April 19th Waiver Wire Alert

Here are two player's that could help you greatly in 10 team leagues or larger.

Jed Lowrie-  Lowrie came into the season as the Red Sox primary utility man, but after this weekend of playing shortstop over Marco Scutaro I don't see the Red Sox sitting him on the bench much longer.  In three starts this weekend Lowrie went 8 for 14 with 2 home runs and 7 rbi's.  Since the 2010 all star break there are only 5 players with a OPS above Lowrie: Paul Konerko, Miguel Cabrera, Jim Thome, Josh Hamilton, and Jose Bautista.   Pick him up and plug him in the middle infield.

Jerry Sands- The Dodgers called up the 6'4 slugger and will get him at bats between left field and 1st base.  It is looking like he will get at bats versus right handers in left field, and move over the 1st base when the Dodgers face a tough left hander.  Sands is probably off a lot of owners radar, so if you want to see if he produces before you pick him up, go ahead.

April 12th Injury Update

A big blow to fantasy teams and the Texas Rangers, Josh Hamilton will miss 6 to 8 with a broken arm.

Week One Recap

Here's a list of hot and cold player's and things you knew to know after week 1.

 

Hot

Pitchers

Matt Harrison- Harrison picked up 2 wins this week, only allowing 2 runs in 14 innings versus the Orioles and Red Sox.

Zach Britton-  I have been most impressed with Britton than any other player opening week.  

Dan Haren- Haren came in to pitch the 14th inning last night,  and picked up the win.  It was an added bonus for an already fantastic week.

Edwin Jackson- Jackson was dominate this week, picking up two wins and striking out 20 batters in only 14 innings.

Jaime Garcia- Garcia has only allowed 1 run in 15 innings this year while striking out 18 batters.  He's done a good job avoiding a sophomore slump early.

Trevor Cahill-  I loved the Oakland pitching staff coming into the season, and Cahill has impressed with a 1.42 ERA and 15 strikeouts in 12.2 innings.

Chris Narveson- Narveson was the last pitcher to make it in the rotation, and he now has 13 scoreless innings to begin the season.  He is definitely worth the pickup to stash.

Gio Gonzalez-  Gonzalez hasn't been overly sharp in the two starts I've watched him, but his stuff is so good, and his composure never lets him down.  He has a 2-0 record with a .69 ERA over 13 innings this year.

Jordan Walden-  The Angels pulled Fernando Rodney from the closer role and inserted the youngster.  He throws in the high 90's and has looked impressive early this season.

Jonathan Broxton-  The Dodgers are better this year, and Broxton has benefitted from it, saving 5 games in the first fantasy week.  

Joel Hanrahan-When the Pirates win games, they win them close.  Hanrahan has 4 saves this season and has only allowed one run.

Craig Kimbrel-  Kimbrel started the season in a closer by committee, but has dominated enough to now be called the closer.  In 3 save opportunities, he has six strikeouts and hasn't allowed a run or hit.

Catcher

Russell Martin- I was way off on this one, but Martin looks healthy, and now has three home runs on the early season.  

Mike Napoli-  When Napoli has been in the lineup, he's produced.  He has three home runs and is batting .429 with 5 walks.  

First Base

Joey Votto-  Votto has picked up where he left off last season.  He is batting .393 with 2 homers in the first week.

Mark Teixeira-  You could think it's crazy to call a player with a .200 average hot, but Teix has 4 homers and 10 rbi's already this season.

2nd Base

Howie Kendrick- A lot of people were nervous when they missed on a top second basemen, but Kendrick has made them feel better this week.  He's batting .412 with 4 homers. 

Gordon Beckham- Beckham has hit .343 this year with a homer and a stolen base.  The white sox have put a good lineup together, and Beckham should continue to shine.

Shortstop

Starlin Castro- The youngster is batting .353 with 2 doubles and 2 triples on the season.  He looks more comfortable at the plate and should be a solid option.

Asdrubal Cabrera- If Cabrera stayed healthy I really liked him this season and he is showing off some power early.  He has two homers with 7 rbi's batting in the middle of the Indians order.

Third Base

Alberto Callaspo- Like Kendrick he is having a great start batting .370 with 2 home runs and is an okay corner infielder in deep leagues.  

Mark Reynolds- Reynolds hit his first home run of the season and he has 8 rbi's in 8 games.  He has kept the strikeouts in check with only 1 a game.

