4/24 Recap

Tigers 8, Rangers 2
Curtis Granderson hit a homer, so there should be no hesitation whatsoever now about playing him. Magglio Ordonez hasn't been that great, but a Jason Jennings start can quickly change that. The two homers bring him up to 5, and his average to .294. I expect him to still have a great year, approaching 30 homers, with around a .315 average. Pretty good numbers, especially since his RBI total could lead the league. Brandon Inge continues to hit, adding his third homer as he was behind the plate. I think he may have made the case to get some time in left field when the lineup is healthy. And really, he's probably the best defensive option they have there. Jeremy Bonderman continues to be awful. He struck out 7, but walked 7. Yikes. Dump him, try to convince someone he's worth something. Deal him for Liriano. The Rangers look pretty awful all the sudden. They're a must-start against team.

Angels 7, Red Sox 5
Gary Matthews continues to be hot, but nothing to get too excited about with him. Joe Saunders continues to pitch well, and isn't striking out as many batters as usual. Not really sure how much longer he can keep going like that, but I didn't hesitate to start him against the Red Sox. Jason Masterson was very solid in his debut, although I expect him to go right back down. He's not a bad option given an injury, but Colon clouds that situation a little. Macier Izturis has 5 stolen bases, and he's slowly bringing up his average. I think he's worth a look. He only stole 7 all of last year, so it'll be interesting to see if he keeps running. David Ortiz crushed one off Shields to keep his hot streak alive. And Coco Crisp not only returned, but went 2-4 with two stolen bases. Guess his legs are alright. It'll be interesting how they shake out this lineup now that Ellsbury has established himself and Crisp keeps hot. Someone is going to unfortunately lose play time.

A's 11, Twins 2
This was an important fantasy game. Frank Thomoas debuted and went 0-3, but did draw 2 walks. He may not hit right away, but it's definitely coming. Rajai Davis also debuted, going 3-4. I love Davis, in fact I grabbed him today. No idea how much play time he's going to get, but he's going to steal bases. Donnie Murphy was 3-5 with two homers. I don't really like Murphy, but Chavez was just moved to the 60 day DL and Hanahan isn't hitting, so he's going to be given a look. Mike Sweeney played 1B, so maybe that'll answer some questions about what role he's going to play now. Barton should still start against righties. I wouldn't get Sweeney, in fact he's probably not a bad drop candidate. Francisco Liriano was destroyed. Can't say I'm surprised. That said, I think he's a prime buy low guy. He's only going to get better as the season progresses, so if you can afford to sit on him for a while, go for it. But I don't see any immediate fantasy value out of him. In fact, he might hit the minors again. Carlos Gomez has been struggling a lot lately, and he led the game off with a homer. He's not going to hit for average, but that's not why you like him anyways. Finally, Greg Smith had his third good game. He's worth a pickup, although he probably loses out when Harden is back, not that you can count on him being around for any time.

Indians 9, Royals 6
I feel like every Carmona outing I'm talking about how he's been struggling, and he wasn't really sharp today by any means, yet he still sports a 2.89 ERA. Grady had a great game, and he hit only his second homer of the year. He's going to be fine. Ben Francisco also had a nice game. I like Guiterrez more, but Francisco is interesting too. Blake has been real hot lately, and he's all the way up to .250 now. I hope this is the only time I mention Jason Michaels for the rest of the year. I hate him. He brings nothing to fantasy, stay away. Miguel Olivo is worth starting at catcher now. Seems like there's a lot of catchers having really good starts. Jose Guillen was sat, as he's been struggling lately. Of course Gathright and DeJesus combined to go 4-9, so they didn't really miss him.

Rays 5, Jays 3
Dustin McGowan struggled big time today, walking 7 in 4 innings, although struck ot 6. I definitely like him a ton more than Bonderman the rest of the way, nothing to be too worried about here. Andy Sonnanstine, who I don't buy into, put together a good start. I know a lot of people like him, so do what you want, but I'm not one of those people. Gabe Gross started for the Rays, and as expected, Jonny Gomes got screwed again. Gross has some interesting upside, he could put together a 20 homer year, it's just too bad for Gomes. Evan Longoria went 2-2 and stole his first base. I could easily end up with double digit steals. BJ Ryan pitched again, gave up a hit, and struck a guy out. He seems find, and so does Troy Percival. Who would have guessed Percival would have legit fantasy value this year.

Indians 2, Royals 0
Cliff Lee is the best pitcher in baseball. This is getting out of hand how good he's been. Granted he hasn't faced the best teams or anything, but man, he's just been dominant. A complete game shutout, striking out 9, no walks, and only three hits. That's Cy Young material. Look, you can try to sell high on the guy, but I think he's going to be among the best in the league this year. He's got the M's, Royals, and Jays next, all among the best matchups possible for him. He's a strong play. Brian Bannister was decent too, going 6.2 innings, allowing 2 ER, 0 BB and 4 Ks. He's had a pretty nice start this year, and I buy into him. He's not going to have a sub-3 ERA, but sub-4 is well within reason. David Dellucci has been playing pretty well, but he's not a super bet right now, but worth watching.

White Sox 7, Yankees 6
I was going to go to this game, but the rain scared me away, I really didn't think they'd get it in. Gavin Floyd got hit around some, which isn't really too surprising, he had it coming. He's still not a terrible option against a lot of teams, but I'd sit him against the top offenses. Phil Hughes went 2 innings before the rain delay shortened his start. Alexi Ramirez got a rare start, and with Uribe still struggling, he could be getting more and more time at 2B. Melky Cabrera is worth mentioning I guess. He's another one of those really average guys, but he's been good this year, as he hit his 4th homer and brought his average up to .309. He was rushed to the Majors, so maybe he's just developing, but he could get 20 homers this year.

O's 8, M's 7
Adam Loewen is still awful, Jarrod Washburn is still mediocre. I don't think I've mentioned Adrian Beltre this year, but he's been pretty good. 30 homers isn't out of the question, but I'll take the under. He already has three steals, which is nice if he can keep that up. Jay Payton homered, but he's still not a good bet. Adam Jones is going through the expected ups and downs, but he'll be a contributer all year. Ichiro has been playing better, so buy low time is still in effect, but not sure for how long.