Beyond the Boxscore - 07/27/08
Are you happy now Mets’ fans? After the bullpen blew a six run lead in the 9th inning the last time that Johan Santana pitched, their big ticket went out Sunday and went the distance in a 9-1 win over the St. Louis Cardinals. Listening to sports talk radio all week, I heard one crying fan after another saying Santana should have finished the last game. It isn’t his fault the bullpen imploded. But he went the distance, something he doesn’t normally do. He allowed only six hits and struck out five, which was just what New York needed after taxing their bullpen Saturday in a 14 inning loss. Santana will continue to be a total stud in the second half, and win more games than he did in the first half.
KCs Billy Butler has been swinging a hotter bat as of late and is finally starting to show some of the power that we knew he had. Butler connected on his sixth homer of the season on Sunday, and four of them have come since the All-Star Break, and he has 14 RBI during that time as well. Billy has been one of the most highly touted hitting prospects of the past couple of seasons, and if he gets hot, you will want him on your team. Keep a sharp eye on this situation, and if you have an injury or a spot that isn’t performing on your roster, I would take the chance on him now.
Don’t look now but Ubaldo Jimenez and the Colorado Rockies are starting to get hot again. Jimenez won his fifth game in the month of July and has only given up more than three earned runs twice in the past two months. Jimenez has great stuff, and has been looking lately what we thought he would be all season long. Any pitcher you have that is starting to weigh you down could be let go for Baldy, he could be this hot for the rest of the season.
Todd Jones is no longer the closer for the Detroit Tigers. Manager Jim Leyland announced today that hard throwing Fernando Rodney would be closing games for the Tigers going forward. Rodney immediately responded by allowing a run and two walks over 1.2 innings. Not exactly answering the call of duty, but nevertheless, Rodney is a great pickup in all leagues right away.
On a negative note for closers, Ryan Franklin blew another game last night for the St. Louis Cardinals, and they need to do something right away. I see four options for them in reality. One, there have been rumors of the Cardinals possibly trading for the Rockies’ Brian Fuentes, but the more Colorado wins, the less likely Fuentes moves. Second, bring back Jason Isringhausen, and no Cardinal fan wants to see that. Third, give Chris Perez a chance out of the minors. It would be tough to give a rookie such a prominent role when you are challenging for a division title. Fourth, and this is pure speculation on my part, put Adam Wainwright back in that role for the rest of the season when he is back healthy. Wainwright was knee buckling awesome when he was the Cards closer on their World Series run in 2006, and desperate times call for desperate measures.
Good news for the Cardinals, it was announced that Chris Carpenter will return to the Cardinals rotation on Wednesday. There is a chance of some inconsistency since he has been out so long after surgery, but he has the chance to give you incredible success, and that’s more than almost any free agent can say at this point of the year. Carpenter will most likely be worth the risk if he is still available in your league.
Indians pitcher Jeremy Sowers has started to show some signs of improvement. After a fine rookie year in 2006, Sowers went in the crapper last year, and seemed to be getting comfortable there this season. But he was able to get his first win in his last start, and on Sunday he actually went eight innings, gave up only two runs, and struck out five. Sowers was once the sixth overall pick and had an impressive minor league career, but has been unable to have that translate to the majors. This is a small step in the right direction, but it is a step nonetheless. Keep a watch on Sowers.
Pirates pitcher Paul Maholm has been pretty impressive over the past couple of months. The guy who got Billy Crystal out in the spring has been doing a number on major league hitters since May 31st. Maholm has allowed more than three runs twice since that time. He will struggle for wins being on the Pirates, but he has been getting at least four strikeouts in almost every start. In deeper leagues or people who have had wicked injury troubles should take a look at Maholm.
Tigers’ OF Marcus Thames hit his 20th homer of the season on Sunday, and it is looking like he will surpass his career high of 26. He still doesn’t hit for a great average (.263), but if you are in need of some power, he might be worth looking at. Ten of his twenty homers came in June and he only had five in July, so there might be better options available.
Although it appeared he might be headed to the Bronx, Jarrod Washburn continues to pitch well for the Mariners. Apparently talks have stalled between Seattle and the Yankees, but Washburn keeps pitching great. He’s not going to get you a ton of strikeouts, and if he keeps pitching in Seattle he won’t collect a lot of wins, but since May 21st he has allowed two runs or less in every start but two. In desperate times, give Washburn a look, but only in desperate times. If he is eventually traded to the Yankees, his value takes a turn for the better, but not by much.
