Posts Tagged ‘Phil Hughes’

Second Half Preview – Players Losing Value

Posted by Todd Lammi on July 11th, 2010

With the first half of the season now complete after today’s games, now is the time to assess where your team is in the standings in your fantasy baseball league and make the necessary adjustments either through pickups or trades to help your team move up in the standings.

As the season goes on it becomes easy to lose focus sometimes on forward thinking if you have a player that is performing well or if you have multiple teams to focus on. One of the ways to separate yourself from the competition and improve as a fantasy baseball owner is having the foresight to know when a player is going to lose value. That way you are not counting on stats for the second half of the season that you are truly not going to get.

Just as those owners that had the foresight to reserve Daniel Hudson and Chris Davis early before they were called up so they did not get stuck in a bidding war for leagues that have FAAB, you need to have those same kinds of thoughts when looking at the players that are already on your roster.

Here is a look at some of the players that may be currently on your roster that you were not planning on replacing the second half of the season but at some point you may have to start considering other alternatives. In no particular order:

Hitters:

Jayson Nix / Jason Donald – Nix has been a source of power since being picked up by Cleveland with six home runs in 15 games. The power is not a surprise since he has flashed it in previous stops, but the average is always going to be in the .250 range or below. Donald as acquitted himself well at shortstop with a .274 average in 146 at bats. Starting shortstop Asdrubal Cabrera is expected to start his rehab assignment next week meaning he should be back by the end of July. Since Cabrera has played second base and shortstop before, the Indians will have the option of slotting him into the line up in place of either player.

Casey Kotchman / Michael Saunders – the trade addition of Justin Smoak from Texas plus the recent acquisition of Russell Branyan puts Kotchman on the bench for the time being. Saunders has been filling in for Milton Bradley out with injury, but the addition of two new hitters makes it harder for either player to get extra at bats from the designated hitter slot which Branyan now occupies.

Jeff Francoeur – the return of Carlos Beltran to the New York Mets line up coupled with the surprising play of Angel Pagan this season moves Francoeur into a reserve role after the All-Star Break.

Pitchers:

Vin Mazzaro – Mazzaro has stepped into the Oakland rotation thanks to injuries and has held his own with a 3.81 ERA and a 1.43 WHIP ratio. With Brett Anderson and Dallas Braden soon to be back from the disabled list, he then becomes the odd man out in the rotation until / if the A’s trade Ben Sheets.

Jhoulys Chacin – Chacin turned in some nice numbers as a fill in for the Colorado Rockies staff when the team faced injuries but now with a healthy staff in place, he has already been shifted to the bullpen which leaves him with little value for the second half of the season barring an injury in the rotation.

The Cincinnati Reds Rotation – the Reds have been able to patchwork their rotation because the depth of their starting pitching that when healthy will have seven starting pitchers available to choose from in Johnny Cueto, Bronson Arroyo, Mike Leake, Travis Wood and three pitchers currently on the disabled list in Aaron Harang, Edison Volquez and Homer Bailey. Volquez and Harang are both supposed to be ready after the All-Star break and Bailey by the end of the month. Next season the logjam will be cleared with Harang and Arroyo free agents but for now, it has fantasy baseball ramifications. With youngsters Wood and Leake possibly on an innings limit and Volquez coming back from Tommy John surgery, the Reds could feature a six-man rotation at some point that would have an immediate impact on pitchers losing out on two-start weeks at some points of the remainder of the season.

Young Pitchers: As teams focus on limiting the innings on young pitchers, it will have a fantasy baseball impact as you juggle the roster over the remaining weeks of the season. Some players are knowingly going to get such down early such as Stephen Strasburg of Washington while others might have a start or two skipped depending on how well their team is doing in the playoff race. Other young pitchers to keep an eye on:

Mat Latos - San Diego – currently sits at 106 2/3 innings and is on an innings limit with a high of possibly 180, is being pushed back in the rotation to start the second half and will likely not start until the middle to end of the week in the week after next. Currently averaging 6.3 innings per start, if he matches that in the second half, that would leave him with roughly 12 more starts the rest of the way although the Padres are going to be in a dilemma if they stay in the playoff race the entire second half.

