Kuzul

Every team wants one, he’s more important than a power hitter, a shut down closer, or a super utility man.  Every team wants a young No.1 starter at or under the age of 26; a young superstar pitcher you can build your team around, one less spot in the rotation that you have to worry about.

You hold on to these pitchers like your life depends on it, and you overprotect that arm like you overprotect your child.  Because your entire franchise is on that throwing arm, and everybody knows that throwing arms are made out of glass.

For this list, I am looking for several things: past performance, injuries, contribution to the team, pure stuff, and whether or not their future is looking bright. 

Every pitcher under or at 26 or under in the majors is eligible, injured or not. 

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As Brewers fans slowly thaw this spring from a cold and unforgiving winter, they will be pleasantly surprised to see a Milwaukee team that addressed a much needed weak spot this offseason: Starting pitching. 

With the additions of Zack Greinke and Sean Marcum to a rotation already consisting Yovani Gallardo and Randy Wolf, the Brewers may now have enough pitching to compete with division rivals St. Louis and Cincinnati. 

The question facing the Brewers is can the revamped starting rotation help the team win the division in 2011, possibly the final season with soon to be free agent Prince Fielder.

In addition, will Zack Greinke prosper in his first season with the team and his first season in the National League? 

Key Acquisitions: 

SP Zack Greinke (Free Agent)

SP Sean Marcum (Trade w/ Blue Jays)

RP Takashi Saito (Free Agent)

SS Yuniesky Betancourt (Free Agent)

Key Losses:  

RP Trevor Hoffman (Retirement)

SP Chris Capuano (Free Agent)

Who to Target 

Not surprisingly, the Brewers’ top two offensive weapons are also the top two fantasy options for the team.

Ryan Braun is a top five outfielder that is a triple threat for fantasy owners, as he is a powerful hitter with a hard to find combination of speed and high average. Braun will most likely be drafted in the first two rounds of a 12 team snake draft and will be a nice bookend outfielder and solid foundation for any fantasy team. 

The second blue chip fantasy player for the Brewers is Prince Fielder, the team’s imposing first baseman. Although Fielder is coming off a down year, in which he had career lows both slugging percentage (.471) and batting average (.261), he is in a contract year and will likely put up monster numbers as he auditions for potential suitors. 

Yovani Gallardo and newly acquired Zack Greinke are the top pitchers to target, with Gallardo being the safer of the two options.

Greinke is a talented pitcher with filthy pitches; however, he struggled in his last season with Kansas City and it is unclear how well he will respond to the move to the senior circuit.

Sleeper 

It was difficult to pick a sleeper for the Brewers, as the team does not have one player that sticks out above the rest as a potential break-out candidate for 2011. 

By default, I chose Carlos Gomez, the once highly touted center fielder who has stellar speed and can flash the glove, but lacks discipline and production at the plate.  

As a career .246 hitter, Gomez has been a disappointment for those who thought he would mature into a possible 20/20 threat. 

It appears he is going to be given one last chance this season as the team’s center fielder and may finally become fantasy worthy in 2011.

This article was originally published on www.kramericasports.com, the home of free fantasy news, rankings and advice.

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The MLB off-season can set up a player for success or disaster. Some teams made a big splash, while others are still looking for a solution. Each team has the potential of making 2011 a season to remember, but which players are looking to take the fantasy scene by storm?

Postion changes or calling a new town home can be just the spark a player needed to become an elite fantasy option. Understanding exactly which off-season moves impacted which players is the key to a successful 2011 fantasy baseball campaign.

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With the 26^th ranked ERA in the majors last year, the Brew Crew went to work this off-season to improve their rotation. Sought-after pitcher Zack Greinke is coming off a disappointing 2010, but was last year truly a fluke? Or will the Newer Brewer Shaun Marcum outpitch Greinke this season? It sure is getting exciting in Milwaukee this year.

Baseball’s 2009 AL Cy Young winner is heading to the National League. Greinke will take his 2008 and 2009 stellar years with him to Milwaukee to take on the rest of the NL Central. 

Greinke owners were annoyed all year by his shoddy numbers and lack of production. He went 10-14 in 220 IP with a 4.17 ERA and 181 strikeouts. 

What we can take away from last season was his strikeouts, low home run total, and consistent walk rate. Greinke was able to strikeout more that 180 batters last season, and also allowed less than 20 home runs despite his 4.17 ERA. Along with his 55 walks (56 in 2008 and 51 in 2009), it looks like Greinke can definitely rebound and have a successful 2011 season. 

