Eric Gagne Out as Closer in Milwaukee: FANTASY IMPACT

They finally took Old Yeller out back and shot him. Eric Gagne has been removed from his role as closer for the Milwaukee Brewers. Manager Ned Yost said the team will use a closer by committee until they feel Gagne can be used again in pressure situations. Yost added that this will be more of a "mental break" for Gagne so he can clear his head and get himself to where he was in the past.

Gagne is tied for the major league lead, with the also recently removed from the closer's role, Jason Isringhausen, with 5 blown saves on the season.

FANTASY IMPACT

There are too many names that could wind up seeing saves, but some to keep an eye on will be Dave Riske, Guillermo Mota, and Salomon Torres. Of course, on Sunday lefty specialist Brian Shouse wound up getting credited with the save when he came in to get the final batter of the game out so it is clear that Yost will mix and match as he sees fit to get outs.

If you are hard up for saves grab one of the three. Going into the season I was pushing hard for owners to draft Riske as a replacement for when Gagne got hurt this season. It looks like that might have changed a bit with the success Mota and Torres have had and the inconsistency that Riske has seen this season. Mota and Torres both have closing experience and one of them could end up getting the majority of chances.

I would actually be surprised if we see Gagne back in the closer's role this season. He struggled in the second half of last season with the Red Sox and has looked just as ineffective this season.

Jason Isringhausen Out as St. Louis Closer - FANTASY IMPACT

After blowing his fifth save chance on the season Friday night, Cardinal's closer Janson Isringhausen was removed from the closers role by manager Tony La Russa. Earlier this season I heard Brewer's radio voice, Bob Ueker refer to Izzy as having "Hall of Fame numbers," making his struggles and removal from the closers role all the more surprising. It is kind of ironic that in a season where he is actually healthy that he is struggling the most, after seemingly battling injuries and maintaining his stuff and role for so long.

FANTASY IMPACT

Right now La Russa has tagged Ryan Franklin and Russ Springer as the the main names to get saves, but also said he wouldn't hesitate to use a left hander when the situation called for it. This is probably a case where La Russa tries to get Izzy right by using him in less demanding situations first so he can rebuild his confidence and get back that edge that made a dominant closer for so long. Keep Izzy in all leagues, and certainly look up Franklin and Springer if they are available and you are hard up for saves. I expect Franklin to get the majority of the opportunities at first, but he also might handicap himself by being so useful as a set up man, so don't be surprised if the veteran Springer gets some calls as well.

Injury Updates and Fantasy Impact - Week 6

Each week, FSE takes a look at the key players on the DL and offers updates, projected return times and the resulting fantasy implications.

Back This Weekend

Jimmy Rollins (sprained left ankle) - Rollins has missed the last month with a nagging ankle injury. However, he looked good in a rehab start on Wednesday and was activated tonight and is hitting leadoff for the Phillies.

Fantasy Impact: Get him back in your lineups immediately. Rollins is an all-around fantasy weapon. 

Rich Harden (strained shoulder) - After missing a month with a strained throwing shoulder, Rich Harden will make his return Sunday at Texas.

Fantasy Impact: Harden has fared well in his two starts this season, allowing only 1 ER in 11 innings of work. He'll look to pick up where he left off against the Rangers. With Harden back, Chad Gaudin will move to the Oakland bullpen.

See You Next Week

Alex Rodriguez (quad) - A-Rod took swings and fielding practice at the Yankees minor league complex Friday and came away feeling good.

Fantasy Impact: The Yankees don't want to rush A-Rod back but are sorely missing his bat in the lineup. He is eligible to return May 14 against Tampa and you would figure that both the player and team will be pushing for him to return that day. With A-Rod back, Morgan Ensberg and Wilson Betemit are mercifully taken off the fantasy radar. 

Projected Return: Wednesday May 14 at Tampa

John Lackey (triceps) - Lackey looked strong in his 4th and final rehab start Friday, throwing 88 pitches in an extended spring training game.

Fantasy Impact: The Angels ace is scheduled to make his return Wednesday against the White Sox and looks like a good start. Lackey's return means rookie Nick Adenhart's short stint in the Angels rotation is over.

Projected Return: Wednesday May 14th vs. Chicago White Sox

Josh Willingham (Back) - The Hammer was forced to the DL after his chronic back problems flared up last week. According to Willingham, he has had back problems since 2006 and they tend to flare up once or twice a year without warning.

Fantasy Impact: The Hammer was on a tear before he went on the DL hitting .340 with 6 HR and 18 RBI over the first month of the season. He has told anyone who will listen that he will come off the DL the first day he is eligible, May 13th. However, he hasn't swung a bat in two weeks and this could just be wishful thinking on his part. Either way, expect Willingham to be a bit rusty upon his return and may not be the best play in week 7. 

Projected Return: Tuesday May 13 at Cincinnati, possibly later.

Getting Closer...

Wandy Rodriguez (groin) - Rodriguez threw a bullpen session without incident on Thursday and is now scheduled for another on Saturday. If all goes well, Rodriguez will pitch a simulated game in San Francisco next week before starting a rehab assignment.

Fantasy Impact: Rodriguez was pitching really well before leaving his April 19th start with  a groin injury. Through four starts, Rodriguez is 1-0 with a 2.31 ERA and 1.11 WHIP. More impressively, Wandy has struck out 24 batters in 23 1/3 innings of work while only allowing 5 walks. He has great potential going forward and is a prime DL stash candidate.

Projected Return: Late May

Return Pushed Back...

