Kuzul

Ubaldo Jimenez continues to roll.  Clayton Kershaw appears to have righted the ship.  Jose Reyes returned to the leadoff role and did as he always does.  Let’s look at these stories and all the rest from yesterday’s games:

Pitchers:

• Clayton Kershaw (7.0 IP, 1 ER, 3 H, 2 BB, 7 K, W) –  Since taking that drubbing two starts ago, Kershaw has allowed 1 ER on 5 H and 5 H, striking out 16, over 15 innings.  Maybe that beating gave him a wake up call.
• Ubaldo Jimenez (8.0 IP, 2 ER, 7 H, 1 BB, 5 K, W) –   He just keeps on rolling, improving to 7-1 with a 1.12 ERA.  Just how long can he keep this going?  Who knows, but he clearly has emerged as one of the elite in the game.
• Ricky Romero (9.0 IP, 0 ER, 5 H, 1 BB, 12 K, W) –  He was spectacular, tying his season high in Ks and rebounding from a couple of sub par performances (12 ER in 17.1 innings over his last three starts).  I have my concerns, but his luck metrics are down (.294 BABIP, 73.4% strand rate entering the game), yet his numbers are still solid.  Be cautious, but he clearly is a usable option.
• James Shields (8.0 IP, 2 ER, 6 H, 0 BB, 10 K) –  He was never known as a big strikeout guy, yet this is the third time in his last four starts where he’s reached double-digit strikeouts.   He’s been around long enough for us to know not to expect this from him for too long, but that certainly doesn’t make him any less appealing.  He entered the day with a .363 BABIP, so even when the Ks decrease, his luck should improve, meaning he should continue to excel moving forward.
• Octavio Dotel (1.0 IP, 1 ER, 1 H, 1 BB, 2 K, SV) –  Yeah, he got the save.  Yeah, he had thrown five shutout innings prior to this outing.  Still, if he starts to look shaky again, his hold on the closers job is going to slip away.  I still like Evan Meek to get the fist opportunity, but Joel Hanrahan has seven consecutive shutout innings and could also get a shot now that he’s settled down.
• Alfredo Simon (0.1 IP, 4 ER, 3 H, 1 BB, 0 K) –  It was just yesterday that I mentioned that the significant number of base runners he was allowing would sooner or later catchup to him.  Unfortunately it came at the expense of Brain Matusz (7.0 IP, 0 ER, 7 H, 4 BB, 6 K).  He’s a #3 fantasy closer, at best, and should be replaced by Mike Gonzalez once healthy.
• Matt Thornton (0.2 IP, 0 ER, 0 H, 0 BB, 0 K, SV) –  Things are clearly changing in Chicago, as he got the first chance at the save in this one.  Jenks is still getting opportunities as well, so both should be owned at this point until it becomes clear who will get the bulk of the saves.

Hitters:

• Jose Bautista (3-4, 2 HR, 5 RBI, 2 R) –  The average is still down (.237), but he’s at 9 HR and 28 RBI, making him a usable option in five outfielder formats.  That especially becomes the case when you factor in his .242 BABIP entering the day.  He should have earned himself regular at bats even when Edwin Encarnacion returns to the lineup.
• Juan Uribe (3-3, 1 HR, 2 RBI, 1 R) –  He’s likely eligible all over the place, making him a tremendous reserve option thanks to the flexibility.  While this was his first multi-hit game since May 4, he is hitting .279 with 4 HR and 23 RBI having been getting everyday AB.
• Shane Victorino (3-6, 1 HR, 4 RBI, 2 R) –  He’s just destroying Brewers pitching in this series.  Over the first two games he’s gone 6-11 with 1 HR, 7 RBI and 3 R.  Overall he’s hitting .263 with 8 HR, 32 RBI, 23 R and 4 SB.  He’s hitting more flyballs (45.2% entering the day), so if he continues at that pace the power could be for real.  We’ll keep a close eye on that number.
• Stephen Drew (3-5, 1 HR, 3 RBI, 2 R, 1 SB) –  He’s been hitting for average, but he hadn’t homered since 4/14, picked up an RBI since 5/2 or stolen a base since 4/9.  That’s a whole lot of draughts ended in one fell swoop, huh?  He’s had at least 60 RBI in each of his three full seasons, so look for him to kick things into gear at some point.
• Jose Reyes (2-5, 2 R) –  He returned to the leadoff spot, with Angel Pagan (1-4, 1 R) moving to the third spot in the order.  I don’t like Pagan hitting third, but Reyes back at the top should lead to great things for fantasy owners.  Look for the SB and R to really get going.
• Drew Stubbs (1-4, 2 RBI) –  He’s on a four-game hitting streak, going 5-15 with 2 HR, 6 RBI and 3 R.  His speed is his biggest asset, so don’t get too used to this type of power/RBI production.  Strikeouts are his biggest problem, now with 37 in just 120 AB.  Until he can make better contact, his value is not going to be as high as it could be.
• Brennan Boesch (4-6, 2 RBI, 1 R) –  He continues to hit, extending his hitting streak to 6-games.  Over the streak he’s gone 12-23 with 1 HR, 8 RBI and 3 R.  We all know the average is going to fall, but he’s hitting fifth in the lineup and has power, meaning he certainly has value in all five outfielder formats.
• Kendry Morales (2-5, 2 HR, 5 RBI, 2 R) –  He’s good, now tell me something I didn’t know, right?
• Andre Ethier (DNP) –  Word is he has a broken bone in his pinkie.  It’s not known yet if he’ll be forced to the DL, will miss a few games or be able to play through it.  It’s a big worry for fantasy owners, so make sure to keep a close eye on the news.

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