4th Of July Holiday Action

I apologize again for the lack of posting, but I took a few days off of work and have pretty much avoided the computer over that time period. :) I'll recap the important stuff over the past few days as best I can, and I'll also be back over the All-Star break with the promised sell high/buy low candidates, most likely tomorrow.

Rich Hill - 6 IP, 10 H, 6 ER, 1 BB, 6 K. The BB/K ratio is solid, so he didn't pitch too badly. Unfortunately, Dmitri Young got to him for a grand slam which blew up his ERA on the day. Like I've said before, the HRs will be a problem for him and will keep his ERA up, but he remains a very good fantasy starter who should provide a good number of wins and a lot of Ks.

Mike Mussina - 6 IP, 5 H, 3 ER, 0 BB, 5 K. Another quality start from Mussina...his 6th in a row. Despite my musings earlier in the season, he's maintaining his value as a solid fantasy starter despite the diminishing velocity on his fastball. He's crafty enough to make it work.

Jason Bartlett - Need a SS in your mixed league? Here's one who's slowly getting noticed. He had a pedestrian first 2 months, but he hit .298 last month, scored 14 runs as he's moved up in the order, and he went 10/1o stealing bases. He's the type of player who needs to hit at least .280 and stay in the top of the order to have fantasy value along with the steals, but since he plays SS, there's some room for error in those catagories. If he can stay in the top of the order, he'll score plenty of runs ahead of Mauer/Morneau/Hunter. Pick him up and see how he does this month...he's only hitting .200 so far, so this might be a short lived thing. He's worth owning to find out, though, if you're weak at SS.

Matt Cain - 5 2/3 IP, 9 H, 4 ER, 2 BB, 6 K, W (3). Things should even out a bit in the 2nd half for Matt Cain, and I suggest buying low on him. He went on a huge streak in the 2nd half of last year, posting 7 wins, a 3.26 ERA, 1.18 WHIP, and 99 K in 99 1/3 IP. He has the talent to put it together and repeat that performance this year, especially given the bad luck he's had so far in the wins column.

Ryan Howard - Some of his owners might worry about the .256 AVG, but he hit .280 last month and he's hitting .308 this month, so he's back to hitting the way he should. Forget what he did in the first half...he should perform like a top fantasy 1B in the 2nd half of this year.

Ian Snell - 8 IP, 9 H, 3 ER, 1 BB, 5 K. Snell heads into the All Star break with a 2.93 ERA, and he's a perfect example of why the All Star game selection process is a bunch of crap. All teams have to send someone, and while I think that does more harm than good as more qualified players are left out because of that, I don't take too much of an issue with it. The specific problem I have this year is that they chose Freddy Sanchez to be the Pirates representative. Sanchez is hitting .297 with 2 HR and 0 SB. He's not a gold glove defender. There's absolutely nothing special about his game, but he got picked over Snell who posted 7 wins on a bad ballclub, and a sub 3.00 ERA...those are All Star numbers. Instead, Brian Fuentes, who lost his closer's role due to poor pitching, was picked and Hanley Ramirez (.330, 14 HR, 27 SB, 70 R) was left off. They just can't get this thing right.

Matt Capps - He had some struggles for a while, but he's posted 6 straight scoreless appearances which include 4 saves and a win. He'll remain a 2nd tier closer from here on out, only falling short in the K catagory (33 K in 48 1/3 IP).

Travis Hafner - He's quietly hitting .300 this month in 7 games, so that's a big step in the right direction after 2 straight months under .230. He should continue to rebound in the 2nd half and remains a great buy low value.

Chris B. Young - He hit .196 last month, and he's hitting .091 this month. Get him out of your lineup until he starts to warm up. Nobody expected him to hit for AVG in his rookie season this year, but he's hitting rock bottom and needs to be benched until he shows progress.

Troy Tulowitski - He has to be owned now. He hit .303 in May, which was nice, but with 0 HR and 0 SB, he wasn't doing anything to really help fantasy owners. He followed that up with a .289 June, but more importantly he slugged 6 HR and stole 3 bases, finally coming through with a fantasy relevant month. Whether he can keep up the power/speed contribution is questionable, but find out with him in your starting lineup.

Chris Young - 7 IP, 5 H, 0 ER, 0 BB, 9 K. About as good as it gets from a start. He's been nothing short of unbelievable this year in San Diego.

Andruw Jones - He's slowly breaking out of his slump. 2 straight months of .200ish AVG, but he's hitting .259 this month, which is more in line with what you should expect from him. He's tossed in 3 HR and 8 RBI as well, so go get him while his value is at rock bottom.

