5/12 Recap

Indians 3, Jays 0
Fausto Carmona threw 9 innings of shutout ball, and yet he walked 4 to 3 strikeouts. This is a really interesting case, and I'd be very surprised if he can keep it up, however, his groundball rate makes it so that if anyone can succeed at walking that many people, it's him. I think maybe sell on him, although it seems like he can keep this up. Asdrubal Cabrera hit his first homer, and he's almost up to the Mendoza Line. He's obviously going to get that average up some more, but I don't think he's going to come anywhere near .300. He has modest value, but with the way the Indians have been playing, not a ton. AJ Burnett was sharp, and there's no worries on his front. Matt Stairs had three hits, and David Dellucci, hitting out of the 3 hole, was 2-4. I like Stairs more this year, but Dellucci's value has been climbing, and will keep climbing if he stays at the top of the order.

Twins 7, Red Sox 3
The Livan Hernandez revival continues, but it's just not pretty. He struck out one guy and gave up 10 hits. I just can't recommend him, even if he keeps this up all year. Clay Buchholz was hit around pretty hard, and althogh he shows flashes of dominance, it's not going to be consistent this year. Bartolo Colon should be on Buchholz owners' radar. Coco Crisp has been hot, and playing over Ellsbury today. He's recieved enough at bats that he's worth starting. Manny hit his 8th bomb. The Sox are going to get better still. Ortiz and Manny are just starting to click. Craig Monroe has been on a tear, and I'm strongly considering adding him. He has serious power, but the average he'll hit for is anyone's guess. He's much better against lefties, but he's hitting everyone right now.

Rays 7, Yankees 1
It seems like the Rays really own the Yankees. Matt Garza was awesome, throwing 7 shutout innings. He's a strong buy, but the chance to get him cheap is probably gone. Robby Cano has his average up to .188, and it'll be 100 points higher before you know it. The 5-7 hitters for the Rays combined to go 7-10, led by a 3-3 day from Dioner Navarro. Evan Longoria has struggled a lot lately too, but the Rays are showing confidence in him by keeping him in the 5 spot, and I believe in him the rest the year. .260 with 20 homers is within reason. Jonny Gomes was 2-4, scoring 3 runs and stealing two bases. That should get him noticed a little. He's better than Gabe Gross, and you have to love the way he plays the game. Still, the outlook doesn't look too great for him this year.

Jays 3, Indians 0
Talk about a pitching duel. Shaun Marcum went 8 innings, only giving up two hits while striking out 5. Maybe people will start to realize how much of a stud he is. Speaking of studs, Cliff Lee is ungodly 9 shutout innings, 5 Ks? Absolutely sick. He's sitting on a 0.67 ERA. I'd consider selling high, but it'd have to be real high. There's no reason to think he's not real. Kevin Mench and Brand Wilkerson are given new life in Toronto. I like Mench a lot, but I'd wait until he was given regular play time before getting him. .260 20 seems reachable. Scott Downs keeps providing value, getting his 4th save. He's a solid reliever option, although the save chances are going to go way down now that Ryan can pitch back to back games.

Rangers 13, M's 12
This was a crazy game. Every Mariner had a hit, with Raul Ibanez, Balentien, and Johjima all hit homers. Even Jeff Clement had two hits, including a double. That Johjima was 304 with a homer is a good sign, and everyone should still believe in him. Erik Bedard got rocked for the first time this year. Needless to say he's going to be a great option the rest of the year. Vincente Padilla was decent, but not spectacular. He's still not a great option for the rest of the year, but ride him out while he's hot. Josh Hamilton hit a huge bomb, his 8th of the year. He's quietly been a stud, and I think he has as good of a chance to lead the league in homers as anyone. Milton Bradley is hot as well. Chris Shelton finally did something, going 2-3. I'm a fan, but I really have no idea what he can put together, could be .280 20 homers, could be .220 8 homers. He's streaky, but they're going to take a look at him. Why not? He's not worth a pickup yet through, but if/when he gets hot, get him.


Angels 10, White Sox 7
Mark Buehrle was destroyed. Again. Not really a great option, but with his ERA now at 5.81, he makes an intersting buy low candidate. It would have to be a pretty good buy low, not paying much for the name. He won't have a high 5 ERA this year, but I don't really think a sub-4 is going to happen either. Jermaine Dye had 4 hits, and other than the struggling Thome and Konerko, everyone other than the red hot Quentin had hits. I'd jump on the Konerko and Thome buy low train still, especially Konerko. Nick Ardenhart didn't impress again, and it looks like he's not going to have any value for the year. Vlad hit his 4th homer. He should be fine. Go get him if you can.