 Nolan Reinmold (credits below) Two-Start Pitchers to Start
Randy Wolf |Milwaukee Brewers| (1.8%) – The crafty lefty has a strong week ahead against one anemic lineup and another that is a historically weak matchup. Wolf’s first start takes place in San Diego against the senior circuit’s third-worst hitting team when it comes to left-handed pitching. The Padres are collectively hitting .216 against lefties this year. Wolf’s stays on the road for his next start in San Francisco. The heart of the Giants lineup is hitting .200 with no homeruns against Wolf.
Tommy Milone |Oakland A’s| (9.1%) – Milone has been one of the league’s best pitchers against right-handed hitters. He’s holding them to a BAA of .213 and an OBP of .250. This will sure serve him well against the Tampa Bay lineup that he’ll face this week and to a lesser extent, the Red Sox lineup that he’ll face as well. However, don’t let Boston’s power lefties Gonzalez and Ortiz intimidate you. Left-handed hitters have yet to get a hit against Milone through 13 at-bats this year.
Two-Start Pitchers to Sit
Jason Hammel |Baltimore Orioles| (39.7%) – If you’re like me then you’re guilty of reaching out to the waiver wire for Jason Hammel and his hot start. He won’t be able to keep up the pace but he could have a breakout year nonetheless. Be wary of his upcoming week though when setting your roster. He’ll be facing two of baseball’s most notorious lineups, the Yankees and the Red Sox. Both teams have dominated Hammel throughout his career. Yankees batters have 7 homeruns in only 69 career at-bats against Hammel. At Fenway Park Hammel has a 6.94 ERA and Boston hitters have a .429 batting average against him.
C.J. Wilson |Texas Rangers| (100%) – C.J. Wilson’s first start of the week will be against the Minnesota Twins. The Twins have the 5th-best lineup in baseball against left-handed pitchers. In 58.1 innings against Minnesota, Wilson has an ERA of 4.32. Wilson stays at home for the final series of the week against the Blue Jays. In 25.1 innings against the Jays, Wilson has an ERA of 4.26 and a WHIP of 1.58. Don’t expect Wilson to put up his usually dominant numbers this week.
Hitters to Start
Nolan Reimold |Baltimore Orioles| (90%) – Nolan Reimold’s stock has been climbing and now could be your last chance to get in on the action. Reimold will be facing the Red Sox and Yankees for 6 games this week, all on the road. Fortunately, Reimold is one of baseball’s best road hitters so far this year. Through 25 at-bats on the road Reimold is hitting an amazing .480 with an OBP of .500. In 17 games hitting at Yankee Stadium Reimold is hitting .294 with an OBP of .393. Half of those hits were for extra bases and approximately one-third of his hits there have left the yard. The week gets better when Reimold and the O’s travel to Boston. In 14 games at Fenway Park Reimold has a batting average .340 and an OBP of .400.
Bryan La Hair |Chicago Cubs| (59.5%) – Bryan LaHair is making the most of his starts with the Cubs so far this year. He has been used as a righty-killing bat for them. Against right-handed pitching this year LaHair is hitting .386 with a .481 OBP through 44 at-bats. LaHair will face the Reds’ front three of Arroyo, Bailey and Leake to start off his week. Against left-handed hitters, these three have a weak BAA of .307. The trio of Dodgers that LaHair will face have given up 8 homeruns in only 133 at-bats. LaHair is available in nearly half of all leagues and could be a cheap source of power if your team has stumbled out of the gate.
Hitters to Sit
Mark Reynolds |Baltimore Orioles| (61.7%) – Mark Reynolds has been off to a tremendously slow start, even by his accord. This week Reynolds and the Orioles have 6 games all of which are on the road. This is bad news for Reynolds’ owners. He owns the worst away game batting average split out of any major leaguer this year with at least 25 plate appearances. In 31 at-bats on the road this year Reynolds has a batting average of .097 and an OBP of .200. The first away series of the week for Reynolds is against the Yankees. He’ll be facing Hughes, Nova, and Kuroda. Against these three pitchers Reynolds has a .176 batting average in 34 at-bats. Only 1 of his 6 hits in those at-bats has gone for extra bases. Reynolds ends the week in Boston against the Red Sox and their three starting pitchers of Lester, Beckett, and Bucholz. Against these three starting pitchers Reynolds is hitting .200 through 25 career at-bats.
Hanley Ramirez |Miami Marlins| (100%) – If there was ever a week to sit Hanley Ramirez this is it. Ramirez is suffering from the same homesickness as described above in Mark Reynolds. Maybe it’s the air, maybe it’s the new stadium, who knows. Ramirez is just a notch below Reynolds on the worst away-game splits. In 39 at-bats away Ramirez is hitting .103 with a .239 OBP. Ramirez is hitting .194 against the three Giants starters that he’ll face this week. Ramirez also has a paltry .236 career batting average at AT&T Park. Ramirez and the Marlins will move down the coats for their next series of the week against the Padres.
(April 16, 2012 - Source: Brian Kersey/Getty Images North America)
 The Franchise has run into the first real dilemma of the season. Aubrey Huff’s trip to the disabled list has left my team without a first base eligible player, and since first base is a desolate hole this year in the NL my best waiver wire options are Lyle Overbay, Travis Ishikawa, and one of the “other” Nationals prospects that was called up this weekend, Tyler Moore.
It is obvious that none of these guys are long term options, so they are not getting more than a buck a piece of my FAAB budget. I like Overbay the best because the struggling Paul Goldschmidt could find himself back in triple-A if he doesn’t turn things around – or they will at least protect him against some better pitching giving Overbay some at-bats.
