Kuzul

Here’s a look at the unheralded fantasy baseball players who played well yesterday.

Los Angeles Dodgers @ Chicago Cubs

Jamey Carroll and Casey Blake each went two–for-five with two runs. Carroll is hitting .309 and Blake is hitting .313. Juan Uribe went two-for-four with two runs, a home run and four RBI (12). Kosuke Fukudome is hitting .417 after going three-for-four.

Chicago White Sox @ Detroit Tigers

Ryan Raburn went two-for-five with a home run and four RBI. Jhonny Peralta went two-for-four with two runs and an RBI. Alex Avila went two-for-three with two runs and an RBI (11).

Colorado Rockies @ Florida Marlins

Chris Coghlan is hitting .292 after going two-for-four with a homer and two RBI (10). Gaby Sanchez raised his average to .338 after going two-for-four with a homer. Anibal Sanchez lost his no-hit bid in the ninth inning, but threw a complete game one-hitter. He allowed an unearned run and struck out nine.

Arizona Diamondbacks @ New York Mets

Ike Davis went one-for-four with a home run and two RBI (16). Mike Pelfrey gave up one run on five hits in seven innings for the win. Joe Saunders gave up one run on two hits in six innings, but got a no-decision.

Tampa Bay Rays @ Toronto Blue Jays

Adam Lind went two-for-five with two RBI (11). Edwin Encarnacion went two-for-five with an RBI to raise his average to .298. Sam Fuld continues to rake. He went three-for-five with three runs, an RBI and two stolen bases (9) to raise his average to .366.

Kansas City Royals @ Texas Rangers

David Murphy went one-for-four with two runs, a home run and two RBI. He’s hitting .318. Mitch Moreland went one-for-three with a home run and two RBI to raise his average to .314. Alex Gordon is hitting .361 after going two-for-four with two runs. Wilson Betemit went one-for-three with a run and two RBI (11). He’s hitting .383. Brayan Pena went one-for-three with a home run and three RBI.

Houston Astros @ Milwaukee Brewers

Carlos Gomez went three-for-five with two runs, a home run and three RBI. Mark Kotsay went three-for-five with two RBI. Yuniesky Betancourt went two-for-five with two RBI. Angel Sanchez went two-for-four with a run and an RBI. Brett Wallace is hitting .313 after going three-for-five with a run and an RBI. Humberto Quintero went three-for-three with two runs and an RBI to raise his average to .303.

Philadelphia Phillies @ San Diego Padres

Clayton Richard gave up two runs in 7.1 innings, but was outdone by Cole Hamels’ eight scoreless innings.

Atlanta Braves @ San Francisco Giants

Chipper Jones went one-for-four with a run and two RBI (14). Freddie Freeman went two-for-three with an RBI. They are both hitting .274. Tommy Hanson threw a masterpiece.

Oakland A’s @ Seattle Mariners

Adam Kennedy went two-for-four with a run and two RBI to raise his average to .333. Kurt Suzuki went two-for-three. Michael Pineda gave up five hits with five strikeouts in six scoreless innings to improve to 3-1 with a 1.78 ERA.

Boston Red Sox @ Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim

Jed Lowrie went one-for-three with two runs. He’s hitting .426. J.D. Drew went two-for-three with a run and an RBI to raise is average to .280. Erick Aybar went two-for-four with a run to raise his average to .375. Jon Lester held the Angels in check.

Cincinnati Reds @ St. Louis Cardinals

Ryan Theriot went two-for-four with two runs to raise his average to .321. David Freese is hitting .339 after going two-for-four. Miguel Cairo went two-for-three to raise his average to .290 Kyle McClellan improve to 3-0 with a 2.16 ERA after allowing two runs in six innings.

Also check out today’s streaming pitcher option.

Read more MLB news on BleacherReport.com

After tossing a shutout last night, I’m sure Kyle Lohse is a popular waiver claim. What’s not to like about a guy with a 3-1 record, a 2.01 ERA and a 0.73 WHIP? You should know he’s been a fast starter for most of his career.

He got bombed last April (0-1, 6.55 ERA), but look at his recent April performances:

2009:  3-0, 1.97 ERA
2008:  3-0, 2.36 ERA
2007:  1-1, 2.88 ERA

That’s a total of 7-1 with a 2.41 ERA in April over those three years. Considering he went 23-27 the remaining months of those seasons, it’s easy to be skeptical. Factor in a 4.79 ERA over that stretch and the alarms really start going off. That does not mean you should either drop him or avoid him, but be realistic with him.

