FanHouse JoeCrede

Poppin' out the box scores and right into your cubicle, the Roto Rush is your double espresso shot of fantasy baseball advice every weekday.

Oh what a difference a month makes. Josh Beckett's ERA in April stood at 7.22, including a two-game span where he was shellacked for 15 runs. Since then he's hurled five straight quality starts and posted a 2.38 ERA in May. His ERA is now 4.60 and his WHIP is 1.47, both of which fail to indicate his true current value. Often, like in Beckett's case, you can only get an accurate gauge by looking at what a player's done lately instead of viewing overall stats.

Athletics third baseman Eric Chavez has missed a lot of games over the last few years because of his back and shoulder injuries. Chavez played in only 90 games back in 2007, and 23 games last season. This year he's appeared in eight games and has three hits in 30 at-bats thanks to his balky back. Now it seems that his back may be keeping him off the baseball diamond for the rest of his life.

At this point Chavez is basically playing Russian roulette with it. Sure, he didn't blow his head off with the first pull of the trigger, but the odds are increasing with every shot, dive, swing, lifted piece of luggage or sneeze he makes that his career will be dead soon.

Starting Five is our wrapup of the previous day's baseball action, with a quick nod to what is ahead.

You Oughta Know ...
That Friday night was not a good time to leave a game early.

There were three walk-off wins – by the Rays, Yankees and Braves – and three other games decided in the visitors' final-at bat.

Tampa Bay overcame a seven-run deficit and beat Cleveland 8-7 on B.J. Upton's homer in the ninth. The Yankees scored three off Twins closer Joe Nathan in the ninth to win 5-4. And Atlanta allowed Arizona to tie the game in the top of the ninth and then won the game in the bottom of the inning on Yunel Escobar's sacrifice fly.

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Twins third baseman Joe Crede will be returning to the South Side of Chicago this weekend to take on his former teammates with the White Sox. Crede was somewhat of a cult figure in Chicago for years thanks to his brilliant defense and knack for coming up with big hits late in games, not to mention his run through the playoffs in 2005 that helped lead the White Sox to a World Series championship.

Now just because Crede left Chicago for the Twins, the White Sox's biggest rival, that doesn't mean his old team holds any ill will towards their former teammate. In fact, most players on the team still love him but that doesn't mean they don't have some fun in store for him while he's in Chicago.

Fantasy baseball draft season is coming, so you best be prepared by delving through every major player on each team. Fantasy FanHouse is here to help with a quick once-over.

Meet the...

Absolute best team in baseball that you've never heard of. The Twins don't spend a lot of money nor do they make a lot of headlines. What they are good at, however, is winning. The Twins won the American League Central Division every year from 2002 to 2004 and again in 2006. In 2007 they finished third in the division and in 2008 they lost a one-game playoff to just miss the post season. This team wins with a small-ball, almost National League feel or approach.

FanHouse continues its 2009 MLB Preview with a look at the Minnesota Twins.

Last year was supposed to be the season in which the Minnesota Twins finally had to deal with reality. They traded Johan Santana to the Mets because they couldn't afford him any longer, and the heart and soul of the team, Torii Hunter, left for the glitz and glamor of Los Angeles. Then the Twins went out and won 88 games and were one run shy of making the playoffs after losing to the White Sox in a one-game playoff for the Central title. This is just what the Twins do. They defy everyone's expectations but their own, and odds are they're going to do it again this season.

FanHouse continues its 2009 MLB Preview with a look at the Chicago White Sox.

The expectations for the Chicago White Sox weren't very high in 2008. The team was coming off of a dismal 72-90 performance in 2007, following up two consecutive 90-win seasons and they'd lost perhaps their most consistent starter in Jon Garland in a trade for Orlando Cabrera. They also acquired Nick Swisher from the Oakland Athletics, hoping he would be the glue that held the team together.

From now until the regular season begins, Fantasy Flings is where you'll find interesting story lines about your favorite teams from Spring Training. If there is a position battle, a nagging injury, a comeback story or a youngster making a surge for the "big club" we'll let you know the fantasy implications.

Chicago White Sox
The buzz around White Sox camp is position battles. Up for grabs is the third base position, center field and second base. Josh Fields and Dayan Viciedo are fighting for third and Fields has the leg up. Both hitters can mash the ball and both play suspect defense; although Fields is improving. Fields worked extensively this off-season at Camp Cora and Cora mentioned that everyone would be shocked with what they see out of Fields this year. He has three hits in six at-bats with two doubles so far this spring. Jayson Nix and his four hits in six at-bats with two doubles seem to be taking over as front-runner for the second base job thought to belong to Chris Getz. DeWayne Wise is being called the "best player this spring" and may be taking the center field job from injured Jerry Owens.

After what seemed like an entire winter of speculation, Joe Crede has finally agreed to a one-year deal with the Minnesota Twins today. La Velle Neal is reporting that it's worth about $2.5 million with a ton of incentives that could push the deal as high as $7 million for Crede.

If you're keeping track at home, that means that Crede's base salary is about half of what he made last year and it's even less than what Ty Wigginton, who's a pretty good comp for Crede, is pulling in in Baltimore, though the incentives can push him higher than both numbers. That makes this a pretty solid deal for both Minnesota, who needs a third baseman, and and Crede, who was surely hoping for a bigger base salary but at least has a chance to make it on the field.

Former White Sox third baseman Joe Crede is one of about 3,000 baseball players who are currently out of work with pitchers and catchers slated to report to camp by the end of the week. Of course, unlike other players like Manny Ramirez, Adam Dunn, and even Orlando Hudson, Crede's lack of a new contract isn't that much of a surprise.

After all, he's missed quite a bit of time over the last two seasons thanks to recurring issues with his back, and back trouble doesn't just go away overnight, so teams are concerned about it. Which is probably why it's not a good idea for Crede to be asking for $7 million to play in 2009.