Tyler Moore probably has the most upside out of the trio, but with Adam LaRoche being red hot right now he won’t be finding at-bats at first base, and some kid named Bryce Harper made a pretty strong debut, so it is doubtful he steals at-bats from him. Best case scenario for Moore to get at-bats is when the Nats face left handed pitching, forcing Davey Johnson to sit Rick Ankiel, move Jayson Werth or Harper to center, in turn freeing up a corner spot for him. Next week the Nationals will see two lefties in Joe Saunders and Cole Hamels, so adding in possible pinch-hit opportunities, Moore’s at-bat total probably has a ceiling of 10.
I am working on a trade to acquire a first base eligible player while giving up an arm and/or outfielder, but again since there aren’t many quality first base options the asking price in trade talks is still high from league members.
Now to the Bryce Harper conundrum. Our league does not allow you to draft players if they are not on the major league roster when the auction happens. Bryce was of course sent to the minor league camp before the auction, so now that he has been called up he is eligible to be bid on. Here is a quick history of the highest priced free agents since the FAAB system was established by our league.
2011 – Edwin Jackson $23 when traded from the AL
2010 – Stephen Strasburg $57 when called up
2009 – Matt Holliday $80 when traded from the AL
2008 – CC Sabathia and Rich Harden both $59 when traded from the AL
I am a firm believer in spending your FAAB early and often, and in large amounts if necessary, when a player will fill a need. That being said, Harper will help my offense, and I see myself as a player in the $40 range, but don’t know if I can go much higher than that given my injury risks. I also don’t think $40 will get it done, and he should go for at least $65 - so it looks like I will be waiting for Anthony Rizzo to get the call to spend my FAAB on that big call-up.
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Written by Nate Springfield exclusively for TheFantasyFix.com. Check back weekly for Nate's NL-Only expertise, and follow him on his journey for a title of the State House League in 2012.
Follow Nate on Twitter @NateSpringfield
 Mike Trout (Credits Below) No time for stories or fluff this week, let’s get right to business.While these few names are familiar, they are not owned in nearly enough leagues.
Mike Trout (LAA-OF | 46% Y! and 27.6 ESPN) As I noted in last week’s waiver wire, Mike Trout has been absolutely raking in Salt Lake City, the Triple-A affiliate of the Angels in the hitter friendly Pacific Coast League, to the tune of a .403/.468/.623 triple slash. Trout clubbed four doubles, three triples, one home run, scored 21 runs and swiped six bags in 20 contests for the Bees. Now that the Angels have finally cut ties with Bobby Abreu, Mike Trout has been recalled and figures to be inserted into the leadoff spot for the Angels today against the Indians. Trout should be owned in all formats.
Bryce Harper (Was-OF | 63% Y! and 60% ESPN) I also wrote about the impending call-up of uber-prospect Bryce Harper last week here, and I still have the same feelings today. He is one of the greatest prospects that we have ever seen, however, Harper could’ve used some more seasoning prior to his call-up. Despite the improvement in batting average over the last week (.232-to-.250), the nineteen year-old outfielder continues to display a glaring weakness against southpaws (.190/.261/.238). The Nationals insist that they will not deviate from the “developmental plan” they have in place for Harper, as they continue to look for him to get 350 at-bats in the minors. But with Ryan Zimmerman hitting the disabled list, and Harper swinging the bat well of late, the opportunity to get a glimpse of the kid was too good to pass up. While he may not be up for good, Harper should be added in twelve team mixers and deeper, without cutting a player of value.
Jose Altuve (Hou-2B | 58% Y! and 80% ESPN) Ranked third amongst second basemen in Yahoo! and second on ESPN’s player rater, Altuve is a must add for those who lack depth at 2B or the middle infield slot. The five-foot-seven Venezuelan was ranked as the 11th best prospect in the Houston Astros organization heading into 2011, with the expectation that he could sustain a decent batting average, steal some bases and contribute some long balls. While it’s nearly impossible Altuve maintains his current .378 batting average, due to his .435 average on balls in play (.340 BABIP for career), it wouldn’t be surprising if he finished the season in the .300 range with about 30 stolen bases.
Tony Campana (ChC-OF | 5% Y! and 2% ESPN) At the time of his call-up, Tony Campana maintained a .304/.355/.375 triple slash and led the PCL with eight stolen bases. In six games since arriving in the Windy City, he’s held a .389/.421/.389 slash line, scored three runs and has swiped five bags. While we can’t expect him to sustain the average, given his .500 average on balls in play, he will serve as a single-category stud for those in need of stolen bases and most importantly, Campana will be very fun to watch. Add with confidence in any format if you lack in the stolen base department.
Stuck in The Middle With You:
I say this about the same time every year. The middle reliever might not have the big paycheck, the electrifying entrance song or his own fan section, but he does carry five category potential. You may be rewarded when he has the opportunity to pick up the scab win or he gets the save chance when the tabbed closer is given the night off. Additionally, he will maintain a humble ERA and WHIP while posting a first-class K:BB ratio. Lastly, the reliever you are looking to add could be the handcuff to your current closer for insurance purposes. Combine a couple of these guys, and you have yourself the results of a fine looking starter.
Jonny Venters (ATL-RP | 53% Y! and 26% ESPN) Venters entered 2012 as one of the elite, if not the best, set-up men in the majors. In eight appearances thus far in 2012, Venters has collected two victories, hasn’t allowed an earned run (0.00 ERA, 0.94 xFIP) and touts a 17.61 K/9. If Venters can improve on his command/control (a 4.7 BB/9 and 1.30 WHIP, both of which are above career average), he makes for a safe weekly start in all formats.
