 Wily Mo Pena (see credits below) In his first game in the majors since 2008, Wily Mo Pena did what he's best at… hit home runs. Pena was 1-4 with a solo shot. Arizona promoted Pena after he dominated the PCL with a league high 21 homers. If Arizona decides to keep him, he could be a great short-term pickup off the waiver wire.
Madison Bumgarner got shelled giving up 8 earned runs in only 1/3 of an inning. The Giants were immediately KO'd as they've only scored more than 8 runs five times so far this season. Bumgarner falls to 3-9 but this hardly shows how he's performed up to this point, as he had 10 Quality Starts in a row. In those 10 games, Bumgarner dropped his ERA from 6.17 to 3.21, but last night put him back above four. Last night was an anomaly and I'd imagine you can get him on the cheap, cheap, cheap right now or even off the wire in smaller leagues.
Neil Walker continues to keep the Pirates floating around .500. Tuesday he was 2-4 with 3 RBI.
Andre Ethier went deep Tuesday. Ethier now has only 6 home runs this season and his slugging percentage is the lowest it’s been since 2007. Ethier’s home run pace is also lower than his career average per 162 of 21. Hopefully as the temperature in LA heats up so will Ethier’s power numbers.
Huston Street collected his MLB leading 22nd save last night in a 4-3 win over Cleveland. Seth Smith, who can't hit lefties for the life of him (.195 career BA), was luckily matched up against righties (.296 career BA) who he dominates and blasted 2 homers.
Signs of life from Jason Bay Tuesday as he went 3-3 with a home run and 2 RBI. It wasn't enough to beat the A's, as Dillon Gee finally got lit up and received his first loss of the season.
Although the Yankees were rained out in Cincinnati, they pulled closer to the top of the AL East, as Boston lost to the Padres 5-4.
Filling in for Tommy Hanson, Mike Minor had a great game only allowing 1 run and striking out 8 over 7 innings. With Brandon Beachy/Tommy Hanson returning relatively soon, Atlanta may have a hard decision to make if Minor keeps performing like this.
Philly teased St. Louis into thinking they could win without Albert Pujols. The Cards were winning 2-1 until the 8th inning when the Phillies erupted for 9 runs. Would you believe the runs were all from walks and singles? Roy Halladay did his usual, only allowing 1 run over 6 innings. How good is Halladay? It was his shortest outing since Opening Day!
Doug Fister who had never previously faced an NL opponent did all he could to give Seattle the chance to win. He threw 8 magnificent innings of 3 hit ball, giving up only 1 run, but Brandon League and David Pauley really blew it letting 5 Nats cross the plate in the 9th. Dustin Ackley was 1-4 with 2 RBI.
Javier Vasquez gets the win while giving up 10 hits in only 5.1 innings. Somehow none of those 10 tens equated to a run for the Angels. Vazquez lowered his ERA to a still disgusting 6.37. The 10 hits actually raised his WHIP to 1.69!
Alex Gordon was a single away from the cycle Tuesday and finished the day 3-4 with 2 RBI.
Michael Bourn is running away with the stolen base lead (pun intended). With 2 steals Tuesday his season total is now up to 32.
Zack Greinke fanned 10 Rays in 7 innings while only giving 1 earned run.
Hong-Chih Kuo saw his first action since being activated from the DL and tossed a scoreless inning while striking out 1. (June 20, 2011 - Photo by G. Newman Lowrance/Getty Images North America)Written by JJ Omar & Evan Marx exclusively for www.thefantasyfix.com.
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Tags: The Fantasy Fix, Fantasy Baseball Daily News, 2011 Fantasy Baseball Tips, 2011 Fantasy Baseball Advice, The Daily Fix
 Josh Willingham (credits below) Sluggers to Start
Josh Willingham | Oakland Athletics | 34.6% - Interleague play is back again this week and finding matchups with history just gets that more difficult. Josh Willingham has had his ups and downs this season but when you’re the only offensive threat in the lineup the blame doesn’t fallen directly on Willingham. This week Willingham gets a shot at NL East, the only other division he’s played for in his career.
First Willingham gets the joy of hitting in the massive piece of land they call Citi Field. In 12 starts at Bernie Madoff’s old stomping grounds Willingham is hitting a decent .256 with 2 home runs and 6 RBI. Those numbers are rather consistent with Willingham’s career numbers but the .368 average with 4 home runs and 10 RBI in 57 at bats against current Mets pitchers is why Willingham gets the nod this week. Additionally, if your league goes a little further in stats Willingham has a .463 OBP and 1.147 OPS against current Mets starters.
Willingham’s second matchup of the week is against the Philadelphia Phillies. Word is the Phils are looking for a veteran right-handed outfielder so this matchup may be an audition for Willingham to become the front runner for the position. Against current Phillies pitchers Willingham is hitting a solid .307 with 4 home runs and 16 RBI. What’s even better for Willingham owners is that in 31 starts at Citizens Bank Ballpark Willingham has hit 10 home runs while driving in 22. If this is in fact an audition, and Willingham does well, the Phillies may decide to trade for Willingham which would only increase his value.
Gordon Beckham | Chicago White Sox | 69.9 % - So far this season it is fair to say that Beckham’s 2011 has been a bust. Expected by many to revert to the hitting ways from his rookie campaign, Beckham has seemed to catch the slump going around the White Sox clubhouse. Encouraging news for Beckham owners is that he seems to be turning the corner and has favorable matchups this week.
In his last 21 games, Beckham is hitting .309 with 3 home runs 8 RBI and a steal. This week he will try and continue the pace against the cross town Cubs. Beckham owns Cubs pitchers hitting .435 against current Cubs hurlers and is getting on base at a .519 clip.
