Fantasy Baseball Waiver Wire Pickup Alert: Drew Storen (P)

If you are in need of some sames, more than likely Drew Storen will be the Washington Nationals new closer after they traded away Matt Capps. Try and grab Capps quickly, he should be available except for the deepest and most experienced fantasy leagues.

MLB Trade Speculation: Impact on Fantasy Owners

First off, we’d like to congratulate Matt Garza of the Tampa Bay Rays of the first no-hitter in the team’s history! Beyond that we take a moment to discuss the impending trade deadline approaching. This is a fun time of year for some owners. That sleeper hitter or pitcher gets traded to a contender and all of a sudden you have a top tier player on your hands. So far, we have gotten pitchers Cliff Lee and Dan Haren traded to the always hot American League West. Both the Rangers and Angels have high caliber teams, many picking the Rangers to take it all this year. Who else could benefit from a trade and has their name on the tongues of general managers?

Milwaukee has a couple of possible trade candidates in Prince Fielder and Corey Hart. You know what you get in Fielder, but Hart has been a homerun  factory it seems this year…well in Corey Hart standards. Roy Oswalt is a topic of hot discussion. He would be a welcomed arm to any contender, only problem is his huge salary and no-trade clause. Also, the Astro’s asking price has been said to be way too high. Still, this might be a good time to throw a buy-low trade offer to an Oswalt owner and take a gamble. Even if he doesn’t get traded he is the staff ace and Pence is on fire again and Carlos Lee can’t flirt with the mendoza line all year right…right? Derrick Lee, Carlos Pena, Jorge Cantu and Jose Guillen have also been shown interest. Of these names only Cantu really stands out as someone who could really prosper from this. Guillen also is a solid hitter, who has been a nice run producer. It would be interesting to see. Jayson Werth is someone the Phillies might try to move and given his present position on a great team, I would think this a downgrade anywhere he went that makes sense. Finally the Diamond Backs, word is their entire roster is free for the choosing aside from probably Justin Upton, but with Haren already ushered who else do we care about?

Fantasy Baseball Waiver Wire Search – July 19-25

It’s the end of the week of July 19th-25th, time to scour the fantasy baseball waiver wire for roster upgrades or replacements. Some notable losses to injury were Matt Weiters, Ben Sheets, Carlos Guillen and David DeJesus. We’ll try andlook at suitable pick-ups for each spot in the lineup. We’ll select players who have been hot in the last week to month, and will be typically owned by half of the leagues or less out there. Taking a look at batting first:

First Base

Gaby Sanchez- FLA: This guy is relatively very unowned. While batting over .300 on the year and 11 dingers.
Ike Davis – NYM: Lately a power surge with 3 round-trippers this week and 6 RBIs. Will not help your Avg.
Michael Morse – WAS: Great hitter has been hot in spot starts. Needs more playing time, but Adam Dunn trade could provide that. Keep tabs on this guy for sure.

Second Base

Neil Walker - PIT: A talented young player who has been a very consistenthitter for over a month. Will not hit too many HRs, but will supply a decent AVG, Runs and occasional RBIs and SBs.
Reid Brignac- TB: Another player withgreat hitting skills. Playing was an issue for awhile, but that has seemed to not be an issue lately. Hot this week with 3HR’s, & RBIs and a .471 Avg. Both Walker and Brignac are better options than the currently higher rated starters in Orlando Hudson, Skip Schumaker and Christian Guzman.

Third Base

Chris Johnson- HOU: Not a whole lot of good things happening for the Astros, but that means giving playing time to rookies and Chris Johnson has been a nice surprise and has hit his couple of ML HRs this week. While also hitting almost .500, 6 Rs and 8 RBIs. Clearly a young player to stash away and see if he sticks.

Short Stop

Starlin Castro- CHI: Nothing flashy, but will supply Avg. and occasions SBs.

Outfield

Jose Tabata- PIT: It is a shame this guy is not owned in more leagues. He is the table setter for a young Bucs lineup. He has little to no power and hits around .270, but he provides a lot of speed for Rs and SBs. Although this week has hit .375 with 7 RBIs adding 9Rs and 2 SBs.
Luke Scott - BAL: When Scott is in the zone he can hot with the best, and lately he has been locked in batting .450 this week and a pair of HRs.
Matt Diaz- ATL: Has been on fire since returning from injury, this week .550, 3 dingers and 9 RBIs. He is a streaky hitter, play him while he is hot.

Catcher

Yorvit Torrealba- SD: He maintains a nice +.330 Avg usually and will provide sparingly in other categories.
Jason Kendall- KC: A scrappy veteran who can fill a void if your starting C is down. More importantly, should keep a healthy enough Avg. to not hurt you there. All other stats are bonus.

Now let’s switch to pitching:

Starters

C.J. Wilson- TEX: The switch to starter has been a success and while this guy is probably owned in nearly half or more leagues, it’s enough to mention. That and he was available in one of my leagues…well not anymore that is. He has been lights out ever since following Cliff Lee in the rotation. He is working on pitch count and few walks and it has led to 4 wins, 29Ks, and a near 2.10 and 1.10 ERA and WHIP respectively.
Vincente Padilla- LAD: This guy always seems to have strong 2nd halves. He is very likely available in your league and has provided a line of 3 Ws, 34 Ks, 1.30 ERA and .77 WHIP in his last 31 innings.
Jair Jurrjens- ATL: Great young arm that is living up lately to a great rookie campaign. Over the last month has delivered 2 Ws, 20Ks, 2.19ERA and 1.18 WHIP.
Vin Mazarro- OAK: Has put up numbers very similar to Jurrjens and worth a look at in deep leagues.

