Raise your hand if you had the A's for the next closer change! Manager Bob Melvin said Thursday that he's going to give Jim Johnson "a break" and use a closer-by-committee approach. Candidates to get saves in the near future include Luke Gregerson, Ryan Cook, Dan Otero and Sean Doolittle.
If you own Johnson, sit tight. He's probably just in a slump, and should get his job back soon. For those looking to speculate on someone else in the unlikely event that Johnson's meltdown continues, Cook would be my pick.
On to the rest of the news:
White Sox OF Avisail Garcia will have shoulder surgery and miss the rest of the season. As noted here yesterday, this returns Dayan Viciedo to an everyday role. Viciedo isn't perfect, but he hit 39 home runs over the last two seasons. He's owned in 0.9 percent of FOXSports.com leagues, and can be considered in deeper mixed formats. It wouldn't be a shock if Viciedo hit 25 home runs.
Want to see a weird pitching line? Danny Salazar pitched three-and-two-thirds innings last night. One of his 11 outs was recorded when Adam Eaton tried to stretch a single into a double in the third inning. The other 10 were on strikeouts.
The Rangers are trying to avoid a DL stint for 3B Adrian Beltre (quad). They'll let Beltre recover this weekend to see how things go, but you should keep Beltre on the bench until you hear good news. In other Ranger news, Colby Lewis should return to the rotation early next week.
Braves SS Andrelton Simmons was scratched last night due to a jammed right wrist, and is questionable for tonight's game.
Streaming starters: Travis Wood's solid Thursday outing raised our record to 6-4 for the season. The weekend selections are Tyler Skaggs (owned in 20.7 percent of FOXSports.com leagues) against the Mets on Friday; Nathan Eovaldi (22.6 percent owned) versus the Phillies on Saturday; and Jose Quintana (15.6 percent owned) against the Indians on Sunday.
Indians 3B Lonnie Chisenhall has been placed on the paternity list, which is sure to make some NYC-based radio hosts unhappy. The latest Chisenhall could return is Sunday.
Reminder: The Orioles are hoping that SS J.J. Hardy (back) will return to the lineup tonight.
The Twins' outfield issues have forced them to call up the speedy Darin Mastroianni, who missed most of 2013 with an ankle injury. Mastroianni stole 35 bases between the minors and majors in 2012.
See you back here Monday morning.
