Jeff Suppan
After signing his $42 million contract, Suppan has been beyond brutal for a good part of the season, b ut in case you haven't noticed, he's one a bit of a roll lately (for him at least). Suppan allowed three runs on three hits over six innings on Saturday in a no-decision against the Reds. It was the fifth consecutive start in which Suppan has allowed three runs or less and although he's just 1-2 with a 3.94 ERA in that time, Suppan's 4.74 ERA is the lowest it's been since June 17. Suppan's .327 BABIP is 30 points above his career mark, so some improvement in the ERA was expected considering that over last year, his HR rate is down, walks are down, and Suppan's strikeout rate, while still just 4.8/9, isn't out of line with his career 5.1 mark. It wouldn't be a surprise to see a strong September from this 2006 playoff hero.
Jared Burton
We haven't written about Burton this year, but if you're looking for a deep sleeper closer prospect for 2008, then he's probably your guy. Burton did get charged with a blown save on Saturday, but overall, he's been fairly good. 2.75 ERA and 8.0 K/9 are decent numbers, but the concern here is the 21 walks in 36 innings. You don't want a closer that struggles with his command, but Burton, a Rule 5 pick from the A's this winter, has closer stuff and just lacks the experience. He's the eighth inning guy in front of David Weathers right now and we also have to note that his K:BB has really improved remarkably lately, standing at 11:2 since August 12. Considering it was 21:19 prior to that and you see a pitcher developing rapidly right before your eyes. With the aging but still effective Weathers certainly no long-term closer solution, perhaps the Reds give Burton a few save chances this month. That makes him worth a look in many leagues.
Derrick Turnbow
Turnbow picked up his fourth win of the year on Saturday after pitching a scoreless eighth inning against the Brewers. It's been a bit of an odd year for Turnbow, who's dominated for long periods of time and then had games (five to be exact) in which he's allowed three or more earned runs, thus leaving him with a 4.23 ERA. Still, Turbow's 11.7 K/9 would be a career-high and he's cut down on his walks this year while ranking among the league leaders with 31 holds. With just four homers allowed in 61 2/3 innings and a .181 BAA, there's a lot to like about what Turnbow has done this year. We're not sure the Brewers would agree, but Turnbow could be in line to take over as the team's closer with Francisco Cordero headed to free agency and likely chasing the big money elsewhere. He could make an interesting keeper in NL-only leagues if you have him cheap, but there's plenty of time to see how the Milwaukee bullpen shakes out in the meantime.
David Wells
Surfer David Wells returned from a seven-game suspension (arguing with an umpire) and was brilliant Saturday against the Giants. The 44 year-old Wells held San Francisco to two runs on four hits over seven innings. Even more impressive was that he did it in just 75 pitches (56 strikes), also retiring the first 16 hitters of the game. Wells looked good all day, keeping the Giants off balance with change-ups, sliders, big sweeping curves, and whatever other junk he could mix in with his 83-84 mph fastball. In three starts for the Dodgers, Wells is 2-0 with a 3.71 ERA. Wells won't contribute much in the way of strikeouts and won't pitch deep in many games, but he's got a little left it appears.
Barry Zito
$126 million = 9-12, 4.46? That's math that doesn't quite add up for the Giants, but that's what Barry Zito has done so far this year. To be fair, although Zito lost to the Dodgers on Saturday, he actually looked pretty good, particularly his curve. Zito allowed three runs on four hits over six innings, with the big blow being a three-run Luis Gonzalez home run. The homer came after an infield single and walk, and after that first inning, Zito totally shut down the Dodgers (two hits in five scoreless innings). Zito has now allowed three runs or less in each of his last six starts and in his last five starts, Zito has a 1.80 ERA, but thanks to the Giants' offense, he has just one win to show for that effort. Zito has had some command issues (71 BB) this year, but in those last five starts, his K:BB is a solid 29:7. He's not a $126 million pitcher (not many are), but for all the flak he gets for the contract, let's not forget, Zito is actually a pretty good pitcher surrounded, on the Giants, by a lot of mediocrity.
There are over 100 player news blurbs posted in the member area each morning, members can read the rest of today's player news by clicking here link:www.fantistics.com/baseball00/. Not a member? Join today link:www.fantistics.com/join/join.php3