Lohse is 32 years old with a 91-99 record and a 4.73 ERA. He had a brilliant 15-6, 3.78 ERA season in 2008, but that was the only time his ERA was below 4.00 for the year. In his first ten seasons he only finished with a .500 record or better three times. Two of them came in 2002 and 2003, making them a distant memory. His career high is 130 strikeouts.

Feel free to use him while he’s pitching as well as he is, but be ready to eject when things start going sour.

Also check out:

• Today’s Streaming Pitcher Option
• Yesterday’s Box Score Breakouts
• Can Maicer Izturis Sustain His Hot Start?
• Fantasy Baseball Free Agent Pool:  RBI Guys, Volume One 

Read more MLB news on BleacherReport.com

Before I get into the notes for today, a quick tangent/tirade.

The idea of adding any more games to the playoffs in baseball through an additional round is ridiculous. This is not my being a purist. I have come to accept that the Wildcard works. The games though keep being played in colder and colder weather.

The idea that there are World Series games in November bothers me to no end. This will only serve to push that further out. Does baseball really want to attempt to compete with football more Sundays than it has to?

Even a best of three series is going to require more off days and more scheduling. We are dealing with a league that refuses to play back-to-back games in the playoffs at all despite the fact they do that all season.

Three more games means likely another week on to the season, pushing the World Series likely past the first week in November. You tell me how much snow you want to see in Minnesota, Colorado, Boston, New York, Detroit, etc. as the playoffs move on.

Friday Notes

Vernon Wells and Bobby Abreu have both struggled against Jon Lester. Wells, who has pretty much struggled all season, is only 5-for-28 against the lefty while Abreu is 4-for-17. Lester is 1-0 with a 3.46 ERA and 1.38 WHIP against the Angels in his last two starts against them. Not much of a sample for the lefty, but he has been much more effective in his last two outings in April.

David Ortiz is 7-for-17 with three home runs against Dan Haren. His numbers are the best of the bunch that you will see. Dustin Pedroia is 0-for-9 while J.D. Drew is only 1-for-12. Look to avoid Kevin Youkilis as well. He left last night’s game with an injury and is only 3-for-16 lifetime against Haren anyway.

The Orioles have seen plenty of CC Sabathia, but not everyone is thrilled with that fact. While Adam Jones checks in at .333 having gone 9-for-27 and Derrek Lee is 4-for-12, the rest of the lineup should be left to their own devices here. Vladimir Guerrero is 3-for-17 while Brian Roberts, though red-hot, is 9-for-39. Matt Wieters is suddenly swinging well, but he is 2-for-15 lifetime against Sabathia.

Miguel Cabrera has never had a good time at the plate against Mark Buehrle. Buehrle has allowed just one hit in 18 at-bats to Cabrera. Look to use Magglio Ordonez here. He is at .469 with two home runs in 32 at-bats.

Jhonny Peralta checks in at .281 in 71 at-bats with two home runs. Brandon Inge is the other red flag here, as he has 12 strikeouts in 57 at-bats to go with a .246 mark against Buehrle. Buehrle, for his part, is 4-0 in his last six starts against the Tigers.

Paul Konerko and Alexei Ramirez should remain on your bench against Justin Verlander if you have better options available. Konerko is only 4-for-38 against Verlander while Ramirez is 5-for-28. Otherwise, nothing of major to be concerned with. Start your other White Sox as you normally would. Last year, Verlander was 2-0 in his two starts against the White Sox.

Jason Kubel has raked against Fausto Carmona, hitting .361 with three home runs in 36 at-bats. Unless you have him, best to avoid your Twins. Denard Span is 4-for-24 and only Michael Cuddyer and Justin Morneau carck the .250 mark against the Cleveland starter.

Your regular Astros are good to go in this one against Yovani Gallardo. While Hunter Pence may only have a .273 average, that is nothing to be overly alarmed about. Carlos Lee is a .304 hitter and Michael Bourn checks in at .400 in his 20 at-bats against Gallardo.