Phil Hughes - New York – already had one start skipped at the end of June to limit his innings which currently sit at 101. The team has not announced a rough number for innings for him but you can bet they are monitoring it closely. If they team remains in the playoff chase and clinches a spot early, he may miss a start or two at the end of the year as well.

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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.

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2010 New York Yankees Team Preview

Posted by Todd Lammi on March 16th, 2010

This is the first part our series of 2010 fantasy baseball team previews looking at the American League East. The team previews will include the projected batting order, projected rotation, rookies that could make an impact in 2010 as well as each players current ADP for a 15 team mixed fantasy baseball league.

2010 New York Yankees Projected Batting Order:

1.  SS Derek Jeter (ADP 43)
2.  DH Nick Johnson (ADP 244)
3.  1B Mark Teixeira (ADP 6)
4.  3B Alex Rodriguez (ADP 3)
5.  2B Robinson Cano (ADP 45)
6.  C Jorge Posada (ADP 114)
7.  CF Curtis Granderson (ADP 50)
8.  RF Nick Swisher (ADP 233)
9.  LF Randy Winn (ADP 453)

2010 New York Yankees Projected Rotation & Bullpen:

1.  CC Sabathia (ADP 28)
2.  A.J. Burnett (ADP 127)
3.  Andy Pettitte (ADP 212)
4.  Javier Vazquez (ADP 59)
5.  Phil Hughes / Alfredo Aceves (ADP 257 / 422)

Closer – Mariano Rivera (ADP 71)
Handcuff – Joba Chamberlain / Phil Hughes

2010 New York Yankees Prospects with potential impact this year:

1.  Jesus Montero – C


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Fantasy Baseball – the Daily Dirt for Monday

Posted by Todd Lammi on May 25th, 2009

by Todd Lammi

It was a painful loss for the Tampa Bay Rays, as the blew a 10-0 lead in an 11-10 loss to the Cleveland Indians. The blown lead was the largest in team history.  The Rays used four relievers in the ninth inning, the last one being Jason Isringhausen, but none of them could stop the bleeding as the Indians rallied for seven runs to pull out the come from behind win. Rookie David Price, getting the start for the injured Scott Kazmir, displayed the same wildness that had been plaguing him in the minor leagues, as he walked five and allowed four hits in 3 1/3 innings while throwing 100 pitches. He did manage to strike out six and only allowed two runs, but his high pitch count limited his innings. Ryan Garko hit two home runs for the Indians and drove in five runs to pace the Tribe’s offense. In other fantasy baseball happenings around the diamond on Monday…

Hitters:

Alex Rodriguez and Mark Teixeira continue to lead the surging New York Yankees offense, as the team pounded out 19 hits in an 11-1 win over the Texas Rangers. A-Rod went 5 for 5 with 4 RBI and Teixeira went 2 for 4 with three runs scored and two RBI.

Who needs Manny Ramirez? The Los Angeles Dodgers pounded out 19 hits en route to a 16-6 pasting of the Colorado Rockies. Matt Kemp, Juan Castro and Juan Pierre each knocked in three runs.

The Chicago White Sox made short work of Ervin Santana, banging out 23 hits on their way to a 17-3 win over the Los Angeles Angels. Jermaine Dye (12), Jim Thome (8) and Paul Konerko (7) all went deep for the White Sox. The lone bright spot for the Angles was the return of Vladimir Guerrero to the line up.

Nelson Cruz hit his 12th home run of the year for the lone score for the Rangers. Cruz has homered 5 times in his last six games while driving in 10 runs. He has now collected an RBI in six consecutive games.

Ryan Howard hit two home runs and drove in three to provide all the offense for the Philadelphia Phillies in a 5-3 loss to the Florida Marlins. Howard now has 12 home runs on the season and 33 RBI.

Jonny Gomes went 3 for 4 with 3 RBI for the Cincinnati Reds in their 8-5 win over the Houston Astros. Gomes is a good pickup in National League only leagues as he should see playing time against left-handed starters.

