Shawn Estes
Estes will take over the fifth starter role for the Padres this week, making his first start on Tuesday in Chicago. Make sure you activate any and all Cubs hitters for this one. Should Estes somehow survive this start, he’s in line for another start over the weekend. The 35 year-old Estes was 4-2 with a 3.67 ERA in six Triple-A starts with 33 hits allowed in 34 1/3 innings and a 25:7 K:BB. That should make him well-equipped to handle Derrek Lee and Alfonso Soriano. Anyway, it’s been six years since Estes had any fantasy relevance, and his promotion shows nothing more than San Diego’s desperation to fill their No. 5 starter slot. With Mark Prior (shoulder) seemingly out until July (2008? 2009?), Estes will get his final shot in the big leagues.
Hanley Ramirez
With all the savings the Marlins had banked from dealing away their high-priced talent, most notably Miguel Cabrera and Dontrelle Willis, you had to wonder where the money would be going. Jeff Loria’s pockets? A new Porsche for Larry Beinfest? Apparently not, as the Marlins have apparently ponied up to sign Hanley Ramirez to a team-record six-year $70 million contract. The contract will buy out Ramirez’s first three years of free agency, and assuming he continues at or even above his current level of production, the Marlins will save millions here. At some point, however, I envision Ramirez moving to the outfield, perhaps even center field with Cameron Maybin and Jeremy Hermida playing the corners. Wherever Ramirez winds up though, he’ll produce. Ham-Ram is producing at a .97 FPI clip vs. our preseason .85 projection. Ramirez’s CT% has dropped a bit so far this year (85% to 80%), but it’s still fine and that’s really nitpicking with a guy batting .336/.421/.569 with 13 stolen bases. We could be talking about a guy with 40 HR / 60 SB potential here. Hitting third won’t help him reach those 60 steals, but it certainly hasn’t stopped him lately (3 SB in last 4 G). Simply a top-5 offensive player.
Clayton Kershaw
With Esteban Loaiza (shoulder) on the DL, the Dodgers are going to need a fifth starter on May 17. Candidates include Hong-Chih Kuo, Chan Ho Park, and potentially, the game’s top pitching prospect in Clayton Kershaw. Kuo has pitched great lately, but while he’s allowed just one run in 13 2/3 innings with an incredible 23:3 K:BB as a reliever, Kuo also has a 5.06 ERA in three starts, averaging under four innings per start. I’d say he’s found his niche and should stay there until his next arm injury. Park is also thriving as a long reliever with a 2.46 ERA despite a 9:10 K:BB, so why mess with success. If they think Kershaw is ready, he could be the choice. He’s certainly handling Double-A competition (1.08 ERA, 10.0 K/9). Interestingly, the Dodgers have taken a page from the “Joba Rules” and have implemented the “Kershaw Decree”. Kershaw will be limited to 25 innings a month in order to keep him fresh for the stretch run where they expect him to have a Joba-like impact, whether it be as a starter or reliever. In the near-term, it could be as the club’s No. 5 starter, so pick him up NOW if he’s available and allowed to be picked up. Minor league hitter are batting just .192 against Kershaw, and as we saw this spring when he allowed one run in 14 innings with a 19:3 K:BB, big league hitters are going to have trouble with his stuff as well.
Todd Wellemeyer
You know you’re a baseball junkie when…you make it a point to watch Todd Wellemeyer. Having seen Wellemeyer struggle in previous seasons, I had to see for myself. Wellemeyer proceeded to hold the ice-cold Brewers to two unearned runs over 6 2/3 innings before Jason Isringhausen blew yet another save. Wellemeyer looked good, certainly not dominant (two strikeouts), but his command has improved by leaps and bounds. He’s walking just 3.0 per nine innings after last year’s 4.5 clip. I’d like to see his 37% GB% trend upwards, but as long as he continues with his current level of command, Wellemeyer may be a serviceable No. 5. The last time Wellemeyer topped 100 innings in a season was 2003, and with Chris Carpenter, Mark Mulder, and Matt Clement all due back at various points later in the year, it’s hard to see Wellemeyer sustaining his level of success over a full season, but it’s probably save to ride him for now in NL-only leagues.
Omar Vizquel
Get ready for a San Francisco surge in the NL West, as Omar Vizquel returns from a knee injury to provide the offense that’s been missing since Barry Bonds left after last season. Okay, hyperbole aside, the 41 year-old Vizquel is back, hopefully for the Giants sake to prove that he has something left prior to the July trade deadline. Vizquel should be good for double-digits steals despite his advanced age, but the fact that he’ll be pushing Manny Burris (three hits on Friday, four SB in just 42 at-bats) to a utility role is a shame. Brian Bocock (11-for-77) gets sent, deservedly so, to Triple-A, but Burriss not getting regular at-bats so the rebuilding Giants can trot out a 41 year-old SS is a joke. Burriss is far from a finished product (.281 OBP in Triple-A this year), but there’s the Giants for you.
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: www.fantistics.com/baseball00/. Not a member? Join today: www.fantistics.com/join/join.php3
