Kenley Jansen, RP, Los Angeles Dodgers: Great Player
Jansen struck out two in a perfect ninth to earn his 16th save in 19 tries this year. Since May, Jansen hasn't lost a game and he hasn't blown a save since June 29th, rattling off nine straight, seven since the All-Star break. The Dodgers have been playing better baseball as of late, strengthening Jansen's stock a bit in the past few weeks. He has been locked in especially in his last three appearances, striking out seven of the nine batters he's faced. He has 79 Ks in just 56 IP, giving him an impressive 12.62 K/9, which ranks him sixth among closers in that category, but of those other five closers, only three have a better ERA (Kimbrel, Holland, Uehara). For a guy who was stuck in the eighth inning to start the year, he's definitely taking advantage of the opportunity.
Chris Capuano, SP, Los Angeles Dodgers: Idea
Before Jansen even got on the field though, wily veteran Chris Capuano took the mound and strung together 6.1 scoreless, his second straight start allowing no runs. With his ERA down close to four, he has to be in waiver talks this week. As I said, the Dodgers have won 13 of 15 since the All-Star break and are finally looking like the team we thought the would be early in the season. When your team gets on a roll, pitchers get more comfortable, which bodes well for the 35-year old southpaw. In deeper mixed leagues and NL only, Capuano should get a look. I always like stashing pitchers on good teams to steal wins late week on occasion.
Justin Upton, OF, Atlanta Braves: Heating Up
In a 12-inning marathon, Justin Upton continued to see the ball well, recording a hit and two walks and three runs scored in 6 PAs. His lone hit was a big one, his 19th home run of the year, which opened up the scoring for the Bravos. After hitting a huge power rut for a large portion of the year, Upton now has three homers in his last three games (All in August). His bat has been back for a little while, but sometimes when you slump, you focus more on getting hits before you try and really drive them. His .900 slugging early on this month suggests hes finally comfortable enough to let loose again. Upton owners can collectively take a sigh of relief, he's back.
Mark Melancon, RP, Pittsburgh Pirates: Filling the Void
In his first appearance of the month, Melancon pitched a perfect ninth last night to nail down his sixth save of the year. The Pirates didn't have to look very far for a closer to replace the injured Jason Grilli with the type of season Melancon is having. In 52 innings, Melancon has a 0.86 ERA which is better than any pitcher in the MLB with 40 or more innings pitched. He strikes out about a batter per inning, which adds good value to his fantasy stock and his .182 BAA since the All-Star break shows how much he rose to the occasion when called on to finish games for a first place ball club. He obviously would have been owned already if you're in a holds league, but he could be available in other mixed leagues (owned in 67 percent of yahoo leagues). He should be owned in a 100 percent of leagues now that he's closing, even if its only temporary.
Justin Turner, IF, New York Mets
Turner finished 1-for-4 with a walk in the Mets 12 inning loss to Kansas City Friday afternoon, but the bigger story was that star 3B David Wright will be sidelined three to five weeks with a grade 3 strain of his hamstring. This means a lot more ABs for Turner and Josh Satin, but with Turner being the better fielder of the two, he figures to see more time. When called on to fill in in the past, Turner has done so nicely, and in NL Only and deeper mixed leagues, he could provide a steady dose of runs and a solid average. He also qualifies at every infield position, giving owners a lot of flexibility when making strategic plays. Don't mistake my positive input as true enthusiasm. Turner has been a bit underwhelming, his line sitting at .261/.312/.322, albeit in a reserve role mostly. But with consistent at-bats, he has shown the ability to get in a groove, so he can be a nice asset for a short period of time if need be.
