What's the Buzz? 8/26/06
My apologies to all the baseball heads out there, but I have to prepare for my fantasy football draft which is on Sunday, so let's just get right to it...
The Padres are calling infielder Geoff Blum day to day after he was scratched from tonight's game due to tightness in his upper body. He had been getting regular playing time ever since SS Khalil Greene went on the DL and had been contributing with 7 RBI in the past 5 games. He was replaced by Manny Alexander and may not even miss another game, so if you have a hole to fill, he should still get the playing time.
Well, it's official in Cleveland...again. Today manager Eric Wedge announce that Tom Mastny is the official closer for the Indians. He came out today and pitched a perfect ninth to earn his third save. Rafael Betancourt and Jason Davis will remain as set up men with maybe the occasional chance if Mastny pitches a few days in a row. Former closer Fausto Carmona has been sent back down to the minors. For now, it looks like Mastny should have decent value in AL only and deep mixed leagues.
Also for the Indians, it appears that rookie Jeremy Sowers will be shut down for the remainder of the season. He has already thrown over 165 innings, more than he has ever thrown, and with the Tribe out of contention, they don't want to overwork him now. He should be on a lot of peoples' radar for next season. Carmona, the former closer, is working as a starter in the minors and should be recalled in September to take Sowers' rotation spot.
And speaking of closing situations, it appears that Brad Lidge is back...again. After being told he was officially in a committee, Lidge has gone 4 scoreless innings with 8 K's while allowing only one hit and no walks. He was given the save chance tonight, excelled and will probably be given the next few save opps as well. Obviously you need to take this with a grain of salt. I'm sure Phil Garner has him on a pretty short leash. Look for Lidge to get the majority of work down the stretch, but if he struggles again (a very good chance), Dan Wheeler will be right there to pick up the pieces.
Tigers rookie Cy Young candidate Justin Verlander continues to show signs of wear and tear as he was pounded for 8 runs in 4 2/3 innings. He started off strong but then struggled in the month of June with a 4.17 ERA. After some time off during the All Star Break he rebounded with a 1.01 ERA in 4 July starts, but has now posted a 5.09 ERA in August. Simple fact: He hasn't thrown this many innings, this many pitches in a season ever in his career. If the Tigers are smart, they will rest him some in September and get him ready for the playoffs. Be careful if you own him. He is definitely breaking down.
Giants starter Noah Lowry is once again showing that he's the guy you want to trade for going into the month of August. After today's victory over the Reds, he's allowed on erun in 17 innings this past week and now has an ERA of 1.91 in 5 starts this month. Last year in August he went 5-0 with a 0.69 ERA. Mental note for 2007.
Moises Alou will continue to remain sidelined, probably until atleast Tuesday. The Giants' outfielder still hasn't recovered from his latest injury, a calf problem, and should remain day to day for the rest of the season.
Also banged up for the Giants is "closer" Armando Benitez. While it had been announced earlier that the closer situation would go to a committee, the team said that the only reason he didn't get the save opp tonight was due to elbow inflammation and a head cold. I'm sure it had everything to do with the fact he got blown out of the water on Tuesday and then completely over did it on Wednesday against the Diamondbacks. Mike Stanton got another save in Benitez' absence.
Congratulations to Mets OF Carlos Beltran who hit his 200th career home run tonight. It was his 38th of the season which ties his career high. Throw in 108 RBI (tying another career high)and, unlike last year, he has been well worth the price the Mets paid for him in free agency. He should finish the season pretty strongly and remains a must start in all leagues.
Another positive for the Mets was the performance from Oliver Perez tonight. Atleast encouraging. Before unraveling in the 5th inning, where the capper was a Ryan Howard grand slam, he threw 4 no hit hittings to start the game. He'll need to grab a few more chances before you can even think about picking him up, but I'd say that wasn't too bad for a throw-in in the Xavier Nady/Roberto Hernandez deal.
We're still waiting on confirmation from manager Terry Francona, but Red Sox pitcher Josh Beckett said that he was going to be able to make his next start. He says the blister...I mean....cut....on his finger won't hold him back. Management should make the decision and announcement by the time the next scoring period begins.