Adrian Gonzalez hit his 17th home run of the season in the San Diego Padres 9-7 win over the Arizona Diamondbacks in 10 innings. Scott Hairston went 3 for 5 and is now batting .333. With the trade of Jody Gerut to Milwaukee earlier in the week, Hairston should be someone to target if he is still on the waiver wire in your fantasy baseball league.

It took him 100 at bats but Travis Ishikawa finally hit his first home run of the season in the San Francisco Giants 8-2 win over the Atlanta Braves. Ishikawa went 4 for 4 and drove in three runs. He is going to need more games like that if he does not want to lose at bats to recent call up Jesus Guzman.

Freddy Sanchez went 6 for 6 and scored four times to lead the Pittsburgh Pirates to a 10-8 win over the Chicago Cubs. Sanchez drove in three runs and hit his fourth home run of the season.

Pitchers:

Justin Verlander pitched seven shutout innings with eight strikeouts in a 13-1 win over the Kansas City Royals. It marked the sixth consecutive game that Verlander has notched eight or more strikeouts. The outing was the most economical Verlander has been with his pitches all season, making it through seven innings on 96 pitches.

Jeremy Guthrie allowed one run in seven innings with four strikeouts to pitch the Baltimore Orioles past the Toronto Blue Jays 4-1. Guthrie’s biggest problem this season has been the home run, allowing 11 in 53 2/3 innings before his start on Monday.

The Milwaukee Brewers defeated the St. Louis Cardinals 1-0 in 10 innings on a RBI single by Bill Hall. Both starting pitchers were superb in the game, with Chris Carpenter tossing eight scoreless innings with 10 strikeouts for the Cardinals, and Yovani Gallardo hurling eight shutout innings for the Brewers with six strikeouts.

Phil Hughes scattered three hits in eight shutout innings to pick up his third win of the season. Hughes struck out six while allowing only one walk to lower his ERA to 5.16.

Brett Anderson allowed one run in six innings with four strikeouts to gain his second win of the season. It marks the second consecutive good start for the rookie who may be on the verge of turning things around for good.

Jonathan Sanchez, subject to some trade rumors earlier in the week, allowed two runs in five innings with six strikeouts to earn his second win of the year.

John Maine allowed one run in six innings with four strikeouts to get his fourth win of the season.  Despite his 4.18 ERA he conitunes to be bothered by walks. With a 30 to 36 walk to strikeout ratio, Maine is on pace for 108 walks this season which would be a career high.

Closers:

Jonathan Papelbon picked up his 12th save of the season, but it marked back-to-back games that he surrendered two runs and a home run.

Francisco Rodriguez (back spasms) returned to action for the New York Mets and picked up his 13th save of the season.

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Fantasy Baseball – the Daily Dirt for Tuesday

Posted by Todd Lammi on April 28th, 2009

by Todd Lammi

Jorge Cantu was a one man wrecking crew for the Florida Marlins, going 3 for 3 with two home runs and 5 RBI, to snap the teams’ seven-game losing streak. Hanley Ramirez missed the game for the Marlins after being hit by a pitch on Monday. Catcher John Baker slid into the third spot in the batting order with Ramirez out and Cameron Maybin was bumped up to the number two hole. In other news around major league baseball on Tuesday…

Hitters:

Colorado Rockies rookie center fielder Dexter Fowler has been named the full time starter by manager Clint Hurdle. The move means that Seth Smith will lose out on the majority of at bats, and Ryan Spillborghs will see a slight reduction in at bats for the days that Smith plays.

Edwin Encarnacion was placed on the 15-day disabled list by the Cincinnati Reds with a fracture in his wrist. Adam Rosales was recalled from Triple-A and should see time at third base along with Jerry Hairston Jr.

Russell Branyan went 5 for 5 in the second game of the Seattle Mariners doubleheader and is now hitting .358 on the season.

Chone Figgins went 2 for 3 with two runs scored and two stolen bases. The stolen bases were his first in the last 10 days.

