Here is a look at the latest news and notes from around the diamond to help you set your fantasy baseball lineup for week 18. Be sure to check out the two start pitcher list for week 18 to get the most up to date rotations for next week.
American League:
The Kansas City Royals recalled Kila Ka’aihue from Triple-A on Sunday. Ka’aihue was hitting .391 with 24 home runs and 78 RBI with a 88 to 69 walk to strikeout ratio. The Royals have never given him a prolonged opportunity to show what he can do at the major league level and he really has no spot to play every day unless the Royals plan on sitting Jose Guillen.
Rookie Jeremy Hellickson gets his first start of his major league career on Monday against the Minnesota Twins. The start is just temporary in order to give each starter an extra day of rest. Depending on how Hellickson performs, he could then be shifted to the bullpen, a la David Price of a few years ago. His fantasy baseball value is still on hold until 2011.
Matt Joyce has been on a little power surge of late in Tampa Bay and should see time against left-handed pitching as long as he keeps hitting. He has three home runs and 10 RBI over his last six games.
American League only players in search of an outfielder could grab recent call up Jordan Brown in Cleveland. Brown will have some value in week 18 before Travis Hafner and Michael Brantley return to the Indians line up. Brown was hitting .309 in Triple-A with six home runs, 63 RBI and two stolen bases.
Texas looks to be going with a strict platoon at first base going forward with rookie Mitch Moreland starting against right-handed pitching and newly acquired Jorge Cantu playing only against southpaws. Moreland has already swiped two stolen bases in 11 at bats since being recalled from Triple-A.
The Chicago White Sox have announced that Carlos Torres will start the second game of the double header against the Detroit Tigers. Torres is 7-7 with a 3.41 ERA in Triple-A with 122 strikeouts in 129 1/3 innings.
Jose Lopez has not played since Tuesday of last week for Seattle due to hamstring issues and should be benched for the upcoming week with no set timetable for when he is going to return.
National League:
Injuries were occurring all over the field on Sunday which will definitely impact fantasy baseball lineups next week.
Defensive plays help in real baseball but they can have a negative impact in fantasy baseball leagues. Dexter Flower of the Colorado Rockies could be headed to the disabled list next week after suffering bruised ribs in Sunday’s game against the Chicago Cubs.
Aramis Ramirez looks like he will be day-to-day next week after re-aggravating his sore left thumb on Sunday. Ryan Howard of the Philadelphia Phillies injured his ankle and is expected to miss at least the first part of the week and possibly longer depending on how it responds to treatment.
Brandon Lyon picked up a save for the Houston Astros on Sunday with closer Matt Lindstrom out of action with back issues.
Martin Prado could be headed to the disabled list in Atlanta due to his fractured finger. If so, it will mean extended playing time for Omar Infante over the next two weeks.