Closers

Alfedo Simon – BAL: Has provided stability to an very unstable situation at the start of the year. n a struggling team, but has 7 saves in the last month. However, keep an eye on Mike Gonzalez who could regain this job if his velocity returns.
Aaron Heilman/Juan Gutierrez - ARI: This is another complicated possible closer by committee. Neither is a great choice, although Gutierrez has been pretty decent lately. fact is the D’Backs do not win a lot of games. So only grab one of these guys if you are really desperate for saves.

Relievers

Sean Marshall- CHI: Marshall has been the Godzilla of relievers this years and will likely return a line at the end of the season that many starters will be jealous of. If his 2nd half is a good as his first his line would look something like 10-12 Ws, 120Ks, 1.80 ERA and1.00 WHIP. Pair him up with another quality reliever and you have a staff ace in the two.

Other mentionable relievers are Evan Meek, Luke Gregerson, Daniel Bardand Johnny Venters.

Fantasy Baseball Waiver Pickup Alert – 3B Pedro Alvarez (Pit)

If you are looking for a young prospective power pickup at a power position, give Pedro Alvarez another chance. He was touted at the start of the year to do big things, even with 3B incumbent Andy LaRoche (don’t laugh) filling the spot. The Pirates allowed Alvarez a shot, but was quickly ushered back down to AAA to get his head in order. I say get his head in order because clearly he is the only obstacle in his way from becoming a serious contributor for the big club. Well, he is back and he his scorching with the bat. In his last 20 at-bats he has collected 9 hits, 4 HR’s and 10 RBIs. I doubt he can keep those numbers up every week, but even half that production is a top player at any position.

Fantasy Baseball 2010 Rookies On The Horizon

Whether you are in a fantasy baseball keeper league, a rookie only league or simply looking for a youthful boost to the 2nd half to your fantasy season, don’t ever disregard the late season call-ups as useless. Here is a quicklist of likely rookies to join the big club at some point this season:

• Brett Wallace – TOR (1B) Heir to Overbay and oneday MLB batting champ.
• Kala Ka’aihue – KC (OF) Solid hitter who needs a chance to prove himself.
• Logan Morrison – FL (1B,OF) Gaby Sanchez forces this young heavy hitter to OF.
• J.P. Arencibia - TOR (C) Leads league in HRs and  qualifies at catcher…anything else?
• Dustin Ackley – SEA (2B) The answer to 2B for the Mariners finally?
• Jeremy Hellickson – TB (SP) Not as sharp as the start of the season but knocking on the door.
• Adam Moore – SEA (C) Another C prospect who has just hit everywhere.
• Domonic Brown – PHI (OF) Werth may leave via trade or free agency, Phils not worried with this kid around.

None of these players are complete unknowns and have been on the fantasy radar for some time, especially Wallace and Hellickson. Still, a lot of managers will not be prepared for these prospects until after they make their splash.

Fantasy Baseball Lineup Help (Batting) – Week 16

If you are in need of hitting help, scan your waiver wire for Juan Rivera, Coco Crisp, Drew Stubbs, Reid Brignac, Yunel Excobar, Gordon Beckham or Justin Smoak, These are just some of the names available in a 10 manager league I am in that pop out as probable upgrades. I rightly snatched up Stubbs and dropped a slumping Brennan Boesch.

 

Fantasy Baseball Pickup Alert – Edinson Volquez

If you are lucky, there is still time to grab Edinson Volquez of the Cincinatti Reds of the waiver wire.  Last night’s line for Volquez was 6.0 IP, 1 ER, 3 H, 2 BB, 9 K. Its reported he hit 97 mph on teh radar gun. Which is higher than he has hit even prior to Tommy John surgery. It’s apparent that rehab had made him stronger and he is feeling very healthy right now. With the 1st place Reds rolling, Volquez is an invaluable fantasy addition to any squad. Look for a repeat of his 2008 success prior to injury.

Pinch hitting help for after the break

Lose someone invaluable to injury? Lots of choices on the waiver wire and position eligibility and needed stats are the key here. Don’t always go out and look for the best hitter available at the position your guy went down at either. See if it is possible to the best possible hitter overall despite position. While you are at it, check all the best possible hitters. Maybe it’s time for an upgrade at another position as well. Anyway, the point is try and grav the best value and shuffle your lineup accordingly. Here are some possibly available free waiver wire candidates who have done well lately and might be a great fantasy pickup.

Coco crisp, Drew Stubbs, Clint Barmes, Jim Thome, Gaby Sanchez, Sean Rodriguez or Gordon Beckham.

No particular order there, do a quick view of your waiver wire and sort by needed stats over the past month and week if possible and see who stands out.

Starting Pitching Replacements for July Fantasy Baseball

If you are in a typical 10 manager fantasy baseball league, you have probably had at least one pitcher go down with injury. Most recently Mat Latos hit the DL with a failed sneeze. Her due to your format, there are plenty of replacements. You can look for unowned players like Gavin Floyd, Vincente Padilla, Max Scherzer, Joel Piniero, Bronson Arroyo, or Wandy Rodriguez who have all heated up up in the last month, but have overall been forgotten or under-performing season totals. You might also be able to vulture fantasy players ready to come off the DL who may have been dropped earlier. Players such as Shaun Marcum, Brett anderson or if you are lucky even Yovanni Gallardo.