Orlando Cabrera- LAA- Hot- Here it is Flag Day and Cabrera has a higher batting average than teammate Vlad Guerrero. Who'd a thunk it? In the past 4 games he is an astounding 9-for-19, which increased his average to .339. Cabrera's success this year seems to be one part vastly improved Batting EYE (1.11) and one part luck (.290 BHIP). Actually, considering that Cabrera does not either walk or strikeout that much, the luck component may be more like two parts. Looking at his Fantistical player charts, there is a correlation between the rise and fall of his batting average and his BHIP. If his luck starts evening out, his average could start to drop precipitously. Cabrera has no particular trends as far as second half performance, which may be another indicator that BHIP is a key to his performance.
Fernando Rodney- DET- Cold- For the fifth consecutive appearance Rodney was scored upon. None of those appearances were longer than 1 inning, so to say he has been ineffective would be an understatement. Before the season Rodney looked like a potential "closer of the future."Now, with a record of 1-5, he is of dubious value even in keeper leagues.
Carlos Silva- MIN- Hot- It looked like vintage 2005 Silva pitching yesterday. For the first time this season, he did not walk a batter as he shut out the Braves in a complete game. Silva only allowed 8 hits, but only recorded 2 strikeouts. This was Silva's second outstanding outing in 3 starts, but they sandwiched a real stinker. The direction he is heading is promising but it's too soon to say that Silva is worth owning.
Jason Kendall- OAK- Hot- Kendall went 3-for-4 with his first homer of the year (and only second in 3 years). This makes him 5-for-9 over his past 2 games and gets him over the Mendoza (at .210) for the first time this season. His horrendous luck (as measured by a .210 BHIP) may be finally starting to even out, so the batting average has a good chance of increasing, but if Kendall hits any more homers, it would be a bonus.
Kenny Lofton- TEX- Hot- With most of the attention in Texas focused on the horrible pitching and Sammy Sosa's quest for 600 homers, Lofton's recent resurgence has been kind of lost in the shuffle. After going 2-for-4 last night, Lofton has posted 5 multi-hit games in his 9 this month, and is batting .324 in June. His production rise in batting average after turning 40 on May 31st, though, has been accompanied by his steals coming to a screeching halt. After stealing 16 bases in the first two months of the season, he has yet to garner a theft in June. It's doubtful that his birthday triggered a sudden inability to steal and he will probably be helping in that category before long. Lofton also shows no general trend to drop off in the second half, so having only struck out 1 time in 34 at bats this month while drawing 5 walks is a positive indicator that he will continue to be a plus in the average column.
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