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.
My colleague Matt Snyder either has a very tuned in crystal ball or knows more about baseball then the rest of us. In this morning's Roto Rush he spouted off that Brandon Wood would force the Angels to promote him soon.
Poppin' out the box scores and right into your cubicle, the Roto Rush is your double espresso shot of fantasy baseball advice every weekday.
One fantasy baseball question becoming increasingly more prevalent these days is very succinct: Is David Ortiz done? The problem? It's a tough question to answer. What do we actually mean by "done?" Is he ever going to be the guy who hit 54 home runs or the one who drove home 148 runs again? No. Not a chance.
PHOENIX -- The beauty of spring training is watching all the young players and trying to figure out which ones are going to be stars. In the quest to separate the hyped prospects from the ones who are legit, I've been polling scouts in the Cactus League to get some of their impressions.
The players who could make their presence felt in 2009 are after the jump.
Dan Haren has been awful this spring. Adam Jones is raking, as is Chris Shelton. Michael Bourn has been a completely worthless hitter. Of the above players, two have stat-lines that matter, and two have ones that don't.
You see, judging spring training stat-lines in fantasy baseball can be helpful, but you don't want to get too caught up in it. After all, the games are meaningless. Most established veterans are just going through the motions in attempt to get their body ready for the real season. For them, the stat-lines are meaningless. Thus, I don't care that Haren has sucked thus far. I'd still draft him with confidence.
Let's take a deeper look at a when they matter, when they don't, and why.
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... Team about to win about 15 less games this season. Teams in their division have closed the gap on the Angels, who are aging in some spots and not yet developed at others. The biggest factor to consider in fantasy is how many less games their starting pitchers will likely win.
FanHouse continues its 2009 MLB Preview with a look at the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim.
When the Angels acquired Mark Teixeira last July, it was thought by many to be a bold move by a team not content to simply be 10,000 games ahead of the Rangers in the West and cruising toward the playoffs. Teixeira was supposed to be the player that was going to push them past the Red Sox and on to the World Series.
Wondering which young players could have an impact in the majors this year? Let MLB FanHouse guide the way in Better Know a Prospect. In this edition we look at three players from the Angels' system.
With the trade deadline right around the corner, our MLB editor brings you the top five rumors every day until July 31.
- Sometimes with trade rumors, it's just a matter of connecting the dots. The Dodgers have a scout in Tampa Bay for this week's Rays-A's series, and with Los Angeles tied with Arizona atop the NL West, you can bet he isn't there to check out Evan Longoria. Back in Tinseltown, manager Joe Torre announced his intentions to showcase give Andy LaRocheplenty of time at third base over the next few weeks.
Even considering Ned Colletti's apparent antipathy for young players, LaRoche is the one prospect who seems to have been jerked around the most. Oakland GM Billy Beane appears willing to deal just about any of his established big leaguers, and the Dodgers could use help just about everywhere. Reliever Huston Street is the obvious target, but shortstop Bobby Crosby and starting pitcher Justin Duchscherer could also end up on the move. LaRoche would be a more than handsome return for any one of those players.
- Brian Fuentes continues to be the hot commodity on the relief market. According to Tracy Ringolsby of the Rocky Mountain News, scouts from seven different teams have watched Fuentes pitch over the last few days, including almost all of the big boys from the American League. Fuentes gave up five runs in a loss on June 30 and since then has been utterly dominant, striking out 13 and walking none in his last seven appearances. Elsewhere, the Cardinals are reportedly stepping up their interest in Baltimore closer George Sherrill.
Man, there's something about being the top team in the AL West that makes a team have to use it's disabled list a lot more often. I already went over the Athletics' problems with keeping people healthy yesterday, but the injury bug isn't limited to Oakland's city limits.
Nope, it's made it's way down to southern California as well. Invading Anaheim, Orange County, Long Beach, Compton, Los Angeles, and whatever else the Angels are putting in their name these days. After already being without Chone Figgins and Howie Kendrick, it looks as though the Halos are going to have to add Erick Aybar to the disabled list as well.
Los Angeles Angels shortstop Erick Aybar left Tuesday's game against the Toronto Blue Jays in the first inning after dislocating his right pinky while fielding a ground ball.
X-rays on Aybar's hand were negative, but he will visit a specialist on Wednesday to determine the extent of the damage.
The Angels finished the game by moving Maicer Izturis over from third to short, and putting Robb Quinlan at third. They're going to await the results of Erick's trip to the specialist today before making any move official, but I'm guessing that if Aybar has to go on the disabled list, that the Angels will call up Brandon Wood to take his spot on the roster.
Poppin' out the box scores and right into your cubicle, the 
PHOENIX -- The beauty of spring training is watching all the young players and trying to figure out which ones are going to be stars. In the quest to separate the hyped prospects from the ones who are legit, I've been polling scouts in the Cactus League to get some of their impressions.
Fantasy baseball draft season is coming, so you best be prepared by delving through 
Wondering which young players could have an impact in the majors this year? Let MLB FanHouse guide the way in 
With the trade deadline right around the corner, our MLB editor brings you the top five rumors every day until July 31.
Man, there's something about being the top team in the AL West that makes a team have to use it's disabled list a lot more often. I already went over the 