His second matchup is against the Washington Nationals. Beckham does not have many at bats against Nat’s pitchers but is hitting a respectable .286 against the club. The fact that the series against the Nationals is at home for Beckham will keep the lineup in tact not having to use NL rules.
Sluggers to Sit
Jhonny Peralta | Detroit Tigers | 100% - Peralta has been great this year. His numbers are even better when you consider his shortstop eligibility and his draft position. But this week it seems like it’ll be a better idea to keep him on the bench.
Peralta is first scheduled to take on the Dodgers in LA. In his career against Dodger pitchers Peralta is hitting only .188. Another difficulty Peralta may face is that the Tigers may try Alex Avila at third base and move V-Mart behind the plate during interleague play which may limit Peralta’s at bats.
In his second series against the NL Peralta gets the D-Backs. Peralta has never played at Chase field and has a career .273 against the D-Backs. Most of that damage came off of Joe Saunders who if everything stays intact, the Tigers will miss. If you take out Peralta’s numbers against Saunders, he is hitting .148 without an extra base hit or RBI against current D-Backs pitchers.
Jeff Francoeur | Kansas City Royals | 93.3% - Jeff Francoeur has a bit of resurgence this season. He seems to be cooling off however, and in his last 11 games Francoeur hitting under the Mendoza line at .182.
In his first series of the week Francoeur is scheduled to face the D-Backs. Against current D-Backs pitchers Francoeur is hitting under .250. I have been one of Francoeur’s biggest doubters and it seems as though he is coming back to life.
In his second series of the week Francoeur is going to face the Cubs. Against current Cubs pitchers Francoeur is hitting .239 with 2 Home runs and 12 RBI. All the power (2 HR 9 RBI) Francoeur has against the Cubs is off Carlos Zambrano. As it goes now, they will face each other in the series but that one matchup isn’t enough to start Francoeur.
(June 3, 2011 - Photo by Elsa/Getty Images North America)
 Chris Narveson (credits below) Two-Start Pitchers To Start
Chris Narveson |Milwaukee Brewers| (6.5%) – Narveson’s matchups this week favor the better of his split stats. Both starts will be at home in Milwaukee. At home, Narveson’s ERA is 1.07 lower than his away split. Further helping his two-start week is the poor left-handed pitcher hitting teams he will be facing. Tampa Bay is ranked 26th (.238 average) against left-handed pitchers and Minnesota is ranked 23rd overall (.241 average). Also, in the month of June, batters have only hit .229 against him. Narveson should be a good pick up, especially if strikeouts is an area your team is falling behind on.
Gavin Floyd |Chicago White Sox| (54.7%) – First up for Floyd this week is the Cubs. In a limited 35 career at-bats against Floyd, Cubs hitters are hitting a weak .143 and striking out once every five at-bats. The sluggers of their lineup (Pena and Soriano) are hitting a combined .167 batting average through 18 at-bats, striking out 6 times. In two career starts against the Cubs, Floyd has a 1.20 ERA and a 0.87 WHIP. Floyd’s second start of the week is against the Nationals who are ranked 26th overall against right-handed pitching (.241 average). In a combined 34 career at-bats against Floyd, Nationals hitters are hitting a combined .235 with only one extra-base hit. June just so happens to be Floyd’s best month to pitch in historically. Throughout his career, Floyd has a June ERA of 3.22, 1.25 points lower than his career average.
Two-Start Pitchers To Sit
Charlie Morton |Pittsburgh Pirates| (25.8%) – Morton’s eye-opening season has been grounded over his last two starts (9 innings 9 earned runs). He should continue to fall back down to earth this week against Baltimore and Boston. Current Baltimore hitters are hitting a combined .417 through 24 career at-bats against Morton. These at-bats come from Baltimore’s most dangerous hitters too (Lee, Guerrero, Hardy, Reynolds). Morton will face an even more dangerous foe when he starts against Boston. Boston’s lineup is ranked 2nd overall against right-handed pitchers (.273 average). Morton is weak against left-handed hitters. This year left-handed hitters are hitting .370 against Morton and he has a 2.20 WHIP against them as well. This spells trouble when Boston’s lineup has left-handed hitters like Adrian Gonzalez, David Ortiz, Carl Crawford and Jacoby Ellsbury. It’s also worth noting that Morton’s ERA should undergo a correction soon. It’s hard to have a 1.45 WHIP, 13 baserunners per 9 innings, and allow only 3 to score.
Carl Pavano |Minnesota Twins| (8.9%) – Pavano has been great over the last month posting a sub-3 ERA. However, don’t be one of the desperate owners willing to ride Pavano’s streak. Both of Pavano’s starts come on the road this week where his splits are horrendous. Pavano’s away Era is 5.58, compared to his home ERA of 2.64. His first opponent of the week is the Giants. In 64 career at-bats, Giants hitters are hitting .313 against Pavano with 9 extra-base hits. In 7 career starts against the Giants, Pavano has an ERA of 4.89 and a WHIP of 1.63. His second start of the week comes against the Brewers. In 90 career at-bats against Pavano, Brewers hitters are hitting .311 with a .344 OBP. In 18 innings at Miller Park, Pavano has an ERA of 5.00.
