Kuzul

Shortstop is a position that has a lot of players with the potential to excel and make fantasy owners look brilliant, but very few certainties. 

Even among some of the top options, you have to wonder what you are going to get.  Let’s take a look at how things currently look on our Top 15 rankings:

1. Hanley Ramirez – Florida Marlins
2. Troy Tulowitzki – Colorado Rockies
3. Jose Reyes – New York Mets
4. Elvis Andrus – Texas Rangers
5. Jimmy Rollins – Philadelphia Phillies
6. Derek Jeter – New York Yankees
7. Alexei Ramirez – Chicago White Sox
8. Starlin Castro – Chicago Cubs
9. Stephen Drew – Arizona Cardinals
10. Rafael Furcal – Los Angeles Dodgers
11. Jhonny Peralta – Detroit Tigers
12. Ian Desmond – Washington Nationals
13. Juan Uribe – San Francisco Giants
14. Alcides Escobar – Milwaukee Brewers
15. Yunel Escobar – Toronto Blue Jays

Thoughts:

• Shortstop has quickly developed into as shallow a position as there is in baseball.  Yes, there are decent players at the bottom of the rankings, but there is only so much quality and then a ton of question marks.
• Headlining the questions is Jimmy Rollins.  If he stays healthy, he is a stud option, but at this point it is far from a lock that he does so.  While the average has struggled the past two seasons, so has his BABIP (.251, .246).  He’s not likely to produce like 2007, but he’ll score runs and is worth the gamble.
• Speaking of staying healthy, Rafael Furcal anyone?  He has had over 400 AB just once in the past three seasons, so if you are going to draft him, I’d make sure I have an Ian Desmond or Juan Uribe on my bench.  In other words, make sure you have someone you can plug into your lineup for a few weeks, just in case.
• It will be easy to argue Andrus’ spot in these rankings, but I stand by my opinion of him.  This is a debate that we’ll have in the near future.
• If you can stomach a poor April, Alexei Ramirez has proven that he has the ability to be among the better shortstops in the league.  Just don’t panic when he’s hitting .200 on May 1.
• We can all tell that Derek Jeter is slowing down, but he’s still hitting atop a loaded Yankees lineup.  That means all he has to do is hit .270 and he’ll be near 100 runs scored.  If he is able to rebound at all, he could easily top 110 and maybe even approach 120.  There’s a lot to be said about that.
• Yesterday I posted my projection for Jose Reyes, which you can view by clicking here.

What are your thoughts on these rankings?  Who’s too high?  Who’s too low?

Make sure to check out our early 2011 rankings:

• Top 15 Catchers
• Top 15 First Basemen
• Top 15 Second Basemen
• Top 15 Third Basemen
• 2011 Fantasy Draft First Round Breakdown

THIS ARTICLE IS ALSO FEATURED ON WWW.ROTOPROFESSOR.COM

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With the San Francisco Giants relishing the glory of winning their first World Series since arriving in the Bay Area in 1958, that leaves only eight franchises that have yet to experience the emotional release of becoming World Champions.

As the final chapter is closed on the 2010 season, we take a look at the remaining Empty Eight and analyze their chances at escaping the purgatory that comes from not giving their city a day off to celebrate with a downtown parade.

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Rocktober has never felt so far away.

The Rockies fell to the Los Angeles Dodgers by the score of 3-1 on Monday night, losing their second straight and their seventh in their past eight games. 

The Rockies won ten in a row earlier this month, but never were able to eclipse or tie the teams that were in their playoff path.  Now, with just six games remaining, the Rockies sit four games out of the Wild Card, and five out of the top spot in the National League West.

“If we were ugly before this game, now we’re bleeding,” Rockies outfielder Carlos Gonzalez told ESPN.com after Monday night’s game.

There’s most likely not enough time remaining to stop the bleeding for Colorado.  They play two more games against the Dodgers at Coors Field, then finish up the regular season with four at Busch Stadium against the Cardinals.  

“It’s painful,” Gonzalez continued.  “Because we all thought we were going to be battling until the end.”

He’s right, because we all did.  The Rockies have had a knack over the past four seasons for having a “never-say-die” attitude, where you could never, at any point in a ballgame or a season, count them out.  Seriously, count all the times you saw the Rockies down 6-0, or saw where they were in the standings, and said to yourself, “Damn, they’re finished.”  Now count how many times you were wrong.  The two numbers are probably pretty close.

