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| Matt Stairs will be competing for a bench role with the Padres in spring training, according to the Associated Press. He signed a minor league deal back in January. |
Our View: Stairs worked hard in his offseason conditioning program, after batting just .194 with the Phillies in 2009. He is feeling great, but the 41-year-old vet shouldn't hold much fantasy value if he manages to make the Padres' roster as a reserve.
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| The Padres have officially signed veteran slugger Matt Stairs to a minor-league contract, according to the San Diego Union-Tribune. |
Our View: Stairs, a few weeks away from being 42 years old, looked out-of-gas for the Phillies last season, hitting just .194 in 103 at-bats. Of his 20 hits, five were home runs, however, likely giving the Pads hope he can be a serviceable pinch hitter for one more season. Considering the state of affairs in Southern California, he'll likely make the team's major league roster.
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| Matt Stairs is expected to sign a minor league deal with the Padres, according to Jerry Crasnick's (ESPN) twitter page. |
Our View: Stairs will likely provide San Diego with a left-handed hitter off the bench. He won't hold much fantasy value though, especially while playing his home games at pitcher-friendly Petco Park.
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| Matt Stairs is serving as the DH for the Phillies in Game 2 on Thursday. Raul Ibanez will shift from DH to left field, replacing Ben Francisco. |
Our View: Stairs is a prototypical DH against righties, so this move comes as no surprise. he will return to his role as pinch-hitting specialist when the series shifts to Philly, but he gets his opportunity tonight.
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| Matt Stairs hit a pinch-hit grand slam in the top of the ninth inning against the Nationals Thursday. |
Our View: Stairs' salami turned an 8-2 game that seemed all but over into an 8-6 nail-biter. The Phillies eventually fell 8-7, but Stairs got his moment of glory, albeit a brief one. It was his first homer since July 11th.
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| Matt Stairs hit a solo home run while pinch hitting in Thursday's 6-1 loss at Citizens Bank Park. |
Our View: He collected his second homer of the season over 10 at-bats, and generated the lone RBI in the Phillies' loss.
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| Matt Stairs hit his first home run of the spring Monday against the Yankees. |
Our View: Stairs is having a nice spring, but it's hard to imagine him playing an overwhelming amount in the Phillies outfield this season. Still, with an occasional spot start and plenty of pinch-hitting opportunities, Stairs' power, especially in cozy Citizens Bank Ballpark, could prove to be a somewhat valued commodity.
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| Matt Stairs played nine innings in left field as the Phillies beat the Astros 5-2 on Saturday. He was 2-for-3 with a walk. |
Our View: Since coming back from his stint with Team Canada, Stairs has seen a fair amount of action. It appears that he will be given the opportunity to be a platoon player with Jayson Werth this season. He is hitting .308 this spring.
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| When the World Series resumes on Wednesday Cole Hamels' spot in the order will be up for the Phillies. Hammels will not be back on the mound so it will be a pinch-hitter. Charlie Manual said that he has three lefties on his bench and it will be Matt Stairs, Gregg Dobbs or Geoff Jenkins, according to MLB.com. |
Our View: It will be interesting to see how the managers manage the three inning left in Game 5 of the series.
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| Matt Stairs hit a pinch-hit, two-run home run in the eighth inning to put the Phillies up 7-5 against the Dodgers. It was a lead they would not relinquish. |
Our View: Stairs hit the bomb off of Jonathan Broxton, which does not happen every day. It was the first postseason home run of Stairs' career.
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| Matt Stairs was designated for assignment by the Blue Jays and subsequently traded to the Philadelphia Phillies for a player to be named, according to Scout.com. |
Our View: Stairs could see himself getting playing time in a platoon situation with Jayson Werth in right field. Stairs is hitting just .251 against righties, compared to Werth's .258, but Stairs does have 10 home runs and an OBP of .350 against them.
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| Matt Stairs was designated for assignment on Thursday, according to MLB.com. Travis Snider will take Stairs place on the roster. |
Our View: The Jays are trying to work out a deal to send the vet to a contending team to give him a shot to make the post-season. Still a useful depth play, Stairs is hitting .250 with 11 home runs in 320 AB though his value could diminish in a reduced role with a new club.
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| After a miserable July in which he hit .183, Matt Stairs is 5-for-12 in August after a 2-for-4 performance against Oakland. |
Our View: Stairs has hit .393 since July 25, and has also hit two home runs during that time. He has some value to fantasy owners, but mostly in AL-only leagues.
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| Matt Stairs had a two-run home run shot on Monday against the Rays. He is 6-for-11 in his last three games with two homers and a triple. |
Our View: With Vernon Wells expected to miss another month, Stairs offers some value to owners desperate for power.
