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: Entering last season, Homer Bailey's hype was nothing short of deafening. Scouts raved over his potential, but once he hit the majors, Bailey proved he still had a ton of learning to do as evident by his 5.76 ERA last year in 9 starts. So this season, Bailey's promotion to the Reds came with little fanfare and, wouldn't you know it, he goes on to have a fairly effective start against the white-hot Phillies allowing just two earned runs in the loss last week. Sure he issued 4 walks in 6.1 innings and his control problems will lead to some inconsistency, but at the very least, Bailey should be added in all fantasy leagues as a speculative play simply because of his raw talent.
Comment: Fantasy owners looking for pitching help should stash Carpenter on their rosters now as he is making serious progress in his return to the Cardinals. Carpenter threw in a simulated game on Saturday and the team believes he can return to the majors around the All-Star break. It is important to keep in mind that St. Louis is going to be incredibly cautious with the former Cy Young winner, so fantasy owners should not expect him to return in the middle of July and/or immediately return to his 2006 form. However, with someone of his talent and track record, he deserves to be added in deep fantasy leagues as he could be a nice source of pitching stats in the final weeks of the 2008 season.
Comment: Whether it's the permanent move to left field or the wearing of Jason Giambi's golden thong, Johnny Damon has been playing like a man possessed recently. As healthy as he's been in years, Damon has been killing the ball of late, batting .549 since May 27 (including a 6-hit performance on Saturday), upping his season average to .328. He now has 20 multi-hit games this season and is looking like an outstanding no. 2 outfielder in 2008 for fantasy teams.
Comment: Today the San Diego Union-Tribune reported that, "Jake Peavy described his 61-pitch simulated game yesterday as 'rusty, OK' and even 'terrible' at times. But Peavy reported that he has recovered from an elbow strain, and manager Bud Black said his ace probably will come off the disabled list to start against the Dodgers on Thursday." While Peavy's apparent disgust with his simulated performance may alarm some fantasy owners, it appears that he is past the elbow injury that put him on the DL and that's great news for anyone counting on him to anchor their fantasy rotation. He may need a start or two to get into a rhythm, but fantasy owners should start the ace pitcher this week.
Comment: Matt Cain has become one of the more maddening players to own in fantasy baseball. Incredibly inconsistent in 2008, fantasy owners have probably started him when he's tanked and benched him when he's been on his game following a terrible performance. His 2 wins this season (his last one came in May 13) aren't making matters any better and more than a few of his owners have cut ties with the 23-year old. His season ERA stands at an unattractive 4.67 mark and he's walking batters at a higher rate than in 2007. While it is too early for fantasy owners to outright cut Cain in deeper leagues, another month of erratic pitching will make it hard to defend the Giants' hurler.
Comment: Since May 25, Crawford is batting just .200 with 0 homers, 2 RBI and 3 runs in 50 at-bats. He was dealing with a strained right hamstring last week and while an MRI revealed no major problems, he clearly has not been producing like he was at the start of this season. His 2008 batting average currently sits at .266 and his road batting average is a pathetic .226. He's still stealing bases at an elite clip, but fantasy owners who were hoping that this would be the year that Crawford had a monster season should extinguish those fancy-filled thoughts.
Comment: After starting off the season allowing no more than 2 earned runs in any of his first 6 starts, Greinke has come back to earth recently. In his last 4 starts, Greinke is 0-3 with a 7.88 ERA and 1.63 WHIP. Another troubling number for Greinke this season is that he has given up 8 or more hits in 5 of his 13 starts this season. Now might be a good time to see if anyone in your league still has the hots for Greinke as he appears destined to be more of a no. 4 or no. 5 starting pitching option in mixed fantasy leagues this season.
Comment: Jones suffered a slight tear in his right quadriceps on Saturday and while Chipper seems rather, well, chipper about the situation not being too serious, fantasy owners will want to monitor this situation closely. Remember, Jones has missed at least 25 games in each of his previous 4 seasons, so while the ailment is not supposed to keep him out more than a couple of games, Jones' age (36) and injury-riddled history could complicate matters.
Comment: Thanks to a pathetic .164 batting average against right-handed pitching, Bill Hall is now in a platoon at third base with Russell Branyan. As a result, Hall's agent has been asking for Hall to be traded from Milwaukee to a team willing to give him full-time at-bats. Hey Billy, how about batting over .200 against righties before being upset about your playing time being cut? Hall once scorched 35 homers in 2006, but that was clearly an aberration as his next best season HR mark is 17. He should be cut in all leagues as a result of this platoon and should not get any fantasy consideration unless he earns full time at-bats, whether in Milwaukee or elsewhere.
