Here are Wednesday's links of interest. There's a 12:10 PM EDT game today, so if you're reading this as it's posted, hurry and go check your lineup.
Another day, another power ranking of sorts for closers, this time from Razzball. It won't be long before Craig Kimbrel is more than just a Donkeycorn.
The Hardball Times has an excellent piece about just how hard it is to evaluate players objectively.
Yesterday we pointed out that Colby Lewis' velocity had returned, but that his command still eluded him. Rotographs asks how much longer you should continue to give him a chance before jumping ship.
Follow the jump for more fantasy links of interest.
Beyond the Boxscore provides the world with a new tool for regression analysis which I believe will be quite handy for fantasy purposes. Even if you're not into using spreadsheet tools and the like, there is a handy chart of current overachievers and underachievers, similar to what Humbled Fan was doing yesterday with BABIP.
Rob Neyer points out that while Jered Weaver is really good, you shouldn't expect his numbers to be quite so exceptional going forward, as his peripheral stats indicate a certain amount of luck. A FanPost on Halos Heaven concurs, but also uses some PitchF/X data to examine the source of Weaver's success. That release point chart is so, so sexy. In any case, the question on many people's minds is, should I dump Jered while his value is seemingly at its max? The answer, so far, is an overwhelming no, but feel free to contribute to the conversation.
John Sickels' Prospect of the Day is Neil Ramirez, a RHP in the Texas Rangers organization. Given the issues the Rangers have had in both the bullpen and the rotation, I wouldn't be surprised if NeRam is called up mid-season, or at least in September. Worth keeping an eye on for sure.
Fantasy Phenoms profiles Brandon Belt and sees a very rosy future for the young first baseman. I hope he does indeed fill out his frame and approaches FP's peak projection, as I just traded for him in my dynasty league.
Zach Britton's teammates love him. He's never going to be among the strikeout leaders, but he can help your team, and he deserves to be owned in more than 57.5% of ESPN leagues.
Rotoprofessor lists the current Top 5 strikeout starting pitchers, which is great, but none of these guys are just sitting on your waiver wire. I'm interested in what the community thinks: Which guys are going to be on this list in 3-5 years? I'll start the bidding with Gio Gonzalez.
David Aardsma reports that his recovery is progressing well. Even when he returns, he's still the closer for the Mariners. Still, it's nice to hear.
Finally, from the non-fantasy department: Justin Smoak homered in his first game back after his father's death.