David Robertson(NYY-RP | 36% Y! and 12% ESPN) The cutter. Yes, it makes that much of a difference, especially when you learn it from Mariano Rivera. David Robertson added the ~92 mph cutter to his arsenal heading into the 2011 season. After overcoming some early season control issues with the new pitch, Robertson blasted the cutter in on lefties, and away from righties to achieve personal major league bests in K/9, ERA and WHIP. The heir-apparent to the aforementioned Rivera has started 2012 right where he left off in 2011. In nine appearances, Robertson is 0-0, with a 0.00 ERA (2.26 xFIP) and a 4.33 K/BB. While he is unlikely to sustain his current strand rate (100%), we can expect Robertson to continue to miss bats (9.6 SwStr%) and induce weak contact (12.5% IFFB%) at his current pace. Like previously mentioned, Robertson is one of those guys you just plug into your lineup week-in and week-out in any format, then sit back and enjoy the fruits of his labor.
Addison Reed (CWS-RP | 19% Y! and 9% ESPN) The youngster from San Diego State was one of those players on many industry “experts’” wish lists heading into 2012. Due to the late-season success Reed had in 2011, and the trade of Sergio Santos to the Blue Jays, some felt Reed was the dark-horse candidate that Robin Ventura would call on to close games.
Quick scouting report: The six-foot-four right-hander started 2011 in low-A Kannapolis and ascended all the way to the big leagues by September. Baseball America notes that Reed’s fastball, which sits in the 93-96 mph range, but touches 98 isn’t even his best pitch. The bread-and-butter of his repertoire is a plus-plus slider that finishes in on righties at about 80 mph.
In Reed, you have solid ratios, strikeout numbers and potentially Chicago’s future closer should Hector Santiago continue to falter. I’m adding Addison Reed in all formats.
Pedro Strop (Bal-RP | 11% Y! and 6% ESPN) Strop has been called upon in nine of the Orioles’ first 20 games. In 12 innings, Strop is 2-1, with two saves and sports a 10.5 K/9. The two saves were picked up this past week in Jim Johnson’s absence, however, his performance proves to the club he has the ability to close out games should Johnson stumble at any point throughout the season. If you have any shares of Jim Johnson, I would strongly consider adding the 26 year-old Dominican for insurance purposes.
Mitchell Boggs (STL-RP | 8% Y! and 1% ESPN) In eight trips to the mound, Boggs is 0-0 with a 0.96 ERA (2.35 xFIP) and displays a stellar 9.00 K/BB. Although Boggs is likely owned in holds leagues, his ratios and ability to miss bats makes him serviceable in most formats.
Following Up: Originally posted in the 4/13/12 edition of the waiver wire, Jordan Schafer, Adam LaRoche and J.D. Martinez continue to produce and are still unowned in too many leagues. What are you waiting for?Written by Alan Harrison, exclusively for TheFantasyFix.com. You can read more of Alan’s articles here, or argue with him about who to trade, add or drop on Twitter here. (September 25, 2011 - Source: Jeff Gross/Getty Images North America)
 Will Middlebrooks (credits below) There is a second perfect storm scenario brewing in the Boston area. You will remember the first perfect storm as the weather pattern that produced the giant wave that killed George Clooney and Mark Wahlberg. Where Clooney was all “I'm greedy for extra fish, lets keep going.” Then the ocean was like “I'll show you Posiedon's fury.” Then Wahlberg was all “hey wave, say hi to your mother for me, gurgle, gurgle, sputter, choke, drown.”
The new perfect storm is building from a combination of factors in the Boston area. First, the Red Sox have not started the season well, sputtering to an 8-10 record and last in the AL East. Second, incumbent third baseman Kevin Youkilis is hitting .241/.297/.379 and has already drawn the ire of new manager Bobby Valentine, who claimed Youkilis' head wasn't in the game. Third and most germane to this discussion, Red Sox prospect Will Middlebrooks is absolutely killing the ball in AAA.
It's a small sample size, only 84 at bats, but in that time Middlebrooks has hit .377/.429/.792 with 9 HR, 18 R, 27 RBI. He's got a .542 wOBA and a 243 wRC+. Middlebrooks came into the season as Baseball America's top Red Sox prospect and has outperformed even those lofty expectations. Baseball America even recently gushed about Middlebrooks, saying: “Middlebrooks' early hot streak comes with no caveats. He's hitting nearly equally well against lefthanders and righthanders, and home/road splits are close to identical as well.” Heading into the 2012 season, soxprospects.com had Middlebrooks development goals as: “needs work with his pitch selection to produce consistent contact at the major league level. He is willing to take pitches, but at times gets too zealous in hitter’s counts or needlessly expands his strike zone.” He's developing. Middlebrooks is currently sporting the highest BB% of his career at 8.3% and lowest KK% at 15.5%. The most exciting thing about the 2012 Boston Red Sox season, through April, is the slugging third baseman in AAA.
It's doubtful the Red Sox will bring up Middlebrooks, unless Youkilis' struggles stretch well into the summer. Youkilis has earned too much rope over his career and the organization has seen first hand with David Ortiz and Dustin Pedroia, the payoff of sticking with struggling players. Youkilis has played some left field at Fenway, so it's possible that the Sox could get creative, considering the injury issues of Jacoby Ellsbury and Carl Crawford and move him to the outfield to create room for Middlebrooks. Or perhaps a fed up Youkilis ends up pulling a Sprewell on Valentine. Realistically, any chance of a call-up would require this type of hitting over a much larger sample size for the AAA third baseman.
Currently you're only adding Middlebrooks in keeper or deep AL-only leagues. Keep an eye on him though, watching for continued otherworldly hitting. If he can sustain the success he's had over 84 at-bats for an extended period, Middlebrooks will force the Red Sox hand.
 Whether new to the job or an experienced veteran, closers had a hard time filling that job description on Thursday.
Heath Bell, one of the most consistent closer in recent years, had one of his worst performances when he walked four batters and gave up a hit to allow two runs in the ninth inning of a 3-2 loss to the Mets. Bell may need some time to get over that game both mentally and physically after throwing 46 pitches while watching his ERA rise to 9.53.