After pitching through injuries, Padres reliever Scott Williamson ended up on the DL today with a right elbow strain. It's the same problem he suffered from in June with the Cubs and it is uncertain whether he will return this season or not.
If you're waiting for Eddie Guardado to come back from his latest DL stint, you may have to wait a little longer than expected. He was still experiencing soreness in his forearm after a throwing session and the club may wait for a little while longer until he is closer to 100%.
With today's 2 run shot, Chipper Jones moved to third on the all time homer list for switch hitters with his 351st. He passed Chili Davis and now sits behind only Mickey Mantle and Eddie Murray who have 534 and 504 respectively.
Putting another injury blemish on a decent season for himself, Nick Johnson left today's game with whiplash after a collision with Braves OF Jeff Francoeur. He is listed as day to day and will probably miss Sundays' game at the least.
After jumping back into the lineup yesterday and striking out all 5 times he was up, Jim Edmonds was back on the bench again today. He came in as a pinch hitter and struck out, yet again. The road to recovery from a concussion seems to be long and bumpy these days. He'll probably stay on the bench Sunday when the Cubs throw another lefty at the Cards.
Dodgers starter Derek Lowe is being called day to day after he left today's game with a bruised thumb he suffered when he was hit with a line drive. The x-rays were negative but he will be re-evaluated in a few days to see if he can make his next start. If not, Aaron Sele will probably take his place.
And finally, good news for Stephen Drew owners. Arizona manager Bob Melvin says that he will use returning veteran Craig Counsell as a utility player rather than removing Drew from the starting shortstop position. Counsell should still eat into some of Drew's at bats, but atleast he's not moving him to the bench. Drew remains a viable middle infield option in NL only leagues.
By the way, some real nice pitching duels today between Roy Halladay and Runelvys Hernandez in Toronto and Chris Carpenter and Rich Hill in St. Louis. Halladay and Carpenter are always solid options. Hernandez and Hill? Well, the sun shines on a dog's ass atleast once.
And speaking of the sun shining on a dog's ass...yes, I saw Adrian Beltre hit another home run today. We'll wait and see what he does once September officially starts. Ride him now while you still can.
Catch you next time...
The Padres are calling infielder Geoff Blum day to day after he was scratched from tonight's game due to tightness in his upper body. He had been getting regular playing time ever since SS Khalil Greene went on the DL and had been contributing with 7 RBI in the past 5 games. He was replaced by Manny Alexander and may not even miss another game, so if you have a hole to fill, he should still get the playing time.
Well, it's official in Cleveland...again. Today manager Eric Wedge announce that Tom Mastny is the official closer for the Indians. He came out today and pitched a perfect ninth to earn his third save. Rafael Betancourt and Jason Davis will remain as set up men with maybe the occasional chance if Mastny pitches a few days in a row. Former closer Fausto Carmona has been sent back down to the minors. For now, it looks like Mastny should have decent value in AL only and deep mixed leagues.
Also for the Indians, it appears that rookie Jeremy Sowers will be shut down for the remainder of the season. He has already thrown over 165 innings, more than he has ever thrown, and with the Tribe out of contention, they don't want to overwork him now. He should be on a lot of peoples' radar for next season. Carmona, the former closer, is working as a starter in the minors and should be recalled in September to take Sowers' rotation spot.
And speaking of closing situations, it appears that Brad Lidge is back...again. After being told he was officially in a committee, Lidge has gone 4 scoreless innings with 8 K's while allowing only one hit and no walks. He was given the save chance tonight, excelled and will probably be given the next few save opps as well. Obviously you need to take this with a grain of salt. I'm sure Phil Garner has him on a pretty short leash. Look for Lidge to get the majority of work down the stretch, but if he struggles again (a very good chance), Dan Wheeler will be right there to pick up the pieces.
Tigers rookie Cy Young candidate Justin Verlander continues to show signs of wear and tear as he was pounded for 8 runs in 4 2/3 innings. He started off strong but then struggled in the month of June with a 4.17 ERA. After some time off during the All Star Break he rebounded with a 1.01 ERA in 4 July starts, but has now posted a 5.09 ERA in August. Simple fact: He hasn't thrown this many innings, this many pitches in a season ever in his career. If the Tigers are smart, they will rest him some in September and get him ready for the playoffs. Be careful if you own him. He is definitely breaking down.
