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| Aubrey Huff went 1-for-3 for the Orioles on Friday night before he was forced to leave the game due to a head injury. |
Our View: Huff has been dominating of late hitting .407 over his last 15 games, so his loss would be a huge one. Stay tuned for further details as they become available.
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| Kelly Shoppach may not have set any records on this night, but he still went 2-for-4 giving him seven hits over his last two games. |
Our View: Six of those seven hits have gone for extra bases as Shoppach has produced the pop that the team was longing to see from Victor Martinez all season long (he has 11 home runs and 18 doubles in 203 AB).
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| Joe Mauer went deep for the seventh time this season, his lone hit in four trips to the plate on Friday night. |
Our View: Mauer is hitting a tremendous .319, and his 52 RBI are top shelf for a catcher, but the lack of power continues to hold him back from the elite. He owns a tremendously smooth stroke, but it's still surprising that a man as big as he is (6'5", 230 lbs) just can't seem to generate the leverage needed to drive the ball deep.
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| Jeremy Sowers lasted 6.2 innings on Friday night as he surrendered only six base runners to the Twins. Too bad for Sowers four of those runners scored in his sixth loss of the year. |
Our View: Sowers just can't seem to get over the hump this season as he has alternated good and bad performances over his last six outings. He is a hurler to watch, but not one that should be in your lineup right now.
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| Nick Blackburn improved to 8-6 on the season thanks to holding the Indians to just one run over seven innings on Friday night. Blackburn had only two strikeouts on the night, but he also walked only one batter. |
Our View: Blackburn continues to pitch like Greg Maddux by limiting the walks and thereby the damage to his ERA. If more pitchers took that approach, this would be an easy game.
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| Mark Grudzielanek had a collision with Ross Gload on Friday night that forced him to the bench, according to MLB.com. Grudzielanek left the game sporting a limp in his left leg. David DeJesus also left the game in the seventh inning though no reason was announced. |
Our View: With Jose Guillen already ailing, Esteban German would figure to see additional time in the outfield if DeJesus needs to miss a couple of days. Of course, German could also end up at second base if Grudzielanek were to miss any time, or the team could turn to Tony Pena Jr. as well.
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| Billy Butler had two hits and an RBI on Friday night after going hitless in his last seven at-bats. |
Our View: Butler continues to struggle with major league pitching this year after looking so strong as a rookie (.292-8-52 in 329 AB). Butler is a minor league batting champ and will eventually figure things out, though it may not happen until '09.
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| Luke Hochevar didn't walk a batter in six innings, but he allowed 10 hits leading to four runs in his ninth loss for the Royals. |
Our View: Hochevar's ERA was 4.66 eight starts ago, but that number has shot up to 5.42. With a terrible 1.48 K/BB ratio, Hochevar has struggled on most night the past month and will continue to do so without better location.
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| Ken Griffey Jr. had two hits and two RBI in his first game wearing a White Sox uniform while wearing number 17 for the Sox. |
Our View: Griffey hit seventh on this night, though he could still produce a fair amount of RBI from that spot if the rest of the lineup produces like it should in front of him.
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| B.J. Ryan was at his worst on Friday night as he picked up his third blown save and fourth loss of the season for the Jays. Ryan allowed three hits and two walks which led to three runs while he recorded just one out. |
Our View: Ryan's ERA goes from 2.70 to 3.41 on this night. He is in no danger of losing his closers job, though Scott Downs has been extremely solid in a setup role (1.43 ERA, 1.14 WHIP).
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| C.J. Wilson had another in a series of unsuccessful outings as he allowed two runs, though the Rangers offense bailed him out in the bottom of the ninth inning to earn Wilson his second victory of the season. |
Our View: Wilson owns a 5.28 ERA and a 1.62 WHIP, numbers that dwarf those of Eddie Guardado (3.24 ERA, 0.96 WHIP). Kind of makes you wonder why Wilson continues to close doesn't it?
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| Shaun Marcum made his third highly unsuccessful start since returning to the rotation as he allowed six runs in 4.1 innings against the Rangers. |
Our View: Over three starts, Marcum's ERA has gone from 2.65 to 3.57 as he has allowed 16 runs in 14.2 innings. Clearly he was brought back too quickly, as many surmised based on his work in the minors.