While Livan Hernandez is 2-1 in his last four starts against the Pirates, his peripheral numbers have not been good. Hernandez is the proud holder of a 6.14 ERA and .329 BAA against them. In 22 innings of work, he has surrendered 27 hits and 10 walks while striking out just 17. The Pirates that are there have relatively limited at-bats, so no major concerns.

If you have a shot to use Ryan Ludwick in NL-only leagues, it would be worth the risk. Ludwick is 5-for-13 with two home runs against him. Jorge Cantu has three home runs in 25 at-bats to go with a .280 average. Orlando Hudson has been ugly in his at-bats, posting a .188 mark in 16 at-bats. Benching Chase Headley and his .200 average would make sense as well.

Weekend Notes

Another good matchup for David Ortiz on Saturday. He is 6-for-19 with two home runs against Ervin Santana. Carl Crawford and Marco Scutaro would be good to go here as well. Look to avoid the 0-for-14 of Jason Varitek and the 3-for-17 of J.D. Drew.

Chris Carpenter has dominated all Reds not named Joey Votto. Votto is at .350 in 20 at-bats with a home run. He is the only one with numbers worth starting. Edgar Renteria, Brandon Phillips, Jay Bruce, Jonny Gomes and Ramon Hernandez are all at .200 or below. Scott Rolen has a .250 mark, and he is the second-best option available.

Rare name to mention in terms of fantasy, but worth noting here. Asdrubal Cabrera simply owns Francisco Liriano. He is 10-for-17 against him overall. Shin-Soo Choo is just 3-for-13 while Grady Sizemore is 3-for-22. Matt LaPorta is only 1-for-10 as well.

Only two players on Seattle with numbers to note against Trevor Cahill. Ichiro is 5-for-12 and worth keeping in the lineup, but Chone Figgins is 2-for-13. Cahill is just 1-3 against the Mariners in his last five starts. His ERA in that stretch though is solid, at 2.93 in 30.2 innings of work.

John Danks has been relatively successful against the Tigers. Only the .609 mark of Magglio Ordonez stands out as a number that should be in your lineup. Not one other regular cracks .220 in players that have better than 10 at-bats.

While Prince Fielder is hitting just .242 against Wandy Rodriguez, the rest of your Milwaukee regulars seem to have figured out the Houston starter. Ryan Braun is at .360 in 25 at-bats with three home runs. Both Rickie Weeks and Casey McGehee are at better than .333 as well. Carlos Gomez has gone 0-for-9 and is the only other fringe starter to worry about.

Again both Figgins and Ichiro have the best numbers to report against Brett Anderson. Figgins is at .320 while Ichiro is at .345. Might look for a reach and grab Michael Saunders who is 3-for-10 against the lefty lifetime. Anderson is 5-3 in his last 10 starts against the Mariners with a 2.01 ERA.

Juan Uribe has pretty much struggled all season, and it is not likely to be any different against Carlos Zambrano. Uribe is just a .214 hitter in 28 at-bats against him. Andre Ethier has the best numbers at 6-for-13 and it is possible we have a Tony Gwynn sighting given his 5-for-12 mark. Otherwise, start your Dodgers as normal. Few concerns here.

Read more MLB news on BleacherReport.com

When drafting a fantasy team, there is one thing that you should be your number one priority—consistency. You need that factor to carry your team from day one.

Slumps are inevitable, but you need the players who post strong enough stretches to smooth out the rocky streaks.

Miguel Cabrera, Albert Pujols and Ryan Braun to name a few are prime examples of this kind of consistency.

Sometimes you have to come to the realization that your early round pick is either falling fast and you need to salvage his value during a trade, or that the hot streak your stud is on might be the perfect time to sell high as their value will only plummet.

It is never easy to part ways with a player that you took high in the draft, but sometimes you have to know when to bite the bullet.

Begin Slideshow

Week 3

April 4th – April 10th 

The Colorado Rockies continued their torrid play, winning seven of eight games this week, including a four game sweep of the New York Mets. Perhaps most impressive, is that the Rockies are dominating National League opponents without the benefit of their ace Ubaldo Jimenez, who has been sidelined for two weeks with a torn cuticle.

The Cleveland Indians boast the best record in the American League at 11-4, led by the solid pay of shortstop Asdrubal Cabrera and DH Travis Hafner. The club received a boost on Sunday with the return of center fielder Grady Sizemore, who went 2-4 with a home run in his 2011 debut.

