MLB Fantasy Baseball: Friday News and Notes

Well, it wasn't the most exciting of trade deadlines. Every year, it seems to be slightly anti-climatic, but we didn't even see many small deals made over the course of the day. That makes it much easier from fantasy owners' perspectives, since there are fewer moving parts at the end of the day and fewer decisions to make.

We broke down the Manny trade last night, so please check that one out. Let's get into today's notes.

• The Tigers placed Todd Jones on the DL. Likely with a bruised ego. Jones hasn't been anywhere near as effective, in fact, you could argue he has been this season's Joe Borowski. He'll get some saves, but give you a heart attack while he does it. Kyle Farnsworth could very likely take over the job. Look for Farnsworth and Rodney to be the two guys grabbing saves at the end of the Tigers' bullpen. (Side note: Talking to a friend from Detroit, and he told me Tigers fans think this is the answer to their problems...I didn't know what to say to that...)
• The Brewers' pitching largely failed them over the series with the Cubs. It means we've learned a little bit about them as a team. As good as they are, they may not quite be ready for prime time. Good to note as we head in to August and a couple tough series come up against these same Cubs, but this time on the road.
• It's never good to hear a pitcher talking in terms of needing a miracle, but that's what we hear Tim Hudson saying regarding his elbow. Hudson doesn't seem overly optimistic regarding his potential for return. If you're looking for a fill in, there are several solid options that are still available in most formats. Look to (you guessed it) Scott Baker and Paul Maholm. Both have been among the best in the league over the last month and a half.
• Radhames Liz was sent down by Baltimore. We saw flashes of brilliance from Liz, but he certainly needs to refine his command and learn to pitch a little bit more. Liz is a thrower that hasn't quite refined the location portion to his game. He was very comfortable at home, but struggled in small ballparks. He'll be back, and when he is, he's worth a flier in deep, keeper leagues.
• Good pieces from the Marlins game, besides the offense. Anibal Sanchez was able to throw 95 pitches and nearly got through six innings against the Rockies. Sanchez gave up just two runs on six hits and walked two while striking out four. It's a VERY small sample, but keep an eye on his next two starts and see what develops here. The talent is undeniable.
• What is going to be hard for anyone who owns Yankees' outfielders/DH's will be determining who plays when. Last night, Xavier Nady was back in the lineup and managed to knock a deep home run. If anything, it seems this trade could almost bring down the value of all concerned. Color me curious.
• Making sense of Justin Morneau's season is tough. He's a career .280 hitter that is now batting .320. He's at .360 over his last seven games, with three home runs and 13 RBI over that stretch. His three-year trend suggests a 20-point drop in average after the All-Star break, but so far we haven't seen that come out. Why? July is his best month. Once the calendar changes to August, Morneau has hit only .241 since 2005. Sure, we advocate riding streaks, but if you have other options, exploring a trade isn't a bad idea.
• Derek Lowe has pitched well enough to win in five of his last six home outings. But in that time, he's only come away with two wins. Lowe is pitching very well in the confines of Chavez Ravine, and is a decent matchup-play, especially against division opponents. When you have a pitcher going well and a weak matchup like that, you need to exploit it.
• There has to be some concern over the numbers we'll see from Nate McLouth and Ryan Doumit the rest of the way. Without any other true protection in that lineup, their numbers will likely suffer. It's a tough position, but likely the case. Doumit is worth keeping because of his duel eligibility, but McLouth could be a guy to sell-high now.
• Rough night for the spot starters. Even sticking with home-team starts, there was just a lot of offense and a lot of bad pitching. The trading deadline will do that to some guys. The one major surprise of all those that should have pitched well was Justin Verlander. Don't look at this as him reverting back to his April self. Blip on the radar only. Keep him in the lineup.