Mark DeRosa went 4 for 5, including his fourth home run of the season and scored four runs. He has made his hits count this year, despite batting only .235, he has driven in 17 runs on the season.

Chase Utley continues to reward those fantasy baseball owners that took him in the first round of their drafts with two more home runs on Tuesday. Utley is hitting .357 on the season with 20 RBI.

Alfonso Soriano hit his 7th home run of the season and drove in four runs. The one downside to having a guy with that much power of course is the limitation to his RBI numbers. Soriano only has 14 RBI for the year to go with his seven home runs.

Pitchers:

Felix Hernandez moved to 4-0 with eight innings of shutout work and nine strikeouts. Hernandez took over the American League strikeout lead with 36 now on the season.

Jo-Jo Reyes allowed one run in seven innings with seven strikeouts. His start means that Tommy Hanson will most likely remain in Triple-A for a little longer.

Kyle Lohse continued the magic for another week, tossing six shutout innings with six strikeouts. Lohse is normally a fly ball pitcher, but benefited from getting 10 ground ball outs compared to only two fly outs.

Phil Hughes returned to the major leagues, tossing six shutout innings with six strikeouts. Hughes recently recalled from Triple-A is currently replacing the injured Chien-Ming Wang in the rotation.

Edwin Jackson pitched six shutout innings with four strikeouts. Lucky for his fantasy baseball owners he was gone the inning before the New York Yankees put a 10 spot on the board in the 7th inning.

Wandy Rodriguez hurled seven strong innings, allowing one run with five strikeouts. It marked the fourth time in five starts he has allowed one run or less.

Cole Hamels lost out on a chance for a victory when he left his start in the fifth inning with a sprained ankle after trying to field a bunt. Hamels had went 4 1/3 scoreless innings before leaving the game.

The amazing success story of  Scott Richmond continued after moving to 3-0 against the Kansas City Royals. Richmond, a 29-year-old rookie who two seasons ago was pitching in the independent leagues, allowed one run in seven innings with five strikeouts.

Chad Gaudin got the start for the San Diego Padres and tossed five scoreless innings with five strikeouts. He is someone worth grabbing in NL-only leagues pitching in Petco park.

Closers:

Frank Francisco has quietly been one of the more effective closers in the American League so far this season. Francisco picked up his sixth save of the season in six chances for the Texas Rangers Tuesday night. He has allowed only six base runners in 10 2/3 innings on the season.

Brian Fuentes picked up his fourth save of the year but has been less than dominant this season. He has not had a 1-2-3 innings since opening day and allowed a solo home run tonight.

Trevor Hoffman fresh off the disabled list got his first save of the season for the Milwaukee Brewers. Todd Coffey set him up with a scoreless eighth inning.

Joel Hanrahan has been removed as closer of the Washington Nationals. Julian Tavarez and Kip Wells could form part of the closer-by-committee to try and get the job done.

Brad Lidge could be looking at potential time on the disabled list if his right knee does not get better. The pain is in the same knee that he had surgery on twice before the start of the 2008 season. If Lidge has to miss any time, Ryan Madson would take over as closer.

Jose Valverde was place on the 15-day disabled list with a strained calf. LaTroy Hawkins will take over as closer for the next two weeks.

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Fantasy Baseball – the Daily Dirt for Sunday