Offensive Player of the Week: Lance Berkman 
.417 6 HR, 12 RBI, 9 R, 0 SB

The dormant bats of the St. Louis Cardinals finally awoke in week three, with Lance Berkman leading the way with 6 home runs in seven days. The Puma torched Dodger and Diamondback pitching with a .417 average and 12 RBI, while propelling the red birds to within a game and a half of the NL Central lead. 

Honorable Mention: Troy Tulowitzki, Matt Kemp and Starlin Castro 

Pitcher of the Week: Dan Haren
2 wins, 15.1 innings pitched, 14 strikeouts, 1.17 ERA, 0.65 WHIP

Dan Haren was the top-pitching performer of Week 2, posting two excellent starts for the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim. Haren is the second straight Angel to win the award, following in the footsteps of Angel ace Jered Weaver. 

Haren appears to be one of the best values of the draft as he leads all pitchers with 4 wins in the month of April, including an excellent complete game shutout on April 12th against the AL Central leading Indians. 

Honorable Mention: Cliff Lee, Brian Wilson and Mariano Rivera

Working the Wire

Veteran starting pitcher Aaron Harang appears to have found a new home in the pitcher friendly confines of PetCo Park. The 6’7″ Harang is off to a fast start in 2011, winning all three of his outings while posting an excellent 1.50 ERA. 

Despite his strong start, it appears as though fantasy owners are not buying into his career resurgence. With an ownership percentage of 49 percent, I recommend picking him up before more fantasy owners realize that even mediocre pitchers can excel in the cavernous PetCo Park.

Click here for the conclusion of the article…..

Read more MLB news on BleacherReport.com

Pedro Alvarez was given a day off on Monday as he continues to falter in the opening weeks of the 2011 season. At a shallow position, Alvarez was supposed to give owners a little bit of thump. Instead, all he has done is fallen with a resounding thud.

Now, the question is if it is time to give up hope or do we still think he can turn things around?

Clearly, the numbers from his first 15 games have been ugly:

57 At Bats
.193 Batting Average (11 Hits)
0 Home Runs
4 RBI
3 Runs
1 Stolen Bases
.258 On Base Percentage
.228 Slugging Percentage
.297 Batting Average on Balls in Play

It is actually quite concerning that his BABIP is not outlandishly low. In fact, it’s quite realistic. Is there room for a little bit of improvement? Sure, but it’s not like we should have been expecting him to replicate his 2010 mark of .341.

There are two ways for Alvarez to improve his numbers and give value to fantasy owners:

1. Show some power
2. Reduce the strikeouts

The first one is pretty obvious when you realize that he has yet to hit one out. He hit 16 HR in 347 AB in 2010 (a home run every 21.7 AB). Over his 707 AB minor league career he hit 40 HR (a home run every 17.7 AB). There is no questioning the fact that there is some thunder in his bat. If you can afford to show some patience, you should be rewarded in this department before long.

The second point may be the more disturbing one. Thus far this season he has posted a 35.1 percent strikeout rate after posting a 34.3 percent mark in his rookie year. Considering his 27.9 percent minor league mark, there may be room for improvement, but not necessarily a great one.

Then again, we knew that heading into the year. When you drafted Alvarez, you knew that there was a very good chance that he struggled to hit for a good average, so it really shouldn’t be a surprise. Granted, a little bit of power will certainly help his bottom line and it should still be considered realistic that he hits around .250.

It’s not a great number, but what did you actually expect?

The bottom line with Alvarez is the power and, sooner or later, it is going to come around. He has shown it at every level since being selected in the first round of the 2008 draft, including in the major leagues. Just stay patient and you will be rewarded.

However, as a young player, it certainly is possible that your league mates are not willing to wait. Kick the tires and see what they would want. He’s going to get hot and you will reap the benefits.

What are your thoughts of Alvarez? Do you think he’s going to come around? Why or why not?

Make sure to check out these other great articles from Rotoprofessor:

• Around the Majors: April 19: Jed Lowrie, Tim Lincecum & More
• Injury Report: April 19: Alex Rodriguez, Victor Martinez & More
• Can Colby Lewis Return To Form?
• Fantasy Baseball’s Top 9 Under 27-Year Old First Basemen

THIS ARTICLE IS ALSO FEATURED ON WWW.ROTOPROFESSOR.COM

Read more MLB news on BleacherReport.com

Here’s a breakdown of the two-start pitchers for the fourth week of the baseball season. 

