Matt Garza allowed a leadoff home run to Felix Pie in the first inning and that was IT as he nearly threw a complete game. Garza scattered six hits and three walks over 8.1 innings and struck out five. This is two straight awesome starts for Garza and the second time that he pitched eight innings. For those who might not remember, Garza was a major pitching prospect in the Twins’ organization and this success shouldn’t be unexpected. I don’t think he will become a top ten pitcher in 2010, but I expect improvements in all of his stats from last season including the 189 Ks he recorded in 2009. If his owner doesn’t quite believe, I would try to see what his price tag is, although now is probably not the best time.
Scott Podsednik has landed in Kansas City and he is continuing to do what he has his entire career, and that is be a source of steals for fantasy owners. He is getting every day at-bats and has stolen three bases in the last two days to bring his season total to five. Podsednik is what we like to call a one trick pony. He will give you steals and that is about it. He probably will give you a decent number of runs scored too, but he likely won’t top 80. If when you drafted your team it came out looking like the contestants from The Biggest Loser, perhaps Podsednik is someone you should think about picking up, but he is not a guy that I am a big fan of unless you are really in need of saves.
After throwing six shutout innings against the Royals his first time out, Max Scherzer was shakier today against the same KC squad but still was effective enough. He did take the loss but this is an interesting season for Scherzer. I still think he might be a year away from taking the next step, but if he can show some consistency perhaps he will finish the season strong in 2010 a la Brett Anderson last year. You want to see more than three Ks in five innings, but all in all it wasn’t a bad outing for Scherzer considering three of the five runs he allowed were unearned.
Cole Hamels wasn’t sharp again on Monday, but somehow he is 2-0. I guess two starts against the Nationals is a good way to begin the year. Hamels allowed four runs over 5.2 innings, but at least he struck out six. I am really not concerned about this slow start and I think I like Cole more than most. I am not saying he will be a Cy Young Award winner, but I do believe that he will win 16+ games and strikeout at least 180 batters.
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Rich Harden pitched fairly well today, and the good news is he was able to go deeper into the game than the 3.2 innings he pitched his first time out. The bad news is the strikeouts seemed to disappear. Harden allowed just two earned runs over six innings, but walked three and struck out just two, failing to earn the win. I am a little puzzled by the Rangers ace so far this season. The first game he threw too many pitches to see the end of the fourth inning, and this time out his trademark Ks were nowhere to be found. I am having a hard time gauging Harden this year, but if you own him I would continue starting him with confidence and hope that the consistency that I so desire starts to come around. The strange part is that he has been able to stay healthy now for the better part of two seasons. The bad news is that ever since he started to stay on the mound for the majority of the season, he seems to be less effective. Hmmmm, stay tuned for more on Harden as the season progresses, but I would give today’s performance a B-.
Fausto Carmona had another pretty solid outing for the Indians as he allowed just two runs over eight innings, and in a very non-Carmona like performance he struck out four batters. I am still not a big fan of his because of the lack of strikeouts, but so far he has shown signs of the way he performed the year he won 19 games. I am not saying he will repeat that, and to expect that would be crazy in my opinion, but I am at least warming to the idea that he could at least be a reasonable guy to have as a fourth or fifth starter on your team.
A night after blowing a save, Chris Perez loaded the bases without recording a single out and was yanked out of the game before it got any worse. This is of course a concern because of the lack of a track record that Perez has and the chance of him getting yanked out of the role. They don’t really have a good second option so I think Perez will get another chance to prove his worth, but if he blows one or two more he will be out of the closer’s job.
Funny thing is I got an email today from someone who asked me how long they were supposed to wait before guys like Kyle Blanks among others were going to perform. Well, it might be just one day, but your wait is over on Blanks. He was 3-6 with his second home run of the season and drove in five runs. I think that Blanks will be inconsistent this year but he is going to hit for some good power. I think he is a lock for 25 bombs with a chance for more. His batting average, however, could be a disappointment.