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| David Murphy won the game with a two run single in the bottom of the ninth inning as he had three hits and four RBI for the Rangers. |
Our View: Almost no one predicted this type of success out of Murphy this year, and though he is hitting only .268, he does have 14 home runs and 71 RBI as a nice complementary bat for the Rangers.
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| Miguel Cabrera continued his hitting on Friday night as he had a hit and an RBI for the Tigers. He also walked twice. |
Our View: Cabrera has 19 RBI in his last 11 games as he continues his push to finish with his fifth straight season of .290-25-100 (he is currently at .293-19-80).
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| Carl Crawford had only one hit in four at-bats on Friday though he did manage to steal his 24th base of the season. |
Our View: It's remarkable that the Rays have played so well with their best player having his worst season since becoming a regular. We keep waiting for a huge run of success, but it's starting to look like it may not be coming.
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| Joel Zumaya hurled 1.1 innings on Friday night, and though he picked up two strikeouts he also allowed a solo home run to Evan Longoria. |
Our View: With Todd Jones on the DL, Zumaya could be in line to pick up some save chances, though outings like this one certainly won't help him in that endeavor as he needed 32 pitches to record four outs.
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| Scott Kazmir couldn't find the strike zone on this night as he needed 110 pitches to make it through just 4.2 innings against the Tigers. Kazmir allowed just three hits and two runs, but he walked six batters. |
Our View: Because of all the walks, Kazmir finished one out short of a victory. Kazmir has now walked 17 batters over his last 32.2 IP (4.68 BB/9) as he has thrown five or fewer innings in five of his last seven outings. Not exactly a heart warming trend.
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| Jack Cust hit his 20th home run of the season, an opposite field blast over the Green Monster on Friday night. |
Our View: Cust also made a nice diving catch on the night, flashing the leather in a display that many thought they would never see. Cust is only hitting .226, but his OBP is .372, giving him some extra value in non-traditional fantasy leagues.
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| Jed Lowrie had two his and two RBI on Friday night for the Sox as he continues to fill in for the injured Julio Lugo at short stop. |
Our View: Mike Lowell injured his leg in the 10th inning which caused Lowrie to move to third base while Alex Cora entered to play shortstop. As a result, there is little to no chance of Lowrie being out of the lineup this weekend, so keep that in mind when setting your lineup.
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| Tim Wakefield hurled 6.1 shutout innings against the Athletics on Friday night to lower his ERA to 3.77. He was left with a no-decision. in a game the Sox ended up winning in 12 innings. |
Our View: Wakefield continues to go out there and give his club a chance to win almost every night. Over his last 11 starts, Tim has allowed more than three earned runs only twice, both times occurring in his last two starts prior to tonight.
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| Justin Duchscherer rebounded from the worst start of his career to hold the mighty Red Sox to but one run over six innings on Friday night. |
Our View: Duchscherer returned to the solid starter he has been all season long on this night, though he only struck out two batters on the night. A regression is coming, but after tonight we believe it could be gradual and not profound.
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| Torii Hunter had a game winning single on Friday night off of Mariano Rivera in the ninth inning, the only run in the Angels 1-0 victory over the Yankees. |
Our View: Hunter is batting .281-18-59 in his first season in California in what has been a rather underwhelming performance to date after averaging 30 home runs and 103 RBI the past two years.
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| Sidney Ponson was masterful on Friday night shutting out the Angels for seven innings in the Yankees 1-0 loss to the Angels. |
Our View: Mariano Rivera blew the game in the ninth inning after Ponson allowed just two hits and four walks over seven innings. We wouldn't look for a repeat performance any time soon out of Ponson, but on this night he gave the Angels all they could handle.
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| Mariano Rivera gave up a game losing hit to Torii Hunter on Friday night to pick up his fourth loss of the season for the Yankees. |
Our View: Rivera still sports a 1.49 ERA in 44 appearances after allowing a single run tonight. Look for him to bounce back in his next outing.
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| Ervin Santana shutout the Yankees for eight innings before being replaced by Francisco Rodriguez who finished off the Yankees for his 45th save of the season in the Angels 1-0 victory over the Yanks. |
Our View: Santana improved to 12-5 with his masterful performance that included eight strikeouts and just two walks in his first win in three tries since the All-Star break.
