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The Daily Dirt from Thursday

Posted by Todd Lammi on April 22nd, 2010

I wrote just a few days ago in the Minor League Report that Chris Davis had maybe three more weeks until we saw Justin Smoak. It turned out to be actually only three more days as the Texas Rangers have recalled Smoak and designated Davis for assignment. No real big surprise with Davis hitting .188 with no home runs and striking out 35% of the time. Smoak was hitting .326 with two home runs, but more importantly 16 walks with only five strikeouts.

Speaking of non-hitting first basemen, Troy Glaus has to be next up on the possible cut block. Freddie Freeman has started to heat up in Triple-A for the Atlanta Braves with three home runs in his last two games and six RBI and will be eventually knocking on the door if Glaus continues to struggle. Glaus went 0-for-4 Thursday with three strikeouts and is now hitting .170 on the season.

On the other side of the diamond, it is time for Brandon Wood to also go pretty soon I think. Wood is hitting .087 with zero home runs or RBI and only two runs scored in 46 at bats. Not helping matters is still his lack of plate discipline with two walks and 15 strikeouts. If Maicer Izturis is a free agent in your league and you need middle infield help, I would pick him up in advance of something happening.

Daisuke Matsuzaka is supposed to return from the disabled list and could get the start either Monday or Tuesday in Toronto, making him potentially a two-start starter in week 4 with the second start coming at Baltimore. In three starts in Triple-A, Matsuzaka had a 1.62 ERA and a 0.72 WHIP with 13 strikeouts in 16 2/3 innings.

Ubaldo Jimenez picked up a win Thursday night with 7 1/3 innings of shutout ball with five strikeouts. He is now 4-0 with a 0.95 ERA and a 1.13 WHIP. While all that is well and nice, he has rang up pitch counts of 115, 128 and 121 in his last three starts. Those are some awfully high numbers and we’re not even into May yet. His trade value is never going to be higher and with his recent pitch count numbers, there is no better time to trade him.

Aroldis Chapman worked 5 1/3 scoreless innings in Triple-A, allowing three hits with five walks and striking out eight. Until he gets his control in order which is going to enable him to pitch past the fifth inning and not blow out the bullpen on days he pitches, he is going to be stuck in Triple-A for awhile.

The Daily Dirt from Wednesday

Posted by Todd Lammi on April 22nd, 2010

Manager Lou Piniella has officially gone of the deep end with today’s announcement that the Chicago Cubs were moving their opening day starter Carlos Zambrano to the bullpen with Ted Lilly coming back from the disabled list. The Cubs are paying him $17.875 million dollars to go from a top of the rotation starter to getting three to six outs in the bullpen a few days out of the week. Carlos Silva has three good starts and all of a sudden everybody forgets about his 8.60 ERA and 1.71 WHIP ration from last season. It is decisions like that why the Chicago Cubs have not been to the World Series since 1908. In other fantasy baseball news around the diamond on Wednesday…

Hitters:

Jose Guillen hit his 6th home run of the season and drove in three runs giving him 13 RBI on the season. I think there is something to be said for players that hit better when they feel more natural in the field, or in Guillen’s case as the designated hitter, more comfortable not in the field. Similar story in San Diego with Chase Headley moving back to third base.

Not sure if Guillen’s start is that surprising as he has 25 home run power when healthy, but the hot start of Alex Gonzalez in Toronto continues to amaze as he hit his fifth home run of the season and knocked in two runs giving 11 RBI for the year.

Ryan Braun went 3-for-4 with his fourth home run of the season and he also stole his third base. Braun is hitting .393 with 15 RBI on the season.

Mike Lowell got the start as designated hitter over David Ortiz with a left-hander on the mound and went 2-for-4 with two RBI and his first home run of the season. With the Red Sox below .500 and Ortiz struggling, I think it is much easier to sit him against southpaws and get Lowell some extra at bats.

Looks like the move of Elvis Andrus to the top of the Texas Rangers batting order and sliding Julio Borbon to the ninth spot is benefiting both players. Andrus will see additional runs scored and some extra steals maybe while Borbon can relax more at the plate at the end of the batting order. Andrus stole his 5th base of the season and scored two runs while Borbon went 3-for-5 with two runs scored and two stolen bases.

Rafael Furcal is looking like the Furcal of old, going 3-for-5 with four RBI as well as stealing his seventh base of the year.

Sean Rodriguez finally rewarded owners that blew a good portion of their FAAB budget in him in week one, going 3-for-5 with four RBI and his first home run of the season.

Colby Rasmus went 3-for-4 with three RBI and hit two home runs giving him a total of five for the season.

Pitchers:

Zach Greinke allowed two runs in seven innings with eight strikeouts but was handed a no decision when the bullpen lost the lead in the 8th inning.

Yovani Gallardo tossed five scoreless innings with 10 strikeouts to get his first victory of the season. Still is a step below the top tier pitchers until he can get his control in order. Racked up 103 pitches, with only 61 strikes in his five innings of work.

Ho-hum, another complete game for Roy Halladay, hurling a shutout with seven strikeouts. Instead of talking about him winning 20 games, it is quite possible that he picks up 30 wins this year.

Carlos Silva allowed one run in six innings with four strikeouts to up his mark to 2-0 . Silva has a .95 ERA and .63 WHIP through three starts.

Wade Davis worked six shutout innings and struck out six to gain his first win of the season. He had much better control this start, getting nine ground ball outs to two fly outs.

Francisco Liriano spun eight scoreless innings and struck out six to notch his second win of the year. Liriano lowered his ERA to 1.29 and his WHIP to 1.10.

Phil Hughes allowed one hit and one run in 7 1/3 innings and struck out 10 to get his second win of the season.

Felix Hernandez tossed a complete game with six strikeouts, while allowing one unearned run. King Felix improved to 2-0 on the season.

Closers:

Your major league leader in saves…Matt Capps with seven!! Despite that he has a 1.68 WHIP ratio, he has allowed only one earned run in 8 1/3 innings so far. The Washington Nationals have to be happy as it only helps to boost his trade value.

Chad Qualls allowed three runs in 1/3 of an inning in a tie ballgame to take the loss. With an ERA of 10.80 and a WHIP of 2.40, there has to be something wrong with him. If you did not pick up Juan Gutierrez already, now may be the time.

First game back from the disabled list and thrust right back into the closer role, Brian Fuentes took the loss, surrendering a two-run home run to Miguel Cabrera. Fuentes allowed two hits and two runs and had to be pulled from the game. If you own Fernando Rodney, I would hold on to him for awhile.

The Dail Dirt from Tuesday

Posted by Todd Lammi on April 20th, 2010

Mike Napoli owners have to be breathing a sigh of relief after news of Jeff Mathis now expected to miss a minimum of six weeks after fracturing his wrist. Mathis had taken over as the starting catcher for the Los Angeles Angels with 34 at bats compared to only 15 for Napoli as Mike Scioscia found it easier to play the best defensive catcher when that catcher is also hitting. Mathis was batting .324 with a home run and two stolen bases before the injury.

In other injury news, the Boston Red Sox lost 2/3 of their starting outfield with Jacoby Ellsbury and Mike Cameron headed to the disabled list. Ellsbury will be eligible to return on Monday, April 26th while Cameron will miss anywhere from 2-4 weeks.

Darnell McDonald was recalled from Triple-A and was the hero Tuesday night, delivering a pinch-hit two-run home run that tied the game in the 8th innings and then winning the game in the bottom of the ninth with an RBI single. Top prospect Josh Reddick was also recalled from the minors and got the start in center field and hit ninth. Reddick went 1-for-3 with 2 RBI in the contest. The recent disabled list transactions should give Jeremy Hermida some extra time in the outfield. Hermida hit eighth in left field and went 2-for3 with two runs scored and delivered his third home run of the season. In other fantasy baseball news around the diamond Tuesday night…

Hitters:

The Texas Rangers ran wild against knuckleballer Tim Wakefield, stealing nine bases in six innings. Nelson Cruz (3), Elvis Andrus (3), Vladimir Guerrero (2) and Julio Borbon (1) all got in the action.

