pay, and he was only one of our picks that were on the money. Choosing him was inspired; he was 0-6 when we recommended him, and 16-3 thereafter.
You also would have access to our blog and whatever content we’re able to get on to the fantasybaseballscout.com web site.
Subscribers will be able to ask questions specific to their fantasy teams and leagues, and receive answers through these Emails, the web site or personal Emails.
Projected starting pitchers, May 3-9, 2010
AL Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat Sun
Bal @NYY-Guthrie @NYY-Matusz @NYY-Hernandz @Min-Bergesen @Min-Millwood @Min-Guthrie2 @Min-Matusz2
Bos LAA-Buchholz LAA-Lester LAA-Lackey LAA-Mtsuzka* NYY-Beckett NYY-Bchholz2 NYY-Lester2
CWS KC-Peavy KC-Floyd KC-Garcia Tor-Danks Tor-Buehrle Tor-Peavy2 Tor-Floyd2
Cle Tor-Talbot Tor-Wstbrook Tor-Carmona --- Det-Mastrson Det-Huff Det-Talbt2**
Det @Min-Scherzer @Min-Willis @Min-Porcello --- @Cle-Bondrmn @Cle-Verlander @Cle-Scherzer2
KC @CWS-Meche @CWS-Hochevar @CWS-Bannister @Tex-Davies @Tex-Greinke @Tex-Meche2 @Tex-Hochevr2
LAA @Bos-Saunders @Bos-Santana @Bos-Pineiro @Bos-Kazmir @Se-Weaver @Se-Saundrs2 @Se-Santana2
Min Det-Baker Det-Bkbrn-3* Det-Slowey Bal-Pavno-4* Bal-Liriano Bal-Baker2 Bal-Blakbrn2
NYY Bal-Sabathia Bal-Burnett Bal-Pettitte --- @Bos-Vazquez @Bos-Hughes @Bos-Sabathia2
Oak Tex-Braden Tex-Mzzro-5* Tex-Cahill-6* --- TB-Gonzalez TB-Sheets TB-Braden2
Se --- TB-Vargas TB-Lee TB-Rwld-Sh LAA-Hernandz LAA-Fister LAA-Vargas2
TB --- @Se-Shields @Se-Garza @Se-Niemann @Oak-Price @Oak-Davis @Oak-Shields2
Tex @Oak-Harden @Oak-Feldman @Oak-Lewis-7* KC-Harrison KC-Wilson KC-Harden2 KC-Feldman2
Tor @Cle-Cecil @Cle-Romero @Cle-Morrow @CWS-Eveland @CWS-Marcum @CWS-Cecil2 @CWS-Romero2
*-RHP Daisuke Matsuzaka is scheduled for his second major league start this season Thursday.
**-The Indians could have the option of moving their Opening Day starter, RHP Jake Westbrook, ahead of RHP Mitch Talbot in their rotation to pitch Sunday.
3*-The Twins expect RHP Nick Blackburn to return from a family medical emergency in time to start Tuesday.
4*-Blackburn’s return would make it so that RHP Carl Pavano could start Thursday with two extra days to recover from a stiff neck.
5*-Athletics RHP Justin Duchscherer is scheduled Monday to go to Nashville to see Dr. Thomas Byrd, who has performed two hip operations on Duchscherer. Most likely, he wouldn’t make Tuesday’s start. A likely replacement would be RHP Vin Mazzaro from Triple-A Sacramento.
6*-Already new to Oakland’s rotation, replacing injured LHP Brett Anderson, is RHP Trevor Cahill. He has made just one major league start this season after recovering from a shoulder injury.
7*-RHP Colby Lewis has been a different pitcher since returning from two years pitching in Japan. He re-signed with his original North American team at what is appearing to be a bargain price. In Rangers history, only Hall of Famer Nolan Ryan had more strikeouts in one season during April than Lewis’ 38. He has been mixing four pitches for strikes. He might still be available in your league. Don’t expect him to remain undefeated all season, but you too should be able to get him at a relatively low price.
AL Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat Sun
Ari @Ho-Buckner* @Ho-Kennedy @Ho-Lopez @Ho-Haren Mil-Jackson Mil-Buckner2 Mil-Knnedy2
Atl --- @Was-Kawkami @Was-Hanson @Was-Hudson @Phi-Lowe @Phi-Jurrjns** @Phi-Kwkami2
ChC --- @Pit-Dempster @Pit-Lilly @Pit-Wells @Cin-Gzlny-3* @Cin-Silva @Cin-Dempstr2
Cin NYM-Leake NYM-Arroyo NYM-Cueto --- ChC-Bailey ChC-Harang ChC-Leake2
Col @SD-Jimenez @SD-Smith @SD-Cook --- @LAD-Rogrs-4* @LAD-Chacin @LAD-Jimenez2
Fla --- SF-Sanchez SF-Robertsn SF-Nolasco @Was-Volstad @Was-Johnson @Was-Sanchez2
Ho Ari-Paulino Ari-Oswalt Ari-Myers Ari-Rdriguez SD-Norris SD-Paulino2 SD-Oswalt2
LAD --- Mil-Kershaw Mil-Blingsley Mil-Haegr-5* Col-Kuroda Col-Mnsts-6* Col-Kershaw2
Mil --- @LAD-Nrvsn-7* @LAD-Davis @LAD-Bush @Ari-Gallardo @Ari-Wolf @Ari-Narvesn2
NYM @Cin-Perez @Cin-Maine @Cin-Niese --- SF-Pelfrey SF-Santana SF-Perez2
Phi StL-Hamels StL-Blantn-8* StL-Kndrk-9* StL-Halladay Atl-Moyer Atl-Hamels2 Atl-Blanton2
Pit --- ChC-Maholm ChC-Mrtn-10* ChC-Duke StL-Krtns-11* StL-Brres-12* StL-Maholm2
StL @Phi-Garcia @Phi-Wainright @Phi-Penny @Phi-Penny @Pit-Carpenter @Pit-Garcia2 @Phi-Wanrght2
SD Col-Correia Col-LeBlanc Col-Richard --- @Ho-Latos @Ho-Garland @Ho-Correia2
SF --- @Fla-Lincecum @Fla-Zito @Fla-Cain @NYM-Sanchez @NYM-Welemyr @NYM-Lincecm2
Was --- Atl-Hernandz Atl-Atilano Atl-Olsen Fla-Stammen Fla-Lannan Fla-Hrnandz2
*-With RHP Kris Benson (strained shoulder) going on the disabled list, the Diamondbacks recalled RHP Kevin Mulvey to take Benson’s roster spot. Mulvey could start Monday’s game, but more likely Arizona would recall RHP Billy Buckner from Triple-A Reno to take that role. He last started in the Pacific Coast League Wednesday, so he would be pitching on his usual rest.
**-RHP Jair Jurrjens left Thursday’s game after one inning because of a hamstring injury. The Braves believe Monday’s day off would allow them to push him back in the rotation so he would be ready to start Saturday.
3*-mlb.com indicates that the Cubs would move LHP Tom Gorzelanny, who has pitched well without achieving results, ahead of RHP Carlos Silva in their rotation to start Friday.
4*-The Rockies weren’t excited about RHP Esmil Rogers’ first major league start this season, when he gave up four runs in four innings Saturday. He still might stay in rotation to start Friday, or Colorado could slide another rookie, RHP Jhoulys Chacin, and RHP Ubaldo Jimenez ahead one day each and bring back LHP Greg Smith on the usual four days’ rest to start Sunday.
5*-The Dodgers’ rotation – well, much of their team – is a mess. They could keep ineffective RHP Charlie Haeger as a starter for Thursday’s game, or they could give rookie RHP John Ely another start.
6*-RHP Carlos Monasterios went four innings in his first emergency start against the Pirates, and could be brought back Sunday against the Rockies. Haeger or Ely also could be an option.
7*-The Brewers liked LHP Chris Narveson well enough to have him supplant veteran RHP Jeff Suppan in their rotation. The Dodgers didn’t show the southpaw any respect by spelling his name “Naverson” in their game notes.
8*-The Phillies are likely to bring RHP Joe Blanton back from an injury-rehab assignment to start Tuesday. That assignment wouldn’t go to LHP J.A. Happ, whom they shut down after 20 pitches on the side Friday because he was feeling more forearm pain.
9*-RHP Kyle Kendrick’s spot in Philadelphia’s rotation is tenuous. The Phils could replace him with veteran RHP Nelson Figueroa, who also could take Tuesday’s start to give Blanton more time on rehab.
10*-On most major league teams, RHP Charlie Morton no longer would be starting. The Pirates don’t currently have much choice.
11*-Pittsburgh recalled RHP Jeff Karstens from Triple-A Indianapolis to start Sunday’s game. His next turn would be Friday.
12*-RHP Ross Ohlendorf isn’t yet ready to return to the Bucs. He threw 43 pitches Friday, and is expected to make an injury-rehab start Wednesday at Double-A Altoona or high Class A Bradenton. Pittsburgh’s plan is for Ohlendorf to return to the major league rotation May 10. His continued absence most likely would leave LHP Brian Burres as Friday’s starter. In his first start this season, Burres pitched 5 1/3 scoreless innings.
Schedule notes
In the American League this week, a majority of the teams are scheduled to play seven games, while the other six would play six. That means if you use batters and relief pitchers from the Indians, Tigers, Yankees, Athletics, Mariners or Rays, you would be at a 14 per cent playing-time disadvantage over players from the other eight. The Red Sox, White Sox and Twins would play all seven times at home. That means it could be a marginally better week for batters with games at hitter-friendly parks in Boston (Angels four times, Yankees three) and Chicago (Royals three, Blue Jays four). Pitchers would have an advantage in the six games scheduled in Oakland (Rangers and Rays three each) and Seattle (Rays and Angels three). And those are a couple of additional reasons to stay away from Tampa Bay batters.
The National League is somewhat opposite in that just four teams – Diamondbacks, Astros, Phillies and Cardinals – are scheduled for seven games, with the others playing six. It could be an even better week for NL batters with seven contests in Philadelphia (Cardinals four, Braves three) and a slightly hitter-friendly park in Houston (D-backs four, Padres three). In addition, there are six games scheduled in Cincinnati (Mets and Cubs) three. In the pitchers’ favor are Dodger Stadium (Brewers and Rockies three) and Pittsburgh (Cubs and Cardinals three).
An oddity in this week’s schedules is that except for six teams – Yankees, Rangers, D-backs, Marlins, Mets and Padres – every other squad would play exclusively at home or exclusively on the road.
Pitchers scheduled to start twice at home are RHPs Clay Buchholz, Jake Peavy, Gavin Floyd, Mitch Talbot, Scott Baker, Nick Blackburn, Mike Leake, Felipe Paulino, Roy Oswalt, Joe Blanton and Livan Hernandez, and LHPs Jon Lester, Dallas Braden, Jason Vargas, Clayton Kershaw, Cole Hamels and Paul Maholm. The list is long because 12 teams would be playing at home all week. Despite that, we have only one highest recommendation: Hamels. Plenty of pitches are somewhere between Highest Recommendation and Live Longshot – Peavy, Floyd, Baker, Lester and Kershaw. And what the heck, we’ll give you Oswalt as a very high recommendation.
