Fantasy Baseball: Friday News and Notes

While the weekends are no doubt favorites of every person out there working, the one that really signifies the end of summer is not quite as much fun. Sure, kids have been back at school for a few days now, but Labor Day really calls summer festivities to a stop.

This weekend is still fantasy baseball playoffs, but the start of college football last night means that the real playoffs are just around the corner. Teams certainly are making roster moves and starting to protect some of their players. It is apparent that the next few weeks will be used to keep players fresh for many playoff contenders.

It becomes that much more important to check lineups as soon as they become available. Unfortunately, especially for teams that are no longer in contention, starters will change on a daily basis. Why should a team take a chance with a player that might be hurt when there is no hope for them going anywhere beyond a golf course in October?

Fortunately, there are still some races to be had. The AL wildcard is still available, as are divisional races in the NL and their wild card. Some teams will play to be spoilers, others will see what youth can bring to the table.

For those of you in the final days of the regular season, maximize your opportunities this weekend and best of luck!

On to the notes.

Thursday Rewind

• Buster Poseyis starting to become more of a figure than Bill Brasky (google it). Is he a solid catcher? Yes. Is he going to hit 25 home runs next year? No. Just stop now.
  
  As pointed out by my friend Michael Sylvie, the Matt Wieters hype got out of control before drafts last season, and this is on its way there. Posey is going to hit around .270 over a full season with 15 home runs in his first year. Write it down. Remember it. He will not make a deer say his name.
• While Nate Robertson replaced a struggling and sore Armando Galarraga, Galarraga will replace a sore Jarrod Washburn on Saturday. Washburn will miss his turn in the rotation with soreness in his knee.
  
  The pitcher has struggled some since coming over from Seattle, and the few days off could help get him back on track. Considering he has just one win in six starts with Detroit, it cannot hurt.
• Tim Wakefield looks like he will start for the Red Sox on Saturday against the White Sox. Wakefield was skipped his last time through the rotation after suffering a setback with his injured back. He received a cortisone shot in his back and reports are out that he is good to go in this one.
• Watching Pedro Martinez when he is on is just awesome. No other way to put it. Last night, he was just that against the Giants. Martinez went seven innings and only needed 87 pitches to strike out nine hitters. He allowed just one run on five hits in his first "real" home start. By the way, he gets the Nationals in his next start.
• One of the worst things in fantasy for a player to be is day-to-day. Josh Hamilton suffered a pinched nerve in his back and will be re-examined by the team when they arrive in Baltimore for the weekend series.
  
  It will then be decided if he can play. Right now, he is the dreaded day-to-day. Keep him out of the lineup tonight if you can and look at the situation again tomorrow.
• Hard to believe he recorded his 10th win of the season last night, but such has been a weird season for Ricky Nolasco.
  
  The Marlins starter still has an ERA over 5.00, but that number is driven largely by one bad start since his return from the minors and the disaster that was his early season. Nolasco still is 12th in strikeouts in the National League, having struck out 154 hitters.
• Alfonso Soriano continues to have some rough times. The outfielder is still struggling with a knee injury, and looked bad in every aspect of the game last night.
  
  He went 0-for-4 with three strikeouts and slipped going after a ball in the outfield. Some sites are concerned that he could be shut down at any time based on the continued decline in production.
• Jake Peavy is back to hoping he can simply play catch on Friday. Peavy has been sidelined most of the season, first with an ankle injury and now with an elbow injury. There is no doubt he wants to pitch, but the White Sox are going to be cautious, especially as their playoff hopes fly away.
• Ricky Romero certainly has talent, but he seems to be wearing down and shutting down in the same way the rest of his Blue Jays teammates are. Romero has been hit hard by the better offenses in the AL East. At 32 percent owned, there are better options available for the few still hanging on to the pitcher outside of keeper leagues.

Friday Notes

• The Yankees have had a lot of at-bats against Roy Halladay. In over 80 appearances, Derek Jeter has hit just .230 against the Toronto starter. Other potential problems come in the form of Nick Swisher's 2-for-14 and Melky Cabrera's .214 average in 36 at-bats. Otherwise, play your Yankees as you normally would.
• Do not expect much help tonight from Victor Martinez or David Ortiz tonight. Ortiz is hitting just .174 against Freddy Garcia, while Martinez is just 5-for-23. It is possible we have a Jason Variteksighting tonight. Tek has gone 5-for-17 against the Chicago starter.
• There is not much good in the Colorado lineup that would make owners want to play them against Dan Haren. While the Rockies have not used him much, their best option against Haren is Ryan Spilborghs. The outfielder is 9-for-21 against Haren.
  
  Beyond him, Chris Ianetta leads the charge at 4-for-14. After that, it falls off the cliff. Todd Helton's .235 ranks third in players with more than 10 at-bats.
• Both Jermaine Dye and Alex Rios are hitting under .200 against Paul Byrd. The two have had plenty of at-bats against him, with both posting over 20. A.J. Pierzynski is not much better.
  
