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THT Fantasy Focus
September 2012
S M T W T F S






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Monday, September 10, 2012

The daily grind: 9-10


The Daily Grind provides daily match-up advice based on my every-morning waiver wire search. I welcome advice to help make this column more effective. Ownership rates are from Yahoo!

The Fanduel picks are a mixture of Daily League specific advice and information for the more typical fantasy owner.


Today's grind


The Fanduel Daily League Players of the Day are:

Pitcher (to start): It feels weird to keep recommending Kyle Kendrick. The Marlins have a dreadful offense, so the match-up is right, but I'm eventually going to get egg on my face.

Opposing Kendrick is Wade LeBlanc, who basically has the same story. He's a low strikeout guy who's performed much better than expected recently.

I like Jarrod Parker, so I'll recommend him against the Angels again.

Pitcher (bum): A few of the Rockies' best relievers will be out today after yesterday's doubleheader. With Alex White on a 75-pitch count, the Giants need only knock him out early and get to the soft underbelly of call-ups.

Usually it brings me much joy to point out when Chris Volstad is starting, but the Astros' lineup is singularly uninspiring. They've scored the fewest runs in baseball, mostly because they hired half their team off the street.

Dallas Keuchel opposes Volstad and you know what? It's kind of the same story. The Cubs are the second most terribad offense.

Hitter (power): John Mayberry Jr. didn't have a big doubleheader, but he's a hot commodity right now and he'll have the platoon advantage tomorrow. He puts up good numbers versus lefties.

Ryan Doumit will face Justin Masterson. He's had some past issues with lefty power hitters although Doumit is hardly Babe Ruth.

Hitter (speed): Have I ever mentioned this guy whose bandwagon I drive? His name is Carlos Gomez and he has the platoon advantage tomorrow.

Ben Revere and Denard Span also face Masterson from the left side. We'll see if they can reach base and swipe a few.

Tomorrow's grind


You have options, but they don't have great match-ups.

First up is Marco Estrada, who will face the curiously productive Braves. I've yet to figure out why that lineup is scoring runs since it's the same bland group of guys as the last two years.

Jhoulys Chacin against the Giants combines one of my favorite waiver guys with a palatable match-up. Unfortunately, that 75-pitch limit really ruins things.

The Angels have some key contributors slumping and Dan Straily will hope that continues tomorrow.























































































































































































































































































































































Team Player Handedness Opposing Pitcher   Team Player Handedness Opposing Pitcher
Athletics         Astros      
  Brandon Moss L TBA     Brett Wallace L Justin Germano
  Seth Smith L TBA     J.D. Martinez R Justin Germano
  Chris Carter R TBA     Jordan Schafer L Justin Germano
  Coco Crisp S TBA   Brewers      
  Jonny Gomes R TBA     Carlos Gomez R Tim Hudson
Blue Jays           Norichika Aoki L Tim Hudson
  Rajai Davis R Erasmo Ramirez   Cardinals      
Rangers           Jon Jay L Edinson Volquez
  David Murphy L Ubaldo Jimenez   Cubs      
Rays           Brett Jackson L Jordan Lyles
  Carlos Pena L Miguel Gonzalez     David DeJesus L Jordan Lyles
Red Sox         Dodgers      
  Cody Ross R Hiroki Kuroda     A.J. Ellis R Ian Kennedy
Royals         Giants      
  Salvador Perez R Scott Diamond     Gregor Blanco L Jhoulys Chacin
  Alcides Escobar R Scott Diamond     Brandon Belt L Jhoulys Chacin
  Lorenzo Cain R Scott Diamond     Angel Pagan S Jhoulys Chacin
Tigers         Padres      
  Brennan Boesch L Jake Peavy     Will Venable L Adam Wainwright
Twins         Phillies      
  Ryan Doumit S Will Smith     Erik Kratz R Nathan Eovaldi
White Sox           Domonic Brown L Nathan Eovaldi
  Jordan Danks L Doug Fister     Nate Schierholtz L Nathan Eovaldi
Yankees           John Mayberry Jr. R Nathan Eovaldi
  Andruw Jones R Jon Lester   Pirates      
            Travis Snider L Mike Leake
            Garrett Jones L Mike Leake
          Reds      
            Zack Cozart R Kevin Correia


I skipped Andruw Jones the last couple times he's shown up, but against Jon Lester he should be a good start.