Injuries
In addition to a herniated disk and an abdominal injury, Orioles 2B Brian Roberts has been battling the flu. He said he might be out another three weeks or three months.
With Twins C Joe Mauer suffering a bruised left heel when he jammed it into a base Friday, C Wilson Ramos from Triple-A Rochester has joined Minnesota.
Yankees CF Curtis Granderson has gone on the disabled list because of a strained left groin muscle. In his absence, Brett Gardner would play center field and Randy Winn left field. Those are much better alternatives than New York has had in several years. To take Granderson’s roster spot, the Yanks recalled RHP Mark Melancon from Triple-A Scranton.
The Athletics put C Kurt Suzuki on the DL because of a strained intercostals muscle in his left side. Up from Triple-A Sacramento to replace him is C Josh Donaldson. He would be worth a shot as a fantasy backup because he has power and is a good defensive catcher, and is a better alternative than C Landon Powell.
News and notes
The word in Washington is that RHP Stephen Strasburg would be promoted to Triple-A Syracuse if he pitched well today for five innings or 85 pitches, whichever comes first, in his start for Double-A Harrisburg. It’s not clear what will happen; he allowed Altoona (Pirates organization) three earned runs in 4 2/3 innings. Another rookie pro, RHP Drew Storen, already has moved up from Harrisburg to Syracuse.
Before we think the Mets’ troubles are over, consider that 16 of their first 24 games were played at home.
The Rockies have designated RHP Juan Rincon for assignment.
The headline looks impressive: Three No-Hitters the Last Two Days in the Midwest League. However, that is just a low Class A league, and none of the three was by one pitcher in a nine-inning game. It took three Cedar Rapids Kernels (Angels) for one no-no; Nick Struck’s no-hitter for Peoria (Cubs) was in a rain-shortened game, and LHP Dan Osterbrock of Beloit (Twins) pitched his in a seven-inning doubleheader game. Osterbrock’s effort was noteworthy in that the only runner to reach base against him was on a 3-and-2 leadoff walk in the seventh. A double play erased that runner, so the lefty faced the minimum 21 batters.
In closing
This is a regular feature of our Emails and blog posts. It lets you know who’s getting saves. Equally important is telling you who’s blowing saves or putting his job in jeopardy by getting shaky saves. There’s also a FREE Article on the old fantasybaseballscout.com web site letting you know which pitcher or pitchers each team is using to close games. It will be updated whenever there’s a change or speculation about a change in a team’s closer.
It appears that RHP Alfredo Simon could be settling in as the Orioles’ closer and that the Baltimore bullpen is taking shape. In a 12-9 game Saturday against the Red Sox that included nine home runs, Simon picked up his second save with a pitching line of 100011.
The Rangers’ bullpen might not be the place to look for a front-line closer. RHP Frank Francisco’s second save came with a line of 100021 in a 6-3 victory at Seattle, indicating that he could take the primary role from RHP Neftali Feliz. The solution also could become RHP Chris Ray, who may already have usurped a setup role from Feliz or Francisco.
Cardinals RHP Ryan Franklin didn’t record a save, but did something much rarer for a closer by winning a game while pitching well. He entered a 3-3 game with two runners on base and two out in the bottom of the eighth inning and received a win when St. Louis scored three times in the top of the ninth for a 6-3 victory.
Other saves went to Royals RHP Joakim Soria, seventh, 4-2 in 11 innings at Tampa Bay; White Sox RHP Bobby Jenks, fifth, 7-6 at Yankee Stadium; Cubs RHP Carlos Marmol, fourth, 7-5 over the Diamondbacks; Brewers RHP Trevor Hoffman, fourth, 2-1 at San Diego, and Athletics RHP Andrew Bailey, third, 4-3 at Toronto.
Promotion
To subscribe for our five-times-weekly Emails and anything else we're able to provide this season, Email us at lary@fantasybaseballscout.com. Through today, Sunday, May 2, you can subscribe for just $20, a 20 per cent savings from our established price of $25.
Include your name, address, phone number and the Email address where you would like to receive the Emails. PayPal then would send you an invoice that would allow you to pay in one step.
We have received payments from a number of you and are in the process of adding you to a new Email list for this season.
PayPal has sent out requests for payment for those of you who have expressed interest in subscribing to our Emails. We are adding to our new mailing list those of you who have made the payment.
Because the new mailing list hasn’t been set up entirely, we still are sending out free Emails to everyone on our preseason mailing list. That free lunch will end soon. We encourage all of you who have been receiving our Emails to subscribe for the remainder of this year.
You or any of your friends – or even you signing friends as gifts to them – can subscribe. You can see how to subscribe below.
Subscriptions will include Articles such as our “Pitchers (and Hitters) to Keep and Avoid.” Last year, our recommendation of Rockies LHP Jorge De La Rosa in itself was worth the cost of what you’d pay, and he was only one of our picks that were on the money. Choosing him was inspired; he was 0-6 when we recommended him, and 16-3 thereafter.
You also would have access to our blog and whatever content we’re able to get on to the fantasybaseballscout.com web site.
Subscribers will be able to ask questions specific to their fantasy teams and leagues, and receive answers through these Emails, the web site or personal Emails.
Projected starting pitchers, May 3-9, 2010
AL Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat Sun
Bal @NYY-Guthrie @NYY-Matusz @NYY-Hernandz @Min-Bergesen @Min-Millwood @Min-Guthrie2 @Min-Matusz2
Bos LAA-Buchholz LAA-Lester LAA-Lackey LAA-Mtsuzka* NYY-Beckett NYY-Bchholz2 NYY-Lester2
CWS KC-Peavy KC-Floyd KC-Garcia Tor-Danks Tor-Buehrle Tor-Peavy2 Tor-Floyd2
Cle Tor-Talbot Tor-Wstbrook Tor-Carmona --- Det-Mastrson Det-Huff Det-Talbt2**
Det @Min-Scherzer @Min-Willis @Min-Porcello --- @Cle-Bondrmn @Cle-Verlander @Cle-Scherzer2
KC @CWS-Meche @CWS-Hochevar @CWS-Bannister @Tex-Davies @Tex-Greinke @Tex-Meche2 @Tex-Hochevr2
LAA @Bos-Saunders @Bos-Santana @Bos-Pineiro @Bos-Kazmir @Se-Weaver @Se-Saundrs2 @Se-Santana2
Min Det-Baker Det-Bkbrn-3* Det-Slowey Bal-Pavno-4* Bal-Liriano Bal-Baker2 Bal-Blakbrn2
NYY Bal-Sabathia Bal-Burnett Bal-Pettitte --- @Bos-Vazquez @Bos-Hughes @Bos-Sabathia2
Oak Tex-Braden Tex-Mzzro-5* Tex-Cahill-6* --- TB-Gonzalez TB-Sheets TB-Braden2
Se --- TB-Vargas TB-Lee TB-Rwld-Sh LAA-Hernandz LAA-Fister LAA-Vargas2
TB --- @Se-Shields @Se-Garza @Se-Niemann @Oak-Price @Oak-Davis @Oak-Shields2
Tex @Oak-Harden @Oak-Feldman @Oak-Lewis-7* KC-Harrison KC-Wilson KC-Harden2 KC-Feldman2
Tor @Cle-Cecil @Cle-Romero @Cle-Morrow @CWS-Eveland @CWS-Marcum @CWS-Cecil2 @CWS-Romero2
*-RHP Daisuke Matsuzaka is scheduled for his second major league start this season Thursday.
**-The Indians could have the option of moving their Opening Day starter, RHP Jake Westbrook, ahead of RHP Mitch Talbot in their rotation to pitch Sunday.
3*-The Twins expect RHP Nick Blackburn to return from a family medical emergency in time to start Tuesday.
4*-Blackburn’s return would make it so that RHP Carl Pavano could start Thursday with two extra days to recover from a stiff neck.
5*-Athletics RHP Justin Duchscherer is scheduled Monday to go to Nashville to see Dr. Thomas Byrd, who has performed two hip operations on Duchscherer. Most likely, he wouldn’t make Tuesday’s start. A likely replacement would be RHP Vin Mazzaro from Triple-A Sacramento.
6*-Already new to Oakland’s rotation, replacing injured LHP Brett Anderson, is RHP Trevor Cahill. He has made just one major league start this season after recovering from a shoulder injury.
7*-RHP Colby Lewis has been a different pitcher since returning from two years pitching in Japan. He re-signed with his original North American team at what is appearing to be a bargain price. In Rangers history, only Hall of Famer Nolan Ryan had more strikeouts in one season during April than Lewis’ 38. He has been mixing four pitches for strikes. He might still be available in your league. Don’t expect him to remain undefeated all season, but you too should be able to get him at a relatively low price.
AL Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat Sun
Ari @Ho-Buckner* @Ho-Kennedy @Ho-Lopez @Ho-Haren Mil-Jackson Mil-Buckner2 Mil-Knnedy2
Atl --- @Was-Kawkami @Was-Hanson @Was-Hudson @Phi-Lowe @Phi-Jurrjns** @Phi-Kwkami2
ChC --- @Pit-Dempster @Pit-Lilly @Pit-Wells @Cin-Gzlny-3* @Cin-Silva @Cin-Dempstr2
Cin NYM-Leake NYM-Arroyo NYM-Cueto --- ChC-Bailey ChC-Harang ChC-Leake2
Col @SD-Jimenez @SD-Smith @SD-Cook --- @LAD-Rogrs-4* @LAD-Chacin @LAD-Jimenez2
Fla --- SF-Sanchez SF-Robertsn SF-Nolasco @Was-Volstad @Was-Johnson @Was-Sanchez2
Ho Ari-Paulino Ari-Oswalt Ari-Myers Ari-Rdriguez SD-Norris SD-Paulino2 SD-Oswalt2
LAD --- Mil-Kershaw Mil-Blingsley Mil-Haegr-5* Col-Kuroda Col-Mnsts-6* Col-Kershaw2
Mil --- @LAD-Nrvsn-7* @LAD-Davis @LAD-Bush @Ari-Gallardo @Ari-Wolf @Ari-Narvesn2
NYM @Cin-Perez @Cin-Maine @Cin-Niese --- SF-Pelfrey SF-Santana SF-Perez2
Phi StL-Hamels StL-Blantn-8* StL-Kndrk-9* StL-Halladay Atl-Moyer Atl-Hamels2 Atl-Blanton2
Pit --- ChC-Maholm ChC-Mrtn-10* ChC-Duke StL-Krtns-11* StL-Brres-12* StL-Maholm2
StL @Phi-Garcia @Phi-Wainright @Phi-Penny @Phi-Penny @Pit-Carpenter @Pit-Garcia2 @Phi-Wanrght2
SD Col-Correia Col-LeBlanc Col-Richard --- @Ho-Latos @Ho-Garland @Ho-Correia2
SF --- @Fla-Lincecum @Fla-Zito @Fla-Cain @NYM-Sanchez @NYM-Welemyr @NYM-Lincecm2
Was --- Atl-Hernandz Atl-Atilano Atl-Olsen Fla-Stammen Fla-Lannan Fla-Hrnandz2
*-With RHP Kris Benson (strained shoulder) going on the disabled list, the Diamondbacks recalled RHP Kevin Mulvey to take Benson’s roster spot. Mulvey could start Monday’s game, but more likely Arizona would recall RHP Billy Buckner from Triple-A Reno to take that role. He last started in the Pacific Coast League Wednesday, so he would be pitching on his usual rest.