But it isn’t all in the Rockies’ control this time.  If they want any chance at winning the Wild Card, even if the Braves and Padres lose the remainder of their games (the Padres have six, while the Braves only have five), the Rockies would have to go 5-1 just to force a three-way tie for the Wild Card. 

The NL West is virtually impossible at this point, considering the Padres and Giants face off on the last weekend of the season, and well, someone has to win those games.  It’s not yet mathematically impossible, however. 

If the Padres win just two of their next six (both would need to be against the Giants), the Giants lose at least five of their final six games, and the Rockies win their final six games, the Rockies would finish in some type of tie for the National League West crown, whether it be a two-way or a three-way tie. 

They can no longer win the division without a one-game playoff, because one of either the Padres or Giants will win two games this weekend. 

Was that enough of a math lesson for today?  Good, it was for me too.

It’s a disappointing story, honestly.  The Rockies had become one of those teams that fans who didn’t have a favorite team trying to beat them out for a playoff spot rooted for. During that early September run, it appeared as if the only thing that could stop the Rockies, was the Rockies themselves. 

That seems to be what happened.  The turning point of their season might wind up being when they got swept in Arizona last week.  Being swept by the Diamondbacks didn’t seem possible for Colorado about two weeks before that.

They have players easy to root for, too.  Carlos Gonzalez might be on his way to challenging Albert Pujols as the best player in the game.  Shortstop Troy Tulowitzki had a September that will be compared to that of Babe Ruth’s. Rotation ace Ubaldo Jimenez will at least be involved in the National League Cy Young discussion.

In the end, they might not be enough.  And it probably won’t be. 

But they’ll be back.  If you don’t believe that, you haven’t paid attention the past three years.

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After dropping two of three from the Giants in Colorado, the Rockies are likely out of playoff contention.

Frankly, after the season the Rockies had, they are lucky to still be in playoff conversation. At the All-Star Break, they were 49-39. Just 15 days later, on July 28, they were 51-50.

From then until late August and early September, they were simply a mediocre team. They then went on a conveniently placed 10-game winning streak which put them right back into playoff contention.

Then they went right back to their mediocre ways. They got swept in Arizona by the D-Backs and then dropped two of three at home to the Giants AT HOME.

That shows the average baseball fan that the Rockies are not a 2010 playoff team. A team that is one of the most dominant home teams in baseball with a record of 51-24 going into the Giants series must win basically every home game in late September.

Apparently CarGo and Tulo and the entire Rockies offense (save for Game 2 when they scored 10 runs in 10 innings) didn’t read the memo:

Every game is a must win situation for the rest of the season.

Weird. It seemed like the fans got it though. 125,067 of them really took it to heart and came out to support the Rockies.

What did they get to see?

Game 1: Tim Lincecum dominates the Rockies while giving up two hits and one run.

Game 2: The Rockies come from behind to win 10-9 in 10 innings in a game they probably shouldn’t have won.

Game 3: Matt Cain nearly no-hits the Rockies faltering offense until they break through in the eighth with an infield single and a pinch-hit homer from Melvin Mora.

The Rockies are not a playoff team. Yet.

That begs the question of “WHEN?”

Many fans are thinking next year may be the year the Rockies break through and take their rightful place atop the NL West.

Those who are not acquainted with the Rockies (which is basically everyone in the media to include ESPN, MLB.com, and basically every other sports news station on the East Coast) are probably asking “Who the hell do these fans think they are?”

These are the fans of a fairly new team compared to the 100-year-old franchises that are stationed east of the Mississippi River.

These are also the fans who happen to know a thing or two about a very young and talented team.

The Rockies are an extremely young team.

Only Todd Helton and Melvin Mora are present starters over 35. The average age of the rest of the starters (not including pitchers) is 26.3.

Yes, age is just a number, but the Rockies are more than just a young team. They are a young, TALENTED team.

Troy Tulowitzki has been in the news lately because he has had the most productive September of any Rockie.

He is 3 RBI’s short of Babe Ruth’s 1927 record of 43 RBI’s in one month. He also has 15 home runs his month, giving him 27 on the year.

It seems as though he has finally found an effective way to produce for the Rockies.

Carlos Gonzalez, a.k.a CarGo, was the key to the Rockies’ push back into the playoff picture.

During the Rockies’ 10-game winning streak, he hit over .500 and seemed to keep creating offense. He was always up when the Rockies badly needed a run or two and he’d produce.