(April 14, 2011 - Photo by Greg Fiume/Getty Images North America)Written by JJ Omar & James Bryce exclusively for TheFantasyFix.com
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or for Free Fantasy Sports Advice use our Quick Fix to get help with your teamTags: The Fantasy Fix, Fantasy Sports Advice, Fantasy Baseball News, Fantasy Baseball Tips, Sit Em/Start Em, James Bryce, JJ Omar, Two-Start Pitchers, Gavin Floyd, Chris Narveson, Josh Willingham, Carl Pavano, Jhonny Peralta, Gordon Beckham, Charlie Morton
 Brett Anderson It looks like Brett Anderson will be out the remainder of the year after whispers that he needs Tommy John have surfaced. Anderson has had a solid season and will be tough to replace from the waiver wire. With injuries to Anderson, Tyson Ross, and Brandon McCarthy the A’s rotation (which was their strong suit) is now the weakest in the division. Keep an eye out for A’s players being traded as their season may soon be over.There is a reason Albert Pujols is drafted first every year. Pujols homered for the 4th straight game for his 14th on the season.
The Dodgers top pitching prospect Rubby De La Rosa made his first big league start for the Blue Crew. In his first win as a starter, De La Rosa threw five solid innings giving up one earned run and striking out 4. The WHIP was at 1.80 which is high but he was facing the feared Phillies lineup. With all the injuries to the bullpen, even if he does not do well in the rotation he seems to be in the big leagues clubs plans for the near future.
Francisco Liriano returned from the DL and had a solid outing pitching 5 innings giving up an unearned run and compiled 7 strikeouts. Probably the most encouraging sign of the outing was the 1.20 WHIP giving up three hits and three walks in his five innings.
Vernon Wells returned from his groin injury Tuesday and went 0-3. Hopefully a now healthy Wells can turn his first season with the Halos around.
In his return to the big leagues Edinson Volquez pitching 7 innings giving up one earned run and 5 strikeouts. Proceed with caution as his start was against the Cubs.
Paul Konerko and Carlos Quentin homered Tuesday. These two have helped keep the White Sox afloat this year as Adam Dunn and Alex Rios continue to have extreme struggles.
I cannot for the life of me figure out how Doug Davis is still in the big leagues.
Austin Jackson has been hitting better of late and with 3 hits Tuesday has gotten his batting average up to .247. Keep an eye on him, if he continues to hit he is a solid fantasy option.
Adam Lind continues to swing a hot bat. Recently off the DL, Lind, went 1-3 with a home run and 3 RBI.
Tim Stauffer had 8 strikeouts in 8 innings against the Rockies.
B.J. Upton continued his dominance over Dan Haren. Going into Tuesdays game Upton was hitting .348 against Haren and took the Angels’ righty deep again last night. Written by JJ Omar exclusively for TheFantasyFix.com
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Tags: The Fantasy Fix, Fantasy Baseball Daily News, 2011 Fantasy Baseball Tips, 2011 Fantasy Baseball Advice, The Daily Fix, Injury Updates
 John Danks Two-Start Pitchers To StartJohn Danks, Chicago White Sox, (37.3%) – Weak lineups and a strong home field advantage split for Danks could give him his first and possibly second wins of the season. Both games this week come at home where Danks has a 3.93 ERA as opposed to his road ERA of 6.50.
His first opponent, the Mariners, have historically weak statistics when facing Danks. Current Mariners are only hitting a .202 average against him through a strong sample size of 129 at-bats.
The hope for Oakland hitters is not much brighter. In seven starts against the A’s, Danks is 4-1 with a 2.25 ERA through 48 innings. Current A’s hitters are hitting .248 through 109 career at-bats against Danks.
BONUS: If you’re looking for quick power with Willingham, think again when starting him against Danks. He’s 0-4 with 4k’s against Danks.
Jordan Zimmerman, Washington Nationals (62.9%) – Zimmerman has churned out a few great starts in the last month posting four quality starts with a 3.28 ERA, 1.01 WHIP and 9.75K/9IP.
Zimmerman’s first start of the week comes against the Giants in San Francisco. Current San Francisco hitters are batting .179 through 39 career at-bats and have only one extra-base hit against him. Also, San Francisco ranks a low 24th overall in hitting against right-handed pitchers.
Zimmerman’s next stop is against the Padres in San Diego, one of the top pitcher-parks in the league, that houses one of the worst hitting teams. San Diego is dead last in hitting right-handed pitching (.222 BAA). Current Padres hitters are hitting a weak .259 against Zimmerman in 27 career at-bats.
Two-Start Pitchers To SitColby Lewis, Texas Rangers (94%) – Lewis is a tempting start this week after his recent success and facing one weak hitting team this week. However, don’t jump to conclusions too soon.
Lewis’ first start comes at home against the Tigers. At home this year Lewis has an ERA that’s nearly 3.5 points higher than his away ERA (5.52 vs. 2.17). Meanwhile, the heart of the Tiger’s order is hitting .429 against Lewis.
The next start against the Twins, while being on the road at Target Field, would make you think the matchup’s a no-brainer. Think again. In four career starts against the Twins (24.1 innings) Lewis has a 0-3 record and sports an ERA of 7.03. In 52 career at-bats against Lewis, current Twins are hitting .269, with the more than half of their hits being for extra bases.
BONUS: Jim Thome absolutely owns Lewis. In 8 career at-bats Thome has six hits, consisting of two doubles and three home runs.
Matt Harrison, Texas Rangers (21.5%) – Harrison has put together a surprisingly solid year so far. Over the last 30 games he’s compiled a sub-1.50 ERA. This week Harrison’s numbers might come closer to his career 4.94 ERA.
His first opponent of the week is the Detroit Tigers at home in Texas. Current Tigers hitters are crushing Harrison at a .429 average. Ryan Raburn and Miguel Cabrera lead the charge with a combined .529 average with two home runs in 17 career at-bats. itching against the Tigers has seldom been a good thing for Harrison. For his career against them he has a 7.17 ERA and 2.06 WHIP through 21.1 innings.