**-RHP Jair Jurrjens left Thursday’s game after one inning because of a hamstring injury. The Braves believe Monday’s day off would allow them to push him back in the rotation so he would be ready to start Saturday.
3*-mlb.com indicates that the Cubs would move LHP Tom Gorzelanny, who has pitched well without achieving results, ahead of RHP Carlos Silva in their rotation to start Friday.
4*-The Rockies weren’t excited about RHP Esmil Rogers’ first major league start this season, when he gave up four runs in four innings Saturday. He still might stay in rotation to start Friday, or Colorado could slide another rookie, RHP Jhoulys Chacin, and RHP Ubaldo Jimenez ahead one day each and bring back LHP Greg Smith on the usual four days’ rest to start Sunday.
5*-The Dodgers’ rotation – well, much of their team – is a mess. They could keep ineffective RHP Charlie Haeger as a starter for Thursday’s game, or they could give rookie RHP John Ely another start.
6*-RHP Carlos Monasterios went four innings in his first emergency start against the Pirates, and could be brought back Sunday against the Rockies. Haeger or Ely also could be an option.
7*-The Brewers liked LHP Chris Narveson well enough to have him supplant veteran RHP Jeff Suppan in their rotation. The Dodgers didn’t show the southpaw any respect by spelling his name “Naverson” in their game notes.
8*-The Phillies are likely to bring RHP Joe Blanton back from an injury-rehab assignment to start Tuesday. That assignment wouldn’t go to LHP J.A. Happ, whom they shut down after 20 pitches on the side Friday because he was feeling more forearm pain.
9*-RHP Kyle Kendrick’s spot in Philadelphia’s rotation is tenuous. The Phils could replace him with veteran RHP Nelson Figueroa, who also could take Tuesday’s start to give Blanton more time on rehab.
10*-On most major league teams, RHP Charlie Morton no longer would be starting. The Pirates don’t currently have much choice.
11*-Pittsburgh recalled RHP Jeff Karstens from Triple-A Indianapolis to start Sunday’s game. His next turn would be Friday.
12*-RHP Ross Ohlendorf isn’t yet ready to return to the Bucs. He threw 43 pitches Friday, and is expected to make an injury-rehab start Wednesday at Double-A Altoona or high Class A Bradenton. Pittsburgh’s plan is for Ohlendorf to return to the major league rotation May 10. His continued absence most likely would leave LHP Brian Burres as Friday’s starter. In his first start this season, Burres pitched 5 1/3 scoreless innings.
Schedule notes
In the American League this week, a majority of the teams are scheduled to play seven games, while the other six would play six. That means if you use batters and relief pitchers from the Indians, Tigers, Yankees, Athletics, Mariners or Rays, you would be at a 14 per cent playing-time disadvantage over players from the other eight. The Red Sox, White Sox and Twins would play all seven times at home. That means it could be a marginally better week for batters with games at hitter-friendly parks in Boston (Angels four times, Yankees three) and Chicago (Royals three, Blue Jays four). Pitchers would have an advantage in the six games scheduled in Oakland (Rangers and Rays three each) and Seattle (Rays and Angels three). And those are a couple of additional reasons to stay away from Tampa Bay batters.
The National League is somewhat opposite in that just four teams – Diamondbacks, Astros, Phillies and Cardinals – are scheduled for seven games, with the others playing six. It could be an even better week for NL batters with seven contests in Philadelphia (Cardinals four, Braves three) and a slightly hitter-friendly park in Houston (D-backs four, Padres three). In addition, there are six games scheduled in Cincinnati (Mets and Cubs) three. In the pitchers’ favor are Dodger Stadium (Brewers and Rockies three) and Pittsburgh (Cubs and Cardinals three).
An oddity in this week’s schedules is that except for six teams – Yankees, Rangers, D-backs, Marlins, Mets and Padres – every other squad would play exclusively at home or exclusively on the road.
Pitchers scheduled to start twice at home are RHPs Clay Buchholz, Jake Peavy, Gavin Floyd, Mitch Talbot, Scott Baker, Nick Blackburn, Mike Leake, Felipe Paulino, Roy Oswalt, Joe Blanton and Livan Hernandez, and LHPs Jon Lester, Dallas Braden, Jason Vargas, Clayton Kershaw, Cole Hamels and Paul Maholm. The list is long because 12 teams would be playing at home all week. Despite that, we have only one highest recommendation: Hamels. Plenty of pitches are somewhere between Highest Recommendation and Live Longshot – Peavy, Floyd, Baker, Lester and Kershaw. And what the heck, we’ll give you Oswalt as a very high recommendation.
Injuries
In addition to a herniated disk and an abdominal injury, Orioles 2B Brian Roberts has been battling the flu. He said he might be out another three weeks or three months.
With Twins C Joe Mauer suffering a bruised left heel when he jammed it into a base Friday, C Wilson Ramos from Triple-A Rochester has joined Minnesota.
Yankees CF Curtis Granderson has gone on the disabled list because of a strained left groin muscle. In his absence, Brett Gardner would play center field and Randy Winn left field. Those are much better alternatives than New York has had in several years. To take Granderson’s roster spot, the Yanks recalled RHP Mark Melancon from Triple-A Scranton.
The Athletics put C Kurt Suzuki on the DL because of a strained intercostals muscle in his left side. Up from Triple-A Sacramento to replace him is C Josh Donaldson. He would be worth a shot as a fantasy backup because he has power and is a good defensive catcher, and is a better alternative than C Landon Powell.
News and notes
The word in Washington is that RHP Stephen Strasburg would be promoted to Triple-A Syracuse if he pitched well today for five innings or 85 pitches, whichever comes first, in his start for Double-A Harrisburg. It’s not clear what will happen; he allowed Altoona (Pirates organization) three earned runs in 4 2/3 innings. Another rookie pro, RHP Drew Storen, already has moved up from Harrisburg to Syracuse.
Before we think the Mets’ troubles are over, consider that 16 of their first 24 games were played at home.
The Rockies have designated RHP Juan Rincon for assignment.
The headline looks impressive: Three No-Hitters the Last Two Days in the Midwest League. However, that is just a low Class A league, and none of the three was by one pitcher in a nine-inning game. It took three Cedar Rapids Kernels (Angels) for one no-no; Nick Struck’s no-hitter for Peoria (Cubs) was in a rain-shortened game, and LHP Dan Osterbrock of Beloit (Twins) pitched his in a seven-inning doubleheader game. Osterbrock’s effort was noteworthy in that the only runner to reach base against him was on a 3-and-2 leadoff walk in the seventh. A double play erased that runner, so the lefty faced the minimum 21 batters.
In closing
This is a regular feature of our Emails and blog posts. It lets you know who’s getting saves. Equally important is telling you who’s blowing saves or putting his job in jeopardy by getting shaky saves. There’s also a FREE Article on the old fantasybaseballscout.com web site letting you know which pitcher or pitchers each team is using to close games. It will be updated whenever there’s a change or speculation about a change in a team’s closer.
It appears that RHP Alfredo Simon could be settling in as the Orioles’ closer and that the Baltimore bullpen is taking shape. In a 12-9 game Saturday against the Red Sox that included nine home runs, Simon picked up his second save with a pitching line of 100011.
The Rangers’ bullpen might not be the place to look for a front-line closer. RHP Frank Francisco’s second save came with a line of 100021 in a 6-3 victory at Seattle, indicating that he could take the primary role from RHP Neftali Feliz. The solution also could become RHP Chris Ray, who may already have usurped a setup role from Feliz or Francisco.
Cardinals RHP Ryan Franklin didn’t record a save, but did something much rarer for a closer by winning a game while pitching well. He entered a 3-3 game with two runners on base and two out in the bottom of the eighth inning and received a win when St. Louis scored three times in the top of the ninth for a 6-3 victory.
Other saves went to Royals RHP Joakim Soria, seventh, 4-2 in 11 innings at Tampa Bay; White Sox RHP Bobby Jenks, fifth, 7-6 at Yankee Stadium; Cubs RHP Carlos Marmol, fourth, 7-5 over the Diamondbacks; Brewers RHP Trevor Hoffman, fourth, 2-1 at San Diego, and Athletics RHP Andrew Bailey, third, 4-3 at Toronto.
Promotion
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Sunday, April 25, 2010
Matsuzaka to take Wakefield's spot
We’re getting back toward our five-Emails-per-week regular-season schedule, which would send you News and Notes each Thursday.
The free period for these Emails is scheduled to end Sunday, April 25. After that, the Emails would go only to those who subscribe.
The good news is that you now CAN subscribe. See below to find out how.
Subscriptions will include Articles such as our “Pitchers (and Hitters) to Keep and Avoid.” Last year, our recommendation of Rockies LHP Jorge De La Rosa in itself was worth the cost of what you’d pay, and he was only one of our picks that were on the money. Choosing him was inspired; he was 0-6 when we recommended him, and 16-3 thereafter.
You also would have access to whatever content we’re able to get on to the fantasybaseballscout.com web site.
Subscribers will be able to ask questions specific to their fantasy teams and leagues, and receive answers through these Emails, the web site or personal Emails.
Pirates fall 20 short of 20-20
The Red Sox will bring RHP Daisuke Matsuzaka back from his injury-rehab assignment. He will replace RHP Tim Wakefield in their rotation. That might be a greater indictment of Boston’s catchers, who are having great difficulty throwing out base stealers, than of Wakefield. The Sox might not be able to afford having his slow pitching motion and slow pitches giving opposing runners even greater chances to steal.
OOO The Brewers became the first team in major league history to win a game 20-0 to complete a three-game sweep in Pittsburgh during which they outscored the Pirates 36-1. LF Ryan Braun hit his fifth homer, and 1B Prince Fielder finally hit his first. OF Jim Edmonds and C George Kottaras also connected for the first time this season.
OOO Filling in for injured SS Jimmy Rollins, Phillies SS/2B Juan Castro went 3-for-5 with two runs and an RBI in an 8-3 victory over the Braves.
OOO Mets rookie 1B Ike Davis had three hits and scored two runs.
OOO On the flip side, Angels 3B Brandon Wood’s average slipped to .087.
OOO White Sox RHP Jake Peavy allowed seven earned runs in 4 1/3 innings, causing his ERA to expand to 7.66.
OOO The Rays and OF/2B Ben Zobrist agreed on a contract extension through 2013, with team options for ’14 and ’15.
OOO In an episode reminiscent of how the Rays established themselves as a presence two years ago against the Yankees, Athletics LHP Dallas Braden engaged in a war of words with New York 3B Alex Rodriguez. Braden took offense when A-Rod ran across the mound after a foul ball. Rodriguez said, “He just told me to get off his mound. I’d never heard of that, especially from a guy that has a handful of wins in his career.” Braden said he hopes the Yankees realize “We’re not the doormat anymore.” A collision at home plate in a 2008 exhibition game that injured Yankees C Francisco Cervelli was Tampa Bay’s way of letting New York know the Rays had arrived.
Minor matters
3B Mike Moustakas, the Royals’ first-round draft pick in 2007, made his first Double-A appearance at Northwest Arkansas, and hit two home runs. Another prospect for the Naturals, OF Tim Smith, went on the disabled list because of a quadriceps injury.