  The catcher is hitting only .212 in 33 at-bats against Byrd. Who could lay down the hammer? What about Mark Kotsay? He is a .464 hitter, with 13 hits in 28 at-bats against Byrd. That includes two home runs.
• Adrian Gonzalez has not had good luck against Clayton Kershaw. Gonzalez is just 2-for-13 against the lefty. Kershaw has not received much run support at home, as evidenced by his 3-3 record in 14 starts.
  
  In those games, his ERA is at 2.00 and batters are hitting only .199 against him in 76.1 innings of work. In other words, keep sitting your Padres.
• Some guys you just are not sure what to do with. Ryan Rowland-Smith might be one of them. He has struck out 33 batters over his last nine starts, and was only really hit hard by Detroit on the road. Rowland-Smith draws the A's tonight in a big ballpark.
  
  This is the same team he held to two runs in 6.1 innings last time out. Would an owner rather have him right now than a benched Chris Volstad (still 65 percent owned)? They should.
• Adam Wainwright has been good all season, and the Pirates that are left have little to go on against him. Avoid Ryan Doumit, as he has gone just 2-for-15 against Wainwright. he is the only player left on the Pirates with any sort of numbers to use.
• Do not bet against Wandy Rodriguezat home. The starter is 7-2 with a sub-2.00 ERA when pitching in "The Juicebox." Rodriguez continues to be basically dominant. In his last 31 innings of work at home, he has allowed only one earned run. That is it. One. Batters are hitting only .207 against him at home this season.
• Jered Weaver is hittable on the road. Away from home, the starter has posted a 5.35 ERA despite having a 5-3 record. Jose Guillen has been back in the lineup for the Royals, and he has gone 8-for-18 against Weaver in the past. The Royals do not have much offense to speak of, so the concerns in using Weaver should be minimal.
• Spot Starts: Jeff Niemann, Jason Hammel, Paul Byrd

Weekend Notes

• Vernon Wells has hit .372 against Andy Pettitte. This is going to be one of the few times to ever recommend using him this season. Otherwise, look to the 7-for-21 of John McDonald. Remember, Pettitte has been dominant on the road all season and is already 2-1 against Toronto in 2009.
• Outside of starting Grady Sizemore and Travis Hafner, avoid all your other Indians against Scott Baker. The likes of Shin-Soo Choo and Jhonny Peraltaare hitting .230 and under against the Minnesota starter. Not a good matchup in this one for them.
• Joe Blanton has not allowed more than three earned runs in any of his last 10 starts. Blanton has been very consistent in the second half of the season, and his 3.77 ERA reflects that.
  
  Owners need to recognize that while he does not provide great strikeout numbers, he will help teams with his ERA and WHIP. At 25 percent owned, he is a great pickup against Houston.
• As a team, the Rockies have rocked Doug Davis. Though they have not had a large number of at-bats, the .330 average is still nice to see. Look to all your regulars in this matchup.
  
  Davis has a 4.37 ERA on the road this season, and Colorado has pounded him twice this season. He has a 14.73 ERA in two starts that have seen him total only 7.1 innings.
• Do not trust Nick Blackburn and his .290 BAA on the road against anyone. Against Cleveland this season, he is just 1-2 with a 5.17 ERA. The Indians, as a team, are hitting over .300 against him in 2009. Blackburn has some potential, but he is one pitcher not to look at away from home.
• The Wade Davis era is set to begin in Tampa on Sunday. Davis is scheduled to face Edwin Jackson and the Detroit Tigers. Davis is very highly touted, and this is certainly an audition as the Rays begin to look to next season. Keeper league owners should give him a long look.
• This space does have an unnecessary infatuation with Pirate pitching. Paul Maholmdoes provide reason for that at home. Maholm is 4-2 in 13 starts with a 3.34 ERA. While he has not recorded a win against St. Louis this season in two starts, he has kept his ERA under 4.00 in those starts. In deep leagues or NL-only formats, he is a good start on Sunday.
• Hiroki Kurodawill return to the mound after taking a line drive to the head and suffering a concussion. Kuroda draws a Padres team that if you call them toothless it is a compliment. Kuroda is 2-0 against San Diego this season with a 1.00 WHIP in 11 innings of work. Great start on Sunday.
• John Dankshas held opponents to a .236 BAA at home and has already beaten the Red Sox once this season. Danks can be inconsistent, but he has a sub-4.00 ERA at home despite only being 5-5. He has held opponents to three earned runs or less in each of his last five starts.
• Spot Starts: Ross Ohlendorf, Joe Blanton, Randy Wolf, Joe Saunders, Hiroki Kuroda, Jorge De La Rosa

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.