Thursday, June 26, 2008

Lee of faith

Indians' starter Cliff Lee won his 11th game tonight against San Francisco, and looked like he went back to his April/early May bag of tricks to get it done. Lee worked eight innings, striking out 11, while allowing just one run on four hits as Cleveland supported him with four runs. It was his best outing since a complete game shutout against Toronto back on May 12th, which lowered his ERA to 0.67. Now he's at 2.34 after a recent rough patch.

Fantasy Impact: Aberration or a return to dominance? That question seems to follow Lee around. He's had his moments, and then he's had his moments. It looks like this year will be filled with more good moments than bad, as long as he can mix in days like this as the grind gets tougher in the second half.

Edinson's bell rung

Reds' starter Edinson Volquez suffered his worst outing of the year at Toronto Thursday, and his first non-quality start since his first three starts this season. Volquez couldn't get through the fifth, giving up five earned runs on seven hits. He walked three and served up Scott Rolen's sixth home run.

Fantasy Impact: There's no reason to worry about Volquez at this time. His ERA climbed all the way to a measly 2.08. He's the best pitcher in the National League over the first half of the season. If he puts together an above-average second half he'll be looking at 20 wins for his troubles.

Kershaw cursed?

Only 69 pitches by Dodgers' rookie starter Clayton Kershaw today. He threw 40 strikes, going four innings with two earned runs in his second loss of the season. Kershaw hasn't won yet as a professional pitcher, including losses or no-decisions in every start he's made in the minors.

Fantasy Impact: For those that thought Kershaw might come up and dominate at the Major League level, this is discouraging, but Kershaw hasn't pitched that poorly. While he's still looking for that first win, his ERA is a respectable 4.36. He's struggled with control, but tends to limit the big inning. He's a respectable low-end option until he harnesses his impressive stuff.

Roberts wins final battle and war

Brian Roberts and the Orioles come away big winners on Chicago's north side. Roberts outperformed Mark DeRosa in two of the three games, including the series finale, as the Orioles win 11-4 to become the first team other than the Milwaukee Brewers to take a series at Wrigley this year. Here's the second baseman linescore for the game:

BR: 5 AB, 2 R, 2 H, 0 RBI, 0 BB, 2 K
MD: 3 AB, 1 R, 1 H, 0 RBI, 0 BB, 0 K

Here's their combined linescore for the series:

BR: 14 AB, 4 R, 6 H, 1 RBI, 0 BB, 3 K
MD: 9 AB, 1 R, 3 H, 1 RBI, 3 BB, 2 K

Roberts had a better average and scored three more runs in the series. No surprise that the catalyst's team had the better fate in the series. Cubs fans will certainly be wondering "what if" concering the trade that never materialzed for Roberts. DeRosa is still a solid second baseman.

Roberts vs. DeRosa tied, 1-1

Brian Roberts won the first battle of head-to-head productivity against Mark DeRosa, but the Cubs' second baseman bounces back strongly in game two of the three-game Cubs-Orioles series.

BR: 4 AB, 0 R, 1 H, 0 RBI, 0 K
MD: 3 AB, 0 R, 1 H, 1 RBI, 1 K

DeRosa's run-scoring single came in the first inning, leading to Baltimore starer Matt Albers getting lifted after recording just one out. Cubs win, 7-4, and so does DeRosa.

Pujols returns

Albert Pujols is adamant about returning from a strained calf injury tonight in Detroit. He won't DH if he can help it, because it sounds like he really wants to play first.
"If I'm ready to play first base, I think I'm going to play first base," Pujols said, adjusting his stance of the day before. "If I feel the same way I feel today, I think I'm going to be playing (Thursday).

"Something crazy has to happen ... for me not to play."
Pujols continues to impress with both his ability and his willingness to play. He's old-school tough, and here's guessing he goes yard tonight.

Fantasy Impact: Owners must be thrilled, and holding their breath that he hasn't returned too soon. I for one thought Pujols would be shut down for the rest of the season by the All-Star break with his elbow issue. It's been no issue, however, as Pujols is one of the top sluggers in the league. With the Cardinals in the playoff race for what appears to be the long-haul, Pujols isn't getting his elbow worked on any time soon.

Stults studly again

Eric Stults mesmerized the White Sox Wednesday in Los Angeles. The lefty call-up for the Dodgers (Kuroda and Penny are both on the DL) threw a complete game shutout, allowing just four hits while striking out three in his second straight win since arriving from Triple-A Las Vegas. This reporter was dismayed about the outcome, not only because Stults' win came against lights-out Gavin Floyd, but also because it hurt his fantasy team. I respect his honesty, but is that the first time a MSM blogged openly about his fantasy baseball team, because I've never see this before.

Fantasy Impact: Stults isn't going to hurt or help my fantasy team. I'm not picking him up, and I'm not going to see the guy that did while Stults is on his roster. That's not to say I'm not playing the guy again this year. That's to say that Stults is not going to be on his roster very long. The career minor-leaguer is 29-years-old, and he's seen very little action at the MLB level. In 71.1 innings, he has a 4.68 ERA, and that's after his two gems this year. A good marker for success at the MLB level is strikeouts at the minor league level. Stults fanned 81 batters in 89.1 innings last season, but he's never approached that ratio of nearly a strikeout per inning at the Triple-A level before. Once Penny or Kuroda is ready, Stults is likely to be gone, unless he pitches his way out of the rotation first. Pass.