The pitching-prospect twins, Reds LHP prospect Aroldis Chapman and Nationals RHP prospect Stephen Strasburg, again pitched on the same day. Chapman had control problems, with half a dozen walks and a pitching line of 5 1/3 31068 for Triple-A Louisville. Strasburg has a 2-0 record and 0.73 ERA for Double-A Harrisburg following a line of 510017, and should be ready to move up to Triple-A Syracuse.
Indians C prospect Carlos Santana left Wednesday’s game after fouling a pitch off his right knee, and is considered day to day.
When 1BJustin Smoak left Triple-A Oklahoma City’s game, speculation was that he had hurt himself by fouling a ball off his foot. After the game, though, the Rangers said they would recall Smoak and option struggling 1B Chris Davis to the Redhawks.
Injuries
Tigers OF/3B Carlos Guillen could go on the disabled list because of a hamstring injury.
OOO LF Manny Ramirez left the Dodgers’ game at Cincinnati in the sixth inning because of a strained right calf muscle. He expected to miss at least two games. RHP Jeff Weaver (back injury) has gone on the disabled list.
OOO The Red Sox learned that LF Jacoby Ellsbury’s injury is four fractured left ribs. He’s eligible to come off the DL Tuesday, and Ellsbury still is optimistic that that could happen.
OOO Nationals 3B Ryan Zimmerman is doubtful for this weekend’d games because of a hamstring injury.
OOO Rangers C Salty, rehabbing a left shoulder injury at Oklahoma City, made a throwing error on a stolen base. That could indicate that his throwing still isn’t good enough to have him playing in the majors.
OOO The Athletics fear that OF Travis Buck could be out until mid-May because of an oblique injury.
In closing
This is a regular feature of our Emails and blog posts. It lets you know who’s getting saves. Equally important is telling you who’s blowing saves or putting his job in jeopardy by getting shaky saves. There’s also a FREE Article on the old fantasybaseballscout.com web site letting you know which pitcher or pitchers each team is using to close games. It will be updated whenever there’s a change or speculation about a change in a team’s closer.
Rockies LHP Franklin Morales’ third save came in a 2-0 victory at Washington, where bigger news was that RHP Ubaldo Jimenez improved to 4-0 with an 0.95 ERA by pitching another 7 1/3 scoreless innings on the heels of his no-hitter.
LHP Darren Oliver picked up his first save – since 1994! – as the Rangers won in Boston 3-0. Texas’ closer, Neftali Feliz, wasn’t able to pitch, and RHPs Frank Francisco and Dustin Nippert had lost games the previous two nights, so Oliver apparently was the best option.
Mets RHP Francisco Rodriguez finally received his first save, an easy one in a 5-2 win over the Cubs.
Other saves went to Reds RHP Francisco Corderon, sixth, 8-5 over the Dodgers; Tigers RHP Jose Valverde, fifth, 5-4 at LA/Anaheim, and Athletics RHP Andrew Bailey, second, 4-2 against the Yankees.
Promotion
To subscribe for our five-times-weekly Emails and anything else we're able to provide this season, Email us at lary@fantasybaseballscout.com. Through Sunday, May 2, you can subscribe for just $20, a 20 per cent savings from our established price of $25.
Include your name, address, phone number and the Email address where you would like to receive the Emails. PayPal then would send you an invoice that would allow you to pay in one step.
If you already have expressed interest in subscribing, you should receive an Email asking you to pay for a subscription. If not, please be sure to follow the process above.
The free period for these Emails is scheduled to end Sunday, April 25. After that, the Emails would go only to those who subscribe.
The good news is that you now CAN subscribe. See below to find out how.
Subscriptions will include Articles such as our “Pitchers (and Hitters) to Keep and Avoid.” Last year, our recommendation of Rockies LHP Jorge De La Rosa in itself was worth the cost of what you’d pay, and he was only one of our picks that were on the money. Choosing him was inspired; he was 0-6 when we recommended him, and 16-3 thereafter.
You also would have access to whatever content we’re able to get on to the fantasybaseballscout.com web site.
Subscribers will be able to ask questions specific to their fantasy teams and leagues, and receive answers through these Emails, the web site or personal Emails.
Pirates fall 20 short of 20-20
The Red Sox will bring RHP Daisuke Matsuzaka back from his injury-rehab assignment. He will replace RHP Tim Wakefield in their rotation. That might be a greater indictment of Boston’s catchers, who are having great difficulty throwing out base stealers, than of Wakefield. The Sox might not be able to afford having his slow pitching motion and slow pitches giving opposing runners even greater chances to steal.
OOO The Brewers became the first team in major league history to win a game 20-0 to complete a three-game sweep in Pittsburgh during which they outscored the Pirates 36-1. LF Ryan Braun hit his fifth homer, and 1B Prince Fielder finally hit his first. OF Jim Edmonds and C George Kottaras also connected for the first time this season.
OOO Filling in for injured SS Jimmy Rollins, Phillies SS/2B Juan Castro went 3-for-5 with two runs and an RBI in an 8-3 victory over the Braves.
OOO Mets rookie 1B Ike Davis had three hits and scored two runs.
OOO On the flip side, Angels 3B Brandon Wood’s average slipped to .087.
OOO White Sox RHP Jake Peavy allowed seven earned runs in 4 1/3 innings, causing his ERA to expand to 7.66.
OOO The Rays and OF/2B Ben Zobrist agreed on a contract extension through 2013, with team options for ’14 and ’15.
OOO In an episode reminiscent of how the Rays established themselves as a presence two years ago against the Yankees, Athletics LHP Dallas Braden engaged in a war of words with New York 3B Alex Rodriguez. Braden took offense when A-Rod ran across the mound after a foul ball. Rodriguez said, “He just told me to get off his mound. I’d never heard of that, especially from a guy that has a handful of wins in his career.” Braden said he hopes the Yankees realize “We’re not the doormat anymore.” A collision at home plate in a 2008 exhibition game that injured Yankees C Francisco Cervelli was Tampa Bay’s way of letting New York know the Rays had arrived.
Minor matters
3B Mike Moustakas, the Royals’ first-round draft pick in 2007, made his first Double-A appearance at Northwest Arkansas, and hit two home runs. Another prospect for the Naturals, OF Tim Smith, went on the disabled list because of a quadriceps injury.
The pitching-prospect twins, Reds LHP prospect Aroldis Chapman and Nationals RHP prospect Stephen Strasburg, again pitched on the same day. Chapman had control problems, with half a dozen walks and a pitching line of 5 1/3 31068 for Triple-A Louisville. Strasburg has a 2-0 record and 0.73 ERA for Double-A Harrisburg following a line of 510017, and should be ready to move up to Triple-A Syracuse.
Indians C prospect Carlos Santana left Wednesday’s game after fouling a pitch off his right knee, and is considered day to day.
When 1BJustin Smoak left Triple-A Oklahoma City’s game, speculation was that he had hurt himself by fouling a ball off his foot. After the game, though, the Rangers said they would recall Smoak and option struggling 1B Chris Davis to the Redhawks.
Injuries
Tigers OF/3B Carlos Guillen could go on the disabled list because of a hamstring injury.
OOO LF Manny Ramirez left the Dodgers’ game at Cincinnati in the sixth inning because of a strained right calf muscle. He expected to miss at least two games. RHP Jeff Weaver (back injury) has gone on the disabled list.
OOO The Red Sox learned that LF Jacoby Ellsbury’s injury is four fractured left ribs. He’s eligible to come off the DL Tuesday, and Ellsbury still is optimistic that that could happen.
OOO Nationals 3B Ryan Zimmerman is doubtful for this weekend’d games because of a hamstring injury.
OOO Rangers C Salty, rehabbing a left shoulder injury at Oklahoma City, made a throwing error on a stolen base. That could indicate that his throwing still isn’t good enough to have him playing in the majors.
OOO The Athletics fear that OF Travis Buck could be out until mid-May because of an oblique injury.
In closing
This is a regular feature of our Emails and blog posts. It lets you know who’s getting saves. Equally important is telling you who’s blowing saves or putting his job in jeopardy by getting shaky saves. There’s also a FREE Article on the old fantasybaseballscout.com web site letting you know which pitcher or pitchers each team is using to close games. It will be updated whenever there’s a change or speculation about a change in a team’s closer.
Rockies LHP Franklin Morales’ third save came in a 2-0 victory at Washington, where bigger news was that RHP Ubaldo Jimenez improved to 4-0 with an 0.95 ERA by pitching another 7 1/3 scoreless innings on the heels of his no-hitter.
LHP Darren Oliver picked up his first save – since 1994! – as the Rangers won in Boston 3-0. Texas’ closer, Neftali Feliz, wasn’t able to pitch, and RHPs Frank Francisco and Dustin Nippert had lost games the previous two nights, so Oliver apparently was the best option.
Mets RHP Francisco Rodriguez finally received his first save, an easy one in a 5-2 win over the Cubs.
Other saves went to Reds RHP Francisco Corderon, sixth, 8-5 over the Dodgers; Tigers RHP Jose Valverde, fifth, 5-4 at LA/Anaheim, and Athletics RHP Andrew Bailey, second, 4-2 against the Yankees.
Promotion
To subscribe for our five-times-weekly Emails and anything else we're able to provide this season, Email us at lary@fantasybaseballscout.com. Through Sunday, May 2, you can subscribe for just $20, a 20 per cent savings from our established price of $25.
Include your name, address, phone number and the Email address where you would like to receive the Emails. PayPal then would send you an invoice that would allow you to pay in one step.
If you already have expressed interest in subscribing, you should receive an Email asking you to pay for a subscription. If not, please be sure to follow the process above.
Monday, March 22, 2010
Strasburg, Storen sent down by Nationals
The Nationals’ future will remain in the future. They have sent their 2009 first-round-draft-pick right-handers, Stephen Strasburg and Drew Storen, to their minor league camp. The expectation is that Strasburg would be in Washington by June and Storen at least by September.
The Dodgers demoted RHP James McDonald a day after he gave up six runs in 1 1/3 innings.
After saying the switch of 3B Chone Figgins to second base and 2B Jose Lopez to third was just an experiment, the Mariners played them both consistently at the new positions. Now the word is that the team will use Figgins at third and Lopez at second on occasion during the remaining exhibitions, but Seattle will almost certainly have Figgins in the middle of the infield and Lopez on the hot corner on Opening Day.
A bigger problem for the Mariners could be OF Milton Bradley. He has been ejected from his last two exhibition games for seemingly minor infractions. The question is whether his reputation has preceded him and put him on a short leash, or that there was more to the ejections than meets the eye and they’re a bad sign for the volatile player.
Game time:
The Padres again had RHP Mat Latos and LHP Wade LeBlanc starting in separate split-squad exhibition games. Again, they both pitched very well, almost identically. In a 4-1 victory over the White Sox, Latos lowered his ERA to 1.93 with a pitching line of 521105. The run came on a home run by OF/1B Andruw Jones. In a 5-1 victory over the Dodgers, LeBlanc lowered his ERA to 1.93 with a pitching line of 511113. The run came on a home run by 2B Ron Belliard after LeBlanc had thrown 4 2/3 hitless innings. San Diego will separate their days to pitch because it’s pretty clear that they’ll both make the season-opening rotation.
