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2011 Fantasy Baseball Rookie Report Week 11: O’s Set Innings Limit On Zach Britton

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Zach Britton

Getting my Gee’s and Dee’s straightened out this week as we look at some of the rookies making an impact in the third month of the MLB season.

SP – DILLON GEE (NY METS) Gee has now run his record to 7-0 and the Mets have won all nine of his MLB starts. In his last two starts he has not issued a free pass resulting in a season low 1.10 WHIP. While his numbers look impressive, a closer look shows a 4.78 road E.R.A. and five of his seven wins coming against Pittsburgh(twice), Washington, Arizona and the Cubs. He is worth a pick up but still play the match-ups with him.

SP – ZACH BRITTON (BALTIMORE) The Orioles said the dreaded "two words" last week which all Britton owners need to be aware of. Those words of course were "innings limit". Baltimore will now space Zach's starts out as they want him to be able to pitch into September. This pretty much means that he is still a solid SP option, but in mixed head-to-head leagues it will be very tough to predict any two-start weekly status for him. 

1B – ANTHONY RIZZO (SAN DIEGO) Rizzo got called up last Thursday by the Padres. While at AAA Tucson this year, Rizzo smashed the ball  hitting .365 with 16 HR and 65 RBI. Padre's manager Bud Black says that they did not bring him up to platoon with someone else, so he will definitely get a chance to shine. Rizzo joins a slew of rookie first baseman this year getting the call up to the majors. I am tempering expectations until we get something to base out projections on. Keep a close eye on him.

2B – JEMILE WEEKS (OAKLAND) Jemile the younger brother Brewer second baseman Ricky Weeks got the call recently when Mark Ellis went down with a hamstring injury. In his brief stint so far, Weeks is hitting .333 in 21 AB. Weeks, who is being groomed as the A's future second baseman is a career .286 hitting in the minors. He also can provide steals and runs atop the A's lineup. Ellis on the other hand is hitting only .211 with one home run in 209 AB and is due back from the DL June 22nd, so it will be interesting to see just how the A's handle the second base situation. 

SS – DEE GORDON (L.A. DODGERS) Gordon got called up recently after Dodger SS Rafael Furcal landed on the disabled list. Dee is currently hitting .296 with two stolen bases in 27 AB. At AAA Albuquerque he was hitting .315 with 22 SB and 34 runs in only 50 games. Gordon is definitely the Dodger SS of the future and could possibly have some fantasy impact in the runs and stolen base categories if he gets a chance to play. Keep a very close eye on this situation. 

3B – MIKE MOUSTAKAS (KANSAS CITY) Mike joins Eric Hosmer now as the Royals two top prospects that are playing at the major league level. Moose has a .300 BA and 1 HR in only 10 AB so far. Last year he hit a combined 36 home runs at the minor league level. I picked him up on four teams when he got the call last week. Expect some growing pains but this guy is the real deal. Grab him fast!!

OF – CHARLIE BLACKMON (COLORADO) Blackmon recently was dubbed the "Rockies lead-off man of the future" by manager Jim Tracy. There is no doubt Charlie has all the tools and will post Bobby Abreu type numbers once he gets acclimated to the major league level. As of now Charlie is batting only .259 with three stolen bases in under 30 AB with the Rockies. I think he will stick and start if he can show that he is not overwhelmed at the MLB level. Another player you need to keep an eye on. 

BRYCE HARPER WATCH – Bryce currently has a .338/14/43 line with 12 stolen bases and a .601 slugging percentage, all in only just 60 games played in his first minor league season.

(June 2, 2011 – Photo by Rob Carr/Getty Images North America)

Written by John Marino exclusively for www.thefantasyfix.com

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Tags: The Fantasy Fix, Fantasy Sports Advice, 2011 Fantasy Baseball, The Rookie Report, John Marino , Dillon Gee, Zach Britton, Anthony Rizzo, Jemile Weeks, Dee Gordon, Mike Moustakas, Charlie Blackmon, Bryce Harper
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