Atomic RoadRunners | Andrew Flynn’s High-Energy Fantasy Baseball

The Marlins sent down SP Rick VandenHurk to Double-A Carolina on Sunday, after he lasted only 2 1/3 innings in Florida’s 9-2 loss to the Pirates. He allowed four runs and five hits, struck out four, walked two and hit Nyjer Morgan with a pitch.

VandenHurk failed to get past the fourth inning in his first two starts this season, which isn’t exactly what manager Fredi Gonzalez was looking for from the Dutchman. With the way the Marlins pitching staff likes to get hurt, VandenHurk could be back up sooner rather than later, but he shouldn’t be held onto in any format. (CBS Sports)

Cardinals SP Todd Wellemeyer pitched six scoreless innings Monday against the Astros before running into trouble in the seventh. Lance Berkman and Carlos N. Lee led off with consecutive solo home runs. However, Wellemeyer remained in the game and retired the next three hitters. He was on the hook for the loss until St. Louis tied the game at three in the ninth. He finished the game allowing five hits and one walk. He struck out seven in seven.

Wellemeyer has now made it through two starts and has allowed a total of three runs in 12 innings. He also has 13 strikeouts in that span. No one saw him as a strikeout-per-inning guy, but it looks as though Dave Duncan has once again worked his magic. Wellemeyer will remain in the rotation as long as the Cardinals need him. Consider him a NL-only and larger mixed league flier. His next scheduled start is for Saturday against the Giants. He was 1-0 with five scoreless innings in his lone start against the Giants last season. (CBS Sports)

FAAB Acquisition: Todd Wellemeyer, SP, St. Louis Cardinals ($5 bid) [active]

Down: P Jason Marquis

Cut: P Rick VandenHurk

Reyes has not stolen a base in 20 games, which matches his career-high, the NY Daily News reports. Reyes has not stolen a base since September 15, when he stole two bases, but was thrown out at third for the final out of the sixth against the Phillies to leave David Wright at the plate and irk Willie Randolph. Last year’s lack of running was due to his year-end slump, while this season, of the five times Reyes has been on first, he’s been blocked three times by a runner on second. Once he does get hot at the plate, look for Reyes to start running wild.

Chase Headley is off to a slow start through Sunday’s games at Triple-A Portland, going 2-for-11 (both singles) with six strikeouts and just one walk. He is stepping up one level, having hit .330/.437/.580 last year at Double-A. These early numbers may just be a result of his trying to get it all done on every single at-bat. (Rotowire)

Shane Victorino has started all seven of the Phillies’ games this season — including Monday’s tilt against the Reds — while he’s started the season in a 4-for-28 (.143) slump. Don’t be surprised if he’s given a day or two off within the next week, but So Taguchi and Jayson Werth aren’t significant threats to work their way into a timeshare with Victorino. It’s much too early to be worried about him right now. (Rotowire)

However, The Sports Xchange reports CF Shane Victorino worked overtime Sunday after going 0-for-4 with two strikeouts against the Reds. Victorino, 3-for-23 (.130) through six games, took extra swings in an indoor batting cage adjacent to the Phillies’ clubhouse at Great American Ball Park. “There’s some things I feel like are not there yet,” he said after the postgame hitting session. “You just stick with it, try to stay positive. When things aren’t going good, you always want to ask yourself, ‘What am I doing wrong? How can I help the team?’ The last few days I think I’ve made strides where I feel like I’m getting somewhere.”

Victorino has hit over .280 in his two full MLB seasons, so don’t expect this early-season slump to last long. Also, while he only has one steal so far, 30 stolen bases is almost a given if he can stay healthy. Consider him a No. 3 OF in Fantasy, but you might want to think about benching him until his bat comes around. (CBS Sports)

Carlos Ruiz started his fifth game of the season on Monday and went 0-for-3 against the Reds. Given that there isn’t much upside in backup Chris Coste, Ruiz should get the opportunity to play five times a week for most of the season unless the Phillies bring in a more capable veteran to split time with Ruiz at some point down the road. He’ll hit eighth for most of the season, but Ruiz has a lot of big bats setting the table in front of him and he’s a good early season buy-low candidate. (Rotowire)

Ryan Theriot, bothered Sunday by a tender wrist injured on a checked swing Saturday, is getting Monday off. We hope it’s the wrist, because it’s the only excuse for sitting Theriot against a lefty. Ronny Cedeno is playing in his place. Theriot reportedly injured the wrist on a checked swing on Saturday. (RotoWorld)

Update: Ryan Theriot entered Monday’s game against Pittsburgh in the 10th inning, walked twice, stole two bases and scored the go-ahead run in the top of the 12th. Theriot didn’t start because of wrist tenderness.

