The Fantasy Baseball Wolf Hunt: Who's Dressing Up This Week?

Well, after a long hiatus—for several reasons—I am finally back, and what better way to come back than right here in beautiful Fantasyland!

I have decided to periodically write a section called the Wolf Hunt. The Wolf Hunt will sniff out players who look on the up and up but are really in sheep's clothing—protecting you, the fantasy lover, from certain doom!

Armed with a can of beer, a fistful of stats, and a gut feeling that can't be ignored, I go deep into the forest to seek out the enemy so he never sees your roster!

Enjoy.

At around this point in the season, managers begin shuffling around their rosters and making more frequent adjustments in an effort to remain competitive; pitching is usually where you see it the most.

But for managers, especially newbies, finding a quality pitcher that will produce weekly is one thing; finding an actual quality starter is another.

Right about now, if you scour the waiver wire, you’ll find a thick forest of stats, records, and names to choose from; some identifiable, some...not so familiar. But beware, my young friends, for in this forest there lurk cunning wolves that are cleverly disguised as league-leading pitchers bound for greatness.

Do not be fooled by their impressive above-.625 winning percentages. Do not be swayed by their much-talked-about hot streak. It’s all a trap to sucker you in at just the right time when they begin to fall off the fantasy radar.

I have identified five, but that doesn’t mean there aren’t more lurking within the shadows.

Let’s hide behind that bush over there and take a look at the pack, shall we?

We will start with the biggest wolf in sheep’s clothing thus far.

Shairon Martis

OK, I want everyone to slowly back AWAY from the mouse, and DO NOT click the “pick up as free agent” tab right now. This guy is like the Zorro of baseball right now, posting a 5-0 record, so it is very, very easy to think he is gonna help your lineup.

Trust me, it isn’t gonna help.

When Martis is on the mound, the Nationals magically come alive, mount comebacks, and find ways to pull out wins, but if you look closer at the stats, you’ll realize a 25/21 K/BB ratio with a 4.86 ERA won’t cut it as time goes on.

In addition to this, his last four wins have come against teams with a combined 80-99 record. With the Phillies, Mets, and Reds next on his list, you can be sure the bigger boys of the National League will finally expose him for who he really is.

Matt Palmer

The American League’s version of Zorro is the Angels’ Palmer, who is also enjoying a 5-0 record. But in his last three outings, Palmer’s ERA has begun to decline, and his 21/15 K/BB ratio isn’t all that electrifying.

Sure, Angel fans may tout his “brilliant” performance against the Red Sox in which he struck out eight, but any true Red Sox fan will tell you the club has struggled on the road this year; had Palmer played Boston on their own turf, things would have been significantly different.

Palmer should continue to decline, and aside from one last easy outing against Seattle coming up, he will then take on red-hot Detroit and Tampa Bay, inevitably relegating him to the waiver wire faster than his subpar fastball.

Jason Marquis

6-3 with a 27/19 K/BB ratio with a declining 4.45 ERA may appear enticing to new managers, so why not pick him up? Well, ask any Cubs fan, and we’ll tell you firsthand this guy is a ticking time bomb. His “tell” is the non-impressive numbers that are shadowed by a shiny record.

Marquis is still showing just how hittable he really is, and considering he is only averaging three K’s a game, a closer look reveals this wolf’s true identity; you’re not fooling anyone, Mr. Marquis!

Considering he will face an incredibly hot Padres team next, followed by an Astros team that pounded him for 10H and 9R his last time out, it would be best to stay as far away from Marquis as possible.

Rick Porcello

Take a 3-3 pitcher, have him garner wins against Cleveland, Colorado, and Oakland, and all of a sudden he is a red-hot pitcher? Nah. Granted, these are games he should win, but it doesn’t mean he’s hot, nor does it mean he’s getting hot.

Porcello’s other two wins came against a Twins team that was struggling at the time and a paltry Mariners team that can’t find a way to close out a game to save its life, so don’t be fooled by this wolf lest ye be bitten.

A closer analysis of his future reveals a road game against Kansas City, a team who already beat him once, and another outing against Boston in Boston—not gonna be pretty!

Eric Stults

OK, it’s not technically his fault he made the Wolf’s list, but for now, you might want to steer clear of Stults—I think he was bitten. Stults is posting a 4-1 record, which may seem nice, and his 26/16 K/BB ratio may seem interesting, and even his 3.82 ERA may seem intriguing—but there are some problems.

Stults’ last couple of outings has been less than impressive, and he seems to be displaying command problems from the thumb injury he was supposedly healed from.

But that isn’t the weird part.

If you look at Stults, he is like that kid with the overly protective mother that won’t let him out of the yard. Seven of his eight games were against division opponents only; his only other game was against the Marlins, and that didn’t go too well.

If that isn’t enough, Mommy is finally gonna let him out to play, and he’ll face the Cubs and Phillies right out of the gate.

Keep your distance for now with Stults as he deals with his thumb issues and the bullies of the league, and you’ll thank me later.

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Remember: The forest is filled with cute little bunnies, wonderful foliage, and a great collection of pleasantries, but in the shadows the wolves lurk.