Giants starter Noah Lowry is once again showing that he's the guy you want to trade for going into the month of August. After today's victory over the Reds, he's allowed on erun in 17 innings this past week and now has an ERA of 1.91 in 5 starts this month. Last year in August he went 5-0 with a 0.69 ERA. Mental note for 2007.
Moises Alou will continue to remain sidelined, probably until atleast Tuesday. The Giants' outfielder still hasn't recovered from his latest injury, a calf problem, and should remain day to day for the rest of the season.
Also banged up for the Giants is "closer" Armando Benitez. While it had been announced earlier that the closer situation would go to a committee, the team said that the only reason he didn't get the save opp tonight was due to elbow inflammation and a head cold. I'm sure it had everything to do with the fact he got blown out of the water on Tuesday and then completely over did it on Wednesday against the Diamondbacks. Mike Stanton got another save in Benitez' absence.
Congratulations to Mets OF Carlos Beltran who hit his 200th career home run tonight. It was his 38th of the season which ties his career high. Throw in 108 RBI (tying another career high)and, unlike last year, he has been well worth the price the Mets paid for him in free agency. He should finish the season pretty strongly and remains a must start in all leagues.
Another positive for the Mets was the performance from Oliver Perez tonight. Atleast encouraging. Before unraveling in the 5th inning, where the capper was a Ryan Howard grand slam, he threw 4 no hit hittings to start the game. He'll need to grab a few more chances before you can even think about picking him up, but I'd say that wasn't too bad for a throw-in in the Xavier Nady/Roberto Hernandez deal.
We're still waiting on confirmation from manager Terry Francona, but Red Sox pitcher Josh Beckett said that he was going to be able to make his next start. He says the blister...I mean....cut....on his finger won't hold him back. Management should make the decision and announcement by the time the next scoring period begins.
After pitching through injuries, Padres reliever Scott Williamson ended up on the DL today with a right elbow strain. It's the same problem he suffered from in June with the Cubs and it is uncertain whether he will return this season or not.
If you're waiting for Eddie Guardado to come back from his latest DL stint, you may have to wait a little longer than expected. He was still experiencing soreness in his forearm after a throwing session and the club may wait for a little while longer until he is closer to 100%.
With today's 2 run shot, Chipper Jones moved to third on the all time homer list for switch hitters with his 351st. He passed Chili Davis and now sits behind only Mickey Mantle and Eddie Murray who have 534 and 504 respectively.
Putting another injury blemish on a decent season for himself, Nick Johnson left today's game with whiplash after a collision with Braves OF Jeff Francoeur. He is listed as day to day and will probably miss Sundays' game at the least.
After jumping back into the lineup yesterday and striking out all 5 times he was up, Jim Edmonds was back on the bench again today. He came in as a pinch hitter and struck out, yet again. The road to recovery from a concussion seems to be long and bumpy these days. He'll probably stay on the bench Sunday when the Cubs throw another lefty at the Cards.
Dodgers starter Derek Lowe is being called day to day after he left today's game with a bruised thumb he suffered when he was hit with a line drive. The x-rays were negative but he will be re-evaluated in a few days to see if he can make his next start. If not, Aaron Sele will probably take his place.
And finally, good news for Stephen Drew owners. Arizona manager Bob Melvin says that he will use returning veteran Craig Counsell as a utility player rather than removing Drew from the starting shortstop position. Counsell should still eat into some of Drew's at bats, but atleast he's not moving him to the bench. Drew remains a viable middle infield option in NL only leagues.
By the way, some real nice pitching duels today between Roy Halladay and Runelvys Hernandez in Toronto and Chris Carpenter and Rich Hill in St. Louis. Halladay and Carpenter are always solid options. Hernandez and Hill? Well, the sun shines on a dog's ass atleast once.
And speaking of the sun shining on a dog's ass...yes, I saw Adrian Beltre hit another home run today. We'll wait and see what he does once September officially starts. Ride him now while you still can.
Catch you next time...
posted by Howard Bender at
10:56 PM