Garrett Jones is over-owned for this column, but I've seen him in a couple leagues. It's worth noting that Travis Snider would be a good option if he wasn't banged up. So don't pick up Travis Snider for tomorrow.

I half expect Brandon Belt to conclude the season with some solid production. Similar to above, Angel Pagan is owned by too many people, but I forgot to remove him from the table.

I'm going to climb out on my thinnest limb and whisper the name Brett Jackson...

...and then leap down to a sturdier limb and suggest David Murphy.

Reliever watch


Alfredo Aceves is being stretched out to start, so grab Andrew Bailey while you can. I was saying they should do this weeks ago (right around when I noticed Aaron Cook was still taking regular turns).

Addison Reed is kind of imploding down the stretch. With Hector Santiago in the rotation and Matt Thornton overexposed as the ninth inning man, Brett Myers could see the save opportunities down the stretch. Reed still has the makings of an elite reliever long term.

Someone let Heath Bell (cough*Ozzie*) onto the field where he proceeded to cough up the lead. Color me surprised. While you're doing that, describe to me how one colors another surprised. I imagine a heady mix of blues and yellows and reds.

Chris Perez is gurgling about being traded and the Indians ownership will likely oblige. Perez may have a rude awakening when a first-division team uses him as a middle reliever.

Posted by Brad Johnson at 5:42am

This week in (fantasy) baseball, 9/3-9/9


It’s hard enough following one’s own fantasy team without having to keep track of an entire sport’s daily transactions. To assist you, here’s a column dedicated to recapping the most notable trades, signings, promotions, demotions and role changes across the majors over the past week as they relate to fantasy. We'll do this on a weekly basis. If you feel I've missed anything important, please don't hesitate to keep the conversation going in the comments below.

Fantasy infirmary


Nick Markakis fractured his thumb on Saturday, which will torpedo his season at least through the rest of this month.

• It’s official: Stephen Strasburg is done for 2012. The heated controversy behind his shutdown aside, John Lannan (2-0, 3.46 ERA, 4.8 K/9 in two starts) will take his spot in the rotation.

• Speaking of shutdowns, say goodbye to Cubs breakout star Jeff Samardzija, who finished his season on Saturday with a strong complete-game win against the Pirates.

• Considering the Red Sox’s chronic misfortunes this year, it doesn’t sound as if there’s a need to rush back David Ortiz, who’s still suffering from a right Achilles’ strain.

J.A. Happ fractured his right foot and won’t be returning in 2012. Expect the Blue Jays to plug the rotation spot with Brandon Morrow, who last week made his first start since June and pitched six strong innings.

Chad Billingsley is looking at Tommy John surgery after a MRI revealed a partially torn ligament in his right elbow.

• It doesn’t sound as if Franklin Morales will be returning this season due to a sore shoulder.

Other bumps and bruises


Jake Westbrook is suffering from a strained right oblique and will miss at least his next start. As of Sunday, the team did not announce his replacement, though Lance Lynn and Shelby Miller are logical options.

Road to recovery


• Look for Troy Tulowitzki to return to major league action this week after missing more than three months with a left groin injury. When he returns, it sounds as if Josh Rutledge will move over to second base.

Ivan Nova is back from a shoulder injury, but it appears as if he’ll pitch out of the bullpen in the immediate term. He’ll likely return to the starting rotation soon enough, so it comes down to him either bumping Freddy Garcia or David Phelps out of a job (as of Sunday, Phelps looked like the leading candidate to lose his rotation spot).

• The Blue Jays got Brett Lawrie and J.P. Arencibia back last week.

Jason Hammel looked strong in his return from knee surgery last week, pitching into the sixth inning while allowing just one run against the Yankees on Friday.

Starling Marte returned over the weekend from an oblique injury.

• Indians third baseman Lonnie Chisenhall rejoined the team on Sunday after missing two months with a fractured wrist.

Posted by Karl de Vries at 5:03am


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