As the Orioles and Yankees move back into a tie atop the AL East (with the team that falls short not guaranteed an AL Wild Card), the final two and a half weeks of baseball are certainly going to be exciting. With many fantasy leagues also up for grabs, let’s take a look at all the stories from yesterday’s games:
- Making just his fifth start for the Mariners Erasmo Ramirez defeated the Blue Jays as he allowed 2 ER on 6 H and 1 BB, striking out 6, over 7.0 innings of work. It’s a nice line, but as a pitcher who struck out 417 batters over 532.2 innings in the minors, it may be a little deceiving. He’s not going to generate many strikeouts and, with a less than stellar offense behind him, he offers little to fantasy owners.
- Kyle Seager continued to impress, going 3-5 with 1 HR, 2 RBI and 2 R (the home run came off Brandon Morrow, who allowed 4 ER over just 4.2 innings). Seager has now homered in back-to-back games and has 18 HR and 81 RBI on the season. Who would’ve predicted that entering the year?
- Interesting that, with Aroldis Chapman unavailable, it was Jonathan Broxton and not Sean Marshall who picked up the save. Broxton allowed 0 ER on 1 H and 0 BB, striking out 1, in his inning of work. Those who are desperate for saves should take note and pounce.
- J.J. Hardy exploded for the Orioles, going 4-5 with 2 HR, 5 RBI and 3 R against Matt Moore (4.0 IP, 2 ER, 4 H, 3 BB, 4 K) and the Rays. That gives him 3 HR in his past 3 games and 10 RBI in his past 8 games. Without Nick Markakis the Orioles need someone to step up and Hardy certainly has the potential to do so.
- Yes, Jimmy Rollins is hitting .247 this season but anyone who thinks he is washed up had better think again. He went 2-3 with 1 HR, 3 RBI, 3 R and 1 SB yesterday to give him 18 HR, 58 RBI, 84 R and 26 SB on the season. Yes, the average isn’t there but it is hard to argue with the other numbers. He may not be the player that he once was, but he still is a good option at SS in all formats. If he were hitting .265 (a realistic number), no one would even bat an eye.
- Jon Lester certainly didn’t have a “good” game against the Yankees, allowing 3 ER on 5 H and 7 BB, striking out 5, over 5.1 innings of work. The good news? The walks are an aberration, there is no arguing that. The bad? Even while he has been pitching better, in his past four starts he has allowed 14 ER over 26.1 innings. In other words, he remains tough to trust, though a usable option. He’s going to enter 2013 as a solid bounce back candidate, however.
- Does anyone really believe Frank Francisco is going to be closing for the Mets in 2013? He has shown some good this year, but last night’s performance just highlights his year overall. 3 ER on 3 H and 1 BB without recording an out… Sure, as long as there are save chances he is going to have value (though the Mets haven’t been giving him many), but there’s a risk every time he takes the mound. It were the first runs he had allowed since August 22, however, so owners can continue to use him for the remainder of 2012. Just try to cover your eyes when he takes the mound.
- If the Cubs and Astros play, does anyone really notice? The teams combined for 1 R and 10 H, but neither Justin Germano nor Jordan Lyles did enough to make you think they will hold value down the stretch. The most notable player was probably Wilton Lopez, who earned his fourth save. Of course, he also allowed 2 H for the third straight start, so it’s not like he’s been lights out.
- Marco Estrada allowed 0 ER on 4 H and 1 BB, striking out 6, over 6.2 innings as he has been extremely impressive over his past five starts. Over that span he has thrown 29.2 innings, striking out 38 batters. Overall he has a 3.77 ERA and 1.16 WHIP, based on believable luck metrics (.301 BABIP, 72.9% strand rate). Yes, his control isn’t this good (1.89 BB/9), but that’s hardly enough to shy away from him. The only issue is how many starts he will get, or if he’ll even get another start, so make sure to monitor the news before depending on him the rest of the way.
- The White Sox used Francisco Liriano out of the bullpen yesterday, allowing 2 ER on 2 H without recording an out. If you still have him in your starting lineup, for whatever reason, get him out of there.
- Dewayne Wise went 1-4 with 1 HR, 1 RBI and 1 R while hitting third for the White Sox. Yes, he has 8 HR in 166 AB this season (and a pair in his past five games), but that is not really his game (103 HR in 3,979 minor league AB). If you are looking for HR, he’s not the name to lean on.
- Eric Hosmer went 3-5 with 1 HR, 1 RBI and 3 R last night. Is it enough to excite fantasy owners? Of course not, but we have to hope that he can finish strong and give us hope that this purely was a sophomore slump. In the second half he has hit .264 with 5 HR in 182 AB, so at least he has improved.
- Brandon Belt went 2-4 with 1 HR, 4 RBI and 1 R yesterday. Over his past nine games he has hit .355 with 2 HR and 12 RBI. Finally, right? He did hit .345 in August, but failed to hit a home run as well. If he can continue to hit the ball out of the ballpark, he could finally realize his potential. Obviously, we aren’t about to declare him as having “arrived” based off of nine games, but he’s a player to watch (and use) over the final few weeks of the year for those in deeper formats.
- Dan Straily returned to the A’s rotation, beating the Angels by allowing 3 ER on 7 H and 1 BB, striking out 8, over 6.2 innings of work. We all know his story by now, with 190 K over 152.0 innings in the minor leagues this season. He should remain in the rotation the rest of the way (barring being shut down due to the number of innings) and should be considered a good play in all formats.
- Interesting that when Grant Balfour struggled (2 ER on 2 H and 2 BB without recording an out) it was Jerry Blevins who stepped in and got the save. If you are desperate for saves, Blevins becomes worth scooping up immediately.
- Logan Forsythe went 1-4 with 2 RBI and 1 R yesterday. He’s been hot of late, hitting .385 with 1 HR, 9 RBI, 9 R and 2 SB over his past 10 games. He’s getting regular playing time and obviously is worth riding while he’s hot.