I think Greinke will be a top-20 pitcher this year, and can possibly see 17 or 18 wins if Milwaukee’s offense can come alive.

Milwaukee’s second ace of the rotation is Yovani Gallardo. The 25-year-old stud is entering 2011 with two consecutive great seasons under his belt. 

Gallardo’s 2009 and 2010 were similar in terms of numbers, but the best part is his health. The injury bug has plagued him for a few seasons in his career, but Gallardo seems to be healthier than ever and ready to go. He has serious potential to be a top-20 starter in 2011. 

One concern is his poor performance after the All Star break last season. Even though he went 6-3, Gallardo’s ERA was 5.77 after the break. 

I think we can expect another solid year from him though. He should be able to get 14 wins, 200 strikeouts, a 3.70 ERA, and 185 IP once again.

One of the Brewers’ newest arrivals is starting pitcher Shaun Marcum. 

Continue Reading >>>

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Our fourth stop on the 30 in 30 is the Milwaukee Brewers.

Due to my schedule preventing me from writing yesterday, I’ll be making up for it by covering two teams today. Consider it a 2-for-…Wednesday? Something like that.

The brew crew finished the 2010 season one game ahead of the Astros, two games ahead of the Cubs and nine games back of the Cardinals.

How many games ahead or behind each of those teams will this season’s Brewers be? A large part of the answer to that question is the production of newly acquired former AL Cy Young winner Zack Greinke.

The Brewers also welcomed Shaun Marcum from the Blue Jays to their rotation this offseason. The addition of these two talented pitchers gives the Brewers a rotation that can match up with nearly every team in the National League.

If one thing is certain about this team, it’s that they are ready to win NOW. The question remains though, does this team have enough to make a serious push in the NL Central. 

Let’s take a look at that Milwaukee’s lineup and starting rotation should look like this season.

C- Jonathan Lucroy
1B- Prince Fielder
2B- Rickie Weeks
3B- Casey McGegee
SS- Yuniesky Betancourt
LF- Ryan Braun
CF- Carlos Gomez
RF- Corey Hart

SP- Zack Greinke
SP- Yovani Gallardo
SP- Shaun Marcum
SP- Randy Wolf
SP- Chris Narveson
CL- John Axford

This Brewers lineup has a solid heart of the order with Braun, Fielder, McGehee, Hart and Weeks. Each of these players had over 20 HR and 80 RBI last season. 

These five are also the only everyday starters remaining in this Brewers lineup, as Alcides Escobar was a part of the Greinke deal.

Betancourt will be the replacement for Escobar, as he was also a part of the Greinke deal, although I think he is a slight downgrade at the position.

Lucroy and Gomez are the other two starters, both are very young and have a lot of potential. If the Brewers can get solid seasons from both, expect this lineup to cause a lot of problems for the rest of the NL Central.

From a pitching standpoint, this rotation is solid. If Greinke pitches like he did in 2009, the Brewers will have gotten the better end of the trade. He still has the stuff to be an ace, there’s no question about that, and with a better supporting cast, I think we can expect another great year from him.

Gallardo as a No. 2 man is impressive, and emphasizes the depth of this Brewers rotation. Winning 14 games last year with a 3.84 ERA and 200 K, at the age of 24, he has the potential to become a superstar. 

With Greinke and Gallardo at the top of the rotation, what more could you need? Well, the Brewers obviously didn’t think they had enough, so throw Shaun Marcum (a 13-game winner with a 3.64 ERA, 165 k, and an astounding WHIP of 1.15) into the mix.

If that wasn’t good enough, the Brewers still have Randy Wolf as their No. 4 starter, and if Narveson can bring his ERA down a bit, this is a solid five man rotation.

Not many questions left for this Brewers team, but what does remain, are answers. For a team that barely finished third in the NL Central, the expectations couldn’t be higher. 

Are playoff expectations justified? I’m not so certain, but with a solid lineup and rotation, this team will definitely make some noise in the NL Central.

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Entering the 2011 season, the Milwaukee Brewers pitching staff appears to be all about Zack Greinke and Yovani Gallardo and for good reason. The Brewers gave up four of their organization’s best young talents to bring the 2009 AL Cy Young winner to Milwaukee. Likewise, Gallardo has blossomed into one of the finest (and most underrated) pitchers in the game having posted back to back 200 strikeout seasons.

However, if the Brewers are to make a push to the playoffs in 2011, much of the credit will go to the third of their aces that has received virtually no attention since being acquired from the Blue Jays last month—Shaun Marcum. 