I really don’t like when Justin Duchscherer is successful. One reason is that I have to continue to type Duchscherer so going forward he is going to be just Duch. The other reason is that I just don’t feel like he can remain healthy enough to stay on the mound the whole season and everyone always wants to pick him up. Duch was incredible today though, there is no doubt about that as he 7.1 shutout innings, allowing just two hits while striking out four. He hasn’t been able to pitch anything near a full season in the last two years, and I would put some money down that 2010 will be no different. He will likely be successful over the next six weeks to two months, but long term I am not a fan of Duchscherer.
The Twins showed why they are perennial contenders for the AL Central crown as they continue to get good pitching from unexpected places. Carl Pavano allowed just one run over six innings while whiffing four against the high powered Red Sox offense. I think that Pavano will be quite inconsistent throughout the year and isn’t someone that I would throw out against just anyone even with the nice outing against the Sawks. Joe Nathan’s replacement, Jon Rauch, has already racked up five saves and while he isn’t wowing you with the strikeouts, ERA, or WHIP, he has already proven to be more reliable than I had given him credit for. You might want to capitalize and try to trade Rauch for a guy with a longer track record, or else hold on to him and hope this nice start continues.
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Adam Wainwright was absolutely magical as he handcuffed the Astros (who still have no wins, sorry Mitchell family!) over eight shutout innings, fanning seven. Through two starts it certainly looks like Wainwright is out to prove that 2009 was no joke, and while I am still a bit skeptical, I have to say so far, so good. Houston’s Wandy Rodriguez was not as lucky today as he failed to strikeout a batter while giving up four runs over 4.2 innings. He has been pretty poor in his first two times to the mound, but I preach to you to have patience. If you own him, you probably drafted him fairly high, and while I didn’t condone such a move you have to keep throwing him out there and hope that he turns it around. 13-14 wins and 165 strikeouts with an ERA of about 3.75 seem to be realistic expectations for the Magic Wandy.
Scott Rolen had a two home run game and now has three jacks early in 2010. Rolen was once one of the more feared hitters in the major leagues, but he has been a shell of his former self since his shoulder and other injuries have taken his once big bat away. When in there Rolen can be a decent performer, just don’t count on him too much. I might grab him if you have an injured player that is going to be out a week to ten days, but longer than that and then you are rolling the dice.
Andruw Jones had a huge day with two home runs and four RBI, but I urge you not to get too caught up in this one hot day. Jones hasn’t and will not play every day and he will not perform enough to be worth adding to your roster. Jones bat is too slow and he has too many holes in his swing for him to be a consistent enough player to warrant every day playing time or fantasy consideration.
Injury News
Jimmy Rollins was announced as part of the starting lineup, but then strained his calf running in the outfield to warm up before the game. Rollins will have an MRI on Tuesday, but it seems that he is likely to miss a couple of games at the least. We should have more concrete news about this tomorrow.
Jayson Werth also left the game for the Phillies for what was described as soreness in his hip. Werth said it was just precautionary and he would be fine. For now we will take him at his word, but you might want to see about his availability for tomorrow’s game (or sign up for Fantasy Alarm, which will give you the update in plenty of time before the game starts!)
Aaron Hill has landed on the 15-day DL with a hamstring injury. The team is not releasing too much information, but from what they are saying this is precautionary and it seems that Hill should be back in the 15 days he is required to be out.
Brian Roberts injury seems to be a little more serious. Roberts also landed on the 15 day DL from his ab muscle strain but his back injury he had in Spring Training is also going to get another epidural. The move is retroactive to April 10th, but it seems that there is a good chance that he will be out longer than the two weeks. Roberts will rest a few days to see how his back responds before trying to work back into baseball shape. Abdominal strains tend to be a few weeks to a month to heal so hopefully Roberts is a fast healer.
San Diego’s Chris Young will take his usual trip to the Disabled List with a strained right shoulder, which happens to be the same shoulder that he had offseason surgery on. Young is a perennial DLer so you have to be concerned about this so early into the season. Of course the team is saying that it is only to be safe and because we are early in the year, but I smell an extended stay here. Young says no, but that remains to be seen.
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