FanHouse TylerClippard

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

A few weeks ago we discussed the possibility of the Padres promoting 21-year-old phenom Mat Latos. Well, he now has four major league starts under his belt, and, needless to say, he's doing just fine. After a solid outing Monday night, Latos is 3-1 with a 2.66 ERA and a sparkling 0.89 WHIP. He's struck out 16 while only walking 6 in 23 2/3 innings. He's also pitching in one of the best pitcher's parks in baseball.

So, he should be owned in all fantasy leagues, right?

On Deck is The Fanhouse's look at the day's most intriguing matchups

Toronto Blue Jays (24-27) vs. New York Yankees (21-29)-7:07PM Est.

I get the feeling that if the Yankees lose their sixth straight game tonight, heads are going to roll. George Steinbrenner just doesn't strike me as the type of guy who enjoys when his team is in last place. Tyler Clippard makes his third start as a Yankee, and it'll be up to him to save some jobs and possibly gain a few more friends on MySpace. If he doesn't get the job done, A-Rod might need two blondes tonight.

Milwaukee Brewers (29-23) vs. Atlanta Braves (29-23)-1:05PM Est.

Things have been so bad in the NL Central lately, that even though the Brewers lost six of their last seven games, they didn't lose any ground on their division lead. Today they're up against Tim Hudson, and they're catching him at the right time. In his last two starts, Hudson is 0-2 with an 8.74 ERA. The Braves aren't playing their best baseball of the season right now either, and have fallen five games behind the Mets in the NL East.

New York Mets (33-17) vs. San Francisco Giants (24-26)-ESPN2 7:10PM Est.

The Mets have been one of the best teams-and apparently one of the funnest- in baseball all season, and up until the last few games, they'd been doing so without their cleanup hitter. Carlos Delgado has hit four home runs in the last three games, including a walk-off in the 12th inning last night to give the Mets their fourth straight win. Tonight Tom Glavine squares off with Barry Zito, and will look to make it five straight while trying to keep Barry Bonds in his home run drought. Bonds is hitting .329 in his career against Glavine, with four home runs. The last one coming on May 8th of this season.

Tyler Clippard -- who should forever be referred to as "Yankee Clippard" -- has had an interesting and generationally telling influx of support from his friends after his first career win for the Yankees Sunday night. Like so many in our hip little millenial generation, Tyler has received much of his love via his MySpace page, which is currently open and available to the public.

Most of the comments are the standard stuff, some congratulations from some friends and some (usually attractive) ladies. (Nice work, Tyler.) Instead, what's most interesting about this, as Jim Baumbach writes on Newsday, is that this is in many ways a signal of the entry into sports of those who have grown up with the internet as an indispensable communication tool. That's a trend that's not going away, and that's changing the way we access our favorite players teams just as much as the television did in the middle of the 20th century.

Then again, some comments are interesting, especially this one:

hey dude,
thanks for driving the other night, it was good seein ya. ill be back in a week, annnnd the ill be legal to drink and it will be a lot sweeter. ha.
anyway, have a good one in training, see ya next week hopefully.
stefs

Um, yeah. I'm all for the open-air ethic of the internet ... but Tyler might want to consider deleting that sort of thing. Just a suggestion, Yankee Clippard.

The Fanhouse's look at the day's most intriguing matchups

New York Yankees (19-23) vs. Boston Red Sox (30-13)-ESPN 7:05PM Est.

Tyler Clippard may have helped the Yankees salvage at least one win against the Mets on Sunday, but if the Bombers lose to the Red Sox tonight, the tailspin in the Bronx will commence yet again. The Red Sox have beaten the Yankees five times in six chances already this season, and if they continue to do so over the next few days, it could be the death of the Yankees this season. If not just Joe Torre.

Chicago White Sox (21-19) vs. Oakland Athletics (22-21)-8:11PM Est.

There's some good news for White Sox fans tonight. After the Sox offense finally came to life this last weekend against the Cubs, Jim Thome is expected to make his first start since April 27th. Whether or not his presence will be enough to overcome the white hot Crash Davis Jack Cust remains to be seen. Joe Blanton will take his 4-1 record to the mound against Jose Contreras. Contreras is only 3-4 on the season despite a solid 3.64 ERA, which is something he can thank his bullpen for.

Los Angeles Dodgers (25-19) vs. Milwaukee Brewers (27-17)-10:10PM Est.

Both of these teams are looking to shake off their recent struggles. The Dodgers are fresh off being swept by their "crosstown" rival Los Angeles Angels in which they were outscored 19-4. The Brewers meanwhile have watched the Astros and Cubs sneak up on them in the NL Central division thanks to the fact they've lost seven of their last nine. It doesn't look like things will be getting any better in Milwaukee either, as they're 9-22 at Dodger Stadium since joining the National League in 1998.

The Fanhouse's look at the day's most intriguing matchups

Cleveland Indians (25-15) vs. Cincinnati Reds (17-26)-1:05PM Est.

Before yesterday's affair, it seemed pretty clear that Cleveland was in charge of baseball in Ohio, but then the Reds shocked the world with a 10-5 victory. So that means the entire state of Ohio is on the line this afternoon as Aaron Harang takes on Paul Byrd. It won't be easy for the Reds as Paul Byrd is undefeated at home this season, and 3-1 in his career against Cincinnati.

Tampa Bay Devil Rays (18-24) vs. Florida Marlins (20-23)-1:40PM Est.

It's already been decided that the Marlins will win this battle for the state of Florida, as they've won the first two games in this series. The war is not over, though. The Devil Rays would like to salvage at least one game in this series, but they're comforted by the fact that after the baseball events are over, they can still win the shuffle board and Bingo events. Have you ever seen Rocco Baldelli play Bingo? He's a monster with a rubber stamp.

New York Mets (28-14) vs. New York Yankees (18-23)-ESPN 8:05PM Est.

The Mets have already proven that they are the class of New York city, so baseball wise, there's no reason to watch this game. You should watch this game just to see what happens to Tyler Clippard. Who's Tyler Clippard? He's the 89th rookie to start a game for the Yankees this season, and if history has taught us anything, it's that an anvil will fall from the sky and land on his head at some point during the first three innings. Don't you want to be able to say you saw it live?