Every week Update! will be putting together a list of noteworthy performances, events and going-ons in the baseball world. We'll get you up to speed on what to get excited (or nervous) about while providing useful fantasy insight:
Comment: Colon, who inked a minor-league deal with Boston during the off-season, has been named the no. 5 starter in Boston’s rotation. After allowing just one hit over six innings in his last minor-league start, Colon earned a place on the major-league roster and fantasy owners have an intriguing option here. He’s injury-prone and has not been an effective big-leaguer since 2005, when he won the AL Cy Young Award, however, because he’ll have a superb offense giving him plenty of run support, the tubby veteran is worth the add in most leagues. His first start will come Wednesday against the Royals.
Comment: Lackey returned from the DL this past week and showed no signs of rust in his 2008 debut, earning a no-decision against the White Sox while allowing 6 hits, 1 walk and just 1 earned run in 7 innings while striking out 4. Those of you who bought-low on him early in the season should be in for a huge reward. Prior to this year, Lackey had gone at least 198 innings every season for five years and as long as his strained triceps is not aggravated, Lackey should turn in another stellar campaign.
Comment: Fantasy owners in need of offensive help at the catcher position should jump all over Navarro, who is batting .368 through 26 games this season. The former top catching prospect looks like he is finally living up to his potential. The Rays offense has been very impressive in the early goings of the season and since Navarro is a part of this potent lineup, he could emerge as one of the top fantasy back-stops this year.
Comment: The Yankees’ offense is sputtering right now, but they are going to get a giant boost this week as Alex Rodriguez is set to rejoin the team on Tuesday. Rodriguez, the 2007 AL MVP, has had no issues with the injured quad that forced him to the disabled list and should be immediately activated by fantasy owners everywhere.
Comment: After a stand-out 2007, Byrnes has been a flat-out bum in 2008. Yes he banged out a homer on Friday, but he went on to go 0-for-6 in his next two games. It is important to note that an injured hamstring may be the culprit here. Byrnes has a history of playing through pain and he could be hurting more than he’s letting on. Fantasy owners need to keep Byrnes on their bench until he starts to put together a nice streak of games.
Comment: After months of speculating if and when he would make the transition to the starting rotation, Joba Chamberlain’s electric presence appears as if it will be relegated strictly to bullpen duty in 2008. While the Yankees were non-committal either way, manager Joe Girardi seemed to lean towards keeping the beefy hurler in the set-up role this year. It makes sense, even with all of the problems in the starting rotation, the risk involved with grooming Chamberlain into a starter mid-season combined with the possibility of losing him for a few weeks to the minors in order to build up his arm strength could hurt the Yankees more than help them. Fantasy owners who have held onto Chamberlain all season may want to consider cutting ties with him if he’s taking up a roster spot that could be better served for their squad. That being said, if your team’s championship blueprint includes owning a dominant middle-reliever for ERA, WHIP and strikeout help, you should hang onto him as he should continue to be a force in the bullpen.
Comment: Roy Oswalt exited the seventh inning of Saturday’s game against the Texas Rangers with a hip injury, one that could knock him out of his next scheduled start. Oswalt has not been his normal consistent self this season, posting a 5.43 ERA in 10 starts. He looked as if he was getting back on track, turning in 6 straight quality starts prior to this weekend’s contest (though he still sported a 3.97 in his last 5 outings), but the fact is he has declined over the past couple of seasons and may now be more suited as a no. 3 fantasy pitcher. Track his status this week to see if he’ll miss any time, but try to build some depth in your rotation just in case.
Comment: Anytime you hear the words “elbow discomfort” and “MRI” being associated with a star pitcher, it usually means trouble. Peavy, last year’s NL Cy Young winner, is an elite fantasy pitcher in any format, but if he misses significant time with an arm injury, it could dash the title hopes of his owners. Right now, you should just bench him and have some plans in place to add pitching depth in case Peavy is put on the shelf. Hopefully, the MRI will determine that some rest will be all he needs.
