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

Mets SS Jose Reyes had three hits, including two doubles, in five at-bats Tuesday against the Marlins. Reyes almost legged out a triple in the first inning, but was gunned down going to third base. He now has 29 doubles on the season and also picked up his 35th stolen base Tuesday. Reyes now has multi-hit games in four of his last five outings. He is 11-for-28 (.393) with one homer and three RBI in that span. Reyes came out of the All-Star break a little sluggish, but he has started to heat up and produce across the board once again for Fantasy owners. (CBS Sports)

Diamondbacks RP Brandon Lyon pitched a perfect ninth inning during Tuesday’s 3-0 win against the Padres for his 22nd save in 27 chances. He needed just 11 pitches to retire the side, which included strikeouts of Edgar V. Gonzalez and Adrian Gonzalez. Lyon has closed out his last two games with scoreless outings since allowing seven runs during a two-outing span from July 19-20. He also has four strikeouts in his last two innings. Arizona acquired Jon Rauch from Washington as insurance just in case Lyon falters down the stretch. It has really motivated the right-hander and he remains a decent No. 2 Fantasy RP. (CBS Sports)

Overall Standings

Rank Team                Batting Pitching Total Dif  Behind
---- ------------------- ------- -------- ----- ---- ------
 1   Atomic Roadrunners  43.0    37.0     80.0  1.0  0.0
 2   Stanimals           30.0    33.0     63.0  -2.0 17.0
 3   X-Men               23.0    39.0     62.0  0.0  18.0
 4   The Pi Train        30.0    28.0     58.0  0.5  22.0
 5   Shoeless Jews       23.0    34.0     57.0  1.0  23.0
 6   Goodfellas          36.0    16.5     52.5  -2.5 27.5
 7   Uncle Lester        12.0    38.0     50.0  0.5  30.0
 8   Misogynistic Padres 27.0    17.5     44.5  0.5  35.5
 9   Cover Zero          26.0    17.0     43.0  0.0  37.0
 10  Get Off Kong!       25.0    15.0     40.0  1.0  40.0

Yesterday's Stats

Atomic Roadrunners Players Yesterday (7/29/08)
Player                       BA HR R RBI   SB
------------------------ ------ -- - --- ----
Blake, Casey 3B LA       0.2500  0 0   0    0
Blanco, Gregor M. OF ATL 1.0000  0 1   1    0
Coste, Chris C PHI       0.0000  0 0   0    0
Fielder, Prince 1B MIL   0.3333  0 0   0    0
Gerut, Jody RF SD        0.0000  0 0   0    0
Hart, Corey C. RF MIL    0.2500  0 0   0    0
Headley, Chase 3B SD     0.3333  0 0   0    0
Iannetta, Chris C COL    0.0000  0 0   0    0
Pearce, Steve RF PIT     0.0000  0 0   0    0
Phillips, Brandon 2B CIN 0.2500  0 0   1    0
Reyes, Jose B. SS NYM    0.6000  0 0   0    1
Teixeira, Mark 1B ANA    0.0000  0 0   0    0
Theriot, Ryan SS CHC     0.4000  0 1   0    1
Victorino, Shane CF PHI  0.2500  0 0   0    0

Atomic Roadrunners Players Yesterday (7/29/08)
Player                      ERA  K S   W WHIP
------------------------ ------ -- - --- ----
Gonzalez, Mike RP ATL     13.50  1 0   0 7.50
Lyon, Brandon RP ARI       0.00  2 1   0 0.00
Wellemeyer, Todd SP STL    3.00  5 0   0 1.50

Fatty can’t hit. Waste of $23. Two years/$36 Million??? He makes Juan Pierre look good. Just got into double-digits - in RBI’s! Strikes out 37% of the time. Batting .169! TWO homers.

