MLB Fantasy Baseball: Tuesday News and Notes

• Scott Kazmir has been either feast or famine against Boston. Obviously, start your studs here, but if you have better options for Mike Lowell (.207) or Kevin Youkilis (.200), it would be wise to use them. Dustin Pedroia is 13-for-21 against Kazmir, good for a .619 AVG. Kazmir's struggles have been on the road, but this tends to be a good matchup for him. Akinori Iwamura is the best play against Kazmir's counterpart, Daisuke Matsuzaka.
• Bengie Molina, Randy Winn, and Aaron Rowand make good starts against Doug Davis. All are well over .300 against Davis and could boost an offense with a couple hits a piece. Conor Jackson, Stephen Drew, Mark Reynolds, and Chris Snyder are all solid plays against Giants starter Barry Zito. 
• Jeff Suppan is not going to be recommended here. Just isn't going to happen. We will say that Corey Patterson hits just .179 against him, while Brandon Phillips is at .217 and Jerry Hairston hits .105. That's all we're going to say. Really. That's it.
• Randy Wolf has only pitched at "The Juicebox" three times since being acquire from the Padres, but he has allowed two runs or less in those three outings. Wolf continues to be a solid option at home, especially given how hot the Astros' offense has been and how well he pitches at home.
• Michael Young and Gerald Laird are the only options, by the numbers, you would want to keep active against Felix Hernandez tonight. Hank Blalock hits just .192, and Josh Hamilton is only 2-for-13. Milton Bradley has been held hitless in 11 at-bats. While Hernandez is 0-3 against Texas, his ERA is just 2.87.
• Adrian Beltre is 7-for-36 against Vicente Padilla, but Ichiro, Raul Ibanez, and Jose Lopez should all be active against Padilla. Ichiro is 19-for-34 against Padilla, good for a .559 AVG. I like those odds.
• Every Cubs regular should be in the lineup against Kyle Lohse. The Cubs have hit .362 against Lohse as a team, and no regular with enough at-bats is below .300. All good signs for Cubs owners. Yes, Lohse has been good at home, but his history against the specific hitters has to outweigh that.
• Brian Bannister on the road is not a good matchup. Keep all Twins active. Conversely, Nick Blackburn has pitched very well at home and has been good in two starts against the Royals this season. Blackburn is a solid spot-option.
• Spot Starts: It's been a rough patch of these, but let's take another chance. Dana Eveland, Nick Blackburn, and Randy Wolf. Backing off Hiroki Kuroda. His numbers on the road are just tough to back, even if it is in San Diego.

Notes for Wednesday

• The Angels have historically destroyed Andy Pettitte. Outside of Torii Hunter, who is just a .214 hitter in 28 at-bats against Pettitte, all Angels regulars should be in your lineup. The team hits .362 against him, and he's struggled in two outings against them this season.
• I continue to be baffled as to how Bronson Arroyo is more widely owned than Josh Johnson or any of the Twins pitchers outside of Scott Baker. Arroyo has struggled all season and is not a good option against Milwaukee. While you might want another options for Corey Hart (.231), all other Brewers you normally would play have good numbers against him. Arroyo also has a 6.12 ERA on the road.
• Kevin Millwood hasn't pitched well against the Mariners this season, having gone 0-2 with a 7.00 ERA. For the most part, all your regular Mariners should be active, as Millwood doesn't have a good track record against them or on the road this season in general.
• Josh Beckett is 2-1 against Tampa this season, with a 2.57 ERA. While he has struggled at home, Beckett has pitched better lately and looked good in his return to the rotation last Friday. He should be active against the Rays.
• Derek Lowe has been good at home, but not so much on the road. Lowe is 3-6 with an ERA over five away from Dodger Stadium. While the matchup at Petco is better than other ballparks, his track record doesn't give me the warm and fuzzies. Reserve him unless you need the innings.
• Ricky Nolasco has struggled on the road, while Brett Myers continues to be red hot. You don't bench Myers until he gives you reason to bench him. His numbers at home have yet to do that against any team.
• Spot Starts: Braden Looper, Kevin Slowey, Armando Galarraga, and James Parr. Parr is going against Livan Hernandez. Considering I could get a hit off of Hernandez, I'm figuring this bodes well. Parr is available in virtually all leagues and hasn't been seen by anyone before. That's usually a good sign for rookie pitchers.

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