Howie Kendrick (Hamstring) - Kendrick, who is on a Class A rehab assignment, appeared on track to return to the Angels lineup next week. However, he felt his hamstring stiffen and was forced to miss Wednesday's rehab game. He will be reevaluated before returning to his rehab assignment.

Fantasy Impact: Tough blow for fantasy owners who were looking forward to getting Kendrick's consistent back into the lineup. Kendrick was hitting an even .500 (18/36) before getting hurt and is a great breakout candidate at second base. Stash him on the DL and wait out this nagging hamstring injury.

Projected Return: Late May

Updates From The Shelf...

- After going an unimpressive 2-2 with a 6.66 ERA in 5 rehab starts, Mark Mulder was shut down with a mild rotator cuff strain. Mulder was on schedule to return in mid-may, but is now out until mid-June at the earliest.

-  Orlando Hernandez had his the protective boot removed from his injured right foot Tuesday and can now resume jogging and throwing. The plan is to get him ready for rehab assignments soon; however, no definitive time table has been set.

- Pedro Martinez threw 60 pitches at the Mets spring training complex Friday. No time table has been set for Martinez's rehab starts or return to the majors. A late may rehab assignment followed by an early June return are the optimistic estimates.

- Jorge Posada took batting practice from both sides of the plate for the first time since being sidelined with rotator cuff tendinitis April 28th. The Yankees backstop could begin throwing early next week and is expected to miss at least another month.

- Dontrelle Willis who's been out since April 11th with a hyperextended knee was removed from his rehab start earlier this week due to pain in his injured knee. He is scheduled to throw a bullpen session this weekend and be reevaluated. Don't expect to see the D-Train in the Majors until June.

See You Next Year...

- Yovani Gallardo will have surgery on a torn ligament in his left knee and miss the rest of the 2008 season. The 22 year old phenom looked great in his three starts and this is certainly a tough blow who took a chance on Gallardo in the middle rounds of the draft. Dave Bush will fill his spot for now; however, with a majority of their Brewers rotation struggling some changes might be on the way.

- Twins setup man and holds specialist Pat Neshek is done for the season after an MRI showed a partial ligament tear in the reliever's throwing elbow. Matt Guerrier stands in line to see more work in the 8th inning with Neshek out.

Fantasy Baseball Happy Recap - 5/8/09

Bat Of The Night: Ryan Ludwick – 2/4, 2 R, 2 HR, 2 RBI

How much longer can fantasy owners ignore Ludwick? Only owned in 28% of CBS leagues, Ludwick now has 7 homers on the season with three coming in the last two nights. Additionally, he is hitting .363 with 21 RBI and 20 runs scored. The biggest issue surrounding Ludwick has been the threat of inconsistent playing time given the Cardinals 4-man outfield rotation. But as long as he keeps hitting, he will see playing time over Skip Schumaker and Chris Duncan. Ludwick slugged 14 homers in only 303 at bats last season showing his power potential is real. Add and use him while he’s hot.

Arm Of The Night: Daniel Cabrera – 9 IP, 3 H, 1 ER, 1 BB, 7 K (W)

Cabrera has popped up all over FSE since the start of the season from mentions among those Making A Case in our daily Happy Recap to Top Pickups On The Mound. Well, after putting up his sixth straight quality start, a complete game three hit gem against the Royals, it’s time to admit this guy has arrived. Cabrera is now 3-1 with a 3.54 ERA and 1.20 WHIP on the season and has shown greater maturity and composure on the mound. While the soon to be 27 year old is still prone to a bad outing where he walks the farm, he has shown over the first month that the good should outweigh the bad in 2008. Given his strikeout potential and ability to pitch deep into games, Cabrera deserves to be owned in more than 54% of leagues.

Bottom Line: Curtis Granderson – 0/4, 4 K

Granderson can thank Josh Beckett for his first golden sombrero of the season and a 5-1 Tigers loss.

Honorable Mentions

Top Five

Dioner Navarro’s 13th inning grand slam capped a solid night at the plate for the up and coming Rays catcher. On the mound, the aces came to play. Brandon Webb pitched a complete game for his league leading 8th win while Josh Beckett dominated the Tigers on the way to his 5th win of the season.

Bats

Dioner Navarro – 3/6, 2 R, 1 2B, 1 HR, 4 RBI
Nick Markakis - 1/3, 2 R, 1 HR, 3 RBI
Matt Treanor – 2/3, 1 R, 1 HR, 3 RBI
Johnny Damon – 2/4, 1 R, 1 2B, 1 HR, 2 RBI
Ian Kinsler – 2/4, 1 R, 1 2B, 1 HR, 2 RBI

Arms

Brandon Webb – 9 IP, 6 H, 2 ER, 0 BB, 4 K (CG, W)
Josh Beckett – 7 IP, 6 H, 1 ER, 0 BB, 8 K (W)
John Lannan – 6 IP, 7 H, 1 ER, 1 BB, 3 K (W)
Edwin Jackson – 8 IP, 6 H, 0 ER, 1 BB, 3 K (ND)
Jesse Litsch – 7 IP, 5 H, 3 ER, 0 BB, 2 K (ND)

Bottom Five

Some tough nights at the plate for AL batters and awful relief performances in today’s Bottom Five. Also, feel free to cross Kyle Lohse and Carlos Villanueva off your sleeper lists….