Troy Tulowitzki went 2-for-4 and hit his first home run of the season. Tulowitzki is hitting .286 on the season with seven RBI.

Ryan Zimmerman went 3-for-5 with two RBI and knocked out his second home run of the year. Zimmerman is hitting .316 with 10 men plated this season.

Vernon Wells shows no signs of slowing down still as he went 3-for-4 and hit his seventh home run of the season, although it has only led to 12 RBI this year.

Matt Kemp went 2-for-5 with three RBI and hit his 6th home run of the season. Kemp is hitting .333 with 18 RBI on the season.

Jose Reyes went 4-for-5 with two RBI and stole his second base of the year.

As much as the Houston Astros say that missing Lance Berkman was not impacting their lineup, their actions on Tuesday seemed to the contrary. The lowest scoring offense in all of baseball broke out for seven runs with Berkman going 1-for-4 with two RBI. Michael Bourn walked twice and stole two bases.

Ryan Ludwick hit two home runs as part of his 3-for-4 night with three RBI. Ludwick is hitting .333 on the season with eight RBI.

Chase Headley went 1-for-2 with the lone run scored for the San Diego Padres and also stole three bases, giving him five steals on the season.

Pitchers:

Two-start starter David Bush delivered in his first start of the week, working seven shutout innings with two strikeouts. Bush has a 2.41 ERA and a 1.07 WHIP through three starts this season.

Who knew the New York Mets best starter was going to be Mike Pelfrey in 2010, at least through the first three weeks anyway. Pelfrey tossed seven shutout innings with six strikeouts to move to 3-0 on the season.

John Danks allowed one run in eight innings with nine strikeouts to pick up his second win of the year. Danks allowed only two hits as batters are now hitting just .162 against him this season.

Kevin Slowey hurled eight innings on one-run ball to go along with nine strikeouts to up his mark to 2-1 on the year. Slowey threw 71% of his pitches for strikes, while making it through eight innings on only 98 pitches.

Matt Latos worked seven shutout innings with two strikeouts to pick up his first win of the season. Tough luck loser Jesus Sanchez allowed one hit and one run in seven innings with 10 strikeouts.

Closers:

Ryan Madson allowed three runs in the ninth inning to blow the save and the win for Kyle Kendrick. Madson surrendered back-to-back home runs to Troy Glaus and Jason Heyward in the bottom of the ninth inning with two outs.

The Daily Dirt from Sunday

Posted by Todd Lammi on April 18th, 2010

Juan Pierre stole three bases giving him six on the season. Again a reminder of why it is hard to justify spending a high fantasy baseball draft pick on a one dimensional player high in the draft when speed options lurk late, such as Scott Podsednik and Brett Gardner who each stole their 7th base of the year today. In other fantasy baseball news from around the diamond on Sunday…

Hitters:

Shin-Soo Choo is still a one-man force for the Cleveland Indians offense as he went 2-for-3 with his fourth home run of the season and five RBI. Outside of him and Asdrubal Cabrera, there was no other hitter in the Indians line up with an average above .231 on Sunday.

Dan Uggla went 3-for-4 with two RBI and hit his third home run of the season. Uggla is now hitting .346 on the season.

Jay Bruce doubled his RBI output for the season, hitting two solo home runs in a 5-3 loss to the Pittsburgh Pirates.

Alberto Callaspo went 3-for-5 with two home runs and drove in six runs as the Kansas City Royals celebrated Alex Gordon’s return from the disabled list with a 10-5 win over the Minnesota Twins. Gordon went 1-for-4 hitting eighth in the line up.

Mark Reynolds went 3-for-4 with two RBI and knocked out his 4th home run of the season.

Ty Wigginton, filling in for Miguel Tejada who is day-to-day, went 2-for-5 with three runs scored and four RBI, including his fourth home run of the season. Despite being ninth on the team in number of at bats, Wigginton leads the Baltimore Orioles with 10 RBI.

Pitchers:

As much as the New York Yankees have players considered long in the tooth, they all keep producing. Andy Pettitte allowed two runs in eight innings with four strikeouts to gain his second win of the season.

Ervin Santana picked up a complete game win, allowing one run in nine innings with six strikeouts over the Toronto Blue Jays. His counterpart Ricky Romero coming was stellar once again, working eight innings while allowing one run with six strikeouts.

Matt Garza was dominant again in his third start of the season, tossing eight shutout innings with five strikeouts to move to 3-0 on the season. He now has a 0.75 ERA and a 0.88 WHIP on the season.

Nate Robertson is making a bid to become a mixed league option after holding the explosive Philadelphia Phillies offense scoreless at home for 6 1/3 innings. Robertson struck out four in picking up his second win of the season, while lowering his ERA to 2.20.

Ryan Dempster allowed one run in 7 2/3 innings with eight strikeouts in a no decision against the Houston Astros. Dempster was in line for the win until Carlos Marmol allowed a run in the ninth inning.

Brian Matusz notched his second win of the season, allowing three runs in 6 1/3 innings while striking out eight. Matusz now has 23 strikeouts in 18 2/3 innings on the season.

As I wrote about in the fantasy baseball waiver wire report for week 3, Wade LeBlanc should have some decent value while filling in for Chris Young. LeBlanc got the start on Sunday and allowed one run in five innings with seven strikeouts.

Ian Kennedy had a much better second start this week, working five shutout innings with seven strikeouts. Of course he had the aid of facing the San Diego Padres line up at Petco park, but still it was encouraging.

Barry Zito and Clayton Kershaw were locked in a pitchers duel Sunday, as neither player factored in the decision. Zito allowed one run in seven innings with three strikeouts, while Kershaw allowed one run in seven innings with nine strikeouts.

Closers:

Franklin Morales blew his second save of the season, allowing two hits, two walks and two runs in the ninth inning to the Atlanta Braves. It would not be a surprise to see Rafael Betancourt possibly get a save chance the next time the Colorado Rockies have the lead in the ninth inning.

The Daily Dirt from Thursday

Posted by Todd Lammi on April 16th, 2010

It was a night for the lesser name pitchers as David Huff (Cleveland), Matt Harrison (Texas) and Dana Eveland (Toronto) all threw well with Huff and Eveland picking up wins. If you have all three as free agents in your league and are considering picking one up, I would rank them Harrison, Eveland, Huff. Harrison throws the hardest, has the best chance to pick up strikeouts and has a solid offense behind him. In other fantasy baseball news around the diamond on Thursday…

Hitters:

Shin-Soo Choo seems like he is carrying the offense for the Cleveland Indians, but then I check his RBI count and it is only five. Choo went 2-for-4 with a home run and drove in all three runs for the Indians Thursday.

Ryan Braun went 4-for-5 with three RBI, including his third home run of the season. It could be this season that we see him break the 40 home run barrier.

Chase Utley homered for the third straight game, giving him five home runs on the season and 11 RBI.Teammate Shane Victorino is enjoying his new spot atop the line up with Jimmy Rollins out as he homered for the second straight day.

Robinson Cano hit two home runs and drove in three to lead the New York Yankees to a 6-2 win over the Los Angeles Angels.

Matt Kemp homered for the third time in four games and drove in two runs giving him 13 RBI on the season. Hitting second in the batting order looks like a good fit so far as he is hitting .341 on the season.

Pitchers:

Francisco Liriano tossed seven shutout innings with eight strike outs to pick up the win. His control was much better in his second start, throwing 64 strikes versus 32 balls.

Bud Norris was much better in his second start, although he could only get through five innings because of a high pitch count. Norris earned his first win of the year without allowing an earned run and striking out nine. Still tough to play him every week with his up and down tendencies although it was nice to see this outing against the St. Louis Cardinals instead of someone like the Pittsburgh Pirates.

Mike Pelfrey hurled seven shutout innings with six strikeouts to move to 2-0 on the year. Pelfrey got ahead in counts by throwing first-pitch strikes to 16 of the 25 hitters he faced and cruised through the Colorado Rockies line up with little problem.