Brandon Lyon blew his second save of the season on Sunday by allowing a solo homer to the Rockies ‘ Matt Holliday in the bottom of the ninth inning.  Lyon had an awful spring and already blew a save and took a loss by giving up three runs to the Reds earlier in the week. He’s not going to have much of a leash with the more talented Tony Pena in a setup capacity, so he needs to turn things around quickly. That the Diamondbacks ended up winning the game anyway might buy him a little more time. Lyon has one save in three opportunities and an ERA of 12.00. Lyon can’t afford many slip ups as Tony Pena and Chad Qualls, who got the save Sunday, wait in the wings. Think of him as a low-end No. 2 RP in Fantasy. (RotoWorld, CBS Sports)

Also, Seamless Baseball weighs in on “The Closer Continuum: Brandon Lyon’s Job Security”

One week has passed, and this much we know: Brandon Lyon sucks. Sound the alarms. Will it be Chad Qualls? Will it be Tony Pena? I’d say 75% Pena, 25% Qualls, as the Diamondbacks groomed Pena as a closer in the minors and he has been the setup man for the better part of a year. Still, Qualls is worth speculating on.

Let’s not forget, however, that the Diamondbacks prevailed yesterday despite Lyon’s blown save, which softens the blow a bit, and that he gave up a solo home run to Matt Holliday, who has been known to strike the baseball with some authority.

In sum, I think Lyon still has rope. I’d actually recommend throwing an offer the Lyon owner’s way, especially if you have Pena. Offer somebody like Joe Crede and see what happens - it’s not like they can legitimately be offended at this point. It’s Brandon Lyon.

Marlins optioned RHP Rick VandenHurk to Double-A Carolina.  It took just two sloppy starts for VandenHurk to lose his spot, not that he was any good in spring training while winning it. Ricky Nolasco will be moved up to start in his place on Friday, but the Marlins will still need a fifth starter for next Sunday’s game. They could turn to Chris Volstad or Burke Badenhop. VandenHurk failed to get past the fourth inning in his first two starts this season, which isn’t exactly what manager Fredi Gonzalez was looking for from the Dutchman. With the way the Marlins pitching staff likes to get hurt, VandenHurk could be back up sooner rather than later, but he shouldn’t be held onto in any format. (Rotoworld, CBS Sports)

Brett Myers was charged with four runs in five innings of work in a loss to the Reds on Sunday. Three of the runs came on a two-run blast from Ken Griffey Jr. and a solo shot from Jeff Keppinger. Still, Myers wasn’t very good as he gave up eight total hits and three walks while throwing just 59-of-95 pitches for strikes. Myers came into the season as a projected top 15 Fantasy SP, but has looked more like chopped liver through two starts. He has just six strikeouts through 10 innings and still doesn’t have a win. Oh yeah, he has a 6.30 ERA to boot. Myers was pretty dominant this spring to the tune of a 1.17 ERA and looked as though the transition back to the rotation would be smooth. Not the case as soon as the games started to count. Well, you likely spent a high-round pick on Myers, so you can’t bail on him yet. His next scheduled start is for Friday against the Cubs. He is expected to oppose Jason Marquis. (Rotoworld, CBS Sports)

Two starts into the season and Myers has produced two duds. “I felt like my stuff was better today, but I just didn’t get the swings at the pitches I was looking for,” Myers said. “The location on my fastball was there at times, but it wasn’t at other times. That’s no excuse. I feel like I should pitch better than that.” Myers might need a little time to adjust back to the role of starter. Might be a good time to buy low. (Rotowire)

Rick VandenHurk lasted just 2 1/3 innings after giving up four runs — two earned — against the Pirates on Sunday.  VandenHurk got through the first two innings unscathed, but he fell apart in the third. In the inning VandenHurk allowed two walks, a single, a double, and a hit batter before he finally departing. One batter also reached on an error, so VandenHurk’s ERA was spared some. The promising but inconsistent right-hander would be better off honing his command in the minors right now, but the Marlins appear to prefer sticking with him.  (Rotoworld)

Mark Teixeira hit a two-run homer off Mets reliever Aaron Heilman as the Braves picked up a 3-1 victory on Sunday.  At the time the homer only increased the Braves’ lead, but it turned out to be the difference as the Mets added a run in the ninth. Teixeira also made a great stop on a Brian Schneider grounder in the ninth to protect the two-run lead. The grounder went over the bag and was already a foot foul by the time it reached Teixeira, but he made the diving stop anyway to prevent two runs from scoring and end the game. Teixeira is historically a slow starter, so his Fantasy owners have to love that he’s given them two home runs even while not going well. He has the potential to hit .300 with 40 home runs over the course of a season, so stick with him through this early cold spell. He might already be breaking out. (Rotoworld, CBS Sports)

Mets SS Jose Reyes went 0-for-4 with a strikeout Sunday at Atlanta. He now has just one hit in his last nine at-bats and is batting .238.  Perhaps more importantly from a Fantasy perspective, Reyes has yet to steal a base this season. He swiped 78 bags last season, which is a rate of about one every two games, so he has a little catching up to do. We suspect he’ll come around sooner or later, though, and he’s a must-start in Fantasy. (CBS Sports)

Brewers OF Corey Hart had two hits — both singles — and two runs in three at-bats during Sunday’s game against the Giants. Hart also swiped his third stolen base. He has hit safely in five of the first six games for a .304 average. Hart is batting sixth in the Brewers lineup to open the season. He is between Bill Hall and J.J. Hardy. That is plenty of protection to allow Hart to do his damage at the dish. Hart can hit for average, power and steal bases. He is a Rotisserie threat, but also someone worth starting in most Fantasy formats.  (CBS Sports)