Taking a look around the league, here’s a recap of last night’s action and suggestions for your fantasy baseball team.
Mr. Clutch (pitcher) – Matt Garza picked up his sixth straight win last night and his first for the Rangers. Garza, making his debut as a Ranger, blanked the Yankees over seven plus innings, giving up five hits. The Rangers sure hope Matt Garza keeps producing at a high level considering they shipped loads of talent to Chicago in return. Garza is currently 7-1 on the year with a 2.87 ERA.
Mr. Clutch (hitter) – Andre Ethier came up huge last night for the Dodgers in the ninth and 10th innings. With the Dodgers down to their last at-bat, Ethier tied it in the ninth with a single. He finished the day 4-for-6 with two RBIs.
Surprise, surprise! – Nate Schierholtz connected for his second consecutive game with a home run. He’s been a surprise for the Cubs recently. Here is what RotoWire.com has to say:
Schierholtz homered for the second straight day, and is now 6-for-11 in his last three games. With the Alfonso Soriano trade rumors swirling around, Schierholtz is making a strong case for his own trade value as the deadline looms.
Here comes the heat – Jayson Werth connected on another long ball last night and has five in his last four games. He’s not only launching the long ball, but he also has raised his average to .298 on the season. Coincidentally, his last five hits have all been home runs.
Left out in the breeze – How can we not mention Jeremy Hefner here? Those who employed him over his two starts this week probably thought for sure he would rebound against the Braves last night. Hefner followed his two-inning, eight-runs-allowed effort against the Phillies with a slightly better line against the Braves: 4.1 innings, five earned and a loss. He’s combined for 6.1 innings, 13 earned runs and two losses this week. Ouch.
Who’s trending? – Mark Melancon, the new closer for the Pirates while Jason Grilli is out, is up 50 percent owned in all leagues on ESPN. Relief pitchers frequently bounce around and change, so if you’re looking for a temporary stop gap, he’s the guy. He nailed down his save last night against the Nationals.
Bench me, please? – Just when the Brewers thought Juan Francisco might be turning it around, he responds with a 2-for-24 performance where half of his outs are strikeouts.
The Streamer – Alex Wood of the Braves makes his second big-league start tonight against the Mets. He is on a pitch limit, so don’t look for him to go past the fifth or sixth inning.
Links of the day – Somebody asked for links?
- Want to know if Alex Wood is worth a pickup? Read here for details.
- Razzball.com has their list of the midseason top 50 fantasy baseball prospects. Why not start looking toward next year and planning keepers?
- ESPN.com has their daily notes posted from yesterday.
- If you are looking to take your skill and fantasy baseball to a new level, William Hill sports betting online is the place to go.