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| Mike Lowell was removed from the Red Sox game with the A's in the 10th inning after legging out a ball with an apparent leg injury. |
Our View: No report is yet available from the team, but Lowell appeared to grab at his right groin after crossing first base. He left the field under his own power. More details to follow.
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| Scott Rolen returned to the lineup on Friday after spending two days on the bench to rest his injured shoulder, and in his first at-bat he homered, according to MLB.com. |
Our View: Rolen apparently isn't in pain, but his range of motion continues to be limited which hinders his ability to generate bat speed which has led to his .163 batting average over his past 23 appearances.
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| The Yankees worst fears were realized on Friday when manager Joe Girardi announced that former ace Chien-Ming Wang would indeed miss the rest of the regular season due to his injured foot, according to the New York Daily News. "The chances of us getting him back September 1 are zero," Girardi said. "October 1? It's possible." |
Our View: Wang could still help out the Yankees if they were to make the playoffs, but they will have to get there on the arms of pitchers like Darrell Rasner and Sidney Ponson and not their staff leader.
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| Rocco Baldelli will play seven innings on Friday night before being checked by the team's medical staff to determine what the next step in his recovery process will be, according to the Tampa Tribune. Could he actually be activated this weekend? “I can’t say it’s impossible, but I have not discussed that specifically with Andrew [Friedman] for tomorrow,” said manager Joe Maddon. |
Our View: Baldelli, whenever he is activated, figures to be a part-time player, so don't go counting on him to return to his former levels of production until he proves himself healthy and capable of playing on a regular basis.
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| Kelvim Escobar had shoulder surgery and is now looking forward to the next stage of his attempt to come back from a tear in his right labrum, according to MLB.com. "I feel good. Now I know I have to focus on one thing, and that's my rehab. I'll put everything into it and dedicate myself to getting back on the mound next season." |
Our View: Estimates for his return to action range from nine to 12 months, so it will be quite a while before we will know if Escobar will be able to regain his once filthy stuff.
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| Garret Anderson finished July on a massive hot streak hitting .519 to end the month of July over his last 27 AB, according to MLB.com. "The hand speed is there -- that's never a concern," Anderson said. "It's just a matter of getting everything else in tune, getting the timing and rhythm of my swing down." |
Our View: Anderson has pushed his average back up to .285 with this hot streak including an ultra impressive .349 with runners in scoring position. Anderson has proven that he can get locked in and stay that way for a long while, so if he happens to be available on waivers, don't be afraid to jump on the bandwagon.
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| Jose Guillen was held out of the Royals lineup on Friday night with tightness in his left hip flexor, according to MLB.com. |
Our View: Guillen has been dealing with this injury for several days, and was replaced in the lineup by Esteban German with Mark Teahen moving to right field and David DeJesus in center. Guillen will look to return over the weekend.
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| Francisco Liriano, recalled to join the major league roster on Friday, is scheduled to pitch for the Twins on Sunday against the Indians, according to the Star Tribune. |
Our View: Glen Perkins will have his start pushed back to Monday, though eventually the team will try to split up the two lefties. Look for Liriano to try an make a statement after being left in the minors for so long by Twins management.
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| Xavier Nady will be held out of the Yankees lineup on Friday because of an inflammed right quadriceps, according to the Associated Press. “You want to be smart and not lose him for an extended period,” manager Joe Girardi said. |
Our View: Nady will be available to pinch hit, and this certainly doesn't appear to be a DL type injury at the moment.
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| Todd Jones received good news on Friday when and MRI revealed no significant damage to his shoulder and merely tendinitis, according to ESPN. "I was kind of worried," Jones said. "I thought it was going to be a tear or something like that." |
Our View: There is no timetable for his return at the moment, and with Kyle Farnsworth now in the mix, the team may not be in a hurry to rush Jones back into action, though they could certainly use his arm in a struggling bullpen.
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| Right handed pitcher Chris Smith was recalled by the Red Sox on Friday, according to the Associated Press. |
Our View: Smith was 1-2 with a 2.24 ERA and 13 saves in 31 games with Pawtucket before being recalled, and he figures to add another arm to the Sox bullpen after the loss of Craig Hansen at the trade deadline.