Bats

Shannon Stewart – 0/6, 3 K
Nick Swisher – 0/4, 3 K
Billy Butler – 0/4, 3 K
Matt Stairs – 0/6, 2 K
Brian Roberts – 0/5, 2 K

Arms

Kyle Lohse – 4 IP, 8 H, 7 ER, 5 BB, 4 K (L)
Carlos Villanueva– 5 IP, 10 H, 7 ER, 2 BB, 6 K (L)
Brett Myers– 5 IP, 9 H, 6 ER, 3 BB, 5 K (L)
Shawn Camp – 1 IP, 4 H, 5 ER, 1 BB, 1 K (L)
Joe Thatcher – 0.1 IP, 3 H, 1 ER, 1 BB, 0 K (L)

Making A Case...

Chris Snyder – 2/4, 1 R, 1 2B, 2 RBI

Lots of catchers have made a case this week with the latest being Arizona’s 27 year old backstop Chris Snyder. After an awful start, Snyder has come on his first six May games hitting .529 with 1 HR, 5 RBI and 4 runs scored. He is a decent catching option while he’s hot given that he hits in a potent D’Backs lineup and has shown 15-20 HR potential in the minors.

Jesse Litsch – 7 IP, 5 H, 3 ER, 0 BB, 2 K (ND)

The Blue Jays young fifth starter hasn’t received much pub given the hot starts of ace Roy Halladay and fellow phenoms Shaun Marcum and Dustin McGowan; however, Litsch’s consistency is making people take notice. He has now compiled three straight quality starts, going 7 or more innings in each. Litsch is 4-1 on the season and has shown great command walking only 7 batters in 40 1/3 innings. He won’t get you too many strikeouts, but should be a decent source of wins and quality starts.

Closer Corner

- Troy Percival blew his first save of the season and saw his __ inning scoreless streak come to an end after he was unable to hold a 3-0 lead in ninth inning of last night’s game against Toronto. Percival allowed 3 ER in the ninth, spoiling a great outing by Rays starter Edwin Jackson. Fourtunately, Tampa would go on to win 8-3 in 13 innings… no harm, no foul Troy…

- Braves interim closer Manny Acosta was the beneficiary of Atlanta’s ninth inning rally, earning his first of the season after recording the final out in the top of the inning.

- Mariano Rivera pitched a flawless ninth inning to earn his 12th save of the season. Rivera has yet to allow a run in 13 innings of work this season and better yet has allowed only 5 baserunners to reach base; none via walk…

- Other Closers Locking Down Saves Last Night: Matt Capps (8)

Fantasy Observations & Thoughts

- Carlos Pena showed signs of life hitting a solo homer against the Blue Jays after going hitless in his previous two games. Pena has gotten off to a poor start, currently hitting only .200 with 43 Ks as he battles Ryan Howard for the title of most disappointing slugger.

- Speaking of struggling, after losing again Thursday night, Justin Verlander is now 1-6 with an ERA of 6.43. Verlander has lacked control, walking nearly three batters an outing and has failed to put up good strikeout totals. Verlander is too talented to pitch like this all season, things should turn around for him soon enough.

- Complete the blanks with the words provided: In last night’s game between Seattle and Texas, a hot-headed (1)__________ charged the mound setting off a brawl between the two clubs. Fortunately, (2)_________ played peacemaker and kept the brawl from escalating.

Word Bank: Milton Bradley, Richie Sexson

Answers: 1 - Richie Sexson, 2 - Milton Bradley (those aren’t typos…)


Check out the Fantasy Baseball Happy Recap every weekday on Fantasy Sports Experience!

Fantasy Baseball Happy Recap - 5/7/08

Wednesday was one of the more exciting days thus far in the 2008 baseball season as we saw a number of brilliant performances both at the plate and on the mound... primarily from the youngsters.

Bats Of The Night

Carlos Gomez – 4/6, 2 R, 1 2B, 1 3B, 1 HR, 1 RBI

Gomez, the centerpiece of the Johan Santana deal, hit for the cycle last night, becoming the third youngest player in Major League history to do so. Additionally, he is the first Twins player to accomplish the feat since Kirby Puckett in 1986. Gomez has been great thus far, hitting .282 with 2 HR, 11 RBI and 19 RBI, solid leadoff numbers. The 22 year old speedster also has 13 stolen bases which ties him for second in the majors behind Willy Taveras. Gomez’s walk to strikeout numbers are a cause for concern and an indication he may be unable to keep up this pace on a consistent basis. However, his great stolen base potential alone gives him decent fantasy value.

Joey Votto – 3/4, 3 R, 3 HR, 4 RBI, 1 SB

Votto entered Wednesday with four homers and finished it with seven after a breakout three-homer day against the Cubs. The Reds’ rookie first baseman was highly touted entering the season and was one of our favorites to bust on the scene with a 20-20 campaign. Thus far he has lived up to the hype hitting .302 with 7 HR, 18 RBI and 19 runs scored. Votto swiped his first base on Wednesday, but he has shown good speed in the minors and during his brief major league stint last season so it is fair surmise that the stolen bases will come.

Arm Of The Night: Cliff Lee – 7 IP, 6 H, 0 ER, 0 BB, 7 K (W)

Another start another shut out for Cliff Lee who has been unquestionably the best pitcher in baseball thus far in 2008. Lee moved his record to 6-0 Wednesday after throwing 7 innings of shut out ball at Yankee Stadium and outdueling the previously unbeaten Chien-Ming Wang. Lee is now sporting some ridiculous, video game-like numbers with a 0.81 ERA, 0.60 WHIP and 39 strikeouts to only 2 walks. Dissecting Lee’s numbers further you find that he has now allowed only 4 earned runs and a total of 27 baserunners in 44 1/3 innings of work and has tossed four shutouts. I mean this can’t last… can it?

