Long time readers will remember that I used to do this segment once a week.  All season I have focusing on what I have been doing with my teams.  However, I think it is time to start this segment back up.  After all… I am constantly searching the waiver wire for players to help my team.  Unfortunately, there are not a ton of jems sitting on the waiver wire in either of my deep leagues.  But that does not stop me from looking.  Here is what I found today while looking through the FBTM Premier League:

• Chris Dickerson - After being a preseason sleeper,  Dickerson do not receive the playing time that many experts expected.  Now he is getting fairly regular playing, and is providing some speed for owners in deep leagues.  I would not be over excited about him, but if you are desperate for stolen bases, he might help over the next week.
• Hank Blalock - After having a schedule of numerous games in National League ballparks, and impatient owner may have dropped Blalock.  In limited at bats, his batting average and power production has dropped.  However, he is worth the risk now that the Interleague play is done.  Blalock is a great source of power and RBIs when he faces right-handed pitchers.  I actually already own him, but many owners might not have been as patient as I have been.
• Garret Anderson - The key to waiver wire acquisitions in deep leagues is playing time.  With Anderson, there is no question of playing time.  If you need a player that help in batting average, Anderson is your man.  He may throw in the occasional home run, but that is about it.  Nothing flashy, but worth having to cover an injury or as a fill-in for a slumping player.  That’s right… I am looking at you Elijah Dukes.
• Brendan Harris - Talk about getting at bats… Harris has 107 over the course of the month.  However, he really does not contribute to any categories.  He won’t hurt your batting average like Khalil Greene will.  If you are waiting for Jimmy Rollins getting back into the lineup (like I am), Harris might be a good fill in for a day or two.
• Kevin Correia - I am not sure if I believe in Correia long term, but over the past month he has struck out 25 batters in 31 innings.  While doing this, has has a very small 0.90 WHIP. In fact he has only walked two betters over his last four starts.  With some starts coming at Petco Park, Correia is a solid spot start option depending on the matchup.  We will need to see what happens in Texas today.
• Hideki Okajima - Even though I do not like his mechanics, something does have to be said about his performance over the past month.  Most notably are the 13 strikeouts over the past 13.1 innings.  Saito may be the next option for saves, but Okajima should help your numbers if needed.
• Jim Johnson - Along the same lines as Okajima, Johnson has posted solid numbers over the past month.  However, unlike him, Johnson may have a slight chance to be the closer in Baltimore.  With Chris Ray getting hammered the other night, Johnson looks like the best option to close if Sherrill is actually traded this season.
• Mitch Stetter - So you don’t think a middle reliever can help on a daily basis?  Then you need to look at Stetter over the past month.  In only 9.2 innings, he has struck out 20 batters.  No that is not a misprint.  Not to mention that his whip is at 0.52 over that same stretch.  Just as a point of reference, I have had Stetter on my roster for the past week or so.

Now some of you may be wondering why I mentioned the three middle relievers at the end.  As the season is progressing along, and numerous top tier pitchers are having issues, middle relievers are tending to be more valuable this season.  This is in stark contrast to the inconsistent starters that are replacing our fallen top tier starters. Think about the three that I mentioned above.  Over the past month, here is the line that you would have had if you owned all three…

35.1 innings, 2 wins, 1 save, 43Ks, 0.92 ERA, 0.82 WHIP

Would you rather have had that line over the past month, or this one…

33 innings, 1 win, 0 saves, 20 Ks, 5.18 ERA, 1.52 WHIP

I would rather have to burn three roster spots than carry Mike Pelfrey for an entire month.  If you don’t want to use three roster spots everyday, pick up relievers every few days.  Especially if one of them pitches two days in a row.  Odds are that he will get the next few games off.  Then pick-up another middle reliever with solid peripherals to replace him for a few days.  You can also play matchups depending on who they will face.  Use different relievers based on where they are pitching, and the offense they are facing.

