SWINGERS

Jim Thome – 4% of Y! Leagues
7 R / 4 HR / 8 RBI / .538 BA
He’s turning 40 this year and there really isn’t much left in this once mighty bat, but this week was special for Thome. With two homers on Saturday, he passed Twins HOF Harmon Killebrew, on the all-time home run list. The next day he passed Andre Dawson for 34th place in RBIs. Although getting more playing time this past week, he is a hard pickup, since he is only a DH.

Clint Barmes – 38% of Y! Leagues
8 R / 2 HR / 7 RBI / .400 BA
Barmes has been great as of late – currently on a 12 game hitting streak. In that stretch eight have been multi-hit games. In the past month he's raised his average from .215 to .257! If you are going to jump on the Barmes train, now is the time.

Andres Torres – 10% of Y! Leagues
6 R / 1 HR / 2 RBI / 3 SB / .381 BA
Torres continues to add speed to the Giants lineup. He already has 16 stolen bases and 39 runs. Far from a power bat, Torres can certainly give you a boost in SB each week.

Dexter Fowler – 7% of Y! Leagues
8 R / 3 RBI / 2 SB / .417 BA
After getting a demotion at the beginning of the month, Fowler is back and a man on a mission. In the past four games against the Giants, he racked up 10 hits, 7 runs, 3 RBIs & 2 SB. Four games hasn't proved to me that he fixed himself, but its a step in the right direction.

Sean Rodriguez – 24% of Y! Leagues
5 R / 1 HR / 3 RBI / 2 SB / .429 BA
The proud owner of a 15 game hitting streak through June, Rodriguez is now on another run at six. Of those six games, five have been multi-hits. He started off very slow, so even after both hit streaks, his season average is still low at .276. 2B and OF eligible certainly helps make a case of Sean being owned especially with Pedroia & Utley on the DL.

Corey Patterson – 4% of Y! Leagues
3 R / 1 HR / 3 RBI / 3 SB / .417 BA
He hasn’t played a full season since 2004, but a .292 average and 15 stolen bases could make Patterson a halfway decent pickup in deeper leagues.

HURLERS

Russ Ohlendorf – 2% of Y! Leagues
7 IP / 1 W / 8 K / 0.00 ERA / 0.86 WHIP
Okay so a 1-6 record isn’t anything to write home to mom about, but the past two have been gems and Ohlendorf may have turned a leaf. Past 13 IP, zero runs and 11 Ks.

Randy Wells – 47% of Y! Leagues
13.2 IP / 1 W / 11 K / 1.32 ERA / 0.95 WHIP
Wells was a real nice surprise last year. In ’10 things have been up and down. Although he’s pitched nine quality starts so far, he’s also imploded six times for five or more runs. Wells is certainly in the running for the bi-polar award.

Brad Lincoln – 7% of Y! Leagues
7 IP / 1 W / 6 K / 0.00 ERA / 0.71 WHIP
The Pirates top pitching prospect finally put everything together in his fifth big league game. Confidence is a rookie’s best weapon so let’s see if this last game against the Cubs gets him going in the right direction.

Max Scherzer – 43% of Y! Leagues
8 IP / 1 W / 7 K / 1.12 ERA / 0.63 WHIP
Scherzer continues to dominate since being called back up. In the past seven games, Max is averaging eight Ks, has a 2.64 ERA and a 1.13 WHIP. Under 50% owned, come on!

Hong-Chih Kuo – 12% of Y! Leagues
3 IP / 1 W / 1 SV / 7 K / 0.00 ERA / 1.00 WHIP
Kuo is turning out to be one of the best middle relief pitchers in ’10. In 26.1 innings, he’s only given up three runs for a low 1.03 ERA. He’s blowing batters away with 36 Ks already and his WHIP is well below one at .072. Kuo has been rewarded with a three wins and a few saves as well.

Bruce Chen – 1% of Y! Leagues
7.1 IP / 1 W / 3 K / 1.23 ERA / 0.41 WHIP
In his 12th season and 10th team, Chen is trying to mimic his 2005 stellar performance. Since 2005 though, he certainly lost his mojo and has been coming out of the bullpen the majority of the time. This week's game against the Angels, started off with six scoreless and retiring the first 18 batters (2nd best in Royals history to start a game, only behind Bret Saberhagen's 20). Certainly a great game, but don't expect too much more this year. 

Tags: Fantasy Baseball Advice, Fantasy Baseball Blog, Fantasy Sports Blog, MLB, Week 14, Must or Bust, The Fantasy Marx, Jim Thome, Minnesota Twins, Clint Barmes, Colorado Rockies, Andres Torres, San Francisco Giants, Dexter Fowler, Sean Rodriguez, Tampa Bay Rays, Corey Patterson, Baltimore Orioles, Russ Ohlendorf, Pittsburgh Pirates, Brad Lincoln, Max Scherzer, Detroit Tigers, Hong-Chi Kuo, Los Angeles Dodgers, Bruce Chen, Kansas City Royals