By Derek of The Sportmeisters

Another week of baseball in the books means another Winners, Losers, and Waiver Wire Wonders blog from the fantasy guru. Keep in mind, the stats I show are the players stats for the week, not on the season. Let’s go!

Winners

1B – Albert Pujols – St. Louis Cardinals – .389 BA, 7 H, 6 R, 1 Double, 4 HR, 11 RBI, 5 BB, 3 K

This is what you expect from Pujols. He hit four home runs and drove in 11 this week, putting his season totals up to 26 home runs and 68 RBI’s. Not to mention his .329 average. Pujols is one of the best fantasy players around and in no way, shape, or form should he ever be on your bench.

1B – Miguel Cabrera – Detroit Tigers – .458 BA, 11 H, 9 R, 2 Doubles, 3 HR, 5 RBI, 1 BB, 3 K

MY BOY!!!!!!!! That’s what I was expecting when I drafted Miggy on all eight of my fantasy teams. You should expect this type of production from him for the rest of the year. He has a .333 average with 14 home runs and 44 RBI’s and is an elite fantasy player that should be in your lineup at all times.

OF – B.J. Upton – Tampa Bay Rays – .429 BA, 12 H, 6 R, 3 Doubles, 2 HR, 9 RBI, 1 BB, 5 K, 2 SB

Looks like Upton is finally starting to hit his groove. He started slow after his injury and didn’t look like the Upton that we all drafted. However, he is hitting over .300 in June and has 11 stolen bases. In total, he has a .241 average with five home runs, 24 RBI’s and 26 stolen bases. He is a must own and a must start in all formats.

OF – Ryan Braun – Milwaukee Brewers – .385 BA, 10 H, 10 R, 1 Double, 1 Triple, 2 HR, 8 RBI, 2 BB, 3 K, 2 SB

Braun has been good this year and he was even better this week. He scored 10 runs and had eight RBI’s, plus he stole two bases. Braun has 15 home runs and 50 RBI’s on the year and is an elite fantasy player. Keep him active in all formats.

1B – Derrek Lee – Chicago Cubs – .364 BA, 8 H, 5 R, 1 Double, 4 HR, 9 RBI, 1 BB, 5 K

D-Lee has caught fire as of late. He is on an 18 game hitting streak and hit four home runs this week. He now has 11 home runs and 36 RBI’s on the year and looks to be back to an everyday fantasy player. Keep him active while he’s hot.

1B – Prince Fielder – Milwaukee Brewers – .391 BA, 9 H, 6 R, 3 Doubles, 2 HR, 11 RBI, 4 BB, 3 K

The Prince has lived up to his reputation so far this year. He drove in 11 runs this week and now has 67 on the year. He is also hitting .299 with 17 home runs. He has become an elite fantasy option and should be started at all times.

SP – Felix Hernandez – Seattle Mariners – 16.3 IP, 1 W, 1 CG, 1 SO, 14 K, 6 BB, 8 HA, 2 ER

King Felix is on fire. He has won three of his last six decisions and is 7-3 on the year. His ERA is at 2.74 and he has 98 strikeouts to just 31 walks. He should be started in all formats.

SP – Josh Beckett – Boston Red Sox – 9 IP, 1 W, 1 CG, 1 SO, 7 K, 0 BB, 5 HA, 0 ER

That is the CY Young candidate that we all remember. Beckett pitched a complete game shutout and moved his record to 8-3 on the year. He has won four of his last five games and threw shutouts in three of those games. His ERA is down to 3.74 and he looks to be back to the Ace we all remember. Start him with full confidence.

RP – David Aardsma – Seattle Mariners – 3 IP, 3 SV, 7 K, 0 BB, 2 HA, 0 ER

Aardsma keeps on rolling since taking the closer’s role. He has five saves in his last five appearances and hasn’t allowed a run since May 31st.  He now has 14 saves on the year and looks to have the job for the year. Expect a possible 25 save season and keep him active while he’s hot.

RP – Jose Valverde – Houston Astros – 4 IP, 3 SV, 4 K, 0 BB, 3 HA, 0 ER

Valverde came off the DL and hasn’t missed a beat. He saved three games in four innings this week and seems to be fully healthy. He is a top tier closer and should be reactivated with full confidence.