That is all that I have for today.  If you are wondering about possible waiver wire pick-ups in your league, place your question in the comments section of this post.  Please indicate how many teams are in your league when posting it.

Apparently the Marlins wanted to have a closer by committee much like their brethren across the state.  However, unlike the Rays, this situation is clouded in injuries and not a manger’s whim.  It was announce today that Matt Lindstrom will miss 4-6 weeks with an elbow issue.  According to most news sites, Leo Nunez should be next in line.  But there is one problem… he is also on the DL with an ankle injury.  If you have been following my Bottom of the 9th section, you would know that I have been calling for Kiko Calero to close for the Marlins.  Once again, there is a problem… he is also on the DL.

So where does that leave those owners chasing saves?

That leaves Renyel Pinto or Dan Meyer as the best saves option for the next few days.  Personally, I am putting my money on Meyer.  Both are left-handed relievers that have posted solid numbers, but Pinto walks too many batters.  I would rather have the pitcher with the better K/BB ratio when chasing saves.  Even if they do not get saves, at least they should not hurt your team while you are guessing.

My pick for the long haul is still Calero, but since Nunez will be back first (possibly tonight or later this week), go after him and stash him.

****NOTE**** Leo Nunez has been activated tonight.

Are you interested in writing?  Do you love Fantasy Baseball?  I am looking for several additional writers for Fantasy Gameday. With my busy schedule, I would like to add one or two additional writers to the site. We run a very loose schedule with no solid deadlines, and no experience is needed.  Hey… I didn’t have any when I started the site.

If you are interested, send an e-mail to me, and let me know what topic you would like to cover.  I am not looking for generic articles, but rather in depth analysis of specific players.

So if you want to get started in writing, here is your opportunity.  Who knows, maybe you will be the next Chuck Anderson and begin writing for larger sites like FantasyPros911.com.

Before I get started with another addition of random thoughts, I would like to apologize for the lack of posts on the site recently.  I have been spending WAY too much time working, and not nearly enough time writing.  In addition, I have begun working with the sports ministry at my church, and I am developing the baseball program.  Not only will I be coaching this fall, but I will also be organizing baseball clinics with hopes of managing a league in the near future.  However, I do still have great plans for the site, and will continue to update as often as I can.  Enough about my life…  on with the show…

• If Ben Zobrist is still available in your league, go get him now!  Go ahead, I will wait for you.  He is on pace for around 30 home runs and 100 RBI, and this production is available from the Middle Infield slot.  He will be a top 5 second baseman the rest of the season.
• The desperate Padres called up Kyle Blanks on Friday.  For those of your who do not know, Blanks is a big kid that can hit the ball a mile.  He has been playing Left Field recently, and presumably has been called up to cover for the injury to Scott Hairston.
• With the injury to Carlos Beltran, Fernando Martinez has been recalled once again.  He should receive more playing time than he did last time, but I still think he is too young to make a huge impact this year.  I own him on my minor league roster, but I am not calling him up just yet.
• While we are talking about top prospects, the Pirates promoted Pedro Alvarez from Single-A to Double-A.  With Andy LaRoche playing reasonably well, don’t look for Alvarez to arrive in 2009.  Even though he stuck out 70 times this year, he still managed to club 14 home runs as well.
• I love how everyone is talking up Manny Ramirez.  Reports are that “he is in the best shape of his life” and that he is “raking” while working on his comeback.  The Dodger PR is doing a great job of creating a positive stir around Manny.  He will be Manny upon his return.  BTW… your window to trade for him might be closed.
• I love how one day Ervin Santana has a solid bullpen session, and then the next day it is announced that he will go to the Disabled List.  As much as I love Santana, I think it may be time to cut bait with him.
• Chris Ray was called up from Triple-A today.  He has pitched extremely well since being sent down about a month ago.  Look for him to gain the closer role if the success continues and George Sherrill gets dealt.  This is a situation to watch over the next 3-4 weeks.
• I am beginning to be quite impressed with Jason Kubel.  The power is for real, and he has been hot as of late.  I believe that he should be owned in all leagues… even shallow ones. Here is a solid write-up on Kubel.
• After all the talk about how Howie Kendrick was going to win a batting title making me sick to my stomach, I am not sad to see him getting demoted.  I guess you could say that his demotion was a perfect dose of Pepto Bismal.
• Joe Torre needs to realize that Matt Kemp is a better hitter than James Loney and Russell Martin.  He is even a better option than Rafael Furcal.  Batting 8th yesterday in front of Brad Ausmus, he went 2 for 4. I sure hope he does not lose playing time once Manny returns.
• Anyone notice that J.P. Howell has two saves in the last four appearances?  Looks like I got that one right.
• I heard someone say that Erik Bedard is the AL version of Rich Harden.  I completely agree with that.  When they are healthy, they both pitch in a dominant fashion.  However, injury after injury takes them off the mound. In addition, none of the injuries are major ones.  Always relatively minor muscular ones.