Phil Hughes was successful in his first start of the season, allowing two runs in five innings with six strikeouts to get the win. The downside to owning him as a 5th starter is the chance that he will get skipped in the rotation on some weeks.

Josh Johnson claimed his first win of the season, allowing one run in six innings while fanning 10. He is averaging 3.3 more pitches per inning in 2010, thanks to an increase in his walks per nine innings.

Ben Sheets picked up his first win with the Oakland A’s, working six scoreless innings with four strikeouts. The lack of strikeouts is a concern if you own him going forward with eight strikeouts and 10 walks in 17 innings.

Hiroki Kuroda allowed two runs in seven innings with seven strikeouts in a no decision. He had upped his strikeout rate the second half of last season and looks to be carrying it over so far in 2010 through his first two starts.

Closers:

Chad Qualls picked up a blown save on back-to-back nights, allowing two runs in the ninth inning and five base runners. The inability to throw strikes did him in, missing the strike zone on 13 of his 25 pitches. With the way closers have been going down this season, if you own Qualls, you might want to grab Juan Gutierrez as insurance just in case.

The Daily Dirt from Wednesday

Posted by Todd Lammi on April 14th, 2010

Through the first two weeks of the season, the biggest news to date has been the number of key players already on the disabled list plus the changing of closers so early in the season. Here is a look at both issues with the latest news.

Injuries:

Miguel Montero is only expected to miss 4-6 weeks of action which puts his return at the end of May. That makes him worth holding on to still in all fantasy baseball league formats.

Jimmy Rollins will be on the shelf for the next 2-4 weeks with a calf strain. Juan Castro will assume shortstop duties in his absence.

Closer news:

Kevin Gregg was named new closer in Toronto by manager Cito Gaston. If you own Jason Frasor, I would still hold on to him. This could be a role that flip-flops several times during the course of the season.

Mike Gonzalez of the Baltimore Orioles was placed on the disabled list with a strained shoulder. That would account for the drop in velocity we were seeing from Gonzalez this year. Jim Johnson will take over as closer until Gonzalez returns to action.

Fernando Rodney picked up his first save of the season as the fill-in closer for Brian Fuentes who was placed on the disabled list Wednesday with a strained back

Hitters:

Jose Guillen went 3-for-4 and hit his fifth home of the season giving him five home runs in his last four games.

It looks like Dustin Pedroia can talk the talk and walk the walk. After spinning tales in spring training of hitting 20 home runs in 2010, Pedroia is well on his way after banging out his 4th home run of the season Wednesday night.

B.J. Upton drove four runs on his first two home runs of the season.

Nelson Cruz hit his 6th home run of the season giving him 12 RBI on the year. If the first two hitters in the order were hitting over .200, he might have 20 RBI by now.

Chase Utley went 2-for-4 with four RBI and hit two home runs giving four overall on the season.

Carlos Quentin went 2-for-5 and drove in six runs, four of them coming on a grand slam.

Jorge Cantu hit his third home run of the season and became the first player in the history of the major leagues to chalk up at least one hit and RBI in the team’s first nine games of the season.

Pitchers:

Joel Pineiro allowed one run in seven innings with seven strikeouts to pick up his first win of the season.

David Price allowed one run in seven innings with seven strikeouts to notch his second win of the season.

Jonathan Sanchez worked eight shutout innings with 11 strikeouts to gain his first win of the season.

Colby Lewis struck out 10 in 5 1/3 innings of work while allowing two runs. The downside was it took him 117 pitches to record those outs.

John Danks allowed one run in seven innings while recording six strikeouts to get his first victory of the season.

Brad Penny tossed seven shutout innings with four strikeouts to claim his first win of the year.

Tommy Hanson evened his record at 1-1, hurling six innings of one-run ball with seven strikeouts.

The Daily Dirt from Tuesday

Posted by Todd Lammi on April 13th, 2010

I still don’t understand why some major league pitchers don’t realize how important having a good change up is. Watching the Toronto Blue Jays game, Ricky Romero looked to have a pretty good one and it makes it that much more difficult for the hitter to know what you are going to throw when you have three pitches you can throw for strikes. Romero took a no-hitter into the eighth inning before giving up a home run to Alex Rios. Romero finished the night with eight innings of two-run ball with 12 strikeouts. The ability to strike hitters out plus keep the ball on the ground (he recorded 10 ground ball outs to two fly outs) should help him navigate the tough line ups in the American League East.

Hitters:

Jose Guillen cracked his 4th home run of the season giving him four home runs in his last three games. Despite being 3-5, the six of the seven top hitters for the Kansas City Royals are all hitting over .300.

Carlos Pena went 3-for-5 with four RBI and delivered his second home run of the season.

Ty Wigginton went 2-for-5 with three RBI and hit his first two home runs of the season.

Brandon Phillips of the Cincinnati Reds went 4-for-6 with two runs scored and two RBI. Jonny Gomes added four RBI and his second home run of the season.

Bad boy Milton Bradley hit his second home run of the year, a three-run shot in the 8th inning to give the Seattle Mariners a 3-0 win over the Oakland A’s.

Pitchers:

Andy Pettitte worked six scoreless innings with six strikeouts to pick up his first win of the year.

Clayton Kershaw notched his first win of the season but is still having command issues, lasting only through 5 1/3 innings before hitting 110 pitches. Kershaw allowed two runs and struck out seven.

Greg Smith of the Colorado Rockies allowed two runs in seven innings with eight strikeouts to earn his first win of the season.

Brett Anderson of the Oakland A’s tossed six scoreless innings with six strikeouts but did not factor in the decision.

Closers:

Kevin Gregg picked up his third save of the season working a scoreless ninth with two strikeouts. While I don’t think there is a closer controversy yet, I thought it was interesting that Jays manager Cito Gaston did not give Jason Frasor a chance to close the game after he blew the save the previous night in which he threw only 19 pitches.

The Daily Dirt from Monday

Posted by Todd Lammi on April 13th, 2010

It was a day for the five home run club as several hitters clubbed home run numero cinco on the year. Vernon Wells (Toronto), Nelson Cruz (Texas) and Albert Pujols (St. Louis) all went deep to take the major league lead in home runs. In other fantasy baseball news around the diamond on Monday…

Hitters:

Scott Podsednik went 4-for-5 with three RBI and stole his 5th base of the season.

Ryan Braun went 2-for-4 and knocked in four runs, three coming on his second home run of the year.

Shin-Soo Choo went 3-for-3 with two runs scored as he hit his second home run of the season and stole his third base of the year.

Kyle Blanks went 3-for-5 with five RBI as he blasted his second home run of the year to lead the San Diego Padres to a 17-2 win over the Atlanta Braves. Will Venable chipped in by going 3-for-5 with four runs scored. Venable hit his second home run of the year and also stole his first base of the season.

Carl Crawford went 4-for-4 with two runs scored and hit his first home run of the year.

Scott Rolen went 3-for-5 with three RBI and two home runs, giving him three long balls on the season.

Andruw Jones went 3-for-4 with four RBI and knocked out his first two home runs of the season.

Bengie Molina went 4-for-4 with four RBI and hit his first home run of the season for the San Francisco Giants.

Not a good day for Brian Roberts of the Baltimore Orioles as he was placed on the disabled list and also received an epidural injection in his back. Julio Lugo should see the majority of time at second base while Roberts is out.

Pitchers:

Carl Pavano picked up his second win of the year, allowing one run in six innings with four strikeouts.

Adam Wainwright tossed eight shutout innings with seven strikeouts to pick up victory number two on the year.

Justin Duchscherer worked 7 1/3 scoreless innings, allowing only two hits with four strikeouts.

Matt Garza allowed one run in eight innings with five strikeouts to earn his second win of the season.

Closers:

Neftali Feliz picked up his first save of the season for the Texas Rangers, working a scoreless inning with one strikeout.