Losers

RP – Clay Condrey – Philadelphia Phillies – 0.3 IP, 1 L, 0 K, 3 BB, 6 HA, 6 ER

Ouch! Allowing six runs in only one-third of an inning is pretty bad. Up until last week, he was pitching pretty good as his ERA was just 2.14 until a five run blowup last Tuesday. He isn’t much of a fantasy option anyway so if you own him you can drop him.

RP – Ryan Madson – Philadelphia Phillies – 3 IP, 2 L, 2 BS, 3 K, 3 BB, 6 HA, 5 ER

Madson was doing so well that I had him on my waiver wire wonder list last week. Oops, I guess I spoke too soon. He blew two saves this week and allowed five runs. He does still have the job until Brad Lidge returns, so he is worth using, but be careful from here on out.

SP – Dave Bush – Milwaukee Brewers – 6.3 IP, 1 L, 3 K, 2 BB, 13 HA, 13 ER

Two starts and only six innings? That’s not good. Bush allowed 13 hits and 13 runs over six innings during two starts and has now lost four of his last six decisions. He is said to be battling arm fatigue and might miss his next start, so keep him stashed on the bench or go ahead and drop him if there is someone better available.

SP – Daisuke Matsuzaka – Boston Red Sox – 4 IP, 1 L, 2 K, 4 BB, 8 HA, 6 ER

BUST! Dice-K has been a complete bust since the World Baseball Classic. He is now on the DL for a second time and has a disastrous 1-5 record with an ERA over eight. He still has the potential to win 10 games, but watch how long he is out for. Keep him stashed on the bench until we find out more info on his injury.

3B – Ryan Zimmerman – Washington Nationals – .143 BA, 4 H, 2 R, 2 Doubles, 0 HR, 1 RBI, 1 BB, 10 K

Zimmerman has been one of the more consistent players for the weak Nationals team. Until this week, that is. He only had four hits in 28 At-Bats and had just one RBI. He is still one of the better Third Base options, hitting .294 with 12 home runs and 43 RBI’s. So go ahead and keep him active.

SS – Derek Jeter – New York Yankees – .177 BA, 3 H, 2 R, 1 Double, 0 HR, 0 RBI, 2 BB, 2 K, 1 SB

Jeter has been battling an ankle injury, so that may attribute to his bad week. However, despite this one week, he is still a top tier shortstop and should be active in all formats.

1B/3B – Chris Davis – Texas Rangers – .050 BA, 1 H, 1 R, 0 Doubles, 1 HR, 1 RBI, 0 BB, 9 K

Davis has been very inconsistent this year. He was expected to be a monster, but so far is only producing strikeouts. He has struck out 101 times to just 14 walks and only has a .194 batting average. He does have 13 home runs, but only 28 RBI’s. Until he gets his bat going, keep him stashed on your bench because he does have the potential to turn it around and hit .300 with 25 home runs and 75 RBI’s.

Waiver Wire Wonders

OF – Andrew McCutchen – Pittsburgh Pirates – .345 BA, 10 H, 4 R, 2 Doubles, 3 Triples, 1 HR, 6 RBI, 0 BB, 5 K, 0 SB

Three weeks in a row! This guy must be for real. The trade of Nate McLouth made room for the Pirates to bring up their highly touted prospect and he has started off hot. He is starting everyday in Centerfield and has 13 RBI’s and two stolen bases to go along with his .333 batting average. He is available, only being owned in 31.7 percent of ESPN leagues (up nearly 10 percent from a week ago), so go ahead and take a chance on him. I’m going to keep putting this guy on my list until people start listening and grab him.

OF – Juan Rivera – Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim – .375 BA, 9 H, 6 R, 2 Doubles, 2 HR, 6 RBI, 3 BB, 3 K

Rivera’s bat has come alive this month. He has five home runs and 18 RBI’s, while hitting .328. His total numbers on the year are .315 average, 10 home runs and 37 RBI’s. He is playing everyday and looks to be available, only being owned in 34.3 percent of ESPN leagues. He plays in a very good lineup, so go ahead and grab him and expect 20+ home runs.

SP – John Smoltz – Boston Red Sox – 0 IP, 0 W, 0 L, 0 K, 0 BB, 0 ER

Heee’s baaack! Smoltz will make his first start on Thursday against Washington. He should still have the same nasty stuff that he had before going on the DL last year and Washington is a great place to start. He could be good for 10 wins, especially with that lineup behind him. He is only owned in 25.1 percent of ESPN leagues, so go ahead and grab him and enjoy the wins and strikeouts.

That’s all for now sports fans. Any questions or concerns, email me at Derek@Sportmeisters.com.