Jorge Posada returned to the line-up. Matt Wieters made his long anticipated debut. Nate McLouth continued to struggle. Let’s look at this stories and all the rest from yesterday’s games.
Texas 6, Oakland 3 (Game 1)
- Jason Giambi went 0-3 with 1 R, leaving him 1-13 over his last four games. Considering he only has 5 HR this season does anyone really view him as usable at this point? If you do, you really shouldn’t. (He did go 1-3 in Game 2, but with no run production.)
- Nelson Cruz went 2-4 with 1 HR, 3 RBI and 1 R. Over his past 9 games he’s gone 14-32 with 6 HR, 13 RBI and 7 R. That is simply a torrid week plus for Cruz who is currently living up to his preseason hype many had given him. I’d say he’s worth using in all formats, but at this point that should go without saying.
Texas 5, Oakland 2 (Game 2)
- Since his two home run day, Chris Davis has gone 0-10 with 9 Ks. Are you kidding me? His average is at .194 and he has shown no signs of being able to get a better feel of the strike zone. He has power, for sure, but at this point has to be placed into the class of a Jack Cust-like slugger. If he has value in your league, then by all means. Either way, I wouldn’t drop him, but move him to your bench and wait to see if he can get his problems corrected.
- Matt Holliday went 0-1 with 3 BBs and 1 SB. He has just 1 RBI since 5/22 and 5 RBI since 5/13. That is far from the type of run production the A’s (or fantasy owners) were hoping to get.
New York (AL) 3, Cleveland 1
- Jorge Posada returned to the Yankees line-up, going 2-3. He was catching on this day, but owners need to pay close attention to if he is consistently used as a catcher or sharing time at DH as well. Posada owners won’t care, but Matsui owners clearly will. He could lose playing time, significantly limiting his value in all formats.
- Jhonny Peralta was the clean-up hitter, going 0-3 with 1 BB. While he’s been getting a few hits lately, he hasn’t had a multi-hit game since 5/20. He hasn’t homered since 5/1 (his only long ball of the season). He hasn’t had an RBI since 5/21. Exactly where is his value coming from? Do not give up hope, however. He’s a streaky power hitter and could get things going at any time. Considering how long you’ve endured the problems, do you really want to miss his three straight games with a home run that could come at any given moment? Maybe I’m being a bit too optomistic, but I’d give him a few more days to see what happens.
Baltimore 7, Detroit 2
- Matt Wieters major league debut did not go according to plan, going 0-4 with 1 K. Obviously, it’s just one game.
- Can you believe the streak Luke Scott is on since returning from the DL? He went 3-3 with 2 HR, 5 RBI and 2 R yesterday. In the three games since his return he has gone 7-11 with 5 HR, 12 RBI and 6 R. That’s an unbelievable month for some players. With the way he’s swinging the bat, how could you not use him at least in the short-term? Obviously he’s not going to continue like this (no one can), but take advantage while you can.
- Was it just a two game reprieve for Dontrelle Willis? He went 5 innings giving up 7 runs on 10 hits and 2 walks, striking out 1. That certainly puts a damper on all the positives that have been thrown his return recently. With his next match-up coming against the Red Sox, I wouldn’t touch him.
Toronto 6, Boston 3
- David Ortiz, still hitting sixth, went 0-4 and has his average back down to .189. Is anyone still holding out hope? I had an opportunity to trade for him in my keeper league, but at this point I just am too worried about over paying for him. Unless I can get him at a significant discount, I wouldn’t even bother.
- Vernon Wells extended his hitting streak to five games after going 1-3 with 2 R and 1 SB. Over the streak he’s gone 8-20 with 0 HR, 2 RBI, 5 R and 3 SB. Granted, you’d like to see a bit more run production while he’s hot, but it’s nice to see him getting his average back up to where we’d expect to see it.
Tampa Bay 5, Minnesota 3
- Joe Mauer (3-5, 1 R) and Justin Morneau (2-4, 1 RBI, 1 R), just continue to rake. The way they are producing right now is simply amazing, isn’t it?