That is all that I have for now.  Look for some more updates over the next few days.

I wonder if Carlos Beltran is getting a complex. Not only did Chuck trade him the other day, but I did as well. It is not that I don’t like Beltran, but I needed to get a better keeper in the Fantasy Gameday Keeper League.  Officially, I traded Carlos Beltran and Michael Cuddyer for Nate McLouth and A.J. Burnett.  On the surface you can make the argument that I did not improve my keepers, but you need to remember the unique keeper rules that we have in this league…

Owners will select their keepers in the appropriate rounds based from a 3 round inflation from the players round selection from the previous year.  For example, if an owner selects a player in the 13th round of the draft, that player will cost the owner a 10^th round pick the following year.  That same player will cost the owner a 7^th round pick the next year, and so forth.  Any player traded during the season will carry their draft round valuation from that season to the new owner

Since I drafted Beltran in the 2nd round, he is ineligible to kept for next year.  On the flip side… Nate McLouth was selected in the 23rd round of this years draft.  That means I can select McLouth in the 20th round next year, the 17th the following season, and so forth.  Having control over an all-star player for the next few years is extremely valuable. To be completely honest, from a stats perspective, McLouth is not all that different from Beltran.  They can both hit home runs and steal bases, but won’t do either at amazing rates.  Personally, I feel that Beltran is a 30 HR and 20 steal player, while McLouth is more of a 20 HR and 30 SB base player.  The Baseball Cube has Mclouth’s speed rated at an 87 and power at 72 out of 100.  Conversely, they have Beltran with a speed rating of 80 and a power rating of 90.  Those rating tend to agree with my perception of the two.

Now that Beltran is having issue with his knees, the steal numbers might be down a bit.  However, here is the key to these two players… Stolen Base Percentage.  Over the last three seasons, Beltran has stolen 62 bases while only being caught 7 times.  Over that same time period, McLouth has stolen 55 bases and was caught only 5 times.  Over the next few years, managers are going to be more unwilling to send guys if they are going to get thrown out even 30% of the time.  Additional opportunities should be alotted to each player.
Given McLouth’s ability to be successful at stealing bases, while still adding power numbers, and having draft value for the next few seasons, acquiring him has been my best move this season.  This was not only a move to build for the future, but also one that helps my team this season as well.  On a side note… after spending much of the season in 11th place, I have worked my way up to 7th.

Now… the other part of the trade is not as easy of a comparison.  Michael Cuddyer was a waiver wire pickup for me that paid great dividends over the past month.  Then he injured his finger again, and has been limited over the past week or so.  Even though he is ranked fairly high for outfielders, he is not a player to build your team around.  A.J. Burnett has struggled at time this season, and is a risky player to acquire.  Especially when you consider his flyball tendencies and his home park.  However, my ratios have already been destroyed and I have been at the bottom of the heap in strikeouts.  Even though his K/9 rate is down to 8.06, that is still better than most of the pitchers on my staff. Not that I drafted poor strikeout rate pitchers, but Webb and Myers certainly did not do anything this year to garner excitement nor help my stat line.  I will judiciously use Burnett depending on who he faces, but any pitcher that can still strikeout over 8 hitters per nine innings can have a spot on my roster.  Even if that means he walks my grandmother…

… I wonder if she can steal bases?

