Fantasy Baseball Monday News and Notes

There have been a million disasters that were not as bad as what happened to the Red Sox in New York over the weekend. Each night, they seemingly invented new ways to lose. That actually takes more skill than simply winning or losing the games.  

When it came down to how you can creatively strand multiple runners in scoring position over the course of 30-plus innings, the Red Sox were impossible to beat. 

Additionally, and both teams had to have felt this way, the umpiring over the series was abysmal. Strike zones changed not just from inning to inning, but from pitch to pitch. It was strongly evident last night with Bill Miller behind the plate. Andy Pettitte could not be sure if his breaking pitches were strikes from one release to the next. 

Friday night was horrific, as the zone changed over the course of the game. It was to the point that the Red Sox broadcast on NESN stopped putting up their "pitch zone" because it showed, repeatedly, that the umpire behind the plate was wrong. Not just on one pitch, but on nearly every borderline call. 

Jim Joyce's offense on Saturday was egregious. In a 2-0 game, there was no way that Ramon Ramirez was throwing at Alex Rodriguez. Throwing him out made little to no sense. This after no umpire threw out the Yankees no-name reliever for throwing at Dustin Pedroia twice near the head. It would not have mattered if neither player had been thrown out, or both. Just be consistent. 

One more point. If last night was not a reason for ESPN to fire Joe Morgan, there is nothing that will make him go away. He compared Robinson Cano to Bill Mazeroski. Then, he repeatedly talked about swinging quick for five solid minutes with Daniel Bard on the mound.  

The best part, though, was when he turned conventional wisdom on its head by telling the listening audience it was easier for left-handed hitters to hit off-speed pitches from left-handed pitchers than it is for right-handed hitters.  

First, confusing sentence. Second, if that were to be true, why do switch hitters turn around to bat from the right side against lefties? Why do managers pinch hit? And why do they matchup with left-handed specialists? 

All wrong and all bad. 

On to the notes...

Weekend Rewind

• Aramis Ramirez missed the game on Sunday, as he is suffering from some stiffness in his shoulder. Ramirez could be headed for a cortisone shot if the day or two off does not improve the shoulder. The shot would sideline him for an additional two games. Risky proposition to start in weekly leagues, and daily leagues should pay close attention.
• Nelson Cruz resumed some light hitting, but was not available much of the weekend because of the ankle injury. It sounds like he will be limited this week as well from early reports. Another case where weekly leagues may want to look elsewhere for help in the lineup.
• Torii Hunter is again looking to start his rehab assignment. The Angels believe he could spend time this week at high-A ball, working to rejoin the team for their series against the Orioles. Hunter has been delayed once through failing a strength test, but has been running and taking light batting practice through the weekend.
• Michael Cuddyer decided to check in yesterday, hitting two home runs in the victory over the Tigers. The Twins outfielder now has multiple hits in three of his last six games, and is riding a six-game hitting streak. Cuddyer now gets to hit at home against the Royals. At home, he's a .299 hitter, and he is 8-for-21 against the Royals this season.
• Do not expect to see Aaron Cook on the mound come Tuesday. Cook has a problem with his toe that the Rockies are concerned could linger without some rest. The team intends to skip his start on Tuesday and work to see what happens in the back part of the week. He will pitch against the Marlins on Saturday. Jhoulys Chacin could get the call to start against the Pirates.
• Scott Rolen is still out of the lineup for the Reds. Rolen has not played since being hit in the head by a pitch from Jason Marquis a week ago. The decision has been made to keep him inactive for several more days. Those owners in weekly leagues should sit him down this week and hope he can return next.
• Leo Nunez still managed to record a save on Saturday. Despite the fact that Matt Lindstrom has returned from the DL, Nunez is going to keep the closer's role a little while longer. Lindstrom still needs to work off the cobwebs, and has done so through working effective eighth innings so far.
• Randy Wells fell victim to working at Coors Field. His sinker simply did not have any sort of movement, and that caused him to give up five earned runs in his outing. With how good he has been since getting the call, this is nothing owners should be concerned with at this point. Keep using him.
• Aaron Rowand left yesterday's game with an apparent hamstring injury. Rowand laid out to make a fantastic catch halfway through the game, but was not able to do anything after it. Rowand has struggled over the last 30 days, having gone just 11-for-59. A few days off might just do him good.

