Andre Ethier: Manager Grady Little said that Ethier and Matt Kemp are in competition for the starting right field position. That comment is surprising because so far he has played them in a strict platoon. With Kemp going on the 15-day DL with a separated right shoulder, Ethier should get a chance to hit against southpaws, as he did last night against Rodrigo Lopez. He will have to do better than the 0-3 performance from that game. It is possible that Little is trying to light a fire under Ethier and see if he can handle left-handed pitching. What does seem to be clear is that Luis Gonzalez is going to be a full-time player.
Nick Johnson: Johnson, who is out with a broken leg, is not expected back until early June. The biggest problem with the 28-year old, first baseman is health, as he has only reached 500 AB once in his career. Several key indicators of his skills are in three-year growth trends, power 7HR/15HR/23HR, batting eye, .69/.92/1.11, and FB%, 33/35/36. He is also in the peak years of power output. Another little interesting statistic is the 10 for 13 in steals, without hitting a triple. That shows that he may not be fast, but he is a smart base runner. Keeping him on your DL, could pay dividends later in the year.
Dan Wheeler: The Astros finally pulled the plug on Brad Lidge as their closer and inserted Wheeler into the role. Just because Wheeler has the role, do not assume that he will be a K-Rod or Joe Nathan. His 2006 numbers of an 8.6 K/9 and 3.0 BB/9 are closer-worthy, but the best closers have significantly higher K/9's. His 2006 ERA of 2.53 was aided by an 81% strand rate. What has to be of some concern was the rise in his fly ball rate to 49% in the second-half of last year, as he will close his home games in a park that greatly benefits left-handed batters. What it comes down to is that Wheeler has the potential to get the job done, but also to run into trouble.
Chris Young: The Padres' signing of Young to an extension through 2110, will keep the pitcher in a home park perfectly suited for his skills. In his first two major league seasons, Young has sported a nice K/9, 7.5 in 2005 and 8.2 last year. With FB%'s of 49% in 2005 and 56% in 2006, Young qualifies as an extreme fly ball pitcher. Pitching half his home games in spacious Petco Park will keep many of those fly balls in the field of play.
Jason Marquis: When Marquis had a 15-7 record, with a 3.71 ERA, in 2003, it was supported by a good skill set of a 6.2 K/9, 3.1 BB/9, and a 56% GB%. However, a ground ball pitcher without high K's has a thin margin of error. Two years later the K/9 dropped to 4.5 and the GB% fell to 43%, with the result being an ugly 6.03 ERA. This should be a warning sign to those fooled by his first two starts, in which he has allowed 4 ER in 11 innings. In those 11 innings he has walked 6, struck out just 4, and is not getting the ground balls, 1.33 GB/FB, which he will need for consistent success.
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