FanHouse Fantasy Mlb

As Watson noted earlier, there has been a fairly decent seismic shift in the National League Arms Race, what with the Cubs acquiring Rich Harden only 24 hours after the Brewers picked up CC Sabathia. And just like it affects real baseball, the trade does some things for fantasy owners as well. So, why not look at the four biggest names in the trade?

Rich Harden, SP -- I've said it once, and I'll say it again: sell high on Harden. Billy Beane rarely gets suckered and this deal kind of looks like one of those times, no? Which makes me think "ruh-roh" with regard to Harden's health. Especially when you remember that during his next to last start in an Oakland uni, he was barely topping 90 mph. But his move to one of the most offensively potent teams and a World Series contender should boost his value in theory, making him a prime sell.

New Studs on the Block takes a look at players ready to make the leap from "possibly productive fantasy player" to "must-have fantasy stud." This is not a "you've never heard of this dude, but ... " series -- these should be names you already know.

Today I wanna proclaim the following three young pitchers are going to be absolute fantasy monsters by the end of the season, if you don't consider them to meet said criteria already ... basically what I'm saying is that you should never consider benching the following in any fantasy league. I'm that psyched for the potential of these boys.

Brandon Morrow, RP, Mariners
I already wrote about his menacing presence on the hill and beastly potential as a closer. Since that entry, he's been out of his freaking mind, though. I didn't even imagine this. In nine appearances he's closed all six of his save chances, while striking out 12 in 9 2/3 innings. That's not even the best part. Seriously. He's faced 31 hitters, and only two have reached base. One walk, one hit. That's it. Neither dude scored, either. He's allowing a .098 OPS as closer! That's gross. Yes, I'm aware the Mariners suck big-time. Common sense dictates that when a bad team wins it's generally gonna be a close game and the wins are rare enough that the closer won't get overworked. He can still pile up saves. And he'll continue to do so.

What's more popular than stupid baseball injuries? Nothing, really, unless you count baseballs to the groin, which aren't really enjoyable. Add Troy Tulowitzki to the list of players who have hurt themselves doing something stupid, as the Colorado Rockies shortstop is headed to the disabled list after hurting his hand while slamming a baseball bat in frustration.

After being taken out in the seventh inning as part of a double switch, Tulowitzki walked down to the dugout hallway and smashed a bat to the ground in frustration. The bat cracked in his right hand, causing a laceration that stretched from his palm to his index finger.

"I'm obviously sorry to my teammates because I feel like I'm letting them down more than anything, [and] the organization," Tulowitzki said. "Hopefully, it's not too long before I'm back out there, but it's hard to take."

Doh. That's why ... you never slam a baseball bat to the ground in frustration. They are, after all, still made of deadly, sharp and splinterable wood. And yes, palm --> index finger laceration does not sound particularly enjoyable either.

Tulo's injury kind of sums up the Rockies season pretty well though. Chock full of potential and expectations, only to be painfully overhyped once we realized what was going on.

Fantasy Spin: Tulo will hopefully only be out for a few weeks, but this kind of laceration seems like the type of thing that could end up really bugging him down the stretch, given that "hand" is one of those things that is generally considered useful when fielding a baseball and/or batting.

Cheap Yard Work helps you pick out likely free agents in your league that have been raking over the past week.

Andre Ethier, Dodgers, OF
7 day stats: .357/.400/.821, 3 HR, 6 RBI, 8 R, 4 2B
Wow, he's never hit for much power, but he's upped his season total to ten. Strike while the iron is hot, as he will stay in the middle of the Dodgers lineup and continue to get the RBI opportunities.

Ryan Spillborghs, Rocks, OF
7 day stats: .421/.500/.895, 2 HR, 5 RBI, 8 R, SB, 3 2B
The 2-HR game was a mirage, but he did hit 11 last year in only 264 at-bats. In fact, all he's ever done with regular ABs is produce. His career OBP is .371, so the odds are good that the Rockies leave him atop the lineup for an extended stay. He'll steal bases and score runs without hurting your average and drop in occasional power stats. A very solid pickup right now in most leagues.

