Posts Tagged ‘Matt LaPorta’

Fantasy Baseball – the Daily Dirt for Tuesday

Posted by Todd Lammi on May 27th, 2009

by Todd Lammi

There is rejoicing in fantasy baseball land Tuesday night as top prospect Matt Wieters of the Baltimore Orioles is expected to be recalled from Triple-A on Friday.  It should not take long for Wieters to ascend to the top tier of the catching ranks, based on his expected performance. With injuries to Ryan Doumit and Chris Ianetta and Geovany Soto off to a slow start, it is not inconceivable for Wieters to be a top 5 catcher the rest of the season, behind Victor Martinez, Joe Mauer, Brian McCann and Bengie Molina.

To give you an idea of the landscape at catcher from a fantasy baseball statistical purpose, Jorge Posada ranks six among catchers in RBI with 20 despite missing the last three weeks of action. Russell Martin still is stuck on zero home runs, although he does has six stolen bases and Mike Napoli should start to lose at bats with Vladimir Guerrero returning to action as Napoli was seeing time at designated hitter when not catching.

Wieters, who was the fifth overall selection in the 2007 June draft, will take over immediately as the Orioles starting catcher upon his arrival. Wieters is currently hitting .305 with 5 home runs and 30 RBI in 141 at bats with a 2o to 30 walk to strikeout ratio in Triple-A. In other fantasy baseball news around the diamond on Tuesday…

Hitters:

Orioles hitters responded to the news of Wieters impending arrival by collecting 14 hits in a 7-2 win over the Toronto Blue Jays. Adam Jones (11), Aubrey Huff (8) and Nolan Reimold (3) all hit home runs in the victory. With the young bats the Orioles have and the pitching in their farm system, they are probably 1 1/2 years away from competing for the division.

The Cleveland Indians used four home runs to defeat the Tampa Bay Rays 5-1. Mark DeRosa starting in left field hit his 8th home run of the year and is now up to 32 RBI on the season. It is nice the Indians are show casing DeRosa’s versatility in the outfield to boost his trade value, but that comes at the expense of playing time for Matt LaPorta who was sent back to Triple-A. LaPorta never got untracked with the Indians, batting .190 with one home run in 13 games.

Carlos Pena hit his 16th home run and knocked in his 40th RBI to provide the lone run of offense for the Rays.

Joey Votto hit a two-run home in the seventh inning to propel the Cincinnati Reds to a 6-4 win over the Houston Astros. The long ball was Votto’s 8th of the season to go along with his 33 RBI.

Gary Sheffield continues to pick up the slack offensively for the New York Mets with Jose Reyes, Ryan Church and Carlos Delgado all missing from the lineup due to injuries. Sheffield went 2 for 3 with 3 RBI and belted his fifth home run of the year to lead Mets to a 6-1 win over the Washington Nationals. He has now driven in nine runs in his last five games.

Also for the Mets, rookie Fernando Martinez was recalled from Triple-A with Church going on the disabled list. Martinez got the start in right field batting sixth and went 0 for 3 with an RBI. Martinez was hitting .291 with 8 home runs and 28 RBI in 165 at bats in Triple-A with two stolen bases.

Chris Davis hit two home runs to power the Texas Rangers to a 7-3 win over the New York Yankees. Davis now has 12 home runs on the season, but is only batting .208 on the year.

Justin Morneau went 2 for 3 with 3 RBI including his 14th home run of the season in a 5-2 win over the Boston Red Sox. Morneau has driven in 11 runs in his last five games.

Mark Reynolds hit his 13th home run of the year and knocked in two in a 6-5 win over the San Diego Padres. Reynolds is currently 5th in the National League in home runs and 7th in stolen bases with 10.

Jayson Nix hit two solo home runs to give the Chicago White Sox a 4-2 win over the Los Angeles Angels.

Pitchers:

Zack Greinke continued his amazing 2009 season, tossing a complete game against the Detroit Tigers in a 6-1 win. Greinke struck out eight while lowering his ERA to 0.84. He has still yet to allow more than two runs in any start this year and also has not given up a home run through 75 innings.