Five Stars

Roy Halladay: vs. MIL, @SD
Cliff Lee: vs. MIL , @SD 

Four Stars

Brett Anderson: vs. BOS, @SEA
Tim Hudson: @LAD, @SF
Josh Johnson: vs. PIT, vs. COL
Tim Lincecum: @COL, ATL
Ricky Romero: @BOS, vs. TB 

Three Stars

Fausto Carmona: @KC, @MIN
John Danks: @TB, @DET
Edwin Jackson: @TB, @DET
Ubaldo Jimenez: vs. SF, @FLA
Francisco Liriano: @BAL , vs. CLE
Colby Lewis: vs. LAA, vs. KC
Paul Maholm: @FLA, vs. WAS
Shaun Marcum: @PHI, vs. HOU
Carl Pavano: @BAL, vs. CLE
David Price: vs. CWS, @TOR
Wandy Rodriguez: vs. NYM, @MIL
Max Scherzer: @SEA , vs. CWS 

Two Stars

Brandon Beachy: @LAD, @SF
Kevin Correia: @CIN, vs. WAS
Hiroki Kuroda: vs. ATL, @CHC
John Lannan: @STL, @PIT
Ted Lilly: vs. ATL, @CHC
Ervin Santana: @TEX , vs. BOS
James Shields: vs. CWS, @TOR
Jason Vargas: vs. DET, vs. OAK
Travis Wood: vs. ARI, @STL 

One Star

Jake Arrieta: vs. MIN, vs. NYY
Carlos Carrasco: @KC, @MIN
Doug Fister: vs. DET, vs. OAK
Armando Galarraga: @CIN, @NYM
John Lackey: @OAK , @LAA
Sam LeCure: vs. PIT, @STL
Daisuke Matsuzaka: vs. TOR , @LAA
Dustin Moseley: @CHC, vs. PHI
Jon Niese: @HOU, vs. ARI
Matt Palmer: @TEX, vs. BOS
James Russell: vs. SD, vs. LAD
Tim Stauffer: @CHC, vs. PHI
Chris Tillman: vs. MIN, vs. NYY
Jake Westbrook: vs. WAS, vs. CIN

Also check out

Today’s Streaming Pitcher Option
Yesterday’s Box Score Breakouts 

Read more MLB news on BleacherReport.com

Here’s a look at the unheralded fantasy baseball players who played well yesterday.

Baltimore Orioles @ Cleveland Indians

Travis Hafner went 2-for-3 with a home run. Fausto Carmona gave up one earned run on five hits in seven innings for the win.

Pittsburgh Pirates @ Cincinnati Reds

Miguel Cairo went 3-for-4 with a home run. Paul Janish went 2-for-5 with an RBI. Garrett Jones went 2-for-4 with a home run.

Boston Red Sox @ Toronto Blue Jays

Jed Lowrie scored two runs. Jarrod Saltalamacchia went 2-for-4 with a run and three RBI.

New York Mets @ Atlanta Braves

Josh Thole went 2-for-4 with a run and two RBI. Ike Davis went 2-for-3 with an RBI. Dillon Gee gave up one run in 5.2 innings for the win.

Florida Marlins @ Philadelphia Phillies

Placido Polanco went 3-for-4 with a home run. Ben Francisco went 2-for-3. Gaby Sanchez went 2-for-4.

Milwaukee Brewers @ Washington Nationals (Game 1)

Rick Ankiel went two 2-for-4. Ian Desmond went 2-for-4 with two runs and a home run. Pudge Rodriguez hit a three-run homer. Jason Marquis gave up two runs in seven innings for the win.

Milwaukee Brewers @ Washington Nationals (Game 2)

Danny Espinosa drove in three runs. Adam LaRoche went 2-for-3 with a home run. Livan Hernandez gave up one run in seven innings to improve to 3-2 with a 2.88 ERA.

Minnesota Twins @ Tampa Bay Rays

Steve Holm went 2-for-4 with a run. Jason Repko went 2-for-4 with a run, an RBI and a stolen base. Sam Fuld went 2-for-5. Brian Duensing gave up two runs with five strikeouts in seven innings for the win.

