Roto Roundup: B.J. Upton, Prince Fielder, and Others

I went to the Trenton Thunder - Bowie Baysox game on Friday night where I got to see Yankees pitching prospect Dellin Betances almost take Zealous Wheeler's head off, and later give up a grand slam, so I wasn't able to get to the Roto Roundup last evening. Here are some quick thoughts on Friday's action:

Rays outfielder B.J. Upton has been flashing some power of late. Last night, he went 4-5 with a HR and 3 RBI, and is now hitting .250-.305-.421 with 15 HRs, 52 runs, 53 RBI and 22 stolen bases. While he will probably never hit for a respectable average, Upton provides solid power and stolen base totals for fantasy owners. Over his last 7 games, he has hit 5 HRs and driven in 10 runs. Upton is on pace for a 20 HR and 30 stolen base season in 2012, which will be his second straight 20-30 season, so he provides excellent production to fantasy owners.

Yovani Gallardo is quietly having another solid season on the bump for the Brewers. Gallardo limited to the Phillies to just one run on 4 hits, 2 walks and 9 strikeouts last night to earn his 12th win of the season. The win moved his overall record to 12-8 with a 3.67 ERA and a 1.30 WHIP. While he gives up too many base runners for my liking, he makes up for it with nearly a strikeout per inning, as he has struck out 154 batters in 154.2 innings this season. He has given up one run or less in 6 of his last 10 starts.

Rangers starter Yu Darvish had an outing last night that many of us expected him to do more frequently this season. Darvish limited the Blue Jays to 3 runs in 7 innings, giving up just 3 hits, walking just one and striking out 10. The only blemish on his outing was giving up a first inning home run to Edwin Encarnacion, otherwise he was dominant. He is now 12-9 with a 4.51 ERA, 1.42 WHIP and a 172-80 strikeout to walk ratio in 147.2 innings. If you can look the other way on his ERA and WHIP, and many can't, he provides solid strikeout totals, and is striking out over 10 batters per nine innings this season.

Prince Fielder has been a bit of a disappointment this season, as the move to Detroit has resulted in a drop in his power, but last night Fielder went yard twice in the Tigers win over the Orioles. Fielder went 2-4 with 2 HRs and 4 RBI last night, moving his season slash line to .311-.404-.521 with 22 HRs, 65 runs and 88 RBI. As he has aged, his plate discipline has improved, as he is walking more than he has struck out this season, walking 60 times and K'ing just 57 times.

Rockies outfielder Eric Young Jr. is making the most of his playing time this season, and he might have turned the corner as a hitter. Young went 2-5 with a stolen base and a run scored last night, and has instilled himself as the Rockies leadoff hitter. For the season, he is hitting .325-.384-.462 with 4 HRs, 36 runs, 15 RBI and 14 stolen bases in just 169 at bats. He has been on fire of late with multi-hit performances in 8 of his last 10 games. Has he finally arrived?