Chris Perez was pulled from a tie game in the ninth inning after allowing a double, committing an error on a bunt and then surrendering a walk to load the bases without recording an out

The Daily Dirt from Sunday

Posted by Todd Lammi on April 11th, 2010

Mike Leake debuted for the Cincinnati Reds as the 5th starter after spending zero time in the major leagues. Leake became the 21st player since 1965 to go from the draft to the major leagues. With a fastball touching 90, he was able to throw a variety of pitches to keep the Chicago Cubs hitters of balance, allowing one run in 6 2/3 innings with five strikeouts. The downside to his performance were seven walks and the fact manager Dusty Baker let him throw 106 pitches in his first start. In other fantasy baseball news around the diamond on Sunday…

Hitters:

Josh Willingham went 2-for-3 and drove in five RBI, four coming on his first inning grand slam off losing pitcher Johan Santana.

Jorge Cantu went 2-for-4 with five RBI, giving him 10 RBI for the first week of the year. Cantu also doubled and hit his second home run of the year.

Alex Gonzalez hit two home runs for the Toronto Blue Jays, giving him four solo home runs for the first week of the season. He has moved up to second in the line up with Aaron Hill out of action.

Dustin Pedroia went 4-for-5 and launched his 3rd home run of the season for the Boston Red Sox.

Scott Podsednik went 2-for-4 with two runs scored and two stolen bases giving him four steals for the first week and a .364 average.

Rajai Davis swiped two bases also giving him four steals for the Oakland A’s.

Kelly Johnson and Chris Young each hit their third home run of the season for the Arizona Diamondbacks. New starting catcher Chris Snyder, filling in for the injured Miguel Montero, went 2-for-4 with a home run and five RBI.

Albert Pujols went 3-for-5 with two home runs and four RBI to lead a St. Louis rally against the Milwaukee Brewers that ultimately came up short.

Pitchers:

Tom Gorzelanny looked good for the Chicago Cubs, allowing no earned runs in 6 1/3 innings with seven strikeouts.

Charlie Haeger had his knuckle ball dancing Sunday afternoon en route to 12 strikeouts. Haeger allowed three hits, four walks and three earned runs through six innings.

Roy Halladay tossed a complete game shutout, allowing seven hits with no walks and eight strikeouts against the hapless Houston Astros.

Roy Oswalt pitched good, allowing two runs in six innings with eight strikeouts, but it was not enough to win with Halladay as the opposing pitcher.

Scott Feldman allowed one run in seven innings with four strikeouts to pick up his first win of the year for the Texas Rangers.

Ubaldo Jimenez picked up his second win of the year, allowing two runs in six innings with seven strikeouts.

Tim Lincecum also notched his second win, allowing two runs in seven innings with 10 strikeouts, while throwing 108 pitches.

Closers:

Chris Perez blew his first save of the season, done in by walking three hitters and allowing the game-winning run on a wild pitch.

Kevin Gregg picked up his second save of the season as Jason Frasor was given the night off. It was quite a week for the Toronto Blue Jays as they went 5-1 and recorded saves in each of the wins.

Trevor Hoffman allowed back-to-back home runs to Pujols and Matt Holliday in the ninth inning to blow the save, although he got the win after Casey McGehee hit a home run off Kyle McClellan in the bottom of the ninth inning.

The Daily Dirt from Saturday

Posted by Todd Lammi on April 10th, 2010

The first week of the baseball season just re-affirms the rule of not wasting a high draft pick on a closer because of the good chance you can find saves late in the draft or through free agency. The leader in the clubhouse with week one almost complete, Jon Rauch of the Minnesota Twins who saved his 4th game in the Twins 2-1 win over the Chicago White Sox. In other fantasy baseball news from around the diamond on Saturday…

Hitters:

Jose Reyes returned from the disabled list for the New York Mets and went 1-for-4 hitting lead off. It is safe to get him active in all formats for next week.

Not the way you want your first start in the major leagues to go, Juan Francisco went 0-for-4 with four strikeouts for the Cincinnati Reds.

Jason Varitek played for the first time this season and delivered two solo home runs to power the Boston Red Sox offense.

Ryan Howard went 2-for-4 with three RBI and is well on his way to another 40+ home run season with his third dinger of the year.

Nelson Cruz slugged his 4th home of the season and looks ready to duplicate his 30+ home runs from last year.

I have caught two of the Atlanta Braves games this season and in each one I have seen Troy Glaus made a terrible play at first base. I know the Braves have him there for offense and not his defense, but if he is not slugging home runs by May and still playing that type of defense and if the team is in the race for the playoffs, I have to think they make a move at that position.

Pitchers:

Scott Baker was much better in his second start, allowing one run in seven innings with three strikeouts.

Jeremy Bonderman picked up his first win in almost two years, allowing one hit in five innings with five strikeouts.

Carlos Zambrano allowed three runs in seven innings with nine strikeouts to notch his first win of the season.

Rookie Jaime Garcia worked six solid innings, allowing one run with five strikeouts to pick up the win. Garcia struggled with his control throughout the game, pitching first-pitch strikes to only 9 of 25 hitters, but helped his cause by recording 10 ground ball outs.

CC Sabathia lost a no-hitter in the 8th inning and finished with 7 2/3 scoreless innings of one-hit ball with five strikeouts. It would have been interesting to see if he had made it through the eighth without allowing a hit if the Yankees would have send him back out for the ninth as he threw 111 pitches.

Dana Eveland tossed 7 1/3 shutout innings with two strikeouts to pick up the win for the Toronto Blue Jays.

Jered Weaver allowed one run in six innings with seven strikeouts but received a no decision.

Closers:

Ryan Perry picked up a save for the Detroit Tigers with Jose Valverde getting the night off after already working in four games this week.

Matt Capps sure does like to make hings interesting as he loaded the bases in the ninth innings before getting Rod Barajas to line out to save his second game of the season.

It looks like Neftali Feliz might have some value after all this year after Frank Francisco blew his second save of the season. Francisco has given up three runs in each of his last two appearances, leaving him with a 27 ERA.

George Sherrill got the chance to close out the Los Angeles Dodgers win after Jonathan Broxton pitched the previous two days, but he was not up to the task, has the Florida Marlins rallied for the win with three runs in the ninth inning

The Daily Dirt from Friday

Posted by Todd Lammi on April 9th, 2010

Rick Porcello picked up the win for the Detroit Tigers allowing two runs in five innings with three strikeouts. It is a little disappointing to see management still coddling him as he was removed after a batter reached in the sixth inning despite being at only 87 pitches. If that continues to happen, it is going to end up costing him a few wins this season. In other fantasy baseball news around the diamond on Friday…

Hitters:

Brian Roberts left the game after the first inning after straining his abdominal muscle after stealing second base.

Drew Stubbs hit a grand slam in the bottom of the 8th inning to lift the Cincinnati Reds to a 5-4 win over the Chicago Cubs.

Rafael Furcal continues to turn back the clock, going 3-for-4 with two doubles and his third stolen base of the season.

Who said that Citi Field is not a home run ballpark? Jeff Francoeur and Rod Barajas both tested that theory on Friday night, by each blasting two home runs.

Chris Young went 3-for-4 with five RBI and delivered his second home run of the season. More importantly he has struck out only one time so far in 15 at bats this season.

Pitchers:

Jorge De La Rosa was stellar for the Colorado Rockies, allowing one hit in seven scoreless innings while striking out nine. He helped his cause by tossing first-pitch strikes to 18 out of the 24 hitters he faced.

Hiroki Kuroda worked eight innings, allowing one unearned run with seven strikeouts. As always, the key to his performance going forward will be his health. If you can get 180+ innings out of him on your staff, he is going to be a big help to your team ERA and WHIP.

Colby Lewis worked seven strong innings, allowing one run while striking out three. It was his first win in the major leagues since April 7, 2004.

Rodrigo Lopez looks like he has found a home in the National League, working six innings, allowing one run with five strikeouts for the Arizona Diamondbacks.

Gio Gonzalez picked up a win, allowing two runs in six innings with six strikeouts for the Oakland A’s.

There was nothing to like about the performance by Bud Norris on Friday night. Yes, he can throw hard, in the 94-95 mph range at times, but he could not locate his fastball in the strike zone on a consistent basis. He still has not shown the ability to develop a change up as a solid third pitch so until he does, he his going to have nights like these. He walked four in 2 2/3 innings while allowing six hits and four runs.