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| Alex Cintron, out with a strained hamstring, has been activated from the DL on Friday, according to the Associated Press. Brian Burres was sent to Triple-A to make room on the roster. |
Our View: Cintron, who has been out since July 1st, went 6-for-14 in five minor league rehab games. Cintron could be in the mix at shortstop considering the woes of almost every player that the Orioles have tried there.
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| Andrew Brown has been placed on the DL on Friday with shoulder stiffness, the second time he has been on the DL this season, according to the Associated Press. |
Our View: Brown has been a solid arm for the A's this year with a 3.09 ERA and 1.26 WHP, and the hope is that he will only miss a couple of weeks with this malady.
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| Gregorio Petit has been recalled by the Athletics on Friday, the third time he has been recalled this season, according to the Associated Press. |
Our View: In 58 games with the River Cats this season, Petit was hitting .285 with 25 RBI in 58 games. He is merely a depth player at the moment with the A's.
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| Daric Barton was activated from the DL on Friday after being sidelined due to a stiff neck that he picked up when he dove into a pool that was too shallow, according to the Associated Press. |
Our View: Barton has been a big disappointment this season limping along with a .224 average and scarcely any power (a mere 15 extra base hits in 277 AB). He doesn't warrant any attention in mixed leagues though he will likely return to being the teams starter at first base.
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| Milton Bradley (strained quadriceps) will not be available to pinch hit on Friday despite earlier reports that he would be, according to the Dallas Morning News. |
Our View: The report stated that the team still hopes that Bradley will be able to pinch hit on Saturday.
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| Travis Metcalf has been recalled and will likely play against left-handed pitching, according to the Dallas News. |
Our View: Metcalf won't replace Ramon Vazquez, but he could find enough at-bats in order to produce some in deep AL-only leagues.
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| Eric Hurley has been placed on the 15 day DL due to biceps tendinitis retroactive to Monday, according to the Star Telegram. Tommy Hunter will replace Hurley on the active roster. |
Our View: Hurley hadn't shown much in his five starts anyway, and his loss isn't likely to break too many fantasy hearts.
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| Brian Bruney was activated from the 60-day DL on while the team demoted Chris Britton to clear roster space, according to the Associated Press. |
Our View: Bruney was on the DL with a torn ligament in his foot and hasn't pitched in the majors since April 22nd. Bruney could end up filling a substantial role with the recent loss of Kyle Farnsworth, but he hasn't exactly impressed of late in the minors.
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| Francisco Liriano has been recalled to the Twins to take the roster spot of Livan Hernandez who was designated for assignment, according to the Associated Press. |
Our View: Liriano has been dominating Triple-A batters for about two months now, and the team will almost certainly allow him to continue to work his magic from the starting rotation after Ron Gardenhire's comments earlier today that Liriano is a starter not a reliever.
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| The Minnesota Twins will call up first baseman and outfielder Randy Ruiz from Triple-A Rochester to take the roster spot of Craig Monroe, according to the Minneapolis Star-Tribune. |
Our View: Ruiz is a journeyman type at 30 years of age, but he's a journeyman who can hit. At Triple-A this year, Ruiz is hitting .320 with 17 home runs, 33 doubles and 68 RBI. He has a career .301 average with more than 160 home runs in his minor league career. It's possible he could have a fantasy impact if he keeps hitting, but keep an eye on him to see how many at-bats he will be getting for the Twins.
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| Craig Monroe is going to be designated for assignment today by the Minnesota Twins, according to the Minneapolis Star-Tribune. |
Our View: Monroe has a batting average of .202 and an on-base percentage of .274. Really, no further explanation should be necessary.
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| David DeJesus got the day off to help heal a sore back on Wednesday, and Royals manager Trey Hillman might want to consider giving him tonight off as well considering his numbers against Javier Vazquez, tonight's starter for the White Sox. DeJesus has just three hits in 21 at-bats, good for a .143 average against him. |
Our View: DeJesus has been a find in fantasy baseball, but tonight's matchup is not a kind one for the Royals outfielder, so if you have an alternative on your bench, consider using him.
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| New Red Sox outfielder Jason Bay is in the lineup and will hit fifth for the Red Sox, behind cleanup hitter Mike Lowell, according to the Boston Globe. |
Our View: Bay and the Sox take on the A's and hurler Justin Duchscherer. Bay has never faced the Oakland right-hander before.