His second opponent of the week comes away against the Minnesota Twins. In 9.1 career innings against the Twins, Harrison has yielded 14 hits and 10 runs. Current Twins’ hitters have a combined .500 average against Harrison through 16 career at-bats.All percentages taken from ESPN.comWritten by JJ Omar exclusively for TheFantasyFix.com
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(May 9, 2011 - Photo by Stephen Dunn/Getty Images North America)
Tags: The Fantasy Fix, Fantasy Sports Advice, Fantasy Baseball News, Fantasy Baseball Tips, Sit Em/Start Em, Two-Start Pitchers JJ Omar
 Domonic Brown The Phillies young stud Dominic Brown hit his first home run of the season. After starting off the year on the DL, Brown is now hitting .333 with 1 HR and 5 RBI. It is safe to say that if he remains healthy he will eventually become the everyday right fielder for the Phils.
Zack Greinke collected his fourth win of the season hurling six innings giving up two earned runs and striking out six against the bruising Reds lineup.
Alex Cobb was called up for a spot start for the Rays Tuesday and rewarded their faith with a stat line. Cobb was rated as one of the top 20 prospects in the Southern League by Baseball America in 2010.
Mitch Talbot rebounded from one of the worst starts ever (3IP, 12H, 8R) with a solid 6.1 IP giving up one earned run and striking out three.
Justin Morneau hit two home runs on Tuesday and in his last eight games is hitting .360 with two long balls and 7 RBI. This could mean then Morneau is finally getting healthy.
James McDonald had a strong outing against the Mets. In his win, McDonald went six innings giving up one earned run and five strikeouts.
Ryan Ludwick continues to swing a hot bat of late. Tuesday he collected four hits and a RBI.
Cubs closer Carlos Marmol blew his third save of the season giving up six earned runs in only 1/3 of an inning.
Royals’ rookie phenom Eric Hosmer stole his second base of the season only adding to his fantasy value.
Anibal Sanchez threw another great game for the fish. He has been absolutely nasty of late and continued his hot streak going eight strong innings giving up two earned runs and striking out eight. I hate to tune my own horn but if you read my sleepers article prior to the season he may be killing it for your team.
Matt Kemp and Casey Blake provided the power for the Dodgers Tuesday. Both went yard and both had at least three RBI.
Brandon League seems to have fixed whatever mechanical issue he had earlier and picked up his 15th save of the season.
Dan Uggla had the day off with hopes that rest can turn around his dismal start to the season. He is batting .178 with a .246 OBP.
After 2 spot starts in May, Mike Minor was optioned to Triple A-Gwinnett to continue building on his skills. Written by JJ Omar exclusively for TheFantasyFix.com
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 Mat Latos Start ‘Em Mat Latos, San Diego Padres (97.1%) – Mat Latos has had an unusual season so far. The young ace had problems in spring training that led to him starting the season on the DL. Since then he has been inconsistent and trying to return to form. Hopefully his last start (W. 8 IP 1 ER 7 K’s 0.75 WHIP) against a good Cardinals team is indication that he’s regaining his command.
Luck is a part of baseball and Latos is running into some good luck in his first start this week. Latos gets the Braves without two players that have owned him. Nate McLouth and Jason Heyward are both hitting .400 against the Padres ace but will miss the game because of DL stints. Combine that with excellent career numbers (2.28 ERA, 1.01 WHIP, 5.7 K/9) against the Braves and hope for run support to get Latos the victory.
In his second start Latos is set to face the Houston Astros. The Astros are one of the worst teams in the bigs and their lineup is a big reason why. Latos has already had a start against the Astros this season (L. 6.1 IP, 5 ER, 6 K, .947 WHIP) and had the bullpen been able to strand runners his numbers would have been good. Latos career numbers against the Astros are very good. In three starts (including the start this season) Latos has compiled a 2-1 record with a 2.01 ERA, a K/9 ratio of 8.9 and a WHIP of 0.537. Of the Astros regulars only Carlos Lee is hitting over .250. I feel like this is the week Latos gets back on track.
C.J. Wilson, Texas Rangers (100%) – Considering that I have been a big doubter in Wilson, this pick is a surprise to me. In only his second season as a starter Wilson has improved his numbers while being the ace of the rotation. Looking up career numbers for Wilson can be misleading because of his previous work in the bullpen but I sifted through all his number to come up with this suggestion.
In his first scheduled start, Wilson has a matchup against the Tampa Bay Rays. Wilson has one regular season start against the Rays in his career. In that start Wilson gave up three earned runs in five innings. Those numbers are not special by any means but here is where the suggestion comes from. The big bats for the Rays have awful numbers against Wilson. Evan Longoria, B.J. Upton and Ben Zobrist are a combined 2-25 against him. Also the Rays hottest bat, Matt Joyce, has never faced Wilson and I always give the advantage to the pitcher when it’s the first encounter.
For his weekend series start, Wilson has a matchup against the Indians. The Indians have a lot of left handed batters so the southpaw sees his first advantage there. If history is any indication of success Wilson has had one career start against the Tribe and went 6.0 IP giving up one earned run, striking out four and generating a WHIP of .667. When Austin Kerns is the player with the best numbers against you it’s a safe bet.
Sit ‘EmFausto Carmona, Cleveland Indians (9.7%) – In his first start of the week Carmona will be matched up against the hard-hitting Blue Jays lineup. In his five former starts against the Jays, Carmona has a career record of 3-0 with a 3.21 ERA 1.46 WHIP and a K/9 of 4.
Although Carmona has good career numbers against the Jays, those numbers can be misleading. Of the current Blue Jay regulars, only two (Aaron Hill and Rajai Davis) have more than 10 at-bats against Carmona. Hill and Rajai Davis are hitting a combined (.321) and having base runners for Jose Bautista and potentially Adam Lind coming off the DL could be disastrous for the Tribe.
