Fantasy Baseball: Thursday News and Notes

I have to take the opportunity here to complain. 

Today is Jun. 18. New England has yet to break 85 degrees for the month. There has been actually too much rain in this area.

Plants are actually dying from over watering. The weatherman this morning told me that I should be prepared for rain straight through Sunday in one way or another. 

So, explain to me why people have sprinkler systems going, then?

Sorry, end of the rant. 

In any case, be careful with the games in the New York and Boston areas today. There could be a couple washouts. 

On to the notes. 

Wednesday Rewind

• The Blue Jays had their worst day of the season before they even took the field. Toronto placed ace Roy Halladayon the DL with a groin strain. Halladay is expected to be activated when the DL stint ends without issue on Jun. 28. On top of that, Toronto lost closer Scott Downs with a foot injury suffered while running the bases the other night. Look for B.J. Ryan to get another shot at this one. All this is before Casey Janssen also headed to the DL with a forearm injury.
• The good news is that Toronto then got a solid performance out of Scott Richmond, who is likely to be in the rotation for the short-term. Richmond struck out 11 last night, giving up just five hits and one run over eight innings of work. Richmond has been a pleasant surprise early in the season, and should look to get some regular work as a result of the injuries. He has been treated more like a fifth starter, being skipped on occasion. That is less likely to happen now.
• Sticking with this game, Jamie Moyer continues to struggle against the Blue Jays' bats. Moyer gave up six runs on ten hits in six innings of work. His numbers against Toronto are simply not good. The bad news is that owners will not be able to take advantage of this one for the rest of the season.
• While Garrett Olson did record the win last night, remember that he is only holding this spot in the rotation warm until the return of Ryan Rowland-Smith. Olson pitched through six innings, giving up three runs on just two hits and a walk. The Mariners' starter is doing well enough to keep himself in the conversation, but Rowland-Smith's control will get him back, and the team has jerked Brandon Morrow around enough this season.
• The only thing that may help Olson? The Mariners just placed Erik Bedardon the disabled list. Bedard was skipped against Colorado because of the shoulder injury, and has been placed on the DL retroactive to Jun. 8. He is scheduled to see the fabled Dr. Lewis Yocum this week. The move is hopefully a precaution, and Bedard would be eligible to return late next week.
• Brad Penny put together another solid start for Boston last night, going five innings and allowing just one unearned run. He continues to struggle with pitch efficiency, as he needed 100 pitches to last through the five innings. Still, he has value. Boston likely will not trade him until they know what John Smoltz will do in the rotation. He looked good in AAA, but the game changes in the big stadium.
• Hunter Pence put together a solid game last night, picking up four hits and two home runs against the Rangers. Pence struggled prior to the weekend, but is now five for his last 16 and is hitting .400 against Texas this season. The Astros draw the Rangers again tonight, and Pence has hit .382 in Arlington for his career.
• It was a night of firsts last night for two rookies. Both Matt Wieters and Andrew McCutchenwent went deep for their first home runs of the season. In the case of Wieters, the home run also gave him his first professional RBI. McCutchen is on fire, putting up runs, RBI, and steals while hitting north of .330. It is unlikely that he continues at this pace all season, but the damage he is doing makes him valuable in deeper fantasy leagues already.
• Torii Hunter made a surprise appearance yesterday, entering the game as a pinch hitter and going 1-for-2 in the process. Hunter bruised his ribs crashing into a wall earlier this week, and he was not expected to spend much time in the lineup against the Giants. With the Angel off until Friday, it is likely we see Hunter return to the starting lineup thanks to a couple more days off.