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| Mariners pitcher Erik Bedard is not scheduled to play catch until this weekend, and may not be ready to pitch in a major league game until September, according to the Seattle Times. |
Our View: Bedard hasn't been bad for Seattle, but he has underperformed, like most of the rest of the team. It's not 100% that he'll come back at all, so if he is on your fantasy team, monitor his progress this weekend then decide if you want to go forward with him on your roster.
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| While everyone, including the newly acquired Ken Griffey Jr., seems to be happy with his move from Cincinnati to Chicago, it doesn't seem to make much sense when one studies the Pale Sox roster. Junior will presumably play center field and you have to assume his at-bats will mirror those in Cincinnati. With this move, somebody on the Sox roster will lost at-bats, and that player won't be Nick Swisher, who has played the most center field this year. |
Our View: Junior’s value doesn't improve with his move to the junior circuit, not outside of AL Only leagues where he will now reside. The ball parks (U.S. Cellular and Great American) are similar and it's not in his favor that he will be learning new pitchers in a league he's been absent from for several years.
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| Angels outfielder Vladimir Guerrero has a very good matchup when he faces off against Yankees starter Sidney Ponson tonight. Guerrero has a .308 batting average against Ponson, but of his eight hits off the portly righty, four have been home runs, and one has been a triple. Guerrero has a .846 slugging percentage against Ponson in his career. |
Our View: Be sure to get Guerrero in your fantasy lineup. He very well could add to his 18 homers and 58 RBI tonight.
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| Dontrelle Willis went five innings, allowing one earned run in his start for Single-A Lakeland on Thursday. He struck out three batters, but also walked three. |
Our View: Willis is still having minor control issues, and in his past three starts, he has thrown 12.1 innings, walking six batters and allowing five earned runs. His return to the Tigers will likely be on hold until he shows better consistency.
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| Twins hurler Francisco Liriano is likely on his way to the big leagues, possibly at the expense of Livan Hernandez's spot on the roster, according to the Minneapolis Star-Tribune. |
Our View: Liriano had 10 wins and a 3.28 ERA in Triple-A, so despite his earlier poor form in the major leagues, if he is on the waiver wire in your fantasy league, grab him now.
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| Rangers outfielder and DH Milton Bradley will be available for pinch hitting duties today, as he recovers from a strained quad, according to the Dallas Morning News. |
Our View: Bradley is slowly coming around, and he should be good to go soon, which is good news for the Rangers and fantasy players alike.
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| Kansas City Royals owner David Glass has come out in support of embattled outfielder Jose Guillen, according to the Kansas City Star. Glass doesn't mind Guillen's mouth, "as long as I know that he really cares, wants to win and wants us to get better. Those things are really important to me. I’m satisfied that he feels all of those things," he said. |
Our View: Glass isn't the most popular figure in Kansas City either, and this likely won't help his cause any. Guillen, despite his oratory musings, is a decent fantsy option with 14 home runs and 71 RBI. His value would be greater if his OBP wasn't an awful .286. He has taken just 11 walks in 413 plate appearances.
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| Tigers outfielder Curtis Granderson had a terrific series against the Cleveland Indians, going 10-for-18 in the four game set, according to the Detroit News. |
Our View: Granderson is again providing fantasy owners with a good season. He is hitting .309 with 11 home runs and 37 RBI, along with seven stolen bases.
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| The New York Yankees have not recalled reliever Brian Bruney from the minor leagues because he has not demonstrated good control, according to the New York Post. |
Our View: Bruney was throwing well before injuring a ligament in his right foot. In 11.1 innings, he had 12 strikeouts and a 1.59 ERA.
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| Yankees reliever Edwar Ramirez plans to appeal his three-game suspension, which was doled out after he threw at Baltimore's Kevin Millar, according to the New York Post. "One pitch, one mistake, that's too much. The ball didn't hit him," he said. |
Our View: It's possible Ramirez will get his suspension reduced, but it's unlikely it will be tossed out altogether. Ramirez has been very good for the Yankees in relief this season, posting a 2.35 ERA and 0.94 WHIP.
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| Angels catcher Mike Napoli is set to begin a rehab assignment tonight in Class-A that will last roughly five or six games, according to the L.A. Times. |
Our View: Napoli has a nice home run total with 12, but that .204 batting average and .308 on-base percentage are tough for fantasy players to deal with.
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