Outfield

Nelson Cruz- Cruz leads the MLB with 5 home runs, and he should push 40 before the season is over.

Matt Kemp- Kemp seems a lot more focused this season, and he is batting .429 with 1 home run and 5 stolen bases on the season.  The Dodgers will emphasize running this season 

Jose Tabata-  Tabata has been great for the Pirates batting .343 with 2 homers and 4 stolen bases.

Alex Gordon- The former top prospect has been carrying the Royals offense after a good spring.  He's batting .378 with 5 doubles.

Not

Pitchers

John Axford-  Axford had a very forgettable opening day blowing a 3 run lead to the Reds.

Tommy Hanson-  The Braves don't like to scoring runs for Hanson and he hasn't been pitching well.  He is 0-2 and only has 3 k's in 9 innings. 

Clay Buchholz- People scoffed at me when I had Buchholz with a 3.5 ERA this season but he has struggled with his control, and leaving the ball down the middle.  He has given up 5 home runs compared to 9 all of last season.

Ubaldo Jimenez-  Jimenez has been put on the DL with a  thumb problem, and hopefully for owners it won't linger for the righty.

Francisco Liriano- Liriano has started 0 and 2 this season and has walked 8 batters in only 9.1 innings.

Phil Hughes- He has struggled with his velocity and it is the main reason why his ERA is 16.50 over 6 innings this far.  I'd be concerned if I was a fantasy owner.

1st Base

Adam Dunn-  Dunn had an appendectomy and it hurt his production over the first week.  He should be back for next week, but I'd keep him on the bench if you have any other options to be safe.  

Freddie Freeman- Freeman is hitting under .200 for the Braves, but they have no plans on pulling them from their lineup.  I would take him out of my fantasy lineup though.

2nd Base

Chone Figgins- Figgins is batting .147 and has no walks on the season.  When you aren't getting on base, you aren't stealing bases.

Dan Uggla- Uggla and the entire Braves lineup has been struggling early.  Uggla is hitting .176 with 2 solo home runs for his only rbi's. 

Shortstop

Juan Uribe- A lot of people were relying on Uribe this week and he threw up a clunker.  He is batting .120 with no walks and only 1 extra base hit.  

Hanley Ramirez-Hanley's only batting .207 no home runs and 2 rbi's this season.  Look for a better week two out of him.

Third Base

Evan Longoria-  Longoria went from maybe missing a few games, to a three to four week injury.  Get him out of your lineup.  

Pedro Alvarez-  Alvarez struggled in spring training with his patience, and it has carried over to the regular season.  He has 13 strikeouts compared to only 2 walks this season. 

Outfield

Michael Stanton-  Stanton has had nagging leg problems all spring, and it kept him out of the lineup quite a bit.  Hopefully, it doesn't sap his power for the long run this season.  

Jay Bruce-  A lot of people picked Bruce to breakout, but it hasn't happened yet.  He's batting .241 with only 2 rbi's.  He should kick it in gear for the first place Reds.  

Carl Crawford- The entire Red Sox offense is struggling and Crawford is not an exception.  He has been pressing a tad, and I expect him to bounce back quickly.

Things you need to take out of Week 1

- Zach Britton is really, really, really good.  After being a fill in starter for Brian Matsuz, Britton has been electric.  He is 2-0 in 13.2 innings with a .66 ERA.  His most impressive start was against Texas, where he went 7.2 scoreless innings, and got 16 outs from ground balls.  Next week he is pitching against the Indians, and should be a nice option.

-The Rangers offense is the best in baseball.  After losing Cliff Lee in the offseason no one looked at the additions of Adrian Beltre and Mike Napoli to the offense.  But, it gives this team a new dimension.  Surround them with Josh Hamilton, Nelson Cruz, and a more mature Elvis Andrus, and this offense will be deadly.

-Red Sox fans should be concerned.  As I'm writing this, the Red Sox are now 1-7.  Yes, they will turn it around, but it won't be as easy as fans hope.  The Red Sox pitching staff has been getting rocked, and the truth is Josh Beckett, John Lackey, and Dice K won't be as good as they use to be.  Another problem for the Sox is the quality of the division this year.  I think there will be 4 teams with winning records, and the Orioles and Blue Jays are the real deal.