Marcum is no stranger to being overshadowed. That can happen quite easily when you’re pitching on the same staff as Roy Halladay for four seasons. That was followed up by missing the entire 2009 season thanks to Tommy John surgery.

2010 proved to be the coming out party for Marcum. He served as the Opening Day starter for the Jays and finished the season with a 13-8 record and a 3.64 ERA in 31 starts.

His strikeout-to-walk ratio, WHIP and walks per nine innings were all better than either Greinke or Gallardo. Marcum put up his numbers all while pitching in the toughest division in baseball. This year, he can replace starts against the Rays, Yankees and Red Sox with starts against the Astros, Cubs and Pirates. Despite finishing fourth in their division, the Blue Jays won 85 games in 2010, a total that cannot be dismissed, especially against the level of competition they faced.

Despite missing all of 2009, Marcum proved to be a workhorse for Toronto. Only eight times did he pitch fewer than six innings, including his first nine starts of the year and eight of his final nine starts. 

Baseball is a game about matchups. Last season, Marcum was consistently matched up against the opposing team’s ace, but he’ll face many team’s third, fourth or fifth starter this year. In fact, there is a chance he could serve as the team’s fourth starter to break up the back to back throwing of lefties Randy Wolf and Chris Narveson. 

His offensive support will be virtually identical as well. The Jays scored only five more runs over the course of the season than the Brewers. Similarly, the defense for both teams was nearly the same as well. Neither was outstanding but he can do enough on his own to keep his team in the game.

It was Marcum’s arrival in Milwaukee that served as one of the main reasons Greinke decided to waive his no-trade clause to be sent to the Brewers. Now he’ll be able to showcase his talents for a team that has a much easier road to the playoffs.

Shaun Marcum doesn’t have the name recognition to excite the fans and drive up ticket sales like Greinke, nor does he have a following in Milwaukee like Gallardo, but he may prove the most valuable of the trio in the team’s effort for postseason play in 2011. 

To read more by Jesse Motiff, click here. 

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With extravagant talk about newly acquired superstar Zack Greinke on his way to the Brew City, a majority of experts are now dubbing Milwaukee’s pitching staff the foremost pitching staff (on paper) in the league.

It’s about time.

In recent years, the Brewers have been a prime example of how maintaining an embarrassingly under-talented pitching staff can halt the rest of the team’s success—as well as dishearten the entire Milwaukee fanbase, for that matter.

For example: Last year, Milwaukee’s hurlers carried a 4.58 ERA over their backs—atrocious enough to be fifth worst in the entire MLB.

But statistics don’t quite tell the tale of the Brewers’ recent pitching struggles. So for the reader’s sake, we’ll cut right to the chase.

Well, I’ll tell you straight up: The Milwaukee Brewers’ No. 1 ace will remain Yovani Gallardo until proven otherwise.

Yovani who?

To start off, let’s get reacquainted with Yo.

Leading the Brewers in wins, strikeouts and ERA at the end of both the 2009 and 2010 seasons, Gallardo has obviously made his mark on the mound.

With his 200-strikeout season of 2010, Gallardo was dominant enough to place ninth in the National League in punch-outs. For a 24-year-old, that’s clearly an extraordinary feat in itself.

Gallardo also agreed to a $30.1 million, five-year deal that could be worth $42.5 million over six seasons, so it’s safe to say the Brewers have the intention of utilizing Gallardo’s talents for a few years coming.

Now, to Greinke…

It should be no surprise how Doug Melvin’s aggressiveness this offseason has resulted in Milwaukee’s trade for Zack Greinke.

Stunning numbers and young potential are exactly what Greinke has proved over his immature tenure as a professional major league pitcher—and he has the hardware to dignify it.

Since entering the league in 2004 with Kansas City, Greinke has accumulated a 60-67 record to go with a 3.82 ERA.

However, in his record-breaking Cy Young Award-winning season of 2009, Greinke acquired a 16-8 record with a major league-best 2.16 ERA—officially putting him in the conversation as one of the premier pitchers in the entire league.

Be that as it may, Greinke fell into the inevitable hangover that follows a bulk of the Cy Young Award winners. Nearly doubling his ERA from 2009, Greinke retained a 4.17 ERA with a less than impressive 10-14 record in 2010. Let’s hope that hangover isn’t carried over into 2011.

Nevertheless, as Opening Day draws nearer, the expectations for Greinke to succeed (and succeed at a high level) from the get-go may prove to be a bit too high for comfort.