Bottom Line: Jon Lieber – 2 IP, 7 H, 5 ER, 0 BB, 2 K (L)

Lieber jumpstarted the Reds’ seven homer day by allowing four homeruns in the second inning of yesterday’s 9-0 blowout. In addition, he also earned the dubious distinction of becoming first Cubs pitcher to allow four homeruns in a single inning.

Honorable Mentions

Top Five

Two multiple homer games, two shut outs, one complete game and a 10 strikeout outing headline an absolutely loaded Top Five. Ryan Zimmerman is beginning to break out of his early season funk and could be in line for a hot summer while Edinson Volquez has been nothing short of dynamite thus far. John Maine and Adam Wainwright are establishing themselves as legitimate front of the rotation guys and go-to fantasy starters. Shaun Marcum will be joining them in due time…

Bats

Ryan Zimmerman – 3/4, 2 R, 2 HR, 3 RBI
Kevin Youkilis - 2/5, 2 R, 2 HR, 3 RBI
Mike Lowell – 3/5, 2 R, 1 2B, 1 HR, 3 RBI
Nick Punto – 2/3, 1 R, 1 2B, 1 3B, 5 RBI
Placido Polanco – 5/6, 2 R, 1 2B, 3 RBI

Arms

Edinson Volquez – 7 IP, 4 H, 0 ER, 6 BB, 10 K (W)
Livan Hernandez – 9 IP, 9 H, 1 ER, 1 BB, 3 K (CG, W)
John Maine – 8.1 IP, 4 H, 1 ER, 2 BB, 4 K (W)
Shaun Marcum – 8.2 IP, 4 H, 2 ER, 1 BB, 9 K (W)
Adam Wainwright – 7 IP, 4 H, 0 ER, 2 BB, 3 K (W)

Bottom Five

For those of you scoring at home, Ryan Howard is now hitting .162 with 50 strikeouts. In other room, Howard and Carlos Pena just bought a two bedroom apartment in the Bottom Five to cut down on their daily commute…

Bats

Reed Johnson – 0/5, 3 K
Carlos Pena – 0/4, 3 K
Ryan Howard – 0/4, 3 K
Carlos Pena – 0/4, 3 K
Fred Lewis – 0/4, 3 K

Arms

Jered Weaver – 3.1 IP, 10 H, 8 ER, 1 BB, 1 K (L)
Brad Penny– 4.2 IP, 10 H, 10 ER, 3 BB, 2 K (L)
Mark Buerhle – 5.2 IP, 9 H, 7 ER, 3 BB, 4 K (L)
Dave Bush – 6 IP, 5 H, 6 ER, 2 BB, 3 K (L)
Clay Buchholz – 4 IP, 10 H, 5 ER, 1 BB, 6 K (ND)

Making A Case...

Kurt Suzuki – 2/5, 2 R, 1 HR, 2 RBI

Suzuki hit his first homerun of the season last night and continues to produce on a consistent basis in Oakland. Don’t expect too much power from the A’s rookie catcher but he has shown an ability to pile up hits and score runs in the early season. Suzuki has now hit safely in 17 of his last 22 games and scored 19 runs on the season. He is a decent option at a particularly thin catching position.

Matt Garza – 6.2 IP, 6 H, 1 ER, 3 BB, 2 K (L)

Garza entered the season with some positive buzz after coming over to Tampa from Minnesota in a trade for Delmon Young. However, a rough start and early season injury made the 24 year old righty an afterthought in fantasy circles. Garza has now reeled off two strong starts and has great upside pitching for an up and coming Tampa team. Garza is currently owned in only 39% of CBS leagues and is a great add if you are looking for starting pitching.

Closer Corner

- Jonathon Papelbon took his first loss of the season after allowing two unearned runs in the top of the ninth inning of last night’s game against the Tigers. Placido Polanco drove in the eventual game winning run with a broken bat single to left. Polanco’s hit went just over the glove of Julio Lugo, who kept the inning alive with his 10th error of the season. He is currently on pace for 50 errors…

- Jason Isringhausen continues to struggle, taking his third loss of the season last night after allowing a 2-run triple to the Rockies Chris Iannetta in the bottom of the 8th inning. Izzy has now allowed a run in six of last eleven outings and is a guy that is hard to trust right now.

- After getting lit up early, Houston closer Jose Valverde is red hot, working a perfect inning last night to earn his fourth win of the season to go along with seven saves. Valverde has not allowed a run in his last 11 2/3 innings of work.

- Brad Lidge locked down his 8th save of the season and has yet to allow a run in 16 innings of work this season. A healthy and productive Brad Lidge will be a big difference maker for the Phillies down the stretch in 2008.

- Other Closers Locking Down Saves Last Night: CJ Wilson (8), Matt Capps (7), Rafael Betancourt (4) and Brian Fuentes (3).

Fantasy Observations & Thoughts

- John Danks has made five of his six starts this year during the daytime and compiled 2-2 with a 1.39 ERA in those day outings. In his one night start against the Twins, Danks got lit up for 7 ER in only 2.1 IP. Food for thought Danks owners…

- Four pitchers are tied for the Major League lead in quality starts at seven. Chien-Ming Wang and Ervin Santana are six game winners while Carlos Zambrano is 5-1 on the season. The fourth pitcher is Aaron Harang who is currently a terribly unlucky 1-5 despite a 3.09 ERA and averaging over a strikeout per inning thus far.

- Ryan Church has six homeruns now and is close to establishing himself as the Mets regular #2 hitter. Suprisingly, he is still available in 18% of CBS leagues. What are you people waiting for?

- Lance Berkman now has 11 homeruns and has been absolutely killing the ball.