The day was full of outstanding pitching performances, with seven shutouts. Our Cy Young Award for the Day goes to Cubs RHP Carlos Zambrano, whose line was 530024 in a 4-0 win over the Royals.
In the other shutouts, RHP Felix Hernandez’s line was 520012 as the Mariners defeated the Diamondbacks 4-0 using home runs by OFs Franklin Gutierrez and Ryan Langerhans against RHP Dan Haren; RHP Tim Wakefield was in mid-season form with a line of 520023 in a 6-0 victory over the Orioles; RHP Todd Wellemeyer’s line of 540023 was plenty good enough in the Giants’ 6-0 win over the Reds that included 1B Aubrey Huff’s third homer; Twins LHP Francisco Liriano had a line of 330004 in a 6-0 victory over the Rays that could have been worse except for five Tampa Bay double plays including three involving 2B Sean Rodriguez and SS Reid Brignac; the pitcher who says, “Ni,” Tigers LHP Fu-Te Ni, used a line of 320001 to outpitch RHP Roy Halladay to help defeat the Phillies 3-0, and Brewers RHP Yovani Gallardo not only had a line of 540023, but also hit a homer for the only run in their 1-0 win over the Royals.
Athletics Ben Sheets lowered his ERA to 17.28 with a line of 431134 in a 7-4 victory over the Cubs.
The Indians used an eight-run second inning against RHP Jason Jennings to defeat another team of Athletics 12-4. Included was Cleveland DH Travis Hafner’s three-run homer, his second. He won’t be playing regular-season games in Arizona, but if he can have some offensive success that could make the Tribe’s offense pretty potent.
OF Cameron Maybin hit his first two homers, against Nationals RHPs Garrett Mock and Shairon Martis, and RHP Chris Volstad had a line of 561122 in the Marlins’ 5-3 win.
In the Dodgers’ 5-4 victory over the Rangers, RHP Ramon Ortiz’s ERA increased to 1.38 on a line of 452226. He was the winning pitcher in relief of RHP Josh Towers, over Rangers LHP Derek Holland.
The Rockies overcame the Angels 11-10 with five runs in the bottom of the ninth against RHP Juan Mateo and Nick Pugliese. Colorado 2B Eric Young cleared the bases with a triple. In a sloppy game, 2B Clint Barmes had three of the Rockies’ five errors.
The Cardinals defeated the Mets 6-5 on 2B Ruben Gotay’s homer in the bottom of the ninth against RHP Kiko Calero. St. Louis OF Colby Rasmus hit his third homer, a two-run shot against New York RHP John Maine, and Mets rookie 1B Ike Davis also had his third, against RHP Jason Motte.
The Blue Jays’ 7-6 win over the Braves had a last-inning rally typical of what we see in spring training. Toronto scored two runs in the bottom of the ninth, with Michael McDade hitting a game-winning double against RHP Jon Huber. Neither will have an impact in the majors or in fantasy baseball this season.
Injuries:
Mariners LHP Cliff Lee could begin the season on the disabled list because of a lower abdominal strain. Whenever he is ready to pitch, he’s subject to a five-game suspension for throwing at Diamondbacks C Chris Snyder. Lee is appealing the suspension. If he isn’t in the rotation the first time around, LHP Jason Vargas and RHP Doug Fister both are expected to make the rotation. They have been fighting for the fifth starter’s job. Fister left today’s game after Reds 1B Joey Votto hit a line drive off the pitcher’s forearm. The injury has been diagnosed as a bruise.
The Rockies said RHP Huston Street has no structural damage in his sore shoulder. However, he is likely to begin the season on the disabled list, possibly on an injury-rehab assignment. In his absence, LHP Franklin Morales and RHP Manuel Corpas could be Colorado’s closers.
Orioles 2B Brian Roberts (herniated disk) has resumed baseball-related activities.
Giants 3B Pablo Sandoval is expected to be out two days after having five stitches in his right shin to close a cut resulting from a collision at home plate. 3B Ryan Rohlinger will fill in for Sandoval. The news isn’t as good for 2B Freddy Sanchez, recovering from shoulder surgery. He won’t play until late April or early May. Jose Uribe is likely to get most of the playing time at second, but San Francisco also will use LF Mark DeRosa in the infield while Sanchez is out.
Astros CF Michael Bourn is out because of a strained right oblique muscle. Playing in his place, OF Jason Bourgeois stole his fourth base and improved his batting average to .286 in an 8-6 win over the Yankees.
NCAA news and blues:
No, I’m not just bitter because the teams I picked are dropping like flies in the NCAA basketball tournament. I am disappointed in the subjectivity and bias toward big conferences and big programs by the selection committee. If Kansas truly was the No. 1 overall seed, then why did Duke get a road to the Final Four only slightly tougher than Syracuse’s December schedule?
As short as I can make this discussion, the tournament should take one of two paths. 1. Become a tournament of champions, with each conference sending the regular-season champion and the survivor of a post-season tournament excluding the champ to the dance. Who really needs the ninth-place team with a losing record in a major conference to help decide the winner? 2. Let everyone in, using the conference tournaments as preliminary rounds. The tournament champs plus the remaining teams in the losers’ bracket of a double-elimination format would advance. The whole thing would be double-elimination, so the conference tournament champs would have to lose twice to be out. The conference tournaments still would have meaning and produce a champion. The regular season couldn’t be more meaningless than it is now, and it would lead to seedings for the conference tournament.
Sample Scouting Report:
Mat Latos, RHP, Padres
Ht.: 6-5 Wt.: 210 T: R Age: 22 Inj. Risk: 10 Alt. Pos.: SP
{2010} Latos so thoroughly dominated low Class A ball last season, that San Diego jumped him to Double-A San Antonio. After he went 5-1 and made the Texas League All-Star game, they only place for him was to go straight to the majors. Latos made another 10 starts for the Padres before they shut him down in September. He throws a mid-90s fastball complemented by both a slider and a curve. The hulking, multi-tattooed Latos has the potential to become a staff ace in time. He should do just fine this year as well. Born: Dec. 9, 1987, Alexandria, Va. 2009: Padres, 51 IP, 4 W, 4.62 ERA, 1.30 WHIP, 0 S, 39 SO.
Projection
IP: 133 W: 11 ERA: 3.92 WHIP: 1.27 S: 0 SO: 105 Value: $5
Wade LeBlanc, LHP, Padres
Ht.: 6-3 Wt.: 200 T: L Age: 25 Inj. Risk: 10 Alt. Pos.: SP
{2010} LeBlanc completely turned around his 2008 season last year. At Triple-A Portland, he had poorer results (4-9) than in ’08, when he won 11 games, but pitched much better (3.87 ERA and 1.16 WHIP). He was pitching well enough that the Padres called him up for nine starts, in which he turned around his 1-3 major league mark from 2008 by knocking more than four runs off his ERA and 89 points off his WHIP. He’s not likely to become an ace because his fastball barely reaches 90 mph. LeBlanc does have a sharp-breaking curve and a changeup not far on this side of Johan Santana’s. Born: Aug. 7, 1984, Lake Charles, La. 2009: Padres, 46 IP, 3 W, 3.69 ERA, 1.17 WHIP, 0 S, 30 SO.
Projection
IP: 124 W: 8 ERA: 4.28 WHIP: 1.30 S: 0 SO: 88 Value: $2
The Dodgers demoted RHP James McDonald a day after he gave up six runs in 1 1/3 innings.
After saying the switch of 3B Chone Figgins to second base and 2B Jose Lopez to third was just an experiment, the Mariners played them both consistently at the new positions. Now the word is that the team will use Figgins at third and Lopez at second on occasion during the remaining exhibitions, but Seattle will almost certainly have Figgins in the middle of the infield and Lopez on the hot corner on Opening Day.
A bigger problem for the Mariners could be OF Milton Bradley. He has been ejected from his last two exhibition games for seemingly minor infractions. The question is whether his reputation has preceded him and put him on a short leash, or that there was more to the ejections than meets the eye and they’re a bad sign for the volatile player.
Game time:
The Padres again had RHP Mat Latos and LHP Wade LeBlanc starting in separate split-squad exhibition games. Again, they both pitched very well, almost identically. In a 4-1 victory over the White Sox, Latos lowered his ERA to 1.93 with a pitching line of 521105. The run came on a home run by OF/1B Andruw Jones. In a 5-1 victory over the Dodgers, LeBlanc lowered his ERA to 1.93 with a pitching line of 511113. The run came on a home run by 2B Ron Belliard after LeBlanc had thrown 4 2/3 hitless innings. San Diego will separate their days to pitch because it’s pretty clear that they’ll both make the season-opening rotation.
The day was full of outstanding pitching performances, with seven shutouts. Our Cy Young Award for the Day goes to Cubs RHP Carlos Zambrano, whose line was 530024 in a 4-0 win over the Royals.
In the other shutouts, RHP Felix Hernandez’s line was 520012 as the Mariners defeated the Diamondbacks 4-0 using home runs by OFs Franklin Gutierrez and Ryan Langerhans against RHP Dan Haren; RHP Tim Wakefield was in mid-season form with a line of 520023 in a 6-0 victory over the Orioles; RHP Todd Wellemeyer’s line of 540023 was plenty good enough in the Giants’ 6-0 win over the Reds that included 1B Aubrey Huff’s third homer; Twins LHP Francisco Liriano had a line of 330004 in a 6-0 victory over the Rays that could have been worse except for five Tampa Bay double plays including three involving 2B Sean Rodriguez and SS Reid Brignac; the pitcher who says, “Ni,” Tigers LHP Fu-Te Ni, used a line of 320001 to outpitch RHP Roy Halladay to help defeat the Phillies 3-0, and Brewers RHP Yovani Gallardo not only had a line of 540023, but also hit a homer for the only run in their 1-0 win over the Royals.
Athletics Ben Sheets lowered his ERA to 17.28 with a line of 431134 in a 7-4 victory over the Cubs.
The Indians used an eight-run second inning against RHP Jason Jennings to defeat another team of Athletics 12-4. Included was Cleveland DH Travis Hafner’s three-run homer, his second. He won’t be playing regular-season games in Arizona, but if he can have some offensive success that could make the Tribe’s offense pretty potent.
OF Cameron Maybin hit his first two homers, against Nationals RHPs Garrett Mock and Shairon Martis, and RHP Chris Volstad had a line of 561122 in the Marlins’ 5-3 win.
In the Dodgers’ 5-4 victory over the Rangers, RHP Ramon Ortiz’s ERA increased to 1.38 on a line of 452226. He was the winning pitcher in relief of RHP Josh Towers, over Rangers LHP Derek Holland.
The Rockies overcame the Angels 11-10 with five runs in the bottom of the ninth against RHP Juan Mateo and Nick Pugliese. Colorado 2B Eric Young cleared the bases with a triple. In a sloppy game, 2B Clint Barmes had three of the Rockies’ five errors.
The Cardinals defeated the Mets 6-5 on 2B Ruben Gotay’s homer in the bottom of the ninth against RHP Kiko Calero. St. Louis OF Colby Rasmus hit his third homer, a two-run shot against New York RHP John Maine, and Mets rookie 1B Ike Davis also had his third, against RHP Jason Motte.