Jordan Walden is almost at that same mark after giving up a two-run, walk-off homer to Brandon Allen in Tampa's 4-3 win over Anaheim. Walden gave up a hit and a homer to watch his ERA rise to 8.31.
Cincinnati's Sean Marshall took over as the closer when Ryan Madsen suffered a season-ending injury and he gave up a three-run homer to Angel Pagan in the ninth inning to blow a 6-5 loss for the Reds. Marshall gave up three hits and a walk while pushing his ERA to 6.14.
The most impressive ninth-inning pitching came from an unexpected source when Baltimore's Luis Ayala picked up his first save with his ninth scoreless inning on the season. He could be an interesting pickup with regular closer Jim Johnson in the hospital with a bacterial infection and out indefinitely.
Seattle's Brandon League gave up two hits in the ninth, but saved a 5-4 win over Detroit for his seventh save. Jonathan Broxton got his second save for Kansas City much to the relief of his fantasy owners hoping he can keep that role and Huston Street got a save for the Padres. _______________________________________________________________________________________
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Some young pitchers who have struggled this year got things turned around as Baltimore's Brian Matusz tossed six scoreless innings to lower his ERA to 5.66 while Matt Moore of Tampa Bay gave up two runs in 5 2/3. It was a different story for Detroit's Rick Porcello, who gave up five runs in 6 2/3 to Seattle, and Josh Tomlin, who gave up four runs in 4 2/3 innings.
If you picked up Philip Humber after the perfect game, you were too late. He gave up nine runs in five innings against Boston.
Ricky Nolasco gave up one run in seven innings and Jon Niese gave up two in seven innings, but neither factored in the decision. It was a similar story in San Diego where Edinson Volquez gave up one run in seven innings and Edwin Jackson threw 6 2/3 scoreless innings, but neither got a decision.
Your offensive fantasy stud of the day was Boston catcher Jarrod Saltalamacchia, who had a pair of homers. Kevin Youkilis had three hits and four RBIs for the Red Sox.
Adam Jones went 2-for-4 with his sixth home run to raise his average to .316 and teammate Nick Markakis was 3-for-4. Jay Bruce had three hits and a homer while Mark Trumbo had two hits and a homer. There were signs of life from Brandon Belt, who took advantage of a start to get two hits.
Kirk Nieuwenhuis should continue to be a hot pick-up after getting three hits to raise his average to .333.
And Albert Pujols broke his longest hitless streak at 21 at-bats with a single, but still no homer this season for Pujols.
 Michael Pineda (credits below) A friend and I were once discussing the best way to make money by pushing a child to excel in a professional sport. We'd brainstorm different, Earl Woods-esque ways, you could push them to excel. His best idea was to turn his future son into a lefty knuckleballer. Genius idea, a true testament to American ingenuity. Identify the best potential payout - MLB starting pitcher - with a controllable variable – forced knuckleballs. Unfortunately, I'm not so sure MLB starting pitcher is the way to helicopter parent a kid to a successful sports career anymore.
The Yankees announced today that Michael Pineda would miss the 2012 season after undergoing surgery to repair a labrum tear. The surgery requires an estimated 12 months of recovery so Pineda's best case scenario is a May 2013 return. Pineda, of course, was just acquired from the Seattle Mariners, following a nice rookie season, in exchange for the Yankees slugging DH/Catcher Jesus Montero. Another example reinforcing the old adage – position player prospects are much more valuable than pitching prospects.
The argument for the Yankees side of the Pineda/Montero trade just took a seriously staggering blow. The Yankees need a standing 8 count. Late at night - with a belly full of scotch, a head full of regrets and a pillow soaked in tears - you just know Brian Cashman is quietly whispering Jesus Montero's name.
In related news Phil Hughes went 2.2 IP, giving up 4 ER, sending his season ERA to 7.88, in a 7-3 Yankees loss. Hurry back Andy Pettitte. Mike Napoli hit his 7th HR of the season in this game.
Useful Astros hitters, who'da thunk it? Jose Altuve and J.D. Martinez continued their hot starts in a 7-5 Astros win over the Brewers. Altuve was 4 for 5 with 3 runs and an RBI, while Martinez was 3 for 4 with 1 run and 3 RBIs, making it 18 RBIs on the season._______________________________________________________________________________________
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Did you read Adam's Farm Report on Jarrod Parker yesterday? If so, you wouldn't be surprised that his 2012 debut went well, with 6.1 IP, 1 ER, 1 BB and 5 K. If you didn't, well now you probably missed your chance at Parker and you only have yourself to thank. Go to your room and think about what you've done. You should also know that Oakland won 5-4, thanks to Kila Ka'aihue's 14th inning, game-winning, single. Think about that too. No dinner.
More bad injury news in Boston, Carl Crawford is heading to seek a second opinion on his elbow from Dr. James Andrews and may be out much longer than expected. As Peter Gammons tweeted, the Red Sox have more committed salary on the disabled list, 67 million, than the Tampa Bay Rays total payroll, 63 million. The Red Sox completed their sweep of the Twins with a 7-6 win. Before the game, Bobby Valentine filled out a line-up card with the assumption that Twins starter Liam Hendriks is left-handed. Since Hendriks is right-handed, he later submitted an adjusted line-up card. In a related story, the Red Sox are going to fire Bobby Valentine this summer.
Lots of good starters continued to roll on Wednesday night. Cole Hamels went 8 IP with 2 ER, 1 BB and 7 K. Jordan Zimmerman went 6IP, with 1ER, 0 BB, 6 K. CJ Wilson went 7 IP, with 2 ER, 2 BB and 11K. Jeremy Hellickson continued to defy advanced metrics with 6 IP, 1 ER, 2 BB and 5 K. RA Dickey is back on the quality start wagon thanks to, 7IP, 1 ER, 1 BB and 7 K. Lance Lynn pushed his season record to 4-0 with 8 IP, 1 ER, 2BB and 7 K.