In his second start of the week, Carmona will have the tough task of facing the newly healthy Rangers lineup. With a career 2-6 record and an ERA of 5.40 against the Rangers, this was an easy call. The biggest problem for Carmona is that both John Hamilton and Nelson Cruz are a combined 10-24 (.417) with two home runs and six RBI against Carmona. Elvis Andrus is also a pest to Carmona hitting .600 in his career against the Indians hurler. With runners on base for the big bats, the Rangers can really do damage to Carmona’s fantasy prospects.
Wade Davis, Tampa Bay Rays (38%) – Wade Davis has been very good for the Rays and is a big reason they were able to overcome their dreadful start to the season. The most glaring fantasy flaw that Davis has is his low strikeout totals. This week Davis gets the hard hitting Rangers and the not so hard hitting Mariners.
Davis’s career start against the Rangers is reason enough not to start him this week. In his career, Davis possesses a putrid 21.60 ERA against the Rangers. The Rangers have six players hitting .333 or better against the Rays righty. The only good news for Davis is that the start is at home and not in Arlington.
In his second scheduled start Davis has much better prospects. The Mariners are not the best hitting team in the league by any means but have had some success against Davis. Ichiro and Michael Saunders are hitting .500 against Davis and Justin Smoak is 2-2 with a home run. Davis is 0-1 in two starts against the M’s but has a decent 3.86 ERA and 6.2 K/9. I wouldn’t sleep on the M’s as they have the potential to put some runs on the board and with Franklin Gutierrez back patrolling center field, take some away. Written by JJ Omar exclusively for TheFantasyFix.com
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or for Free Fantasy Sports Advice use our Quick Fix to get help with your team.(February 22, 2011 - Photo by Rob Tringali/Getty Images North America)
 Maicer Izturus Start ‘Em
Maicer Izturis, Los Angeles Angels (95.8%) – Izturis should be able to start the week off strong playing away from Angels Stadium and playing at Kaufman.
In away game this year Izturis is hitting .354, third-best in all of baseball. For his career at Kaufmann Stadium, Izturis is hitting .291, but even more exciting is the five home runs he’s hit in only 20 games played there. He has a 15.8AB/HR ratio at Kaufman, yet 68.3AB/HR for his career. 16.7% of Izturis’ career home runs have been hit in only 20 games (3.3% of his career games played) at Kaufman Stadium.
Izturis will finish up the week with a three-game series against the Yankees at Angel Stadium. In 105 career at-bats against the Yankees, Izturis is hitting .324 with an OBP of .377. He’s also hitting .500 through 10 at-bats against the Yankees ace, C.C. Sabathia.
Yunel Escobar, Toronto Blue Jays (81.2%) – Escobar has been heating up over the last two weeks. In the last 15 games he’s hitting .320 with .926 OPS. He should also get a nice boost from starting the week off with the home field advantage that he’s been hitting with this year.
While at home, Escobar’s OPS is 173 points higher when compared to his road hitting.
His second opponent of the week, the Orioles, haven’t presented much of a challenge historically. In 34 at-bats at Camden Yards, Escobar is hitting .382 with two home runs and nine RBI's in nine games. In 33 career at-bats against Baltimore pitchers he’s hitting .303.
Sit ‘Em
Jayson Werth, Washington Nationals (100%) – Werth starts off the week facing the murderer’s row of pitchers. For the first three games of the week Werth will face Halladay, Lee, and Oswalt. Combined against the three, Werth is hitting .242 while striking out in more than half of his at-bats.
The next stop for Werth presents a different challenge. It’s not the pitchers that he faces as much as it’s the park that he’ll be hitting in. In 22 games at Chase Field, Werth is hitting .243, 27 points lower than his career average. He’s also hitting .231 on the road this year, 59 points below his home average.
Nelson Cruz, Texas Rangers (100%) – The Rangers will be playing all seven of their games this week on the road. This spells bad news for Cruz.
Away from the Ballpark in Arlington, Cruz is only hitting .160 with a .246 OBP. Even more discouraging, Cruz will be facing six right-handed starting pitchers this week. Cruz has the second-worst batting average against right-handed pitchers this season (.154 AVG).Written by James Bryce exclusively for TheFantasyFix.com
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(May 19, 2011 - Photo by Harry How/Getty Images North America)ALL OWNERSHIP PERCENTAGES FROM ESPN.COM
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 Barry Bonds gives a thumb, sideways? In a “didn’t see that coming” moment, Barry Bonds has supposedly offered to pay for attack victim Brian Stow’s kid’s college. Barry, this is baby steps on your way to being a nice, caring human being.Jorge De La Rosa left his start Tuesday after only 2.1 innings of work due to soreness in his pitching elbow. The soreness turned out to be a torn ulnar collateral ligament which will need Tommy John surgery and effectively end the southpaws season.
With injuries to both Nate McLouth and Jayson Heyward, the Braves have called up Jordan Schafer. Not too long ago Schafer was the Braves top prospect but has yet to regain his power stroke after a wrist injury in 2009.Russell Martin hit his 9th home run of the season. The relocation seems to have helped Martin’s bat, as his defense was never in question while in LA. Martin is on pace to crush 32 home runs but has never hit more than 19 in a season.
