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

Phillies OF Shane Victorino singled with one out in the first inning Friday against Mets SP Mike Pelfrey, then stole his 31st base, moved to third on a throwing error and scored on Chase Utley’s RBI groundout. Victorino’s run was all Brett Myers needed in a 3-0 win. Victorino is 5-for-19 (.263) over his last five games, but he doesn’t have a RBI in seven games and hasn’t homered since Aug. 5. Victorino has slowed down some after he came out of the All-Star break on fire. Still, he is worth using as a No. 3 Fantasy OF in most formats. (CBS Sports)

FAAB Acquisitions:

• P Luis Ayala, Mets [$0, add to actives]
• C Pablo Sandoval, Giants [$0, add to actives]

Up:

• OF Shane Victorino (to Utility)
• OF Brandon Moss
• P Jason Marquis

Down:

• 3B Casey Blake (from Utility)
• OF Lastings Milledge
• P John Maine (15-Day DL)
• P Mike Gonzalez
• C Chris Coste

Cut:

• P Charlie Morton
• P Carlos Villanueva

Phillies OF Shane Victorino went 2-for-4 with a double and two runs scored in Sunday’s win over the Dodgers. Victorino now has a six-game hit streak. Victorino is hitting .303 in August and deserves to be starting as a low-end OF in most Fantasy formats right now. (CBS Sports)

Trade:

• Trade OF Steve Pearce ($1, 3 years) to Cover Zero.
• Acquire Nationals’ OF Lastings Milledge ($9, 1 year), added to actives

FAAB Acquisitions:

• OF Chris Dickerson, Reds [$0 bid, add to actives]
• P Noah Lowry, Giants [$0 bid]

Down:

• OF Shane Victorino

Cut:

• P Jason Bergmann
• OF John Bowker

Phillies OF Shane Victorino returned to the starting lineup Friday against the Padres after missing two games with a back injury. He was hitless in four at-bats. Victorino had a rough welcome back to the lineup Friday and Fantasy owners surely hope the 0-fer trend doesn’t continue since Victorino has been on a nice run since the All-Star break. Consider him no worse than a No. 3 Fantasy OF when healthy. (CBS Sports)

Shane Victorino (back) was used as a pinch-hitter on Thursday night. He struck out in the eighth inning. It’s still unclear when he’ll re-join the starting lineup. (Rotoworld)

Shane Victorino (back) has stated that he plans to return to Philadelphia’s lineup on Thursday night after sitting out on Wednesday, the Philadelphia Inquirer reports. While it seems like he’ll be re-inserted into the Phillies lineup, it may be best to wait a day or two until activating him if you can, as his stiff back caused him to go 0-for-4 with three strikeouts on Tuesday. (Rotowire)

Shane Victorino left Tuesday night’s game due to stiffness in his lower back. He left after batting in the top half of the seventh inning. The severity is unknown. So Taguchi replaced Victorino in the game, with Jayson Werth sliding over to center field. He went 0-for-4 with three strikeouts. Victorino had gone on a major power surge since the All-Star break, so hopefully he doesn’t need multiple days off because of this back stiffness. As a 15-40 candidate, he’s a No. 2 Fantasy OF. (Rotoworld, CBS Sports)

Phillies OF Shane Victorino had two singles and one run in four at-bats Monday against the Dodgers. He also walked once. Victorino has four multi-hit games in his last seven outings and is 9-for-27 (.333) with one homer, four RBI and six walks in that span. What has gotten into Victorino? He had two home runs right before the All-Star break and has nine already afterward. He had underperfomed power-wise before this recent hot streak, but he again looks like a 15-40 candidate. (CBS Sports)

In today’s MLB Front Office, their Trendspotting feature highlighted the two seasons of Victorino:

Shane Victorino: For the Phillies outfielder, this has been a tale of two seasons. April OPS: 583; May OPS: 855; June OPS: 630; July OPS: 1000. He hit no homers in April and June but still has 11 on the season. His career numbers outline a similar pattern - April and June are bad months, with a good May squeezed in between. If his career patterns continue, you can expect a better August, followed by a mediocre September. He’s shown a little more power than last year, and had he not missed some time to injury he would be a lock for 20/30. Victorino is only 28 and he should continue to develop - he may never go in the first rounds but he is quickly becoming a guy who is productive across the board.

Phillies OF Shane Victorino hit a two-out, two-run homer in the seventh inning Tuesday against the Marlins. He finished 2-for-5. What has gotten into Victorino? He had two home runs right before the All-Star break and has six already afterward. He had underperfomed power-wise before this recent hot streak, but he again looks like a 15-40 candidate. (CBS Sports)

Shane Victorino delivered a three-run homer in the eighth inning on Sunday to held the Phillies top the Cardinals 5-4. Victorino didn’t start, but he homered in his second at-bat after replacing Geoff Jenkins. It accounted for three of the four runs surrendered by a combination of Kyle McClellan, Jaime Garcia and Russ Springer in the eighth inning. “You kind of have an idea of what he has by watching video, and I was just trying to hit a ball I could drive,” Victorino said. “It was a fastball. That’s what I think it was.” Victorino is hot and having a career year for the Phillies and Fantasy owners. (Rotoworld, CBS Sports)

Shane Victorino put together a 3-for-5, three RBI night Wednesday to lead the Phillies past the Nationals 8-5 and move his team back atop the NL East. The Phillies picked up their fourth consecutive victory on RBI from Pat Burrell, Chase Utley, Jimmy Rollins, and of course, Victorino. Shane singled in the fifth to score Jamie Moyer and Rollins, then homered in to right field in the seventh. He is now hitting .287 on the season with nine homers and 38 RBI. The Flyin’ Hawaiian also extended his hit streak to 10 games, and he has been on fire of late, having stolen three bases during his current streak and hit a surprising four home runs. While the home run numbers should taper off, he remains a great option going forward. (Rotoworld, Rotowire)

Shane Victorino hit one of five Phillie homers in a 12-10 win over the Braves on Sunday. Chris Coste, Pat Burrell, Jayson Werth, and Jimmy Rollins added the other four, and the five blasts combined for nine of the Phillies’ 12 runs. Victorino’s blast was a three-run shot, but he also later added an RBI single and a stolen base. Victorino also collided with Braves catcher Brian McCann at home plate. The two collided head to head, and although Victorino came out of it OK, McCann was clearly woozy while walking off the field, and he left the game. He’ll likely be checked for a concussion. Victorino is batting .315 with six homers, 17 RBI, and five steals this month. (Rotoworld)

Shane Victorino went 1-for-4 with a solo home run as the Phillies fell to the Mets on Wednesday. He went back-to-back with Geoff Jenkins. Victorino was moved down to the seventh spot on Tuesday, but he was moved up back up to the six hole for Wednesday’s game. That he was moved down has little to do with his performance: he’s now hitting .303 with five homers and 13 RBI in July. (Rotoworld)

Shane Victorino has been dropped to the seventh spot in Philadelphia’s lineup on Tuesday. It looks like manager Charlie Manuel wants to take advantage of Pat Burrell’s long tradition of success against the Mets, so he has him batting third and Chase Utley hitting second tonight. Victorino would have less fantasy value as a No. 7 hitter, but this could be temporary. (Rotoworld)