Fantasy Baseball Tonight 6/8: Shortstops, Starters, and Outfielders

Hopefully, everyonoe was patient with Alexei Ramirez. He is now hitting second for the White Sox, has homered in back to back games, and the guy who was benched less than a month ago is far in the rear view mirror. 

I’m still not sure that he will reach his stats from last year, particularly the homers, but he is again someone that you can feel very good about starting on your team. He is a nice speed and power combination, and appears to be back in manager Ozzie Guillen’s good graces, which is an important place to be.

Jeremy Bonderman made his first start for the Tigers since June 1, 2007, and although it wasn’t great, it was at least encouraging to see him back out there.

I really don’t see Bonderman being a fantasy option in 2009 if you are looking for any great results. He had a couple of seasons with decent strikeout numbers, but his ERAs were always in the 4.00s and 5.00s. 

I would stay away from Bonderman until he puts together four or five great starts in a row. He’s been out a long time, and you just don’t get back on the horse.

It is just a few days away before Fighting Chance Fantasy officially becomes Fantasy Baseball Tonight. Many of you have already made the switch and I appreciate the feedback I have gotten. Anyone who checks out the new site, I want to hear what you think.

Jason Marquis won again this year, and continues to make me look bad. 

I have been telling you for his last few starts that it is just a matter of time before he goes in the toilet. And while he is now 8-4 after controlling the Cardinals for most of the night, I stand by my assessment. He is a career .500 pitcher with low strikeouts and a poor ERA. 

His fall will be on the horizon, so please don’t put too much stock in this nice run that Marquis is putting together.

Troy Tulowitzki hit his first homer in nearly a month, and now has three hits in the past two days. Is this his way of finally breaking out of his early-season funk?  Tough to say. 

I still have a hard time believing that he is as bad as he has been over the last year and two months. Obviously injuries have played a large part in his downfall from his exciting rookie year, but you can’t argue with numbers. 

I know a lot of you have given up on him, and I can’t exactly blame you, but keep an eye on him.  The talent is there, if he can stay healthy we could see a return to form.

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Andy Pettitte is now 6-2 after beating the Rays, but if you look at his other numbers, I don’t know how much of a help he really is for your team.

His ERA is well over 4.00, and his walks aren’t that far below his strikeouts.  His WHIP is still over 1.50 also, and all of this adds up to a guy that I would leave in free agency.

I know he has a well-known name and a good win/loss record, but his peripheral numbers are far from impressive, so unless you are in a league that rewards wins heavily, I would stay away.

Sean West had his best start as a pro, and the Marlins’ prospect is looking pretty decent. 

He came into this year ranked as the fourth best prospect in the Marlins’ organization, and has yet to give up more than three earned runs in any of his four starts. He hasn’t been impressive with the strikeout/walk ratio however, with nine Ks and eight walks in sixteen innings before tonight.

He made up for that though, with six whiffs and just one walk in eight innings of work.  He had some success in the minors, but honestly, I think the Marlins might have rushed him up. 

Keep an eye on him, but I wouldn’t go making the move to pick him up right at this point.

Andrew McCutchen continues to surpass my expectations at the beginning of his career, and is hitting .400 in the first five games of his season at the big league level. McCutchen was 4-for-7 in the fifteen-inning affair with a double and two triples, and I am gaining more and more confidence in him by the day.

It's obvious that he is the future in Pittsburgh, and although the trade of Nate McLouth was still dumb, this kid is easing the blow. If he is still available in a keeper league, I would find a way to pick him up.

Ever since I questioned Adam Lind on the Tuesday Fantasy Baseball Tonight podcast, he is hitting like a house of fire.

With his two homer game on Monday, Lind now has fourteen hits and three homers since last Tuesday, not to mention he has raised his average nearly 30 points. 

I still think that this might be a little hot streak, but if you own Lind, reap the rewards and keep him in your lineup. 

Now, I’m not saying that he is the next big thing, but for those of you looking for an extra outfielder, take a look at Tony Gwynn Jr. of the San Diego Padres. 

Since coming over in a trade with Milwaukee on May 21, Gwynn is hitting .320 with two RBI and two stolen bases. He had another two hits on Monday, and is really starting to open some eyes. 

He will need to show some more speed to be a viable fantasy player, but in deeper leagues, I think he is already worth a look.

Mailing List

I’m not going to stop bringing up the mailing list until I get a day where I don’t get a request to join it. 

For those of you who haven’t seen it yet, when I find news earlier in the day I will send an email to you about whatever it might be. If you were on the mailing list you would have found out about the callups of Matt Wieters, Fernando Martinez, Nolan Reimold and others. You also would have been up-to-date on the trade of Nate McLouth, and injuries to Jose Reyes, etc. 

This mailing list is your way to get a step up on your competition. Anyone who is on the list, please leave a comment below on whether you think that you have benefitted from the list.  Send an email to either [e-mail] or [e-mail] and put Mailing List in the subject line.

As always, your comments and questions are welcome at [e-mail]. I guarantee a response within 18 hours.

Also, don’t miss the “Fantasy Baseball Tonight” podcast four nights a week from Monday-Thursday.  

The Big Show on Wednesday is co-hosted by Todd Farino of fantasybaseballsearch.com, RC Rizza of junkyardjake.com and myself, Ryan Hallam at fightingchancefantasy.com. 

To hear the show go to www.blogtalkradio.com/the_true_guru. You can also hear me weekly on the Tuesday Night show. 

Join me with Jeff Mans every Tuesday night at 10pm EST for all the the info and craziness we can pack into one hour. A can’t miss if you plan on winning your league.