Fantasy Football

2011 Fantasy Baseball Daily Fix: Jered Weaver Manhandles the Blue Jays

Picture

In the spirit of REO Speedwagon: "Oh dream Weaver, I believe you can get me through the night". Jered Weaver overpowered the Blue Jays potent lineup, striking out 15 in 125 pitches of domination. He’s the first Angel to reach the 15K plateau since Chuck Finley (take cover) back in 1995. Weaver is now 3-0 with a 0.87 ERA, and has 27 whiffs in 20 innings.

Willie Bloomquist is quickly becoming the Peyton Hillis of fantasy baseball. The 33-year old career utility man has four multiple hit games in seven starts (.394 BA), and is tied for the NL lead with six stolen bases. He can play all over the diamond, but unless Gerardo Parra is dealt, there is no everyday spot for him.

Prince Fielder has 14 base hits on the season, 13 of which have been aimed toward the opposite field. He’s staying inside the baseball and driving pitches to LF and CF. Both of his homers have been to hit dead central. Fielder is hitting .400 with 11 RBI through ten games. His teammate, Casey McGehee, smashed a two-run game winning HR off Kerry Wood, only his second extra-base hit in 35 plate appearances.

Welcome to “Mets Baseball”, Chris Young. Channeling his 2007 form, Young pitched seven innings of one-hit one-run ball (1.46 ERA), torturing the Nationals with 83-86 MPH high fastballs. Unfortunately, his sterling effort went for naught, as the bullpen blew a 3-1 advantage and the Swiss cheese Met bats struck out 17 times. Of Young’s 21 outs recorded, only one came via ground out. He did induce a remarkable seven infield pop outs.

Ryan Zimmerman sat out Sunday’s series finale with a strained abdominal muscle, and is expected to miss a couple of games. According to the Nationals, he originally suffered the injury in spring training and has not been 100% since.

Ian Kinsler continues to buttress the theory that he can’t combine batting average and power. Currently hitting .250, four of Kinsler’s eight knocks have left the park (six extra-base hits), including a two-run bomb on Sunday. His positional counterpart, Brian Roberts, went 0/12 in the series (non-existent OBP) and his BA has dipped to .189.

After opening the season in a 2/13 funk, Shane Victorino has 13 hits in his last 23 plate appearances. The “Flying Hawaiian” is batting .417 with eight runs and eight RBI. He’s in the zone from both sides of the plate and squaring up everything.

C.C. Sabathia has yet to record a win after last night’s 4-0 loss to the Red Sox. Beckett on the other side, absolutely dominated the Yankees, going eight strong, knocking out 10 and allowing only two hits for his first win of the season.

The trials and tribulations of
Rick Porcello have continued into 2011. He posted his second five-inning, nine hit, five run line on Sunday in a home loss to Kansas City. Topping out at 91 MPH on his fastball, Porcello’s missing location, but not missing bats. He got just five swing and misses in the 97-pitch outing.

If you own Michael Cuddyer on any mixed-league team, position versatility or not, seek a sports psychiatrist ASAP. Cuddyer is 3/28 (three singles) with zero runs and zero runs batted in. Now that’s production.

Athletics starting pitcher Brandon McCarthy won his first game since 2009. With shoulder problems apparently behind him, B-Mac was reaching back for 93 MPH heat to go along with his slider, change and curve. He’s walked just a single batter in 15 1/3 innings to start the year and looks sharp.

Speaking of sharp, Jeff Niemann has been anything but since the 2010 All-Star Break. He lasted only 2 1/3 innings against the White Sox, allowing five hits (two HR) and five runs (three ER), inflating his season ERA to 8.31 and WHIP to 1.96. Can anybody say: Chris Archer?

Jonathan Herrera, the diminutive Rockies second baseman, has made the most of his starts in Ian Stewart’s absence. Standing at 5’9 150 pounds, with no power to speak of (one career HR); the Pirates walked Herrera SEVEN times in three games. In fact, the Pirates staff walked 21 batters in the final 32 innings of the series. When not pitched around, Herrera was effective slapping five hits in ten at bats and scoring four runs.

Written by Adam Ganeles exclusively for TheFantasyFix.com

Follow The Fantasy Fix on Twitter @thefantasyfix

or for Free Fantasy Sports Advice use our Quick Fix to get help with your team!


Fantasy Baseball

Tags: The Fantasy Fix, Fantasy Sports Advice, 2011 Fantasy Baseball, The Daily Fix, Adam Ganeles, Jered Weaver, Willie Bloomquist, Prince Fielder, Chris Young, Ryan Zimmerman, Ian Kinsler, Brian Roberts, Shane Victorino, Rick Porcello, Michael Cuddyer, Brandon McCarthy, Jeff Niemann, Jonathan Herrera
Previous post

2011 Fantasy Baseball Daily Fix: Hanley Ramirez Owners Breathe A Sigh Of Relief

Next post

2011 Fantasy Baseball Daily Fix: Jered Weaver Manhandles the Blue Jays