There were signs of life from the big names in Kansas City. Pulling both their fantasy owners and Royals fans back from the ledge. Billy Butler had 2 HR and 3 RBI, Eric Hosmer had a HR and 2 RBI, and Alex Gordon had a HR and 3 RBI. All in an 8-2 Royals win. (February 26, 2012 - Source: Nick Laham/Getty Images North America)
 Manny Machado A couple of weeks ago, I did a breakdown of Taijuan Walker vs Trevor Bauer for fantasy. Continuing in this theme of ‘prospect cage matches,’ let’s take a look at two of the game’s top hitting prospects in the middle infield: Manny Machado vs Billy Hamilton.
The Offensive Tools:Machado: The Orioles drafted Manny Machado as the 3rd pick in the 2011 draft, and so far in his young career Machado has certainly been worth that pick. Rated as the 11th best prospect in baseball coming into this season by Baseball America, Machado has earned his rank mostly thanks to a lack of deficiencies in his game rather than one or two elite skills. Machado is considered a good hitter with solid power, and at his peak he could be a .280+, 25-homer guy. While those numbers don’t sound that impressive, they do come with phenomenal plate discipline, as last year in the minors Machado drew 45 walks compared to only 73 strikeouts in 101 games. This plate discipline and power combination could propel Machado to be a high Run / RBI dual-threat. The only real weakness in Machado’s offensive game is his speed, which is ‘average’ right now, but he’s still young and growing, and will likely turn into below average speed. Overall, Machado has the upside to be a top 5 offensive shortstop and a very good, if not elite 4 category performer.
Hamilton: Talk of Billy Hamilton’s value for both major league baseball as well as fantasy baseball has to start and end with his speed. Billy Hamilton can get from first to second faster than a murder in a Quentin Tarantino movie, faster than Nelson Cruz hits the DL, and even faster than a Kim Kardashian marriage (sorry Kanye). You know Dee Gordon, also known as “That Guy Currently On Pace For 90 Steals Despite A Sub-.300 On Base Percentage”? Well, Billy Hamilton is not only significantly faster than Gordon, stealing over 100 bases last season in just 135 games, but he’s also a significantly better offensive baseball player. After getting off to a slow start in the first two months of last season, Hamilton managed to hit over .300 after the month of May. This season, he’s been promoted to the offense friendly Cal League, and all Hamilton has done is rake, hitting .353 with a .450 on base and showing much-improved power with a .574 slugging. Hamilton is never going to be a true slugger, but 10 home runs at his peak aren’t out of the question. The most important thing to note about Hamilton’s game is his plate discipline, which isn’t great but is good enough for him to have a .350+ on base percentage at his peak. When you’ve got that kind of speed, a .350 on base should allow for stolen base total in the 70’s, 80’s, 90’s, or maybe even in triple digit totals, with absurd runs potential in the 120+ range every season.
The Edge: Hamilton by a ton. For real life, nearly every team in baseball would rather have Machado, but unless you’re in an OBP league or a points league, Hamilton’s dominance in one and possibly even two categories will have him finish in the top 10 on the player rater nearly every time he plays a full season (see Michael Bourne for details, but multiply that by 10). _______________________________________________________________________________________ We have partnered with DailyJoust.com to give our users an opportunity to compete in Daily Fantasy games this baseball season and they have a $250 MLB Baseball Freeroll Tournament Friday April 27th starting at 7pm EST. Click to enter.
_______________________________________________________________________________________ The Position: Machado: Machado has an above average arm from shortstop, and fine range to field the position for now. His problem is his size, as he stands at 6’3” but weighs only 185 pounds. Machado is only 19 years old, and as he ages he will likely put on some weight, which could force him to move from short to third. Right now I’d say that it’s probably around a 50/50 probability as to whether or not he ends up at short or third, but the good news for the Orioles as well as Machado’s fantasy owners is that his bat will likely let him provide real value at either position.
Hamilton: Thanks to Hamilton’s speed, he’s got more than enough range to field the shortstop position. However, he has his own defensive problems at the position that are the exact opposite of Machado’s. Up until this season, Hamilton had below average arm strength as well as below average fundamentals at short, but so far this season he has looked much better, and more scouts are starting to believe that he can stick at short. If he moves off the position, Hamilton certainly doesn’t have the arm for third, so he’d likely move to second base, or possibly even centerfield. Right now I’d set it at 60% short, 30% second, 10% centerfield.
The Edge: Push. Personally, I would rather have a second basemen than a third basemen, which would seem to put this in Hamilton’s favor, but the fact that he has a small chance to end up in the outfield makes this a push. If Hamilton becomes an outfielder, it won’t kill his fantasy value, but it will certainly hurt it.
The Team: Machado: Let’s be honest: the Orioles aren’t the best organization in baseball, and that’s probably not going to change anytime soon thanks to their ownership situation which has been described (by me) as ‘Dan Schneider-esque, without all the money.’ By the time Machado is ready to be an impact fantasy player, the Orioles roster will likely be a newly assembled group of young talent, as by then Adam Jones, Nick Markakis and the rest of the current O’s will have mostly left via free agency or trade. Playing against the AL East is never great for a player’s fantasy value, and I’d put Machado’s chances of being in an above average lineup for most of his Orioles tender at under 25%. The Orioles’ ballpark is probably slightly above average for hitters, so at least Machado has that going for him.
Hamilton: The Reds have signed their core players (Votto, Phillips) for long enough and have enough young-ish talent (Bruce, Mesoraco, Stubbs) that the team will likely still be quite good once Hamilton becomes fantasy relevant. However, there seems to be this idea circulating in baseball circles that Great American Ballpark is an extreme hitters park, but that’s just not the case; in actuality, it’s a good place to hit homers, but a mediocre to below average place to hit balls in play. The park doesn’t really play to Hamilton’s strengths, but the lineup is good enough to make this an above average situation for Hamilton.
