The Cubs continue to make minor tweaks to their roster as they cling to relevancy in the NL Central race. After recalling Kevin Hart and Sam Fuld in the past few days, relief pitcher Jeff Samardzija was brought back to the big leagues Tuesday. He'll replace Jose Ascanio in the bullpen.
Samardzija, the highly popular pitcher who once played wide receiver for Notre Dame's football team, came onto the scene with a solid rookie season in 2008. He worked 26 times and compiled a 2.28 ERA. Earlier this year, though, Samardzija had a rough go at the major league level. In five outings, his ERA was a large 8.10.
Poppin' out the box scores and right into your cubicle, the Roto Rush is your double espresso shot of fantasy baseball advice every weekday. Ben Zobrist has transformed from a run-of-the-mill slap hitter into one of the most powerful middle infielders in baseball. Right when you thought he might be cooling off, SMASH! -- a grand slam against Kansas City for his 10th home run of the year. He's slugging .659 with a 1.073 OPS for crying out loud. And he's somehow still available in over 35 percent of mixed leagues. So the question becomes: Is it time for you to believe in the man Joe Maddon nicknamed "Zorilla" or will his power eventually fade just like Marco Scutaro's did?
Rookie Randy Wells, right, held the Braves hitless for 6 2/3 innings and took a 5-0 lead into the eighth inning.
It got a little dicey after that, but with one out in the bottom of the ninth, Chicago was up 5-3 with no one on base. Then Kevin Gregg (5.24 ERA) struck out Garret Anderson -- except the third strike got past catcher Geovany Soto and to the backstop, so Anderson reached first. And two batters later, Jeff Francoeur hit his first homer since May 1 to tie the game.
It's always nice to know how secure a closer's job is and who's next in line if somebody loses their 9th inning job. The Closer Report will give you that info. And if that wasn't good enough, we'll rank the closers from top to bottom.
As you'll see, Heath Bell has taken over the top spot on this edition of The Closer Report. A few big-name, top-of-the-charts closers from years past have fallen off quite a bit. How weird is it to see Brad Lidge near the bottom of the closer rankings and Joe Nathan stuck in the middle?
From the Windup is Matt Snyder's extended look at some aspect of America's pastime each Thursday.
With the recent news that Mark DeRosa is on the trade block and the White Sox have possibly landed Jake Peavy, junkies of major league baseball trade rumors got an early glimpse at what promises to be a very interesting July. It's far to0 early to know exactly who will be in the market for what -- or who can afford to take on temporary payroll in this economy -- but it's certainly fun to speculate. Let's do it.
Through the first 36 games of the season, it's been quite the bumpy ride for the Cubs. They've gone through as much adversity as they faced during the entire 97-win campaign that was the 2008 regular season. There have been myriad injuries, a suspension, many players suffering through extended slumps, excessive booing by the fans, bullpen meltdowns, and a much, much tougher division.
And yet, Lou Piniella's troops are 21-15. You know what their record was after 36 games in 2008? An identical 21-15.
Poppin' out the box scores and right into your cubicle, the Roto Rush is your double espresso shot of fantasy baseball advice every weekday.
He's only 21 years old. He's only 21 years old. Whenever you get frustrated that your future fantasy stud is struggling, it's important to take a breather and repeat those words. When I was 21, I think I spent my Wednesday nights playing Counter-Strike and eating bad pizza. Justin Upton, on the other hand, has to deal with expectations that he's the next Willie Mays. Whatever happened to the 27-year-old "breakout" rule? Suddenly it's six years younger?
It's always nice to know how secure a closer's job is and who's next in line if somebody loses their 9th inning job. Each week The Closer Report will give you that information. And if that wasn't good enough we'll rank the closers from top to bottom.
Here's an interesting statistic. Somewhere between 30 percent and 40 percent of the closers who are listed as the the team's official closer will not be in that role by the end of the season. It's the case every year. Whether a closer loses his job due to injury or just plain can't get the job done, you're going to learn that you can find saves on the waiver wire throughout the season. You just have to know where to look.
I always love good redemption stories and the surprises they bring for fantasy owners. But through just one week of the season, looks can be deceiving ... or hints of something entirely palpable. The dilemma with rotisserie league outcasts like Bedard and Hafner is you're dealing with this nagging birdie in the back of your mind telling you this can't be real.
From time to time this season, we'll be checking in with some analysis of how fantasy relevant players actually look during the games, and try to ascertain what it might mean moving forward. These are going to include things you won't be able to find unless you watched the games, because there is only so much a stat sheet can tell you.
First up, the entire Chicago Cubs team. Why? Well, because there aren't many teams with more fantasy relevant players -- and they are my favorite team, so I've seen every pitch thus far.
The Cubs continue to make minor tweaks to their roster as they cling to relevancy in the NL Central race. After recalling Kevin Hart and Sam Fuld in the past few days, relief pitcher Jeff Samardzija was brought back to the big leagues Tuesday. He'll replace Jose Ascanio in the bullpen. 
Poppin' out the box scores and right into your cubicle, the 
Starting Five
Poppin' out the box scores and right into your cubicle, the 
It's always nice to know how secure a closer's job is and who's next in line if somebody loses their 9th inning job. Each week 
From time to time this season, we'll be checking in with some analysis of how fantasy relevant players actually look during the games, and try to ascertain what it might mean moving forward. These are going to include things you won't be able to find unless you watched the games, because there is only so much a stat sheet can tell you. 
