Dustin Ackley |Seattle Mariners| (73.5%) – Ackley is another player that I’m surprised sis not at 100% ownership. While the second base position is deep this year there’s still no excuse to not own him.  This week Ackley will face Oakland at home and then the Angels in Anaheim.  Two of the Oakland starters are righties which favors Ackley.  Against righties, Ackley is hitting 26 points higher and has an OPS nearly 100 points higher than against lefties.  Against the three Angels starters that he’ll face, Ackley is hitting .300 in 10 at-bats.  If you need second base help pounce on Ackley.  He has one-third of the at-bats as Neil Walker, but when projected out, he would out-produce Walker in every category except RBIs, and that’s only by four RBIs.

Sit ‘Em

Mark Reynolds |Baltimore Orioles| (98.1%) – Reynolds started off the season struggling from the same stage-fright that as Uggla and Dunn.  Like Uggla, Reynolds has been able to slowly correct himself to what his career numbers would dictate.  Reynolds quietly hit .299 in the month of June.  Since the All-Star Break Reynolds has reverted to his earlier self, hitting .199.  This week Reynolds has three games away against the Royals and then three at home against Toronto.  Against the three Kansas City starters, Reynolds is hitting .167, sub-standard even for him.  Two of those starters are left-handed.  Against lefties this year Reynolds is hitting .195.  Against the Toronto starts, Reynolds is hitting .154.  While hitting at home this year Reynolds is hitting .173, nearly 100 points lower than his home split.

Pablo Sandoval |San Francisco Giants| (100%) – Sandoval faces a gauntlet of strong pitching this week.  His first three games of the week come against the Diamondbacks at home.  Sandoval is hitting .259 through 27 at-bats.  23 of those at0bats have come this year at Chase Field.  His next series of the week comes against the pitching heavy Phillies.  He will have to face the gauntlet of pitching that is Lee, Worley, Hamels, and Kendrick.  Against these four Sandoval is hitting .217 through 23 at-bats.  In 59 career at-bats against the Phillies, Sandoval is hitting .237 and has a meager .266 OBP.  Look at other options this week before you choose to start Sandoval.

Start ‘Em

Cory Luebke | SP | San Diego Padres – Luebke is a young pitcher that the Padres have handled differently this season. The Pads wanted to keep Luebke in the minors and as a starter but injuries forced the lefty into the big league bullpen. If his first 6 starts are any indication of what he can do I would say pick him up if he is available in your league.

This week Luebke has two starts against teams that should be good matchups for him. First he gets the Dodgers. In his brief big league career Dodger hitters are only hitting 2-19 against the southpaw while striking out 8 times.

His next start is against the Pirates. The Pirates are pesky and win a lot of low scoring games which bodes well for Luebke and the Padres as they win in a similar fashion. In limited action against the Bucs Luebke has a BAA of .125. Luebke has fared well as a starter and has given up 2 runs or fewer in 5 of his 6 starts this season.

John Lannan | SP | Washington Nationals – The Nationals John Lannan quietly having a nice season. The southpaw has a low strikeout rate which brings down his value. This week Lannan gets teams hes had some success against.

First he gets the Braves who have added another lefty to their lineup in Michael Bourn. A .250 BAA is respectable and without the Braves best bat in the lineup the damage against him can be minimunilized.

The next matchup is against the Rockies who are not having the late season surge that people have come to expect from them. Lannan will face a team that has seemingly waived the white flag on the season.

Sit ‘Em

Paul Maholm | SP | Pittsburgh Pirates – One of the reasons for the Pirates rise in the NL Central has been starting pitching but this week I would avoid the two start southpaw.

Maholm has had struggles all season away from PNC Park as his splits would indicate. At home this season Maholm has been really good going 5-5 with a 2.37 and a 1.17 WHIP. On the road Maholm is less than stellar with a record of 1-5 and a ballooning ERA of 4.10. With two road starts this week Maholm is a strong sit candidate.

Phil Hughes | SP | New York Yankees – In my personal opinion the Yankees are not doing themselves or Hughes any favors by keeping him in the big leagues. Since Hughes was diagnosed with a dead arm in spring training he has been battling his way back to the bigs. Desperate for rotation help the Yankees brought him up when his arm strength was sharp but his command hasn’t been. 

This week Hughes is scheduled to face the White Sox and the Red Sox. Usually I regurgitate numbers to you but the only numbers I think you need are his 8.24 ERA and 1.89 WHIP for the season. Hughes has also not reached the 5th inning in 4 of his last 7 starts leaving him ineligible for a win. There are rumors that Hughes may lose his rotation spot to Ivan Nova and may not even get two starts this week.

Written by James Bryce & JJ Omar exclusively for TheFantasyFix.com

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Tags: The Fantasy Fix, Fantasy Sports Advice, Fantasy Baseball News, Fantasy Baseball Tips, Sit Em/Start Em, James Bryce, JJ Omar, Two-Start Pitchers, Jason Bourgeois, Michael Bourn, Phil Hughes, Paul Maholm, John Lannan, Cory Luebke, Pablo Sandoval, Mark Reynolds, Dustin Ackley