Fantasy Baseball Week 13 Winners, Losers, And Waiver Wire Wonders
July 7, 2009 · The Sportmeisters · Jump to comments
Article Source: Bleacher Report - New York Yankees
By Derek of The Sportmeisters
Another week of baseball in the books means another winners, losers, and waiver wire wonders blog from the fantasy guru. Keep in mind, the stats I show are the players stats for the week, not on the season. Let’s go!
Winners
SP – Tim Lincecum – San Francisco Giants – 16 IP, 2 W, 1 CG, 17 K, 2 BB, 5 HA, 0 ER
TIMMY!!!! The reigning NL CY Young winner was in another world this week and now has a 23-inning scoreless streak. Lincecum is obviously a must start in all formats.
SP – Roy Oswalt – Houston Astros – 17 IP, 2 W, 1 CG, 14 K, 3 BB, 5 HA, 2 ER
Oswalt looks to be back to his old self, winning his last two games, only allowing two runs in 17 innings. He also struck out 14 and only walked three. He remains a must start.
SP – Ricky Nolasco – Florida Marlins – 16 IP, 2 W, 20 K, 2 BB, 7 HA, 2 ER
Looks like a trip to the minors was just what Nolasco needed to get things straightened out. He is 4-1 with an ERA of just 1.54 since being recalled and has 45 strikeouts to just seven walks. Keep him active while he’s hot.
SP – Dan Haren – Arizona Diamondbacks – 13 IP, 2 W, 15 K, 1 BB, 11 HA, 2 ER
Haren has been this hot all year, but his 8-5 record doesn’t show it. Most of his losses were due to a lack of run support and there is no reason to ever bench Haren, as he is clearly a fantasy ace.
SP – Jason Marquis – Colorado Rockies – 9 IP, 1 W, 1 CG, 3 K, 0 BB, 2 HA, 0 ER
Marquis has been the most unlikely fantasy starter this year. He has two straight shutouts and 11 wins on the year. He is 7-2 in his last 10 starts and has two complete games on the season. Keep starting him while he’s winning games.
RP – Ryan Franklin – St. Louis Cardinals – 3 IP, 1 W, 2 SV, 4 K, 2 BB, 1 HA, 0 ER
Here’s a guy that wasn’t supposed to be fantasy relevant this year and has become the most consistent fantasy closer. He has a miniscule 0.84 ERA on the year and has 20 saves. Keep him active in all formats while he is so lights out.
RP – Joakim Soria – Kansas City Royals – 3 IP, 3 SV, 7 K, 0 BB, 0 HA, 0 ER
Soria has been lights out since returning from the DL. He has 13 saves on the year, six since his return, and a 1.66 ERA. He is becoming an elite fantasy closer and should be active in all formats.
1B – Justin Morneau – Minnesota Twins – .480 BA, 12 H, 4 R, 2 Doubles, 4 HR, 8 RBI, 3 BB, 5 K
Morneau has been hot recently, hitting .480 with four home runs last week. He now has 21 home runs on the year and 69 RBI. He is also hitting .323 and was named to the AL All-Star team. He is a must start fantasy First Baseman.
1B – Albert Pujols – St. Louis Cardinals – .429 BA, 9 H, 7 R, 2 Doubles, 3 HR, 8 RBI, 7 BB, 4 K, 1 SB
Is this guy ever not on this list? Pujols just keeps on hitting and, obviously, he should never, ever be benched in any format.
OF – Bobby Abreu – Los Angeles Angels Of Anaheim – .375 BA, 9 H, 9 R, 1 Double, 2 HR, 8 RBI, 8 BB, 5 K, 1 CS
It’s about time that Abreu woke up. He is hitting .302 with only six home runs, but has 51 RBI and 17 stolen bases on the year. He is a top tier fantasy Outfielder and should be in your lineup at all times.
