The future is now.
The stars of tomorrow are starting to be sprinkled into lineups throughout Major League Baseball.
Kansas City fans had already been reveling in the arrival of Eric Hosmer and his strong three-category production. This weekend, the team called up third baseman Mike Moustakas. The Southern California native had a chance to open his major league career in front of many friends and family against the Angels. Moustakas went 3-for-10 in the weekend series with a monster home run on Saturday night. He walked three times in his 13 plate appearances.
San Diego also provided fantasy fans with a glimpse into the future by promoting first baseman Anthony Rizzo for the weekend series against Washington. Rizzo joined Moustakas in the Saturday home run club and also finished the series with three hits in 10 at-bats. He demonstrated a great batting eye with five walks in his 15 plate appearances.
Atlanta turned to 23-year-old lefty Mike Minor for his fourth start of the season against the Astros on Saturday. Minor allowed two earned runs with four strikeouts and a 1.00 WHIP (four hits and two walks) in his six innings pitched. He’s pitched to a strong 3.05 ERA in his past three starts following a rough introduction to the big leagues by Milwaukee.
Philadelphia second baseman Chase Utley is starting to heat up. Utley has hit safely in eight of his past nine appearances to raise his batting average 67 points to .261. He’s hit two doubles, one triple and a home run with six RBI during this period.
The Brewers are surging in the NL Central, led by the behemoth at first base. Prince Fielder has been absolutely crushing the ball in June. He homered twice in the weekend sweep of St. Louis with three RBI. In the month of June, Fielder is batting .412 (14-for-34) with two doubles, eight home runs and 16 RBI. “Pay that man his money.”
It’s been a roller coaster ride for Troy Tulowitzki in 2011. Tulowitzki started the year by swinging a hot back before slowing markedly for the month of May. He’s heating up again in June. Tulowitzki has hit safely in nine of the Rockies’ 11 games, including his current five-game streak of multi-hit performances. He hit two home runs and drove in 12 runs in the four-game weekend series against the Dodgers.
I told you not to dismiss John Danks. The Chicago starter earned his second straight win with 7 2/3 innings of two-run ball against the A’s on Saturday. Danks has allowed two earned runs with 10 strikeouts against three walks in his past 15 innings of work. He’s posted three disastrous outings in 13 trips to the mound this season. In his other 10 starts, Danks has pitched to a 2.94 ERA. He’s struck out two batters per walk issued overall.
Jon Lester pitched comfortably behind the big bats of the Red Sox (35 runs in the weekend series against the Blue Jays) to earn his ninth win of the year and fifth in his past six starts. Lester allowed one earned run on two hits (a solo home run to Jose Bautista) and a walk with eight strikeouts in eight innings. His ERA and WHIP totals are higher than you’d like (3.73 and 1.28, respectively), but the Ws are piling up.
Lester is winning. Adrian Gonzalez is among the top RBI men in the game, and Carl Crawford’s bat has finally been awakened. Lost in the shuffle has been the steady production of David Ortiz. Ortiz homered twice in the weekend sweep of Toronto that extended the Red Sox winning streak to nine games. He’s homered four times with 15 RBI during the streak. Ortiz owns a tremendous .325 batting average with 18 doubles, 17 home runs and 43 RBI overall.
Ubaldo Jimenez posted an interesting stat line in his latest turn on the hill. He pitched 5 1/3 innings against the Dodgers, surrendering 11 hits, including three home runs, and a walk. Jimenez allowed seven runs, two of which were earned. As a result, his ERA was reduced to 4.62. Jimenez has allowed four earned runs in his past 21 1/3 innings of work, thereby lowering his ERA by nearly 1 1/4 runs.
Washington outfielder Jayson Werth can’t wait to sleep in his own bed. In his past nine road games, Werth produced three hits in 29 at-bats (.103) with one double, one triple, one RBI and three stolen bases.
The Twins have suddenly awakened in the AL Central. Scott Baker is finally receiving offensive support. On Sunday, Baker pitched a complete game and limited the Rangers to one run on five hits with seven strikeouts in 16 innings pitched. He has won back-to-back starts while allowing four earned runs with 12 strikeouts against zero walks. Baker lowered his ERA to 3.55 and has struck out 3.4 batters per walk issued.