- Barry Zito pitched pretty well in his “return” to the Giants rotation, but still took the loss dropping his record to 0-7. Paging Anthony Young…


Check out the Fantasy Baseball Happy Recap every weekday on Fantasy Sports Experience!

Sorting Out The Atlanta Braves Bullpen Situation

Manny Acosta could only muster one out in the ninth inning of Tuesday night's game, failing yet again to secure his third save of the season. Acosta retired the first batter he faced before allowing consecutive hits to put runners on the corners. Bobby Cox unceremoniously pulled his stopgap closer and used the combination of Royce Ring and Jeff Bennett to close out the Braves 5-3 win over the Padres. Bennett got the final out and his first save of the season while Acosta and Ring were credited with holds.

Acosta bounced back tonight, getting the final two outs to grab that elusive third save; however, the Braves bullpen remains in disarray at the moment and has been a big disappointment from a fantasy perspective as a whole. The team has gone through 3 closers with a fourth, John Smoltz, ready to fill the role upon his return from the DL in late May. Let's take a look at Atlanta's four-headed closing "monster" and figure out how they arrived at this point:

Rafael Soriano

Soriano entered the season as closer but has now been sidelined for nearly 3 weeks with "elbow soreness" - never a good thing for a reliever with a history of elbow problems. Soriano appeared on track to return later this week; however, he experienced pain during his final bullpen session yesterday signaling that their might something seriously wrong. Fortunately, an MRI taken today came back clean and showed no significant structural damage. This confirms that Soriano's pain is not a result of any major injury and that he is not at risk of missing an extended period of time - the best news Soriano owners have heard in a while. 

Peter Moylan

Moylan got off to a hot start this season as the Braves primary setup man, racking up four holds before replacing an injured Soriano at closer in mid-April. Moylan proceeded to successfully convert his first save opportunity before experiencing elbow pain and being shutdown. A trip to Dr. James Andrews revealed that the righty would need Tommy John surgery and now you can forget about him for the rest of this season as well as the start of 2009.

Manny Acosta

With both Soriano and Moylan hurt, the Braves turned to Manny Acosta who has done a decent job but doesn't appear to be the long-term solution in Atlanta. Acosta has now notched three saves in five chances since becoming the Braves closer, allowing only 2 earned runs in his last 11 2/3 innings of work. Regardless, Acosta's talents are better suited for the 7th and 8th innings and that is exactly where he is headed upon the return of...

John Smoltz

Coming into his April 27th start at New York, Smoltz had allowed only 2 runs in his first 23 innings of work in 2008 while striking out an impressive 31 batters. After getting hit hard by the Mets, Smoltz admitted that he was experiencing pain in his right arm and shoulder and would be placed on the DL a little while thereafter. Smoltz is currently recovering from inflammation in his right bicep tendons and rotator cuff and is aiming for a return in late May. Upon his return, he will return to the closer role in which he piled up 144 saves in three seasons between 2002-2004.

 

Fantasy Impact

The big news here is obviously John Smoltz's return to closing games after three seasons serving as the Braves ace. When healthy, Smoltz has looked dominant this season and should have no problem adjusting to the closer role. The soon to be 41 year old immediately becomes a legitimate 30 save candidate on a good Atlanta team; however, he also remains a fairly significant injury risk given the location of his injuries... his pitching arm/shoulder.

If Soriano beats Smoltz back from the DL, he will get an opportunity to close until the future hall of famer is ready. Upon Smoltz's return, Soriano will serve as the Braves primary setup and fallback closer while Manny Acosta alternates between pitching in the 7th and 8th innings. Both should be solid holds guys. 

Someone to keep an eye on is Mike Gonzalez who is currently recovering from elbow ligament replacement surgery. Gonzalez has not experienced any setbacks in his rehab and is scheduled to begin extended spring training on May 14th followed by a minor league rehab assignment if all goes well. Gonzalez is scheduled to return in late may and would most likely work the 7th and 8th innings along with Acosta and Soriano. However, given the injury prone nature of the aforementioned Braves relievers, I wouldn't be surprised if Gonzalez is in line for saves later in the season. If he proves healthy, Gonzalez would certainly get the call before Acosta down the line.

Top Pickups on the Mound- Week 6

Darrel Rasner

The veteran has been around for a while now, yet always finds it difficult to keep a job in the majors. In the past the injury bug has bitten him and that cost him time. This season he was the victim of circumstance, being apart of the Yankees organization who is was trying to rebuild their pitching staff on the fly by going with youngsters Phil Hughes and Ian Kennedy. All Rasner needed was a chance and he finally got it when Hughes went down with a broken rib and he was called up to replace him in the rotation.

Rasner is a solid pick up right now in all fantasy formats. He has had success whenever he has had the chance to pitch at the major league level. His issue has been staying healthy enough to remain in the rotation. He won't dominate a line up or strikeout 10 guys a game. What he will do is go 6-7 innings and give up 2-3 runs a game. Nothing great, but fine quality starts that will keep the high octane Yankee offense in the ball game.

FSE VERDICT- Go get him.

Justin Duchscherer

I don't like it. Struggled the last few seasons as a reliever because he was always battling injury and a bad hip. They compensated by making him an everyday starter this season, because they feel it will help ease the strain of his bad hip.

He has had good success early on this season with 14K in 15IP, to go along with an ERA of 2.40 and a whip of 1.27. The numbers look good, but you need to factor in a few things. 1) He failed to record a quality start in any of the games, 2) Two of the starts came against Cleveland and Seattle, two of the teams who have had the most offensive struggles this season, 3) None of this changes the fact that he has a bad hip and will most likely breakdown at some point in August or September, when you need him most.