At the beginning of the year, he was one of baseball’s biggest free swingers. In 2009, he had 70 K’s in 89 games. This year he has 131 in 141 games. That makes it seem like he became even more of a free swinger.

The truth is that total would likely be around 200 without his incredible maturation over this season.

If he had this same type of plate discipline at the beginning of the season, his batting average would likely be in the neighborhood of a nearly impossibly .380 instead of a very impressive .341.

He has finally realized that a walk is usually just as effective as a hit, especially when you have Troy Tulowitzki hitting behind you.

Rockies fans are looking for an even better season from CarGo in 2011.

Ubaldo who?

Ubaldo Jimenez seemed like a lock for the NL Cy Young Award in the first half of the season. Now he’s looking like an average ace with a record of 19-7 and a 3.00 ERA.

Going into the All-Star Break he was 15-1 with a 2.20 ERA.

There are two possible explanations for his lack of success: Hitters started to figure him out and started to hit him hard, and he simply lost effectiveness. He began to hang pitches and failed to execute pitches the way he had in the first half.

He was the primary reason the Rockies were still in contention after the All-Star Break. If he didn’t get the win, he’d put the Rockies in a position to get a win, which they often did when he was on the hill in the first half.

If the Rockies want to go deep into the playoffs next year, they need Jimenez to retain his first-half form from this year for all of next year. They need him to win between 25 and 30 games and lose less than five.

Yes, it sounds like a nearly impossible task, but Jimenez has the stuff to do it.

Consistency is key. For the past three years, the Rockies have been one of baseball’s most hot-and-cold teams. They went on winning streaks as long as 11 games and losing streaks as long as eight games.

It is easy to tell the Rockies what they need to do. The question is whether they will be able to execute what is needed.

The Rockies went through an amazing maturing process this year.

Next year will be the year that the Rockies win the NL West for the first time ever, and the pennant for the second time in five years.

Next year will be the beginning of something great for Colorado.

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There are now less than 10 games left in the marathon that is the Major League Baseball season. There were many lessons taught this year: One of which is that 2010 was the year of the pitcher, with so many pitchers throwing absolute gems.

We learned that even though its been three years, somebody can reach the 50 home run mark again (even though Jose Bautista only had 59 total HR for his career. Suspicious? Kind of. I like to give him the benefit of the doubt though).

I personally learned that every year I keep telling myself that this fantasy baseball year will be more fun, and every year its just as boring/frustrating as ever.

What we didn’t learn however is who will be this years National League MVP? It’s been a while since an MVP race has been so close. Usually, it’s only between two, or at the max three people who have a legitimate shot at wining the title. This year it seems that nobody wanted to take control and pull away, so five players can now win it. The real question now is: Who wants it more? Let’s take a look at the five trying to take home the MVP award.

Albert Pujols:

Why he will win: Always an MVP contender, this year is no different. He leads the NL in home runs with 41 and is second in RBI with 112, not to mention he is hitting .310. If he ends up leading in two of the three NL triple crown statistics, won’t it be hard NOT to give him the award?

Why he won’t win: Well, as good as his .310 batting average is, his career is mark is .331, so he isn’t living up to his machine-like expectations. Also, the Cardinals faded big time down the stretch even though they are gifted with Pujols, Holiday, Wainwright, and Carpenter. With the Cards struggling and Pujols always winning the award, the voters might take into consideration and hold it against him.

Carlos Gonzalez:

Why he will win: A few weeks ago, I would have said CarGo was a lock for the MVP award. Then, his teammate, TULO, started going ballistic with the bat. However, CarGo has the best numbers in the NL hands down. He is hitting .342 which is first, has 34 HR’s, and leads the NL with 113 RBI. So, as of right now he leads in two of the three triple crown numbers. Did I also mention that he has 25 stolen bases and is two triples shy of completing the quadruple double? (Quadruple double: 10+ HR, 10+2B, 10+3B and 10+SB; only Shane Victorino has that in the NL right now.)

Why he won’t win: The four game losing streak the Rockies just experienced, making their run to the playoffs that much more unlikely, certainly did not help. Also not helping CarGo’s cause is Tulo. Tulowitzki is getting so much attention for his September hot streak that it is taking away from CarGo’s amazing year. The last negative you can see is that CarGo’s home stats are so much more gaudy than his away stats, also known as the benefits of playing at Coors Field.