Closers:

It was another bad day for Mike Gonzalez of the Baltimore Orioles as he blew his second save of the season. The only save he converted this season came after he loaded the bases and escaped out of the jam. It might be a good time to grab Jim Johnson if you own Gonzalez just to hedge your bets.

Billy Wagner surrendered a two-run home run in the bottom of the ninth inning to Edgar Renteria to blow the win for Tim Hudson.

Trevor Hoffman gave up a two-run home run on a 1-2 pitch with two outs in the ninth inning to Nick Stavinoha as the St. Louis Cardinals beat the Milwaukee Brewers 5-4.

Jon Rauch is making it easier for Twins fans to forget about Joe Nathan as he picked up his third save of the season.

Kevin Gregg picked up a save for the Toronto Blue Jays with Jason Frasor given the night off after working the two previous games.

The Daily Dirt from Wednesday

Posted by Todd Lammi on April 7th, 2010

New season, but same story as last year for Clayton Kershaw of the Los Angeles Dodgers as he struggled with his control and was unable to make it through five innings. Kershaw allowed 11 runners in 4 2/3 innings with four strikeouts, while throwing 50 balls and 59 strikes. In other fantasy baseball news from around the diamond on Wednesday…

Hitters:

Jim Edmonds got the start again in right field over Corey Hart and went 2-for-4 with two runs scored.

John Bowker hit his first home run of the season and looks good-to-go against right-handed pitching.

Russell Martin, who was dropped down to the 8th spot with Matt Kemp moving up to second, hit his first home run of the season.

Colby Rasmus stole a base but more importantly drew two walks on Wednesday. It seems in the early going he has improved his plate discipline from last season and could be headed for a very good season.

Reid Brignac got the start at second base for Tampa Bay and went 2-for-3 with a run scored. It looks like he could be sharing time at second base with Sean Rodriguez.

Vernon Wells went 2-for-3 with two home runs and four runs scored, giving him three home runs on the season.

The two question marks in the Minnesota Twins line up have answered the bell so far as Justin Morneau and J.J. Hardy both belted their second home runs of the season.

It was a bad night at the plate for Troy Glaus and Kyle Blanks as both sluggers went 0-for-4 with four strikeouts.

Pitchers:

Ryan Dempster allowed one run in six innings with nine strikeouts in a no-decision against the Atlanta Braves. He was on top of his game Wednesday, getting seven ground ball outs and only two flyouts.

Matt Garza went eight string innings, allowing one run and racking up nine strikeouts to pick up his first win of the season. It looks like he is carrying over his jump in strikeout rate from 2009.

There was some good and some bad in Fausto Carmona’s start Wednesday as he only allowed one hit, but walked six batters against only one strikeout in six innings while picking up the win.

Max Scherzer’s first start in the American League went well with one hit allowed in six scoreless innings with three strikeouts in a no decision.

I got a chance to watch the start of Ian Kennedy against San Diego and I liked what I saw. His fastball was in the 88-90 range, but he showed a real nice change up recording a couple of strikeouts with the pitch. He also showed a good ability to locate his pitches on both sides of the plate to hitters. His only mistake was a 3-2 pitch that Scott Hairston hit for a three-run home run. It was the only runs Kennedy allowed in five innings while issuing no walks and eight strikeouts.

Closers:

Ryan Madson collected a four out save to nail down the Philadelphia Phillies 8-4 win over the Washington Nationals

Jason Frasor was much better in his second save opportunity, working a scoreless ninth inning with two strikeouts.

The Daily Dirt from Tuesday

Posted by Todd Lammi on April 7th, 2010

The platoon police were out in full effect on Tuesday as several players got starts based on the pitcher on the mound.

Andres Torres got the start in right field over John Bowker for the San Francisco Giants against the southpaw Wandy Rodriguez.

Chris Johnson got the start at third base for the Houston Astros against lefty Barry Zito with Pedro Feliz sliding over to first base.

Corey Hart started in right field for the Milwaukee Brewers with the lefty Greg Smith on the mound for Colorado.

Eric Byrnes got the start in left field for the Seattle Mariners with Milton Bradley moving to designated hitter which put Ken Griffey Jr. on the bench. Byrnes has some value in AL only leagues and could steal 10+ bases in 200+ at bats

Ian Stewart owners had to be happy to see him in the line up against left-handed starter Randy Wolf. There was some thought that Melvin Mora would get to see time against left-handed pitching but manager Jim Tracy went with Stewart Tuesday night. Stewart responded by crushing a home run to left-center field, his second in two days so it should buy him some more at bats against southpaws.

Hitters:

Victor Martinez went 2-for-3 with three RBI and a home run off A.J. Burnett. I think him in the third hole all year for the Boston Red Sox gives him numbers equal or better to Joe Mauer this season.

Brian Roberts is 0-for-the season so far. I think it takes him a couple of weeks to get his timing down since he missed the majority of spring training so I would not be concerned where is average is at after two to three weeks as long as there is no bad news about his back.

Pitchers:

Barry Zito won his first start with six shutout innings against the Astros. Zito allowed three hits and one walk while fanning five.

Zito’s counterpart Wandy Rodriguez cruised through five innings before unraveling in the sixth. Walking the first two hitters to start the inning led to his downfall.

Randy Wolf allowed four runs in 6 2/3 innings, but picked up his first win as a Milwaukee Brewer with eight strikeouts. Wolf helped his cause by throwing first pitch strikes to 22 of the 29 hitters he faced.

Chris Young of the San Diego Padres worked six scoreless innings, allowing one hit with five strikeouts to pick up the win.

Closers:

First save chance with his new team and Mike Gonzalez blew it for the Baltimore Orioles allowing a two-run single to Carl Crawford of the Tampa Bay Rays to lose the game.

New Minnesota Twins closer Jon Rauch had little trouble in his first save opportunity striking out two in a scoreless inning of work.

The Daily Dirt from Monday

Posted by Todd Lammi on April 5th, 2010

Roy Halladay was on top of his game in his first start in the National League, allowing one run in seven innings with nine strikeouts to pick up his first win with the Philadelphia Phillies. To me, he is the odds on favorite to win the National League Cy Young award and could easily win 20 games this season. In other fantasy baseball news around the diamond on Monday…

Hitters:

Placido Polanco delivered a grand slam for his new club and hit second in the batting order. That pushed Shane Victorino down to seventh in the line up which means Victorino will see a drop in runs scored this season.

Albert Pujols had some injury issues in spring training but once the lights came on for real, he delivered in his usual stellar fashion going 4-for-5 with two home runs.

Colby Rasmus went 2-for-4 with his first home run of the season hitting 5th for the St. Louis Cardinals. There is a great chance he hits over 20 home runs in his second go round in the major leagues.

Wonder how many people are kicking themselves today for passing on David Wright at the end of the first round? Wright delivered an opposite field home run at home in the New York Mets 7-1 win over the Florida Marlins.

Garrett Jones delivered two home runs with three runs scored and three RBI and catcher Ryan Doumit added a three-run shot as the Pittsburgh Pirates hammered the Los Angeles Dodgers 11-5.

Comeback kids Alex Rios of the Chicago White Sox and Vernon Wells of the Toronto Blue Jays both went yard on opening day.

Carlos Gomez went 4-for-5 with his first home run of the year and a stolen base in the Milwaukee Brewers 5-3 loss to the Colorado Rockies.

Jim Edmonds got the start for the Brewers in right field over Corey Hart and went 1-for-4.

The opening day line up for the Atlanta Braves was pretty impressive as they beat up the Chicago Cubs 16-5. Rookie Jason Heyward went 2-for-5 with four RBI and homered in his first at bat of the game. Shortstop Yunel Escobar added five RBI. Nate McLouth was dropped to 8th in the batting order with Melky Cabrera moved up to lead off.

Second basemen Chris Getz went 2-for-4 with a stolen base for the Kansas City Royals. If you are looking for stolen bases and he is on the waiver wire still, go and grab him.

