Roto Roundup

Roto Roundup: Giancarlo Stanton, Robinson Cano, David Ortiz, and Others

Ray Guilfoyle highlights some of the top fantasy performers from Saturday's MLB games.

By Ray Guilfoyle@faketeams May 19, 2013, 11:00am EDT

Just a reminder to post any fantasy questions you may have in the comments section of the Roundup. I will do my best to answer them as quickly as possible.

Giancarlo Stanton: The wait continues

Is it me of has the injury updates from the Marlins about Giancarlo Stanton been few and far between? Stanton is on the DL with a bad hamstring injury and has not played since April 29th. Yesterday we got an update from Joe Capozzi from the Palm Beach Post, via Twitter:

#Marlins mgr Mike Redmond says Giancarlo Stanton could start jogging some time next week
— Joe Capozzi (@joecapMARLINS) May 18, 2013

Well, at least that is something, right? I own Stanton in two keeper leagues, and sorely miss his power. I am considering dealing him in one of the league as I am about 9 points out of second and about 15 points out of first, and am playing for this season.

There is no timetable for Stanton's return, and I imagine we won't see him till early to mid June.

David Ortiz mashes

Red Sox DH David Ortiz started the season on the DL, but has done nothing but hit since returning. Last night, he went 3-4 with 2 home runs, 3 runs and 6 RBI in the Red Sox 12-5 win over the Twins. He is now hitting .362-.408-.681 with 7 HRs, 9 doubles 16 runs and 29 RBI in just 94 at bats this season. His injury affected his value on draft day, and the owners who drafted him a few rounds later are reaping the benefits from his hot start.

Robinson Cano: Still the best fantasy second baseman

There is no doubt that Robinson Cano is the best second baseman in the game, and his talents were in full display yesterday at Yankee Stadium. Cano went 2-4 with 2 home runs and 4 RBI in the Yankees 7-2 win over the Blue Jays. Cano raised his triple slash line to .295-.337-.563 with 12 HRs, 11 doubles, 25 runs, and 31 RBI in 176 at bats thus far. He is currently in a four-way tie for the American League lead in home runs, tied for 7th in RBI, and ranks 16th in runs scored.

The real question for fantasy owners is whether he will be a Yankee in 2014, and if not, how will that affect his fantasy value?

Matt Cain: Giving up the long ball

On Thursday night, Giants starter Matt Cain was lit up for 6 runs on 8 hits in 6.1 innings vs Colorado, but came away with a win. In that start, he gave up 3 more home runs, bringing his season total to 13 in just 56.2 innings. His career high for home runs allowed is 22, so Cain is on pace to smash that by a wide margin. Cain is 3-2 with a 5.43 ERA, 5.30 FIP, 1.21 WHIP and a 49-17 K-BB rate in his nine starts this season.

Will Cain turn things around going forward? Would you trade for Cain right now?

Round'em Up

I tweeted yesterday that I don't understand the love for Brandon Morrow. I received a few responses relating to a slow start and Morrow having good stuff. Both are true, but he has had just one season (2012) where his ERA was below 4.38. Yesterday, Morrow gave up 5 runs on 7 hits, two of which were home runs to Robinson Cano, in just 5 innings. He is now 1-3 with a 5.16 ERA, 4.97 FIP, a 1.46 WHIP, and a HR/9 of 1.59. His K/9 is down and his BB/9 is up, and he has gone more than 6 innings just twice in eight starts this season.

Diamondbacks starter Brandon McCarthy seems to be back on track after starting the season getting knocked around a bit. Last night, he tossed a complete game 3 hit shutout of the Marlins. McCarthy walked 2 and struck out 5 to win his first game of the season. He is now 1-3 with a 4.74 ERA, 1.39 WHIP and a 37-8 strikeout to walk rate in 57 innings. He has thrown 17 shutout innings in his last two starts, giving up just 10 hits and 2 walks, lowering his ERA from 6.75 to 4.74. He is a must add in leagues where he is available on the waiver wire, as he is owned in just 34.5% of ESPN leagues at the moment.

The Diamondbacks will get Adam Eaton back at the end of this month, and they will have some decisions to make in their crowded outfield. One player who should play everyday along side of Eaton is Gerardo Parra. Parra went 1-3 with a home run, the lone run scored in the game, and is now hitting .327-.394-.506 with 4 HRs, 14 doubles, 2 triples, 28 runs, 12 RBI and 4 stolen bases in 10 attempts thus far. He will probably move to the two hole in the DBacks lineup once Eaton returns from the DL.

Rangers shortstop Elvis Andrus had a big night at the plate last night, going 5-5 with a double, triple, 3 runs, 2 RBI, and 2 stolen bases in the Rangers 7-2 win over the Tigers. The big night raised his triple slash line to .282-.328-.350 with 27 runs, 15 RBI and 12 stolen bases in 13 attempts. He has four multiple hit games over his last ten games.

Reds first baseman Joey Votto is the second best hitter in baseball, behind MIguel Cabrera. Some will argue he is the best hitter in the game. Votto went 4-4 with a home run, 2 walks, 2 runs and 2 RBI yesterday in the Reds 10-0 win over the Phillies. Votto is now hitting .346-.473-.531 with 6 HRs, 32 runs, 20 RBI and a 37-37 K-BB rate this season.

Would you rather have Votto or Paul Goldschmidt as your fantasy first baseman?

Call ups/Demotions

The Reds sent pitching prospect Tony Cingrani back to AAA, but I am sure he will be the first pitcher called up if another Reds starter goes down to injury or does not pitch well. Cingrani went 2-0 with a 3.27 ERA, a 1.03 WHIP and a 41-9 K-BB in just 33 innings this season. He has huge value in 5 x 5 leagues where strikeouts is a category.

The Rays will call up Jake Odorizzi from AAA to replace David Price in their rotation on Monday. Odorizzi has pitched well in AAA thus far, as he is 4-0 with a 3.83 ERA, 1.10 WHIP and a 47-15 K-BB in 44.2 innings. Considering he is pitching in the Pacific Coast League, his performance is better than his overall stats show.

The Cardinals placed Jaime Garcia on the 15 day DL with a shoulder strain yesterday and called up Mitchell Boggs to replace him on the Cardinals 25 man roster. What remains to be seen is who replaces Garcia in their rotation. Calls for Michael Wacha's call up were very prevalent on Twitter after the news broke on Saturday. I wonder of the Cardinals will move Carlos Martinez to their rotation. Martinez is pitching in relief right now, but was starting in AA before his call up.

Closer News

Well, Kenley Jansen proved he is human last night, as he gave up not one, but two home runs in the eight inning in the Dodgers 3-1 loss to the Braves. Jansen entered the eight inning to protect a 1-0 lead, and a runner on first, and gave up back to back home runs to Evan Gattis and Andrelton Simmons. My choice to close for the Dodgers, Jansen didn't help himself with this blow up last night. But, the fact that he came into a 1-0 game tells me manager Don Mattingly has more faith in Jansen in tight spots than Brandon League.

Do you know that Fake Teams has a podcast?

Andrew Ball and Zack Smith (aka fantasyninja) hosted the inaugural Fake Teams podcast on Thursday night. Here is a link to the podcast, which will available on ITunes in the near future:

Fake Teams Podcast Episode 1: Who Are These Guys?