Rounding The Bases: April 6th

I heart Matt Wieters !  I heart him very, very much.  The second year backstop for the Baltimore Orioles is going to be an absolute stud this year and he got off to a great start with a home run in his first game.  I am definitely suggesting that you at least look into getting him on your team, although perhaps after a home run it might not be the best time.  He is worth trading up for if you have a sub-par catcher and he is worth trading down from if you have a top-tier catcher and perhaps you can improve your team somewhere else.  This kid is going to be an offensive force for a long time, and he served notice of that tonight. 

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Wieters isn’t the only exciting player that the Orioles have on offense, as Adam Jones collected three hits including his first home run of the season.  He is a speed and power combination that has a chance to be an All-Star for a long time and he is certainly a guy that you want to have on your fantasy teams.  Jones has a great chance to hit .285 with 25+ home runs and 20+ steals as long as he stays healthy. Jones is absolutely a stud in the making and 2010 should be his coming out party. 

A guy I like in a pitch and ditch capacity this year will be the Orioles’ Kevin Millwood .  He is an established veteran, which is nice, but he isn’t going to wow you at all with his statistics most of the time.  The Orioles should score some runs, but I don’t think Millwood is good enough (not to mention the division that they play in) for him to be worth holding on your roster for the entire season.  On a night where he has a good matchup against a sub-par pitching foe or a less than stellar offensive opponent he could be worth grabbing in the short term.

Who was that guy on the mound for the Giants today and where was Matt Cain ?  Somehow Barry Zito got the second game of the season, but he was out there and was amazing.  Zito threw six shutout innings with five strikeouts against the Astros as he improved to 1-0 on the season.  Now, before you get too excited, the Astros aren’t exactly Murderer’s Row here, so this can possibly be less impressive.  There is no way that I make a move to pick up Zito right now, but I might pay a little more attention to his next start.  

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Ian Stewart hit another home run on Tuesday, giving him two on the season.  Stewart had three hits which included a triple and a double.  There is going to be a tendency to overrate Stewart because of his first two days as well as the year he had last year, but just keep your expectations in check and things will be just fine.  Stewart will do well and I like him, but he will slow down before too long.  

Rickie Weeks had a hit and a home run on Wednesday, but he is a guy that I urge you to be careful about and not to put too much pressure on.  Weeks is a great hitter, but he is just a guaranteed injury, and a guy that I can’t put too much faith in. If you own Weeks, take this opportunity to try to trade him to someone who doesn’t aware of his history and move him while you have a chance.  

Joe Saunders struggled today in his first start of the season, and I don’t know why the Twins have so much faith in him. Saunders doesn’t have electric stuff and he doesn’t strike out a bunch of guys.  Saunders allowed five runs in five innings and he gave up three home runs.  He has had some good numbers in the past, but he is not someone that I want on my team.  He probably isn’t someone that I want on my team, but in a pitch and ditch capacity he could help you in a few stats. 

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