Here’s what Ron Shandler said going into 2008:

“Lots went wrong in 2007, but the focal point was his power. Most of his BPIs rebounded in the 2nd half, EXCEPT his power. Perhaps most remarkable was that he still had nearly 100 RBIs with his .222 BA. Lotsa oddness. Projection: 89 Runs, 28 HR, 99 RBI, 4 SB, .254 average

Here’s what Baseball Prospectus had to say:

“What’s strange about Jones’s 2007 season is that all he lost were the homers. Look at those lines: 2007 is a typical Andruw Jones season, less 15 homers, five singles, and some intentional walks. His fly-ball rate was unchanged, so it wasn’t that. Now the $90 million question: was it a change in his skills, or just one of those fluke seasons? Given his age and the stability of everything else, lean toward the latter. Despite the down season, Jones was still the best of the winter’s free-agent center fielders, and because of it, a bargain for the Dodgers, who signed him to a two-year $36.2 million contract. Projection: 77 Runs, 29 HR, 92 RBI, 7 SB, .256 average”

Here are other projections from the pre-season:

AVG   R   HR   RBI   SB    Source
--------------------------------
.249  89  33    99   8      Lindy's
.249  95  39   117   5      Fantasy Baseball Guide
.254  --  29    98   4      Fantasy Baseball Magazine
.252  97  36   111   5      Rotowire
.241  87  32    97   5      Fanball
.254  90  42   104   6      Fantasy Baseball Index

Yikes. More recently:

Slumping Dodgers center fielder Andruw Jones did not start for the second successive game, even though he was 4-for-9 lifetime against Kevin Correia with three home runs. He hit for reliever Brian Falkenborg with runners at the corners in the sixth and delivered an RBI single against Sergio Romo to cut the Giants’ lead to 7-6. Manager Joe Torre has given Jones every opportunity to make good in the first year of a $36.2 million, two-year contract, but he can’t afford to wait any longer for him to come around. “We talked, and Joe just told me what he’s going to go with. There’s nothing I can do about it except get the job done when I get the opportunity,” Jones said. “The situation came up, and it felt good just to go out there and get a key hit.”

Jones, a five-time All-Star and 10-time Gold Glove winner, is 10-for-56 with six RBI in his past 20 games after missing 38 because of an injured right knee that required arthroscopic surgery. “I think there was a sense of urgency all the time with him, based on his own expectations of himself,” Torre said. “He’s a very proud individual and he certainly knows he’s a whole lot better player than he’s shown us. I know it hurts him, but there’s no easy way around it. We’re at a point in the season now where we’re trying to win a pennant.” Consider Jones a stashee in deeper leagues right now, but clearly not someone to trust in your lineup right now. He is not old, but he sure doesn’t swing that bat like he is young anymore. (CBS Sports)

Goodbye, fatty. Good riddance.

Casey Blake, acquired by the Dodgers from Cleveland on Saturday for a pair of minor leaguers, started at third base Saturday night and was 2-for-3 with a double and a run scored. Blake, who was batting .234 through the end of May, is hitting .352 in 45 games since then with 29 RBI. He is the fifth player to start at third base this season for Los Angeles. Blake is an outstanding addition in all NL-only leagues and is a streaky player that can impact any mixed Fantasy format, too. Consider him hot and a solid start in any league right now.

Blake was batting .289 for the Indians, but he’s been hot over the last month, with a .347 average, four home runs and 12 RBI in his last 21 games. This would obviously be a blow to anybody who owns him in AL-only formats, but Fantasy owners in NL-only leagues should get ready to invest on Blake off the waiver wire. He’ll get regular at-bats at third base it appears and will be a solid corner infield option in those leagues. (CBS Sports)

FAAB Acquisition:

• 3B Casey Blake, Dodgers [$35 bid, add to actives]

Up:

• P Josh Johnson
• OF Steve Pearce

Down:

• 3B Chipper Jones
• P Joe Blanton
• OF John Bowker

Cut:

• OF Andruw Jones

Notes:

• This is the first week this season that the Atomic Roadrunners infield has been disrupted, here in Week 18. The core of Prince Fielder, Mark Teixeira, Chipper Jones, Jose Reyes, Brandon Phillips, and Ryan Theriot had not been interrupted this season. The catching situation has been remarkably stable as well, as Chris Iannetta replaced Javier Valentin in Week 4, and Chris Coste replaced Carlos Ruiz in Week 8.
• Former 2008 Roadrunner Matt Herges was released by Stanimals when he picked up John Grabow.
• I also bid $3 on Joel Hanrahan, who had been on my scout team since the pre-season, due to his scoreless innings streak in Spring Training. X-Men acquired him for $41 FAAB, as he is now the presumptive closer for the Nationals with the trade of Jon Rauch.