Bryce Harper Update

In Bryce Harper's first minor league game for lower class A, he went 2 for 4.  He had a single up the middle, and bunted his way on for his other hit.  We will continue with the updates as people seem to be enamored with the young stud.

April 7th Notes

Thursday was travel day for a lot of major league teams so there were a lot of quality games played this afternoon.

Red Sox vs. Indians
The Red Sox move to 0-6 after a 1-0 lost to the Indians.  That wasn't Jon Lester's fault as he threw 7 shutout innings striking out 9 Indians.  The Red Sox offense simply can't get anything going as they were shutdown by Fausto Carmona who gave up 10 earned runs his outing before.  Now the Yankees come to Boston for their home opener as panic slowly creeps into Red Sox nation.

Athletics vs. Blue Jays
This was another pitcher's duel with Trevor Cahill and Ricky Romero. Cahill won the duel only allowing 1 run on 3 hits in 8 innings.  What has been even more impressive about Cahill is his improved strikeouts this season.  He struck out 7 Blue Jays today.

Phillies vs. Mets
This game was over very quickly as Roy Halladay cruised to an 11-0 win.  Halladay struck out 7 in 7 scoreless innings and Shane Victorino, Jimmy Rollins, and Placido Polanco all collected two hits at the top of the Phillies lineup.

White Sox vs. Rays
Edwin Jackson threw a no hitter versus the Rays last year, and he channeled that inter mojo into todays start.  He struck out 13 rays in 8 innings.  David Price wasn't as sharp on the other side allowing 3 runs in 6 innings.  Juan Pierre paced the White Sox offense with 3 hits at the top of the lineup.

Twins vs. Yankees
Mariano Rivera picked up his 4th save of the year as the Yankees nipped the Twins 4-3.  Batting leadoff Derek Jeter had two hits which moved him into 33rd on the all time hit list.

Brewers vs. Braves
Shaun Marcum and Ryan Braun carried the Brewers to a 4-2 win over the Braves.  Braun hit a two run home run off Tommy Hanson in the 1st inning and Marcum gave up two runs through six innings to secure the victory.  A lot of people's fantasy favorite, Tommy Hanson, is now 0 and 2 on the year.

Rockies vs. Pirates
Esmil Rogers overpowered the Pirates for 7.1 innings striking out 7 in getting his first victory of the season.  Troy Tulowitzki hit his 3rd home run of the year and had an RBI double for the Rockies.  It's nice to see Tulo start the year off well as he is usually a slow starter. 

April 5th Injury News

Adam Dunn just had an emergency appendectomy but it looks like he will only miss around a week.

April 5th Studs and Duds

Studs
-Jordan Walden got his first save on the day he was named closer.  Should be the first of many for the big right hander.

-Mark Teixeria hit his 4th home run of the season in the Yankees extra inning lose.  Teix is usually a very slow starter so this is a relief for all fantasy owners.

-David Wright had 4 hits as the Mets roughed up Cole Hamels.  Wright is now batting .412 on the season.
-Yovani Gallardo twirled a 2 hit shutout versus the Braves and got the 1-0 win. 

-Kansas City Royals-  The Royals beat the White Sox in extra innings and now improved to 4-1 on the season.  Rookie Aaron Crow has really impressed early out of the bullpen and top prospect flamethrower Jeremy Jeffress got first win of the season out of the bullpen last night.

-Jhoulys Chacin out dueled Clayton Kershaw and threw 7 shutout innings and got the win versus the Dodgers.


Duds
-Madison Bumgarner didn't have his best stuff versus the Padres and only lasted three innings.  It wasn't entirely his fault, with the Padres getting a few bloop hits in the 3rd inning.  Bumgarner has two starts next week and should be in weekly lineups.

-Josh Beckett continued to scare Red Sox fans last night taking the lose against the Indians.  He gave up 3 earned in 5 innings while throwing 104 pitchers.  Beckett could get ahead in the count versus the Indians batters but could not put them away.  This could be a serious problem and a sign that Beckett no longer the stuff to put batters away.

-Cole Hamels got rocked for 6 runs in 2.2 innings versus the Mets.  He gave up 7 hits and walked 2 before getting pulled only 68 pitches into his outing.  Fantasy Owners should not be alarmed yet.

-Drew Storen struggled and took his first lose of the season.  He walked 2 and gave up a base hit.  If Storen keeps struggling the Nationals could have a short hook for him after his awful Spring Training.

