FAABwire week 8

Welcome to FAABwire week eight. This article will cover the top pickups of the week and how much FAAB (Free agent acquisition budget) you should spend. The FAABwire series is mostly catered to twelve and fifteen team mixed league formats. Each week I will mostly focus on players that are owned in under thirty-four percent of CBS leagues. FAAB bids are of course very specific to individual leagues, so I will give you ballpark bids of what it should take to acquire each player based on a one thousand dollar budget. Throughout the week, feel free to tweet players at me that I can discuss is the column. @MarkusPotter

Kris Medlen, SP/RP Atlanta Braves (Owned: 5%) (FAAB: $85) Medlen was optioned to Triple-A on Tuesday in order to transition from a reliever into the starting rotation according to MLB.com. The 26-year-old should be picked up in all 15-team leagues and worth a look in 12-teamers. In 206 career innings, the 26-year-old has an ERA of 3.80 and a WHIP of 1.25 while striking out 175. Before ending his 2010 season with Tommy John surgery he made 14 starts, going 5-0 with a 3.86 ERA while striking out 62 batters in 84 innings. There is upside for an ERA closer to three.

Jesus Flores, C, Washington Nationals (Owned 14%) (FAAB: $90) After losing Wilson Ramos for the year with an ACL tear, the Jesus Flores was supposed to step in as the everyday guy, then went down with a hamstring strain. After a stint o the DL, Flores is back. The 27-year-old has decent power and a career batting average of .254. In two catcher formats, the oft-injured backstop should be added.

Dillon Gee, SP, New York Mets (Owned: 19%) (FAAB: $75) If you look beneath the hood, you will see that Gee is a pitcher poised to have a solid second half of the season. He is posting an outstanding strikeout rate of 8.25 K/9. He is pitching with an increase in velocity, while inducing ground balls at an outstanding 55% clip. He allowed one run on four hits, walking three and striking out a season-high nine against San Diego, and just held the Phillies to two runs on six hits, striking out five while only walking one in six and two thirds innings on Wednesday.

Drew Hutchinson, SP, Toronto Blue Jays (Owned: 11%) (FAAB: $30) Some say that the 21-year-old prospect has been rushed, but is making quite an early impression as he has allowed just one run or less in three of his last four starts. Young arms should be looked at with suspicious as they can be streaky, but the Toronto righty deserves our attention. He displays an average fastball with late life, with outstanding control and command. He throws an above average change up that can fool advanced hitting, and an inconsistent slider. If the matchup is right, he makes for a solid pickup for the end of your rotation in 15-team leagues.

Nate Eovaldi, SP, Los Angeles Dodgers (Owned: 7%) (FAAB: 45$) The great @RichWIlsonFSG had Eovoldi ranked #86 on his top 100-prospect list to start the season, while Kieth Law had him listed at #79. With a plus fastball, plus slider, and work in progress changeup, the 22-year-old had a nice debut on Tuesday, throwing seven innings of two-run ball, striking out four and only walking one. In Double-A, he posted a 2.62 ERA, 1.18 WHIP while striking out a dominating batter per inning. If the matchup is right, he should fill in nicely while Ted Lilly is on the DL.

Wilin Rosario, C, Colorado Rockies (Owned 26%) (FAAB: 75$)
Rosario is the fourth best catcher in the past 30 days according to the standard player raters. The 23-year-old was a highly touted prospect who cracked 40 home runs in 675 at bats at Double-A. He was already finding more and more starts behind the dish, but now with Hernandez on the DL, he should see another uptick in playing time. The seven home runs are no fluke and he could even chip in with a half dozen stolen bases. While the .230 batting average is nothing to write home about, he has the upside to hit closer to .255 by years end. If the backstop from Colorado is already owned, he should be at the top of your trade target list.

Tom Wilhelmsen, RP, Seattle Mariners (Owned 14%) (FAAB: $200) As the set up man for Seattle, Wilhelmsen has 34 strikeouts 28 innings to go along with seven holds. Right now there is a committee approach to the ninth inning, but the 28-year-old is currently the favorite for saves.

Jason Bay, OF, New York Mets (Owned: 15%) (FAAB: $140) Jason Bay is currently on a rehab stint, and expected to be back with the Mets as soon as next week. Double-check and make sure he wasn't dropped in your league. He was pegged for close to 20 home runs and 10 stolen bases this year, so be happy to add a this outfielder that the rest of the league has soured on. This is an add in any 12-team-league that rosters five outfielders.

Other late adds that will most likely be covered next week:
Gordon Beckham, Daniel Nava, Matt Laporta, Stephen Pryor, Matt Laporta