- Scott Baker gave up 4 runs on 7 hits and 0 walks, striking out 4, over 5.2 innings. He simply has not been able to put things together for anything past one or two starts thus far, significantly irritating owners everywhere. He’s now given up 4+ runs in six of his last eight starts, helping to explain his 6.32 ERA. Yeah, the WHIP hasn’t been bad, but how much solice do we really take from that? At this point, depending on my other options, he seems better suited for your bench.
- Evan Longoria went 3-4 with 1 HR, 3 RBI and 1 R, putting him at 54 RBI on the season. Just what we’ve come to expect from him at this point.
Chicago (AL) 11, Kansas City 2
- Clayton Richard gave up 2 runs on 6 hits and 1 walk, striking out 7, over 7 innings and has been great in his three starts since being put into the rotation. He’s allowed just 3 earned runs over 20 innings, to go along with 18 K. At this point he is clearly a pitcher worth using in deeper formats, at the least in a pitch-and-ditch strategy, especially next week with a start against the A’s on the schedule.
- Billy Butler went 2-4 with 1 HR, 2 RBI and 1 R. That’s his first HR since 5/13 and only his second in May. Until he proves he can hit for more power he’s only going to be usable in deeper formats.
- Brian Bannister gave up 7 runs (6 earned) on 9 hits and 1 walk, striking out 4, over 5 innings of work. I know he had been pitching well, but I have never been a big fan of his and performances like this is the reason why. I wouldn’t touch him in any format.
Seattle 5, Los Angeles (AL) 2
- Adrian Beltre went 2-5 with 1 RBI. He’s shown some signs of heating up recently, though not consistently. As a Beltre owner, I know I’m hoping he can finally put things together.
- Ken Griffey Jr. went 0-3, falling to 0-13 in his last four games. He’s hitting .213 with 5 HR, 13 RBI and 14 R. His return to Seattle was a nice story heading into the season, but he clearly has little fantasy value at this point outside of the deepest of formats.
- It was a struggle for John Lackey, giving up 5 runs on 10 hits and 2 walks, striking out 2, over 7.1 innings. He has been nothing special since returning from the DL, with a 6.05 ERA and 1.40 WHIP. Stay patient. He’s proven to be too good of a pitcher the past few seasons to simply write him off for a slow start. That really should go without saying for a pitcher of his quality, though.
Chicago (NL) 2, Los Angeles (NL) 1
- Matt Kemp was in the seventh slot, going 1-3 with 1 HR, 1 RBI and 1 R. I feel like a broken record talking about his spot in the batting order, so seriously, I’m done. I’m never going to understand.
- Tough loss for Chad Billingsley, who gave up 2 runs on 8 hits and 2 walks, striking out 7, over 7 innings of work. It was a nice rebound after giving up 4 earned runs over 6 innings in his last start against the Angels. His next start is an intriguing match-up against Cole Hamels and the Philadelphia Phillies. Luckily he is at home for that one.
- Ted Lilly gave up 1 run on 4 hits and 3 walks, striking out 5, over 7 innings to improve to 6-4 on the season with a 3.50 ERA. He’s certainly an option that has flown a bit under the radar, but one worth using in all formats.
Houston 6, Pittsburgh 4
- Is Edwin Maysonet, who went 4-4 with 1 HR, 4 RBI and 2 R a player worth grabbing? Consider the face that over 81 AB at Triple-A prior to being recalled he had 0 HR, 5 RBI, 12 R and 1 SB before answering that question. It was a great night for him, but I wouldn’t touch him.
- Nate McLouth is in a terrible slump. He went 0-4, leaving him in a 1-25 rut seeing his average drop from .290 all the way to .250. This is the type of player that you should not panic with in the slightest. Yeah, he’s going bad now, but you clearly do not want to miss out on the rebound that could come at any time. Just sit tight.
Philadelphia 5, Washington 4
- After having his 9-game hitting streak stopped on Wednesday, Shane Victorino wasted no time in getting another streak going. He went 4-5 with 1 R, getting his average up to .293.