Cody Ross, Marlins, OF
7 day stats: .482/.517/.704, HR, 10 RBI, 7 R, 3 2B
Okay, so Coors Field inflated the stat line a bit ... he's still got 14 total bombs this season, and that bears watching in nearly every fantasy league at the midway point.

Elijah Dukes, Nats, OF
He's on fire ... NOOOOOOO!!!! He's out for four to six weeks. Right in the middle of a hot streak. That sucks.

Specific lineup questions? Hit us up via email.

Spot Jobs gambles by picking five spot starters for the week and five usual starters to avoid. The success rate is usually around 50%, but the risk level is always through the roof. Obviously, though, you always start Brandon Webb (when healthy) and sit Dave Bush.

Five Up

Josh Johnson, Marlins, @SD -- It's been a long time since Johnson pitched in the majors. He will again this week, though. Back in 2006 Johnson compiled a 3.10 ERA and 1.30 WHIP to go with his 12-7 record. He also punched out 133 hitters in 157 innings. This week he gets to re-join his Marlins teammates in the pitcher's paradise that is Dodger Stadium.

Justin Verlander, Tigers, vs. Tribe -- He's been a colossal disappointment this year, but he's starting to turn the corner just as the offense has awakened ... and the Indians can't hit.

Jeremy Guthrie, O's, @ Toronto -- He's maddeningly inconsistent, but is dazzling when he's on, which means you have to play matchups. The Jays are towards the bottom in most AL offensive categories, so this one fits the bill.

Jo-Jo Reyes, Braves, @ SD -- Talented, young pitcher looking for his way? Enter spacious Petco Park and the Padres putrid offense (Adrian Gozalez excepted, obviously).

Sean Marshall, Cubs, vs. Giants -- Cubs like to play at home. Giants hit .265 on the road. Marshall just dealt against the Cards on the road. All signs point to "yes" here.

The Brewers apparently don't feel content walking down the Cubs in regular fashion (they are only 3 1/2 games back) and have instead decided, according to Tom Haudricourt's Brewers Blog at the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel, to trade for C.C. Sabathia.

I just was told by a reliable club source that the Brewers have a deal in place with Cleveland for left-hander C.C. Sabathia, contingent on the paperwork being done and medical records exchanged.

But believe me, folks, that's a deal. All that other stuff is formality.

All I know so far is that top prospect Matt LaPorta is in the deal. I was told two lower-level minor leaguers also are included. The Brewers refused to include another top prospect such as Alcides Escobar or Mat Gamel.

Obviously this is huge news; Sabathia has been the primary name mentioned in all major trade talks over the past few months. Word had not-so-quietly leaked that the Indians were willing to concede this season in the AL Central and look to acquire young talent in exchange for the free agent to be. LaPorta fills that need as he ranks at the top of the Brewers farm system and could be an impact player in Cleveland in the near future. More details as the facts surrounding the trade get released.

It seems like Jeff Francoeur has been in the majors longer than three years. And it also seems like he was supposed to find his swing and really break out this year. While the first one is still technically true, there's no guarantee for how long, as apparently the Braves confirmed Wednesday that they have debated sending Frenchy to the minors to work on his swing.

One primary reason that the Braves haven't shipped Francoeur back to the Minors is the potential backlash they might receive from their fans, who have remained faithful to No. 7, despite the fact that he entered Wednesday night's game against the Phillies hitting just .239 with a .294 on-base percentage and .383 slugging percentage.

[...]Even before he homered in his Major League debut on July 7, 2005, Francoeur was a favorite among Braves fans. Growing up in suburban Atlanta, he was named the high school Player of the Year for Georgia in both football and baseball.

"This is really the first time he's ever struggled," said Braves All-Star catcher Brian McCann, who has been Francouer's best friend since they were 12 years old.

Francoeur has struggled mightily this season, hitting .234/.291/.379 with only eight homers and 20 walks. But, as Philly proved by sending Brett Myers down to AAA, sometimes the most awkward move is the one necessary to jumpstart a player.