Comment:While Chris Carpenter is making progress in his return to the majors another St. Louis pitcher may be finished. Today the Chicago Tribune reported, "Mark Mulder may never pitch again. He has said no to a third surgery on his shoulder so the hope is that cortisone shots and mechanical changes can ease the pain that has forced him to shut down rehab stints twice for St. Louis." Since being traded from Oakland to St. Louis in December 2004 for Dan Haren, Kiko Calero and Daric Barton, Mulder has a 22-18 record for the Cardinals with a 5.00 ERA, 1.52 WHIP and 164 strikeouts in 209.1 innings, including just 11 innings pitched in 2007.
Comment: Jason Schmidt's awful stint in Los Angeles continues. On May 31, the three-time All Star suffered a set-back in a rehab appearance; his surgically repaired shoulder was fine, but Schmidt took a line drive to his calf that put his next start in jeopardy. Surprisingly, the calf did not keep him from starting on June 7. Not surprising, his aforementioned shoulder was giving him discomfort so he was shut down from pitching over the weekend. Schmidt needs to be completely dismissed as a potential aide to fantasy championships in 2008. His loss of velocity coupled with his fragility make him someone to avoid completely this season.
Comment: J.R. Towles headed into fantasy drafts this year as one of the more popular sleeper picks at the catcher position. But after batting .145 in 117 at-bats in 2008, the Astros optioned the young back-stop to Triple-A Round Rock. Towles should be cut in all mixed leagues but NL-only owners do have some silver-lining to pin their hopes on; Towles has gone 2-for-7 in his first 2 games of minor-league action this year with a double and home run, so if he can build on his confidence and continue to hit, he could be back in the major's by season's end.
BULLISH
HOMER BAILEY
Cincinnati Reds, SP
Comment: Entering last season, Homer Bailey's hype was nothing short of deafening. Scouts raved over his potential, but once he hit the majors, Bailey proved he still had a ton of learning to do as evident by his 5.76 ERA last year in 9 starts. So this season, Bailey's promotion to the Reds came with little fanfare and, wouldn't you know it, he goes on to have a fairly effective start against the white-hot Phillies allowing just two earned runs in the loss last week. Sure he issued 4 walks in 6.1 innings and his control problems will lead to some inconsistency, but at the very least, Bailey should be added in all fantasy leagues as a speculative play simply because of his raw talent.
CHRIS CARPENTER
St. Louis Cardinals, SP
Comment: Fantasy owners looking for pitching help should stash Carpenter on their rosters now as he is making serious progress in his return to the Cardinals. Carpenter threw in a simulated game on Saturday and the team believes he can return to the majors around the All-Star break. It is important to keep in mind that St. Louis is going to be incredibly cautious with the former Cy Young winner, so fantasy owners should not expect him to return in the middle of July and/or immediately return to his 2006 form. However, with someone of his talent and track record, he deserves to be added in deep fantasy leagues as he could be a nice source of pitching stats in the final weeks of the 2008 season.
JOHNNY DAMON
New York Yankees, OF
Comment: Whether it's the permanent move to left field or the wearing of Jason Giambi's golden thong, Johnny Damon has been playing like a man possessed recently. As healthy as he's been in years, Damon has been killing the ball of late, batting .549 since May 27 (including a 6-hit performance on Saturday), upping his season average to .328. He now has 20 multi-hit games this season and is looking like an outstanding no. 2 outfielder in 2008 for fantasy teams.
JAKE PEAVY
San Diego Padres, SP
Comment: Today the San Diego Union-Tribune reported that, "Jake Peavy described his 61-pitch simulated game yesterday as 'rusty, OK' and even 'terrible' at times. But Peavy reported that he has recovered from an elbow strain, and manager Bud Black said his ace probably will come off the disabled list to start against the Dodgers on Thursday." While Peavy's apparent disgust with his simulated performance may alarm some fantasy owners, it appears that he is past the elbow injury that put him on the DL and that's great news for anyone counting on him to anchor their fantasy rotation. He may need a start or two to get into a rhythm, but fantasy owners should start the ace pitcher this week.