The trading season is kicking into high gear both among big league teams and in fantasy leagues nationwide. This week I came together with another owner in a 10 team mixed auction league and we pulled off a blockbuster. We are each giving up three players; I send Justin Morneau, Carlos Beltran, and Josh Johnson for his Albert Pujols, Michael Cuddyer, and Cole Hamels. Since the players match up very directly we can break it down one by one.

• Justin Morneau for Albert Pujols

A decided advantage for the Pujols side with a clear edge in batting average, home runs, and stolen bases. The worst-case scenario here is the St. Louis offense goes completely in the tank and Morneau beats Albert in runs and RBI. At the moment they are tied in runs and Morneau has a one RBI advantage. I believe when Ryan Ludwick and Rick Ankiel find their rhythm the Cardinals will improve. They were last in runs scored for May, so hopefully the worst is over.

• Carlos Beltran for Michael Cuddyer

The most lopsided comparison, Beltran is clearly a better player. Cuddyer becomes my sixth outfielder behind Nick Markakis, BJ Upton, Shane Victorino, Adam Jones, and Jayson Werth. He is a capable player, currently the 36th ranked outfielder according to ESPN. He is also disposable in a 10 team league should the need or opportunity arise. While I was in no means shopping Beltran, certain factors made me willing to deal him. He is currently batting .342, but he has not finished a season over .300 since 2003. His present average is fueled by a .378 BABIP. His HR production is a concern, as speculation continues (but is not yet supported by the park factors) the Citi Field suppresses long balls. Beltran has seven home runs for the year, and only two have come in his home park. At 32 years old, already dealing with knee issues this year, I am not counting on large stolen base production from here on out either. With 7 HR and 7 SB Beltran is on pace to total between 20 and 25 in each category, which is good but not remarkable.

• Josh Johnson for Cole Hamels

This one is tough because I grabbed a front seat on the Josh Johnson bandwagon this year. Through the first two months there can be no doubt that he has been the better pitcher either. Hamels had a tough beginning of the year, but he appears to be rounding into form. For average fastball velocity, his three best starts have come in his past six. He is striking out 8.63/9 and has a career best 5.50 K/BB. Hamels’ .332 BABIP against and 17.9% HR/FB are numbers that should come down over the course of the year. His career HR/FB is 12.5%. None of Johnson’s numbers suggest he is headed for rough times, but if asked will his 2.63 ERA and 1.06 WHIP be higher or lower at year’s end I would predict higher.

Trades like this are unique to the fantasy baseball universe and is one of the aspects that make the game so much fun. Do you agree with my analysis of this move? How did I do?

Normally I do not write about injuries that have occurred, but with being a huge Phillies fan, I have the opportunity to watch Lidge almost every time he pitches.  In fact there are many nights where he is one of the only pitchers that I get to see on a consistent basis.  That’s what you get with two kids that finally go to bed and let daddy watch some baseball.

Personally, it is about time that they did something for Lidge.  He has been talking about his knee bothering him for a few weeks now.  His mechanics have certainly been affected by the injury.  Even though the bite to the slider is still the same, and the velocity of his fastball has not diminished, there just always seemed to be something off. The key issue, especially over the past two weeks has been his location of the fastball.  Lidge has struggled getting on top of the ball and powering it low into the strike zone.  Without hitting this location, Lidge’s sharp breaking ball is very recognizable.  It is obvious to the batter which pitch is coming, because they can now tell the difference in the trajectory of the ball.