In a matchup of future aces, Danny Duffy (5.1 IP, 2 ER, 6 K, 1.50 WHIP) outdueled Zach Britton (6 IP, 3 ER, 2 K, 1.83 WHIP)Corey Hart homered again Tuesday, giving him four home runs in two days. If Hart continues to hit and Zack Greinke picks it up, the Brewers can take over the NL Central division.Jair Jurrjens spun a gem Tuesday against the Pirates. In 7.2 innings of work, Jurrjens gave up six hits and a walk without giving up a run. Jurrjens is now 6-1 with an ERA of 1.56 and a WHIP of 1.02.Frank Francisco blew his second save of the season. In the same game, The Yankees C.C. Sabathia overcame a rough start (4 ER in 4 IP) to hurl a complete game victory against the Blue Jays. Ryan Madson has been great as the Phillies closer this year but last night he gave up a three run double to Jay Bruce. Although it was not a save situation, Madson did get the loss and with Jose Contreras scheduled to be activated from the DL tomorrow, it’s safe to say a few more appearances like this and he may lose the closers role. Alex Avila hit two home runs Tuesday bringing his season total to eight. There is no doubt that Avila is a waiver wire All-Star now owned in over 81% of ESPN leagues.
Dodger’s rookie Jerry Sands hit his first career grand slam Tuesday. In his last five games, Sands is 6-13 (.462) with two home runs, five RBI, and a stolen base. Sands also has a very keen eye at the plate with a .343 OBPJoakim Soria’s early season struggles continue as he gave up 3 ER in 0.2 innings against the Orioles, blowing his third save this season.Javy Guerra is the sixth Dodgers reliever to collect a save this season. Written by JJ Omar exclusively for TheFantasyFix.com
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or for Free Fantasy Sports Advice use our Quick Fix to get help with your team.(October 26, 2010 - Photo by Christian Petersen/Getty Images North America)
Tags: The Fantasy Fix, Fantasy Baseball Daily News, 2011 Fantasy Baseball Tips, 2011 Fantasy Baseball Advice, The Daily Fix, Injury Updates
 Yovani Gallardo Two-Start Pitchers to Start
Yovani Gallardo, Milwaukee Brewers (100%) – I was surprised to see Gallardo’s ownership at 100%. His season totals of a 4.70 ERA and 1.48 are unattractive when pitchers like Hellickson and Ogando are owned less and impress more with their stats.
I can however, see why so many stick with Gallardo. He’s a Jekyll and Hyde, day-and-night, good cop/bad cop pitcher. In other words, when Gallardo’s good he’s amazing. But, when he’s bad, he’s a one-man fantasy team wrecking crew.
Gallardo should be able to harness his good side this week against the Nationals and Giants. Both of Gallardo’s games come at home this week. During his career, Gallardo has an ERA that is .70 lower at home and his batting average against is 26 points lower at home as well.
Both the Nationals and the Giants are two of the worst teams when it comes to hitting right-handed pitching. The Giants are ranked 22nd (.243 avg.) and the Nationals are ranked 27th (.235 avg.) overall. Coincidentally, the Giants are ranked 20th (.239 avg.) overall when hitting away and the Nationals are ranked 29th (.215 avg.) overall when hitting away.
Gallardo has been able to hold current Giants hitters to a .225 career average against, along with a .278 OBP through 89 at-bats. The National’s numbers against Gallardo are nearly identical. Through 68 career at-bats, the Nationals are hitting .221 with a .250 OBP.
Bartolo Colon, New York Yankees (23.4%) – A few weeks ago I said to get Colon off the waiver wire but wait to see how he does before starting him. Now is the time to start him. This week he faces the Jays in New York and then the Mariners in Seattle.
Jay’s hitters are hitting an anemic .227 against Colon through 44 career at-bats. Colon has also been able to keep slugger Jose Bautista in check, limiting him to just one hit in 5 at-bats and striking him out twice. The Jays lineup features only 2 left-handed hitters. Colon has feasted on righties this year, holding them to a .204 average.
Colon’s trip to Seattle should be a breeze. Seattle is the league’s worst hitting team when it comes to right-handed pitching (.216 average against). Bartolo has a 9-1 win-loss record at Safeco for his career. He’s pitched 77.2 innings at Safeco and has a 2.09 ERA and a 0.97 WHIP.
Two-Start Pitchers to Sit
Ricky Nolasco, Florida Marlins (100%) – Nolasco has benefited a lot from home field advantage this year. Unfortunately for him, both of his starts come on the road this week.
First he faces the Giants and then the Dodgers. On the road, Nolasco’s ERA is 1.78 higher (4.50 vs. 2.72). Giants hitters are hitting Nolasco to the tune of .277 average with a .327 OBP and 4 home runs in 94 at-bats. Likewise, the Dodgers are batting .286 against Nolasco with a .337 OBP through 77 at-bats.
Cole Hamels, Philadelphia Phillies (100%) – Hamels faces a tough test this week facing the hard-hitting Reds and then facing the Mets team that scorched him earlier this year.
The Reds are the best hitting team when facing left-handed pitching this year. As a team they’re hitting an astronomical .319 with a .921 OPS. Hamels then faces the same Mets team that torched him for 6 runs in 2.2 innings earlier this year. Hamels has a career 0-3 record at Citi Field and a 4.07 ERA through 24.1 innings. Current Mets are hitting .302 with a .354 OBP against Hamels in 116 career at-bats.
Bonus: Carlos Beltran has 3 home runs and a .303 average in 33 career at-bats against Hamels. Think about starting him in this matchup.
SWATTERSStart CoCo Crisp, Oakland Athletics (80.1%) - CoCo Crisp is basically a two-category fantasy player. Against the two teams he’s facing next week those categories should be satisfied. His first matchup this week Crisp gets the division rival Angels. In his career Crisp is hitting .291 with 16 stolen bases. As a team the Halos are throwing out only 20% of potential base stealers well below the league average of 28%.