The Blue Jays’ 7-6 win over the Braves had a last-inning rally typical of what we see in spring training. Toronto scored two runs in the bottom of the ninth, with Michael McDade hitting a game-winning double against RHP Jon Huber. Neither will have an impact in the majors or in fantasy baseball this season.
Injuries:
Mariners LHP Cliff Lee could begin the season on the disabled list because of a lower abdominal strain. Whenever he is ready to pitch, he’s subject to a five-game suspension for throwing at Diamondbacks C Chris Snyder. Lee is appealing the suspension. If he isn’t in the rotation the first time around, LHP Jason Vargas and RHP Doug Fister both are expected to make the rotation. They have been fighting for the fifth starter’s job. Fister left today’s game after Reds 1B Joey Votto hit a line drive off the pitcher’s forearm. The injury has been diagnosed as a bruise.
The Rockies said RHP Huston Street has no structural damage in his sore shoulder. However, he is likely to begin the season on the disabled list, possibly on an injury-rehab assignment. In his absence, LHP Franklin Morales and RHP Manuel Corpas could be Colorado’s closers.
Orioles 2B Brian Roberts (herniated disk) has resumed baseball-related activities.
Giants 3B Pablo Sandoval is expected to be out two days after having five stitches in his right shin to close a cut resulting from a collision at home plate. 3B Ryan Rohlinger will fill in for Sandoval. The news isn’t as good for 2B Freddy Sanchez, recovering from shoulder surgery. He won’t play until late April or early May. Jose Uribe is likely to get most of the playing time at second, but San Francisco also will use LF Mark DeRosa in the infield while Sanchez is out.
Astros CF Michael Bourn is out because of a strained right oblique muscle. Playing in his place, OF Jason Bourgeois stole his fourth base and improved his batting average to .286 in an 8-6 win over the Yankees.
NCAA news and blues:
No, I’m not just bitter because the teams I picked are dropping like flies in the NCAA basketball tournament. I am disappointed in the subjectivity and bias toward big conferences and big programs by the selection committee. If Kansas truly was the No. 1 overall seed, then why did Duke get a road to the Final Four only slightly tougher than Syracuse’s December schedule?
As short as I can make this discussion, the tournament should take one of two paths. 1. Become a tournament of champions, with each conference sending the regular-season champion and the survivor of a post-season tournament excluding the champ to the dance. Who really needs the ninth-place team with a losing record in a major conference to help decide the winner? 2. Let everyone in, using the conference tournaments as preliminary rounds. The tournament champs plus the remaining teams in the losers’ bracket of a double-elimination format would advance. The whole thing would be double-elimination, so the conference tournament champs would have to lose twice to be out. The conference tournaments still would have meaning and produce a champion. The regular season couldn’t be more meaningless than it is now, and it would lead to seedings for the conference tournament.
Sample Scouting Report:
Mat Latos, RHP, Padres
Ht.: 6-5 Wt.: 210 T: R Age: 22 Inj. Risk: 10 Alt. Pos.: SP
{2010} Latos so thoroughly dominated low Class A ball last season, that San Diego jumped him to Double-A San Antonio. After he went 5-1 and made the Texas League All-Star game, they only place for him was to go straight to the majors. Latos made another 10 starts for the Padres before they shut him down in September. He throws a mid-90s fastball complemented by both a slider and a curve. The hulking, multi-tattooed Latos has the potential to become a staff ace in time. He should do just fine this year as well. Born: Dec. 9, 1987, Alexandria, Va. 2009: Padres, 51 IP, 4 W, 4.62 ERA, 1.30 WHIP, 0 S, 39 SO.
Projection
IP: 133 W: 11 ERA: 3.92 WHIP: 1.27 S: 0 SO: 105 Value: $5
Wade LeBlanc, LHP, Padres
Ht.: 6-3 Wt.: 200 T: L Age: 25 Inj. Risk: 10 Alt. Pos.: SP
{2010} LeBlanc completely turned around his 2008 season last year. At Triple-A Portland, he had poorer results (4-9) than in ’08, when he won 11 games, but pitched much better (3.87 ERA and 1.16 WHIP). He was pitching well enough that the Padres called him up for nine starts, in which he turned around his 1-3 major league mark from 2008 by knocking more than four runs off his ERA and 89 points off his WHIP. He’s not likely to become an ace because his fastball barely reaches 90 mph. LeBlanc does have a sharp-breaking curve and a changeup not far on this side of Johan Santana’s. Born: Aug. 7, 1984, Lake Charles, La. 2009: Padres, 46 IP, 3 W, 3.69 ERA, 1.17 WHIP, 0 S, 30 SO.
Projection
IP: 124 W: 8 ERA: 4.28 WHIP: 1.30 S: 0 SO: 88 Value: $2
Friday, March 19, 2010
Oh, Brian, can you see?
Off-season Lasik eye surgery could be beginning to take effect for Braves C Brian McCann. He hit his first two home runs this spring, against RHP Brett Myers and journeyman LHP Tim Byrdak, as Atlanta lost to the Astros 8-5. RF Hunter Pence slugged his third homer for Houston.
Speaking of eyes, in the Stephen Strasburg watch, the Nationals right-hander pitched three scoreless innings, allowing two hits and striking out two in a 7-3 loss to the Cardinals. The winning pitcher was RHP Adam Ottavino, who to date has been overhyped as a prospect. He had a pitching line of 200001 after relieving RHP Adam Wainwright in the fifth inning.
In the Diamondbacks’ 9-3 victory over the Rangers, RF Justin Upton blasted his third homer. Texas LF Josh Hamilton, struggling to avoid injuries this spring, hit his first. Thus far, the second coming of RHP Colby Lewis with the Rangers doesn’t seem much better than the first. They re-signed him after he’d had some success pitching in Japan. However, his spring ERA is 9.95.
You know it’s spring training when the Pirates club the Yankees 10-5. And when 1B/SS Bobby Crosby hits two homers and 2B/OF Delwyn Young hits another, giving each three already this spring. It didn’t hurt for the Bucs that RHP Jonathan Abominablesnowman was pitching in the game. He gave up three runs in two-thirds of an inning, giving him 10 earned runs allowed in two innings, a 45.00 ERA.
The Marlins defeated the Mets 5-1, with RHP John Maine giving up all five of the runs in two-thirds of an inning. That’s a 67.50 ERA.
The Diamondbacks defeated the Rockies 8-7 in Hermosillo, Mexico. RHP Leo Rosales made up for some shaky pitching earlier this spring by recording a save. In his one inning, he gave up a solo homer to 1B Brad Eldred.
In the Cubs’ 8-7 victory over the Angels, RHP Thomas Diamond earned a save. He entered the game with the bases loaded and a two-run lead with two out in the eighth inning. Diamond allowed one runner to score, but held LA/Anaheim scoreless in the ninth. Could closer be his future role?
The Athletics’ corner infielders made news in their 10-3 victory over the Royals. 3B Eric Chavez, now playing first base, went 0-for-3 but the news was that he played on back-to-back days for the first time since last year’s back surgery. Meanwhile, new 3B Kevin Kouzmanoff drove in three runs.
Still hitting home runs for the Rays were 2B Sean Rodriguez, his fourth, and OF Justin Ruggiero, his third. Tampa Bay still lost to the Tigers 9-6.
The Giants pounded four home runs – by 1B Aubrey Huff and OFs Fred Lewis, Aaron Rowand and Nate Schierholtz – but still lost to the Brewers 10-8.
The scoring in the Rockies’ 5-4 win over the Mariners all came after the starting pitchers left the game. For Colorado, RHP Ubaldo Jimenez pitched four scoreless innings, giving him a string of seven shutout innings. In RHP Felix Hernandez’s first appearance this spring, he went 2 2/3 innings without allowing a run for Seattle.
In the Dodgers’ 6-4 victory over the Rangers, Matt Kemp hit his second homer this spring and OF Garret Anderson went 1-for-3, a single against LHP Derek Holland, in his first game as LA’s DH since signing a minor league contract.
The rest of the Dodgers won their final exhibition game in China, 11-1 over the CPBL All-Stars. OF prospect Trayvon Robinson hit a two-run homer, and LF Manny Ramirez and 1B James Loney had three hits apiece. The winning pitcher, RHP Josh Towers, had a pitching line of 341102.
Inside the injuries:
While Mets SS Jose Reyes recovers from a thyroid disorder, which is expected to take 2-8 weeks, they will have rookie Ruben Tejada share time with 2B/SS Alex Cora in Reyes’ place. The timetable on CF Carlos Beltran’s return now has been pushed back as far as Memorial Day.
The Angels were set to go with their regular lineup against the Cubs until SS Erick Aybar reported a stiff arm and RF Bobby Abreu tightness in his side. Both sat out the game.
Cubs 3B Aramis Ramirez went out Saturday because of a sore triceps muscle, and isn’t expected to throw for a couple of more days.
The Red Sox scratched RHP Josh Beckett from his start because he was sick. Instead of disrupting other pitchers’ schedules by moving him back to Monday, the Sox said Beckett wouldn’t pitch in a game until his next scheduled start Friday against the Pirates.
The Royals said CF Rick Ankiel, pulled from Friday’s game because of a sore right ankle (ankiel?), could be out a week. In his absence, they will take an extended look at OF Jason Dyson, who stole 46 bases in 80 games last season between low Class A and Double-A ball.
Dodgers SS Rafael Furcal is trying to prove that he’s 100 per cent ready to play this year. He has played in eight of their last nine games. He said that when he played last season he was leery of reinjuring his back.
Sample Scouting Report:
Ubaldo Jimenez, RHP, Rockies
Ht.: 6-4 Wt.: 200 T: R Age: 26* Inj. Risk: 10 Alt. Pos.: SP
{2010} If there is such a thing as a perfect pitcher for Coors Field, Jimenez could be it. He throws a high-90s fastball and mixes in good off-speed pitches, which generates plenty of strikeouts and reduces the number of balls put in play. During the last two seasons, more than 60 per cent of his outs have come on ground balls. Those don’t ever go out of the park the way even a wind-blown fly ball can. Almost any kind of start could be an improvement over last year, when his April ERA was 7.58. Just think how good he could be if he went to a team playing in a pitchers’ park. Born: Jan. 22, 1984, Dominican Republic*. 2009: Rockies, 218 IP, 15 W, 0 S, 3.47 ERA, 1.23 WHIP, 198 SO.
Projection
IP: 208 W: 15 ERA: 3.62 WHIP: 1.29 S: 0 SO: 187 Value: $14
Speaking of eyes, in the Stephen Strasburg watch, the Nationals right-hander pitched three scoreless innings, allowing two hits and striking out two in a 7-3 loss to the Cardinals. The winning pitcher was RHP Adam Ottavino, who to date has been overhyped as a prospect. He had a pitching line of 200001 after relieving RHP Adam Wainwright in the fifth inning.
In the Diamondbacks’ 9-3 victory over the Rangers, RF Justin Upton blasted his third homer. Texas LF Josh Hamilton, struggling to avoid injuries this spring, hit his first. Thus far, the second coming of RHP Colby Lewis with the Rangers doesn’t seem much better than the first. They re-signed him after he’d had some success pitching in Japan. However, his spring ERA is 9.95.
