Kuzul

Last Night Rewind

• A strained oblique muscle has to be one of the more difficult injuries for a baseball player to battle. Jose Reyes left last night’s game in the second inning with exactly that type of injury. The Mets have already said that he will not play until there is no pain in the oblique, but that it is considered “mild.” Daily leagues should get him out of the lineup for a few days. If you can ride a hot streak, look at Yuniesky Betancourt to fill in.
• Cliff Lee fell again last night, giving up five runs on seven hits in a loss to the Twins. He has also now given up five home runs in his last two starts and 23 runs in his last 24.2 innings. Lee is not getting the benefit of facing easy lineups, but he certainly has been catching too much of the plate lately. He could still work this out and be effective, but the flags are waiting to go up here.
• Colby Rasmus had expected to return to the lineup last night against Washington, but was again sidelined by a strained calf muscle. The Cardinals have not placed him on the DL through all of this, but he has had just seven at-bats since August 13th. Rasmus still hopes to play in the series this weekend, but keep him out of your lineups until he actually steps in the box.
• Edwin Jackson has been dominant since returning to the American League. In four starts, he has posted a 0.96 ERA and 34 strikeouts over 28 innings of work. He threw an eight-inning gem last night against the Orioles to pick up his second win in that span. Jackson’s overall command has been impressive as well. He has walked only seven hitters in this stretch.
• Let’s call the Kevin Correia discussion from yesterday a split decision. Correia himself was lit up like a Christmas tree, but Gerardo Parra did record three hits. Adam LaRoche and Kelly Johnson both had good enough games to call it a split. Correia gave up nine runs in just 3.1 innings pitched last night, making his start nothing less than a disaster. This was the famine part of the “feast or famine” mentioned in yesterday’s notes.

Friday Notes

• Alfonso Soriano is 8-for-20 against Johnny Cueto with three home runs and Aramis Ramirez is 5-for-16 with two home runs himself. Look to avoid Kosuke Fukudome and his 5-for-21 mark where possible. Cueto is just 1-2 in August and has a 4.12 ERA at home this season.
• Ubaldo Jimenez is just 2-3 with an ERA over 4.00 since the All-Star break, and he has struggled with the Dodgers in the past. Ryan Theriot and Matt Kemp are both hitting better than .300 and should be in your lineup for this one. Look to avoid Manny Ramirez, as he is only 1-for-13 against Jimenez lifetime.
• Tim Lincecum is 0-4 with an 8.38 ERA this month, allowing 18 earned runs and four home runs in 19.1 innings pitched. Only Justin Upton, though, has a career mark worth starting against the ace. Upton is 9-for-26, posting the only average above .200 of players that are likely to be in your fantasy lineup. Avoid the 3-for-31 of Chris Young, and most other Diamondbacks where you have other options. Mark Reynolds has 12 strikeouts in 19 at-bats against Lincecum.
• Jon Lester was pushed back from his start against the Mariners so he can take the ball against the Rays on Friday night. Lester is 7-3 with a 2.46 ERA on the road this season and his numbers this month are skewed by the disaster against Toronto. Jason Bartlett has a .346 mark against Lester, and only B.J. Upton at .176 is worth benching. Play other Rays as you normally would.
• David Price is 7-1 at home this season, posting a 2.11 ERA and .211 BAA. He has held lefties to a .213 mark this season, so keep that in mind when playing J.D. Drew and David Ortiz in particular. Price has had some command issues of late, walking 10 in his last 17 innings. He has recorded just one win in his last three starts.
• To say that A.J. Burnett has been all over the map lately is an insult to cartographers everywhere. He has struggled this month, going 0-3 with a 6.08 ERA in four starts and giving up five home runs in 26.2 innings of work. Paul Konerko is 3-for-11 with two home runs against Burnett while Andruw Jones is at .286 with three home runs in 35 at-bats.
• Derrek Lee is only 3-for-14 against Chris Volstad and Brian McCann has struggled to just a 2-for-11 mark. Volstad has struggled away from home this season, going just 4-5 with a 6.44 ERA away from home and a .304 BAA. This month, batters are hitting .314 against him despite his 2-1 record. Needless to say, he is coming off the spot start list.
• Tommy Hanson is 2-0 against Florida this season, giving up just two earned runs in 12.2 innings against them. While he is 0-2 in five starts this month, Hanson has a 1.89 ERA in those outings. Needless to say, he has been a victim of some bad luck there. Not much of a track record for the Florida hitters, but note that Dan Uggla is just 1-for-9.
• Clayton Kershaw is 3-0 this season against Colorado, posting a 0.90 ERA in those starts. While Dexter Fowler and Ian Stewart check in at better than .300, they are about it when it comes to offense. Troy Tulowitzki is just 4-for-23 and Todd Helton is only 4-for-18. Ryan Spilborghs has two home runs against Kershaw, but he is only a .227 hitter in 22 at-bats.
• Spot Starts: Figueroa, Vargas, but the pickings are really slim here