San Diego Padres @ Houston Astros

Will Venable went 1-for-3 with two runs, two RBI and a stolen base. Chase Headley went 2-for-5 with a run. Jorge Cantu hit a three-run homer. Nick Hundley went 2-for-5 with two runs and a home run. Cameron Maybin went 2-for-5 with a run and a stolen base. Jason Bartlett went 2-for-4 with a run and an RBI. Chris Johnson went 2-for-4 with a run and an RBI. Bill Hall had a pair of RBI.

Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim @ Chicago White Sox

Maicer Izturis went 3-for-4 with two runs to raise his average to .383. Mark Trumbo went 2-for-4 with a home run. Carlos Quentin and A.J. Pierzynski each had a pair of hits.

Seattle Mariners @ Kansas City Royals

Justin Smoak went 2-for-4 with a run to raise his average to .300. Brendan Ryan drove in two runs. Michael Pineda gave up one run on three hits in six innings to improve to 2-1 with a 2.33 ERA.

Chicago Cubs @ Colorado Rockies

Dexter Fowler had a pair of RBI. Seth Smith went 2-for-2 with two runs, a home run and two RBI. Darwin Barney had two hits.

Detroit Tigers @ Oakland A’s

Josh Willingham had two RBI. Mark Ellis had two hits.

St. Louis Cardinals @ Los Angeles Dodgers

This game belonged to Matt Kemp, Matt Holliday, Chris Carpenter and Chad Billingsley.

San Francisco Giants @ Arizona Diamondbacks

Willie Bloomquist went 2-for-6 with a run. Ryan Roberts went 2-for-5 with an RBI. Aaron Rowand raised his average to .364 by going 2-for-5 with a run.

Texas Rangers @ New York Yankees

Russell Martin went 2-for-3 with a home run and two RBI. Eric Chavez went 2-for-4 with a run and the winning RBI.

Also check out:

• Week 4 Two-Start Pitchers
• Today’s Streaming Pitcher Option

Read more MLB news on BleacherReport.com

There are quite a few pitchers who have gotten off to amazing starts to their 2011 campaigns, surprising many fantasy owners. Who’s for real? Who should we cut bait on now? Let’s take a look at a few of them:

Gio Gonzalez—Oakland Athletics

In his first three starts, Gonzalez is sporting a 0.47 ERA and 1.26 WHIP. The problem is that he has done it with a BABIP of .212 and a strand rate of 100.0 percent. Obviously that’s not going to continue.

He has also continued to struggle with his control. In 19.0 innings of work, he has walked 12 batters—good for a BB/9 of 5.68. It’s hard to imagine continued success if he is going to walk that many batters. Think it’s an aberration? In his minor league career he had a BB/9 of 4.01. In his previous three seasons he posted the following BB/9:

• 2008—6.62 (34.0 IP)
• 2009—5.11 (98.2 IP)
• 2010—4.13 (200.2 IP)

If he continues to walk people, the numbers are going to come tumbling down. It’s really just a matter of time. Yes, being a good ground-ball pitcher (50.0 percent in ’11) helps, but it’s not enough. I’d be wary of Gonzalez moving forward, as the numbers scream for a possible regression.

Matt Harrison—Texas Rangers

After stymieing the Yankees on Friday night (8.0 IP, 1 ER, 7 H, 3 BB, 3 K, W), Harrison is at 3-0 with a 1.23 ERA and 0.91 WHIP. He certainly has had luck on his side with a .203 BABIP and 93.0 percent strand rate, but there are other numbers at play as well.

Thus far this season he’s posted a line-drive rate of 9.8 percent, after being at over 20 percent in his previous three seasons. Can that continue?

Harrison also offers little upside in the strikeout department (5.73 K/9 in ’11, 6.42 in his minor league career). He does have good control (2.07 BB/9 in his minor league career), which helps to backup his 2.45 mark in ’11. 

Is good control and an improved ground-ball rate (52.5 percent in ’11) enough to warrant grabbing him off waiver wires? I wouldn’t expect him to induce six ground-ball double plays very often, meaning the results against the Yankees could’ve been very, very different.

While those in AL-only formats could consider him, there’s a risk for a major regression at hand. If you are in a mixed league, that risk coupled with the low strikeout rate are enough reasons to stay away.

Justin Masterson—Cleveland Indians

With a 1.33 ERA, a 0.93 WHIP and a 3-0 record in his first three starts, there’s a lot to like about the “Masterful” Justin Masterson.