Joe Blanton tossed seven shutout innings with 11 strikeouts in a 5-3 win over the Florida Marlins. The victory evened Blanton’s record at 3-3  and easily surpassed his previous season high of six strikeouts.

Carl Pavano allowed one run in seven innings with six strikeouts to pick up his fifth win of the season. Pavano has now won 5 of his last 6 starts, while allowing four runs or less in all of them.

Livan Hernandez picked up a complete game win, allowing one run with six strikeouts. Hernandez has now allowed two runs or less in four of his last five starts.

Adam Wainwright allowed one run in seven innings with nine strikeouts in a 8-1 win over the Milwaukee Brewers. Wainwright improved to 5-2 and has allowed one run in each of his last three starts, covering a total of 23 2/3 innings.

Nick Blackburn allowed one earned run in seven innings with seven strikeouts to move to 4-2 on the season. Blackburn has shaved 1 1/2 runs off his ERA in his last five starts to his current mark of 3.55

Eric Milton picked up his first win in almost three years, tossing five innings of one run ball in a 7-1 win over the Colorado Rockies. Milton allowed seven hits and struck out three in his second start since being recalled from Triple-A.

Sean Marshall allowed one run in five innings with six strikeouts to pick up a rain-shortened 6-1 win over the Pittsburgh Pirates. Marshall continues to keep pace with Randy Wells to see who will become the 5th starter once Rich Harden returns from the disabled list.

Max Scherzer allowed two runs in seven innings with 10 strikeouts to earn his second win of the season. Scherzer has had back-to-back 10 strikeout performances and will face the Atlanta Braves on Sunday.

Jarrod Washburn hurled six scoreless innings with four strikeouts in a 4-3 loss to the Oakland Athletics.

Tim Lincecum pitched eight shutout innings and fanned eight in a 4-0 defeat of the Atlanta Braves.  Lincecum lowered his ERA to 3.03 and has struck out eight or more in 7 of his last 8 starts.

Closers:

Brad Lidge was supposed to get the day off, but after the Marlins cut the lead to two in the ninth innings, he came in to record two outs for his ninth save of the season. Manager Charlie Manuel’s use of the bullpen on Tuesday night signifies he has little faith in Ryan Madson as the closer and why he continues to stick with Lidge in spite of Lidge’s recent blown saves. Instead of using Madson in the ninth inning and a different set up man in the eighth, he still pitched Madson in the eighth and had Chad Durbin come in to close the door in the ninth, which Durbin failed to do.

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Fantasy Baseball – the Daily Dirt for Tuesday

Posted by Todd Lammi on May 12th, 2009

by Todd Lammi

With all of the talk in the news again about performance enhancing drugs, it is nice to see there are still some legitimate hitters in the major leagues, as several players had multiple home run games last night.

Hitters:

Adam Jones hit two home runs, giving him eight on the season, to go along with 25 RBI. His batting average is now up to .363 and he leads the American League in runs scored with 35.

Jim Thome hit two home runs, scored three runs and had four RBI. The home runs were Thome’s first since April 22nd and he now stands one behind Mike Schmidt for 13th place on the all-time home run list.

Prince Fielder went 3 for 4 with two home runs and four RBI to power the Milwaukee Brewers to a 6-3 win over the Florida Marlins. He is currently on pace to far surpass his walk total of 84 from last season with 27 free passes already through 33 games.

Jason Werth went 2 for 4 with two runs scored and stole four bases, giving him seven on the season. His thievery included a steal of home in the seventh inning.

Aaron Hill hit his ninth home run of the season, and is now hitting .357 with 30 RBI for the year.

Josh Hamilton returned from the disabled list and hit a two-run home run in the seventh inning to spark a six run rally in the Texas Rangers 7-1 win over the Seattle Mariners.

Chris Davis hit his ninth home run, but he is going to have a hard time getting his average over .240 with 50 strikeouts in 108 at bats.

Adrian Gonzalez hit his 11th home run and drove in two runs in the San Diego Padres 6-2 loss to the Chicago Cubs. He is getting little help from his teammates as the second best hitter in the lineup is David Eckstein with a .263 batting average.