Update- Last night (5/6) he went 7 innings, and gave up 2 runs, marking his season high for innings pitched. Despite his success, we still feel he is a sell high candidate.

FSE VERDICT- Get him now, sell high in June or July.

Jo-Jo- Reyes

Young pitcher on the Braves so he gets a lot of hype. I have done some reading that says he does not pitch too late into games because he throws a lot of pitches and runs his pitch count up early. That being said he seems to be the type of pitcher who thrives on that because he has had decent success in the majors doing it. This is the type of guy who can get by on that for a while, but sooner or later tendencies and scouting reports will catch up to him. Teams will start to lay off the pitches out of the strike zone and he'll get exposed.

FES VERDICT- Looks good now... get back to me in June.

Sidney Ponson

No

FSE VERDICT- No

Shawn Chacon

For some reason I like him. He had good stuff with the Rockies and won the Rookie of the Year Award with them as a starter. The next season they made him a closer for no reason and it almost ruined his career. He went on to have stints with the Yankees and Pirates as a starter, long man, set up man and had varying degrees of success in each role.

He has resurfaced this season with the Houston Astros and has been one of the hotter arms in baseball to start the season. He is currently sporting an ERA in the mid-3.00s with a decent K to IP ratio. He is sporting a 0-0 record, but if he can continue to pitch well enough to keep the Astros in games he should be able to salvage a 10 win season by the end of the year. The numbers won't be dominating or spectacular, but they will end up being surprisingly respectable.

FSE VERDICT- Going with the gut here and not common sense, but I like him.

Greg Smith

He has been pitching over his head this season, but should finish off with some pretty solid fantasy numbers over all. Smith might actually be a microcosm of the Oakland A's season.
Not many people expect much early on, yet they have surprised many by playing over their heads'. His minor league numbers show that he should be a solid pitcher who will finish with a good amount of Ks and wins, to go along with about 13 wins.

He has been going well early but I can see him finishing up with a Mark Hendrickson type season. An ERA in the low 4.oos at about 1.40 and a record of like 13-9 does not appear to be totally out of the realm of possibility.

FSE VERDICT- Don't expect the early season dominance to continue, but a fine season should still be out there.

Fantasy Baseball Happy Recap - 5/6/08

Bat Of The Night: Nate McLouth – 3/5, 2 R, 2 HR, 3 RBI

And to think McLouth entered spring training competing for the starting CF gig in Pittsburgh. The 26 year old now has nine homers on the season to go along with 28 RBI, 30 runs scored and a .333 batting average. More impressively, those 28 RBI have come from the leadoff spot. McLouth also has good speed as he stole 22 bases in only 329 at bats last season and is a legitimate 20-20+ candidate.

Arm Of The Night: Gavin Floyd – 8.1 IP, 1 H, 0 ER, 3 BB, 4 K (W)

Floyd carried a no-hitter into the 9th inning before a Joe Mauer double ended his bid. The young White Sox righty is now 3-1 with a sparkling 2.50 ERA and 0.96 WHIP in 39 2/3 innings this season. In his first six outings, Floyd has posted 5 quality starts and only really been hit hard once – April 24th against a powerful Yankees lineup. The 25 year old is not much of a strikeout artist, but appears to be coming into his own by relying on great control. He is a good start at Seattle on Sunday.

Bottom Line: Felipe Lopez – 0/5, 4 K

Lopez was among three players to earn a golden sombrero on Tuesday. His 0/5 night at the plate gave him the nod over Carlos Pena and Khalil Greene who “only” went 0/4. Yuck.

Honorable Mentions

Top Five

Big nights for several youngsters both at the plate and on the mound. Stephen Drew, Blake Dewitt and Chris Iannetta make sure that the NL West youth is well represented in the Top Five while the ageless Garrett Anderson keeps hitting driving in a season high 5 runs. Scott Olsen and Jair Jurrjens continue to impress in the early going while Carlos Zambrano is a true ace for the Cubbies.

Bats

Garrett Anderson – 3/5, 1 R, 1 HR, 5 RBI
Blake DeWitt - 3/4, 2 R, 1 HR, 4 RBI
Stephen Drew – 2/4, 1 R, 1 HR, 3 RBI
Erik Bruntlett – 2/3, 1 R, 1 2B, 1 HR, 3 RBI
Chris Iannetta – 2/4, 2 R, 1 HR, 3 RBI

Arms

Scott Olsen – 8.2 IP, 2 H, 0 ER, 4 BB, 8 K (W)
Carlos Zambrano – 8 IP, 3 H, 0 ER, 3 BB, 3 K (W)
Tim Wakefield – 8 IP, 2 H, 0 ER, 0 BB, 6 K (W)
Jair Jurrjens – 6 IP, 7 H, 1 ER, 1 BB, 7 K (W)
Justin Duchscherer – 7 IP, 4 H, 2 ER, 2 BB, 4 K (W)

Bottom Five

The aforementioned golden sombreros for Pena and Greene while two of the NL’s top bats Chase Utley and David Wright had uncharacteristically poor nights at the plate. David Dellucci’s three run bomb off Joba Chamberlain gives the young Yankee reliever his first appearance in the Bottom Five.

Bats

Carlos Pena – 0/4, 4 K
Khalil Greene – 0/4, 4 K
Alex Rios – 0/5, 3 K
Chase Utley – 0/4, 3 K
David Wright – 0/4, 3 K

Arms

Mark Redman – 2.2 IP, 9 H, 6 ER, 1 BB, 2 K (L)
Jonathon Sanchez– 4.1 IP, 6 H, 7 ER, 3 BB, 4 K (L)
Miguel Batista – 2.1 IP, 3 H, 6 ER, 6 BB, 2 K (L)
Adam Eaton – 4 IP, 5 H, 6 ER, 3 BB, 1 K (L)
Joba Chamberlain – 1 IP, 1 H, 3 ER, 2 BB, 1 K (L)

Making A Case...