John Maine will undergo an MRI on his right shoulder after leaving Monday night’s game. Carlos Muniz replaced Maine after the starter threw 4 1/3 scoreless innings. Maine has been dealing with soreness in his shoulder for weeks. “You get soreness,” Maine said, “but it’s never felt like this before.” It seems quite likely that Maine will miss his next start, but pitching coach Dan Warthen says the pain is in the back of his shoulder, which is not a “trouble spot.”

Maine said after his abbreviated start Monday that he’s been dealing with pain in his right shoulder since his last outing. “It was sore, but I told them I could go out there and pitch,” he said. Maine has yet to throw 200 innings a season and is highly unlikely to reach the mark this year. The Mets may want to give him a couple of weeks off to give him a better chance of being close to 100 percent in September and October. (Rotoworld)

The problem lies in the back of Maine’s right shoulder — not a trouble spot, according to pitching coach Dan Warthen — and has caused him pain throughout recent weeks. But the Mets were not entirely concerned until they noticed a hitch in Maine’s mechanics during a pitch sequence to John Baker in the fifth inning Monday. Warthen didn’t like how Maine began dropping his arm angle, potentially exposing him to risk of other injury, as the shoulder pain intensified, which is why he was pulled from the game. The injury has nothing to do with the dead arm that affected Maine earlier this month in St. Louis, nor is it the type of injury that should cost him significant time. He could miss one start, but with Pedro Martinez slated to return Friday and two off-days over the next week, there are ways to skip Maine’s spot while keeping him in the regular rotation. A better sense of the extent of the injury and how long - if at all - Maine needs to be sidelined will be known once the exam results are in. (Rotowire)

10:51am Tuesday: FOXSports.com’s Ken Rosenthal reports that the Angels and Diamondbacks are vying for Mark Teixeira. The Angels are reportedly interested in making the deal even bigger and acquiring a lefty reliever like Will Ohman or Mike Gonzalez. The Angels deal is thought to center around Casey Kotchman, and the Diamondback’s offer is thought to start with Chad Tracy.

6:36am Tuesday: The Los Angeles Times reports that the Angels are “warming” to the idea of trading for Mark Teixeira. The team still doesn’t seem overly enthused about the idea of trading for a rental, with GM Tony Reagins saying, “That scenario is unlikely, but I would look at it.” The asking price for Teixeira is Casey Kotchman, but the Angels are one of few teams with the flexibility to sign Teixeira to a long-term deal.

5:43am Tuesday: Meanwhile, The East Valley Tribune reports that the Diamondbacks won’t trade for Mark Teixeira or Manny Ramirez. The paper cites a source who calls Ramirez a “non-issue.” The source says the D-Backs and Braves have talked Teixeira for several days, but that there’s not enough common ground to make a deal work. The Red Sox, Rays, Angels and D-Backs were thought to have interest in Teixeira, and there’s been little to suggest any team will meet Atlanta’s asking price.

4:17pm Monday: ESPN’s Jayson Stark said the Diamondbacks, Red Sox, Rays and Angels are the four teams that have expressed some level of interest in Mark Teixeira. There’s been little to suggest that the Angels are actually in on Teixeira, as they don’t appear interested in flipping Casey Kotchman for him. Likewise, the Red Sox and Rays have to be considered big long shots here.

