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Do you have some trade offers you are consider, but need to bounce them off of someone? Are you pondering a roster move and want a second opinion? Feel free to post your questions in the Fantasy Baseball Questions thread.
Fake Teams Podcast, Episode 12: Rugged and Manly
Zack and Andrew hosted the Fake Teams podcast on Sunday night, with Brian Creagh making an appearance. Among the topics discussed were their thoughts on Kyle Gibson's upcoming major league debut, David Wright, some bullpens in flux and much more.
You can listen to the podcast in two ways:
R.A. Dickey figuring things out?
Blue Jays starter R.A. Dickey has struggled with facing American League hitters until just recently. Yesterday, he had his best outing of the season, and looked more like the pitcher Alex Anthopolous traded for in the offseason. Dickey threw a complete game two hit shutout of the Rays on Wednesday afternoon, walking one and striking out six. Dickey is now 7-8 with a 4.72 ERA, 1.31 WHIP and a 78-41 strikeout to walk rate in 108.2 innings this season. He has alternated good starts with an excellent start over his last five outings, giving up one run or less in the three good starts and six runs or more in the two horrible starts. Dickey will have to pitch more like yesterday for the Blue Jays to continue to climb in the AL East standings.
For more on Dickey and the Blue Jays, make sure you check out Bluebird Banter, SB Nation's Blue Jays fan site. Also, check out this article on Dickey by Baseball Nation's Rob Neyer.
Dylan Bundy to have Tommy John Surgery
One of the top pitching prospects in the game is going under the knife today. Orioles prized pitching prospect Dylan Bundy experienced soreness in his forearm and elbow after a recent throwing session and sought out Dr. James Andrews. For the second time. The surgery seemed inevitable, and now he will miss the next year or so. But, don't be so quick to look to deal him, or drop him in your prospect rankings too much. Bundy won't turn 21 till November, so he still has plenty of time to become the pitcher we all thought he would be.
For more on Bundy's injury, and the Orioles in general, please check out Camden Chat, SB Nation's Orioles fan site.
Round'em Up
A's starter A.J. Griffin out-dueled Reds starter Homer Bailey on Wednesday, tossing a complete game two hit shutout in the A's 5-0 win. Griffin walked just two and struck out seven, moving his record to 6-6 with 3.56 ERA, 1.09 WHIP and a 81-25 strikeout to walk rate in 103.2 innings. Reds outfeilder Jay Bruce struggled mightily vs Griffin, as he put up the ole Golden Sombrero, striking out all four times to the plate.
A friend of mine told me before the season that he felt Red Sox starter John Lackey would have a bounce back season, and I didn't listen to him. Well, thus far he has been right. Lackey dominated the Rockies yesterday, giving up 2 runs on 8 hits, no walks and 12 strikeouts in the Red Sox 5-3 win. Lackey is now 5-5 with a 2.99 ERA, 1.20 WHIP and a 73-17 strikeout to walk rate in 78.1 innings. Does the presence of John Farrell make that big of a difference in the Red Sox pitchers?
We don't know how the Biogenesis suit is going to turn out, and some players may get suspended as a result. One of the players implicated in the Biogenesis records is Rangers outfielder Nelson Cruz, and losing him for 50 games will be a big blow to the Rangers. Last night, Cruz went 1-5 with a HR and 2 RBI, and is now hitting .267-.339-.497 with 20 HRs, 32 runs, 57 RBI and 5 stolen bases this season. He is on pace to hit 42 HRs and drive in 118 runs, and both would be career highs.
New Mets outfielder Eric Young Jr. seems to like playing in New York. He went 3-4 with an RBI in the Mets 3-0 win over the White Sox last night, and is now hitting .268-.317-.381 with 26 runs, 12 RBI and 9 stolen bases in less than 200 at bats. Since his trade to the Mets EYJr is 12-27 with 4 runs, 6 RBI and a stolen base.
A reader asked me if I liked Shaun Marcum as a streamer option for Wednesday night, and I responded by saying I was not a fan of his. Well, open mouth, insert foot. Marcum tossed a gem last night, shutting out the White Sox for 8 innings, giving up just 4 hits, walking 2 and striking out 2.
One of my top targets coming into the season was Royals outfielder Alex Gordon. Last night, Gordon had a big night at the plate, going 3-5 with a HR, 2 runs and 2 RBI in the Royals 4-3 win over the Braves. Gordon is now hitting .293-.350-.424 with 7 HRs, 43 runs, 40 RBI and 3 stolen bases this season. His 2011 power has not returned, but he is on pace for 90+ runs and 80+ RBI this season.
Ever since his huge April, where he hit .298 with 12 HRs and 19 RBI, Braves outfielder Justin Upton has been, well, the player the Diamondbacks traded this past offseason. Upton hit just .211 with 2 HRs and 10 RBI in May, and is hitting just .208 with a HR and 5 RBI in June so far. I am starting to think that I may have been to high on Upton coming into the season. He has already struck out 84 times this season, and is on pace to strike out 176 times this season.
More from Fake Teams
Closer Report: Week 13 Rankings
Prospect Preview: Corey Seager
Head-to-Head Risers and Fallers for Week 13
Taking a look at Jason Parks' Midseason Top 50 Prospect Rankings
Minor League Level Review (AA): Barnes, Bradley, Taillon, Puello, Alcantara
Roster Advice -- Soria, the forgotten handcuff
Coming Soon to A Stadium Near You: Brandon Workman, RHP, Boston Red Sox