Comment: It took 9 starts, but Francis finally earned a win this season, besting the Twins on Sunday by allowing just 2 earned runs in 6.1 innings. While it is nice to see his name in the win column, I think it has become pretty clear that Francis was overvalued in fantasy drafts heading into this season. He owns a career 4.77 ERA and 1.44 WHIP and has never really showed that he can be a fantasy ace or even a no. 2. Don’t get me wrong, he’s a fine pitcher capable of having some strong starts. But for fantasy purposes, his game just does not translate.
Comment:When Jason Isringhausen was removed from the closer’s role, his fantasy owners were hoping this was a temporary thing, a mental break for the veteran reliever. Well he’ll be out of the bullpen completely for the next couple of weeks following a DL stint for—get this—an injured right hand that was hurt punching a television in manager Tony LaRussa’s office. Ryan Franklin has done well in the ninth-inning role since Izzy was removed from closer duties and the Cardinals have an elite rookie reliever in Chris Perez who has a filthy repertoire built for closing. If you own Isringhausen, you have to prepare for the worst and target another closer just in case he doesn’t sniff another save this season.
Comment: Normally a very hot starter, Penny has looked awful in his recent starts and is now dealing with arm issues. Last year, Penny owned a sparkling 2.39 ERA before slipping in the second-half (4.23 career second-half ERA) so fantasy owners were banking on a dominant start to the season when they drafted him. But his poor start to the season, combined with his eventual second-half decline, makes it seem as if Penny’s 2008 may be a lost cause. You can’t drop him yet, but you should try to package him in a deal to attempt to get something valuable back for him while you can.
Comment: Felix Pie is never going to get a fair shake in Chicago. For some odd reason, the Cubs seemed to think that Jim Edmonds (the guy who was not good enough to stick around on the Padres’ bumbling offense) is a potential answer to their outfield problems and that means that Pie’s talent will have to once again take a back-seat in Chi-town. Pie was once considered a can’t-miss prospect, but the Cubs have been very inpatient with him and it may be better for all parties if they trade him now while he still has value.
BULLISH
BARTOLO COLON
Boston Red Sox, SP
Comment: Colon, who inked a minor-league deal with Boston during the off-season, has been named the no. 5 starter in Boston’s rotation. After allowing just one hit over six innings in his last minor-league start, Colon earned a place on the major-league roster and fantasy owners have an intriguing option here. He’s injury-prone and has not been an effective big-leaguer since 2005, when he won the AL Cy Young Award, however, because he’ll have a superb offense giving him plenty of run support, the tubby veteran is worth the add in most leagues. His first start will come Wednesday against the Royals.
JOHN LACKEY
Los Angeles Angels, SP
Comment: Lackey returned from the DL this past week and showed no signs of rust in his 2008 debut, earning a no-decision against the White Sox while allowing 6 hits, 1 walk and just 1 earned run in 7 innings while striking out 4. Those of you who bought-low on him early in the season should be in for a huge reward. Prior to this year, Lackey had gone at least 198 innings every season for five years and as long as his strained triceps is not aggravated, Lackey should turn in another stellar campaign.
DIONER NAVARRO
Tampa Bay Rays, C
Comment: Fantasy owners in need of offensive help at the catcher position should jump all over Navarro, who is batting .368 through 26 games this season. The former top catching prospect looks like he is finally living up to his potential. The Rays offense has been very impressive in the early goings of the season and since Navarro is a part of this potent lineup, he could emerge as one of the top fantasy back-stops this year.
ALEX RODRIGUEZ
New York Yankees, 3B
Comment: The Yankees’ offense is sputtering right now, but they are going to get a giant boost this week as Alex Rodriguez is set to rejoin the team on Tuesday. Rodriguez, the 2007 AL MVP, has had no issues with the injured quad that forced him to the disabled list and should be immediately activated by fantasy owners everywhere.
BEARISH
ERIC BYRNES
Arizona Diamondbacks, OF
Comment: After a stand-out 2007, Byrnes has been a flat-out bum in 2008. Yes he banged out a homer on Friday, but he went on to go 0-for-6 in his next two games. It is important to note that an injured hamstring may be the culprit here. Byrnes has a history of playing through pain and he could be hurting more than he’s letting on. Fantasy owners need to keep Byrnes on their bench until he starts to put together a nice streak of games.
