5/1 Recap

Well after my first month, here's how my roster stands.
C Posada, Clement
1B Garko
2B Cabrera
SS Harris
3B Blalock, Crede
OF Hunter, Scott, Crisp, Balentien, Lind
DH Ortiz
SP Sabathia, Wang, Shields, Millwood, Meche, Smith
RP Ryan, Wilson

The big moves were the Kinsler/Saunders for Wang/Cabrera and Brown/Blackburn for Crede trades, but somehow I think my team might have got better or not lost much after losing two high round draft picks in Blalock and Posada. I stockpiled outfielders because of the uncertainty in Crisp and the lack of power from Scott, and now I have depth to trade from there. Same with SP. I'm going to start CC, Shields, Wang every week, so I only need one good matchup out of Millwood, Meche, and Smith. I'd still like to improve at 2B, and with the way that Garko has been playing, I could use something there too, but for now it's not bad. When Posada and Blalock come off the DL, I'm going to have serious talent to use to improve my team, and hopefully one of Balentein or Lind step up and can take a regular role for me. Overally, I feel good about this team, and the prospect of my trading chips only points to a brighter future.


Rays 4, O's 2
You know, I think these Rays are for real. I've been hyping their offense all year, and they actually might have the pitcher to stick in this. With Kazmir, I'd take their staff over the Yankees. Matt Garza was solid, and I still like him more than Delmon Young this year. It will be tougher after this last start, but if you can get him cheap, it's worth it. Brian Burres also was decent, striking out 6 in 6 innings, and he's worth a look too. Obviously Garza is the better bet, but Burres doesn't look so bad. Jonny Gomes homered off the lefty, and I think it's pretty sure he's strictly a platoon player at this point, which really kind of sucks. He's a fun guy to watch. Although Gabe Gross hasn't done anything, so it's possible he could see time over him soon. Adam Jones hit his second homer, but I'm just not expecting anything great out of him. He's going to be a 3rd outfielder and at best he's going to put up slightly better than average stats.

Rangers 2, Royals 1
Zach Greinke may have actually thrown his best game this year and picked up his first loss. He just allowed a Kinsler and Vazquez homer in route to striking out 9 over 7. Many people are down on his strikeout potential, but I've always thought it was there. Before you go out and grab Sir Sidney Ponson, remember that he's Sidney Ponson. Billy Butler sat with hopes of breaking him out of his slum, and David DeJesus slid down to the third spot with Gathright leading off. As much as I hate DeJesus, he's been playing pretty great. He won't keep it up, and he definitely won't hit more than 15 homers, but alright for now. Vazquez isn't really a great addition, but I know people need 3Bs, so keep watching him.

Jays 3, Red Sox 0
AJ Burnett has been all over this year. This start fits into the good category, even though he walked 5 guys. More importantly, the strange closing situation in Toronto seems to be put to rest with BJ Ryan coming in to pick up the (shakey) save. Alex Rios seems to be fitting pretty nicely into the leadoff role, and owners can't be complaining about his 7 steals. This Jays lineup isn't anything to get too excited about, but they aren't terrible. Scott Rolen certainly looks good, and he could be a sell high guy, especially with the 3B shortage. I would act on that and see what you can do. Ortiz added two hits, and will soon be hitting over the Mendoza Line.

Indians 3, M's 2
Paul Byrd threw a gem, but you really can't count on him for more than the occasional good start. Same with Miguel Batista, but to a greater extent. Travis Hafner got bumped down in the order, and he responded by going 2-4. I don't really buy into Hafner this year, but he shouldn't be hitting 6. And David Dellucci should never hit 3. Garko had two hits, after being completely worthless for the better part of two weeks or so. I still like him as a top 5 AL 1B. Ichiro did something too, picking up three hits and a stolen base. Owners are probably pretty antsy about him, so try and take advantage of that. JJ Putz blew his second save, walking 2, giving up 2 hits, but striking out 3. I don't think he's right yet, but with the way that the M's pen was without him, he's going to get the call. Wladimir Balentien is going to be a very streaky hitter, and the Ks will be there, as he went 0-4 striking out three times. Think .250-.260 with 20 homers and plenty of strikeouts.

Tigers 8, Yankees 4
The Tigers swept the Yankees. I don't think anyone should be doubting them, and they're a pretty poor matchup. Ian Kennedy got lucky that Phil Hughes went down, because he has been equally terrible. But I imagine he has his spot until Hughes gets back, but watch Rasner because he could end up taking Kennedy's spot. I think at this point you try and sell on Sheffield. I'd wait until he hits another homer and then try to get what you can for him. But the guys hitting behind him look amazing, so he will score runs. Miggy C hit his 6th homer, and he will end up with over 30 no problem. The Tigers finally got Cruceta after visa problems, and he immediately becomes the first in line to close if something happens to Jones.

A's 15, Angels 8
I really don't get this A's team. They're not good. But they absolutely exploded against the Angels. Jack Cust was 4-4 and Emil Brown was 4-6. Cust could still turn it around, he's another one of those streaky hitters. Brown is an interesting case. He now has a whopping 26 RBI. He's not going to keep up that pace, but he could approach 90-100. Oh and that Frank Thomas guy? He's going to be fine. Nick Adenhart struggled in his debut, but you can't really be surprised since he was on three days rest. It looks like he has a few more starts left before Lackey is back. I wouldn't go out and grab him after this start, but he could still have some value. Long term he looks really good. I really like Justin Duchscherer this year. You won't get a ton of innings out of him, but there will be plenty of Ks and he should have a respectable ERA. And finally, Santiago Casilla might be the best middle reliever in the AL right now. He hasn't allowed a run. Over 14.1 innings this year, he has an ungodly 20:2 K:BB ratio, allowing 9 hits. Yikes. His emergence could lead to the A's dealing Huston Street.