Carmona then Lee - Cleveland only manages DH split

Fausto Carmona improved on his average of seven walks per nine innings giving up just 4 free passes in game one of a double header with Toronto. Carmona went the complete game, striking out three and limiting the Blue Jays to five hits in a 3-0 shutout.

Cliff Lee turned the trick in game two, limiting the Jays to seven hits in nine innings while striking out five. He didn't allow a run, but neither did Shaun Marcum over eight innings of work. Toronto eventually got the win in the 10th, scoring three off of Rafael Betancourt.

The three starters combined for 26 innings and no runs. Both Lee and Marcum would appear to be pitching way over their heads these days, but Carmona is defying statistical probability. He now has allowed 35 walks in 48.2 innings while his ERA falls from 2.95 to 2.40.

Hanley still handles short

Hanley Ramirez might be error prone (he made 50 errors over his first two full MLB seasons for a .963 fielding clip), but he's not moving away from the toughest position to play in the infield. With seven errors already in 2008, Ramirez is on pace to tally 31 by season's end, a figure that would likely lead the National League. His fielding percentage is down to .960, but he's not going to move positions according to the Florida Marlins MLB.com beat writer.

Players often make moves later in their careers. For instance, Nomar Garciaparra slid from shortstop to 3rd base while Jim Thome moved from 1st base to DH, but those moves didn't happen until injuries kept them off the field for precautionary reasons. Ramirez is far too young for the Marlins to give up on him as a shortstop. He turns 25 just two days before Christmas and has the athletic ability to eventually iron things out. Even if he doesn't, Florida is hard-pressed to find another player for the position who can be even half as productive as Ramirez is offensively. Including this season's statistics, he's hitting .314 for his career with 115 SB and 277 R. Ramirez is on pace to blast over 30 HR for the first time in his relatively short time in the majors. Keeping Ramirez at short gives the Marlins an advantage the rest of major league baseball doesn't have, a slugging shortstop with burner speed. It's a rare combination of that is worth a few extra errors in the field.

Fantasy Impact: Virtually none. The Marlins are not moving Ramirez and apparently they're not even talking about it despite all the errors. Ramirez is the top shortstop in baseball production wise, and might be the best all-around offensive player in fantasy play right now.

Jim Edmonds is old; Cubs interested

So, the Cubs are sniffing at Jim Edmonds these days. The guy who always came up roses in center field now has a fragrance that can be described as "oderiferous" in recent seasons. Edmonds is very apparently in the twilight of his career, but credit Chicago for exploring every option to shore up their pathetic platoon in center of Reed Johnson and Felix Pie.

That combo's combined stat line vs. Edmonds this year:

Johnson/Pie: .243 avg./2 HR/20 RBI in 173 AB
Edmonds: .178 avg./1 HR/6 RBI in 90 AB

Certainly the Cubs see something in the 37-year-old who smoked them for a quarter of his 12 home runs with the Cardinals in 2007. For eight long years he tracked down their gap-shots and took home runs away at Busch. Edmonds, however, is just a shell of his former self. His numbers have been in steady decline for three-plus seasons now. His HR totals for the four seasons prior to 2008: 42/29/19/12. The Padres, who need outfield help, released him due to his poor performance both at the plate and in the field. He once dominated defensively, and to add insult to injury, the Padres called-up former Cubs scrub Jody Gerut to take his place.

If the Cubs sign Edmonds it's only because they have little or no faith in Johnson and Pie. Remember, Johnson's always had a light bat, and he was released by the Toronto Blue Jays in spring training. Johnson couldn't make a roster with the likes of Shannon Stewart and another former Cub, Matt Stairs holding down left field.

Fantasy impact: If Edmonds is signed he likely platoons with either Johnson or Pie, not both. The Cubs just don't have room on the roster for that many outfielders. Alfonso Soriano and Kosuke Fukudome aren't going anywhere, and Daryle Ward is a good left-handed bat off the bench who can also spell Derrek Lee at first. If Edmonds comes to Chicago, expect Pie, who hasn't hit a bit, to be moved back to Triple-A. Edmonds, who bats left-handed and Johnson (right-handed) would likely form a platoon in center, splitting up at bats and diminishing fantasy value. There wasn't much value there in the first place. Dear Cubs, sniff elsewhere. P.S. Fantasy owners should, too.

Gagne: "I come out there and kill that rally"

Everything sounds rough and messy in French. "Rally-killer" sounds ugly in any language. That's what French-Canadian closer Eric Gagne called himself recently, as he's been killing Brewers' rallies all season and aiding inside-out hat time for opponents. On Sunday Gagne got his much needed "mental break" (see Jason Isringhausen) from the Milwaukee closer role. How Milwaukee fills that role in the interim now becomes one of the great mysteries in baseball (along with Nate McLouth's breakout from oblivion and Ryan Howard's inability to hit anything).

The Brewers now turn to a stable of mediocrity. If you want horses out of the 'pen, they've got donkeys (asses). If you want a stopper, these guys are starters. Actually, they're not starters, they're far worse than that, and that's why they're career middle relievers. Oh, but not in Milwaukee. Here they're closers, maybe. Brian Shouse, David Riske, Guillermo Mota and Salomon Torres will star in "Closer by Committee," a movie you shouldn't see and a fantasy option you should avoid. Shouse is 39 and picked up just his fifth Major League save on Sunday. Riske, like his name, is a risky option at best having struggled when called upon to close games in the past. He's with his fifth team in five years. Mota is nearly 35 and has never held a closer role. Torres lost his only shot at it in Pittsburgh, of all places, and then nearly retired in the offseason.

Fantasy Impact: Didn't we just say you should avoid these people? Yeah, these stiffs might get you a save or two, but Gagne's the only one in the bunch that's got the makeup for the role and he's downright scary (must be out of concealer) in recent years. Milwaukee cannot conceal the fact that the back end of their bullpen has been exposed for the fraud that it is. If you must absolutely grab someone off the waiver wire, it's Riske. He signed an incentive-laden deal with Milwaukee just days before Gagne inked his. Riske got the first look in early April when Gagne's struggles got started. Honestly, though, don't do this. Once it all plays out you'll be saying 'merci!' to Spitting Seeds for saying 'non' to this putrid 'pen.

Chris Perez - this close to closer

Chris Perez is big, nasty and in Triple-A. While the Cardinals split closer time between Ryan Franklin and Russ Springer in order to give Jason Isringhausen a "mental break," Perez continues to dominate that very role with the Memphis Redbirds. Perez would appear to be the prototype closer the Cardinals haven't had since 2002-'05 Isringhausen and before that Tom Henke in 1995 (no we didn't forget Dave Veres and Dennis Eckersley, they just weren't as good as Izzy or Henke... alright, actually, we did forget about Veres and Eckersley because we weren't Cardinal fans and they didn't provide memorable seasons like Izzy or Henke).

If Franklin and Springer fail to close games this week (Franklin looked solid the first time around), keep a close eye on what the Cardinals decide to do. St. Louis manager Tony La Russa might be forced to say Isringhausen's break is over and give the job back to the guy everyone figures will be re-inheriting the job. If Izzy falters again, however, Perez would become a very intriguing candidate who is already getting tabbed as "the man" in certain circles. Provided he continues to dominate in the minors, Perez's installation as the anchor of the Cardinals' bullpen may be just two to three weeks away.