Troy Tulowitzki:

Why he will win: TULOOO is on a Ruthian like tear in September, hitting home run after home run. He and Carlos carried their team to a long win streak in September, which put the Rockies right back in the race for the Wild Card and pennant. While his numbers don’t equal the others, because of his injuries, it really is his late surge that has everyone talking. If he can bash another five home runs in these last nine games and help Colorado make the playoffs, you could be looking at the new MVP.

Why he won’t win: Just like with CarGo and Pujols, his team not making the playoffs is really going to hurt. Also, like I mentioned, he does not have the yearly numbers the other candidates have because of his injuries. Two other questions to think about: how much will CarGo and Tulo steal each others votes, thus hurting the others cause, and how much does playing at Coors Field inflate their numbers?

Joey Votto:

Why he will win: At one time he was the runaway favorite to win this award, especially when everyone thought he could win the triple crown. While he doesn’t lead in any, he is in the top three in all the categories. The other aspect really helping Votto out, is that he led his team into winning the division, even though they might not have the most talent. Votto is hitting .323 with 35 HR’s and 106 RBI. That with the remaining nine games to add on, equals an MVP-like year for me and has my vote.

Why he won’t win: His numbers aren’t as good as Pujols and CarGo, and he has had a relatively bland September unlike Tulo. Either Pujols or CarGo, will win two of the three triple crown stats, with RBI being up for grabs. There should be an asterisk here because Howard would have easily won the RBI race if he didn’t get hurt for those 2 1/2 weeks. Can Votto win the award if CarGo or Pujols have two of the three triple crown requirements under their belt?

Roy Halladay

Why he will win: He is in the dark horse in this race. With the Cardinals fading, the Rockies looking like non-playoff contenders, and Votto having a weak September, Roy has stepped into the picture. He, most likely will win the Cy Young. He is the leader of the Phillies, who are the best team in the NL, and while all the Phillies have been hurt this year or struggled from time to time, Roy has been the rock who has held steady. He’s the leader in the NL in Wins, CG, SO, IP, K’s, and is third in ERA. Not to mention his K’s to BB ratio is by far the best. Oh yeah, he also threw a perfect game this year. Roy only has two maybe three starts left, so he has to be outstanding in those starts to prove it.

Why he won’t win: It’s rare for a pitcher to win an MVP. I’m a big proponent to pitchers only winning Cy Young’s because that is basically their MVP award and leave the MVP for the everyday players. Can a pitcher who only plays 38 games total really win the Most Valuable Player award over players who played 150+?

If the players can’t decide who wants the MVP more, then it is up to you (Actually it’s up to the sports writers).

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The advent of sabermetrics has changed the way we look at “clutch.”

“Situational hitting” is luck. “Inducing weak contact” is luck. “Performing under pressure” is luck. It’s all been proven with math and logic and regression analysis.

But screw that, because it’s a pennant race, and even the most logical stathead has subjective ideas about who he’d most want to see step to the plate with his favorite team’s season on the line.

Here is my 2010 All-Clutch team, comprised of the players who have demonstrated the best ability to perform when it counts. I tried to limit my list to players from contending teams, since they’re the only ones who really matter at this point.

Here’s to hoping we get to see one of these guys come up with a big hit this October.

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Look, when ranking the top players in any sport it is primarily a subjective process. I mean, you can use statistics, but those numbers do not factor in the importance of the position they play, nor the heart and desire of an athlete.

But let me tell you this: From a purely objective analysis, at least to me, Troy Tulowitzki meets all those criteria and may just be qualified to be considered the best player in baseball.

Let’s look at the facts here. First of all, does he play a critical position? Check. Along with catcher and center field, the shortstop is often considered to be the most critical player on the field.

Next, does he perform at a very high level? Um, duh. Unless you’ve been living under a rock, you know that Tulowitzki is one of the best offensive and defensive shortstops in baseball.

Is he a winner? Well, considering that he’s doing his best work as the Rockies try desperately to make the playoffs, one would have to think so.

Now, granted, he is having a phenomenal September, so it would be easy for one to say that this article is a knee-jerk reaction to the incredible work he has done this year. Admittedly, this article would have been more effective—and, in fact, somewhat controversial—if it had been written before these accomplishments.

But I can offer you this much: I am a Cubs fan who has absolutely no ties to Tulowitzki from an emotional perspective and I can assure you that I am not related to the man. I wish I was, but that’s a topic for another day.

Yes, he tied a record by homering 14 times in a 15-game stretch, and has four multi-homer games this year (all this month), and is hitting .394 with 35 RBI his last 16 games.

But this is about much more than that.