Kyle Blanks hit his first home run of the season for the San Diego Padres hitting clean up. If there is a player that comes out of no where to hit 30 home runs this season, Blanks would be the person to do it.

Pitchers:

Opening day starter Vicente Padilla for the Dodgers? That did not work out so well. Padilla was shelled for seven runs in 4 1/3 innings with two strikeouts.

Mark Buehrle had an easy day at the office against the Cleveland Indians, working seven scoreless innings with three strikeouts.

Shaun Marcum carried a no-hitter into the seventh inning, but finished the game with a no-decision after allowing a three-run home run to Nelson Cruz. Marcum struck out six in seven innings of work.

Carlos Zambrano allowed eight runs in 1 1/3 innings leaving him with a 54 ERA after his first start of the season. Zambrano surrendered two home runs, six hits and also hit a batter.

Zack Greinke allowed one run in six innings with four strikeouts but was denied a win after the bullpen coughed up the lead.

News of Tim Lincecum’s loss of velocity in spring training did not appear to be evident Monday night as he hurled seven scoreless innings with seven strikeouts. He was hitting 94 on the gun, but what sets him apart from other pitchers is his ability to throw his change up at any time or any count and get hitters out.

Ben Sheets was hitting 94 on the gun for the Oakland A’s but had trouble locating his fastball and curveball in the strike zone. As a result, he only made it through five innings before hitting 94 pitches. He allowed four hits and four walks with three strikeouts.

Closers:

Jason Frasor of the Blue Jays failed to deliver in his first save opportunity of the season, allowing five baserunners in 1/3 of an inning as he took the loss.

Franklin Morales converted his first save try filling in for the injured Huston Street for the Rockies.

The Daily Dirt for Tuesday

Posted by Todd Lammi on June 30th, 2009

by Todd Lammi

The Pittsburgh Pirates and Washington Nationals made an interesting trade, swapping outfielders Nyjer Morgan for Lastings Milledge with Joel Hanrahan also going to the Pirates and Sean Burnett going to the Nationals. The trade does nothing to alleviate the crowding in the Nationals outfield since Milledge was in Triple-A. Milledge is hitting .253 in the minor leagues with one home run, seven RBI and seven steals in 25 games. In other fantasy baseball news around the diamond on Tuesday…

Hitters:

Albert Pujols blasted two more home runs bringing his season total up to 30. Pujols currently leads the National League every key offensive category (discounting stolen bases), except for placing sixth in batting average with a .332 mark.

Martin Prado went 4-for-5 with his fourth home run of the year and four RBI. Prado is hitting .299 on the season and is getting more at bats with Kelly Johnson struggling this year.

B.J. Upton homered for the second time in three games and drove in a run for the fifth straight contest. Upton has seven RBI in his last five games and has raised his batting average to .247 on the season. Upton is hitting .327 in June with four home runs and 21 RBI.

Kevin Youkilis went 3-for-5 with three RBI including his 13th home run of the season. Hopefully this will jump start Youkilis at the plate as he is hitting .224 in the month of June.

Marlon Byrd went deep twice and drove in five runs, giving him three home runs in his last two games. Byrd is now hitting .286 on the season with seven home runs and 39 RBI.

It took him a little time, but Gordon Beckham is starting to come around at the plate. Beckham went 3-for4 with his second home run of the season and is now hitting .267 on the year. Beckham has a five game hitting streak with five RBI during that stretch.

Ryan Braun went 3-for-4 with four RBI, raising his batting average to .327 in the process. Braun has two home runs runs and nine RBI in his last 10 games.

Lance Berkman went 2-for-3 and hit his 17th home run of the season. Berkman has homered four times in his last 10 games with 10 RBI and has raised his batting average 20 points during that period.

Pitchers:

As much as Johan Santana wanted to dispel rumors awhile ago that he was not injured, the stats seem to point to the contrary. Santana allowed five runs in six innings on Tuesday, dropping his record to 9-6 on the season. In his last five starts, has has allowed five runs twice and nine runs in another outing. In his last six outings he has struck out a combine 18 hitters. Compare to that to his two starts back on May 22 and May 27 when he combined for 19 punch-outs in those two starts.

Dan Haren allowed one run in seven innings with nine strikeouts to notch his seventh win of the season. Haren has allowed two runs or less in seven consecutive starts dating back to May 28th.

Ross Ohlendorf tossed seven shutout innings and struck out eight to pick up his seventh win of the season. If you subtract his rough start at Coors Field on 6/19, Ohlendorf has allowed three runs or less in his last four starts.

Matt Garza allowed one run in seven innings with three strikeouts to up his mark to 6-5 on the season. It is impressive that his whip ratio is only at 1.18 despite being third in the American League in walks allowed.

Jason Marquis pitched a complete game shutout, limiting the Los Angeles Dodgers to two hits while striking out three. Marquis improved to 10-5 on the season and lowered his ERA to 3.87.

Closers:

J.P. Howell continues to roll as closer for the Tampa Bay Rays, picking up his sixth save of the season. Howell has collected two wins and two saves in his last four appearances. He has been unscored upon in June through 12 innings.

The Daily Dirt for Saturday

Posted by Todd Lammi on June 27th, 2009

by Todd Lammi

Mark DeRosa was traded from the Cleveland Indians to the St. Louis Cardinals for Chris Perez and a player to be named later. DeRosa should retain his same value as Cardinals manager Tony La Russa will have him play multiple positions. Perez should not see any save chances with Kerry Wood signed through 2010 plus a vesting option for 2011.

Jonathan Sanchez has been sent to the bullpen by the San Francisco Giants in a move that was long overdue. Ryan Sadowski will get the start on Sunday but it not really a good bet for long term success. There is a very good chance the Giants will turn to one of their top minor league prospects once the second half of the season starts.

Hitters:

Jason Werth went 4-for-4 with two home runs and three RBI to power the Philadelphia Phillies to a 10-0 win over the Toronto Blue Jays. Werth has hit five home runs with 10 RBI in his last 10 games.

Albert Pujols hit two two-run home runs off Kevin Slowey to lead the St. Louis Cardinals to a 5-3 win over the Minnesota Twins. Pujols now has 28 home runs with 74 RBI on the season.

Pablo Sandoval went 3-for-5 with two solo home runs, raising his batting average to .340 on the season. Sandoval has been on fire in June, batting close to .400 with eight home runs and 18 RBI.

Scott Podsednik went 4-for-5 with three RBI including his third home run of the season. Podsednik is now hitting .319 on the season with to home runs, seven RBI and three steals in his last 10 games.

Casey McGehee homered for the third time in his last six games and is now batting .340 on the season. If your fantasy baseball league has 10 game eligibility for position qualification, McGehee is now eligible at second base and third base.

Prince Fielder went 2-for-5 with four RBI and connected for his 19th home run for the season. Fielder is now second in the National League with 73 RBI, one behind Pujols. Fielder has hit three home runs and plated 11 runners in his last 10 games.

Aubrey Huff went 2-for-3 with his 10th home run for the season. Huff now has 51 RBI on the season and has driven in 11 runs in his last 10 games.

Pitchers:

J.A. Happ tossed a complete game shutout while striking out four to up his record to a perfect 5-0 on the season. It was only the second start this season where Happ did not walk a batter.

Tim Wakefield worked six scoreless innings with a lone strikeout to notch his 10th win of the season. Wakefield is 4-0 in his last five starts with one no decision.

Javier Vazquez allowed one run in 7 2/3 innings with eight strikeouts in a tough-luck loss against Wakefield. It is nothing new for Vazquez to receive no run support, as he has allowed two rouns or less in five of his last six starts and only has one win to show for it.

Felipe Paulino, back from the disabled list and making his first start in three weeks, twirled a gem of a game, allowing one run in seven innings with nine strikeouts. Paulino allowed only three hits and did not walk a batter, making it through seven innings on 96 pitches.

Scott Kazmir returned from the disabled list exhibiting much better control than the majority of his pre-inury starts. Kazmir making his first starts in more than five weeks, allowed one run in five innings with five strikeouts. More importantly for fantasy baseball owners, he walked only one batter in the outing.