JOBA CHAMBERLAIN
New York Yankees, RPComment: After months of speculating if and when he would make the transition to the starting rotation, Joba Chamberlain’s electric presence appears as if it will be relegated strictly to bullpen duty in 2008. While the Yankees were non-committal either way, manager Joe Girardi seemed to lean towards keeping the beefy hurler in the set-up role this year. It makes sense, even with all of the problems in the starting rotation, the risk involved with grooming Chamberlain into a starter mid-season combined with the possibility of losing him for a few weeks to the minors in order to build up his arm strength could hurt the Yankees more than help them. Fantasy owners who have held onto Chamberlain all season may want to consider cutting ties with him if he’s taking up a roster spot that could be better served for their squad. That being said, if your team’s championship blueprint includes owning a dominant middle-reliever for ERA, WHIP and strikeout help, you should hang onto him as he should continue to be a force in the bullpen.
ROY OSWALT
Houston Astros, SPComment: Roy Oswalt exited the seventh inning of Saturday’s game against the Texas Rangers with a hip injury, one that could knock him out of his next scheduled start. Oswalt has not been his normal consistent self this season, posting a 5.43 ERA in 10 starts. He looked as if he was getting back on track, turning in 6 straight quality starts prior to this weekend’s contest (though he still sported a 3.97 in his last 5 outings), but the fact is he has declined over the past couple of seasons and may now be more suited as a no. 3 fantasy pitcher. Track his status this week to see if he’ll miss any time, but try to build some depth in your rotation just in case.
JAKE PEAVY
San Diego Padres, SPComment: Anytime you hear the words “elbow discomfort” and “MRI” being associated with a star pitcher, it usually means trouble. Peavy, last year’s NL Cy Young winner, is an elite fantasy pitcher in any format, but if he misses significant time with an arm injury, it could dash the title hopes of his owners. Right now, you should just bench him and have some plans in place to add pitching depth in case Peavy is put on the shelf. Hopefully, the MRI will determine that some rest will be all he needs.
BUST
JEFF FRANCIS
Colorado Rockies, SP
Comment: It took 9 starts, but Francis finally earned a win this season, besting the Twins on Sunday by allowing just 2 earned runs in 6.1 innings. While it is nice to see his name in the win column, I think it has become pretty clear that Francis was overvalued in fantasy drafts heading into this season. He owns a career 4.77 ERA and 1.44 WHIP and has never really showed that he can be a fantasy ace or even a no. 2. Don’t get me wrong, he’s a fine pitcher capable of having some strong starts. But for fantasy purposes, his game just does not translate.
JASON ISRINGHAUSEN
St. Louis Cardinals, RPComment:When Jason Isringhausen was removed from the closer’s role, his fantasy owners were hoping this was a temporary thing, a mental break for the veteran reliever. Well he’ll be out of the bullpen completely for the next couple of weeks following a DL stint for—get this—an injured right hand that was hurt punching a television in manager Tony LaRussa’s office. Ryan Franklin has done well in the ninth-inning role since Izzy was removed from closer duties and the Cardinals have an elite rookie reliever in Chris Perez who has a filthy repertoire built for closing. If you own Isringhausen, you have to prepare for the worst and target another closer just in case he doesn’t sniff another save this season.
BRAD PENNY
Los Angeles Dodgers, SPComment: Normally a very hot starter, Penny has looked awful in his recent starts and is now dealing with arm issues. Last year, Penny owned a sparkling 2.39 ERA before slipping in the second-half (4.23 career second-half ERA) so fantasy owners were banking on a dominant start to the season when they drafted him. But his poor start to the season, combined with his eventual second-half decline, makes it seem as if Penny’s 2008 may be a lost cause. You can’t drop him yet, but you should try to package him in a deal to attempt to get something valuable back for him while you can.
FELIX PIE
Chicago Cubs, OFComment: Felix Pie is never going to get a fair shake in Chicago. For some odd reason, the Cubs seemed to think that Jim Edmonds (the guy who was not good enough to stick around on the Padres’ bumbling offense) is a potential answer to their outfield problems and that means that Pie’s talent will have to once again take a back-seat in Chi-town. Pie was once considered a can’t-miss prospect, but the Cubs have been very inpatient with him and it may be better for all parties if they trade him now while he still has value.
