All posts under "Player Commentary" - Page 86

Garrett Richards (SP-LAA). Richards' strong start to the season continued Friday night against the Blue Jays. Richards went 7 innings, giving up only 2 runs on 5 hits and 2 walks while striking out 6 against a strong Toronto lineup,...

Mike Olt (3B-CHC) - The Cubs really want Olt to take the third base job and make it his alone, but whether he can do so has yet to be determined. Olt took a positive step Thursday in a blowout...

Daniel Nava- BOS- Cold- Jackie Bradley, Jr. might not be tearing things up for the Red Sox but Nava's performance at AAA Pawtucket recently hasn't warranted serious contemplation of making a switch between the majors and minors. He went 1-for-3...

Desmond Jennings (OF-Tampa Bay) Earlier in the year I had written that I expected Desmond Jennings to finally develop this year. Coming off a 2013 where he batted only .252, there was a lot of room for improvement. The promise...

Everth Cabrera- Everth Cabrera has been a cheap source of steals from a middle infield spot for each of the last two seasons. Cabrera is still running in 2014 as he has accumulated 5 SB through 33 games although his...

Colorado Rockies Outfield Platoon - With Michael Cuddyer on the disabled list the Rockies are using a platoon of Corey Dickerson, Brandon Barnes, and Drew Stubbs to divide up the at bats in his absence. All three are playing well,...

Trevor Plouffe- Trevor Plouffe has provided solid fantasy value out of the hot corner through the first six weeks of the season. Plouffe has provided fantasy owners with solid contributions in the counting categories as he has provided the third...

Adam Jones- BAL- Caution- Jones has had a very poor start, with an average of .252 (despite a .322 BABIP) and a single homer in 29 games. This from a guy who hit 30+ in each of the previous 2...

Nolan Arenado (COL-3B) - Nolan Arenado extended his hit streak to 25 games on Monday night by smashing a 2-run homerun in the second inning. Despite a brutal 0.19 batting EYE, Arenado's contact rate is actually above average at 83%....

Brandon McCarthy - McCarthy was #1 on my Buy Low list even before Saturday's excellent outing against the Padres, as the 30 year old is showing his typically excellent control to go along with the 2nd-highest swinging strike% of his...

Elvis Andrus -- The Rangers dropped Elvis Andrus, who has batted second every game this year, down to the ninth spot in the order on Sunday. Andrus is hitting just .217 this year and entered the game 0 for his...

Brandon Belt-Giants-1B Brandon Belt went 1-4 with his 8th homerun of the year Saturday night. Belt has been a pleasant surprise to many so far this season. Belt posted strong numbers in the second half of 2013 and has carried...

Scott Carroll, Chicago White Sox - Scott Carroll picked up the loss Saturday throwing 6.0 innings but his defense allowed two unearned runs which were enough to send Carroll home with the loss. Carroll' stat line is almost baffling, as...

Danny Salazar (SP-CLE). Salazar picked up his first win of the season on Friday night against the White Sox, although the win came at a cost - 3 ER on 5 hits and 3 BBs over 5 innings. -Salazar did...

Justin Morneau (1B-COL) All it took was a move to Colorado to revitalize Justin Morneau's moribund career. He has suffered through a variety of injuries which cost him an entire season of games between 2012 and 2011. The next two...

Grant Balfour (RP-TB): Grant Balfour rebounded to post 2 saves in the doubleheader against Boston. Despite the 2-save special, I'm concerned. He allowed 3 more baserunners in the outings, and now has allowed 18 in 12 and 1/3 innings. He...

It wasn't tendinitis complications in his left knee that knocked Carlos Gonzalez from Thursday's game in the fourth-inning; it was a left index finger contusion. The severity of the injury is unknown, but it is assumed to be a day-to-day...

AL Player Analysis from April 30th

Tony Cingrani (SP-CIN): The Cubs chased Tony Cingrani after 4 innings. The lefty allowed 3 earned runs on 6 hits and 2 walks in 4 innings, striking out only 2. While his velocity was down yesterday, the lefty said he...

Billy Hamilton, Cincinnati Reds - Billy Hamilton had a day to remember Tuesday with his 10th steal of the yeah and his first career major league homerun. The homer was surprising, but it was even more of a shock that...

Marcus Semien - Semien should get free rein the next few weeks with Conor Gillaspie out, and although the numbers don't look great just yet, there are some incremental gains being made in Semien's game, particularly on the plate discipline...

Andrew Heaney- MIA- FYI- Heaney has an extra day off before his next start on Thursday, due to an off day in AA Jacksonville's schedule. He will be coming off his first poor performance of the year. Last Friday he...

Edinson Volquez (SP-PIT). Ray Searage's magic wand got its sternest test to date, when Volquez faced off against the potent Cardinals lineup on Sunday afternoon and Volquez failed the test. The Cardinals roughed him up for 6 runs in only...

Robbie Ray -- With Anibal Sanchez on the shelf, it's being reported that Robbie Ray is the most likely candidate to take his spot in the rotation. That spot may not come up until next Tuesday, but it'll be against...

Senior Circuit Player Analysis from April 26th

Phil Hughes (SP-MIN): Phil Hughes tossed 7 strong innings, allowing 1 earned run on 4 hits. The unpredictable veteran struck out 6 Tigers without walking a single one to pick up his 2nd win of the season. His ERA of...

Brandon Philips (2B-Cinn) With a major decline in his speed production over the past few years to only 5 SB's last year, Brandon Philip's value has been refocused on his run production. He knocked in 103 runs last year which...

Dayan Viciedo (OF-CWS). Viciedo went 1 for 4 with a run against the Rays on Friday night, running his season totals to .370/.413/.548. The season-ending injury to Avasail Garcia makes Viciedo potential relevant in at least deep mixed leagues, as...

Ben Zobrist- TB- Hot- After having his first hitless game in almost a week on Wednesday, Zobrist bounced back nicely yesterday. He went 3-for-4 with a walk to raise his average to .310. It was his 4th multi-hit game in...

John Axford (RP-Cleveland) John Axford picked up his league leading 8th save of the young season. Earlier in the year, I talked about a possible resurgence and we are seeing just that so far this year. But as the baseball...

Gregory Polanco, Pittsburgh Pirates - Pirates top prospect Gregory Polanco is tearing up AAA and it appears we have now entered the "Polanco Watch" stage of 2014. With another homer Tuesday, he now has three homers and has driven in...

Chris Archer- TB- Hot- Archer pitched very well Saturday, allowing 1 run on 3 hits and walking none while striking out 4 in 6.2 IP. It was his 3rd quality start in his 4 outings this season, making his previous...

Travis Wood - Wood was brilliant on Monday, allowing 6 hits and a run to Arizona over 7 innings, striking out 9 without walking a batter and hitting a 3-run homer to boot. Wood has shown a sharp increase in...

Ivan Nova -- After leaving Saturday's start with a sore elbow, it was revealed yesterday that Ivan Nova has a partially torn ulnar collateral ligament. He's been placed on the DL and, in all likelihood, will be undergoing Tommy John...

Troy Tulowitzki (SS-COL) - The Colorado shortstop had a great day at the plate on Sunday, going 3-for-3 with two doubles, two walks, and two runs scored. Through 18 games, he's now hitting an incredible .393/.493/.661 and despite a high...

Player Analysis from the Senior Circuit on April 19th