A.J. Burnett allowed one hit in seven shutout innings with 10 strikeouts to earn his six win of the season. Burnett has allowed one run in his last three starts covering a total of 20 1/3 innings.

Kevin Correia has been a new man since June 1st, and he was back on the mound again on Saturday with the same reuslt. Correia allowed three runs in seven innings with nine strikeouts to win his fourth game in his last five starts. Correia has a 2.41 ERA in those five starts with 29 strikeouts in 33 2/3 innings.

The Daily Dirt for Friday

Posted by Todd Lammi on June 26th, 2009

by Todd Lammi

Andre Ethier was locked in at the plat on Friday night, going 3-for-4 with three home runs and six RBI. It was the first three home run game of Ethier’s career as he powered the Los Angeles Dodgers to an 8-2 victory over the Seattle Mariners. In other news around fantasy baseball on Friday…

Hitters:

Hanley Ramirez is working hard this week to reward fantasy baseball owners that drafted him high in the first round. Ramirez homered for the second straight day on Friday, giving him four home runs in his last five games. He has now driven in 15 runs in his last five games with two stolen bases.

The Baltimore Orioles banged out 16 hits and scored 11 runs without hitting any home runs Friday. Melvin Mora drove in four runs and Aubrey Huff knocked in three runs while Adam Jones, Nick Markakis and Nolan Reimold all had three hits apiece.

Jake Fox homered for the second straight game, giving him in nine RBI in his last five games. With Aramis Ramirez expected back sometime after the all-star break, Fox should have two to three more weeks ov value in National League only fantasy baseball leagues.

Victor Martinez homered for the second consecutive game, giving him four home runs and 11 RBI in his last 10 games. Martinez now has 14 home runs and 56 RBI on the season.

Garrett Atkins is showing signs of life, getting additional at bats as the designated hitter in interleague play. Atkins has collected three hits in each of the last two games with a total of four RBI. He has lifted his batting average 37 points in the last 10 games. Unfortunately for fantasy baseball owners, he most likely heads back to the bench once the Colorado Rockies return to National League play. The best case scenario is the extra bats have given Atkins a little bit of trade value to the Rockies are able to move him at the deadline to a team that will give him more playing time.

B.J. Upton went 2-for-4 with three runs scored and three RBI. Upton stole his 27th base of the season, and is now up to .245 on the year. In his last 10 games, he has two home runs, 12 RBI and three stolen bases.

Brett Gardner went 5-for-6 with three runs score and stole his 17th base of the season. Gardner has stolen six bases in his last 10 games and is now hitting .303 on the season.

Pitchers:

Brad Bergeson allowed one run in six innings and struck out five to improve to 5-2 on the season. Bergeson has not lost since April 19th and has lowered his ERA over 1.5 runs during that stretch.

Randy Wells allowed two runs in seven innings with six strikeouts to win his second consecutive start. Wells has a 2.57 ERA and 1.09 whip ratio through nine starts.

Virgil Vazquez won his first start, replacing demoted Ian Snell, allowing two runs in six innings with seven strikeouts. Vazquez was 5-2 with a 4.18 ERA in Triple-A with 53 strikeouts in 79 2/3 innings before being recalled from the minor leagues.

Ricky Romero hurled seven shutout innings with seven strikeouts to win his second straight start. Romero has a 2.36 ERA in his last five starts with 33 strikeouts in 34 1/3 innings.

CC Sabathia allowed one run in seven innings with eight strikeouts to notch his seventh win of the season. Sabathia currently ranks fourth in the American League in whip ratio at 1.09.

Josh Beckett worked seven shutout innings with six strikeouts to up his record to 9-3 on the season. Beckett has allowed zero earned runs in four of his past five starts

Yovani Gallardo allowed one run in 7 2/3 innings with nine strikeouts to improve his record to 8-4. Gallardo has allowed two runs or less in six of his last seven starts (he allowed three runs in the other start) and currently sits fifth in the National League in ERA at 2.86 and fourth in strikeouts with 102.

Jason Hammel allowed two runs in 7 1/3 innings with five strikeouts to up his mark to 5-3 on the season. Hammel has quietly become an effective starter for the Rockies, allowing two runs or less in four of his last five starts. He is 5-0 in his last seven starts, with his last loss coming on May 19th.

Clayton Kershaw allowed two runs in six innings with eight strikeouts to even his record at 5-5 for the year. Kershaw has a 0.97 ERA in his last three starts with 21 strikeouts in 18 2/3 innings.

Closers:

Huston Street worked a scoreless ninth inning to pick up his 17th save of the season. It has been quite a comeback for Street this year, as he is only three saves back of the lead in the National League, despite losing his job to Manny Corpas earlier in the season.

LaTroy Hawkins picked up his 10th save of the season in place of Jose Valverde who was given the night off. It was the fourth day in a row that Hawkins pitched.

The Daily Dirt for Wednesday

Posted by Todd Lammi on June 24th, 2009

by Todd Lammi

Nick Swisher homered for the 13th time this season and drove in two runs, giving him 38 RBI on the season. The home run was the first for Swisher in the last two weeks, after hitting home runs on June 7th and 8th. June has been a much better month for Swisher who became home run happy in May, striking out 29 times in 80 at bats and hitting a measly .150. Swisher is currently hitting .267 in June with three home runs and nine RBI. In other fantasy baseball news around the diamond on Wednesday…

Hitters:

Miguel Cabrera went 2-for-4 with two RBI and delivered his 15th home run of the season. Cabrera has homered four times in his last eight games with eight RBI.

David Ortiz went 2-for-3 with three RBI and blasted his seventh home run of the season. Ortiz homered for the second straight game and for the sixth time in the month of June.

Adam LaRoche went 3-for-4 with three RBI and connected for his 11th home run of the season. The home run was his second in as many days and gives LaRoche four home runs in his last nine games with eight RBI.

After missing two games with an illness, Jason Kubel returned to the lineup and hit his 13th home run of the season. It was the fourth home in the last 10 games for Kubel who is hitting .311 on the season with 40 RBI.

Paul Konerko homered for the second consecutive game and the third time in his last five games. Konerko is currently hitting .293 with 11 home runs and 45 RBI on the season.

Pitchers:

Joba Chamberlain allowed two runs in 6 1/3 innings with five strikeouts to pick up his fourth win of the season. It was the first start for Chamberlain in which he did not walk a batter outside of his start on May 21 that he left after 2/3 of an injury due to an injury.

Zach Duke allowed one run in six innings with four strikeouts to improve his record to 8-5 on the season. After surrendering six home runs in his previous three starts, Duke was able to get the ball in the park on Wednesday.

Matt Garza allowed one run in eight innings with seven strikeouts to even his record at 5-5. The win for Garza was his first since May 16th who has been the victim of a lack of offensive support in his previous starts.

Fernando Nieve tossed six shutout innings with five strikeouts to notch his third win of the season. Nieve has a 1.31 ERA and a 0.97 whip ratio through 20 2/3 innings for the year. Nieve should get another start with Oliver Perez and John Maine both slated to get at least one more start in the minor leagues before they are activated from the disabled list.

Ricky Nolasco worked seven shutout innings with seven strikeouts to earn his fourth victory of the season. Nolasco has a 1.80 ERA in his four starts since returning from the minor leagues.

Roy Oswalt allowed one run in six innings with eight strikeouts in a no decision. It has been an uneven season for Oswalt who had alternated wins and losses in his previous four outings. In addition to a career high batting average against of .282 this season, Oswalt is also on pace to give up a career high 30 home runs this year.

Gavin Floyd allowed one run in six innings with three strikeouts to earn his fifth win of the year. It marked the fourth straight start that Floyd allowed one earned run, lowering his ERA to 4.45 on the year.

Vincente Padilla allowed one run in seven innings and struck out three to gain his sixth win of the year. Padilla has a 2.16 ERA in his last four starts while going 3-0 during that stretch.