-The Red Sox offense continued to struggle only mustering 4 hits and 1 run versus Josh Tomlin and the Indians.  After getting the two biggest bats of the offseason the Red Sox have 12 runs in 4 games.

April 5th Notes

There is a great lineup of games today, and I'm looking forward to quite a few pitchers going tonight.  I'm looking to see how Madison Bumgarner pitches in his season debut, along with the career debut of Michael Pineda.  I also want to see how James McDonald pitches in his first start of the season for the 3 and 1 Pirates.  And of course my NL Cy Young prediction Clayton Kershaw.

Waiver Wire Alert:
-The closer role for the Angels is now Jordan Walden's to seize.  The Angels have officially pulled Fernando Rodney from the role.  Pick Walden up immediately.

Injury Notes:
-Ubaldo Jimenez is in line to make his Friday start, after it was in question with a cut in his cuticle
-St. Louis slugger Matt Holliday has had an unbelievable recovery, and has been cleared for baseball activity.  Hopefully for fantasy owners he will be back in the lineup before next Monday.
-The Phillies announced that they will put Chase Utley on a running program shortly, but there is still no timetable for his return.
-Angels slugger Kendry Morales took batting practice and some fielding drills today.  He will do some running later in the week and a time table will form from there.
-Jose Bautista will take a personal leave until at least Friday for the birth of his first daughter.

April 3rd Notes

Cubs vs. Pirates
-Matt Garza went 7 innings and struck out 12 Pirates, but Carlos Marmol was not able to hold his lead in the 9th inning.  It wasn't all peaches and creme for Garza as he did allow 12 hits.
-Marmol got a bit unfortunate in the 9th after a lead off walk he allowed a couple of weakly hit base hits, but a blown save is a blown save.
-One thing that has blown me away in this first series, is how much better Starlin Castro has looked at the plate this season.  He was 3 for 4 today with 2 triples, and is now batting 8 for 13 for the season.

Angels vs. Royals
-Scott Kazmir proved once again why he is not a reliable fantasy option giving up 5 runs in 1.2 inning to the Royals. 
-Howie Kendick has two home runs today, making three for the year.
-Former top prospect Alex Gordon has 3 hits for the Royals.

Padres vs. Cardinals
-The Cardinals picked up their first win of the season, and needed an amazing performance by Jaime Garcia to do so.  Garcia threw a complete game shut out while striking out nine and only allowing 4 hits.  He is looking to avoid the sophomore slump and this is a good start.
-Dustin Moseley was the tough luck loser on the other side, only allowing an unearned run in the 5th inning to get the lose.

 
Red Sox vs Rangers
-Clay Buchholz looked great for the Red Sox only allowing the Rangers to get 5 hits over 6.1 innings.  Unfortunately for him and the Red Sox, 4 of them were solo home runs.
-  Nelson Cruz and Ian Kinsler both had their third home run of the year, while Mike Napoli and David Murphy also added one.
-One positive thing I took from the struggling Red Sox was how good David Ortiz is swinging the bat.  He was 2 for 4 today including a fly ball out that was caught at the warning track by Josh Hamilton.


Indians vs. White Sox
-The pitching duel between Justin Masterson and John Danks quickly became a blowout when the White Sox bullpen came into the game.  Danks struck out 8 while Masterson struck out 0, clearly indicated these players fantasy values.
-Orlando Cabrera did most of the damage for the Indians collecting 3 hits, including his first home run of the season.  In deep leagues he is a viable middle infielder.

Tigers vs. Yankees
-The Tigers won this absolutely slugfest in the Bronx where there were a combine 7 home runs in the game.  If you owned Phil Hughes or Max Scherzer you were not happy watching this game
-Miguel Cabrera and Jorge Posada hit two home runs, and Robby Cano, Mark Teixeira, and Brennan Boesch had one each.
-Jorge Posada has looked great from the plate this year and maybe being a full time DH will help the old catcher.

Twins vs. Jays
-Jose Bautista hit his 2nd home run of the year, but it was not enough to get the Blue Jays the win over the Twins.
-Joe Nathan came in with a 2 run lead in the ninth and struggled before getting the last out.  Nathan gave up two hits and two walks but picked up the save for his owners. 