His next stop is in Baltimore. Defensively the Orioles are solid behind the plate when Matt Wieters is behind the plate, but awful when Jack Fox is behind the dish. It does not matter who is behind the plate Crisp will be given the green light. In his career against the Orioles Crisp is hitting .279 with a .380 OBP and 15 stolen bases. This will be an interesting matchup as Wieters is throwing out a stellar 46% of would be base stealers. I think Crisp is up to the task and would be a great pickup in a head to head league.
Orlando Cabrera, Cleveland (84.3%) - Ok so the matchups this week aren’t great, but if you want to get down to the nitty-gritty we can. Cabrera is eligible at both second base and shortstop in ESPN leagues and has numbers that are consistent with his career averages.
In the first series of the week, Cabrera is scheduled to take on the Boston Red Sox. The Sox are fighting the injury bug bag in their rotation which may benefit the Tribe in this matchup. In Cabrera’s career against his former team he is hitting .279 with 6 HR, 25 RBI, and 9 stolen bases.
Against the Rays his numbers are equally as good .280 with 1 HR, 3 RBI, and 29 stolen bases. Cabrera’s a good player and with the lack of depth at shortstop he can be a good pickup.
Sit Colby Rasmus, St. Louis Cardinals (100%) - So far this season Rasmus has had good numbers. Next week Rasmus visits Petco Park (where hitters go to die) and Coors Field (where home runs are aplenty). The Padres are ranked 5th in the NL in ERA and some of that can be contributed to their home ballpark. This is where things look bad for Rasmus owners. In his career at Petco Park, Rasmus is only 2-15 with no extra base hits and a single RBI. Rasmus has also stuck out in five of his 15 at bats at Petco.
His career stats do not look much better at Coors Field either. Rasmus is 5-24 (.208) with only one RBI in Denver and is without a home run or a walk. To this point it is tough to know the severity of the injuries to Matt Holliday and Lance Berkman, so the Cardinals may have to rely on Rasmus’ bat. If they are both healthy look for Rasmus to ride the pine as Tony LaRussa likes to change his lineup more than any other manager in the league.
Mike Napoli, Texas Rangers (65.3%) - It’s hard to suggest to sit a player about to face a team with second worst team ERA in the AL, but that’s what I am going to do. Napoli’s numbers are absolutely awful against the Royals. In over 131 at bats, Napoli is hitting only .185. If you’d like to look at things in the half full perspective, 30% of his hits have been home runs. But I won’t look at it that way because his next opponent absolutely owns him.
The White Sox have put Napoli in the corner and have made him put on the dunce cap. In the 24 games he has started against the White Sox, Napoli is hitting .143 with one home run and seven RBI. Napoli has always been an all or nothing type of hitter, and next week he is definitely the latter. Written by James Bryce & JJ Omar exclusively for TheFantasyFix.com
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Tags: The Fantasy Fix, Fantasy Sports Advice, Fantasy Baseball News, Fantasy Baseball Tips, Sit Em/Start Em, James Bryce, JJ Omar,
 Harmon Killebrew The heavens were crying yesterday over the death of Harmon “Killer” Killebrew. Four games were postponed due to weather. Killebrew stands at number 11 on the all-time home run list with 527. He is tied for second only behind Babe Ruth with the most seasons of 40 homers or more. Killebrew dominated the 1960s hitting a whopping 393 dingers. You will truly be missed Mr. Minnesota!
Francisco Liriano (7 IP 1 ER 9 K’s) outdueled King Felix (8 IP 2 ER 9 K’s) in Seattle. I’m not sure who is more disappointed with Liriano’s seasaw performances, fantasy owners or the Twins.
Jason Heyward returned to the Braves and went 1-3 with a stolen base.
Gio Gonzalez led Oakland to a 14-0 win over the Angels. He pitched 7 strong, only gave up 1 hit and struck out 7. Gonzalez is now 5-2, with a 2.31 ERA. There is no question that the A’s know how to make stars out of their pitchers year after year.
Apparently Scott Proctor is still in the big leagues.
The Astros closer (for now) Mark Melancon blew his second save of the season. This ruined an eight-inning shutout performance from Wandy Rodriguez.
Ubaldo Jimenez had a nice day on the mound Tuesday going 7 innings giving up three earned runs and striking out seven.
A-Rod hit two bombs against James Shields last night. Shields has been almost unhittable this season so this could be a sign A-Rod may be turning it around.
Carlos Pena hit his 5th homerun of the season. His hot bat in May now has his average at .231.
The Rangers Matt Harrison had a good start striking out six White Sox in seven innings.
Jamie Garcia keeps proving this skeptic wrong. Last night against MLB’s best team, Garcia went eight innings giving up one unearned run while striking out five.
Matt Kemp hit his first home run in what seems like forever.
Dallas McPherson is back in the show and went 1-1 as a pinch hitter in the White Sox win.
In the carousel that is the Dodgers bullpen, Matt Guerrier earned his first save of the season. _________________________________________ Written by JJ Omar exclusively for TheFantasyFix.com
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Tags: The Fantasy Fix, Fantasy Baseball Daily News, 2011 Fantasy Baseball Tips, 2011 Fantasy Baseball Advice, The Daily Fix, Harmon Killebrew, Jason Heyward, Francisco Liriano, Minnesota Twins, Felix Hernandez, Jaime Garcia, Alex Rodriguez, Ubaldo Jimenez
 Matt Joyce SMASHERS
Start ‘EmMatt Joyce, Tampa Bay Rays (90.2%) – The Tampa Bay outfielder is finally making his presence known around the league with his current hot streak. Look for him to continue this week under historically ideal conditions for Joyce. With a minimum of 75 plate appearances this year, Joyce is the second-best hitter when facing right-handed pitching. In 94 at-bats he’s hitting .394, a 433 OBP, 11 doubles and 4 home runs as well.