Ben Sheets - 6 IP, 8 H, 5 ER, 1 BB, 6 K. Yes, this was very disappointing versus the Pirates offense, but the Pirates had the Brewers number this series. He's allowed 4 and 5 ER in his last 2 games, but there's nothing to worry about here. With 14 hits, 2 walks, and 17 Ks in 14 IP over those two starts, he's hardly getting hit hard.

Justin Verlander - 7 IP, 6 H, 3 ER, 0 BB, 7 K. You'd figure coming off a big rookie season with a lot of hype that Verlander would be overrated in drafts this year, but he's actually been outperforming his draft position so far. He limited a great Indians offense, and he's going to be among the elite pitchers chosen next year.

C.C. Sabathia - 4 IP, 10 H, 7 ER, 1 BB, 3 K. The pitching matchup with Verlander didn't materialze, but taking a beating at the hands of the Tigers offense is nothing to worry about.

Matt Morris - 6 IP, 7 H, 6 ER, 3 BB, 6 K. Things are starting to even out for Morris who raised his 3.55 ERA with this performance. Hopefully you traded him when I suggested back when things are going good (too good) for him. He might settled in as a 3.80 pitcher, but with the lack off offensive support he'll receive, the shaky bullpen, subpar Ks, and the 1.39 WHIP, I just don't see him doing much for your fantasy team.

Bronson Arroyo - 6 2/3 IP, 7 H, 3 ER, 2 BB, 4 K. That's 3 straight quality starts for Arroyo, and he should be owned in all leagues now. He appears to be healthy again, or over whatever was causing his struggles in that bad stretch. He probably won't resume pitching like he did last year, but he should be a solid fantasy pitcher for the back end of your rotation.

John Maine - 7 2/3 IP, 6 H, 2 ER, 2 BB, 9 K, W (10). He's pitching as well as anyone in fantasy baseball this year, and he's proving to be an elite fantasy starter. I told you to sell high due to his command issues he was showing earlier in the year, but he's limiting the walks now, and his peripherals are supporting his great numbers now. Hopefully you got someone good in return. The fact I got Zambrano makes it not look so bad.

Kelvim Escobar - 7 IP, 3 H, 1 ER, 3 BB, 8 K. Back to the same, dominant Escobar that we love. He's had problems in the past with coupling blowup starts together, but he's bouncing back from those better this year, which has helped him turn into a great fantasy starter.

Chad Gaudin - 7 2/3 IP, 8 H, 2 ER, 4 BB, 3 K, W (8). Gaudin's been awesome this year, posting a 2.88 ERA, but these walks are becoming a real concern. Unlike with Maine earlier in the year, he's not K'ing enough hitters to be able to keep pitching around all those baserunners he's allowing. He's posting a 68:48 K:BB ratio and a 1.37 WHIP, so I suspect some bad times lie ahead for Gaudin. Sell if you can.

Brad Penny - 4 IP, 9 H, 6 ER, 4 BB, 5 K. I know I've been promoting selling him high for a good while now, but I'm not going to jump all over one start. First of all, all pitchers are going to have starts like this from time to time. Secondly, and something that's actually a concern, Penny developed a blister/skin tear on the index finger of his pitching hand. Hopefully that will keep him out of the All Star game so he can rest up and hopefully put together a great 2nd half. Like I mentioned before, in last year's All Star game, he was putting everything into his fastballs, and that might have caused an arm problem that lead to his 2nd half collapse last year. Him not pitching in the game would be good news for his owners in case he dose something like that again.

Kelly Johnson - It seems as though he's platooning at 2B with Escobar now, starting against RHP. I don't know what to think about this. Odds are they'll face about 4 righties a week, meaning Johnson will play that many games. He's hitting .305 against RHP, which means you'll get quality production out of him. It depends on your situation...if you're scraping the WW for a 2B, you could do a lot worse than a platooning Johnson. If you already have a solid 2B that you're fairly happy with, I'd stay with him instead.

Jason Bay - I'd suggest benching him. He hit .172 last month, and he's hitting .045 this month. You can't keep running him out there because of the big name. However, as soon as he puts together a multi-hit game, I'd get him back in there. He's a very streaky hitter, and once he gets hot, he gets really hot.

