Fantasy Baseball: Weekend Warriors

Delmon Young – The biggest waiver wire pick up this week was by the Tigers when they swooped in and grabbed Delmon Young. Coming off a season where he had a 298. BA, 21HR and 112RBI, the argument could be made that the Twins sold low on Young in what has been a disappointing 2011 campaign.  Now hitting in front of Miguel Cabrera as opposed to seventh in the Minnesota lineup, Young should get pitches to hit and owners who bought into his 2010 season should start seeing results. Owned in fewer than 50% of ESPN leagues, my recommendation is to pickup Young for a start Saturday vs. David Huff and plan on using him as a 4^th outfielder going forward. With a .297 BA since the all star break and with a position to drive in runners, Young could be a waiver wire steal in real life as well as fantasy.

Randy Wolf – While Yovanni Gallardo and Zach Greinke get the press in Milwaukee, Wolf’s season has been as valuable as any Brewers starter. Since the midsummer classic Wolf is 4-2 with a 2.65 ERA and has now won four straight.  With back to back eight inning performances, Wolf is mimicking the dominant pitchers of the game today, proving to be a workhorse. With the injury plagues Mets on deck for Saturday at Citi Field, Wolf owners should be enthusiastic about Wolf going for his fifth in a row. Scoop up the veteran as he’s leading the Brewers to a division title.

Justin Morneau – In what has been another injury plagues season, Justin Morneau has been the whipping boy of fantasy owners everywhere. Even when healthy Morneau has not produced on the field, leading him to be short of 80% owned in both Yahoo and ESPN leagues. While just short of 80% isn’t a knock on a regular player, Morneau before his concussion a year ago was a candidate for MVP. My recommendation is to get him in your lineup as he faces two similar pitchers in A.J. Burnett and Ivan Nova this weekend. Both of these starters are erratic and are prone to giving up the long ball so Morneau should be able to take advantage. While the Twins will fall short of the post season, Morneau can help you reach yours in what could be a dominating month in a half of baseball.