Let’s not get ahead of ourselves…

Brewers fans should be as excited for a run at the NL Central crown as ever before—and with the new Gallardo-Greinke combo taking to the mound, Milwaukee is now a potent contender for the postseason.

Expectations will be high, and execution will be key for Greinke.

Let’s not forget: The guy has yet to step on a mound in a blue and gold jersey.

However, until that highly anticipated time comes, the Brewers’ No. 1 starting pitcher will remain Yovani Gallardo.

We’ll just have to wait and see what transpires this season.

Alec Dopp is on Twitter.  Make sure to visit Brewers Daily for all your Milwaukee Brewers up-to-the-minute info.

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Now that the initial shock and excitement from the Zack Greinke trade to the Milwaukee Brewers is beginning to wear off, it’s time to analyze and look more closely at Greinke’s roll for the Brewers in 2011. 

The most popular question being asked now is who will be the “ace” of the staff and get the Opening Day start against the Cincinnati Reds. Greinke, Yovani Gallardo, and Shaun Marcum all started for their respective teams in 2010, so new manager Ron Roenicke definitely has several options to choose from.

I’ve seen many fans and media members come out and say that Gallardo should be the Brewers’ ace, and they think Greinke is over-rated. With due respect to Gallardo, he’s a great young pitcher and I’m quite thankful the Brewers have him signed for the next several seasons, but he isn’t on the same level as Greinke and the newest Brewer should be the ace of the staff, no questions asked.

Critics certainly have ammunition to try and question Greinke’s status as an ace. His numbers regressed significantly after winning the AL Cy Young Award in 2009. His ERA jumped from 2.16 to 4.17. He had half as many complete games and no shutouts, and all his other pitching statistics declined sharply in 2010. 

While some of the blame has to fall on Greinke’s shoulders, he admitted he stopped throwing his slider as frequently starting in August to save his arm for the 2010 season, let us not forget that he pitched for the Kansas City Royals. The team hardly had an All-Star roster to support him either at the plate or in the field. The Brewers may not field a team of Gold Glove-caliber fielders, but they are adequate in the field and a very good offensive club.

He has also had bouts in the past with social anxiety disorder and depression. Some interpret this as a sign of weakness and an inability to sustain any long-term success or deal in pressure situations. The dosage of his medication was raised and when he spoke to the Milwaukee media he told them he was as happy now as he’s ever been in the game since being drafted in 2002.

Greinke possesses as many weapons to dominate a game as any pitcher in baseball. His fastball can reach the upper-90s, but he’ll consistently keep it around the mid-90s during a game. The two-seem fastball he throws is a great weapon to induce many ground balls. His slider, which some consider to be the best single pitch in the game, has a share 12-6 break that he throws in the upper-80s. His change up and curveball are both quality pitches that should work very well in the National League.

General Manager Doug Melvin has done an amazing job transforming the Brewers’ rotation from a laughing-stock to a group that can compete with almost any team in the league. The still might lack the depth to compete with the Phillies or Giants, but they now have a pitcher that can match up with any pitcher on any day and win. That can go a long way when October rolls around.

Gallardo may be around in Milwaukee longer than Greinke, and Marcum is a very under-rated pitcher that had success in the most competitive division in baseball, but Zack Greinke is the ace in Milwaukee. Fans can debate it, and Roenicke may not make a public decision for a few months, but there’s no question who will be on the mound for the Brewers come March 31, he’s baseball royalty. 

To read more by Jesse Motiff, click here. 

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The surprising decision of Cliff Lee signing with the Phillies ultimately had a major impact on our early starting pitcher rankings.  He always was going to be considered one of the better options in the league for 2011, but now he appears to be a borderline Top 5 option.  Let’s see where he ultimately falls, as well as all the rest in our updated rankings.

1. Roy Halladay—Philadelphia Phillies
2. Felix Hernandez—Seattle Mariners
3. Tim Lincecum—San Francisco Giants
4. Jon Lester—Boston Red Sox
5. CC Sabathia—New York Yankees
6. Adam Wainwright—St. Louis Cardinals
7. Cliff Lee—Philadelphia Phillies
8. Clayton Kershaw—Los Angeles Dodgers
9. Ubaldo Jimenez—Colorado Rockies
10. Justin Verlander—Detroit Tigers
11. Jered Weaver—Los Angeles Angels
12. Francisco Liriano—Minnesota Twins
13. Josh Johnson—Florida Marlins
14. Chris Carpenter—St. Louis Cardinals
15. Yovani Gallardo—Milwaukee Brewers
16. Cole Hamels—Philadelphia Phillies
17. Zack Greinke—Kansas City Royals
18. Clay Buchholz—Boston Red Sox
19. Mat Latos—San Diego Padres
20. David Price—Tampa Bay Rays