BEARISH
MATT CAIN
San Francisco Giants, SP
Comment: Matt Cain has become one of the more maddening players to own in fantasy baseball. Incredibly inconsistent in 2008, fantasy owners have probably started him when he's tanked and benched him when he's been on his game following a terrible performance. His 2 wins this season (his last one came in May 13) aren't making matters any better and more than a few of his owners have cut ties with the 23-year old. His season ERA stands at an unattractive 4.67 mark and he's walking batters at a higher rate than in 2007. While it is too early for fantasy owners to outright cut Cain in deeper leagues, another month of erratic pitching will make it hard to defend the Giants' hurler.
CARL CRAWFORD
Tampa Bay Rays, OFComment: Since May 25, Crawford is batting just .200 with 0 homers, 2 RBI and 3 runs in 50 at-bats. He was dealing with a strained right hamstring last week and while an MRI revealed no major problems, he clearly has not been producing like he was at the start of this season. His 2008 batting average currently sits at .266 and his road batting average is a pathetic .226. He's still stealing bases at an elite clip, but fantasy owners who were hoping that this would be the year that Crawford had a monster season should extinguish those fancy-filled thoughts.
ZACH GREINKE,
Kansas City Royals, SPComment: After starting off the season allowing no more than 2 earned runs in any of his first 6 starts, Greinke has come back to earth recently. In his last 4 starts, Greinke is 0-3 with a 7.88 ERA and 1.63 WHIP. Another troubling number for Greinke this season is that he has given up 8 or more hits in 5 of his 13 starts this season. Now might be a good time to see if anyone in your league still has the hots for Greinke as he appears destined to be more of a no. 4 or no. 5 starting pitching option in mixed fantasy leagues this season.
CHIPPER JONES
Atlanta Braves, 3BComment: Jones suffered a slight tear in his right quadriceps on Saturday and while Chipper seems rather, well, chipper about the situation not being too serious, fantasy owners will want to monitor this situation closely. Remember, Jones has missed at least 25 games in each of his previous 4 seasons, so while the ailment is not supposed to keep him out more than a couple of games, Jones' age (36) and injury-riddled history could complicate matters.
BUST
BILL HALL
Milwaukee Brewers, 3B
Comment: Thanks to a pathetic .164 batting average against right-handed pitching, Bill Hall is now in a platoon at third base with Russell Branyan. As a result, Hall's agent has been asking for Hall to be traded from Milwaukee to a team willing to give him full-time at-bats. Hey Billy, how about batting over .200 against righties before being upset about your playing time being cut? Hall once scorched 35 homers in 2006, but that was clearly an aberration as his next best season HR mark is 17. He should be cut in all leagues as a result of this platoon and should not get any fantasy consideration unless he earns full time at-bats, whether in Milwaukee or elsewhere.
MARK MULDER
St. Louis Cardinals, SPComment:While Chris Carpenter is making progress in his return to the majors another St. Louis pitcher may be finished. Today the Chicago Tribune reported, "Mark Mulder may never pitch again. He has said no to a third surgery on his shoulder so the hope is that cortisone shots and mechanical changes can ease the pain that has forced him to shut down rehab stints twice for St. Louis." Since being traded from Oakland to St. Louis in December 2004 for Dan Haren, Kiko Calero and Daric Barton, Mulder has a 22-18 record for the Cardinals with a 5.00 ERA, 1.52 WHIP and 164 strikeouts in 209.1 innings, including just 11 innings pitched in 2007.
JASON SCHMIDT
Los Angeles Dodgers, SPComment: Jason Schmidt's awful stint in Los Angeles continues. On May 31, the three-time All Star suffered a set-back in a rehab appearance; his surgically repaired shoulder was fine, but Schmidt took a line drive to his calf that put his next start in jeopardy. Surprisingly, the calf did not keep him from starting on June 7. Not surprising, his aforementioned shoulder was giving him discomfort so he was shut down from pitching over the weekend. Schmidt needs to be completely dismissed as a potential aide to fantasy championships in 2008. His loss of velocity coupled with his fragility make him someone to avoid completely this season.
J.R. TOWLES
Houston Astros, CComment: J.R. Towles headed into fantasy drafts this year as one of the more popular sleeper picks at the catcher position. But after batting .145 in 117 at-bats in 2008, the Astros optioned the young back-stop to Triple-A Round Rock. Towles should be cut in all mixed leagues but NL-only owners do have some silver-lining to pin their hopes on; Towles has gone 2-for-7 in his first 2 games of minor-league action this year with a double and home run, so if he can build on his confidence and continue to hit, he could be back in the major's by season's end.