Jon Garland - 3 1/3 IP, 11 H, 11 ER, 3 BB, 0 K. Garland just couldn't lead the Chicago Bears to a victory over the Minnesota Vikings in this one, losing 20-14. I've been telling you for a while that Garland's ERA just didn't match up to most of his peripherals, but unfortunately he decided to even things out in one ugly game. If you've been using him, there's no doubt you're going to be irate at this, but I wouldn't give up on him yet...just be careful who you start him against.

Matt Garza - 6 IP, 5 H, 0 ER, 3 BB, 6 K. My spot-start suggestion of Garza earlier in the week panned out great in this one. Garza, like all rookie pitchers, will have his ups and downs, but his K potential is worth gambling on. Make sure he's owned, but be selective in who you start him against. Plus, it's not a certainty that he'll have a permanent rotation spot for the rest of the year.

Alex Rodriguez - 3/4, 3 R, 2 RBI, HR (29). He was struggling with his hammy after straining it a bit on a semi-collision at first base, but I think he's fine now.

Andy Pettitte - 5 IP, 10 H, 8 ER, 1 BB, 5 K. That's 3 starts out of 4 where he's allowed 6 ER or more, so you have to wonder if he's hurting after pitching so well to start the year. I'd bench him for his first start after the break to see what's going on here.

Andrew Miller - 7 IP, 3 H, 1 ER, 4 BB, 6 K. Very impressive start against Boston. Again, make sure he's owned, and use rookie pitcher caution with him.

Ryan Braun - 2/5, 2 solo HR (10). He and Pence continue to be ridiculous.

Roy Halladay - 5 2/3 IP, 9 H, 5 ER, 1 BB, 3 K. Yes it came against a powerful Cleveland lineup, but that's 3 straight subpar outings in a row for Halladay. As long as he's not hurt, he'll get back on track soon enough. He's the type of pitcher that carries too much risk for a contending team to own. If you can deal him and get a more consistent ace in return from someone who thinks he'll return to form, do it. On the other side, if you're a team that's looking for a cheaper ace that can carry your staff and launch you up the standings, go after him and absorb the risk.

Wandy Rodriguez - 9 IP, 4 H, 0 ER, 1 BB, 8 K. I think we have to start paying attention to him now. That's an impressive performance against the Mets, and he's now sporting a 3.87 ERA, 1.18 WHIP, and 90 K in 104 2/3 IP. Houston's going to prevent wins from being common, but he's starting to show peripherals that indicate he could help fantasy teams. Add him to your radar/staff depending on your situation.

James Shields - 7 2/3 IP, 7 H, 4 ER, 0 BB, 6 K. He ran into trouble in the 8th inning after getting the first two outs, so his outing looks a bit worse than it was, plus the worthless Tampa bullpen tacked on another run to his total after he left. He pitched well, but with numerous matchups against the AL East upcoming, I'd move him if you can. I can't see him consistently shutting down the Yankees, Red Sox, and Blue Jays lineups once he has to face them more often.

Jeff Francis - 5 IP, 12 H, 6 ER, 1 BB, 4 K. 2 ugly outings in 3 appearances for Francis, but he had to face the red-hot Cubs, and then a tough Philly offense in Colorado. I'd exercise caution and evaluate the matchups for Francis as I don't believe he's an automatic start.

Justin Germano - 4 IP, 10 H, 7 ER, 2 BB, 2 K. I've been warning you that the 2nd time he faces a team, things could get ugly. Atlanta is now the 2nd team to face him a 2nd time and blow him up. Back to the waiver wire he goes if you haven't been able to package him in a deal yet. He's faced too many teams by this point to worry about playing that matchup game anymore.

Adrian Beltre - He's on fire, hitting 10/15 with 3 HR, 9 RBI, and 3 R in the last 4 games. Make sure he's unowned in your league. He's a decent lower end 3B in fantasy leagues with 13 HR and 6 SB. He has the talent to have a big 2nd half, but who knows if he'll be motivated to do such.

Casey Blake - He's back on fire again, getting 9 hits in his last 4 games, including 2 HR, 7 RBI, and 8 R. He's continuing to be a quality fantasy 3B in a sea of mediocre fantasy 3B this season.

John Lackey - 8 IP, 5 H, 1 ER, 0 BB, 11 K. Against the Yankees no less. He's back on top of his game after some struggles with the best start of his season. Unfortunately Roger Clemens matched him, so he didn't pick up a win for his effort.

Roger Clemens - 8 IP, 5 H, 1 ER, 1 BB, 3 K. Another 8 inning start from Clemens, this time against a very good Angels offense. I've been benching him, so while watching these outings on my bench is a bit disappointing, he's re-proved himself as a fantasy starter and should be active now.