Thursday Notes

• You have to like the Astros this evening against the Rangers' Vicente Padilla. Lance Berkman and Miguel Tejada have had good success against the Rangers' starter. Berkman and Blum both have two home runs against Padilla. Ivan Rodriguez could be on the pine today. He is just 5-for-23 against Padilla.
• Gavin Floyd's road numbers are largely skewed by three bad outings in early May. In those three starts, he gave up a total of 20 earned runs in 15 innings. While his last few outings have been at home, he seems to be back on track. In his last 37.2 innings, he has given up just seven earned runs. Keep in mind how inept the Cubs' offense has been.
• Matt Garza has pitched well on the road, allowing batters to hit just .205 against him, and he has been tough on lefties most of the season. Still, his last four starts have shown some command issues. Garza walked four and gave up seven hits last time out. He has given up five home runs in his last four outings and now goes to Colorado. Be careful with Brad Hawpe and Todd Helton, based on Garza's splits, but otherwise your Rockies should be fine.
• Aubrey Huff is 5-for-8 against Livan Hernandez, and has hit two home runs in those at-bats. The Orioles as a team have hit .326 against the Mets' starter. It is hard to see Hernandez putting together a solid outing on the road, despite his 3-1 record. With batters approaching .300 against him away from home, the numbers just are not there.
• Brandon Morrow gets the ball for Seattle, as Jarrod Washburn has been pushed to Friday with soreness in his back. The Mariners wanted Morrow to go to AAA to get some work in there, but have not been able to do so as yet. A betting man likes the Padres today, and starting Adrian Gonzalez and Kevin Kouzmanoff would make sense in this one.
• Do not be scared off by Ubaldo Jimenez. All of his major struggles have come against the Dodgers. Without those starts, his performances are much more spectacular. At home, he continues to pitch well, going 3-0 if you back out games against Los Angeles. He is 2-0 in three June starts, putting up an ERA under 3.00.
• With the Marlins in the bottom third of baseball in terms of average and on base percentage, Jon Lester should be dominant again. Lester has had three solid outings in a row of double-digit strikeouts. The only question with this one will be whether or not they can get the game in around the rain.
• Look to Orlando Cabrera against Randy Wolf. Cabrera is a .316 hitter in 38 at-bats, including a home run, against Wolf. While Wolf looked good in a rain shortened outing against the Rangers; he had given up 11 earned runs in his prior two outings. Posting a 5.71 ERA in June and a 4.73 ERA at home, he is better left on the bench.
• As hot as Aaron Hill has been, he is just 1-for-12 against Joe Blanton in his career. Look to keep using Vernon Well and Alex Rios, as both have been strong against the Phillies' starter. For his part, Blanton is 3-0 in his last six outings and has held opponents to three runs or less in each of his last four outings.
• Spot Starts: Jimenez, Rick Porcello, Nick Blackburn

Friday Notes

• Expect to see Ronny Paulino behind the plate against the Yankees, as he is 6-for-9 against Andy Pettitte. You were likely already starting Hanley Ramirez, and given that he is 5-for-7 against Pettitte, it continues to be a good move. Pettitte continues to have command issues, going over the 100 pitch mark before entering the seventh inning in each of his last two outings.
• This could be the game that Alfonso Soriano breaks out of his funk. Soriano is 5-for-8 against White Sox starter Jose Contreras. Of those five hits, three have gone over the wall. Contreras has put together back-to-back solid outings, going eight innings both times without allowing a run. Again, with how poorly the Cubs have been offensively of late, this is not a bad spot start in deeper leagues.
• There are some surprising numbers from Randy Johnson this season. While he has been very tough in his last four outings, lefties are still hitting .321 against him this season while righties are only hitting .242. Johnson has registered a 5-2 record at home this season, and has given up just seven earned runs in his last 29.1 innings.
• While Kenshin Kawakami has certainly not been a model of pitch efficiency, his numbers since the start of May are worth nothing. Kawakami has not allowed more than three earned runs in any start since Apr. 26, giving him a run of eight decent outings. The Red Sox tend to struggle with pitchers they have never seen, and that is what they will get with Kawakami. Against Daisuke Matsuzaka, it is likely Kawakami could get a win even with just an average outing.
• Keep riding Josh Outman. His start against the Giants was not spectacular, but it was his first loss in his last ten appearances. Outman has looked solid in most all his starts, allowing three or fewer runs in all but one time to the hill. Against the Padres on the road, this is a good opportunity to use him.
• Spot Starts: Kawakami, Outman, Contreras

Collin Hager writes The Elmhurst Pub fantasy blog. You can get your questions answered by sending an email to [e-mail]. He's also on Twitter @TheRoundtable.