Notes for today's games:

• Other options for David DeJesus should be explored, as he's just 3-21 against Vazquez. Every other Royal should be in the lineup though. Vazquez's ERA is over five and the Royals have hit .320 against him in two starts this season. He's also just 2-6 on the road this season with an ERA over five
• Frank Thomas will likely be activated for the series against Boston. If that's the case, he has great career numbers against Tim Wakefield, sporting .283/7/13 numbers in 53 career at-bats.
• Hard to believe that a guy with a 2.44 ERA at home can be 0-4, but Odalis Perez is exactly that. Perez is a decent play against a Reds offense that could be without Griffey and doesn't travel well. He's a sneaky play for peripheral stats alone.
• Not many Yankees have a decent record against Ervin Santana. Derek Jeter remains an obvious play, and is hitting .500 in 12 at-bats against the Angels' starter. Only Richie Sexson and Robinson Cano have more than five at-bats and are hitting over .200 against him. Santana is also 8-2 on the road with a 3.77 ERA so far this season. A good matchup for him.
• The Indians were able to get to one of the better Minnesota starters last night, but Nick Blackburn has pitched well against the Wigwammers. Blackburn is 2-0 in three starts with a 1.31 ERA in those appearances. Even better, he's 5-2 with a 2.70 ERA in dome sweet dome this season.
• Aubrey Huff has gone for a .324 average against Jarrod Washburn, and Jay Payton has posted .417/2/5. Keep them active if you can against Seattle tonight. At .292, Kevin Millar deserves a shot if you need the bat as well.
• Because of the lack of offense now in Pittsburgh, most starters are going to make good plays, especially those on better teams like the Cubs. Jason Marquis may not be lighting the world on fire, but he certainly has been able to be effective against teams he should beat. This is one of those nights.
• Ubaldo Jimenez has given up three runs or less in each of his last six starts. The Rockies starter has struggled on the road, but the numbers are skewed to the front-half of the year. There are worse options if you could use a few innings tonight.
• The wheels have yet to fall off Kyle Lohse, and the Phillies' numbers against him haven't been good. Keep your stars in, but bench borderline players like Jenkins, who is just 4-22 against Lohse. Jimmy Rollins hasn't been great, but there likely aren't better options for him available.
• Spot start calls? Go with Perez, Clayton Kershaw, Luke Hochevar, and Nick Blackburn.

Notes for Saturday's games:

• We went through this last time—Mark Buehrle owns the Royals. Let's just make that abundantly clear. He's a fantastic play, and I'd bench all Royals unless there were no other decent options available. It doesn't seem to matter where these teams play, Buehrle has their number. Yes, we understand he's going to get lit up now, but it's a chance to be taken.
• Jered Weaver hasn't been very good on the road, while Mike Mussina is a very solid pitcher at home. Weaver has an ERA well over four when he heads away from sunny Anaheim. No Yankee has enough at-bats to make any numbers predictors, but bench Richie Sexson, who is just 1-14.
• Vlad Guerrero is just 5-26, Gary Matthews is 4-19, and Mark Teixeira is just 4-25 against Mike Mussina. Your other Angels are still all solid plays, especially Torii Hunter.
• The 'Table has had quite the man-crush on Dana Eveland all year, but not on the road and not against Boston. Eveland cannot pitch in smaller ballparks, and Fenway certainly qualifies as that. Keep all Red Sox available.
• Paul Byrd should not be started on the road. Paul Byrd has a 6.51 ERA on the road. Paul Byrd is 0-2 against Minnesota. Paul Byrd has an ERA over seven against Minnesota. Paul Byrd, in both scenarios, allows guys to hit over .300. Clear?
• With the exception of one start against Colorado, Paul Maholm's last 10 outings have all been very good. Sure, there is concern that he may not get the win given the offense now behind him, but he'll provide good WHIP and ERA numbers to make the start worth while against the Cubs.
• Carlos Beltran is 7-15 against Roy Oswalt, but Oswalt is good enough against the rest of the Mets to make the start in most formats. If you're going to use him, it's best to do that at home.
• While Houston's offense is sputtering, Johan Santana is giving up a fair amount of flyballs and will step in to a hitter-friendly park. Keep all Astros active and don't worry about facing an ace like Santana in this scenario.
• There are good times to use pitchers, and Hiroki Kuroda at home against a Diamondbacks team that hasn't produced much offense is one of them. He's a solid spot option in all leagues.
• Adrian Gonzalez and Kevin Kouzmanoff are both good plays against Barry Zito, but Zito has had some success in Petco. It's a good park for him and a good option if you are looking for a cheap win, even against Jake Peavy.
• Spot start calls? Go with Zito, Kuroda, Kevin Slowey, and Ricky Nolasco.

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