Tuesday, April 6, 2010

Heyward hitting pretty

A lot has been made of Braves rookie right fielder Jason Heyward this spring. That hype will continue after Heyward homered in his first major league at bat on opening day and finished with a 2-5, 2 R, 4 RBI line in his first game. What was most impressive about Heyward, however, was his poise at bat. Only twice in five at bats did he swing at the first pitch he saw, and he typically worked counts to his favor before picking out a pitch to hit.

Before homering off of Carlos Zambrano in the first inning, Heyward remained patient, taking two balls before ripping a sinking fastball into the right field bullpen. In the third, Heyward worked a 1-1 count before slashing a line drive out to first off lefty Sean Marshall's curveball. After getting called out on strikes against lefty James Russell in the fifth, Heyward became more aggressive in his final two at bats. He swung at the first pitch in each of his final at bats - eventually putting the ball in play both times, the second with a base hit in the ninth inning.

Fantasy Impact: Heyward is handling the attention well to this point. He's proving he can be an elite performer as well. With outstanding balance and a solid approach at the plate, Heyward is living up to the hype and continues to play exceptionally well as a 20-year-old. Heyward walked 51 times in 362 at bats at Triple-A last season, and his walk total equaled his strikeout mark. We'll have to wait and see if he can remain selective over 162 games at the MLB level, but there's no reason to doubt his talent at this point. Heyward appears to be the Ryan Braun or Evan Longoria breakout-type rookie of 2010.

Street gets good news on bad shoulder

Rockies closer Huston Street got a second opinion on his ailing throwing shoulder from Dr. James Andrews, and the news is good. He's expected to return on schedule in May.
According to Rockies general manager Dan O'Dowd, Street received positive news from Andrews.

"Everything looked great. I was told they didn't see any issues at all, so we are going to keep doing the same thing with him," O'Dowd said after the Rockies' 5-3 opening-day win over Milwaukee. "He wanted a second opinion, and everything came back really good."

Street, 26, received a three-year, $22.5 million contract this winter, the largest deal the Rockies have awarded a reliever. He admitted that a change in his winter routine could have caused the shoulder stiffness that first developed in February. Looking to increase his velocity, Street threw off a mound multiple times before spring training, something he had never done before.
Fantasy Impact: This is good news for the Rockies and fantasy owners alike, but it still means Street will miss more than one-sixth of the 2010 season. He slips to a low-end No. 2 closer until he can prove he's back and consistent as Rockies closer. For now, Franklin Morales owns the de facto closer job in Colorado. He's no more than a high-end No. 3 closer due to his erratic performance the first time out.