You know it’s spring training when the Pirates club the Yankees 10-5. And when 1B/SS Bobby Crosby hits two homers and 2B/OF Delwyn Young hits another, giving each three already this spring. It didn’t hurt for the Bucs that RHP Jonathan Abominablesnowman was pitching in the game. He gave up three runs in two-thirds of an inning, giving him 10 earned runs allowed in two innings, a 45.00 ERA.
The Marlins defeated the Mets 5-1, with RHP John Maine giving up all five of the runs in two-thirds of an inning. That’s a 67.50 ERA.
The Diamondbacks defeated the Rockies 8-7 in Hermosillo, Mexico. RHP Leo Rosales made up for some shaky pitching earlier this spring by recording a save. In his one inning, he gave up a solo homer to 1B Brad Eldred.
In the Cubs’ 8-7 victory over the Angels, RHP Thomas Diamond earned a save. He entered the game with the bases loaded and a two-run lead with two out in the eighth inning. Diamond allowed one runner to score, but held LA/Anaheim scoreless in the ninth. Could closer be his future role?
The Athletics’ corner infielders made news in their 10-3 victory over the Royals. 3B Eric Chavez, now playing first base, went 0-for-3 but the news was that he played on back-to-back days for the first time since last year’s back surgery. Meanwhile, new 3B Kevin Kouzmanoff drove in three runs.
Still hitting home runs for the Rays were 2B Sean Rodriguez, his fourth, and OF Justin Ruggiero, his third. Tampa Bay still lost to the Tigers 9-6.
The Giants pounded four home runs – by 1B Aubrey Huff and OFs Fred Lewis, Aaron Rowand and Nate Schierholtz – but still lost to the Brewers 10-8.
The scoring in the Rockies’ 5-4 win over the Mariners all came after the starting pitchers left the game. For Colorado, RHP Ubaldo Jimenez pitched four scoreless innings, giving him a string of seven shutout innings. In RHP Felix Hernandez’s first appearance this spring, he went 2 2/3 innings without allowing a run for Seattle.
In the Dodgers’ 6-4 victory over the Rangers, Matt Kemp hit his second homer this spring and OF Garret Anderson went 1-for-3, a single against LHP Derek Holland, in his first game as LA’s DH since signing a minor league contract.
The rest of the Dodgers won their final exhibition game in China, 11-1 over the CPBL All-Stars. OF prospect Trayvon Robinson hit a two-run homer, and LF Manny Ramirez and 1B James Loney had three hits apiece. The winning pitcher, RHP Josh Towers, had a pitching line of 341102.
Inside the injuries:
While Mets SS Jose Reyes recovers from a thyroid disorder, which is expected to take 2-8 weeks, they will have rookie Ruben Tejada share time with 2B/SS Alex Cora in Reyes’ place. The timetable on CF Carlos Beltran’s return now has been pushed back as far as Memorial Day.
The Angels were set to go with their regular lineup against the Cubs until SS Erick Aybar reported a stiff arm and RF Bobby Abreu tightness in his side. Both sat out the game.
Cubs 3B Aramis Ramirez went out Saturday because of a sore triceps muscle, and isn’t expected to throw for a couple of more days.
The Red Sox scratched RHP Josh Beckett from his start because he was sick. Instead of disrupting other pitchers’ schedules by moving him back to Monday, the Sox said Beckett wouldn’t pitch in a game until his next scheduled start Friday against the Pirates.
The Royals said CF Rick Ankiel, pulled from Friday’s game because of a sore right ankle (ankiel?), could be out a week. In his absence, they will take an extended look at OF Jason Dyson, who stole 46 bases in 80 games last season between low Class A and Double-A ball.
Dodgers SS Rafael Furcal is trying to prove that he’s 100 per cent ready to play this year. He has played in eight of their last nine games. He said that when he played last season he was leery of reinjuring his back.
Sample Scouting Report:
Ubaldo Jimenez, RHP, Rockies
Ht.: 6-4 Wt.: 200 T: R Age: 26* Inj. Risk: 10 Alt. Pos.: SP
{2010} If there is such a thing as a perfect pitcher for Coors Field, Jimenez could be it. He throws a high-90s fastball and mixes in good off-speed pitches, which generates plenty of strikeouts and reduces the number of balls put in play. During the last two seasons, more than 60 per cent of his outs have come on ground balls. Those don’t ever go out of the park the way even a wind-blown fly ball can. Almost any kind of start could be an improvement over last year, when his April ERA was 7.58. Just think how good he could be if he went to a team playing in a pitchers’ park. Born: Jan. 22, 1984, Dominican Republic*. 2009: Rockies, 218 IP, 15 W, 0 S, 3.47 ERA, 1.23 WHIP, 198 SO.
Projection
IP: 208 W: 15 ERA: 3.62 WHIP: 1.29 S: 0 SO: 187 Value: $14
Tuesday, March 16, 2010
Strasburg's debut offers some hope for Nats
The much awaited debut of Nationals RHP Stephen Strasburg went off pretty much without a hitch for him. In two innings, he gave up just two hits and struck out two batters.
An even better performance was by his starting opponent, Tigers RHP Rick Porcello, himself a highly touted prospect not long ago. His pitching line in Detroit’s 9-4 victory was 320001.
That line was the same as that of Red Sox RHP Tim Wakefield, who wasn’t even a prospect 20 years ago. Boston shut out the Marlins 9-0.
Another up-and-coming pitcher having a good day was Rockies RHP Ubaldo Jimenez. His control wasn’t sharp, but his overall line was 310032 in a 12-0 whitewash of the Dodgers.
When will the Mets get some good news? They lost to the Astros 8-4, with Houston scoring three times in the first inning against LHP Johan Santana.
Phillies RHP Roy Halladay showed some power pitching with a line of 330005. Other notes from that game: 1. OF Jayson Werth hit a home run against Braves RHP Kenshin Kawakami. 2. The winning pitcher in Philadelphia’s 7-4 victory was RHP Danys Baez, who pitched a scoreless inning. He hasn’t been a fantasy factor in years, which just makes him all the more attractive as a sleeper. Keep your eye on him. On the other hand, we think Werth will be overvalued in the wake of his 36 homers during a career season when he turned 30.
More home run news: In the Pirates’ 12-7 victory over the Yankees, DH Nick Johnson hit his first two homers this spring for New York and RF Garrett Jones hit his second for the Bucs. 1B Derrek Lee hit his second, but the Cubs still lost to the Brewers 6-3. Kevin Kouzmanoff hit his first for the Athletics in a cursed 8-8, nine-inning tie. Oakland plans to use Kouzmanoff as its regular third baseman, with 3B Eric Chavez moving to first base. That raises two questions: 1. Can Chavez avoid injury enough to play regularly? and 2. What does that mean for 1B Daric Barton? Our thinking is that Barton could be a productive fantasy player if he’s traded to a team in a hitters’ park.
Sample Scouting Report:
Jayson Werth
Ht.: 6-5 Wt.: 225 B: R Age: 30
{2010} Werth had a breakthrough season in 2009, but it’s likely to be his career year. So if fantasy owners value him based on ’09, they almost certainly will be disappointed. For a reason why, look to OF Ryan Ludwick. His breakthrough 2008 season was even better than Werth’s except for the stolen bases; .299, 37 homers, 113 RBI, 104 runs, four steals. And he was nearly eight weeks younger then than Werth was last year. Ludwick’s ’09: .265, 22 HR, 97 RBI, 63 runs, four steals. Still good – and Werth still could be good if he avoids the injuries that have plagued him; last year was the first when he wasn’t on the disabled list – but just not 36 homers, 99 RBI and 20 steals good. You’ll see Werth overrated in most projections, auctions and drafts. Born May 20, 1979. 2009: Phillies, 571 AB, .268 BA, 36 HR, 99 RBI, 20 SB, 98 R.
Projection
AB: 482 BA: .269 HR: 27 RBI: 81 SB: 16 R: 77
An even better performance was by his starting opponent, Tigers RHP Rick Porcello, himself a highly touted prospect not long ago. His pitching line in Detroit’s 9-4 victory was 320001.
That line was the same as that of Red Sox RHP Tim Wakefield, who wasn’t even a prospect 20 years ago. Boston shut out the Marlins 9-0.
Another up-and-coming pitcher having a good day was Rockies RHP Ubaldo Jimenez. His control wasn’t sharp, but his overall line was 310032 in a 12-0 whitewash of the Dodgers.
When will the Mets get some good news? They lost to the Astros 8-4, with Houston scoring three times in the first inning against LHP Johan Santana.
Phillies RHP Roy Halladay showed some power pitching with a line of 330005. Other notes from that game: 1. OF Jayson Werth hit a home run against Braves RHP Kenshin Kawakami. 2. The winning pitcher in Philadelphia’s 7-4 victory was RHP Danys Baez, who pitched a scoreless inning. He hasn’t been a fantasy factor in years, which just makes him all the more attractive as a sleeper. Keep your eye on him. On the other hand, we think Werth will be overvalued in the wake of his 36 homers during a career season when he turned 30.
More home run news: In the Pirates’ 12-7 victory over the Yankees, DH Nick Johnson hit his first two homers this spring for New York and RF Garrett Jones hit his second for the Bucs. 1B Derrek Lee hit his second, but the Cubs still lost to the Brewers 6-3. Kevin Kouzmanoff hit his first for the Athletics in a cursed 8-8, nine-inning tie. Oakland plans to use Kouzmanoff as its regular third baseman, with 3B Eric Chavez moving to first base. That raises two questions: 1. Can Chavez avoid injury enough to play regularly? and 2. What does that mean for 1B Daric Barton? Our thinking is that Barton could be a productive fantasy player if he’s traded to a team in a hitters’ park.
Sample Scouting Report:
Jayson Werth
Ht.: 6-5 Wt.: 225 B: R Age: 30
{2010} Werth had a breakthrough season in 2009, but it’s likely to be his career year. So if fantasy owners value him based on ’09, they almost certainly will be disappointed. For a reason why, look to OF Ryan Ludwick. His breakthrough 2008 season was even better than Werth’s except for the stolen bases; .299, 37 homers, 113 RBI, 104 runs, four steals. And he was nearly eight weeks younger then than Werth was last year. Ludwick’s ’09: .265, 22 HR, 97 RBI, 63 runs, four steals. Still good – and Werth still could be good if he avoids the injuries that have plagued him; last year was the first when he wasn’t on the disabled list – but just not 36 homers, 99 RBI and 20 steals good. You’ll see Werth overrated in most projections, auctions and drafts. Born May 20, 1979. 2009: Phillies, 571 AB, .268 BA, 36 HR, 99 RBI, 20 SB, 98 R.
Projection
AB: 482 BA: .269 HR: 27 RBI: 81 SB: 16 R: 77
Thursday, February 25, 2010
Chapman shines vs. less shiny players
The Reds continue to trumpet rookie LHP Aroldis Chapman’s development and potential. He has been impressive, but keep in mind that he really hasn’t done anything against anybody yet.
He should be good, is likely to be in Cincinnati’s rotation at some point this season; his six-year, $30.25-million contract almost forces the Reds to promote him. But don’t overbid on him thinking he’ll win a Cy Young Award or immediate induction into the Hall of Fame.