Thoughts

• Cliff Lee posted strong numbers while a member of the Phillies, with a 3.39 ERA, 1.13 WHIP and 8.36 K/9 over 79.2 innings. Over a full season, that would be his best strikeout rate of his career and while he may not match that mark, seeing him approach the 7.8-8.0 range now appears realistic. Over 220 innings, that’s at least 190 strikeouts. When coupled with his stellar control and good potential for wins, he becomes one of the best options in the league. Jumping back to the NL, he is a certain SP1 now.
• Injury concerns based on the number of innings he threw in 2010 is why Mat Latos fell a few spots in the rankings, but I am not going to drop him out of the Top 20 because of it. All we have heard since Tim Lincecum emerged was that he was going to miss time due to injury and it still hasn’t really happened yet. There’s always a risk when drafting pitchers, and you don’t want to bypass someone simply because of it. As we progress through the offseason things may change slightly, but he’s certainly going to remain a SP2.
• We all know that Gallardo is a pretty big risk, thus far being unable to put it together for an entire season. Still, he has as much talent as anyone in the league and has the potential to have a breakout campaign. He’s a risk, but one I would love to take.
• Is Dan Haren a Top 20 pitcher while in the AL? He’s certainly right on the cusp, but given his past second-half struggles and spending a full year in the AL, I have him just on the outside looking in.

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
• Top 15 Shortstops
• 2011 Fantasy Draft First Round Breakdown

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It wasn’t a good day for a few of the better starters in the league.  Let’s take a look at their struggles, plus all the other noteworthy performances from yesterday’s games—

American League—

• Justin Masterson (6.0 IP, 5 ER, 11 H, 1 BB, 5 K)—Cleveland Indians—The numbers this season are awful, and we all know it.  However, he entered the day with a .337 BABIP and 65.6% strand rate.  The control is an issue (4.3 BB/9), but he is generating groundballs at a tremendous rate (62.7%).  Don’t write him off, with that groundball ability.
• Felix Hernandez (8.0 IP, 0 ER, 4 H, 3 BB, 11 K, W)—Seattle Mariners—He got all the offense he needed from Russell Branyan (2-5, 2 HR, 4RBI, 2 R) as he stymied the Yankees for the third time this season (3-0, 0.35 ERA with 31 Ks over 26.0 IP).  Despite winning just nine games thus far, the rest of his numbers are as good as you’d expect (2.51 ERA, 1.13 WHIP, 183 K).  He’s a fantasy ace, though how much better would he be if he was on a better team?
• C.J. Wilson (8.2 IP, 0 ER, 3 H, 1 BB, 12 K, W)—Texas Rangers— Who saw this type of season coming?  He’s now 12-5 with a 3.02 ERA, though it’s hard to imagine him being able to repeat this.  He’s currently sporting a .257 BABIP, so there certainly is a little bit of luck in his performance.  He also entered the day with a 7.0 K/9, having only three starts with more then 6 Ks.  Don’t expect him to become a strikeout machine.  Don’t get me wrong, he has emerged as a solid option in all formats, but there is room for a regression.
• Jon Lester (2.0 IP, 9 ER, 8 H, 3 BB, 1 K)—Boston Red Sox—It was an unbelievably bad performance, but what are you going to do?  He’s an ace, and you have to expect him to bounce back strong.
• Lyle Overbay (4-5, 2 HR, 7 RBI, 3 R)—Toronto Blue Jays—He had just 7 RBI in August prior to this one and has been struggling all year long.  It’s hard to put too much stock into this game, but if you were one of the few who actually had him active, you certainly reaped the rewards.  Don’t go banking on a repeat performance, though.  There isn’t much in his numbers to point to that is overly encouraging.  Overall, his BABIP is .295, his HR/FB is 11.8% and his strikeout rate is 23.4%.  All of those numbers are in the vicinity of his career marks.
• Dan Haren (7.0 IP, 7 ER, 11 H, 1 BB, 3 K)—Arizona Diamondbacks—Since the trade that sent him to LA, Haren has gone 1-4 with a 4.39 ERA and 1.27 WHIP.  His control has actually been superb, walking just five batters in 41.0 innings, and the HR are down from his time in Arizona (five home runs allowed).  Where he has struggled is striking people out (5.9 K/9) and in his luck (.322 BABIP).  Considering he’s posted a K/9 of at least 7.0 every year since 2006, that has to be a slight concern.  He’s not likely to strikeout 8.5/9 innings, like he was in the NL, but he’s better then this.  More strikeouts will certainly help lead to better results.
• Jeremy Hellickson (6.1 IP, 3 ER, 7 H, 1 BB, 7 K)—Tampa Bay Rays—You knew he couldn’t give up just three hits every time out, right?  This wasn’t an awful outing, but clearly it wasn’t quite up to his previous starts.  The question now is, how much longer will he stick in the rotation?  Time will tell, but monitor the news before counting on him.