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| Matt Stairs nailed his tenth home run of the season, a solo shot off of Seattle's Miguel Batista in Toronto's 5-4 victory over Seattle. |
Our View: Stairs went 3-for-4 in the game, and raised his average to .244. He should only be considered for fantasy teams in deep AL-only leagues.
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| With Alex Rios on vacation and Vernon Wells on the DL, Matt Stairs will be called upon to hit in the middle of the Blue Jays lineup. He crushed a three-run homer on Friday against the Yankees. |
Our View: Keep an eye on stairs. For owners in need of power, he should provide plenty of it until Wells comes back a month or so from now.
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| Matt Stairs hit his eighth home run of the season helping A.J. Burnett win for the first time in four starts as the Toronto Blue Jays beat the Cubs 3-2 on Friday night.
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Our View: Stairs drove in two of the Jays three runs and now has 25 RBI on the season.
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| Matt Stairs hit his seventh home run of the season on Thursday which helped lead to a three hit, five RBI afternoon for the Jays DH. |
Our View: Stairs, the consummate professional hitter, continues to be a productive bat worthy of starting in AL Only leagues as he is now hitting .272 with seven home runs. Adam Lind could overtake him at some point, but for now he will continue to get regular at-bats.
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| Matt Stairs (stiff neck) missed his third straight game Saturday but Brad Wilkerson supplied the power in the 6-0 win over the Royals. |
Our View: Stairs is the power in a lineup full of singles hitters, and while his absence hasn't hurt the run production for the Jays with KC in town, his return will be a welcome addition.
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| Matt Stairs missed his second straight game Friday with a stiff neck, according to the AP. Kevin Mench was used in the DH spot. |
Our View: Consider Stairs day-to-day. He should be back sometime this weekend.
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| Toronto DH Matt Stairs is out of the starting lineup for the Blue Jays this evening as they face the Angels, according to MLB.com. |
Our View: Manager John Gibbons told reporters that Stairs arrived on Thursday night with a stiff neck and was held out of action as a result, giving Joe Inglett the start at DH in his stead. The team does not believe the injury to be serious and asserts he is likely to return to action soon.
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| Matt Stairs hit a grand slam to help the Toronto Blue Jays beat the Minnesota Twins 6-5 on Wednesday night. It was Stairs' sixth home run of the year. |
Our View: While Vernon Wells serves 6-8 weeks on the disabled list, Matt Stairs is the power threat for Toronto.
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| It appears the the Blue Jays will settle on their current lineup and wait for their injured to return. While Vernon Wells serves 6-8 weeks in DL confinement, Matt Stairs is the power threat for Toronto. Blue Jays general manager J.P. Ricciardi says he has faith in the manager and his staff and there's really nothing that he can see that would improve this team. "We're done. This is our team," said Ricciardi, notes the Toronto Star. |
Our View: It had been 47 innings between Vernon Wells' ninth-inning home run last Thursday and Stairs' sixth-inning shot last night, a five-game power outage.
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| Toronto DH Matt Stairs continues to hit well, putting his team in position for the 5-3 win this evening over Minnesota. Stairs went 1-for-1 with two walks at the plate, hitting his fifth home run of the year to add one RBI and two runs scored. |
Our View: Stairs has struggled a bit since leaving a strong month of April, going just 9-for-34 coming into tonight's game. This may help him get back on track.
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| Matt Stairs was the entire Blue Jays offense on Monday night as the big left-hander homered to help the Toronto beat the slumping Chicago White Sox 1-0 Monday night for a four-game sweep. |
Our View: The home run was Stairs' fourth of the season in 88 at-bats.
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| Matt Stairs went 2-for-3 with two RBI in Sunday's 4-3 win over the White Sox. |
Our View: Stairs raised his average to .310, but those were his first runs batted in (today) since April 23, when he racked up three against Tampa Bay. He doesn't offer enough to consider as a fantasy DH.
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| It would appear fans in Toronto are growing increasingly frustrated with the Bill Beane-style management decisions of J.P. Ricciardi, according to SLAM Sports. The Toronto news agency is citing various moves and transactions that, upon review, seem to contradict earlier decisions the GM has made in an attempt to get the Blue Jays on track. SLAM notes several instances, including the recent decision to play veteran Frank Thomas $7 million upon his release after letting Reed Johnson, a $3 million-per-year backup outfielder, go due to financial concerns about the price tag attached to the commodity. |
Our View: The entire Frank Thomas debacle has the Toronto fan base in an uproar, noting the deal was a point of complaint when signed, noting concerns that have come to fruition with his release. As the team continues to struggle in what may be one of the strongest divisions in professional sports, fans are likely to note management decisions and push for change.
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| Matt Stairs lost his 11-game hitting streak on Thursday as he went 0-for-3 for the Blue Jays. |
Our View: Stairs figures to see his fair share of work at DH with Frank Thomas out of town, and it seems like he may be able to hit forever despite his advancing age making him a very useful part AL Only leagues.
