MLB Fantasy Baseball: Wednesday News and Notes

Quite the morning here at the 'Table. I woke up and grabbed milk for my cereal (Lucky Charms, of course) and see a picture of the Red Sox bats on the side. At least the team realized that they have been lost. Just a sad state of affairs in that lineup.

I open my paper and read that the Penguins think that it's 1992 again and are going to bring back Jaromir Jagr. Between Jagr and Cito Gaston, I think Doc Brown's time machine must have worked. Yes, I busted out a Back to the Future reference. On to the notes.

• Congratulations to the remaining fantasy owners of Brett Myers. You can now officially cut him, as he has accepted an assignment to AAA. Myers did not take the move back to the rotation well and struggled with command. And not just with one pitch, but with of all his pitches. This is the best move for him. It will let him adjust and then see if he can help later in the season. Regardless, this should put an end to any remaining fantasy value he had for the season.
• Kelvim Escobar shows promise every year, and struggles with injuries almost as often. He's been rehabbing a shoulder that expected to keep him out until the break and then back for the second half of the year. He suffered a setback and could now be looking at surgery that would end his season. Escobar could have had value in all formats after the break, but this should damper that as well.
• Marcus Thames is going to see increased time with all the injuries surrounding the Tigers right now. Thames is only 90 percent owned, but that should jump to 100. He's hitting .421 in his last five games, with two home runs. He's the hot streak to ride at this point.
• Radhames Liz recorded his second win in a row, holding down the Royals. Liz is a touch-and-go pitcher. He's a solid matchup play, but not worth owning in any format. As you break down the numbers, batters only are hitting .245 against him. That's a solid number, until you see an ERA over five. Why is that? Liz is a flyball pitcher. He's giving up nearly two home runs per nine innings, and at least a third of his outs are flyballs. Small ballparks will not be his friend.
• Jeff Suppan got the win on the road, but that's the only benefit he would have provided owners. Suppan gave up five earned over five innings, to go with nine hits and two walks. This is not the kind of win I want to take early in a week. Suppan needs to figure out how to pitch on the road before he's anything more than a spot start in any league.
• Clayton Kershaw looked better, working into the sixth inning and only walking two batters. Kershaw's command, as well as questionable pitch count/inning limits, will be what holds him back. There's no doubt he has a plus-curveball, but he needs to locate secondary pitches in order to work off of them into the curve. That takes time. He's worth owning in deeper leagues, but I'd use him based on matchups.
• Adrian Beltre is a second-half player who is starting to come on. Beltre homered last night and is now at .400 in his last six games, with two home runs and 10 RBI. Beltre is much better than his .254 average suggests, and he is still on pace for 30 home runs and 90 RBI. He's a perfect chance to buy low now and enjoy his hitting all summer.
• My concerns over Cliff Lee's pitching against Chicago were unfounded. Lee was spectacular, going eight innings and allowing just one run on six hits. He didn't record many strikeouts, but he kept the ball down and forced Chicago to make contact. Thanks need to go out to Joe Borowski, who is out, for handing the closer role over to Masa Kobayashi.
• J.J. Hardy was someone every writer and owner was down on for basically all of April and May. Hardy has turned it on though. He has three home runs in his last five games and a .409 average over that stretch. Hardy is back near .270 and still could hit 20 home runs. I'm convinced of this.
• Matt Garza improved to 5-1 at home, with a 2.16 ERA and .217 BAA in eight starts at the Trop. His road numbers aren't as good, but they aren't bad enough to deter ownership in most mixed-league formats. Garza is flat-out dealing, and worked all parts of the strike zone last night in dominating the Red Sox hitters.
• I rip on the need to own Brett Myers or Brad Penny, but the guy I always have trouble cutting is Jason Varitek. This is the second year in a row that his average has been beyond awful. What's worse, he doesn't seem to have a clue where the strike zone is at this point. He's below .225 and is showing no signs of recovery. Seriously, you can cut him for almost anyone at this point.

Notes for today's games:

• Nick Blackburn is 4-2 with a 3.08 ERA at home on the season. The Tigers could be missing enough pop in the lineup to make this an even better start for him. I'd keep him in the lineup and use him as a spot start in all formats.
• Odalis Perez gets some bad publicity, but he's been solid for the Nationals this season. He's also posted a 1.54 ERA and .234 BAA in two starts against the Marlins this season. His road numbers aren't good, but the Marlins struggle enough to make this a decent play. If you're looking to make a choice between Perez and his opponent, Ricky Nolasco, I go with Nolasco.
• Look up and down the Red Sox lineup, but the only play recommended at all is Dustin Pedroia. He's 10-18 against Scott Kazmir. Without his stats, the rest of the lineup hits .207 against Kazmir. Add to that, Kazmir is 4-1 at home with a 1.24 ERA.
• The Rays don't do well against Daisuke Matsuzaka either. Akinori Iwamura is a .400 hitter, but the rest of the team should be held out if you have better options (excluding studs like Longoria and Crawford). Matsuzaka is 4-0 on the road with a .157 BAA.
• Don't be scared off by the fact Pedro is on the mound anymore. The Cardinals numbers as a team might not be good, but this isn't the same Pedro Martinez. Any Cardinal you would normally start is still a good play.
• Adam Eaton is 0-4 with a 4.92 ERA. Every Brave is a good play, especially Chipper Jones if he stays in the lineup.
• C.C. Sabathia is tough, no doubt about that. But, Nick Swisher seems to know how to hit him. Swisher is a .316 hitter in 19 at-bats against Sabathia. The only other White Sox players with a decent average are Jermaine Dye at .300 and Pablo Ozuna, who could see a start tonight, at .419.
• Jose Contreras is a solid option, as he holds the Indians to a .231 average with no hitter over .280. In home starts this season, Contreras holds opponents to a .221 average.
• Randy Wolf is on the road, so start all your Rockies. All of them.
• Spot-start calls, go with Ricky Nolasco, Contreras, Jorge Campillo, and Blackburn.

Notes for Thursday:

• The Red Sox own Andy Pettite. All of them, including Varitek (.347/2/7) are good plays against the Yankee pitcher. Pettite has a 5.24 ERA since 2005 against the Red Sox.
• Justin Verlander may struggle on the road, but he has always had good success against the Mariners. Plus, he goes against Carlos Silva. Silva should never be started. Ever.
• Both Kyle Davies and Garrett Olson have been solid for their respective teams. They are good options individually, but going against one another, I'll give the edge to Olson. He's just been way too solid at home.
• Manny Parra is out to make a believer out of me. He's been good in his last five, both home and away, and seems to be getting stronger. He does draw Brandon Webb, but Webb has struggled of late. It's borderline, but a high-reward proposition.
• Johnny Cueto's command has been better in his last three starts. We're starting to see more of the guy that had everyone in awe after his first outing. He's still got some growing pains to go through, but the Nationals aren't an offensive powerhouse and Cueto will pitch at home.
• Nothing should steer you away from your studs. Billingsley, Hamels, Duchscherer, Lincecum, and Webb should all be played.
• Early spot start calls, let's go with Jair Jurrjens, Garrett Olson, Cueto, and Andrew Miller.

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