Marlins vs Mets
-Javier Vazquez return to the National League did not go the way the Marlins wanted.  In 2.1 innings Vazquez gave 6 hits, walked 5, and gave up 4 earned runs.
-R.A. Dickey started where he left off last season throwing 6 scoreless innings, striking out 7 while picking up his first win of the season.

Brewers vs. Reds
-Rickie Weeks hit his second lead off home run in 3 games, but that was about all the Brewers could smile about as they got shelled by the Reds for the third start game.
-Brandon Phillips, Ryan Hanigan, and Jonny Gomes had a combine 4 home runs and the Reds won 12-3.
-The always underrated Bronson Arroyo picked up his first win of the season.

Braves vs. Nationals
-Tim Hudson went 7 strong as the Braves tacked on late runs first the National's bullpen to win 11-2. 
-Brian McCann had 3 singles and drove in 4 runs for the Braves.
-Jordan Zimmerman who is coming back from Tommy John surgery looked very solid in his season debut.  He went six innings only allowing 2 earned run.  If he is on your waiver wire he is someone to monitor.

 Phillies vs Astros
-Roy Oswalt picked up his first win of the year, going six innings and allowing 2 earned runs in the 7-3 win.
-Ryan Howard smacked his first home run of the year, a three run shot in the first inning.

Orioles vs. Rays
-Top prospect Zach Britton did not disappoint in his major league debut.  He went six strong innings only giving up 1 run while striking out six and picking up the win.
-Nick Markakis, Matt Wieters, Adam Jones, and Mark Reynolds all collected two hits for the Orioles who have taken 3 in a row from the Rays.


 Prospect Update:
-One of the Braves top prospects, Mike Minor, has been called up and will get the start for Jair Jurrjens on Wednesday.

Some quick injury notes:
-Evan Longoria has a sore oblique and will miss about a week.  It looks like he will be able to avoid a trip to the DL.  UPDATE: Longoria has been placed on the DL.
-Ubaldo Jimenez might miss next week's start due to a cut in his cuticle.  Try not too laugh to hard over this "injury"
-Mike Stanton who has been nursing a hamstring injury all of spring training, might take a few days off to rest.  I'd probably take him out of my lineup this week just to be careful.

April 2nd Notes

-Kyle Drabek, who is surprisingly the most searched player on this site, had his season debut today, and did not disappoint owners.  Drabek went 7 innings only allowing 1 hit and 1 run while striking out 7.  He totally controlled the Twins all day who are usually tough on right handed pitchers.  If he happens to be on your waiver wire jump on it.

-Speaking of top prospects, Orioles top prospect Zach Britton is starting his first game tomorrow.  If he's available you should pick him up.

-The newly exciting Royals took another game from the Angels today, squeaking out a tight game 5-4.  Joakim Soria picked up his first save of the season.

-Carlos Zambrano pitched well enough to get a no decision and a quality start, and the Cubs took the lead late, and held on 5 to 3.  Carlos Marmol struck out the side in 15 pitches for his first save.

-Cliff Lee had his first start of the season and although he gave up 3 earned runs he completely dominated the Astros.  He had 11 strikeouts in 7 innings and is in line for the win. 

April 1st Observations

Yesterday for opening day we had some great games.  We had Lincecum and Kershaw dueling, Granderson showing his health, and Brandon Belt getting his first career hit.  Let's see what today has in store.

Injury News:  After a 3 hit day yesterday Matt Holliday is out indefinitely.  He needed to have an appendectomy, and if I had a guess I'd say it'd be 4 to 6 weeks until he is back.  Quite the blow for the Cards.

-Felix Hernandez starts off his season right with a complete game win against the A's.  He was very economical and only need 108 pitches.

-Brandon Belt hit his first career home run, but the Dodgers nipped the Giants for the 2nd game in a row.  I can't express this enough, if Belt is out there in your league you need to have him.
-Jon Lester continued his normal April struggle by giving up 3 home runs in a no decision against the Rangers.

-The Texas Lineup looks more potent than ever, with Ian Kinsler, Nelson Cruz, and Mike Napoli all hitting home runs.

-Roy Halladay was his normal self, going 6 strong and only giving up 1 run in a no decision versus the Astros.

-Boston Newcomers Adrian Gonzalez and Carl Crawford had different results in their debuts.  Gonzalez went 2 for 4 with rbi's while Crawford went 0 for 4 with three strikeouts.