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| Shit man, it gets hot in Alabama this time of year. |
The Rockies sent Jorge De La Rosa to the mound in the first game of a double header in Denver yesterday, hoping to start a twin bill sweep of Arizona. However, all Dr. Love won was a year on the shelf and trip to scenic Birmingham, Ala., which I believe has been blown off the map by a series of tornadoes.
It was written all over Jorge De La Rosa's face yesterday, and anyone watching the game could tell. After feeling funny on a pitch in the top of the third, manager Jim Tracy and the training staff came out to see De La Rosa. He took a few practice pitches and made a face that said the ligaments in his elbow had just turned into a plate of spaghetti.
What to do, what to do? De La Rosa (5-2, 3.51 ERA, 1.19 WHIP, 7.93 K/9) was owned in 98% of leagues going into yesterday's start, meaning there will be plenty of owners out there looking for replacements. The picking may seem slim, but the reality of post-steroid fantasy baseball suggests the opposite. More and more arms are contributing valuable fantasy stats, meaning there may be more options than ever to fill De La Rosa's shoes.
Gavin Floyd, CHW; 5-3, 3.88 ERA, 1.14 WHIP, 7.61 K/9: His numbers are incredibly similar to De La Rosa's, yet going into yesterdays games he was owned in about half the amount of ESPN fantasy leagues.
Ervin Santana, LAA; 2-4, 4.18 ERA, 1.19 WHIP, 7.65 K/9: The ERA is a little swollen, but his control has been pretty good so far, and the strike out numbers are there. A filthy start against the Braves reminds us of his upside, but there's a reason he's owned in only about 40% of leagues.
Madison Bumgarner, SF; 1-6, 3.71 ERA, 1.33 WHIP, 6.53 K/9: A lot of people were scared off by his terrible start, meaning Bumgarner is owned in just 63% of leagues. He's improved tremendously in May, so the chance to snag him may be gone come June.
Jordan Zimmerman, WAS; 2-5, 3.98 ERA, 1.18 WHIP, 6.63 K/9: He plays on a shitty team, so the W's will be hard to come by, but this is a guy I'm really high on. I think that K/9 will creep up slowly but surely, making up for his lack of wins.
Kyle McClellan, STL; 6-1, 3.11 ERA, 1.19 WHIP, 4.52 K/9: He couldn't strike my sister out, but he could certainly get her to roll over on an off speed pitch or pop up a well placed fast ball. Owned in just 56% of leagues, he's sort of the opposite of Zimmerman above.
Jason Hammel, COL, 3-3, 3.59 ERA, 1.30 WHIP, 5.15 K/9: He won't blow you away, whether you're in the batter's box or just watching the game, but his control has been good. That's a necessity if you're pitching in Coors Field, allowing you to limit those carrying fly balls to solo shots.
Tim Stauffer, SD; 0-3, 3.88 ERA, 1.34 WHIP, 7.29 K/9: Here's a guy who I've had my eye on in my NL only league, but those K's mean he may have value in all formats soon enough. If he can get a few more wins for the last place Padres, it will go a long way to making him a viable fantasy contributor.
Erik Bedard, SEA; 2-4, 3.94 ERA, 1.27 WHIP, 7.91 K/9: I can't believe I'm writing this, but Bedard has really come around since the end of April. He hasn't given up more than 2 ER since April 27, and has been striking people out at an impressive clip.
Bartolo Colon, NYY; 2-3, 3.77 ERA, 1.20 WHIP, 8.79 K/9: El Gordo looks like a new man in pinstripes, and you have to believe he'll be in position to win his fair share of games. If the HGH that's now flowing through his veins holds up in the second half, he'll be owned in far more than the 32% of leagues he's in now.
Jake Arrieta, BAL; 5-2, 4.75 ERA, 1.31 WHIP, 8.02 K/9: The hefty ERA is the product of two bad starts, both of which came at Camden Yards. Owned in just 27% of leagues, he'll remain valuable if he can maintain the strikeout rate.
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