Joe Mauer homered for the third time in four games and missed another home run when he was robbed by Clete Thomas in the first inning. Mauer has now driven in nine runs in his last five contests.

Brad Hawpe went 4 for 4 with 5 RBI including his fifth home run of the season in a Colorado Rockies 12-1 rout of the Houston Astros. Ian Stewart added two home runs and drove in five runs as well.

Matt LaPorta got his first start in the last five games and went 1 for 3 while playing first base. LaPorta is now hitting .188 on the season.

Pitchers:

Roy Halladay became the first pitcher to seven wins, tossing a complete game against the New York Yankees. Halladay scattered five hits and one earned run while striking out five.

Zach Duke picked up his fourth in of the season, allowing one run in eight innings to lower his ERA to 2.52. Duke allowed five base runners and struck out five.

Jair Jurrjens lost a win on a blown save by Mike Gonzalez in the ninth inning. Jurrjens allowed two runs in 7 2/3 innings with four strikeouts.

Rich Harden allowed two runs in six innings with five strikeouts to move to 4-1 on the season. His counterpart Jake Peavy took the loss, allowing three runs in six innings with nine strikeouts. There is little room for error when Peavy is on the mound as the San Diego Padres offense has scored only nine runs in his last five starts.

Kevin Slowey allowed one run in six innings with two strikeouts to improve his record to 5-1 on the year.

Ubaldo Jimenez allowed one run in seven innings with four strikeouts to pick up his third win of the year. Jimenez has now allowed one run in back to back starts.

Micah Owings allowed one run in seven innings with four strikeouts to pick up win number three on the year. Owings was much more effective with his pitches Tuesday night, needing only 90 pitches to get through seven innings.

Recent call up Luke Hochevar got a rude awakening coming back to the major leagues, allowing eight runs in two innings against the Oakland Athletics.

Closers:

Scott Downs got a vote of confidence as the Toronto Blue Jays closer going forward after G.M. J.P. Riccardi announced that B.J. Ryan would serve in a set up role when he comes off the disabled list.

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Fantasy Baseball – the Daily Dirt for Sunday

Posted by Todd Lammi on May 3rd, 2009

by Todd Lammi

Matt LaPorta was recalled from Triple-A by the Cleveland Indians and will get a chance to play with Travis Hafner on the disabled list. LaPorta started in right field batting eighth on Sunday and went 0 for 4 with two strikeouts. In other fantasy baseball news around the diamond on Sunday…

Hitters:

Carl Crawford went 4 for 4 and stole six bases, giving him 17 steals on the season in 17 attempts.

Michael Bourn is having quite a bounce back season so far compared to his disappointing 2008 year. Bourn stole two bases on Sunday to give him eight for the season and his batting average is now up to .301.

Justin Upton is starting to heat up for the Arizona Diamondbacks now that he is getting regular playing time. Upton hit his fourth home run of the season on Sunday and has now hit four home runs in his last nine games. During that stretch, he has raised his batting average 78 points.

National League only players should look to grab Fernando Tatis who has been playing in place of Carlos Delgado, out with an injured hip. Delgado was supposed to return to action on Sunday after missing five games before it was rained out. With Delgado’s injury expected to linger throughout the season, Tatis could be in line for some additional at bats.

Brandon Wood got his second start on Saturday since being recalled April 21, playing third base and batting eighth. Wood went 2 for 4, but it looks like the Los Angeles Angels are not going to commit to giving him a full season of at bats at any point in 2009. A trade would probably be the best for both parties at this time.

Kyle Blanks has started working in the outfield in Triple-A for the San Diego Padres. With Adrian Gonzalez blocking his way at first base, the Padres are looking at other alternatives to get Blanks’ bat in the lineup.

Pitchers:

Chad Billingsley moved to a perfect 5-0 after allowing two runs in seven innings with eight strikeouts. Billingsley has now allowed two runs or fewer in five of his six starts this season.

Justin Verlander allowed one run in seven innings with 11 strikeouts. He continues to dominate at home, where he has now allowed two runs in 19 innings with 28 strikeouts.