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| With Frank Thomas cast to the wallows of free agency, Toronto's Matt Stairs is now enjoying the opportunity to play. Stairs went 2-for-4 at the plate in the Blue Jays 2-5 loss to the Tampa Bay Rays, hitting two home runs to collect three RBIs and raise his batting average to .333. |
Our View: Stairs now has at least one hit in 11 consecutive starts.
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| Matt Stairs is currently riding a 10-game hitting streak, according to MLB.com. He is 16-for-50 (.320) overall, with six strikeouts and three walks. |
Our View: Stairs is a quality hitter, and should see more time at the DH spot following the release of Frank Thomas. He would provide adequate depth in deeper leagues.
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| If Frank Thomas was frustrated before, Matt Stairs did little to calm him down today. Thomas has been pulled in favor of Stairs for the starting DH job and the veteran journeyman responded, hitting 2-of-3 at the plate with a run scored and a walk. |
Our View: Stairs is now hitting .333 on the season.
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| Matt Stairs is in the lineup Thursday after sitting out the first two games of the year with a sore hip. The veteran is playing left field and batting second in the lineup. |
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| Matt Stairs could be ready to return to action on Wednesday, according to the Toronto Star. His sore hip seems better and Manager Gibbons stated that he was available to play off the bench on Tuesday, and that there is a very good chance he could play in Wednesday's game. He will platoon with Shannon Stewart this season. |
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| Matt Stairs isn't in Tuesday's lineup despite the fact that the Yankees are starting the right-handed Chien-Ming Wang. Stairs will platoon in left field with Shannon Stewart this year, but he's currently dealing with a sore hip. He's not expected to go on the DL, but it's not clear when he'll be able to start. |
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| Matt Stairs will sit out the season opener due to his hip ailment but he isn't likely to go on the DL, according to SlamSports. Stairs has said, "Each day it's getting better and better so I just want to get that little clicking out of there that's catching when I run sometimes. It doesn't bother me on any swings but it pinches every once in a while when I run." He is expected to platoon with Shannon Stewart in LF this season.
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| Matt Stairs will be a game-time decision in Monday's season opener due to his hip ailment, according to MLB.com. Stairs will platoon with Shannon Stewart in LF this season. |
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| Matt Stairs has been getting his at-bats in minor league games recently because of a sore hip, but he'll play several innings with the Jays Saturday and is not a candidate for the DL, according to the DL, according to the AP. Stairs will platoon in left with Shannon Stewart this year and is a decent AL-only play. |
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| As one of the more intriguing players to watch this spring, Matt Stairs is showing his bat could continue as a positive note for the Blue Jays and may be worthy of starts in left field. Stairs went 1-for-2 today with a run scored in Toronto's 4-3 win over Detroit. Meanwhile, other options in left failed to make noise. Reed Johnson went 0-for-1 and Adam Lind did not play. |
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| Matt Stairs has missed the last three days for the Jays because of a sprained ankle, this according to MLB.com. "He sprained his ankle the other day," manager John Gibbons said. "We're shooting for Friday. He stepped off the side of something in the batting cage." Stairs figures to be a productive bat in a supporting role with the Jays this season, a role that he was tremendous in last year when he hit .289 with 21 HR in just 357 AB. |
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| The Blue Jays inked Matt Stairs to a two-year contract Friday worth $3.25 million, according to the AP. Stairs, who hit .289 with 21 homers in 125 games this year, will play multiple roles for Toronto in 2008, seeing time at first base, DH, and both corner outfield positions. |
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| Matt Stairs batted leadoff for the first time in his career Saturday. He went 0-for-4 in the game. |
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| Matt Stairs is expected to return to the starting lineup Thursday, the AP reports. He's been a pinch-hitter so far in the New York series, going 0-for-1 with a couple of walks. Clearly his playing time is less defined going forward now that Reed Johnson and Lyle Overbay are off the disabled list. |
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| The Blue Jays signed Matt Stairs to a minor league contract. He could see time as a DH when Frank Thomas gets a day off and also be a backup first baseman and corner outfielder. |
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| Matt Stairs will start for the Tigers on Tuesday against White Sox pitcher Freddy Garcia, according to the Detroit News. Stairs has hit .440 over his career against Garcia. |
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| The Tigers claimed Matt Stairs off waivers from the Rangers on Friday, according to the AP. Stairs played in 103 games with the Royals and Rangers this season, batting .248 with 18 doubles, 11 homers and 43 RBI. He will provide a left-handed bat off the bench. |
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| The Royals sent Matt Stairs to the Rangers for minor-league pitcher Joselo Diaz, according to ESPN.com. Stairs will give the Rangers a left-handed bat off the bench. |
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