July 20^th 2013

Hitting Injuries News and Notes:

Brett Lawrie of the Toronto Blue Jays started again at second base today, with Maicer Izturis starting at third base. Lawrie has been a huge disappointment this season, but will gain a modest bump in fantasy value should he continue to get starts at the keystone. We will monitor this situation throughout the week to see if Lawrie moves closer to gaining 10 games at second base (which is needed for eligibility in ESPN formats).

Tampa Bay Rays utility player Kelly Johnson started for the third time this season at first base on Friday. Johnson already has second base, third base, outfield and DH eligibility so the extra position just increases his already useful eligibility value added. He also hit his 14^th home run of the season

In the fifth inning of the Yankees vs. Red Sox game, New York Yankees outfielder Brett Gardner was ejected for arguing balls and strikes. Owners who saw him leave the game may have been worried about a re-aggravation injury; fortunately, he was just ejected.

Texas Rangers third baseman Adrian Beltre was robbed of a home run last night by Baltimore Orioles right fielder Nick Markakis.

New York Mets outfielder Eric Young Jr. was moved to second base during the Phillies drubbing of the Mets Friday. Young is now six second base appearances away from gaining eligibility at the position. He stole another base last night, giving him eight in his past 11 games.

Matt Holliday was held out of the St. Louis Cardinals lineup on Friday. He continues to nurse a sore hamstring.

Matt Kemp should return Sunday July 21^st from the disabled list, according to ESPN Los Angeles. The Dodgers outfielder has had an awful season so far so owners are surely excited for his return and impending “make-up production” he should have in store for them.

Boston Red Sox outfielder Shane Victorino left the game Friday in the fourth inning after re-aggravating his left hamstring. It has been diagnosed as a strain. More news should be available in the coming days.

New York Yankees captain and shortstop Derek Jeter was placed back on the disabled list with a quadriceps injury on Friday. It’s hard not to feel bad for Jeter, as he was injured in his first game back after returning from off-season ankle surgery.

Ben Zobrist started at shortstop Friday for the injured Yunel Escobar. Fantasy owners, or anyone for that matter, ever root for an injury, but a disabled list stint for Escobar (who is nursing a sore hamstring) would mean that Zobrist is going to end up keeping his shortstop eligibility for the coming season. Keeper league and dynasty league owners would be wise to try and capitalize on this if another owner is down on Zobrist due to his sub-par season so far in terms of power and speed.

Pitching Injuries News and Notes:

Tampa Bay Rays starting pitcher Alex Cobb (concussion) will begin a rehab assignment in Port Charlotte on Tuesday, according to Roger Mooney of the Tampa Tribune.

Texas Rangers starting pitcher Yu Darvish threw a successful bullpen session and is still expected to make his start on Monday against the Yankees. In similar Rangers news, Alexi Ogando was sharp in his rehab start, giving up just three hits and two runs in seven innings for Triple-A Round Rock. He is expected to return July 23^rd against the Yankees.

Arizona Diamondbacks pitcher Brandon McCarthy (shoulder) will embark on a rehab assignment on Sunday for Triple-A Reno according to Arizona Sports 620.

Boston Red Sox reliever Andrew Bailey was placed on the disabled list with an apparent labrum injury according to Peter Gammons. This is starting to become sad for the young right hander. He has so much talent and just continues to get hurt. He probably will never be the same if he requires labrum surgery.

Cleveland Indians starting pitcher Zach McAllister is expected to start Tuesday against the Mariners.

Three-Up:

Felix Doubront: Doubront has been fabulous recently, crediting a change in his off-day regimen that has allowed him to get a better feel for his secondary offerings. Doubront gave up three hits and two runs (one earned), walking three and striking out five in 6.1 innings against the Yankees Friday night. The Red Sox won the game 4-2.

Kyle Seager: Seager keeps adding to what will be his career year, as he homered for the 16^th time this season on Friday against Houston. Seager went oppo’ on Astros starter Bud Norris; the homer extended his hitting streak to 15 games.

Jacoby Ellsbury: Ellsbury homered again, his fourth of the season, his second in five games and third in his past 10 games. Fantasy owners looking to make a bold move to get back in their respective races, should trade for Ellsbury and offer Top 10 fantasy player value. The stolen bases he offers above and beyond the rest of the league is immense for his value, and should he find a power surge, could be a monster contributor for the stretch run.

Three Down:

Jeremy Hefner was brutalized by the Phillies as he was torched for eight runs on 10 hits in just two innings. He should still be rolled out for his next start as he faces Atlanta at home next Wednesday. If he struggles again, he goes back into droppable territory.

Kyle Kendrick also fell victim to the hot conditions in the Phillies Mets game as he was cruising along through the third inning, amassing six strikeouts and no runs allowed. He fell victim to a Marlon Byrd three-run home run in the fourth inning. He settled down a bit in the fifth but allowed two more runs in the sixth inning, departing shortly thereafter. He now has given up six runs twice in his past three starts and 17 runs total in his past four starts. It’s hard to know when to trust him going forward; he’s best relegated to your bench for his start next week vs. the Cardinals.

Jason Marquis in case anyone was stupid enough to start him, gave up six earned runs against the cardinals, walking three and striking out none. He is best buried six feet under the waiver wire at this point and this INCLUDES NL-Only leagues.

Stream-Em/Leave-Em:

I only trust two pitchers tomorrow as streamers:

Wade Miley | ARI | @ SF: 44.5 percent owned: Miley faces Matt Cain Saturday. If Miley had been able to record one more out in his no earned run, six hit, seven strikeout, four walk performance against the Mets on July 1^st, Miley would have a streak of seven quality starts in his last eight starts, including four straight. The Giants have been putrid offensively this season and Miley should turn in a solid outing.

Dan Straily | OAK | @ LAA: 5.4 percent owned: Straily faces C.J. Wilson on Saturday and any time you can go up against him, you have a good chance of getting a win. Straily hasn’t been exactly lights out recently, with a 3.80 ERA and 19:10 K:BB ratio in his last 21.1 innings (five starts) but the problem really has been pitch inefficiency (failing to go six innings in two of his past four starts). Of course, that’s selective sample sizing though as at the endpoint of that selection sits five straight six+ inning performances including five quality starts.

Hesitant but willing to stream: Corey Kluber @ MIN:

Leave-Em:

A clarification for everyone quickly: since “Stream-Em” covers the pitchers under fifty percent I am willing to stream, it goes without saying that the rest of the pitchers in those parameters are obvious candidates for “Leave-Em”. In order to avoid stating the obvious, “Leave-Em’ will consist of pitchers above 50 percent ownership that I am sitting.

Paul Maholm | ATL | @ CWS: 59.1 percent owned: Maholm has been Ma-horrible in his last six starts, giving up four earned runs four times. His ownership levels need to start coming down as he isn’t a reasonable streamer thanks to his sheer unpredictability. Last time out he was brutalized by the Marlins in 4.1 innings, giving up seven hits, four earned runs, five walks and just three strikeouts.

Question likely asked: Why are you so selective in who you stream?

Answer: I always air on the side of caution with streamers, especially in rotisserie formats. For points leaguers, streaming is sometimes more just about volume than quality. In those formats I would be much more willing to stream pitchers like Kluber, Carlos Villanueva, and even Juan Nicasio.