Scott Richmond picked up win number four on the year, allowing two runs in seven innings with six strikeouts. Richmond has now become an option in mixed league formats with several consecutive good outings.

Johnny Cueto hurled eight shutout innings with nine strikeouts . Part of the reason for his improvement so far in 2009 is his reduction in home runs. After allowing 29 in 174 innings last season, he has only allowed two in 32 2/3 innings this season.

Carlos Zambrano left his start in the bottom of the fifth inning with a strained hamstring after attempting to beat out a throw on a bunt. Zambrano allowed two runs in five innings before leaving the game, but still managed to notch his third win of the year.

Barry Zito tossed seven scoreless innings with four strikeouts in a no decision. Zito has now allowed three runs in his last 20 1/3 innings.

Roy Oswalt let his start early on Saturday due to a rain delay after throwing only 17 pitches. Because of the short outing, Oswalt will return to the hill against the Washington Nationals on Tuesday.

Cole Hamels is still feeling soreness in his ankle and with Sunday’s game rained out, it means his start will be pushed back to Friday.

Oliver Perez most likely made his last start for the New York Mets for awhile.  After talk of accepting a possible demotion to the minors, Perez said Sunday he has been bothered by a sore knee  and could be headed to the disabled list.

Jeff Weaver has taken over the 5th starter role for the Los Angeles Dodgers in place of James McDonald. Weaver will start on Tuesday against the Arizona Diamondbacks.

Gio Gonzalez was recalled from Triple-A by the Oakland Athletics  but will work out of the bullpen for the time being.

Closer:

Brandon Morrow was placed on the 15-day disabled list with bicep tendinitis. David Aardsma will replace Morrow as the Seattle Mariners closer for the time being. Hopefully if you had handcuffed Aardsma to Morrow as I mentioned in several previous articles, you fantasy baseball team should be covered.

George Sherrill may have lost his job as closer for the Baltimore Orioles after blowing his second save of the season. Manager Dave Trembley said for the time being, the decision on who will close could vary from day to day. Chris Ray has still been struggling so he is not the permanent answer quite yet either. Jim Johnson could also see a save opportunity as well.

LaTroy Hawkins picked up his third save of the year for the Houston Astros. With Jose Valverde out three to five weeks, Hawkins is a good pick up for saves.

Joakim Soria returned to action this weekend with back-to-back appearances that netted a win and a save so he should be safe to activate for next week.

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Fantasy Baseball – the Daily Dirt for Wednesday

Posted by Todd Lammi on April 29th, 2009

by Todd Lammi

Travis Hafner of the Cleveland Indians was placed on the 15-day disabled list with soreness in his right shoulder. There is a chance that rookie Matt LaPorta could be recalled for the weekend games if the Cleveland Indians decide they need a jolt of offense. In other news around the fantasy baseball diamond on Wednesday…

Hitters:

Torii Hunter hit his 8th home run of the season and is now hitting .329 on the year. With Vladimir Guerrero out of the lineup, Hunter has become the main RBI man for the Los Angeles Angels as he has driven in runs in 7 of his last 8 games.

Jorge Cantu hit his third home run in two nights giving him six long balls on the season with 18 RBI. Cantu currently leads the National League is slugging percentage at .741.

Carlos Quentin hit his 8th home run of the season and drove in two runs in a Chicago White Sox win. The home run was the first for Quentin in the last 10 days.

Adrian Gonzalez hit two home runs and drove in three runs in a San Diego Padres loss. Gonzalez is now hitting .329 on the season with 19 RBI. It will be interesting to see if the Padres fall out of the race if Gonzalez is moved at the trade deadline.

Nick Swisher is heating up again for the New York Yankees. Swisher hit two home runs and drove in four runs Wednesday. Swisher now has seven home runs on the season and 19 RBI.

Threes were wild for the Minnesota Twins as the top three hitters in their lineup knocked out three hits apiece; Denard Span, Brendan Harris and Justin Morneau. All three are batting over .300 on the season plus Jason Kubel.

Billy Butler went 4 for 5 with four runs scored and four RBI, including his first two home runs of the season.