2:58pm Monday: Yahoo! Sports’ Steve Henson reports that negotiations between the Diamondbacks and Braves are “pretty far along.” Henson believes the Braves are asking for either Conor Jackson or Chad Tracy, plus a prospect. Jackson is likely off the table, but if the Braves are willing to accept Tracy as the centerpiece of a deal, then the Diamondbacks have to seriously consider making the trade. Still, it could come down to the prospect. The Diamondbacks don’t have much to offer besides Max Scherzer and Jarrod Parker after giving up a big portion of their system for Dan Haren, and it’s doubtful that they’d part with either right-hander.

1:18pm Monday: FOXSports.com’s Ken Rosenthal believes that the Braves will ramp up efforts to trade Mark Teixeira after losing their series against the Phillies this weekend. Rosenthal doesn’t cite one of his “sources,” so this seems to be a bit of speculation on his part. He suggests the Red Sox, Angels, Diamondbacks, Rays, Dodgers and Yankees as potential destinations, although he admits none are a perfect fit. ESPN’s Keith Law said there are four suitors, based on talks over the last 48 hours. (Rotoworld)

Braves placed third baseman Chipper Jones on the 15-day disabled list a strained left hamstring. Tim Hudson is joining him. By placing both on the disabled list, the Braves could be waving the white flag on their season, making a Mark Teixeira trade more likely. Omar Infante and Martin Prado will fill in at third base for the next couple of weeks. The move for Jones will likely be retroactive to July 24, so he could return in early August if things go according to plan. He has played in 89 of 103 games this season, but hasn’t played in more than 137 games since the start of the 2004. (Rotoworld, CBS Sports)

Brian Wilson, the sixth Giants pitcher, worked a perfect ninth inning during Monday’s 7-6 win against the Dodgers for his NL-leading 28th save in 30 chances. He retired the side on 13 pitches, which included strikeouts of Angel Berroa and Andruw Jones. Wilson has three saves in the last week and has allowed just one hit and one walk in his last three innings. He also has a strikeout in five straight outings and seven total. Wilson usually makes things interesting when he is on the hill, but he has blown just two saves in 2008 and continues to lead the NL in that category. Wilson remains more of a No. 2 Fantasy RP. (CBS Sports)

Casey Blake was ejected from Monday’s game in the eighth inning for arguing a called third strike. Newly acquired Dodgers third baseman Casey Blake was ejected Monday by first base umpire Greg Gibson for arguing from the dugout after getting called out on a checked-swing third strike in the eighth. Manager Joe Torre continued the argument and picked up his second ejection with the Dodgers and first since April 24. (Rotoworld, CBS Sports)

Pirates OF Steve Pearce was hitless in two at-bats Monday against the Rockies, but did have his first two sac flies of the season. He also walked once. Pearce is 1-for-6 (.167) in two games since his recall from Triple-A. The Pirates recalled Pearce after trading Xavier Nady to the Yankees and it appears as though the 25-year-old will see a majority of starts in right field for Pittsburgh. He has serious sleeper potential in the second half, but remains a low-end Fantasy option at this time. (CBS Sports)

Charlie Morton allowed eight runs in 3 2/3 innings against the Cardinals on Monday night. Morton needed 81 pitches to get through the outing. He allowed seven hits, walked four and struck out just one batter. He has just two quality starts in eight attempts this season. It wasn’t an easy assignment, since Morton was recalled at the last minute Monday, but that doesn’t excuse such a poor outing. Morton has excelled in Triple-A this season, but he now has a 7.26 ERA in the big leagues.(Rotoworld, Rotowire)

Braves OF Gregor Blanco, only four games removed from a four-hit game, went hitless for the second straight game Monday against the Cardinals. He’s 0-for-7 during that stretch and 1-for-12 over his last three games. The Braves like Blanco in the leadoff spot because he has decent on-base ability, but he doesn’t hit worth a hill of beans, really, and doesn’t steal many bases either. Leave him for deeper NL-only leagues. (CBS Sports)

Ryan Spilborghs (left oblique) began light exercises on Monday, the Rocky Mountain News reports. He isn’t expected back until late August at the earliest. (Rotowire)