Jacoby Ellsbury (OF-NYY). Due to Mark Teixeira's injury, Ellsbury batted third in the Yankees' order on Monday afternoon for the second consecutive day. Ellsbury went 2 for 4 with an RBI and a CS, putting his season line at .360/.429/.440. With Teixeira going on the DL with a hamstring issue, this move in the batting order may last at least a couple weeks for Ellsbury, and could well become a permanent one, given Teixeira's recent inability to stay healthy. The new lineup positioning can only help Ellsbury's value, as it should increase his RBI opportunities while not impairing his SB numbers, as, particularly given their early-season difficulties in scoring runs, the Yankees are not likely to try to rein Ellsbury in on the bases simply because he's hitting in front of the cleanup hitter. A definite "up" arrow for Ellsbury.
Ryan Cook (RP-OAK). The A's activated Ryan Cook from the DL on Monday. Cook has been touted as a sleeper for saves for several years now, but he remains an intriguing stash option in AL-only and deeper mixed leagues. Cook posted a 2.54 ERA in 67 innings out of the A's pen in 2013, although his WHIP went up to 1.29 and his K/9 rate fell to 8.96. With Jim Johnson having already blown one save and posting a 15.00 ERA over his first four appearances, it is not hard to envision a scenario where the A's give Cook a shot at the closer position (although Luke Gregerson could factor into that discussion as well). Cook is almost a must-add in AL-only leagues and, if you have the bench space, makes for a good speculative add in deeper mixed leagues.
Ubaldo Jimenez (SP-BAL). Jimenez looked like the 2013 pre-All Star Break version on Monday against the Yankees, as he was battered for 8 hits, 5 walks and 4 ER in 4.2 innings. Jimenez did strike out 4, but that is small consolation to his owners. This line is disturbingly similar to the ones Jimenez regularly put up in the first half of the 2013 season, and is in stark contrast to the 2.25 ERA, 1.25 WHIP and 1.09 K/9 rate Jimenez registered in the second half of last season. Jimenez's FB velocity is down almost 1.5 MPH in the early going of the 2014 season. This could be just some early season rustiness, but it is a continuation of a downward trend in Jimenez's velocity over the last 3 seasons (from 95.8 in 2010 down to 90.5 so far in 2014). Jimenez owners should watch his next few starts carefully and should be prepared to cut bait if the results don't improve.
Colby Lewis (SP-TEX). Lewis allowed four runs (2 earned) over four innings in a AAA rehab start on Monday. With Joe Saunders going on the DL today, it appears that Lewis (who has the right to declare free agency if he's not added to the Texas roster by April 10) will take Saunders' spot in the Rangers' rotation, with his first start likely coming against the Astros on Friday. While the Astros are a tasty matchup, I wouldn't go running to the waiver wire to add Lewis just yet. He has not pitched a full season since 2011, [and didn't even make an appearance in the majors last year] and the 8.00 ERA and 2.11 WHIP he posted in spring training don't exactly inspire confidence. Additionally, his peripherals from his last full season (34.1% ground ball rate, 11.9% HR/FB rate and 4.54 FIP), plus the fact that he is coming back from fairly serious surgery, make it unlikely that he can make a positive contribution to a fantasy team, even if he can give the Rangers some badly-needed innings. Our software projects a 4.66 ERA and 1.30 WHIP for Lewis and he is therefore not a recommended add, even in deep AL-only leagues.
Tommy Hanson (SP-CWS). The White Sox added some potential rotation depth by signing Hanson to a minor league contract. Presumably the White Sox are viewing Hanson as insurance for Erik Johnson (who was hammered in his initial outing against the Royals). However, unless Hanson can miraculously recover the 3 MPH in fastball velocity he has lost since 2010 (92 MPH to 89 MPH), he is unlikely to be fantasy relevant even if he manages to obtain a spot in the rotation. While Hanson wasn't quite as bad as his 5.42 2013 ERA would indicate (4.65 FIP and 4.83 xFIP), his 6.90 K/9 and 32.8% ground ball rate are not likely to lead to positive results, especially if he is pitching half his games in US Cellular Field (why Hanson hasn't tried to catch on with a National League team is a mystery).
