Taking a look around the league, here’s a recap of last night’s action and suggestions for your fantasy baseball team.
Clutch Performers – If you follow the Orioles farm system at all, you know about the cream-of-the-crop pitching prospects they’ve had in the past five years. And you know that none of them were worth a dime except for Chris Tillman. It has taken him a few years of disappointment, but he has finally become fantasy relevant, and last night he had a gem. Tillman shut down the Giants, allowing just four hits an earned run while striking out eight in eight innings. He has seven quality starts in his last 10 outings and should be owned in all formats. Who else was hot last night?
- Jed Lowrie –4-for-4, HR, 4 RBI, 2 R, BB
- Justin Morneau — 2-for-5, 2 HR, 5 RBI, BB
- Wilin Rosario — 3-for-5, HR, 4 RBI, 2 R
- Jose Bautista– 3-for-5, HR, RBI, R
Surprise, surprise! – It was a big night a couple of players who should be owned in more leagues. First off, Brandon Beachy shut down the Marlins in just his third outing back from Tommy John surgery. Scattering three hits and a walk over eight innings is impressive for any pitcher. The big thing to look for is the command after Tommy John, and it took Beachy only 99 pitches to make it through those eight innings. He is going to get stronger and stronger the rest of the way and should be added in every league.
Josh Reddick has had an awful season and was in a 20 at-bat hitless streak. Hitting home run number six, seven and eight in the same game changed all of that last night as he powered the Athletics past the Blue Jays. Reddick, who has definitely struggled this season, has been dropped in almost all leagues. It is tough to see a player showing that much potential last season basically drop off the map this season, but if anything showed last night, this guy has the ability to mash. Keep an eye out, and if Reddick stays hot after this one game outburst, you might want to snag him off the waiver wire.
- Bronson Arroyo — 7 IP, 4 H, ER, 7 K, W
- Dan Haren — 7 IP, 4 H, 2 ER, 4 K, W
- Justin Maxwell — 3-for-5, HR, 2 R, 2 RBI
Left out in the breeze – In case you missed it, Alex Rodriguez made his triumphant debut at Yankee Stadium to the sound of cheers, jeers and boos. Does it get any worse than being booed by your own fans? It does when you go 0-for-4 with three strikeouts. Let’s check out A-Rod’s first home at bat:
Here’s the rundown on the worst-of-the-worst performances:
- Fernando Rodney — 0.1 IP, 4 H, 3 ER, BB, K, L, BS
- Ervin Santana — 3.2 IP, 9 H, 6 ER, 2 BB, 2 K, ND
- Jake Peavy — 5 IP, 10 H, 6 ER, BB, ND
- Alfonso Soriano — 0-for-5, 2 K
- Mariano Rivera — 1 IP, 3 H, 2 ER, BB, BS
- Francisco Liriano — 2.1 IP, 12 H, 10 ER, 2 BB, K, L
Trending developments – Has Brett Lawrie come back from the dead? He’s on an 11-game hitting streak where he has a .400/.442/..833 slash line to go along with two home runs, six runs and six RBI. Who else is trending?
- Mariano Rivera had converted 23 straight save chances before last night’s blown save.
- Francisco Liriano had given up just 10 earned runs in his last eight starts combined before being rocked last night
- LaTroy Hawkins is the new closer for the Mets for the time being and should be grabbed if you are chasing saves
Prospect Watch – Junior Lake has been all that and a bag of chips since coming up to the majors, but is he for real? I don’t like to get sucked in on prospects who were not expected to do this in the majors because the cost of acquiring him for a keeper or dynasty league is probably insane right now. Let’s see what Jim Callis had to say about Lake:
He’s a quality 6-foot-3, 215-pound athlete with above-average raw power, solid speed and a cannon arm, and he played all four infield positions in the minors. So, what’s not to like? Well, Lake never produced consistently in the minors (.271/.322/.411 in 619 games) because he gets himself out at the plate way too often. He has a “busy” swing with a lot of holes, and he chases far too many pitches (especially breaking balls) out of the strike zone. He has 23 strikeouts and just two walks in 88 big league at-bats, and he’s not going to keep hitting .446 and slugging .677 when he puts the ball in play.
Head-2-Head– It’s hard not to go right to Wei-Yin Chen as the best streaming option of the day, and that’s exactly who I’d grab if I needed a streamer. The O’s are taking on the Giants. Chen should be put in a position to succeed against an inferior team.
Links of the day – It’s that time. It’s link time …
- In case you need some closer help, these guys just updated some closer situations around the league.
- Here are some random thoughts on a few players who matter in fantasy leagues.
- Under-the-radar players you should be watching out for.
- Second base can be a cruel heartless woman sometimes. This guy gives some help.
- Can we get some love for Russell Martin? Anyone? Anyone?