Welcome to St. Paddy’s Fantasy Report, where I’ll be keeping you abreast of the world of fantasy baseball through the inspection of hot and cold starters, exploration of closer situations, and examination of key injuries and position battles for each team around the league.
Let’s begin with everyone’s favorite bunch of teams. Numbers 1, 2, 3 and 4 of the top, like, 10 in your heart … the division of domination … the A! L! East!
Baltimore Orioles
Who’s Not: Brian Matusz returned from an extended-DL stint only to suffer a hamstring injury and post an ERA near 11.00 in six innings. No need to waste a roster spot until Matusz proves he can be effective … Matt Wieters is hitting .205 with a homer in the last two weeks, doing nothing to quell the talk of him being a bust. He’s still got potential to be better than most of what’s on the catcher waiver wire, but he doesn’t appear to be worth a roster spot if you’ve confidence in someone else … Derrek Lee is hitting .324 in the last two weeks, but five of his 12 hits over that span came in one game. Combine that with no plate discipline or power, and I’d temper any hopes you have of him rebounding. Ditto Vladimir Guerrero, by the way.
Closer Look: Kevin Gregg still has the closing duties here, but come on, Orioles: free Koji Uehara!
Injury Watch: Brian Roberts is still out with lingering effects from a concussion sustained in May. He’s certainly out until at least the All-Star break, but it wouldn’t surprise me if we don’t see him until August at the earliest. Then again, I’m not exactly what doctors call “a Doctor.” Still, though … In other long-term injury news, Justin Duchscherer was pitching in an extended spring training game five days ago, and re-injured his surgically repaired hip while trying to field a ground ball. He could be a sneaky play in, like, September, and I’m not really even sure if that’s a joke or not.
Boston Red Sox
Who’s Not: Slumps are in short supply for the streaking Sawx, but no team can have everybody hitting at once. But you can come really close; only J.D. Drew (.273/.342/.364, one HR) and Darnell McDonald — inasmuch as he qualifies — are Boston regulars that you’d describe as cold … Tim Wakefield had a nice return to the starting rotation awhile ago, but his ERA, even hovering around 4.00, has been on the lucky side … Andrew Miller wasn’t bad in his start last night, but until he shows that he can refrain from walking people, he’s not worth so much as a flier in the deepest leagues.
Injury Watch: Carl Crawford went on the DL with a hamstring injury, but is expected to miss the minimum 15 days and return in early July … Be far more concerned about Jed Lowrie‘s injury. He’s been sidelined with a sore left shoulder, and is seeking a second opinion from Dr. Lewis Yocum, which is one of those names you never want to hear. I wouldn’t necessarily expect surgery, but going to visit Yocum makes it seem far more likely. Don’t keep him on your roster.
New York Yankees
Who’s Not: CC Sabathia has been knocked around to the tune of a 6.10 ERA over his last three starts, but his FIP and xFIP are an outstanding 2.81 and 3.34, respectively. He’ll be fine; keep running him out there … Russell Martin has hit just .250 over the past 14 days, and has been bleeding playing time. I’d drop him.
Injury Watch: Derek Jeter should be ready to return by next Thursday, depending on whether the Yankees elect to have him play a rehab game. He’s eligible to come off the DL next Wednesday … Bartolo Colon began a throwing program today, and could return before the All-Star break if all goes according to plan … Phil Hughes threw a side session today, and will be making another rehab start on Friday.
Tampa Bay Rays
Who’s Not: Matt Joyce has some impressive numbers spanning this season and most of last, but is hitting nearly .100 over the last two weeks and has seen his power all but disappear. He’s safe to drop in mixed leagues, but you might want to make sure he doesn’t start to turn it back on — his numbers are as bad as they’ll be all year, so an uptick might not show immediately … B.J. Upton can’t buy a hit these days, and looks to be on pace to end the season as a 20 HR, 40 SB guy with an average around .240. He’s still walking and stealing bases, but if you’re going to hold on to him, you’d better be ready to stomach that average … Jeremy Hellickson and David Price both have ERAs around 6.00 and were pretty bad in their most recent starts. I’d sit both of them for a start before running them back out there, since Hellickson has had his struggles this season, and Price’s performance made it seem to me like he was hurting a bit.
Toronto Blue Jays
Who’s Not: Take your pick, really. Jose Bautista, Aaron Hill and Yunel Escobar have combined for four homers, two steals and an average around .240. Corey Patterson has three steals, which is pretty good, but a .189 average and no homers will take the shine off that right quick … Brandon Morrow has an ERA over 7.00 in his last two starts, but has struck out batters at a pedestrian-for-him clip of just less than one per inning. He’ll be fine.