MLB Fantasy Baseball: Friday News and Notes

Notes for Saturday

• Look to use as many regular Orioles as you can. The A's will be playing their second doubleheader in three days on Saturday, meaning that pitching will be thin. The Orioles should be able to take advantage of that, especially by the start of game two. Get them active.
• Chad Billingsley struggled in his first two outings against Arizona, but has been able to recover in his last two appearances. Billingsley gets them at home, where he is 8-4 on the season with a 3.26 ERA. Keep Stephen Drew (.375), Chris Young (.421), and Mark Reynolds (.308, 2 home runs) active. Conor Jackson is just 3-for-20 against Billingsley.
• He's finally made me snap, but Justin Verlander should only be used against Minnesota if you need the innings. Verlander's struggles have been too great in his last two starts (and six of his last eight for that matter) to recommend using him on the road against the Twins. Outside of Jason Kubel, your Twins' regulars are all good plays against Verlander, who is 4-7 on the road this season.
• Ben Sheets will get the ball against Jake Peavy on Saturday. The Padres lack of offense should be enough to convince you that Sheets is a decent play. Even with the groin injury that pulled him from his last outing, Sheets' stats dictate that he should be on the mound for fantasy purposes.
• Jamie Moyer has been up and down but is 8-3 on the road with a sub-3.00 ERA. He's just 1-1 against the Mets, but his start on the road was solid. He went seven innings, giving up just one run on two hits. Teams in need of a cheap win should look here. Pedro Martinez has struggled against the Phillies. Make sure all your Phillies are in the lineup.
• Paul Maholm's streak of six-inning starts came to an end last time out, but he gets San Francisco's offense in this next start. The only concern would be if Pittsburgh looked to limit the innings for Maholm, as he has thrown more innings already than he has in the last three seasons. They likely won't want to push him more than 15 percent beyond last season's numbers, which probably gives him another start or two. If available, he's a solid spot-start for teams that need peripheral stats if nothing else.
• Roy Oswalt is 1-0 in two starts at Coors Field since 2005. Matt Holliday and Brad Hawpe remain decent plays, but the rest of the Rockies lineup has struggled against Oswalt. His last six starts have been very solid; keep him active.
• Frank Catalanatto will be in the lineup all weekend against Boston, as he feasts on Red Sox pitching. He's a .296 hitter against Tim Wakefield, so if you need offense, look here. Marlon Byrd is 4-for-8 lifetime as well. Michael Young is just a .238 hitter. Obviously, play Josh Hamilton (no history of which to speak), but Milton Bradley is only 2-for-14 against Wake.
• Victor Martinez, Jhonny Peralta, and Ryan Garko should all be good against Gil Meche, but Grady Sizemore is only a .222 hitter. Start him, but temper expectations accordingly.
• Spot starts: Tim Wakefield, Todd Wellemeyer (Scott Olsen has been bad on the road), Paul Maholm, and Scott Baker.

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