OF – Shin-Soo Choo – Cleveland Indians – .409 BA, 9 H, 5 R, 4 Doubles, 3 HR, 9 RBI, 1 BB, 7 K, 1 SB
Choo has been a hot prospect for a few years now and is showing why. He is hitting .301 with 12 home runs, 53 RBI, and 13 stolen bases on the year and doesn’t look to be slowing down. Go ahead and start him if you were smart enough to grab him.
3B/2B – Martin Prado – Atlanta Braves – .577 BA, 15 H, 8 R, 8 Doubles, 0 Triples, 1 HR, 6 RBI, 3 BB, 0 K, 0 SB
Prado is finally showing he promise that we have been hearing about for years. He is filling in at second base while Kelly Johnson is on the DL and also has third base eligibility. He is hitting .319 on the year with 15 RBI in just 163 at-bats. Go ahead and pick him up and start him while he’s hot.
1B – Derrek Lee – Chicago Cubs – .250 BA, 7 H, 5 R, 4 HR, 12 RBI, 6 K
D-Lee is rolling lately. While he didn’t have his best hitting week, he still hit four home runs and drove in 12. He now has 16 home runs and 53 RBI to go with his .288 batting average. Keep him active in all formats while he’s red-hot.
Losers
OF – Justin Upton – Arizona Diamondbacks – .087 BA, 2 H, 1 R, 0 Doubles, 0 Triples, 0 HR, 0 RBI, 1 BB, 9 K, 0 SB
Upton has been good this year, but was bad last week. He only had two hits in 23 at-bats and struck out nine times. However, there is no reason to panic as he is hitting .300 on the season with 15 home runs, 48 RBI, and 11 stolen bases. Keep him active and ignore this bad week.
C – Victor Martinez – Cleveland Indians – .050 BA, 1 H, 1 R, 1 Double, 0 HR, 0 RBI, 1 BB, 3 K, 0 SB
V-Mart was awful last week and has been in a big slump, going four for his last 47. He is still an elite fantasy Catcher and is hitting .303 on the year. Keep him active and watch him turn it around.
1B – Carlos Pena – Tampa Bay Rays – .095 BA, 2 H, 0 R, 1 Double, 0 HR, 0 RBI, 4 BB, 6 K, 0 SB
Pena is your classic power hitter. He hits home runs and strikes out a lot. He is hitting just .231 and has 104 strikeouts, but has 23 home runs and 55 RBI. Keep him active for his power, but expect a .260 average at best and over 200 strikeouts.
3B – Evan Longoria – Tampa Bay Rays – .056 BA, 1 H, 0 R, 1 Double, 0 HR, 1 RBI, 2 BB, 4 K, 0 SB
Longoria has been on a slump recently, but there’s no need to panic. He is still hitting .290 with 16 home runs and 64 RBI and is still an elite fantasy player. Don’t bench him.
SP – Bronson Arroyo – Cincinnati Reds – 10.3 IP, 2 L, 4 K, 6 BB, 21 HA, 10 ER
Ouch! This hurts. Arroyo was pretty bad last week, allowing 10 runs in 10 innings in two starts. He is 8-8 on the year with an ERA over five. He is someone you really need to watch because although you shouldn’t drop him, you shouldn’t start him right now either. Keep him stashed on the bench until he looks useable again.
SP – Rick Porcello – Detroit Tigers – 8.3 IP, 2 L, 3 K, 4 BB, 16 HA, 9 ER
After his hot start, Porcello has been pretty bad in his last two outings. He allowed nine runs in eight innings and only struck out three. He has shown that he has the potential to win games and will be back in the rotation after the All-Star break, so keep starting him, but if he keeps this up, stash him on the bench.
SP – Cliff Lee – Cleveland Indians – 9 IP, 2 L, 6 K, 5 BB, 19 HA, 10 ER
What a difference a year makes. Lee is now 4-8 on the year with a 3.45 ERA. He allowed 10 runs in nine innings last week and looks like a shell of last year’s AL Cy Young winner. He has the potential to turn it around, but watch him closely and bench him if necessary.