- J.A. Happ got the start, giving up 3 runs on 3 hits and 3 walks, striking out 5, over 5.1 innings. That isn’t the most impressive line, but it was enough to get the win on this day. He has some upside, though he is far from a must use option in any format, though his next start in San Diego is at least intriguing.
New York (NL) 2, Florida 1 (11 innings)
- The legend of Omir Santos continues to grow. He went 2-5 with 1 HR and 2 RBI, getting his average to .276 with 3 HR and 17 RBI. With the way he’s playing there is no way the Mets are going to ship him out once Brian Schneider returns (any day at this point). If he is going to play like this, he’s amazingly going to have value in 2-catcher formats. If you are in need of a fill-in, what are you waiting for at this point?
- Mike Pelfrey went 7.2 innings giving up 1 run on 5 hits and 1 walk, striking out 6. Pelfrey continues to impress, having given up 3 earned runs or less in each of his last seven starts. With 12 Ks over his last two starts he’s at least starting to chip in there as well, making him that much more attractive. I’d use him in all formats at this point.
- It was Sean West’s second career start and he was impressive, giving up 1 run on 4 hits and 1 walk, striking out 2, over 7 innings. He clearly is worth monitoring at this point and you may even want to stash him away, just in case, in deeper formats.
Milwaukee 3, Cincinnati 2
- Brandon Phillips did not start, but he entered as a pinch hitter, going 0-1. We’ll see if he can actually get into the line-up and play a full game, but for now he should not be in your starting line-up.
- Corey Hart had a huge Spring Training, but it just had not completely carried over to the season. He had hit just 1 HR since 4/13, but had a big shot in this one, going 1-3 with 1 HR, 1 RBI and 1 R. Hopefully this gets him back on track, as besides the power outage he is now hitting just .244 on the season.
- Trevor Hoffman gave up 1 hit with 1 strikeout in an inning, picking up his 12th save and maintaining his 0.00 ERA. I know I was still high on him heading into the season, but this is getting rediculous.
Colorado 3, San Diego 0
- This is the problem with the Padres, despite their recent hot streak. Adrian Gonzalez went 0-1 with 3 walks. Why is that a problem? No one is going to let him beat them considering the protection is Kevin Kouzmanoff (who went 0-4 and is now hitting .229 on the year). Games like this have got to frustrate Gonzalez owners to no end, huh?
- What is going on with Garrett Atkins? While his 0-3 day did break a five-game hitting streak, he had just been 5-20 during the stretch, for from encouraging. Before we panic, realize that he is currently sporting a BABIP of .206. He could be a great buy low candidate at this point if someone in your league is willing to sell low given his extended cold spell.
Atlanta 10, Arizona 6
- You didn’t expect Jair Jurrjens to go the entire season without a sub par start, did you? He allowed 5 runs on 8 hits and 1 walk, striking out 5, over 5 innings but did improve to 5-2 and raise his ERA all the way to 2.59. It was bound to happen so don’t worry about it in the least.
- Jon Garland has proven way too inconsistent this season to trust. He lasted 2.2 innings giving up 9 runs (8 earned) on 9 hits and 3 walks, striking out 1. It was just three starts prior that he had allowed 7 earned runs on 10 hits and 1 walk over 3.2 innings. These types of blow-ups are way too close together and with his next start coming against the Dodgers I wouldn’t even consider him.
San Francisco 4, St. Louis 2
- Ryan Ludwick returned from the DL, hitting clean-up and going 0-3 with 1 R. Given what has happened with Rick Ankiel, make sure he’s healthy and then be sure to slip him back into your fantasy line-up.
- Emmanuel Burriss went 2-4 with 1 RBI giving him a 6-game hitting streak. Over that stretch he’s gone 10-20 with 3 RBI, 4 R and 1 SB. Hitting eighth, it’s tough to take advantage of that type of stretch. Hopefully it earns him another shot at the top of the line-up soon.
Anyone have any thoughts? Anything to add?
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