The Edge: Hamilton. When the question is Reds vs Orioles, it really doesn’t matter what position you play, I’d rather have my player on the Reds.
The Proximity: Machado: Machado could be ready as early as late 2013, but the Orioles will have no need to rush him to the majors, as their team won’t be near ready for contention by then. I’d set his ETA as more of a mid-2014 call-up, sometime after the Super 2 deadline in July.
Hamilton: Hamilton will likely be ready as early as early 2014, and the Reds do have a slight need at shortstop although Zack Cozart appears to have filled that adequately for now. I think the Reds are going to want to hold Hamilton down a little longer to work on his defensive fundamentals, so I’d set his ETA at mid to late 2014.
The Edge: Manny Machado by a slight amount.
 Billy Hamilton The Verdict: Billy Hamilton over Manny Machado by a medium-sized margin.
There are two types of people in this world: the people who believe in Billy Hamilton, and the people who don’t: there’s not a lot of in-between.
Obviously, I more than fall on the side of believing in Hamilton, as I believe that if he hits his peak, Hamilton could be the first overall pick in most fantasy leagues thanks to his stolen base and runs dominance. If you are faint of heart and have a dearth of intestinal fortitude, Machado is your guy. There is a much higher probability that Machado becomes a solid, 3rd or 4th round type of player than there is of Hamilton becoming that; however, in my leagues which include prospects, I like to swing for the fences with my prospects. And, ironically, Hamilton has a much higher chance of hitting it out of the park for fantasy owners than nearly any other infield prospect in the minor leagues including Machado.
I love Manny Machado for real life, but the problem is a lot of his value is going to come from his above average arm, and well above average plate discipline, neither of which helps all that much for fantasy. On the contrary, speed is so much more valuable in fantasy than in Major League Baseball that I think Billy Hamilton has become extremely undervalued in fantasy circles.
If possible, go get Hamilton before his California League numbers continue to stay extremely inflated and he becomes considered a legit top 15 prospect in baseball, he could be a franchise changer for your team.
By Moe Koltun, exclusively for TheFantasyFix.com. Read more of Moe's excellent fantasy insight over at RotoAnalysis.com. Have a fantasy related question? You can follow the site on Twitter @RotoAnalysis or Moe on twitter @moeproblems.
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 KIRK NIEUWENHUIS (credits below) This week we look at four promising lefty starters and a center fielder taking Citi Field by storm!
SP-DREW POMERANZ (COLORADO)- The promising young lefty will have some growing pains this year as he learns how to deal with Coors field. Currently Pomeranz owns a 0-1 record with a 6.75 ERA and a 1.71 WHIP. The 30th ranked propsect in all of baseball is showing positive signs though averaging a strike out per inning in his brief nine innings of work. Pomeranz isnt worthy of a roster spot as of now but he can be valuable especially in head to head leagues when he gets two starts in a week.
SP-WADE MILEY (ARIZONA)- Miley was lights out last night as he limited the Phillies to two hits while striking out seven in six scoreless innings. Wade is now 2-0 with a 1.84 ERA and a 0.95 WHIP on the season. While his numbers are certainly impressive I recommend taking a wait and see approach as to how Diamondbacks manager Kirk Gibson is going to handle the pitching situation out in the desert. Miley started for DL ridden Daniel Hudson last night and top pitching prospect Trevor Bauer is a phone call away from being added into the big league clubs rotation. If you have a roster spot available he is definitely worth an add.
SP- TOMMY MILONE (OAKLAND)- Milone reminds me of a so far of a young version of Mark Buehrle, he doesnt throw real hard and will not strike out many but has excellent control and is a serviceable pitcher if you need ERA and WHIP numbers. He currently owns a 2.00 ERA , 0.80 WHIP and three wins. Even more impressive was his win out in Anaheim against a solid Angels team last week Pitching in Oakland half of his games can only help the young lefty where Barry Zito and Mark Mulder flourished in the past. He is not flashy but you could do worse as your 4th or 5th starter.
SP-DREW SMYLY- (DETROIT)- Drew has been very impressive so far this year with a 1.12 ERA averaging nearly a strike out an inning in 16 innings pitched. On Sunday he held down the vaunted Ranger lineup striking out seven getting a no decision. Smyly is the team's number five starter and looks like he has cemented himself in that spot with his early season success. He is definitely worth an add if you have room on your roster especially on a World Series contending team like Detroit.
OF- KIRK NIEUWENHUIS (NY METS)- Kirk has already become a Mets fan favorite for his all out hustle approach to the game bringing fans back to remember another young phenom who burst onto the scene named Lenny Dykstra. He currently owns a .327 batting average with two HR's and four RBI's. "Captain Kirk" owns a career minor league BA of .280 and has also shown some speed and pop as well. Manager Terry Collins will have some decisions to make when Mets projected 2012 centerfield starter Andres Torres returns from the disabled list with a bad calf muscle.
BRYCE HARPER WATCH- Bryce finally hit his first home run last week for Syracuse as he continues to struggle against AAA pitching. Harper currently owns a .234 batting average with a one HR and two RBI's. He continues to struggle both against left hand pitching and defensivley in CF.(March 1, 2012 - Photo by Marc Serota/Getty Images North America) We have partnered with DailyJoust.com to give our users an opportunity to compete in Daily Fantasy games this baseball season and they have a $250 MLB Baseball Freeroll Tournament Friday April 27th starting at 7pm EST. Click to enter.
