Fantasy Baseball: Thursday News and Notes

(Photo by Stephen Dunn/Getty Images)

Thursday Notes

• Most of the Padres lineup has trouble against Tim Lincecum. Even Adrian Gonzalez is just a .200 hitter in 30 at-bats. If you need some help, though, look to Kevin Kouzmanoff, as he is 10-for-28 against the Giants starter. He is the safest option if you start anyone against the San Francisco ace. For his part, Lincecum has not given up a run in 23 innings.
• 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 Hank Blalock, Nelson Cruz, Ian Kinsler, and Josh Hamilton.
• Jamie Moyer has been hit hard most of the season, and is always a problem at home. Still, Moyer seems to have done better of late. While the criticism comes in his home-run numbers, he has not allowed a home run in four of six starts, and all of them were to Toronto in two separate games. The Reds do not have much to throw at him, as no one that has seen him has hit well. In deep leagues or NL-only leagues, this is a decent play.
• Not a bad team for Roy 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.
• Start all your Dodgers in this one, for the most part. Orlando Hudson is only 2-for-19 against Livan Hernandez, and Russell Martin is just 2-for-18. Everyone else needs to be in the lineup though. Best plays? Look to Rafael Furcal and Andre Ethier. Furcal has four home runs against the Mets starter.
• In any decent outing, Randy Wolf has had over his last 10, 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.
• Brad Penny has allowed three runs or less in each of his last five starts. Penny has improved to 4-1 at Fenway this season, and is getting a weak-hitting Royals lineup in this matchup. Penny's velocity has been good, and another six-inning outing with two earned should be easily in the cards for 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.
• Watch the Twins today. Glen Perkins was scratched yesterday because of illness, and Ron Gardenhire left the door open for him to start today if he felt better. Otherwise, Francisco Liriano should be set to get the ball. The bet here is that Perkins does not make the start and is simply pushed to Friday this time through the rotation.
• Spot Starts: Pineiro, Penny, and Wolf

Friday Notes

• Joe Saunders has been nothing if not up and down. In his last 10 starts, he has allowed more than four earned runs five times, three runs once, one run twice, and no runs once. His major issue has been in the home-run department, having already surrendered 18 this year. Largely, though, the problems have been on the road. At home, he remains a good option, as batters hit only .239 against him and he has a 3.43 ERA.
• Be careful with Cliff Lee against the Tigers. As a team, Detroit has hit .295 against Lee, and the Cleveland starter is staring at a WHIP of 1.41. While deep leagues may want to reserve Marcus Thames, no other Tigers starter should be an issue.
• John Danks has been pitching well, but the Twins have raked against him. With Michael Cuddyer and Joe Mauer both putting up 9-for-18 numbers, and Justin Morneau at .333 with three home runs in 27 at-bats, it could be a rough night on the road for the Chicago starter.
• The Rockies have seen a fair amount of Derek Lowe, but only Todd Helton and Brad Hawpe have had much success against him. They are the only two Colorado regulars that have hit over .300 against Lowe. Lowe's road numbers are slightly rough, but they are skewed by a couple rough outings against the American League East.
• Derrek Lee and Alfonso Soriano have both hit Chris Carpenter hard, but the rest of the Cubs have not seen much of him. Carpenter has been consistent with the exception of one start this season. His problem has more been run support than anything else. With the way he is throwing the ball, do not reach for anyone against him. Stick with your regulars.
• Spot Starts: Brett Cecil, Jeff Niemann, and Ubaldo Jimenez

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.

You're currently logged into Facebook

Do you want to share your Bleacher Report activity on Facebook?