Derrek Lee- ATL- Hot- Three days ago Fantistics’ Drew Dinkmeyer said, “He’ll eventually get hot for a little while…” It looks like “eventually” came pretty quickly. In the two days since Drew’s pronouncement Lee has gone 5-for-8 with a double, run scored and 2 RBI. Lee has put together some short hot streaks and this could be one to ride.
Joaquin Arias- NYM- Trade- Arias comes to the Mets in a deal that sends Jeff Francoeur to the Rangers. Arias had been designated for assignment and this trade was a case of both teams getting what they could for the player they sent away. The Mets said nice things about Arias, about him having “upside” and “big-time tools.” In reality, about the only thing that could be hoped for is some speed. Arias stole 23 or more bases 3 times in the minors. His main problem, though, is lack of plate discipline. This season, in 101 PAs with the Rangers, Arias drew just 2 walks. His OBP of .290 didn’t warrant keeping him around. That’s unlikely to change, given his similar pattern in the minors. At AAA Oklahoma in 2009, Arias walked just 20 times and had 504 ABs. He is unlikely to have major fantasy impact the rest of this year or in 2011.
Aroldis Chapman- CIN- Rookie- Chapman wowed them last night in his major league debut, pitching a perfect inning. He topped 100 mph multiple times in his 8 pitches (7 of them strikes) and recorded his first strikeout. The major concern about the Cuban defector is his control. In 95.2 IP for AAA Louisville, Chapman racked up 125 KS, but also walked 52. He was a bit better in relief, the role he will fill for Cincinnati the rest of the way this season. Out of the bullpen, Chapman walked 12 in 30IP, as opposed to allowing 40 BBs in 65.2 IP over his 13 starts. The Reds called him up yesterday specifically so that he could be a part of the postseason roster, so expect him to see some action in the final month of the season. This will give Chapman some value, as he will add Ks out of the bullpen, and he has significant upside for 2011 if he can harness that incredible power.
Yovani Gallardo- MIL- Cold- Gallardo continued a trend of poor performances, allowing 8 runs on 9 hits and 3 walks in 5 IP. He did strike out 6, so the power is still there. Gallardo has only 1 quality start in his last 7 outings and has allowed at least 6 earned runs in his last 3 starts. Overusage may be coming into play here. Gallardo has thrown more than 120 pitches 4 times this season, a mark he only reached once before in his career. That is a lot of pitches for a 24-year-old arm and we could be seeing the effects of that now.
Michael Stanton- FLA- Rookie- The increase in plate discipline we talked about 2 weeks ago vanished immediately after we mentioned it. Stanton hasn’t drawn a walk since August 17th, has struck out 16 times and gone 2-for-40 in that stretch. The potential is still there and Stanton is likely to post big power numbers in 2011, but he has to get better command of the strike zone to get the opportunity to perform next season and avoid a trip back to the minors for some further seasoning.
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