 Toronto Blue Jays at Baltimore Orioles: Eric Thames had a forgetfully memorable game: his first HR of the season was the good. The bad? Well, the Orioles hit a HR that bounced off his glove and he struck out to end the game. Pedro Strop earned the save for the Orioles as Jim Johnson was hospitalized with the flu (why do baseball players get hospitalized when they have the flu?). Given Matt Lindstrom and Kevin Gregg are awful, Strop looks like the appropriate handcuff to Johnson – it also makes sense as Strop is likely the second best reliever on the Birds. Henderson Alvarez allowed 7 base runners across his 7 innings, but didn’t record a punch out. Matt Wieters got the homer and he's basically Johnny Bench (I kid but also hope).
Los Angeles Angels of Anaheimat Tampa Bay Rays: Ervin Santana gave up eight hits, four of which cleared the fence. Santana has now given up 10 long balls this year. Last season, Santana had a perfectly normal 10.1% HR/FB rate; this year, a quarter of his fly balls have left the yard. There has to be some regression at some point, so go get him. Carlos Pena's HR was his 1,000th hit and he just yanked the ball out, it was destroyed. B.J. Upton also homered, albeit barely (the shortest HR of the year). Still he has looked dialed in since coming back; it might be time to kick the tires on him. Meanwhile David Price went the distance and was dealing all night: he allowed just six base runners. Albert Pujols went o'fer and I'm ashamed we share a first name. Not shocking: Vernon Wells hit into a double play...he's not so good.
San Francisco Giants at Cincinnati Reds: Mat Latos allowed just six base runners in seven innings of work and threw 66 of his 95 pitches for strikes. Matt Cain was decent, but the bullpen really let him down as Lucille Ostero, er Dan Otero allowed six runs in 1.2 IPs. Brandon Phillips hit a homer and collected three RBIs. Zack Cozart kept hitting, going 2/5 with a double. Both Jay Bruce and Scott Rolen collected two RBIs and Bruce even stole a base. The Reds dominated this one from the start. With Sam LeCure on for mop up duty, Pablo Sandoval continued to get on base and Buster Posey hit another HR. Posey is locked in right now.
Colorado Rockies at Pittsburgh Pirates: Going into the game, I believe, the Pirates had one hit all season that drove in more than one run. Andrew McCutchen changed all that with a two run double. However, he was outdone by Carlos Gonzalez and his two HRs (one of which was off a lefty). Of course, CarGo was overshadowed by the mighty Clint Barmes who tied the game in the eighth with a homer. A few batters later, Casey McGehee knocked in the go-ahead run. That's a plucky (bad) line-up the Pirates have. Joel Hanrahan came on for a perfect frame in the ninth, overpowering the Rockies.
Miami Marlins at New York Mets: Josh Johnson and Johan Santana were dealing. Johnson went 6.2, gave up three hits and K'ed nine. Santana also went 6.2 and gave up three hits, but he K'ed 11. Both Johnson and Santana threw 67 strikes. You know the pitchers were the stars when Josh Thole was the hitting MVP. Frank Francisco came on in the ninth, gave up a walk, got two pop ups and then Giancarlo Stanton flew harmlessly out to right. The story is obviously the starting pitching. When healthy, both Johnson and Santana are valuable commodities, but their brittleness makes trading them next to impossible. So just ride them when they’re healthy and DL them when the time comes. An aside, hopefully this doesn’t affect many of you, but there are rumors that Mike Pelfry has a partially torn UCL. If there’s a guy out there you want, dropping Pelfry made sense two weeks ago. We have partnered with DailyJoust.com to give our users an opportunity to compete in Daily Fantasy games this baseball season and they have a $250 MLB Baseball Freeroll Tournament Friday April 27th starting at 7pm EST. Click to enter.
Seattle Mariners at Detroit Tigers: Tom Wilhelmsen was tested finally (he allowed two hits in a tight game) but he came through with two K's to get out of the eighth inning unscathed. Brandon League worked around a walk to earn the save easily. Max Scherzer took the loss, allowing 10 hits and walking two batters in 5 innings. He did strike out six, but threw only 63 strikes in his 103 pitches. He also gave up six fly balls. And he was facing the Mariners. He really belongs on the bench at this point. Alex Liddi hit a homer and stole a base, keep your eye on him in dynasty leagues as the entire Mariners team seems to struggle with the bat. Alex Avila and Miguel Cabrera hit homers: not shocking.
Kansas City Royals at Cleveland Indians: Vinnie Pestano had some trouble, giving up a lead-off walk and following it with a bad pitch down and in to Mitch Maier who doubled. Mike Moustakas then singled, but Pestano got Alcides Escobar out to end the inning, with only one scoring. Not much here, Pestano was firing the ball and threw 18/30 pitches for strikes. Chris Perez came on in the top of the ninth with a two-run lead and promptly gave up a double to not-so-professional hitter Chris Getz. Casey Kotchman made a fine diving stop to get Alex Gordon (although Jason Kipnis probably could have made the play) and Getz advanced to third. Billy Butler followed with a hard grounder to short, which scored Getz, but left the Royals down to their final out. Eric Hosmer followed with a base hit to left, but Jeff Francoeur grounded out to end the game. Perez hangs on again. Hey, if Joe Borowski can save 45 games with a 5.07 ERA and 1.43 WHIP, so can Perez. In other news, Maier went 3/4 and looks like a solid add (especially in OBP leagues) in Lorenzo Cain's absence. The other big news is that Shin-soo Choo left the game with an injury, supposedly it’s just light hamstring tightness, so begin holding your breath now. That said, Johnny Damon is even closer to 3,000 hits now. Down on the farm, Mike Montgomery went seven, allowed three runs, but struck out six and only walked one.