A lot of people have written him off due to his struggles the past few years, but there was an awful lot of bad luck at play (68.6 percent, 66.6 percent strand rates the previous two years). He also hadn’t shown very good control, something that he had consistently displayed in the minor leagues (2.28 BB/9).

He is one of the elite ground-ball pitchers in the league, currently sporting a 65.0 percent ground-ball rate. Since 2009, among pitchers with at least 300 innings pitched, Masterson is second in the league with a 57.8 percent ground-ball rate (Joel Pineiro leads the way at 58.2 percent). That certainly says a lot about his potential to produce, assuming the luck is there. 

Not that he’s going to be able to continue his .242 BABIP, but for a ground-ball pitcher, marks of .314 and .324 (which he posted in ’09 and ’10) are going to hurt.  Improvement there will go a long way to his success.

I know people are going to point towards his 5.31 K/9 and say that he’s worthless, but that’s shortsighted. Over his minor league career he posted a 7.46 K/9 and showed in his second start of the season (nine K in 6.1 IP against the Mariners) that he has the potential to pile up the strikeouts. If he can strike out five to six batters a night—to go with the rest of his repertoire—he has the stuff to be a breakout starter in 2011.

If others in your league have not yet bought into his early season success, I would highly recommend him. Yes, there is the chance for a regression, but he has the stuff to be a useful starter all year long.

Chris Narveson—Milwaukee Brewers

He’s won only one game in his first three starts, but Narverson’s sporting a 1.45 ERA and 1.18 WHIP. Considering his realistic .286 BABIP (though he has benefited from an 86.4 percent strand rate), there certainly is reason to take notice.

The real question when it comes to Narveson is his 9.16 K/9. If he can come reasonably close to sustaining it, the sky is the limit. If he can’t, there’s going to be a regression.

Over his minor league career he posted a K/9 of 7.50. At Triple-A in ’09 he posted a 9.1 K/9, though a lot of that came while working in the bullpen (only six starts in 26 outings). In September of 2010 he did show the potential to maintain this type of mark in the rotation, with 37 Ks in 37.1 innings of work. In August he had 20 Ks in 26.1 innings of work.

His performance as of late has not just come out of nowhere.

Can it continue with a fastball that has been averaging 87.9 mph? I’m not so sure about that.

He has looked good and is certainly worth owning, but he is no guarantee to continue. Having never shown this type of strikeout success in the past, it’s hard to say that three starts is a given. Even if you include August and September of 2010, you are looking at 14 starts. It’s a lot better, but it still shouldn’t be accepted as the new norm.

Tread carefully, but he’s certainly worth owning in most formats because he’s pitching in the NL. Just don’t become too attached, because there is a good chance that a regression could be coming.

What are your thoughts on these four pitchers? Who do you think is for real? Who would you avoid?

Make sure to check out these other great articles from Rotoprofessor:

• Around the Majors: April 16: Austin Jackson, Josh Beckett & More
• Injury Report: April 17: Grady Sizemore, Carlos Gonzalez & More

THIS ARTICLE IS ALSO FEATURED ON WWW.ROTOPROFESSOR.COM

Read more MLB news on BleacherReport.com

Fantasy baseball can be a fickle mistress, and that’s feeling especially true right now for anyone who drank the Kool-Aid on the Boston Red Sox and drafted players like Adrian Gonzalez, Carl Crawford or Clay Buchholz.

Crawford has been the poster child for fantasy baseball disappointment thus far, as he’s dug holes for fantasy teams nearly as deep as the one the Red Sox are enduring with their sparkling 3-10 record.

There are similar fantasy ails with players on other struggling MLB teams, too—the normally superb trio of Joe Mauer, Justin Morneau and Joe Nathan have floundered for the 4-10 Twins, and pretty much anyone not named Chris Young has pitched very “generously” for the 4-11 Mets. 

The way this season has gone so far across baseball with so many poor starts, chances are your fantasy baseball team has at least one hole to fill. But Week 3 of the fantasy baseball season is typically a great time to fill those holes, as there has been enough time to gain a decent sample size of information without it being too late to snag the undiscovered sleepers in your league. There is hope to improve (or prove your early hot start is no fluke, you smug jerk).

So whether you’re in a rotisserie league or a head-to-head points league, stay tuned here as I pass along any and all updates below that might help you make those crucial early-season adjustments.

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