Fantasy Baseball: Wednesday News and Notes

ms watching Pedro Martinez work out, the question comes up as to if he is fantasy viable. If he were to sign with a National League team, he has more value than with an AL team. The lineups are more friendly, and the style of baseball makes it a more suitable matchup. In mixed leagues, it would have to be pretty deep to make him an immediate add. He will be back in the game in the second half, there should not be much doubt there.

 

Wednesday Notes

• Jason Kubel has struggled of late, and is only 3-for-14 against A.J. Burnett. If you have other options in this one, best to use them. Use all other Twins as you normally would in this one. Burnett's last four starts (since the Boston disaster) have all been very strong, and he has allowed only three earned runs in his last 27.1 innings.
• Look to use Mark Ellis and Jack Cust against Tim Wakefield. The two are hitting .348 and .313 respectively, and are the only Oakland starters above .300 against Wakefield. Jason Giambi has four home runs in 92 at-bats, but has hit just .163 against the Boston starter.
• Wandy Rodriguez is always a good play at home, but do not hesitate to use your normal Pirates (is there such a thing?). Jack Wilson is 8-for-22, and Adam LaRoche is hitting .417 against him. Freddy Sanchez is a .435 hitter, but is likely out of the lineup with back issues.
• While their time is limited, the heart of the Yankees lineup has done well against Glen Perkins. Alex Rodriguez is 5-for-9, as is Melky Cabrera. Robinson Cano has added a 5-for-8 figure against Perkins as well. Normally, Perkins is a decent play at home, but these numbers should have owners taking pause and looking elsewhere.
• Scott Kazmir continues to need 100 pitches to get through five innings, as has been the case his last two starts. He had a nice outing against Texas, but struggled with efficiency. Still, he has always pitched well in that park. Toronto's offense could be a different story. Four of the Toronto likely starters are over .300 against Kazmir. Aaron Hill, Vernon Wells, and Lyle Overbay are certain plays, as is Marco Scutaro. Alex Rios has struggled to just 7-for-30.
• Ryan Sadowski has put up two good outings to start his career, and will get a chance to face the Marlins on Wednesday. His command was much better during his second start, and in 13 innings, he has allowed only seven hits. Players do not have much of a book on him yet, and he could steal another win in this one.
• Jose Contreras has thrown four solid outings in his last five, one of those against tonight's opponent in Cleveland. He has worked into the eighth inning four times since his return, and has allowed only nine earned runs in 37.1 innings. The Indians lineup has largely struggled against him, and he is a decent spot play tonight.
• Nelson Cruz and Josh Hamilton have not hit well against Ervin Santana. The Angels starter has held Cruz to a 3-for-16 mark, and Hamilton to 2-for-13. The rest of the Rangers are good to go in this one. Michael Young, Hank Blalock, and Ian Kinsler all have hit north of .350 in at least 22 at-bats.
• Get all your Angels into the lineup tonight against Vicente Padilla. The only two the pitcher seems to be able to contain are Torii Hunter (3-for-19) and Mike Napoli (4-for-21). Otherwise, not a problem to be found, and you likely are starting Hunter in this one anyway based on options.
• Spot Starts: Sadowski, Contreras, and Chad Gaudin

 

Thursday Notes

• Not a bad team for Halladay's first outing since trade rumors started swirling. While owners should keep regulars like Carl Crawford and B.J. Upton active, do not hesitate to hold off on Carlos Pena. He has just one home run in 46 at-bats, and is hitting just .239 against the Blue Jays starter.
• It would not be entirely surprising to see David Murphy in the lineup against the Mariners and Felix Hernandez. Murphy has hit .318 against Hernandez with a home run. Not much else good in the Rangers lineup beyond Michael Young. Any Ranger with at least 15 at-bats is hovering around .200, including Blalock, Cruz, Ian Kinsler, and Hamilton.
• As sharp as Tommy Hanson has been, Aaron Cook has been just as good of late. The concern for Cook this time out is that he left his last start with tightness in his back. If the Rockies deem him good to go, this would still be a situation to avoid. He was leaving a lot up in the zone last time out, and the Braves are hitting well.
• In any decent outing Randy Wolf has had over his last ten, he has received no run support. He is just 3-3 in 18 starts, but has pitched much better than that record. He has allowed eight hits over his last 12 innings, and only one walk. On the road, batters are hitting only .224 against him.
• Joel Pineiro is another pitcher with better stats than his record. Pineiro has had some rough luck, and his road stats are skewed based on a couple early outings. Look to him in a pinch today, as his 3.39 ERA is a nice number to run out there. He will not help in strikeouts, but his WHIP and contact numbers can boost owners in other categories.
• Spot Starts: Wolf, Pineiro, Brad Penny

Collin Hager writes The Elmhurst Pub fantasy blog. You can get your questions answered by sending an email to elmhurstpubroundtable@yahoo.com. He's also on Twitter @TheRoundtable.

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