While fans of Evan Longoria, Albert Pujols, Chase Utley, and the rest may have valid arguments against Tulowitzki being named the major’s best player, it is difficult to argue that he at least should be in the conversation.

Sure, Carlos Gonzalez has also been awesome and Huston Street and Ubaldo Jimenez have been solid, but Tulowitzki was injured for much of June and July and yet has a .328/.391/.596/.987 slash with 24 homers and 88 RBI despite missing significant time this year.

Tulo also has 100 fewer plate appearances than CarGo, yet still has a higher WAR.

Tulowitzki will not turn 26 until October. Not that this should matter, but he is signed to a very team-friendly contract, so who would you rather start your team with right now?

Meanwhile, his BABIP is only .250 while doing all this damage this month.

Hey, this isn’t about whether or not he should be considered for the NL MVP. Those awards are even more subjective than the debate over who the best player is.

Instead, this is an acknowledgement that this young man from Santa Clara, CA is among the best in baseball, if not THE best.

This isn’t the first time that Tulo has been good, by the way. He hit 32 homers with a .377 OBP in 2009, with a 5.7 WAR.

Let’s not forget how good he is defensively. His UZR/150, while not a perfect measure, is 6.1 this season and 4.8 for his career.

His w/OBA is .417 in 2010, while his career is .368.

But enough about the stats. Let’s find out what his manager thinks.

As Coloradosportsdesk.com reports: “I am not heaping anything on him that he doesn’t expect of himself,” Tracy said. “He’s very much like a Jeter, or our guy Helton. He’s a winning player, a guy who sets the tone, a guy capable of being an institution here.”

Compared to Jeter? That’s pretty impressive.

I don’t know what the future will bring, as my crystal ball is currently in the shop, but I am as confident as I can be that this young man will continue to be a great player for a long, long time, assuming good health.

In fact, he just might be the best.

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The Major League Baseball season is coming to an end, with only two weeks left. With that, it’s time to take a look at who the best players in the game have been in 2010.

This slideshow will focus on the top players at each position in the National League for this season. Stay updated for other slideshows concerning the American League, including the top pitchers of the year.

Begin Slideshow

Last Night Rewind

• The limited slate of games last night did yield some solid performances from the Giants, who took over first place last night. Jonathan Sanchez struck out 12 in seven innings of work yesterday while allowing only one run on four hits. Better still, after walking seven in his last outing he did not walk a batter in last night’s game.
• Rodrigo Lopez has been up and down over the better part of the season, but he has looked solid in September. In his three starts, he has surrendered six runs in 19.1 innings of work and given up only just one home run. Lopez worked seven innings last night in getting the win over the Reds. He is a matchup play, but one that may be intriguing in the final weeks.
• In what has to be considered an interesting move at best, Chris Young will get the start for the Padres this weekend. Young will return from the DL after having surgery on his shoulder in August of last year. Young pitched well in his rehab outing last weekend, and the Padres are looking for any shot in the arm that they can get right now.
• Delmon Young had himself a strong game last night, recording three hits in five at-bats, while adding a home run and a couple RBI. His three hits helped raise his average up over .300 and the home run was his 18th of the year. This is also a guy that now has more than 100 RBI on the season. Not bad for a guys with an ADP over 200!
• Nyjer Morgan, unfortunately, had his suspension reduced to just one eight-game set. Morgan showed consistent immaturity in gaining those suspensions, and it is somewhat unfortunate that they made the move. Fantasy owners will likely lose him for the first part of the finals, and probably already have better and more reliable options available. More just an FYI.