National League:

• Yovani Gallardo (3.1 IP, 6 ER, 6 H, 5 BB, 1 K)—Milwaukee Brewers—He’s certainly going through a rough stretch, having allowed four earned or more in four of his last five starts.  You have to wonder if there is something going on, but it’s hard to say.  In fact, the struggles go back all the way to mid-June.  In 11 starts, he has six giving up at least 4 ER (and another where he gave up 6 runs in 2.2 innings, but only 1 was earned).  In six starts since the All-Star Break, he’s sporting a 5.81 ERA.  All you can do is stick with him, as he’s proven how good he can be, and hope for him to turn things back around.
• Mike Stanton (0-4)—Florida Marlins—He has struggled since being moved up to the fifth spot in the order.  He’s 1-15 in his last four games and doesn’t have a HR or RBI since August 13.  Overall in the fifth spot he’s hitting .133 with 0 HR and 0 RBI.  Chances are he’s just pressing a bit, so don’t get too worried.  Once he settles in, he should start producing bombs like he was.  Just wait it out.
• Roy Halladay (7.0 IP, 0 ER, 8 H, 3 BB, 5 K, W)—Philadelphia Phillies—The Nationals certainly weren’t silenced, with 10 hits in the game, but they couldn’t break through against Halladay or the Phillies bullpen.  Halladay has now won six straight runs, allowing 1 ER or less in six of them (total is 7 ER over 46 innings).
• Carlos Marmol (1.0 IP, 3 ER, 1 H, 3 BB, 3 K)—Chicago Cubs—Control has always been the biggest concern, and it cost him big time in this one.  He had put together a stretch of 7.2 innings without a walk, but has now walked five in his last 2.2 innings.  He’s got the talent, if he could harness his control.  Overall this season, he’s posted a BB/9 of 6.2.  You have to wonder that if Marmol shows no signs of improving there, will they will continue to stick with him as their closer long-term.
• Derrek Lee (0-4)—Atlanta Braves—He was in the cleanup spot for his Braves debut.  While it wasn’t a good day, it’s only one game.
• Chris Carter (2-4, 1 HR, 2 RBI, 2 R)—New York Mets—Inserted into the cleanup spot, Carter was at the center of a Mets offense that finally produced.  Six Mets had multi-hit games, including Jose Reyes (3-5, 2 R, 1 SB), Angel Pagan (2-5, 1 R) and David Wright (3-5, 2 R, 1 SB).  While Carter will likely be given another day or two in the cleanup spot, he’s not a viable fantasy option.
• Pablo Sandoval (2-5, 1 HR, 1 RBI, 1 R)—San Fransisco Giants—That’s back-to-back games with a HR and three in his last six.  Of course, he’s just 5-23 with tree HR, three RBI and three runs in those six games, so it appears to be a home run or bust.  Still, at least he’s showing something, right?
• Eric Young Jr. (3-5, 1 R)—Colorado Rockies—He appears to have claimed the 2B job, at least for now, and is hitting atop the Rockies order.  In six games since his recall he’s gone 8-25 with three R and three SB.  He’s not known for his average, hitting .250 in the minor leagues this year, though he had hit at least .290 every year prior.  Speed is his game, so if you are in need there, he’s certainly going to have value.  We’ll take a closer look at him early this week.
• Homer Bailey (7.0 IP, 1 ER, 4 H, 2 BB, 6 K, W)—Cincinnati Reds—Has he finally turned the corner?  It seems like we’ve been waiting years for it to happen, but he’s 2-0 while allowing just one ER over 13.0 innings in two starts since returning from the minor leagues.  I wouldn’t declare anything quite yet, but he’s worth keeping a close eye on down the stretch.

What are your thoughts from yesterday’s games?

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