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Before I get into the Roto Roundup, I wanted to let you know that if you ever have questions, feel free to post them in the comments section of the daily Roto Roundup or any other article posted by the other Fake Teams writers. Someone will answer your question, so please do not hesitate to ask any question you may have.
Jose Valverde: New Tigers closer
In a move that should have happened quite awhile ago, the Tigers have purchased the contract of Jose Valverde and named him their closer beginning today. After not going after one of the free agent closers (hi Rafael Soriano), the Tigers signed Valverde to a minor league deal a few weeks ago. Valverde pitched in 3 games for the Tigers High A team, tossing 3 innings, giving up 1 hit, 2 walks, 4 strikeouts and zero runs.
Is Tommy John surgery on the horizon for Dylan Bundy?
Elbow injuries are never a good thing, especially for pitchers on your fantasy rosters. So when you hear one of your pitchers has an elbow, or forearm, injury, it is never good. It gets worse when you read these words: "Player X will visit Dr. James Andrews". Well, that's exactly what we got for one of the best pitching prospects in the game, Dylan Bundy, yesterday. Here is the tweet from Edward Encina, Orioles beat writer from the Baltimore Sun:
Dylan Bundy getting second opinion on forearm soreness after throwing off flat ground Monday, seeing Dr. James Andrews today.#Orioles
— Eduardo A. Encina (@EddieInTheYard) April 23, 2013
Getting a second opinion is never good news either. Usually the first opinion was bad news, and then they just want to get a confirmation from the best elbow doctor in the US. Sucks for Bundy owners. That includes me. Hopefully it is nothing.
Justin Upton: Just give him the MVP now
I told you so many times this offseason that Justin Upton would have a bounce back season, but I never could have predicted this. Upton hit two more home runs yesterday in Colorado and now has 11 on the season. The downside to that is he has just 15 RBI to show for it. That is my only saving grace right now, because, even after telling you to target him this season, I traded him in one of my NL only keeper leagues. Yep. A $39 S1 Upton for a $15 L0 Neil Walker. I needed cap room heading into the auction draft, and decided to deal him instead of a $47 Matt Kemp. I cringe every time I look at a Braves boxscore now. To make matters worse, there is this:
Justin Upton now has 11 HR this season. That's tied for 3rd most HR through a NL team's 1st 20 games in the Live-Ball Era (since 1920).
— ESPN Stats & Info (@ESPNStatsInfo) April 24, 2013
Great.
Here is what else happened on Tuesday:
A's starter Bartolo Colon shut out the Red Sox for 7 innings, giving up just 3 hits, a walk and striking out 7 to win his third game of the season. He is now 3-0 with a 2.42 ERA, 0.92 WHIP and 17-1 strikeout to walk ratio in 26 innings. He has given up 3 runs or less in each of his four starts this season, and has gone at least 6 innings in each of those starts as well.
Orioles third baseman Manny Machado had another solid night at the plate, going 2-4 with a double and 2 RBI. Machado is now hitting .268-.318-.415 with 2 HRs, 12 runs and 13 RBI in 20 games played thus far. Machado is having a nice start to the season considering he is just 20 years of age, and won't turn 21 till July.
I tweeted last night asking if Matt Cain is the 2013 Tim Lincecum. I got some backlash from a follower, but the question remains. Cain shut out the Dodgers in his first start of the season (of course), but has two starts where he has given up 7 runs or more, and has given up 4 runs to the Diamondbacks in Monday night;s start as I write this. Looking at his player page on FanGraphs, one stat jumps off the page - his HR/FB%. He has given up 6 home runs in his first 27+ innings of work thus far, good for a 16.2% HR/FB rate. That is almost twice his 2012 rate of 8.4%.
Reds rookie starter Tony Cingrani put up another fine effort on the mound last night, holding the Cubs to 2 runs on 5 hits, no walks and 9 strikeouts in 7 innings of work. He induced 15 swinging strikes among his 66 strikes thrown. He owns a 17-3 strikeout to walk rate in his two starts, covering 12 innings.
Injury News
Astros outfielder Justin Maxwell was hit by a pitch on his left hand and landed on the DL as a result. The pitch fractured his left hand and he will be out much longer than 15 days. The Astros called up AAA outfielder Robbie Grossman to take his spot in the outfield. Grossman is a walking machine, and is hitting .317-.456-.333 with no homers, 13 runs, 5 RBI and 2 stolen bases in AAA this season.
Mets starter Jon Niese had to leave Tuesday's start after being hit by a ground ball in his right ankle. He was limping noticeably when leaving the game, but x-rays taken at the stadium showed there was no break, and he expects to make his next start.
Dodgers starter Chad Billingsley landed on the DL on Sunday and he got the worse news he could imagine, as he will have Tommy John surgery and miss at least the next 12 months. He postponed the surgery in the offseason, electing to have some sort of injection to rehab his elbow.
Cardinals starter Adam Wainwright dominated the Nationals on Tuesday night, shutting them out for 8.1 innings on 5 hits, a walk and 9 strikeouts. Wainwright is now 4-1 with a 1.93 ERA, 0.99 WHIP and an absolutely amazing 37-1 strikeout to walk rate in his 37.1 innings thus far. Adam Wainwright is back.
Closer News
Diamondbacks closer J.J. Putz gave up a 2 run home run to Brandon Belt to blow the save last night. He now has as many blown saves as saves (3). Time to grab David Hernandez just in case. I own him in two leagues, and may add him in a third.
Recent call up Kevin Gregg earned the save for the Cubs last night in their 4-2 win over the Reds. Carlos Marmol has pitched well since being demoted, so it will be interesting to see who gets the next save opportunity in Chicago.
Read More
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The Streamer Report: Wednesday's streaming starting pitcher targets
Fantasy Baseball: Head-to-Head Risers and Fallers for Week 4
Fantasy Baseball: Two-Start Pitchers for Week 4
Minor League Level Review (AAA): Profar and Taveras Miss Time, Zunino Off to Hot Start
Coming Soon to A Stadium Near You: Allen Webster, RHP, Boston Red Sox