FanHouse TimStauffer

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

The ugly pitching line from Monday night shouldn't have been a huge shock to Jarrod Washburn fantasy owners. He went 5 2/3 innings, giving up 9 hits, 8 earned runs, 3 walks and 2 home runs. He struck out just 2. While it was his worst outing for the Tigers, he's been flat-out awful in Motown since he was acquired at the trade deadline. Sure, there was an 8-inning gem where he didn't allow a run. He also mixed in a quality start last time out for his first win in Detroit. Other than that, it's been horrifying.

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

Many times when fantasy owners wait patiently on a potential star to be promoted to the majors, they have to deal with disappointment initially before the payoff finally comes. Take Adam Lind and Felix Hernandez as a few guys who didn't start to fulfill their potential until this year. Sometimes, though, you get a Ryan Braun, Evan Longoria or Tim Lincecum, who immediately start paying dividends. The latest? Braves' 22-year-old phenom hurler Tommy Hanson.

As Mr. Brown alluded to on Wednesday, the Padres have made it official, and placed Chris Young on the disabled list.

The San Diego Padres placed major league ERA leader Chris Young on the disabled list Saturday and called up Tim Stauffer from Triple-A Portland to start Sunday in Houston.

Young left the Padres' game against the Colorado Rockies on Tuesday with a strained oblique muscle. The 28-year-old Young leads the major leagues with a 1.82 ERA.

It's never good to lose the guy with the lowest ERA in baseball. It's even worse when you're in the middle of a division race. The Padres find themselves in third place, 1.5 games behind both the Diamondbacks and Dodgers. Losing Chris Young can cost them a game or two.

Young's replacement, Tim Stauffer, made 15 starts for the Padres in 2005, but only one last season. Stauffer struggled in 14 starts in 2005, but nobody's expecting him to be Chris Young. Just give the team some innings, and keep them in the game.

Though if the Padres keep scoring 11 runs in the first inning every game, I don't think it will matter how he pitches.

Previously at FanHouse:
Chris Young Could Miss a Start or Hit DL With Oblique Injury

If you thought his 12.21 ERA through his first three starts of the year were bad...you were right. But Hensley got even worse news after leaving Wednesday night's game against the Nationals in the third inning with a strained groin.

"It doesn't look good," manager Bud Black said
...
"It looks as if it is going to be a disabled list injury . . . this could be longer (than 15 days). We'll know in a couple of days after an MRI is taken."

The problem, aside from the injury, is finding someone to replace Hensley in the rotation. The likely candidate is triple-A pitcher Justin Germano, who's spent time with the Padres previously, and was claimed off waivers from Philadelphia in spring training. The other three top candidates either are struggling in the minors (Mike Thompson and Tim Stauffer) or out for the season with injury (Cesar Carillo). Another logical fit is former Padre pitcher Brian Lawrence, who was cut by the Rockies recently, and could make his way to San Diego.

This might not seem like a hit to the Padres, but it is. Hensley won 11 games last year and sported a 3.71 ERA in 29 starts, and he had made back-to-back quality starts prior to injuring his groin Wednesday night. San Diego can only hope Hensley won't be out for long.