Chapman pitched batting practice against “major league” batters for the first time. But keep in mind that those major leaguers were Chris Burke, Chris Heisey, Chris Valaika, Yonder Alonso and Corky Miller. That’s a bunch of middle infielders, a journeyman catcher – and at least a legitimate hitting prospect in 1B Alonso.
On the plus side, after catching Chapman, C Wilkin Castillo said the Cuban defector’s fastball reached 98 or 99 mph and his slider was between 85 and 88. The batters said they were most impressed by Chapman’s slider and a changeup he has been working on since arriving in the Goodyear, Ariz., camp.
Certainly you should watch what the lefty does during March, but until he begins getting out or dominating major league lineups late in the month, don’t go writing his name in ink as a high-round draft pick or high-dollar auction choice.
OOO Another rookie wowing people in camp – and this is batting practice, people – has been Braves OF Jason Heyward. There clearly is room for him in Atlanta’s outfield, but again wait until he sees a steady diet of major league pitchers before jumping in with both feet on Heyward.
OOO Speaking of phenoms, better get your tickets quickly for the Nationals’ March 9 game at Space Ghost Stadium in Viera, Fla. That’s when RHP Steven Strasburg is scheduled to make his first exhibition appearance, pitching two innings or 30-40 pitches. That probably will be the most difficult Washington ticket until Strasburg leads the Nats into the World Series.
Injuries:
Rangers LF Josh Hamilton left his first day of workouts because of a bruised left (throwing) shoulder suffered when he dove for a popup. He’s being considered day-to-day, but keep in mind his growing injury case file. If he couldn’t play for a while, DH Vladimir Guerrero is hoping to play some outfield, but Texas pitchers wouldn’t like it if he has to play a lot in the field. Rookie RHP Omar Poveda will undergo Tommy John surgery and miss this season.
Speaking of injury histories, the word from the Red Sox camp is that RF J.D. Drew should be able to play more this season after undergoing surgery to remove bone spurs from the AC joint in his left shoulder. Betting on more playing time for J.D. is always a risky proposition.
Tigers RHP Joel Zumaya is back throwing fastballs after having a bone shard removed from his shoulder during the off-season.
Mariners LHP Cliff Lee, who underwent surgery to remove bone spurs from a foot, made his first spring appearance. He threw 45 pitches during 10 minutes in the bullpen.
RHP Brandon Lyon, expected to battle RHP Matt Lindstrom to become the Astros’ closer in 2010, is behind in his development after having a cyst drained in his shoulder last week.
2B Nick Punto, who underwent off-season wrist surgery, could share some time at third base with Brendan Harris.
Looking for a Comeback of the Year candidate? How about White Sox OF Carlos Quentin, recovering from plantar fasciitis in his left foot that limited his availability last season. In fact, the Sox as a team seem primed for a comeback.
Lining up:
Angels manager Mike Scioscia is planning to go with a top of the lineup that would go like this: SS Erick Aybar or 3B Maicer Izturis, RF Bobby Abreu, CF Torii Hunter, DH Hideki Matsui, 1B Kendry Morales, LF Juan Rivera and 2B Howie Kendrick. That’s a good lineup even without Guerrero.
The very top of the Tigers’ lineup is likely to have rookie CF Austin Jackson followed by LF Johnny Damon. Manager Jim Leyland said Damon would play in the outfield with Carlos Guillen as DH. What does that say about Guillen’s defensive ability? It’s also possible that Damon could lead off.
The Royals are planning to go with an outfield, left to right of Scott Podsednik, Rick Ankiel and David DeJesus, with DH Jose Guillen also a possibility to play in right field. Sure sounds like a pennant-winning combination, doesn’t it?
For openers:
Manager Ron Gardenhire has named RHP Scott Baker the Twins’ Opening Day starter.
Reporting:
Seven teams’ batters began workouts today. In addition to the Rangers’ possibly ill-fated opening, the Diamondbacks began to swing bats in Arizona, and the Red Sox, Yankees, Rays, Marlins and Astros in Florida.
On the run:
Padres manager Bud Black said he wanted his team to be more aggressive on the bases and to try stealing more bases. That should mean slightly greater fantasy value for SS Everth Cabrera, but only slightly because virtually all of his value comes from steals.
Raining:
The rain that curtailed some activity in the Arizona camps has made its way to Florida. The back fields in Lakeland, Fla., were so soaked that the Tigers moved their batting practice in to Joker Marchant Stadium.
Growing:
Dodgers C Russell Martin has gained 25 pounds. Reports say that it’s not flab; Martin is in better shape. Let’s hope it’s not Mickey Tettleton muscle that he has gained.
HGH in the news:
First came the word that baseball will begin testing minor leaguers for the use of human growth hormone. My reaction was that until there’s HGH testing in the majors, the move in the minors means little except that scouts and teams now can more properly evaluate prospects on their own merits without the influence of outside performance-enhancing influences.
Then came a statement from the MLB Players’ Association saying that it was open to HGH testing for its members. That bold statement was watered down because the union also said accepting such testing would happen “if the blood test is scientifically validated.” That leaves wiggle room, but at least it’s a step in the right direction.
Today’s gossip:
Joining Yankees 3B Alex Rodriguez in the tabloids is Dodgers CF Matt Kemp. His celebrity relationship is with singer Rihanna. As usual, Dodgers manager Joe Torre took the baseball media attention on Kemp’s outside life in stride. He pointed out that when he managed the Yankees when SS Derek Jeter’s name started popping up on Page Six (cough, Minka Kelly), spoke with Jeter and was satisfied because the current captain “assured me his priorities were in order, and they were.”
He should be good, is likely to be in Cincinnati’s rotation at some point this season; his six-year, $30.25-million contract almost forces the Reds to promote him. But don’t overbid on him thinking he’ll win a Cy Young Award or immediate induction into the Hall of Fame.
Chapman pitched batting practice against “major league” batters for the first time. But keep in mind that those major leaguers were Chris Burke, Chris Heisey, Chris Valaika, Yonder Alonso and Corky Miller. That’s a bunch of middle infielders, a journeyman catcher – and at least a legitimate hitting prospect in 1B Alonso.
On the plus side, after catching Chapman, C Wilkin Castillo said the Cuban defector’s fastball reached 98 or 99 mph and his slider was between 85 and 88. The batters said they were most impressed by Chapman’s slider and a changeup he has been working on since arriving in the Goodyear, Ariz., camp.
Certainly you should watch what the lefty does during March, but until he begins getting out or dominating major league lineups late in the month, don’t go writing his name in ink as a high-round draft pick or high-dollar auction choice.
OOO Another rookie wowing people in camp – and this is batting practice, people – has been Braves OF Jason Heyward. There clearly is room for him in Atlanta’s outfield, but again wait until he sees a steady diet of major league pitchers before jumping in with both feet on Heyward.
OOO Speaking of phenoms, better get your tickets quickly for the Nationals’ March 9 game at Space Ghost Stadium in Viera, Fla. That’s when RHP Steven Strasburg is scheduled to make his first exhibition appearance, pitching two innings or 30-40 pitches. That probably will be the most difficult Washington ticket until Strasburg leads the Nats into the World Series.
Injuries:
Rangers LF Josh Hamilton left his first day of workouts because of a bruised left (throwing) shoulder suffered when he dove for a popup. He’s being considered day-to-day, but keep in mind his growing injury case file. If he couldn’t play for a while, DH Vladimir Guerrero is hoping to play some outfield, but Texas pitchers wouldn’t like it if he has to play a lot in the field. Rookie RHP Omar Poveda will undergo Tommy John surgery and miss this season.
Speaking of injury histories, the word from the Red Sox camp is that RF J.D. Drew should be able to play more this season after undergoing surgery to remove bone spurs from the AC joint in his left shoulder. Betting on more playing time for J.D. is always a risky proposition.
Tigers RHP Joel Zumaya is back throwing fastballs after having a bone shard removed from his shoulder during the off-season.
Mariners LHP Cliff Lee, who underwent surgery to remove bone spurs from a foot, made his first spring appearance. He threw 45 pitches during 10 minutes in the bullpen.
RHP Brandon Lyon, expected to battle RHP Matt Lindstrom to become the Astros’ closer in 2010, is behind in his development after having a cyst drained in his shoulder last week.
2B Nick Punto, who underwent off-season wrist surgery, could share some time at third base with Brendan Harris.
Looking for a Comeback of the Year candidate? How about White Sox OF Carlos Quentin, recovering from plantar fasciitis in his left foot that limited his availability last season. In fact, the Sox as a team seem primed for a comeback.
Lining up:
Angels manager Mike Scioscia is planning to go with a top of the lineup that would go like this: SS Erick Aybar or 3B Maicer Izturis, RF Bobby Abreu, CF Torii Hunter, DH Hideki Matsui, 1B Kendry Morales, LF Juan Rivera and 2B Howie Kendrick. That’s a good lineup even without Guerrero.
The very top of the Tigers’ lineup is likely to have rookie CF Austin Jackson followed by LF Johnny Damon. Manager Jim Leyland said Damon would play in the outfield with Carlos Guillen as DH. What does that say about Guillen’s defensive ability? It’s also possible that Damon could lead off.
The Royals are planning to go with an outfield, left to right of Scott Podsednik, Rick Ankiel and David DeJesus, with DH Jose Guillen also a possibility to play in right field. Sure sounds like a pennant-winning combination, doesn’t it?
For openers:
Manager Ron Gardenhire has named RHP Scott Baker the Twins’ Opening Day starter.
Reporting:
Seven teams’ batters began workouts today. In addition to the Rangers’ possibly ill-fated opening, the Diamondbacks began to swing bats in Arizona, and the Red Sox, Yankees, Rays, Marlins and Astros in Florida.
On the run:
Padres manager Bud Black said he wanted his team to be more aggressive on the bases and to try stealing more bases. That should mean slightly greater fantasy value for SS Everth Cabrera, but only slightly because virtually all of his value comes from steals.
Raining:
The rain that curtailed some activity in the Arizona camps has made its way to Florida. The back fields in Lakeland, Fla., were so soaked that the Tigers moved their batting practice in to Joker Marchant Stadium.
Growing:
Dodgers C Russell Martin has gained 25 pounds. Reports say that it’s not flab; Martin is in better shape. Let’s hope it’s not Mickey Tettleton muscle that he has gained.
HGH in the news:
First came the word that baseball will begin testing minor leaguers for the use of human growth hormone. My reaction was that until there’s HGH testing in the majors, the move in the minors means little except that scouts and teams now can more properly evaluate prospects on their own merits without the influence of outside performance-enhancing influences.
Then came a statement from the MLB Players’ Association saying that it was open to HGH testing for its members. That bold statement was watered down because the union also said accepting such testing would happen “if the blood test is scientifically validated.” That leaves wiggle room, but at least it’s a step in the right direction.
Today’s gossip:
Joining Yankees 3B Alex Rodriguez in the tabloids is Dodgers CF Matt Kemp. His celebrity relationship is with singer Rihanna. As usual, Dodgers manager Joe Torre took the baseball media attention on Kemp’s outside life in stride. He pointed out that when he managed the Yankees when SS Derek Jeter’s name started popping up on Page Six (cough, Minka Kelly), spoke with Jeter and was satisfied because the current captain “assured me his priorities were in order, and they were.”
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