Posted by Todd Lammi on April 26th, 2009

by Todd Lammi

Here are some news and notes regarding injuries as you set your lineup today for the upcoming week. Closer Joakim Soria tested his sore shoulder on Sunday and the Kansas City Royals hope he will be available by mid week. If you own Juan Cruz, this would be the week to play him in attempts to pick up a save or two…..Keep an eye on the Seattle Mariners bullpen as closer Brandon Morrow has some shoulder stiffness. David Aardsma should be active for next week as he could see a save opportunity…..Shawn Hill of the San Diego Padres was placed on the 15-day disabled list with an inflamed elbow. Josh Greer will get the start in his place this week. Because Greer was used in relief of Hill on Saturday, Chad Gaudin could be recalled from Triple-A to start on Tuesday….Chicago White Sox second baseman Chris Getz could land on the disabled list with a fractured bone in his finger so keep him reserved for this upcoming week…..Stephen Drew of the Arizona Diamondbacks was placed on the 15-day DL with a strained hamstring. Augie Ojeda will fill in for Drew…..Milwaukee Brewers closer Trevor Hoffman was activated from the disabled list and should return to the closer role immediately so it should be safe to activate him for this week…..Pittsburgh Pirates shortstop Jack Wilson was placed on the 15-day disabled list with a sprained finger. Ramon Vazquez should see time there along with recent call up Brian Bixler…..Shortstop Julio Lugo of the Boston Red Sox will be activated from the disabled list in time to play on Monday and should return to the starting lineup…..Phil Hughes will get the start on Tuesday for the New York Yankees in place of Chien-Ming Wang against the Detroit Tigers…..Although it does not impact games for next week, Diamondbacks starter Brandon Webb will miss at the minimum six more weeks of action worth a right shoulder strain…..In other fantasy baseball news from around the diamond on Sunday…

National League:

Shane Victorino went 2 for 5 with 4 RBI to lead the Philadelphia Phillies to a 13-2 win over the Florida Marlins. Jamie Moyer allowed one run in six innings with six strikeouts to pick up his third victory of the season…..Jay Bruce hit two home runs and drive in four runs to power the Cincinnati Reds to an 8-2 win over the Atlanta Braves. Joey Votto added two doubles and three RBI. Micah Owings allowed one run in seven innings with six strikeouts for his first victory of the season…..Rookie Jordan Zimmermann allowed one run in 5 1/3 innings with five strikeouts to help the Washington Nationals defeat the New York Mets 8-1. Jesus Flores hit his second home run of the season and drove in three runs. Austin Kearns added his third long ball of the year. Oliver Perez allowed seven runs in 4 1/3 innings for the Mets and his rotation spot may be in jeopardy…..Ivan Rodriguez hit a solo home run to give the Houston Astros a 3-2 win over the Milwaukee Brewers. Manny Parra took the loss for Milwaukee and is now 0-3…..Rich Harden allowed two runs in six innings and struck out nine to pitch the Chicago Cubs past the St. Louis Cardinals 10-3. Kosuke Fukudome hit his fourth home run of the season and is now batting .371. Alfonso Soriano added his third stolen base of the year. Rick Ankiel and Yadier Molina each hit their second home run of the season for the Cardinals…..Ryan Spillborghs hit his first home run of the season and drove in three runs in the Colorado Rockies 10-4 win over the Los Angeles Dodgers. Clint Barmes added his third home run of the year for the Rockies. Clayton Kershaw was hit hard in his second consecutive start, allowing nine runs in 4 2/3 innings…..Adam LaRoche hit two home runs with 4 RBI to lift the Pittsburgh Pirates to an 8-3 victory over the San Diego Padres. Ross Ohlendorf allowed three runs in seven innings to pick up the victory. Jake Peavy had his second straight sub par performance for the Padres, allowing five runs in five innings. Adrian Gonzalez hit his seventh home run of the year for San Diego…..Matt Cain allowed one run in seven innings for the San Francisco Giants, but saw his win blown by closer Brian Wilson who allowed three runs in the ninth innings against the Arizona Diamondbacks. Pablo Sandoval went 4 for 4 with 3 RBI and his first home run of the year.Justin Upton hit a two-run home run in the ninth inning to send the game to extra frames for the D-Backs.

American League:

