It might as well have been the abdominal injury heard around the world, as the best fantasy baseball player looks to have come up lame hustling around the bases. According to Cabrera, he is playing Friday, but why wouldn’t he say that? He does not want to seem weak. The problem is the Tigers are 6.5 games ahead in the division and with the playoffs looming, the Tigers may decide to give the big fella a break. Of course that is the worst decision that could happen if you are a Cabrera owner competing for a championship. With any luck, Miguel Cabrera will be back in action today, and this will have been nothing more than a scare.
Taking a look around the league, here’s a recap of last night’s action and suggestions for your fantasy baseball team.
Clutch Performers:
- Jayson Werth — 3-for-4, HR, 2 R, 3 RBI
- Prince Fielder — 3-for-4, 3 R, RBI, BB
- Daniel Murphy — 4-for-5, R, 2 RBI, SB
- Bryce Harper — 2-for-3, HR, 3 R, 2 RBI, BB
- Gio Gonzalez — 7 IP, 3 H, 0 ER, 3 BB, 8 K, W
- Kris Medlen — 7 IP, 6 H, 0 ER, 6 K, W
Surprise, surprise!:
- Eric Young Jr. — 3-for-5, 2 R, 3 RBI
- Jason Vargas — 7 IP, 2 H, 0 ER, 3 BB, 7 K, W
- Yovani Gallardo — 7 IP, 6 H, 0 ER, BB, 5 K
Left out in the breeze:
- Grant Balfour — 0.2 IP, 2 H, 4 ER, 2 BB, K, L, BS
- David Ortiz — 0-for-4, 2 K
- Michael Young — 0-for-4, 2 K
Trending developments:
- Justin Upton is considered day-to-day after being struck on the hand by Ubaldo Jimenez.
- Is Joe Mauer on the way back? According to Mauer, his symptoms are improving, and he is working his way back to play this season.
- Max Scherzer allowed a season-high six runs in Detroit’s win over the Athletics.
- Emilio Bonifacio has looked very comfortable in the Royals uniform. In the past two weeks, he is 15-for-49 (.306) with eight stolen bases. He has been one of the most added fielders this week and is worth owning the way he is stealing the bases.
Prospect Watch – Taijuan Walker, the Mariners top pitching prospect, is finally getting the nod Friday against the Astros. If all goes well, he should get an extended run and stay up with the team the rest of the season. In 141.1 innings between triple-A and double-A, Walker has a 2.93 ERA. For fantasy purposes, I do not expect much. Since his promotion from double-A, Walker has struggled some, especially with his command. Now he is taking another step, and with another step, it could lead to more struggles for Walker. Against Houston, I expect a solid performance because Houston is a glorified quadruple-A team. Against tougher opponents, I expect him to have some bumps along the way. Not really a guy I am targeting for this season, but Walker in a keeper league? Hell yeah! Here is a clip of Walker in action earlier this month.
Head-2-Head – If you would have told me that at some point this season Roy Hallday’s ownership would be so far down that he would qualify as a streaming candidate, I would have thought you were nuts. But here we are. Halladay is owned in less than 50% of leagues and with him taking on the Cubs tomorrow, the choice is easy if you are in need of a pitcher.
Links of the day:
- Here is a good Taijuan Walker breakdown for tomorrow.
- Don’t forget about the other Davis, Khris Davis that is.
- Waiver wire help coming your way here.