The Oakland A’s placed both Mark Ellis and Nomar Garciaparra on the disabled list. Eric Patterson was recalled from Triple-A to fill in.

Pitchers:

Zack Greinke’s scoreless inning streak came to an end at 29 when he allowed a run in the first inning against the Toronto Blue Jays. For the game, Greinke allowed two runs in seven innings with eight strikeouts.

Yvoni Gallardo tossed eight scoreless innings with 11 strikeouts and helped his cause by hitting a home run in a 1-0 win. Gallardo’s whip ratio now stands at 0.87.

Johan Santana pitched seven innings, allowing two runs and seven strikeouts in a no decision. He was in line for the win before J.J. Putz allowed two runs in the 8th inning. Santana currently leads the NL in strikeouts with 44 on the year.

Doug Davis hurled seven scoreless innings with seven strikeouts to pick up his second win of the season. The control problems that have occurred the previous two seasons have not surfaced yet in 2009, leaving Davis with a current whip ratio of 1.18.

Joba Chamberlain picked up his first win of the season, allowing one run in seven innings with six strikeouts. His ERA stands at 3.13 but he has been less than dominant with a 13/17 walk  to strikeout ratio.

It’s a good thing Edison Volquez reads my website and decided to pick up his performance. Volquez allowed one hit in eight scoreless innings to go with six strikeouts.

Closers:

Carlos Villanueva picked up the save for the Milwaukee Brewers instead of Trevor Hoffman closing back to back games since he just returned from the disabled list.

Huston Street struck out the side in the ninth inning for his second save of the year in place of Manny Corpas who was getting a day off. With Corpas suffering losses in two of his last four appearances, the closer role could change hands once again.

Carlos Marmol returning after missing time with a sore knee did not look 100% in his outing Wednesday. Marmol walked 4 batters in a third of an inning. Of the 22 pitches he threw, only five were for strikes. Kevin Gregg also struggled in a mop up role, walking three and allowing a hit in the eight inning before he was pulled.

Ryan Franklin continues to roll, picking up his 5th save in the last nine days. Jason Motte continues to set up in the 8th inning so if  Franklin ever needs a night off, Motte might get that chance.

Julian Tavarez picked up his first save of the year for the Washington Nationals. Kip Wells set him up with a scoreless eighth inning. It is nice to see the Nationals are trying to solve their bullpen woes, trading for Logan Kensing of the Florida Marlins and demoting Jason Bergmann to Triple-A. Kensing currently has a 9.82 ERA for Florida, while Bergmann’s ERA was 3.60.

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Fantasy Baseball Minor League Report – week two

Posted by Todd Lammi on April 16th, 2009

by Todd Lammi

Here is a week two update of some of the top minor league players that might make an impact this fantasy baseball season.

David Price got his second start of the season for the Durham Balls (Tampa Bay) and tossed five scoreless innings with six strikeouts. Price threw only 65 pitches, 48 of them for strikes.

Pedro Alvarez of the Lynchburg Hillcats (Pittsburgh) hit a walk-off three run home run and drove in six runs on Thursday. Alvarez has been off to a slow start at the plate hitting only .214 but he does have 14 RBI already on the young season.

Drew Sutton was traded from the Houston Astros to the Cincinnati Reds to complete the trade that sent Jeff Keppinger to the Astros in March. Sutton will report to Triple-A Louisville.

Outfielder Matt LaPorta hit his second home run for the Columbus Clippers (Cleveland). LaPorta is hitting .375 so far this year.

Matt Wieters hit his first home run of the season for the Norfolk Tides. Wieters had two hits and is hitting .261 on the season.

Tom Gorzelanny got the start for the Indianapolis Indians (Pittsburgh) and allowed two runs in five innings. Outfielder Andrew McCutchen stole his third base of the year.

Tommy Hanson of the Gwinnett Braves (Atlanta) allowed one run in 5 2/3 innings on Tuesday, striking out seven. Hanson threw 95 pitches, 65 for strikes. Hanson might only be a bad start or two from Jo-Jo Reyes away from making his major league debut.

To read the week one minor league report, click here.

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