Saturday's Recap

Derek Lowe - 6 IP, 7 H, 3 ER, 0 BB, 5 K. Another mediocre outing from Lowe as he continues to struggle since coming back from his hip injury. If he continues to pitch, I imagine it's not an injury that will get worse, so expect him to bounce back soon. He was much better in the last 3 innings of this one.

Rick Ankiel - 3/4, 3 R, 3 RBI, 2 HR (3). Ankiel is a great story, moving from prized pitching prospect who battled injuries and extreme wildness to power hitting OF, but his flaws at the plate (lack of patience, inability to hit a solid breaking ball) will be exposed soon enough, and he's not going to be useful in mixed leagues. You could attempt to ride out a hot streak if you're desparate.

Tim Lincecum - 6 IP, 9 H, 6 ER, 1 BB, 8 K. More hittable than usual today as Pittsburgh gave him a hard time. Not a very good outing, but the improvement in the walks catagory is reason to smile.

Adam LaRoche - 2/5, 2 R, 3 RBI, HR (17). LaRoche has quietly turned his season around. He hit .321 with 4 HR and 12 RBI last month, and he's started off August with a .325 AVG with 3 HR and 8 RBI in 9 games. He'll continue to be limited by the weak Pittsburgh offense and the slumping Jason Bay, but he's well worth using hitting the way he is.

Josh Beckett - 8 2/3 IP, 8 H, 2 ER, 0 BB, 8 K. Beckett gave up consecutive RBI hits with 2 outs in the 9th, and Boston decided to replace him after 115 pitches and turned to Delcarmen to get the last out. Despite him falling an out short of a CG SHO, he turned in a great outing to pick up win #15.

Wandy Rodriguez - 7 IP, 6 H, 1 ER, 3 BB, 4 K. Another stellar home outing from Rodriguez, but the bullpen blew a 4-1 lead.

Brad Lidge - 1 IP, 4 H, 4 ER, 1 K, BS (5). That's his 3rd blown save since regaining the closer role, and this was obviously very ugly. He's allowed 9 ER in his past 6 2/3 IP, shooting his ERA to 3.28. Since Qualls also struggled tonight, Lidge will remain the closer for now, but he'd better right the ship quickly.

Ryan Braun - 2/5, 1 R, 4 RBI, HR (22). He decided to do all his damage the last two innings, including a game winning HR. The only way he could help owners more is if he started pitching.

Jeff Francouer - 2/4, 2 R, 1 RBI, HR (14). He's hitting a scorching .395 this month with 2 HR and 7 RBI in 10 games. He seems to be enjoying Teixeira's arrival.

Josh Fields - 2/5, 1 R, 5 RBI, HR (12). That's 3 HR in 2 days from Fields who's hitting .282 with 4 HR and 10 RBI in 10 games so far this month. He's still striking out way too much, so he's not going to be useful in AVG. Still, with 12 HR in 2.5 months, he's displaying the power that made him a well regarded prospect.

Dan Haren - 6 1/3 IP, 9 H, 3 ER, 1 BB, 4 K. Back to the 3 ER outings for Haren, although this qualifies as a solid performance against the Tigers. His 2.53 ERA still ranks first in the AL.

Justin Verlander - 6 IP, 7 H, 2 ER, 3 BB, 7 K, W (12). Still a bit shaky, but he stranded baserunners and picked up the win for his effort. His 2nd half numbers are still a bit worrisome as they sit at a 4.86 ERA and a 1.43 WHIP. He's been quite a bit more hittable since the start of July.

Mike Mussina - 7 2/3 IP, 8 H, 2 ER, 0 BB, 6 K, W (8). Tied for his longest outing of the year, although the Cleveland lineup is hitting very lame these days. Still, he hasn't walked a hitter in 3 consecutive outings and has won 4 straight.

Alex Rodriguez - 2/5, 2 R, 4 RBI, 2 HR (39). His 5th multi-HR game of the season. He's settled back into a groove once he finally hit #500.

Tom Glavine - 6 1/3 IP, 7 H, 2 ER, 1 BB, 5 K. Another quality start from Glavine, although the bullpen blew his bid for win #301 for his

Kevin Gregg - After struggling for a while, he's strung together 5 consecutive scoreless appearances, 4 consecutive saves, and only 2 H and 2 BB allowed in those 6 innings. He has no threat to his job, so Benitez's struggles have given him a longer leash.

David Wright - 3/4, 2 R, 3 RBI, 2 HR (22). Wright responded with 2 HR just as I mentioned he needed to get going a bit to reach a career high in HR. Wright still has further upside as he continues to develop as a 24 year old hitter.

Dustin McGowan - 6 1/3 IP, 6 H, 3 ER, 1 BB, 4 K. Another solid outing from McGowan against the Royals here, but a lack of offense prevented him from picking up another win. Continue using him in mixed leagues.

Alex Gordon - 3/3, 2 R, 2 RBI, HR (9), SB (11). I had just tired of his 2nd extended slump of the season and dumped him the day before this in favor of Nomar Garciaparra. Thanks, asshole. Maybe he can build on this for once and finally show some consistency.

Rich Hill - 5 2/3 IP, 9 H, 7 ER, 2 BB, 4 K. Hill is sporting a 11.32 ERA and a 2.13 WHIP at Coors field in 2 starts there, so give serious consideration to benching him in his next trip to Colorado. Coors Field and big curveballs don't mix well thanks to the thin air.

Brandon Webb - 9 IP, 5 H, 0 ER, 1 BB, 10 K. Webb is up to 33 consecutive scoreless innings as he's lowered his ERA to a sparkling 2.77 for the season. That's 2 consecutive CG SHOs as well. Needless to say, he's been the hottest pitcher in fantasy baseball over that span, compiling 29 K over that span while only allowing 22 H and 6 BB.

Edwin Jackson - 9 IP, 4 H, 0 ER, 1 BB, 8 K. Easily the best outing of the youngster's career. The 5.84 ERA makes him completely unusable in mixed leagues, but he's only allowed 2 ER over his past 21 IP as he's on a nice little roll. He remains a sleeper for next season as he was a prized Dodgers pitching prospect at one point.

John Lackey - 8 IP, 10 H, 2 BB, 0 BB, 3 K, W (15). Lackey scattered his baserunners and tied Beckett for the MLB lead with his 15th win. He's been an unheralded fantasy ace this season, breaking through much like Brandon Webb did last season. The improved Angels offense and consistently stellar bullpen continue to support him.