Chris Iannetta & Blake DeWitt

These two youngsters entered the season as backups but are seeing decent playing time of late. Iannetta has filled in more than admirably for the struggling Yorvit Torrealba hitting .361 with 3 homeruns in only 47 at bats. DeWitt got off to a bit of a slow start after entering the season as the Dodgers starting 3B follwing an injury to Andy Laroche in spring training. However, he has turned it on of late and is now batting .317 with 11 RBI in his last 7 games. DeWitt has earned the starting 3B job in LA it appears so he is the safer option right now but keep an eye at Iannetta as he has great potential at the thin catcher position.

Justin Duchscherer

Between 2004-2006, Duchscherer was one of the top middle relief options in leagues with holds. Last year, his season was derailed by injury and after the A’s gave him a spot in the starting rotation entering 2008, many looked at him as an afterthought. Duchscherer hasn’t been spectacular in any of his first four starts and has had to miss time with injuries yet again. However, after posting his best start of the season last night, the A’s righty is now 3-1 with a 2.45 ERA and 1.14 WHIP in 22 innings. Duchscherer is currently a good fantasy spot starter at best. If he can prove healthy and string together a few starts where he goes 6+ innings, Duchscherer can be a solid contributor heading into the second half.

Closer Corner

- The Braves bullpen is officially a mess. Manny Acosta, filling in for injured Rafael Soriano, failed in his effort to lock down save number three and had to be bailed out by a combination of Royce Ring and Jeff Bennett. Bennett got the final out and his first save. With Soriano still hurting, John Smoltz is slated to become the closer upon his return from the DL. Stay tuned.

- Francisco Rodriguez is officially a machine. K-Rod maintained his torrid pace, closing out his league leading 14th game last night. He has been lights out since his return from injury.

- Jose Valverde (7) and Takashi Saito (5) both locked down saves last night and seem to have put their early struggles behind them.

- Good night for save vultures Tuesday as in addition to Jeff Bennett, Santiago Casilla and Ryan Franklin notched their first saves of the season. Jason Isringhausen and Huston Street, two of the most heavily worked closers thus far, got the night off.

- Troy Percival notched his 7th save and has still not been scored upon in 11 innings of work.

- Other Closers Locking Down Saves Last Night: Brandon Lyon (10), Kevin Gregg (6), Kerry Wood (5) and Rafael Betancourt (3).

Fantasy Observations & Thoughts

- The NL East is powering up in 2008! Chipper Jones hit his tenth homer while Mike Jacobs continues to rake hitting number nine last night. Let’s not forget that Major League homerun leader Chase Utley (13) also resides in the division.

- Barry Zito is back in the San Francisco Giants rotation and will start today at Pittsburgh. Zito was “demoted to the bullpen” a week ago, but never made any relief appearances. The 0-6 Zito should not be started in any league unless you have masochistic inclinations.

- AJ Burnett struck out 10 Tampa batters last night but took a loss allowing 5 ER in 6 innings of work. Burnett has been terribly inconsistent in the early going, but it’s only a matter of time before it comes together for the fireballing righty who is in a contract year and pitching for his next big pay day.

- Don’t look now but White Sox GM Ken Williams has put together a mighty fine starting rotation in Chicago. Javy Vasquez has been dominant in the early going while youngsters Gavin Floyd and John Danks seem to be coming into their own as Major League starters.

Check out the Fantasy Baseball Happy Recap every weekday on Fantasy Sports Experience!

Top Pickups Around the Diamond - Week 6

When I was in high school, I remember my economics teacher described the stock market like tapping a keg. Every so often you get stocks that are over valued and they are like the initial froth that you get from a keg. Then as you get into the keg you start getting more pure beer without the useless froth. This is equivalent to the stocks that are for real and will continue to appreciate in value.

What I'm getting at is that we are entering the portion of the fantasy baseball season where it's time to get rid of the froth. The good players are more than likely owned and most of the underachieving players have already been dumped. Every week I look at roster trends and it gets tougher and tougher to find names without recycling old ones. That being said lets take a look at what is out there:

Catcher

Jeff Clement- Comes to the majors hitting .397 with 5 HR and 20 RBI, after having a fine 2007 campaign that featured him slugging 20HR. The Mariners are starved for offense and will probably wind up giving Clement a shot a shot to impress as the everyday DH, and to occasionally spell Kenji Johjima behind the plate.

To me it is a bit strange to hand over the DH duties to a young player who is not used to DHing on the major league level. To the outside observer, the DH position appears to be an easy task that merely involves going to the plate 4 times and trying hit a baseball. For young players however, the switch from being on the field all the time to being a player who sits around and then is expected to hit is a challenge. They have trouble remaining focused on the game and keeping up their competitive juices.

A decent idea might be to move him over to 1B and try to find him some at bats there. Clement won't get behind the plate consistently enough because Kenji is a formidable starter and just signed a 3 year extension. First base for Seattle is currently manned by Richie Sexson and Jose Vidro. One is an automatic out, the other is an automatic out with sporadic power, who strikes out too much.