Mark Buehrle - 8 IP, 6 H, 0 ER, 2 BB, 1 K, W (6). Vintage start from Buehrle, who's probably on his way out of town now. His contract talks with the team have broken down. He's being very reasonable in his demands, but the White Sox are holding strong and not giving into the no-trade clause that Buehrle wants. Given his durability and willingness to take less than market value, it makes the Sox look bad for not re-signing him, but I think his pitching style, especially as he ages and loses a bit of velocity, is far better suited for the NL. I don't think he'd be able to handle the powerful AL offenses 3 years from now, making the 5 year deal look bad in the future. It's hard to take as a White Sox fan, but I honestly don't think the White Sox are out of line here when you get past the sentimentality. I can only hope they'll get good value from him, and with as well as he's pitching and all the interest, I imagine they'll do well. Their farm system isn't doing so great right now, and this will be a chance to fill it out some.

Paul Konerko - .290, 7 HR last month and now he's at .400 with 3 HR this month. His buy-low window is closed.

Jeff Francouer - He's hitting .310 with 2 HR this month, so he's back hitting well again.
A very nice sign for his owners as he was struggling in the slugging dept the last 2 months.

Khalil Greene - He hit .292 with 6 HR and 17 RBI last month, and he's back at it with a .316 AVG and 2 HR this month. With all the K's and the pitcher's ballpark he plays in, I don't think his AVG over the past month plus is sustainable, but you might as well ride out the hot streak if you're struggling at the SS position, namely if you're a Tejada owner.

Felix Hernandez - 8 IP, 2 H, 0 ER, 2 BB, 2 K. That's 3 great starts in his last 4 outings, so perhaps Felix is ready to go back to being useable again. They did come against Pittsburgh, Kansas City, and Oakland, so he hasn't been shutting down great offenses. I would start using him again, but be careful which offenses he's facing until he shuts down a good one.

Rich Harden - 2 2/3 IP, 5 H, 4 ER, 3 BB, 1 K. A terrible return to the rotation for Harden. I watched some of the highlights, and he wasn't hitting his usual velocity. Don't even think about starting him until he puts in a solid outing.

Prince Fielder - 2/4, 2 solo HR (29). So much for that 9 game homerless drought.

David Ortiz - 2/2, 2 run HR (14). With 2 doubles and a HR in the past two games, hopefully Ortiz is ending his power drought. He's been very quiet for too long, and in a related note, hopefully that will get Manny going as well. Neither are hitting worth a damn right now.

Carlos Delgado - Another slumping hitter showing signs of life. He has 15 hits in his last 10 games, and has 3 HR and 5 2B mixed in. He has his AVG back up to .241, but the recent hot streak probably closed his 2nd buy low window of the season.

Brandon Webb - 7 IP, 5 H, 4 ER, 2 BB, 8 K. He's back struggling again with 10 walks in his last 3 outings, and 9 ER allowed in in his past 2 outings. He'll get it turned around again soon.

Homer Bailey - 5 IP, 2 H, 1 ER, 2 BB, 5 K. A much better outing from Bailey, although a pinch-hitter ended his night early after only 87 pitches. Hopefully he'll build on this, but exercise caution on the matchup when he next pitches, if you need to start him.

Gil Meche - 6 IP, 5 H, 6 ER, 4 BB, 4 K. After looking at the numbers more, I'm starting to sour on Meche. He's only posted 5 quality starts in his last 10 outings, and his WHIP has hovered around an un-impressive 1.30 pretty much all year. He's a nice innings eater, but he's not helping fantasy teams right now.

Tim Lincecum - 6 IP, 6 H, 3 ER, 3 BB, 5 K, W (4). Not at his best last night, but he pitched well enough for the win and is continuing to move in the right direction after being lit up in 3 straight starts.

Manny Corpas - 1 IP, 3 K, SB (1). He's the new Colorado closer with Fuentes hurting, so go get him. He should be solid, somewhat similar to Matt Capps judging from his numbers. He has a solid 2.51 ERA and 1.19 WHIP, but only 33 K in 43 IP.

Erik Bedard - 9 IP, 2 H, 0 ER, 0 BB, 15 K. Dead arm? What dead arm? I think he revived it.

Hanley Ramirez - 4/4, 2 R, 2 SB (27). He hit 2 HRs the day before, so obviously someone besides me is annoyed that Freddy Sanchez is on the All Star team.