Rotoprofessor

As is the tradition for Wednesday’s, today is going to be a Quick Hit style column here (and I’m actually going to try to make it that way for a change!)

• Jhonny Peralta started the game on the bench, though he did enter as a pinch hitter and went 1-2 with 1 RBI.  Still, it has got to be concerning as he appears to be losing AB at this point.  I still wouldn’t give up on him, but you really need to have another option in place, just in case.  He’s the type of player that is going to get hot in a hurry, but he needs the opportunity to get there.
• Brandon Morrow tossed 2.1 shutout innings giving up 2 hits and 0 walks, striking out 1.  That’s certainly an encouraging performance, but it is just one step towards where he needs to be.  It’s going to take a while for him to rebuild any potential fantasy value.
• Nolan Reimold went 2-3 with 1 HR, 2 RBI and 1 R putting him at .295 with 7 HR and 16 RBI in just 78 AB.  He now has a modest 3-game hitting streak going 4-9 with 2 HR, 5 RBI and 2 R.  I’d say he’s proven usable in five outfielder formats and is usable as a short-term fill-in for shallower formats as well.
• It was another long ball for Ben Zobrist, who went 2-4 with 1 HR, 2 RBI and 1 R.  He now has home runs in four of his last seven games and with that positional flexibility should be owned in all formats.
• Jered Weaver improved to 6-2 with a 2.31 ERA after giving up 2 runs on 5 hits and 4 walks, striking out 6.  The WHIP wasn’t great, but he entered with a WHIP of 1.00 so sooner or later he was bound to struggle a little bit.  Don’t lose any sleep over it.
• Don’t call it a comeback!  David Ortiz went 1-4 with 1 HR, 2 RBI and 1 R, giving him a 7-game hitting streak and home runs in two of his last three games.  Of course, six of those games were one-hit affairs, so it is not like he is tearing the cover off the ball.  Still, if you’ve been looking for something to point towards for hope, you have your ray of hope now.
• Josh Beckett tossed six shutout innings giving up 1 hit and 2 walks, striking out 8, to improve to 7-2 with a 3.77 ERA.  He’s allowed just one earned run over his last four starts (28.2 innings) while striking out 30. 
• There just appears to be no slowing down Aaron Hill (1-5, 1 HR, 2 RBI, 1 R) and Adam Lind (2-5, 1 HR, 2 RBI, 1 R).  Weren’t the big bats supposed to be Alex Rios (.261) and Vernon Wells (.254)?  If those two guys ever really get going, this could be one of the scariest offenses in the league.  Have faith that they will, so just hang in there.
• Chris Davis went 1-2 with 1 K.  That marks eight straight games where he has struck out at least once.  Seriously, I am boycotting talking about him until he goes a game without whiffing.  OK, one more comment.  He now hasn’t homered since 5/26 and has just 2 HR since 5/15.  If he’s not hitting for power, he has zero value. 
• Fernando Rodney was terrible, walking 3 batters without recording an out.  All three ended up scoring, but no damage was done as the team won it in the 10th.  Still, watch this.  With the way Brandon Lyon came in and threw, who knows if this job could become a competition again.
• It appears that Scott Baker has finally put things back together.  He went 8 innings giving up 3 runs on 4 hits and 1 walk, striking out 8.  He’s given up 5 ER over 15 innings, striking out 18, over his last two starts, both wins.  We’ve all been waiting for him to finally put together back-to-back starts like this.  His next match-up with the Cubs is a tough one, but at this point I’d consider him usable once again, depending on your other options.
• Brett Anderson struggled again, giving up 5 runs on 10 hits and 1 walk, striking out 5, over 5.2 innings.  He’s now 3-6 with a 5.25 ERA.  How long do you think he really has left in the rotation?  To me, it appears like his time is running out.
• Johnny Cueto just continues to roll.  He improved to 6-3 with a 2.33 ERA after giving up 1 run on 4 hits and 4 walks, striking out 5.  His only “downfall” is that he has not been the electric strikeout artist we all had hoped for, with 58 K in 81 IP.  Still, with the way he’s tossing, who really cares?
• When did Citi Field become a band box?  Was this game actually played at Yankee Stadium?  There were seven home runs hit in this game.  Amazing.
• Maybe all it takes for Jimmy Rollins to fully get going is a few games against the Mets.  He went 3-4 with 1 HR, 2 RBI and 1 R in this one.  He’s shown signs in the past, so let’s see him do this for a few more games before we all get too excited.
• We spoke about David Wright the other day, so right on cue he hits a home run.  He went 2-4 with 1 HR, 1 RBI and 1 R, snapping a terrible homerless streak and hopefully getting him back on track.
• Rick Ankiel went 2-3 with 2 RBI.  He’s playing almost everyday right now, so hopefully this is the sign of things to come.  While he shouldn’t be in your line-up currently, he has the potential to get there quickly with his power potential.  Keep on watching him and wait.
• How long with the Marlins really leave Chris Coghlan in the line-up?  He went 1-4 with 1 R, but is hitting just .226 overall.  He shouldn’t be active right now anyways, but be prepared for a potential demotion as well.
• Nate McLouth is continuing to hit leadoff for the Braves, going 1-3 with 1 R.  This begs the question if the Braves will now still need to add another bat to hit in the middle of their line-up?  Garrett Anderson (1-4), surely hasn’t done the job hitting .254 with 2 HR and 16 RBI in 130 AB.
• Once again it was Ian Stewart at 3B with Garrett Atkins on the bench.  Stewart hit fifth and went 1-4, striking out twice.  Let’s see how long this experiment continues, but right now it is clear that Atkins hold of his job is severely slipping and he should be on your bench until he retakes everyday AB.
• Mat Gamel is playing more than most expected him to, though he isn’t hitting much.  He did go 1-3 with 1 HR, 1 RBI and 1 R yesterday and if his bat gets going could stick after Interleague Play has come and gone.  For now he’s really an NL-only and keeper league option, but keep your eye on him and see what happens.
• Geovany Soto went 3-5 with 1 RBI!  OK, with the way he’s played it really doesn’t take much to get people excited, but he is 4-13 with 1 HR, 2 RBI and 1 R over his last three games.  We all have to start somewhere and he has a very long climb back to respectability.
• Matt Cain struggled, but still managed to improve to 8-1 thanks to the Giants offense bailing him out.  He allowed 4 runs on 6 hits and 5 walks, striking out 6, over 6.1 innings.  Is this the sign of things to come?  He’s not going to get many wins with performances like this one pitching for the Giants, so as I’ve said before, with a regression likely coming, now may be the best time to sell him.
• Pablo Sandoval went 4-5 with 1 HR, 3 RBI and 1 R.  He has a 3-game hitting streak and is 10-19 with 2 HR, 5 RBI and 3 R over his last six games.  He’s certainly lookng like a solid play right now in deeper formats, though he still would have significantly more value if he were to gain catching eligibility.
• It was a big night for Andre Ethier, who went 3-4 with 2 HR, 2 RBI and 2 R.  He finally appears to be hitting again after struggling for a while in the absence of Manny Ramirez.
• Matt Kemp was hitting eighth, going 3-3 with 1 HR, 2 RBI and 1 R.  I’m never going to understand what the Dodgers are doing with their line-up, am I?

Anyone have any thoughts?  Anything to add?

To read the previous article, click here.

Picture courtesy of Icon Sports Media, Inc.