Friday Notes

• A.J. Burnett is 2-2 against Baltimore this season, and the 2.48 ERA is one of his better numbers against any team this season. He took the loss against them the last time out, giving up four runs in seven innings. Brian Roberts has the best numbers against him, posting a .326 average. Only Adam Jones at .242 comes across as a player that you would normally start that could be avoided.
• The Yankees have killed Kevin Millwood this season. Millwood has gone 0-2 in three starts with a 7.56 ERA against them. In 16.2 innings against them, he has given up 25 hits and 14 runs, along with five home runs in those outings. Jorge Posada’s 5-for-21 is the only number to leave behind.
• The Blue Jays have a .312 average against John Lackey this season, and Lackey has ended up with a 7.71 ERA as a result. Adam Lind and Fred Lewis have put up the best numbers, with both hitting better than .450. Aaron Hill is only 3-for-21 and Vernon Wells is just 6-for-29.
• If there is a team that you want to avoid Felix Hernandez against, it would be the Rangers. Hernandez is 0-3 in four starts against them, putting up a 6.38, ERA and allowing four home runs in 24 innings of work. Ian Kinsler and Josh Hamilton are both below .200 against Hernandez, but the rest of the lineup has solid numbers.
• Jose Lopez is 10-for-18 against C.J. Wilson, but he has the best numbers against the Texas starter. Chone Figgins is 5-for-19, while Ichiro Suzuki is only 6-for-23. Wilson, after winning four straight starts, has given up 10 runs in his last 8.1 innings of work.
• Randy Wolf has solid numbers against the bulk of the Giants lineup. Edgar Renteria and Juan Uribe have the best numbers against him and both are only hitting .273. There is no single player on the Giants with an average north of that.
• Hiroki Kuroda is 0-1 in three starts against the Rockies, posting an ERA over 6.00 in those starts. Troy Tulowitzki is just 3-for-16 while Todd Helton is only 1-for-10 against him. The rest of Kuroda’s numbers thoguh are ugly against them. Keep him down if you can.
• While Wandy Rodriguez has struggled this season against the Reds, giving up eight runs in 10.1 innings against them, he has been lights out at home. He has posted a 2.71 ERA at home with allowing batters to hit just .210 against him. Jay Bruce is only 1-for-17 against him, and Brandon Phillips checks in at .219 against him. The rest of the lineup is solid.
• Weird to think that Kyle Davies may be a good option tonight. Davies is 2-0 this month, giving up two runs in 12 innings of work. Asdrubal Cabrera has decent numbers, going 5-for-15 against him, but Travis Hafner is 1-for-9, and Shin-Soo Choo is only 2-for-13. In a tight position, look to Davies. He has upside here.
• Spot Start: Davies, Bumgarner, Kennedy

Weekend Notes

• Riding the Jeremy Guthrie train has been fun, but he has been killed by the Yankees this season. In two starts, he has given up 12 hits and 10 runs in 11.2 innings pitched. While going 6-2 over his last eight starts is good, the numbers here do not add up. Start your Yankees and avoid him here. Avoid the 1-for-18 of Mark Teixeira, but Nick Swisher is a .542 hitter against him.
• Vernon Wells has five home runs in 35 at-bats against Josh Beckett, and Aaron Hill is hitting far better than .400 against him. Lyle Overbay and Adam Lind are both solid producers as well. Only the catching tandem of Jose Molina and John Buck should be benched.
• Tim Hudson has pitched well against the Mets this season, going 2-1 with a 1.80 ERA in his starts. In 20 innings, he has allowed only 18 hits and one home run. Carlos Beltran has hit .373 against him, but he is the only true regular hitting over .300 against Hudson. Might see Angel Pagan here, as he is 6-for-12 against Hudson.
• Carlos Lee, Hunter Pence, and Michael Bourn are all hitting better than .300 against Bronson Arroyo. Pence is the big winner, checking in at .370 in his at-bats. Arroyo finally got a win in his last start after losing three straight. He has been solid on the road, going 9-5 with a 3.89 ERA. Despite the numbers of these three, a good spot start.
• John Danks has allowed only two earned runs in 13 innings against the Tigers this year. No great numbers for the Tigers against him either. Jhonny Peralta is at .226, while Brandon Inge is at .238. Ryan Raburn is only 3-for-16 against Danks. Look to avoid your Tigers where you can in this one.
• Andy Pettitte will take the mound after successful rehab starts. Pettitte was pitching very well prior to the injury, and will draw the Orioles, a team he has fared well against historically. Owners looking for the pick-me-up should grab him for the start.
• Jon Lester goes into his start against Toronto with a 6.60 ERA against them this season. When you peel back the one bad start of nine runs in two innings, the numbers are much better. Lester is 6-1 in his last seven starts and has a 3.60 ERA for the month.
• Clayton Kershaw goes in to Sunday’s start against the Rockies with a 3-0 record against them this season. He has struck out 30 while allowing just three runs in 26 innings. Tulowitzki has struggled, hitting only .192 in 26 at-bats and even Carlos Gonzalez is only 1-for-9. Only Dexter Fowler at .353 cracks the .275 mark against the lefty starter. Avoid your Rockies where possible.
• Spot Starts: Figueroa, Sanchez, Vargas, D. Hudson, Niemann

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Troy Tulowitzki is doing his best to make sure that he doesn’t get lost in the Carlos Gonzalez hype.

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