Roto Roundup: Chris Davis, Ryan Zimmerman, Matt Kemp and Others

Make sure you post any of your fantasy baseball questions in the Roundup daily. I will answer all questions.

AskRotoBaseball Show

I was the guest on David Kerr's AskROTOBaseball show last night on Blog Talk Radio, and you can listen to the show here. Dave writes for Dynasty Sports Empire, MLB Dirt and Roto Info. Dave and I talked about several players including Jered Weaver, Hanley Ramirez, Chris Davis, Josh Donaldson, Kelly Johnson and several others.

Fake Teams Podcast Episode 4: All We Talk about is Prospects

Make sure you check out Episode 4 of the Fake Teams podcast, where Andrew and Zack discuss some prospects including Michael Wacha and Nick Franklin, as well as other fantasy news.

MP3 Link

ITunes Link

Ryan Zimmerman hits three long balls

Nationals third baseman Ryan Zimmerman had a big night in the Nationals 9-6 loss to the Orioles last evening. Zimmerman went 3-4 with 3 consecutive home runs, 3 runs and 4 RBI, raising his triple slash line to .298-.383-.489 with 6 HRs, 21 runs and 28 RBI. Zimmerman appears to be in the midst of a hot streak, as he has two or more hits in each of his last three games. He is on pace for 18 HRs and 86 RBI and I think he will easily exceed both of those projections.

For more on Zimmerman and the Nationals, please check out Federal Baseball, SB Nation's Nationals fan site.

Chris Davis: Is he a first round pick in 2014?

Orioles first baseman Chris Davis is proving his 2012 breakout was for real.....in a big way. He is making his 2012 season look pedestrian with the way he has hit in the first two months of this season. Last night, Davis went 4-4 with 2 HRs, 3 runs and 3 RBI, and is now hitting .359-.447-.766 with 19 HRs, 40 runs and 50 RBI in just 184 at bats. He can't keep up this pace, because if he does, he will probably be the #2 pick (behind Miguel Cabrera), let alone a first round pick, in 2014. Right now, he is on pace to hit 58 HRs and drive in 153. I don't think he will hit 50 home runs, but he should have no problem breaking the 40 home run barrier.

This tweet from Rotoworld's Patrick Daugherty (@RotoPat) says it all regarding Davis this season:

Chris Davis is slugging .766. Save for Bonds and Mark McGwire, no one has slugged over .750 for an entire season since Babe Ruth in 1927.

— Patrick Daugherty(@RotoPat) May 30, 2013

For more on Davis and the Orioles, check out Camden Chat, SB Nation's Orioles fan site.

Does PitchFX track the WTF pitch?

In case you haven't seen the video of the WTF pitch thrown by Angels reliever Robert Coello, you can check it out here. Coello throws what looks to be a forkball but with the movement of a knuckle ball. Check it out.

Coello was recently called up to help the Angels bullpen, and since has been nothing short of amazing. Coello has appeared in eight games thus far, striking out 18 and walking one in 10.1 innings, with a 0.87 ERA, a -0.13 FIP, a 0.83 xFIP and a 0,.68 WHIP. Could he close for the Angels if Ernesto Frieri falters in the role?

Round'em Up

Per Eric Stephen at True Blue LA, SB Nation's Dodgers fan site, Dodgers outfielder Matt Kemp left last night's game with a mild strain of his right hamstring. Here is more from Eric:

Matt Kemp's nightmare 2013 season took a turn for the worse on Wednesday night as the center fielder suffered a mild strain of his right hamstring in the Dodgers' 4-3 loss to the Angels in Anaheim. Kemp will have an MRI exam on Thursday to determine the severity of the injury.

I think this injury gives the Dodgers the excuse to place him on the DL to strengthen his shoulder and work on his swing.

Could we see a Yasiel Puig call up as a result? #UnleashPuig Actually, I think Joc Pederson is the more likely candidate for a call up since he plays center field. He is a speculative add if Kemp does need a DL stint. Here is more from ESPN's Mark Saxon:

If Kemp goes on the DL, Mattingly said he'll need a player who can play center field on a daily basis. The Dodgers' only other center field option is Skip Schumaker, but Mattingly said he wouldn't consider playing him there every day.

Pederson would fit that need for Mattingly, as would Tony Gwynn Jr., who is playing in AAA right now.

Rangers second baseman Ian Kinsler will be out another two weeks due to a stress reaction in his ribs. This from MLBlogs:

Ian Kinsler has developed a stress reaction in his right ribcage and will be sidelined for at least two more weeks. He is eligible to come off the disabled list Sunday but he has not resumed baseball activities.

Kinsler will now be out until mid June at the earliest, but could be out till late June. I own Jurickson Profar in my AL only keeper league and will now have to activate him as a result of this setback.

The Phillies announced yesterday that second baseman Chase Utley will be out longer than the initial 15 days. Utley is dealing with a right oblique strain, so expecting him to return within two weeks seemed optimistic in the first place.

As the weather starts to get warner, we will see more and more higher scoring games where ace starters get knocked around, like the Orioles-Nationals game last evening. Nationals ace Jordan Zimmerman had his worst outing of the season last night, giving up 7 runs on 10 hits, a walk and 3 strikeouts in 6 innings. Zimmerman had given up 3 runs in 6 innings, then couldn't get an out in the 7th inning, giving up 4 more runs before getting the hook.

Cubs catcher Dioner Navarro had the best day of his career yesterday, going 3-3 with a walk, 4 runs, 3 HRs, and 6 RBI in the Cubs 9-3 win over the White Sox. Navarro platoons with Wellington Castillo, and is now hitting .241-.302-.569 with 6 HRs and 13 RBI on the season. Don't go running to grab him, because we will probably never see him hit two home runs, let alone three home runs, in a game again.

Angels ace Jered Weaver returned from the DL and silenced the Dodgers, limiting them to just one run one, no walks and 7 strikeout in 6 innings last night. David Kerr and I discussed Weaver in his Blog Talk Radio show last night, saying we expect him to be the Weaver of old upon his return, and that is exactly what fa tantasy owners got from him last night.

Phillies outfielder Domonic Brown is making the Phillies look silly for not allowing him to play everyday last season. Brown went 2-4 with 2 HRs, 2 runs and 2 RBI last night, and is now hitting .262-.298-.519 with 13 HRs, 23 runs, 32 RBI and 3 stolen bases on the season. Brown has homered four times over his last three games and six times over his last ten games. He is on pace for 40 home runs this season. I doubt he gets close to 40, but 30 home runs is well within his reach.

Closer Roundup

Angels closer Ernesto Frieri made things interesting in last nights Angel-Dodgers game as he gave up two solo home runs to Adrian Gonzalez and Scott Van Slyke, but was able to close out the Angels 4-3 win by getting Skip Shumaker to fly out. Frieri has given up five home runs in 22.2 innings and has given up runs in four of his last five appearances despite not blowing any saves, so the closer situation in Los Angeles is now on alert.

Padres closer Huston Street gave up a solo home run last night in the ninth inning, but the Padres answered with a run of their own, so he escaped a loss. Street has now given up 7 home runs in 20.1 innings this season, and has a low 13-8 strikeout to walk rate in those 20+ innings. Luke Gregerson pitched a clean 10th inning for the win, and has been the better of the two late inning relievers thus far.