When does a good start become a good season? When do we finally accept that the 2011 Kansas City Royals might be a pretty good ballclub?
Super rookie Eric Hosmer(notes) had the starring role Thursday, collecting three hits including his second homer in two days. Here am I now, entertain me. Hosmer is off to a .333/.444/.714 start in the show (four runs, five RBIs, one steal), but not all fantasy players have bought in — he's owned in just 46 percent of Yahoo! leagues. I realize Hosmer is long gone in more-competitive groups, but even the shallow-league mixers need to get on board. This is a player who can hit for average and power, run and defend, work the count. This could be this year's Buster Posey(notes).
No one has delusions of grandeur with journeyman outfielders Jeff Francoeur(notes) and Melky Cabrera(notes), but you can't argue with the numbers — Frenchy is currently the No. 9 outfielder in the Yahoo! game, while Cabrera checks in at No. 12. It's probably too late to get in on Francoeur (84 percent owned), but Cabrera is available in half of Y! pools and he's offering a wide collection of stats (.280-26-5-24-4).
Both of these guys are getting away with a "see the ball, hit the ball" approach at the dish — they have nine walks each — and you don't want to get season-committed on either player. But this deep into the season, production like this shouldn't be ignored. See if you can find a roster spot for The Melk Man.
Wilson Betemit(notes) (21 percent) is another potential add if you're looking for a KC interest. He's off to a .317 start with three sneaky steals, though he hasn't maintained last year's power numbers. It's a little frustrating to see Betemit locked at third this year — we were hoping he'd slide over to second or short now and then and pick up Swiss Army Knife status. Perhaps that's coming down the road. Eventually the hot corner is going to belong to hot prospect Mike Moustakas(notes), but that's not going to start tomorrow. Moose is off to an ordinary .260/.338/.455 start with Triple-A Omaha.
We'll get a good litmus test on the Royals over the next 10 days. They'll face Justin Verlander(notes) on Friday and Max Scherzer(notes) on Sunday, two of the best starters in the AL. And next week they're up against three interesting opponents: the surprising Indians, the formidable Rangers, and the resilient Cardinals. Pinocchio, time to show you're a real boy.
• If you're a fan of the rehabbing Phillies, Clearwater, Florida was the place to be on Thursday night with three big names getting some work in. Roy Oswalt(notes) (back) pitched five innings in a rehab start, allowing three runs and striking out five. His fastball was mostly in the 88-90 range, a little troublesome given that he's normally around 93. Oswalt is penciled in to return Tuesday at St. Louis, but I'd give him a get-back start before you plug him into your lineup.
Carlos Ruiz's(notes) back apparently isn't a problem — he went 1-for-3 and will be activated on schedule Friday. Chase Utley(notes) also passed the eye test (good to see he can still hit Single-A pitching), going 1-for-2 with a homer and playing five innings at second. Utley will get another game in Friday, though he notes that "I have to be able to play nine innings before I get up to the big leagues." There's no specific timetable on his return yet.• Pass in your key card and your parking pass, Brandon League(notes). You're no longer in the circle of trust. League's picked up three messy losses in five days, with the latest coming at Baltimore on Thursday (2 H, 2 R, 2 HBP, one out recorded). League apologists can point to a few positives: he didn't have a blown save until this week; there's a tidy K/BB rate in place; David Aardsma(notes) won't be returning anytime soon; the Mariners don't have great bullpen depth to challenge League (the well-traveled Jamey Wright(notes) is the primary holds guy right now; David Pauley(notes) has a pretty ERA but a mediocre strikeout rate). But most big-league managers have a short leash when it comes to the ninth inning, so League needs to get back in form quickly, else he's just begging Eric Wedge to look at other options.
Baltimore's Zach Britton(notes) had to settle for a no-decision despite nine masterful bagels (3 H, 0 BB, 5 K; Jason Vargas(notes) matched him on the other side). I know the strikeouts are light with the Baltimore rookie and there's a suspiciously-low BABIP, but I'm a believer anyway. Britton is getting ground balls 54 percent of the time, he's always around the plate, and no one's making consistent contact against him (13.4 LD rate). You might steer Britton away from Tuesday's start in Fenway Park, but definitely use him on the weekend against Washington.
• Slowly but surely, Jordan Zimmermann(notes) is starting to put it together. He had his third straight quality start Thursday but had to settle for a no-decision against Atlanta (6.1 IP, 5 H, 3 R, 2 BB, 11 K); he's got 21 whiffs over his last 18.1 innings. Zimmermann's swinging-strike percentage is still under the league average, but he got 11 of them last night and certainly has the arsenal that should translate to future dominance (93 mph heater, 86 mph slider). To fully realize his potential, he might need to make something work with his ordinary curveball and rarely-used change. Zimmermann is owned in less than half of Yahoo! pools; kick the tires on him against Pittsburgh next week.
• Jaime Garcia(notes) scattered nine hits en route to a solid victory at Chicago (7 IP, 1 R, 1 BB, 4 K). So many things are in the right place with Garcia: he's getting ground balls 55 percent of the time, he's pushed his strikeout rate up to 8.25, his control has improved, and he's got four decent pitches to throw at opposing batters (and everything moves, everything darts). Mitchell Boggs(notes) and Fernando Salas(notes) mopped up Thursday, working a perfect inning of relief each.
Speed Round: The Mets had a good laugh in the series finale at Coors. Carlos Beltran clobbered three home runs (he's up to .295 with eight jacks), while Jason Bay stole a couple of bases. Ubaldo Jimenez never found his release point and was a mess, walking six batters in 3.2 spotty innings. … J.J. Hardy(notes) was moved up to seventh on Thursday and he had two hits, including the walk-off single against League. … Nick Markakis(notes) can't seem to get going; it was an 0-for-5 day for Nick the Stick, with two GIDPs. … Mother Nature wiped out the Dodgers and Pirates; it's been the Year of the Rainout, hasn't it? … Matt Cain(notes) had a typical under-the-radar start, going 7.2 strong innings en route to a win over Arizona (7.2 IP, 7 H, 2 R, 1 BB, 7 K). The Giants got enough offense despite Miguel Tejada(notes) (0-for-4) and Mark DeRosa(notes) (0-for-3); look for Mike Fontenot(notes) to probably get back into Friday's lineup. … The Rays had a balanced offense in Thursday's 7-4 victory over Justin Masterson(notes) and the Tribe. Matt Joyce's(notes) music keeps playing; he had a hit and two walks, scoring two runs. … Jason Heyward(notes) got good news on Thursday; an MRI on his shoulder revealed no structural damage, only inflammation. He had a cortisone shot in the shoulder and might be back in a few days. … Angel Pagan(notes) (oblique) has yet to resume baseball-related activities, which means he's just about spent for the rest of the month. Ike Davis(notes) (ankle) also went on the DL Thursday, and it's feared he'll be out longer than the 15 days. … Grady Sizemore(notes) (knee) didn't play Thursday and is uncertain for Friday. … Andrew McCutchen(notes) was held out of Thursday's lineup after failing to hustle during Wednesday's game. It's hard to imagine this punishment lasting longer than one day. … Brian Matusz(notes) is expected to make.
No comments:
Post a Comment