Closers:

Dan Meyer picked up his first save of the season in place of injured closer Matt Lindstrom who was placed on the disabled list and will miss a minimum of four weeks.

The Daily Dirt for Tuesday

Posted by Todd Lammi on June 24th, 2009

by Todd Lammi

Brandon Inge homered for the second consecutive day and drove in two runs, giving him four home runs and nine RBI in his last 10 games. Inge has already surpassed his second highest total for home runs in his career and is now taking aim at his season best mark of 27. He should have no problem breaking that level if he continues at his current home run rate of one every 14 at bats compared to his 2006 rate of one home run every 20 at bats. In other fantasy baseball news around the diamond on Tuesday…

Hitters:

Chase Utley went 3-for-5 with four RBI and homered for the 16th time in 2009. The home run was the fourth in June for Utley who remains on pace to possibly set career best marks in home runs (39) and RBI (119).

Jason Bay went 4-for-6 with three runs scored and three RBI. Bay blasted his 19th home run of the year and now has 69 RBI in 69 games played.

Brian McCann went 3-for-4 with two RBI and connected for his seventh home run on the season. The home run for McCann was his first in the last two weeks, leaving him on pace for 19 home runs and 83 RBI.

Jacob Ellsbury went 4-for-4 with three RBI and stole his 30th base of the season. Ellsbury has hit two of his three home runs on the year in his last 10 games, driving in eight runs and stealing seven bases during that period.

Matt Wieters went 2-for-4 with his second home in five games. Wieters has driven in six runs in his last 10 games while raising his batting average almost 70 points.

Troy Tulowitzki homered twice and drove in three runs to account for all of the offense for the Colorado Rockies. Tulowitzki has seven home runs in June with 14 RBI, five steals and a .350+ batting average.

Rod Barrajas homered for the third time in his last five games, giving him seven home runs on the season. Barrajas has knocked in a run in five of his last six games.

Grady Sizemore returned from a three week stint on the disabled list, going 2-for-5 with two RBI and a triple.

Pitchers:

Tommy Hanson worked 5 1/3 scoreless innings and struck out four to remain perfect on the season at 3-0. His ERA has been good (3.13) but his whip ratio has been not so great (1.61). He had some control problems back in 2008 after being promoted to Double-A walking 3.8 hitters in nine innings. His current walk ratio sits at 5.9 per nine innings after his start on Tuesday.

Joel Piniero tossed a complete game shutout, allowing two hits while striking out one to earn his sixth victory of the season. Despite allowing three runs or less in his last four starts, Piniero only has a 1-3 record to show for it during that span. His current 3.40 ERA is being aided by his minuscule home run rate, allowing only two home runs so far on the season through 92 2/3 innings, after surrendering 20+ long balls in each of the past five years.

It took him a few starts to get acclimated to the major league, but David Huff seems to have turned it around after hurling eight scoreless innings with two strikeouts on Tuesday. Huff has allowed three runs or less in his last four starts while going 3-0 during that stretch. He should be an option in American League only fantasy baseball leagues.

Zack Greinke allowed one run in eight innings and struck out five to notch his ninth win of the season. Despite winning for the first time in his last five starts, Greinke continues to lead the American League in ERA (1.90), whip ratio (1.02) innings pitched (109) and complete games (5).

Tim Lincecum tossed a complete game, allowing one run while striking out 12 to pick up win number seven on the season. It marked the fourth time that Lincecum has had double digit strikeouts in 2009.

Hiroki Kuroda picked up his first win in five starts since returning from the disabled list on June 1st, allowing two runs in 8 2/3 innings with nine strikeouts.

Max Scherzer allowed two runs in six innings with seven strikeouts to improve his record to 5-4 on the year. Scherzer has allowed two runs or less in four straight starts while going 3-0 during that span.

Brian Tallet tossed six scoreless innings up his mark to 5-4 on the year. He matched his season high with seven strikeouts while allowing only three hits and one walk.

Chad Gaudin allowed two runs in seven innings and struck out 11 for his third win of the season. Gaudin has struck out 19 in his last 13 innings while allowing five runs.

Adam Miller allowed one hit and one run in seven innings in a no decision. Miller struck out four and lowered his ERA to 4.17 on the season.

Closers:

Matt Lindstrom allowed four hits and three runs in 2/3 of an inning. Despite his 14 saves, his other numbers have been a killer to fantasy baseball staffs , with a 6.52 ERA and 1.90 whip ratio on the season.

Joakim Soria worked a scoreless ninth inning to pick up his 8th save of the season, and his first since May 7th.

The Daily Dirt for Sunday

Posted by Todd Lammi on June 21st, 2009

by Todd Lammi

After a slow start to the month of June, interleague play has lit a fire under Albert Pujols. Pujols went 4-for-5 on Sunday and smacked two home runs while driving in six runs. Pujols has hit eight home runs in his last 10 games with 17 RBI. In other fantasy baseball news around the diamond on Sunday…

Hitters:

B.J. Upton went 4-for-6 with three runs scored and four RBI. Upton, who hit his fifth home run of the season, has really started to pick up his offense the last 10 days. In that span, Upton has raised his batting average 28 points, drove in nine runs and stole eight bases.

Brandon Inge went 2-for-3 with three RBI and slugged his 16th home run of the season. Inge has homered three times in his last nine games while driving in seven runs. Currently at 47 RBI, Inge is on pace for his first 100 RBI season.

Lyle Overbay went 3-for-5 with five RBI, including his ninth home run of the season. Like Inge, Overbay is also on pace for his first 100 RBI season plus a potential career high in home runs. Part of the reason for Overbay’s improvement this year has been an increase in his walk rate, going from a walk every 8.4 plate appearances in 2008 to a rate of 5.8 this season, as well as a reduction in his strikeout rate, going from a strikeout rate of 5.3 in 2008 to 6.9 this year.

Clint Barmes went 2-for-4 with two RBI and connected for his eighth home run of the season. Barmes has driven in eight runs in his last eight games and is currently on pace for a 19 home run, 88 RBI, 12 steal season.

Hanley Ramirez homered for the first time since May 22nd, going deep for a two-run home run off of Brett Tomko. Despite the lack of power, he has surpassed his RBI total of 11 for the month of May with several games left to play in June.

Pitchers:

CC Sabathia left his start against the Florida Marlins in the second inning with bicep tightness. Sabathia was removed after 1 1/3 innings and 28 pitches thrown. It would be best to bench him in fantasy baseball leagues until the severity of his injury is determined.

Justin Verlander allowed two runs in 7 2/3 innings with eight strikeouts to pick up his 8th win of the season. The win at home for Verlander continued a season long trend. He entered Sunday’s game with a 0.82 ERA in five home starts, compared to a 4.87 ERA on in nine road starts.

Ricky Romero allowed two runs in seven innings with six strikeouts. Romero has a 2.59 ERA in his last 31 1/3 innings with 31 strikeouts.

Mark Buehrle tossed seven shutout innings with three strikeouts to notch his 7th win of the year. The win for Buehrle was his first since May 19th.

Cole Hamels allowed two runs in eight innings with 10 strikeouts in a hard-luck loss to the Baltimore Orioles. Hamels has allowed two runs in each of his last two starts with 16 strikeouts in 14 innings. Hamels is still getting hit at too high of a rate for a pitcher of his caliber. After limiting batters to a .227 average in 2008, Hamels batting average against is currently .297.

Wandy Rodriguez allowed one run in seven innings with eight strikeouts to even his mark at 6-6. The win stopped his losing streak at four, giving him his first win since May 20th.

Randy Wells allowed two runs in 6 2/3 innings with three strikeouts to get his first win of the season. The win was well deserved for Wells who has allowed three runs or less in seven of his eight starts this season.

Kevin Correia allowed one run in 6 2/3 inning with seven strikeouts. Correia is 3-1 in his last four starts with a 2.03 ERA and 20 strikeouts in 26 2/3 innings.

Closers:

Brian Wilson picked up his 19th save of the season, giving him 12 consecutive scoreless appearances. Since May 21st, Wilson has lowered his ERA from 4.87 to 2.94, while picking up 10 saves.

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