Weekend Notes

• Alex Rios has hit .308 in 26 at-bats against C.C. Sabathia and has added three home runs as well. Mark Teahen checks in at .286 in 35 trips to the plate, but does have 16 strikeouts against Sabathia as well. Alexei Ramirez is the only other player above .300, with four hits in 11 at-bats. Sabathia is 4-1 this month with a 2.48 ERA.
• Clay Buchholz has a 0.82 ERA in two starts over 11 innings against the Rays this season. He is 4-0 this month with a 0.99 ERA and .200 BAA in five starts. Better, he is 8-2 on the road this season. Carl Crawford is the best of the bunch against Buchholz with a .278 average in 18 at-bats. Look to hold back where you can on your Rays, as Bartlett, Pena, and Longoria are all below .240.
• Ricky Nolasco is still expected to make his start on Saturday against Atlanta despite suffering from a torn meniscus in his knee. Those in daily leagues should be mindful of this fact and check often to see if he is still in the plans to go. This type of injury is dangerous, and I would recommend benching him for this start to understand the full impact of the injury.
• Jose Reyes and Carlos Beltran have seen plenty of Brett Myers and are hitting .319 and .314 against him respectively. David Wright has struggled to a 7-for-32 mark, but he does have four home runs against the Houston starter. Luis Castillo has ugly numbers at only 6-for-38 with 11 strikeouts. Myers is 3-7 on the road this year.
• Bronson Arroyo has won both his starts against the Cubs this year in impressive fashion. In 13 innings against them, he has not allowed a walk or a run and has given up just seven hits. He is 3-1 this month with a 2.73 ERA in four starts. Alfonso Soriano is only 8-for-42 and Aramis Ramirez is only 9-for-42 against Arroyo.
• In 17 innings and two starts against Arizona this season, Matt Cain is 2-0 with a 0.00 ERA. He has allowed just four hits and three walks against them while striking out 18 hitters. Only the .292 of Stephen drew cracks the .250 mark among regulars that fantasy owners would be looking to start. Avoid the Diamondbacks where possible.
• David Ortiz is now hitting .400 against James Shields in 30 at-bats. Ortiz has added three home runs in those trips to the plate. J.D. Drew is at .344 while Mike Lowell hits .357 and Victor Martinez is 6-for-16. Adrian Beltre and Marco Scutaro have struggled, but they are the only two Red Sox to look at benching.
• Gio Gonzalez has allowed only three earned runs in his last four starts, covering 27 innings of work. He is 1-1 against Texas this season in three starts and has largely held the tough lineup in check. No player on the Rangers with at least eight at-bats has better than a .250 average against the Oakland starter.
• Derek Lowe is just 1-3 on the month, but his 3.26 ERA is certainly respectable. Lowe is 8-5 at home this season with a 3.81 ERA in those 14 starts. Batters are hitting well against him, posting a mark of .272 and .288 this month, and that does throw a wrench here. Especially when you add in that Hanley Ramirez is 12-for-24 and Dan Uggla is 10-for-26.
• Spot Starts: Bush, Gonzalez, Norris, D. Hudson, Capuano

Read more MLB news on BleacherReport.com