Cliff Lee took advantage of a weekend start against the struggling Chicago Cubs on Saturday. He allowed one earned run in eight innings to earn his second straight win. Lee earned his second straight win with the effort, surrendering a single earned run with 17 strikeouts against three walks in 15 innings.
Cincinnati starter Mike Leake continued his strong run with his fourth consecutive strong start against the Giants. Leake pitched eight innings of shutout ball against the Giants to pick up his sixth win of the season (back-to-back wins) with eight strikeouts against a single walk. During this four-game stretch, Leake has pitched to a fantastic 1.93 ERA.
I’ll continue to bang the drum for Washington starter Jordan Zimmermann, who pitched another gem on Sunday. Zimmermann pitched seven shutout innings against the Padres with 10 strikeouts against one walk with five hits. He lowered his season ERA to 3.10 and has struck out 3.8 batters per walk issued.
Milwaukee starter Zack Greinke took some time to find his game after starting the season on the disabled list. Greinke has won his past four starts while pitching to a 3.33 ERA with 31 strikeouts against four walks. In fact, control has been Greinke’s game through eight starts. He’s struck out 60 batters against seven walks overall.
Finally, the month of June has not been kind to Tim Lincecum. The San Francisco ace was rocked for seven earned runs on seven hits and four walks in his last outing against the Reds. Lincecum has allowed 16 earned runs on 22 hits and seven walks in his three June starts. Break out the calculators. Lincecum owns a bloated 9.39 ERA with an equally disgusting 1.89 WHIP in June.
Fantasy Infirmary
According to reports out of Minnesota, Twins catcher Joe Mauer may rejoin the team as early as Thursday. He has been rehabbing at the team’s spring training facilities in Florida. Mauer has been sidelined since the second week of the season because of leg weakness. The Twins have surged since June 1, and the return of their leader will certainly make things even more intriguing in the tight AL Central.
Houston outfielder Hunter Pence was held out of Sunday’s game because of tightness in his lower back. He exited Friday’s game early before getting back into the lineup on Saturday. Pence has produced a 22-game hitting streak heading into this week’s action. During this period, he has boosted his batting averaged 38 points with 15 RBI.
New York starter Bartolo Colon strained his left hamstring while attempting to cover first base and was placed on the 15-day disabled list. It’s a tough blow for the Yankees after losing Joba Chamberlain (Tommy John surgery) earlier in the week. Phil Hughes is working back into shape after missing two months because of arm fatigue. Highes is reportedly reaching the low-90s on the radar gun and will begin his minor-league rehabilitation efforts on Tuesday.
Freddy Sanchez of the Giants dislocated his right shoulder in Friday’s game against the Reds. He’ll attempt to rehab the injury for several weeks before deciding whether season-ending surgery is required. It doesn’t look good for Sanchez. Emmanuel Burriss (is fast) took Sanchez’s place in the lineup and will play there short-term. I suspect that the Giants will be looking to upgrade the position before the trade deadline.
Seven-game winner Aaron Harang of the Padres was placed on the 15-day disabled list because of a right foot injury (X-rays were negative). The team recalled Anthony Bass from Triple-A Tucson, who has generated a 3.41 ERA in 12 starts (11 at Double-A San Antonio) this season. Bass takes the hill on Monday night.
Detroit outfielder Magglio Ordonez returned from the disabled list for Monday’s game against the Rays. He’d been sidelined for a month because of a right ankle injury. Ordonez was batting .172 at the time of his injury.
Texas catcher Mike Napoli was placed on the disabled list this weekend because of a strained left oblique. Taylor Teagarden was recalled from Triple-A Round Rock to take his roster slot. Fantasy owners who had been rolling with the power numbers from Napoli can seek out Miguel Olivo on the waiver wire.
The Associated Press reports that Oakland starter Brett Anderson was scheduled to visit Dr. James Andrews because of soreness in his left elbow. Anderson has already had an MRI performed, but the results were inconclusive. As soon as you see Andrews’ name attached to a player, you get scared for him.
Kerry Wood of the Cubs has a blister on his right index finger and has not pitched since June 8. In fact, there’s speculation that the oft-injured reliever will require a stint on the disabled list. Wood’s trip to the disabled list quells speculation, if only for a time, that he will be traded out of Chicago. The announcement of Joba Chamberlain’s injury earlier in the week got the blogosphere churning.