This week he’ll be facing 5 right-handed starters. Joyce will play two games at home where he hits 83 points higher and has an OPS higher by 156 points. Then he should get a little boost with two games at the 6th homer-friendliest ballpark around, Rogers Centre. Also, over the last 15 games, Joyce is hitting .457 with a 1.295 OPS, astronomical figures for an outfielder not owned in 100% of leagues.
Adam Jones, Baltimore Orioles (100%) – Jones faces a favorable week ahead with his strong home splits and great career batter vs. pitcher stats. He begins the week against Boston where his split stats don’t vary much from his career average. The next five games (coming at home) are what will make his week. Jones has hit all of his home runs at home in Camden Yards this year, is hitting 52 points higher and has a home OPS that’s 413 points higher!
Jones has historically done well against the two Yankees pitchers that he will face. Against both Colon and Sabathia, Jones is hitting .359 in 39 at-bats. The remaining three games of the week will be played against the Nationals. Against the capital city’s team, Jones has hit .400, posted an OBP of .440, an OPS of 1.097, and slugged 4 home runs in 70 at-bats.
Sit ‘EmChris Coghlan, Florida Marlins (98.4%) – Chris Coghlan has been struggling against left-handed pitching this year. In 41 at-bats he’s hitting .122 with a .163 OBP. This week he’ll be facing 3 left-handed starters. In 47 at-bats against the Mets, Coghlan is hitting .255, 40 points lower than his career average. Sit Coghlan this week in favor of any reserve outfielders that you might have, especially when he’s facing left-handed pitching.
Aubrey Huff, San Francisco Giants (69.5%) – Huff has yet to find the magic he had at the plate with last year’s world championship team. This upcoming week suggests that this trend will continue. Huff will face 4 right-handed starting pitchers this week of which he is only hitting .174 against this year. That’s bad enough for 4th-worst amongst batters with at least 100 plate appearances.
His first two games come at Coors Field which might offer a glimpse at some production. However, he faces Ubaldo Jimenez for his first game and he is hitting only .176 against him lifetime.
The next two games come at Dodger Stadium against Kershaw and Billingsley. In LA, Huff is hitting .239 in 13 career games, and against Kershaw and Billingsley combined, Huff is hitting .216.
The last stop of the week comes in Oakland where Huff is hitting .238 with a .298 OBP in 33 career games. Against the three starting pitchers for Oakland, Huff is batting .231.THRASHERSStart 'Em
AJ Burnett, New York Yankees (96.2%) – Burnett has had a renaissance of sorts this season. Next week he is scheduled to face two teams he’s had some success against, The Rays and The Mets. In Tampa, Burnett has stellar numbers. In his career A.J. has a 2.09 ERA a 0.92 WHIP and a 6.3 K/9 at the Trop. against the Mets, Burnett has a 3.36 ERA a 1.09 WHIP and a 9.2 K/9 ratio. Even better news for Burnett is that he has good numbers against Jose Reyes and David Wright. Reyes is 0-17 lifetime against Burnett and Wright has hit just .167 with only one extra base hit. I can’t believe I am going to say this but start Burnett with confidence.
Joel Pineiro, Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim (24.6%) – This week Joel Pineiro faces two teams that are struggling to hit the baseball. His first opponent is the Oakland A’s. As a team, the A’s are hitting a dismal .233 so far this season. Combine that with the start coming in Oakland (the best pitching park in the AL) and the hot start Pineiro is having (1.33 ERA in three starts) and Pineiro is almost a lock to start. In his second scheduled start, Pineiro is to start against the Braves. In interleague play Pineiro has a 3.34 ERA and a 1.11 WHIP. The Braves as a team are only hitting .240 and Pineiro is a groundball pitcher. To me this is a winning combination.
Sit 'Em
Brett Myers, Houston Astros (48.2%) – Being a former Phillies hurler, Myers has a lot of stats against the Braves. Unfortunately, those stats are not very good. In his career Myers owns a 4-10 record a 4.49 ERA and a 1.38 WHIP against the Braves. Another discouraging stat against Myers is that his ERA at Turner Field is 5.07. Myers second scheduled start is against the Blue Jays. Myers has faced only a few Blue Jays in his career, but I personally do not trust him especially at the Rogers Center where home runs come aplenty.
Homer Bailey, Cincinnati Reds (36.9%) – Since his return from the DL, Bailey has been amazing for the Reds. This week, however, he is facing teams in which his ERA is hovering over seven. His first scheduled start is against the Cubs. In his career, Bailey has a 7.65 ERA and a 2.10 WHIP. The only positive is that Bailey has a very good 8.6 K/9 against the Cubs. Bailey’s second start of the week is against fellow Ohioans. Against the Tribe Bailey has only been able to accumulate 16.2 innings pitched in four starts. Bailey’s other stats are similarly bad. His ERA is at 7.56 his WHIP is 1.98. Bailey’s K/9 against the Indians is only 4.9, the second lowest ratio against an opponent. * Ownership percentages taken from ESPN.com(February 25, 2010 - Photo by Nick Laham/Getty Images North America)
Written by James Bryce & JJ Omar exclusively for TheFantasyFix.com
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or for Free Fantasy Sports Advice use our Quick Fix to get help with your team!
Tags: The Fantasy Fix, Fantasy Sports Advice, Fantasy Baseball News, Fantasy Baseball Tips, Sit Em/Start Em, James Bryce, JJ Omar, Matt Joyce, Adam Jones, Homer Bailey, Brett Myers, AJ Burnett
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