It is not coincidental that the Phillies waited until J.C. Romero return from his suspension.  With Lidge out, Ryan Madson will now close for the team, and Romero can get regular work in either the 7th or the 8th.  With missing around a third of the season, regular work will be the best thing for Romero as he works to get himself conditioned.

From a fantasy perspective, this is probably the best time to buy Brad Lidge.  Scoop him up from any waiver wire, and trade for him without offering top dollar. He will be back, and he will have the closer role upon returning.

Before I get started, I would like to thank everyone that participated in the live help session this past Sunday night.  I was very pleased with the turnout despite the late notice.  You can still participate in the discussion regarding Manny Ramirez in the comments section of this post.  Be sure to give your two cents worth.

The Bottom of the 9th section has been updated, including my pick for the closer in Tampa Bay.  On a side note… I have to admit, I love the closer’s name that the guys over at Razzball came up with.  Their official closer for the Tampa Bay Rays in none other than J.P. Wheelfourson.  It aptly describes the messy bullpen, and Madden’s incredible need to leave fantasy owners hanging.

The update also includes the recent J.J. Putz injury. I am sooooo thankful the Mets upgraded their bullpen by acquiring J.J. Putz.  I love the 4.76 ERA, but the 6.04 K/9 and 6.04 BB/9 rates are a first.  I have never seen a strikout rate and walk rate be identically the same.  If you still have him on your team, and 27% of yahoo teams do, what are you waiting for?  He can be dropped everywhere.

The Braves and Pirates made major moves yesterday.  Most of you have heard about this, but just in case you didn’t, Tom Glavine was released by the Braves.  This is the biggest news for Fantasy Baseball owners since… well…. since the Titanic sunk.  Wait, there was not Fantasy Baseball back then.  Ok… it is the biggest news since West Wing had their season finale. Alright, maybe that was not a big deal for you, but it was for my wife and I.  So the release of Tom Glavine really does not impact Fantasy Owners world wide.  That is unless you consider the fall out from the release.

Because of the Braves deciding to go with younger arms, Tommy Hansen has been promoted and is scheduled to start on Saturday.  All of you who stashed him all season (and then got pissed when Kris Medlen was called up) now are going to be rewarded for your patience.   He is a top tier pitching prospect, but I would be spot starting him over the next month due to some of the teams that he will face, and some of the ballparks he will be pitching in.

In another move that I like quite a bit, the Braves acquired Nate McLouth from the Pirates.  From a fantasy perspective, I like this move.  He will be in a more consistent offense, have all the playing time he needs, and most likely bat lead-off.  This means the true speed of McLouth will most likely emerge.  Expect his run production to increase as well.  The likes of Chipper, McCann and Anderson will score him more often than Monroe, LaRoche, and Hinske.  Even if he doesn’t hit lead-off, batting third will still provide ample opportunity to run.

Since the Pirates traded away McLouth, the door was left wide open for the promotion on Andrew McCutchen.  This guy has been on the top of prospect list for quite some time, and for good reason. Once again, the lack of competition may lead to plenty of playing time.  If you are in need of steals, this is one player to acquire.

In a totally unrelated move, the Chicago White Sox promoted their top prospect, Gordon Beckham.  For those of you owning Josh Fields… Take notice.  Beckham was switched to third base in the minors a few weeks ago, and is slated to play there today.

I know these prospects are creating a lot of buzz, but don’t mortgage your team to get them.  However, if you are in deep leagues, especially keeper leagues, they all need to be rostered for close monitoring.  In both of my 12-team leagues, none of them are currently available.  in the Premier League, Beckham and Hansen have been rostered for a while, and McCutchen was grabbed yesterday.  The FGD Keeper League has a minor league roster, and these players have all been owned since day one of the league.

• How much value will this group of prospects bring in 2009?

The live help session is now open and available to everyone.

Discussion topic for tonight….

• In completing trades, What is your take on the Buy Low - Sell High theory?