But do I actually think they'll send Frenchy down there? No way. Popularity aside, the guy's confidence won't be helped by a demotion, and the Braves need his gascan arm sitting out in right field. Of course, I might be delusional, since I think the freeswinger will turn it around and have a monster second half too.

The injuries seemed like they were maybe, possibly, kind of taking a turn for the better for the Los Angeles Dodgers. Then they got the brutal news early Thursday that leadoff hitter and sparkplug of the offense Rafael Furcal will miss another eight weeks after undergoing back surgery.

Manager Joe Torre would not concede that Furcal will be lost for the rest of the season, but neither did he say he's holding his breath awaiting Furcal's return.

"From all the numbers I've heard, he'll probably miss a minimum of eight weeks," said Torre, meaning a return of September at the earliest.

That's probably overly optimistic. Watkins performed a similar procedure in 2002 on Dodgers pitcher Kevin Brown, whose disc was badly ruptured. Brown rushed back after two months, but quickly had to shut it down because he was not fully healed. Reliever Eric Gagne underwent a similar operation by Watkins at St. Vincent's Hospital on July 8, 2006. Like Brown, Gagne was also trying to return from elbow woes at the time and did not pitch again that season.

Like I mentioned the other day (link above), I'll believe it when I see it regarding recovery. Eight weeks is still a looooong time anyway and the odds that Furcal will be completely healthy by the beginning of September is possible but as soon as KB and EG's names get tossed around, I get a little skeptical.

And no, the "would not concede" line does not help anything either.

Fantasy Spin: I'm heading to drop him in a 12 team league right now (non-keeper) and grab someone that can help me now. Bear in mind though, that this is a head-to-head league, so not only will I be able to grab him later, but the loss of steals isn't permanent, so to speak. Still, I think he's done.

It would be hard to blame uber-prospect Clayton Kershaw for getting upset at his demotion back to the minor leagues; he has pitched well thus far, despite not getting any run support from the Dodgers. I actually watched him last night and the 12-6 he froze Hunter Pence on in the fifth after dialing up 96 the pitch before was a perfect example of his potential to dominate.

But the Dodgers have more than just watching a youngster unleash nasty deuce-balls, and he understands that.

It's disappointing, but it's a business," he said. "I'm going to Jacksonville to keep pitching like I'm supposed to. I didn't expect it. Right now, I'm just disappointed."

Well, of course he's disappointed. (So am I, for the record.) Kershaw has pitched very well at times, while at others looking very much like a rookie, but what did the Dodgers expect? The biggest issue with PE#1 was his control: he only walked one or less batters once, during his first start of the season.

Additionally, tossing under a fairly rigid pitch count didn't help matters, as Kershaw never got to really extend past 90 pitches, much less five innings. His last start was arguably his best of the season but LA still couldn't hold on for the win and Clayton remains 0-2 so far in his MLB career.

Fantasy Spin: He's still a virtual lock to land back in the majors at some point, it's just a matter of where the Dodgers are in the pennant race when they decide to bring him back up. Also, if injuries continue to strike, there's a good chance he won't stay in Jacksonville that long. He's a must have in keeper leagues, but seasonal leagues, particularly smaller ones, can drop him and just keep an eye out.

Cheap Yard Work helps you pick out likely free agents in your league that have been raking over the past week.

Adam Lind, Jays, OF
7 day stats: .250/.304/.550, 2 HR, 5 RBI
I've been high on Lind for a while. As a 22 year-old in 2006 he hit .330 with 24 bombs and 89 RBI in 125 minor league games. So that's why. He only hit .238 in 290 at-bats with the big club last year during his first extended big league stay, and he was atrocious earlier this season for a short stint before being promptly returned to the farm. Still, he's only 24 and has done nothing but mash in the minors. One of these times he's going to stick and be a productive major leaguer. For right now ... he didn't even have a huge week, but he still would have been helpful in most leagues with those stats. Plus, the Jays are going through a transition period with the new manager and all. They currently sit in last and I can't reasonably think they'll finish higher than fourth. Why not let him play into big league form at this age?

If you have the room to add him, you might as well try.