SP – Cole Hamels – Philadelphia Phillies – 4 IP, 1 L, 1 K, 2 BB, 9 HA, 7 ER
Hamels hasn’t been the same this year. He had a good outing on Monday, but only lasted four innings in his start last week and allowed seven runs in those four innings. He is 5-5 on the year and should be started for his potential to win 15 games, but keep an eye on him just in case.
SP – David Price – Tampa Bay Rays – 1.3 IP, 1 L, 3 K, 5 BB, 3 HA, 6 ER
This one was ugly. Price was chased after just an inning and a third and allowed six runs and walked five. He has tremendous potential, but he’s 2-3 on the year. Watch him closely and then determine whether you have better options.
RP – Takashi Saito – Boston Red Sox – 1.3 IP, 2 L, 1 K, 3 BB, 2 HA, 2 ER
Saito was hit hard last week. He has now allowed three runs in his last two and a third innings and has an ERA of 3.64. He isn’t much of a fantasy option anyway, so if you have him you can go ahead and drop him.
Waiver Wire Wonders
SP – John Smoltz – Boston Red Sox – 4 IP, 0 W, 0 L, 2 K, 1 BB, 3 HA, 1 ER
Heee’s baaack! He still has the same nasty stuff that he had before going on the DL last year, striking out two and only walking one before the rain delay. He had a bad outing on Monday, allowing five runs and 10 hits in six innings.
But he could still be good for eight to ten wins, especially with that lineup behind him. He is only owned in 31.5 percent of ESPN leagues, so go ahead and grab him and enjoy the wins and strikeouts.
OF – Scott Podsednik – Chicago White Sox – .280 BA, 7 H, 3 R, 1 Double, 0 Triples, 0 HR, 1 RBI, 2 BB, 4 K, 1 SB, 2 CS
Scotty Pods is back in a starting role and is producing like the days of old, which is why he is on my list two weeks in a row. He is hitting .311 with 21 RBI and 12 stolen bases for the White Sox. He is only owned in 23.3 percent of ESPN leagues, so he is available if you need some speed or to add some points to your team batting average.
3B/2B – Casey McGehee – Milwaukee Brewers – .370 BA, 10 H, 4 R, 0 Doubles, 1 Triple, 2 HR, 10 RBI, 1 BB, 4 K, 0 SB
Who’s this kid? McGehee has stepped into a starting role in Milwaukee, either playing second or third base and has been hitting well. He has a .343 batting average with six home runs and 27 RBI in just 134 at-bats.
If he keeps hitting this well, he will stay in the lineup, and on my waiver wire wonder list. He is owned in 26.5 percent of ESPN leagues, but is going fast as that is up 14.2 percent from last week.
3B/2B – Martin Prado – Atlanta Braves – .577 BA, 15 H, 8 R, 8 Doubles, 0 Triples, 1 HR, 6 RBI, 3 BB, 0 K, 0 SB
Prado is finally showing he promise that we have been hearing about for years. He is filling in at second base while Kelly Johnson is on the DL and also has third base eligibility. He is hitting .319 on the year with 15 RBI in just 163 at-bats.
Go ahead and pick him up and start him while he’s hot as he is available only being owned in 5.4 percent of ESPN leagues.
SP – Jason Marquis – Colorado Rockies – 9 IP, 1 W, 1 CG, 3 K, 0 BB, 2 HA, 0 ER
Marquis has been the most unlikely fantasy starter this year. He has two straight shutouts and 11 wins on the year. He is 7-2 in his last 10 starts and has two complete games on the season. It’s hard to believe he is only owned in 34 percent of ESPN leagues, so go ahead and grab him and start him while he’s winning.
That’s all for now sports fans. Any questions or concerns, email me at Derek@Sportmeisters.com.
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