Monday Notes

• Johnny Cueto has not had tremendous success against the Cardinals. Mark DeRosa missed yesterday's game with tightness in his upper back, and this might not be a bad one for him to sit out as well. DeRosa is only 1-for-13 against Cueto. Otherwise, start all Cardinals as you normally would, especially given Cueto's recent track record. The Reds starter has given up at least four earned runs in five of his last six starts.
• All of a sudden, Russell Martin is doing some hitting again. The Dodgers catcher is hitting .400 over his last 20 at-bats, and is at .357 for August. He has gone 4-for-9 against Jonathan Sanchez. Only concern for owners would be the 3-for-16 of Andre Ethier. Your Dodgers look good to go in all other matchups.
• Hiroki Kuroda has seemingly been the victim of some bad early luck. Kuroda's road ERA looks awful at 4.39, but his WHIP away from home is 1.10 and batters are hitting just .239 against him. While the Dodgers have been struggling of late, Kuroda should be able to hold the San Francisco offense in check.
• Brad Penny is rarely, if ever, going to be at the top of your list for starters. Still, he has gone 5-2 at home and has had only one truly poor outing. While the A's got him for seven runs over five innings in his last Fenway outing, he had allowed just five earned runs in 28.1 innings at home prior to that start.
• The question with the Red Sox offense is if you want to believe the numbers or your eyes. Boston has seen a fair amount of Edwin Jackson from his days with Tampa with mixed results. Look to avoid Jason Varitek, Mike Lowell, and even Kevin Youkilis if you have options available to you. The three have the most at-bats against Jackson, and the highest average is a .238 from Lowell.
• Both Jose Lopez and Ichiro have gone 5-for-11 against Gavin Floyd. That is all you are going to find in terms of history to go on, but it is enough to make sure both are in your lineup. Careful with Floyd today. He is only 4-4 on the road with a 5.58 ERA. Both Cleveland and Kansas City have done a number on him recently away from home.
• Look, Jorge De La Rosa was due to have a rough outing, and the Phillies gave it to him last time out. This time, he will be pitching at home. In Colorado, he has four solid starts in a row behind him, each of which has seen him work into the seventh inning. Look at the Philadelphia start as a bump in the road.
• Looking for trends with the Mets against anyone is hard. When 90 percent of the lineup is on the DL, saying that a team is hitting for a certain average against a pitcher does you no good. Still, David Wright is just 2-for-12 against Doug Davis, and Jeff Francoeur is only 3-for-17.
• If anyone is going to get to Matt Garza, it will be on the road. Garza is only 3-4 away from home with a 4.09 ERA. Still, it has to be done because of command and the long ball. Batters are still only hitting .230 against him on the road. The Angels have the thunder to do it.
• Spot Starts: Kyle Lohse, Doug Davis, Marc Rzepczynski.

Tuesday Notes

• The Royals have limited numbers against Nick Blackburn. Still, expect to see Miguel Olivo in the lineup, as he is 5-for-10 against Blackburn. Mark Teahen would be a decent play as well in this one. Blackburn is 5-0 at home this season and sports a 2.95 ERA in those starts.
• Todd Wellemeyer will get the ball and head back to the rotation for the Cardinals against the Reds. Batters are still hitting .299 against him at home, and the Reds hammered the starter in his only start against them this season. Wellemeyer has had some poor results as a starter, and the Reds offense could do some damage.
• Look to get Randy Winn in your lineup against Randy Wolf. Winn is 7-for-19 against the Dodgers starter. Use your other Giants as you normally would. There are no major red flags that would have you sitting any of your regulars in this one.
• The Red Sox will have Junichi Tazawa taking John Smoltz's turn in the rotation on Tuesday. Tazawa was thrown into the fire against the Yankees over the weekend. He looked alright in one inning, but did have several balls hit hard against him. Tazawa's command and location will be the major issue. He is young, and this should not be a spot start to pursue in the short term.
• Matt Diaz has gone 6-for-13 against John Lannan, and most of the Braves have had decent success against the Washington starter. Keep as many available as you can. While Lannan has pitched well, his best work has come at home. Lannan is 3-7 on the road with a 5.62 ERA in 2009.
• Spot Starts: Rick Porcello, Blackburn, J.A. Happ.

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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.