I wouldn't get too excited over Clement quite yet. A catcher who will DH everyday would be great in most leagues because it means less days off and more at bats and potential days to put up stats. That being said I think Seattle has to go out and get a real veteran bat who can handle major league pitching. The acquisition of Erik Bedard in the offseason signaled that the Mariners are in win-now mode. Yet despite one of the best 1-2 starting pitching combos in baseball, they have underachieved thus far because they can't score any runs.

I know talk is cheap and there really aren't rumors or article to justify me saying this other than my gut, but I think Seattle needs to go out and get Barry Bonds. That line up needs an overhaul, and Bonds is a guy who can single handedly change the dynamic of a line up.

Yadier Molina- Molina is hot right now and has always been considered the most talented of the Molina brothers, causing many owners to go out and grab him. But even with the hot streak Molina is only on pace for 10HR and 50RBI to go along with an average in the .270s. In other words he is in line with his career averages and on pace to be a mediocre fantasy option yet again.

First Base

Aubrey Huff- He is hot right now so he cracked the list. Huff is prone to these hot and cold streaks, but if you are in a league with unlimited adds, then he is worth the grab while he is hot. Huff should be good for 20HR, despite the fact that his power numbers have steadily been declining since 2003. He bottomed out with 15HR last season, yet has 5 already this year and looks primed or a rebound season. Look for 20-25HR max with 75RBI if things break right. He is a solid add if you are hard up for some cheap pop or a 1B

Second Base

Howie Kendrick- I have been a big fa Kendrick for a while now, yet he has shown to be a bit injury prone thus far in his young career. Hopefully he has gotten the injury bug over with for this season and can go on to have another fine season as he did last year. He has missed roughly a month so still has the potential to muster 450 at bats and hit .320AVG with 10HR and a few stolen bases along the way.

I would be shocked if he were available in many leagues still, but if he is go out and grab him. He is a stud who can handle the bat with the best of them.

Third Base

Jose Bautista- Talented player who has underachieved for years and is once again giving fantasy owners a reason to believe. Bautista is 27 this season, so perhaps he got the memo that this is supposed to be his hitting prime a good time to have a career season. He can draw a walk and can hit for a bit over power and is worth an add in deeper leagues.

Despite his recent hot streak, keep in mind that the majority of his stats this season have come in the span of 2 games, on May 2nd and May 3rd, where he went 5/8 with 3HR and 7RBI. Go and get him if you need a 3B, that Pittsburgh line up has been awful and if he can continue to hit they may put him in the middle of the line up; adding to his value.

Shortstop

No one worth mentioning this week, check out the archive for some add ideas. I could write up Brendan Harris, but my keyboard would get mad at me.

Super Utility Man (1B, 2B, 3B)

Ty Wigginton- Is eligible all over the infield, except SS which makes him a valuable utility guy in all fantasy leagues. He has hit over 20HR the last 2 seasons and finished with roughly 70RBI and a .270AVG in each. He is worth a grab in all leagues, as he can fill in all over and can even be an everyday starter depending on how deep your league is.

Outfield

Wladimir Balentien- Seattle's other young slugger called up to help support the line up with some much needed pop. To show their faith in the youngster they immediately stopped donating money to the Brad Wilkerson Fund, and cut him from the major league roster. He will hit the occasional long ball, but this is an awful lot of pressure Seattle is putting on two young players to perform.

I would stay away from young Wladimir this early in his young career. Rookies can be too streaky and really look over matched and struggle for periods of time. He will hit about 15 or so HR, but expect a low batting average and with the Mariner's line up being what it is don't look for a tone of run support or men on base to drive in. Bottom line, I don't like it.

Jack Cust- WE'RE GOING STREAKING! He had an awful April and was being dumped in many leagues. He is hot now and clubbing HR like it is 2007 again. If he was dropped in your league go out and grab him. He never lost his batter's eye and was able to draw a walk even while he wasn't going well, so the talent never left, just his ability to put a good swing on the ball, and make consistent contact.

Emil Brown- I tried to avoid him for as long as I could, but he is having a good season and can't be ignored any longer. He seems to be making solid contributions in all parts of the game with 19R, 26RBI, 3HR and 1SB. Brown is 33, so I doubt he has become that much better of a player in the course of the last year or so. It looks like Brown was hot in the beginning of the season, as he is on pace to have 127RBI, almost 40 more than he previous high. For a player at this age, with his mediocre power, it just doesn't seem possible for him to keep up these kind of numbers. Don't buy the numbers and if you own him, sell high to some sucker who don't bother to check his resume.

Barry Bonds- He really isn't on any most added list, but I got a feeling. With Seattle and Detroit both struggling to score runs, it only seems like a matter of time. Gary Sheffield returned to the outfield on Monday night at his own request, but that could open up the door for Bonds to comeback and split time between DH and LF with Sheffield.

Seattle has Jose Vidro and Richie Sexson at DH and both are just playing horrifically. To be a legit team they will need to do something to spark the line up and while everyone wants to avoid Bonds, he is the elephant in the middle of the FA hitter's market.

Even in Toronto there are people who say there are advantages to a Bonds signing. They need some spark in that line up to help take some pressure of of Alex Rios and Vernon Wells. Bonds could be the everyday DH there and that would enable Matt Stairs to go back to the being in the super utility role that he has thrived in for the past couple seasons.

For years people have gone out of their way to stash Roger Clemens on their bench while they waited for him to come back and start the season in late May or June. It could be a similar scenario playing out with Bonds for this season.

Criminal proceedings and perjury charges aside he can still hit and his off the field issues, won't be creeping up on him until after the season. Any team that takes a chance on him will have to deal with the initial media bonanza, but after a few weeks it'll die down and be about baseball again. It could be worth the investment for a few struggling teams who both had much higher expectations going into the season.