Justin Verlander - Quite a tumultuous ride for Verlander in the first 3.5 months of the season. Recall his terrible start to the season - April = 6.50 ERA, 1.47 WHIP, 5.0 K/9. Since then, he has posted a 3.23 ERA, 1.20 WHIP, and 7.4 K/9. He goes into the All-Star break with 3 consecutive quality starts and has given up 3 ER or less in each of his last 8 starts and 10 of his last 11. The Tigers, who are back at .500, were grossly under-performing through the first 6 weeks of the season. The popular "prediction" for the 2nd half of the season is that the Tigers will go on a hot-streak and make a run at the division. If that's true, Verlander's value should continue to rise back to his preseason worth with more earned W's.
Carlos Quentin - Quentin reminded us on Sunday just why he's one of the biggest 1st-half fantasy surprises of 2008. He hit another HR on Sunday for his 22nd of the season, bringing his HR/AB rate to 15.3. Not only has he put up big numbers in the first 3 months, but he has done it with relative consistency. His average has dipped a little recently, but a scroll through his game log shows that he hasn't gone a long period of time without hitting a home run. He also has exactly 11 HR on the road and at home. That makes him especially valuable in head-to-head leagues where weekly consistency is key. I don't think there's any slowdown in store for Quentin for the remainder of the season - he's simply a great free agent pickup and hopefully you were able to take advantage early in the season.
Joel Zumaya - Zumaya now has a couple of weeks under his belt and looks to be getting back to form. He earned his 2nd hold of the season on Sunday, bridging the gap for Justin Verlander to earn the W and Todd Jones to earn the save. He now has 7 appearances without giving up a run and can be counted on to get plenty of holds for the remainder of the season. When he's healthy, he's one of the most dominating setup men in the game. If something ever happens to Jones, Zumaya is the next logical pitcher to take over the closer role in Detroit. Something to keep in mind if you hear about an injury to Jones down the stretch (but there are no signs of Jones being hurt - consider it a "just-in-case" scenario).
Nick Blackburn - Blackburn might have been handed the loss on Sunday, but he still hurled a quality start. His final line was 7.0 IP, 2 ER, 5 hits, 4 K's, and 2 BB's. Blackburn deserves a claim in most mixed leagues while he's on this role. He has 5 quality starts in his last 6 outings, positing a 3.05 ERA and a 0.97 WHIP during that span. I especially like Blackburn for his low walk totals, with just a 0.94 BB/9 and a K/BB of 5.75 during the last 6 starts. Up-arrows all around for the Twins starter.
Jorge Posada - Nobody could use a breather more than Jorge Posada. He's hitting just .222 in July and has just 2 hits in his last 16 AB. His numbers have really trailed off this year, only hitting 3 HR for the season after hitting 23 and 20 in the last two years. Injuries and playing time have played important roles in the decrease of the aggregate numbers, but his HR/AB rates indicate a slow down as well. In 2006 and 2007, Posada's power rates were 20.2 and 25.3. This year, its just 54.0. Let's hope the 3 day rest rejuvanates Posada a bit, but age seems to be catching up with the Yankee catcher in '08.
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