Aaron Laffey allowed two runs in 6 1/3 innings to pitch he Cleveland Indians past the Minnesota Twins 4-1. Carlos Gomez continues to disappoint for the Minnesota Twins, going 0 for 2 on Sunday, dropping his average to .195. Gomez has not stolen a base since he stole two back on April 11…..The top three hitters atop the Baltimore Orioles lineup remain on fire as they combined for 6 RBI in the Baltimore Orioles 8-5 defeat of the Texas Rangers. Brian Roberts (.372) hit his second home run of the season and Adam  Jones (.348) added his third with 3 RBI. Nick Markakis (.389) added two RBI giving him 21 for the season. Chris Davis and Hank Blalock each hit home run number five for the Rangers…..Roy Halladay picked up his 4th win of the season in the Toronto Blue Jays 4-3 win over the Chicago White Sox. Halladay allowed three runs in seven innings with six strikeouts. Scott Downs picked up his second save of the season. Alexei Ramirez stole his third base of the year for the White Sox…..Armando Galarraga allowed one run in six innings with seven strikeouts in the Detroit Tigers 3-2 win over the Kansas City Royals. Brandon Inge hit his seventh home run of the season and Josh Anderson stole his sixth base of the year for the Tigers. Mike Aviles hit his first home run of the year for the Royals…..Jered Weaver hurled seven scoreless innings to lead the Los Angeles Angels to a 8-0 shutout of the Seattle Mariners. Howie Kendrick went 3 for 5 with 4 RBI and his second home run of the season and Juan Rivera added his first long ball of the year  for the Angels. Dana Eveland allowed one run in five innings in the Oakland Athletics 7-1 win over the Tampa Bay Rays. Catcher Kurt Suzuki drove in three runs for the A’s. Andy Sonnanstine allowed seven runs in four innings for the Rays and could be in danger of losing his rotation spot once David Price is recalled from Triple-A.

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Fantasy Baseball Minor League Report – week 3

Posted by Todd Lammi on April 22nd, 2009

by Todd Lammi

With all of the hype surrounding up and coming fantasy baseball players in the minor leagues, it is easy to forget about the once hot prospects that fizzled in their first go round in the major leagues.

Such is the case for a guy like Phil Hughes, now pitching for the Scranton-Wilkes Barre Yankees in Triple-A. Hughes picked up his third win of the season Wednesday night and his ERA now stands at 1.86. In 19 1/3 innings of work, he has walked only three and struck out 19. Also in the same boat as Hughes, Ian Kennedy has a 2.00 ERA with 21 strikeouts in 18 innings. Another player to watch on that same team is 22-year-old outfielder Austin Jackson. Jackson is off to an early hot start, batting .424 with four stolen bases.

Besides Tommy Hanson, the Gwinnett Braves (AAA) have another starting pitcher to keep an eye on, Kris Medlen. Medlen, 22, started his career as a relief pitcher before moving into the rotation for part of the season in Double-A last year. So far in Triple-A, he has a 1.32 ERA with 16 strikeouts in 13 2/3 innings with only one walk allowed.

Carlos Gonzalez of the Colorado Springs Sky Sox (Rockies), has not displayed much power yet with only one home run in 52 at bats, but he does lead the team with 16 RBI. Teammate Eric Young (2B) has nine stolen bases on the early season.

First basemen Gaby Sanchez is hitting .327 for the New Orleans Zephyrs (Marlins) with one home run and nine RBI.

Mat Gamel has been on fire for the Nashville Sounds (Brewers), with five home runs and 19 RBI in only 48 at bats. The downside is that he is still struggling defensively with five errors on the season. Teammate Alcides Escobar (SS) is hitting .271 with six stolen bases. Catcher Angel Salome is off to a slow start batting .188 with four RBI.

Fernando Martinez of the Buffalo Bisons (Mets) is hitting .291 with one home run and seven RBI. Even though it seems like he has been around for a few years, he is still only 20 years old.

Kyle Blanks of the Portland Beavers (Padres) is batting .340 with two home runs and 11 RBI.

The Pawtucket Paw Sox (Red Sox) have several pitchers of note in Triple-A. Michael Bowden is 3-0 with a 0.64 ERA. Bowden has struck out 15 in 14 innings on the season. Teammate Clay Bucholz has a 3.12 ERA after two starts. Relief pitcher Daniel Bard has 16 strikeouts in nine innings.

Anthony Swarzak of the Rochester Red Wings (Twins) has a 0.82 ERA after two starts with nine strikeouts in 11 innings.

Mike Carp of the Tacoma Rainiers (Mariners) is hitting .304 with three home runs and nine RBI. Teammate Jeff Clement (C) has gotten off to a slow start, batting .175 on the season.

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