The Toronto Blue
Jays have three legitimate #2 fantasy starters in their rotation, plus a fourth
who could be. They have put together some excellent numbers individually to
make this a great rotation. Take a look at the numbers:
Is it any wonder
they’ve been throwing shutouts at such a rapid fire pace? All have strikeout
rates above the coveted 6.0; three of them have rates above seven. All except
Burnett — who has had a rough stretch to start the year — have K/BB rates above
the 2:1 rate. McGowan’s WHIP was inflated by a seven walk performance against
Boston, but since then he’s walked just one and allowed just one earned run.
Over Litsch’s last two starts he hasn’t allowed a walk and has allowed just
three earned runs.
The scariest
part about this rotation can be found in the second column. None of these
pitchers are older than 31, and the three of them are under 27 years old.
Compare that to teams in their division who are relying on guys like Mussina,
Wakefield, Pettitte, and possibly Schilling and you have to love their future.
Elsewhere...
* Once written off for the bench — at
least by me — Juan Pierre has had a
nice rebound. He’s hitting .316 and has an OBP of .388 to go with 11 steals. If
this production continues, the still pathetic Andruw Jones (.162/.273/.248) should sit. However, Joe Torre has
been reluctant to sit Jones so it may be Andre
Ethier who sees more pine.
* Lance
Berkman’s monster
season continued last night as he went 5-for-5 with two doubles and four runs.
His numbers for the season are even more impressive — .353/.428/.731, 10 HR, 32
RBI, 6 SB.
* After a couple less than stellar
performances, Gavin Floyd picked up
another win. He went 8.1 innings and allowed zero earned runs. Despite his 2.50
ERA and 0.96 WHIP, his K/BB rate of almost one is concerning. If you have him
you might want to try to sell high on him.
* Mark
Kotsay went 2-for-4
and homered for the second consecutive game. He now has hit in seven straight
and his average is over .300. That said, he’s still not ownable in fantasy
unless he keeps this up for a while since he generally doesn’t hit for power or
steal bases.
* This spring many said Fausto Carmona wouldn’t be able to
repeat last year’s sensational season because of his low strikeout rate (5.73).
This year that rate is even lower (3.38) but his ERA is still a very good 2.95.
At this point, it has to be smoke and mirrors. He’s walked over twice as many
as he’s struck out and his WHIP is 1.79. He’s due for a big ERA spike.
* Barry
Zito is heading
back to the rotation. After having a couple weeks in the bullpen — a bullpen he
never left to enter a game — the Giants have decided it’s no place for a $126
million man. Not really that surprising. They have to be hoping the time off
cleared his head and will allow him to be more effective. I doubt it added any
more heat to his fastball though.
* In his second rehab start yesterday,
Rich Harden struck out nine over six
scoreless innings. He could start as early as Sunday for the A’s. If you own
him and he throws a couple good games try to trade him before he gets injured
again.
* Kei
Igawa will get his
first start of the season on Friday against Detroit. He was awful last year and
facing the vaunted Tiger offense won’t help him get off to a good start this
year.
* Curt
Schilling threw on
flat ground yesterday but does not have a mound session scheduled yet. He will
probably be back sometime after the All-Star break, but no certain timetable
has been set.
QuickTIPS
Spot-start
candidates:
Jeff Francis
vs. St. Louis. Francis has a 4-1 record and a 2.28 ERA in 43.1 IP against the
Cards.
Avoid:
Joe Blanton
vs. Baltimore. Blanton has a 5.46 ERA in 29.2 career IP against the O’s.
Brad Penny
vs. NY. Penny is 5-11 with a 5.66 ERA in 111.1 IP against the Mets.
QuickTIP Results
I said start:
Adam Eaton
- L, 4 IP, 6 ER, 5 H, 3 BB, 1 K
I said avoid:
Andy Pettitte
- ND, 6.1 IP, 2 ER, 5 H, 1 BB, 6 K
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