New York Yankees at Texas Rangers: It was all Yu Darvish in this one: he pitched into the 9th and scattered seven hits while K'ing 10 Yankees. He threw 82 of his 119 pitches for strikes and looked amazing, locating all of his pitches and routinely spotting curveballs and sinkers wherever he wanted. Darvish was pulled in the 9th after giving up a single and Joe Nathan made one pitch and got Raul Ibanez to ground into a double play. Ian Kinsler started the game off for the Rangers offensively with a homer and Josh Hamilton chipped in an RBI single after Elvis Andrus easily swiped second. Huroki Kuroda was impressive himself, allowing 7 base runners in 6.2 innings and recording five K's. He just had to be perfect to keep the Yanks in the ball game. He did get more swings and misses than Darvish, so there's that.
Boston Red Sox at Minnesota Twins: This just in, Nick Blackburn is not very good. The Red Sox jumped all over the Twins early and often as David Ortiz and Mike Aviles went deep and Kelly Shoppach continued owning Blackburn. Heck, even Lars Anderson went 1/1. Ortiz is just unconscious right now: .444/.486/.714. Yep, I own him everywhere. Josh Beckett had a rough first inning during which he thought he was getting squeezed and after which he had many choice words for the home plate umpire. Surprisingly, Beckett wasn’t tossed and he went on to toss a very good game (6 IPs, five K's and 8 base runners). Not much happened for the Twins, except Joe Mauer continued his roll. He started the season 1-for-10, but since has batted.364 with a .453 on-base percentage. Denard Span went 2/4 and is now hitting .333/.377/.431. Yep he looks like he's over the concussion. FYI Josh Willingham was placed on paternity leave, so get him out of your line-ups.
Houston Astros at Milwaukee Brewers: Randy Wolf was effective for the first time this season (eight base runners, two runs, 4 K's in six IPs) and Bud Norris was god awful (seven runs in 5.2). Rickie Weeks was one of four Wallbangers to go deep and Nyjer Morgan had a much needed three hit game while his understudy, Carlos Gomez, somehow hit a HR off Brett Myers who was on to just get some sort of work. And that’s how you run on a sentence. With a save conversion, John Axford tied Brad Lidge for the 4th longest consecutive save streak with 47. I bet you can’t guess who is second!* St. Louis Cardinals at Chicago Cubs: Carlos Marmol came on in the 8th after Rafael Dolis walked Rafael Furcal and promptly gave up a homer to Matt Holliday, walked Carlos Beltran, committed an error and got David Freese on a fly out. Of his 13 pitches, six were balls. Michael Bowden came on in relief in the ninth and looked sharp initially before giving up a double to Shane Robinson, and walking Daniel Descalso and Rafael Furcal. Ultimately he got Skip Schumaker on a soft liner to shortstop. Marc Rzepczynski started the ninth with Bryan LaHair up. On the first pitch, LaHair hit an opposite field homer for his first hit off a southpaw this season. Jason Motte was warming in the pen and then sat down as Fernando Salas got warm in a tie game, just 'cuz. In all seriousness, I don’t think you want to own any Cubs reliever at this point (obvious, much?). That said, I'd be shocked if Marmol lost the job as Dolis isn’t ready, Kerry Wood is injured and the rest suck. Marmol isn’t this bad, I think. The Cubs bullpen ruined an awesome Jeff Samardzija start. He went 6.2 with nine K's. Meanwhile Adam Wainwright went six strong and recorded seven K's, a huge step in the right direction. Alfonso Soriano hit a hard grounder to Tyler Greene who muffed it to end the game. I got tired during this one. I blame Marmol.
Atlanta Braves at Los Angeles Dodgers: Mike Minor threw a solid, yet unspectacular game as did Aaron Harang. Check out the box score, their lines are almost identically mediocre. Chipper Jones blasted another homer, what a great Hall of Fame career. Craig Kimbrell got a little wild in the ninth, but, as usual, struck out the side to record his sixth save.
Washington Nationals at San Diego Padres: Some maintenance to get out of the way: Ryan Zimmerman is undergoing an MRI on his throwing shoulder. I don’t own him anywhere, but would still love to see him stay healthy for a few games in a row here. Gio Gonzalez continued dominating the National League (although does it count when it’s the Padres?). Adam LaRoche continued hitting, collecting a double. Henry Rodriguez pitched another clean frame for another save. And it was clean, no hits and no walks. He struck out one batter and has five saves on the year. Something tells me the Nats aren’t hurrying Drew Storen back. I prefer Rodriguez in this bullpen to Brad Lidge.
Chicago White Sox at Oakland Athletics: Of course, a few days after I drop Tom Milone, he goes out and throws eight strong while allowing just three base runners. The K’s will never be there, but pair him with a high WHIP, high K guy and you’ve got an amazing crime fighting duo. Matt Thornton allowed a run in relief and couldn’t pick John Danks up, who had a great start himself. Thornton seems to be out of it for saves this year, even though he has an impeccable 1.04 ERA. Derek Norris, at AAA Sacramento, went 3-4 with a HR and is now hitting .357.
Philadelphia Phillies at Arizona Diamondbacks: Hunter Pence sure got healthy once he saw Josh Collmenter on the mound. Neither Pence (1/4 with a homer) nor Collmenter disappointed (6 IPs and six runs; I assume you only own him in a race to the bottom league). Juan Pierre, Pete Orr, Laynce Nix and Brian Schneider all had multi-hit games, go figure. Vance Worley shut down the Diamondbacks for his second win. According to Corey Seidman, Worley recorded six K’s looking and is up to 18 looking punch-outs this season. Down on the farm, former Orioles prospect, Josh Bell, hit two HRs at AAA for the Diamondbacks minor league squad. For some reason that makes me sad, even though he’ll never be a competent major leaguer, right? For those of you in dynasty leagues, last night, Chris Owings went 2-4 at High-A Visalia and is now hitting .338.
*It's Tom Gordon who had 54 saves in a row.
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