It’s fitting that both the Nats and Pirates traded for a player with ‘Last’ in his name. Lastings Milledge was sent to the Pirates along with Joel Hanrahananan for Nyjer Morgan and Sean Burnett. Milledge and McCutchen can now share The Dread Pirate nickname. How much of a slap in the face is it when you’re banished for being a problem child when Elijah Dukes is your teammate? Is this a sign that the Nationals are no longer going to be the Home to Wayward 5-Tools Outfielders? I can see Jim Bowden shedding a tear like he’s a 70’s era Native American watching his blessed land being desecrated. Garrett Jones was called up, but he’s nothing more than a bench player. Jones is an old prospect, which is different than an old prospector who says, “Aw, peaches!” Joel Hanrahananan’s crizzap. Been there, dropped him. Nyjer Morgan showed up on a few Buy/Sells always as a Sell. He ices my cockles, so to speak. He’ll steal time from Dukes, who’s supposedly on the market too. But last I looked, Dukes was stealing time from himself for hittin’ like he’s quittin’. Burnett’s not going to really play into the picture for saves and, if he does, I wouldn’t own him, in the non-biblical sense. Basically, what I’m saying is Avoid, Ignore, Ignore, Avoid. Anyway, here’s what else I saw yesterday in fantasy baseball:
Adrian Gonzalez – Left the game after sliding into third on a triple. He didn’t immediately come out so that’s a good sign. If he has to miss even a few games, any Padres opposing pitchers get an even bigger boost.
Eric Hinske – He was disappointed by lack of playing time with the Pirates. A move to the Yanks should fix that real good.
Carlos Beltran – Good news from the Lilliputian doctor that performs micro-surgery. Beltran should be back after the ASB.
Jake Peavy – Bad news as he’s expected to be out at least 6 more weeks. I’d be shocked if we see him by September 1st. Act accordingly.
Colby Rasmus – Sidelined with a hiatal hernia which he blames on late-night eating. What on earth does someone eat to get a hernia? Rocky Mountain oysters?
Leo Nunez – Fredi said that the closer shituation is on a need basis, which means Meyer could still see some saves.
Edwin Encarnacion – Will return in about a week barring any setbacks. He’s worth stashing if you’re hurting at corner. Could hit 5-7 homers a month the rest of the way. Conservatively, I’d project him for 12/35/.250 if he stays healthy.
Dan Haren – 7 IP, 1 ER, 9 Ks, 5 baserunners and he hit a homer. Micah Owings gave him a standing ovation.
Jimmy Rollins – 0-for-5 as he filled in for Eric Bruntlett.
John Mayberry Jr. – 9-for-38 since his callup with 4 homers. After the game, Raul Ibanez accused him of steroids.
Shawn Estes – He said he is not retired from baseball. He’s only retired from Triple-A. Oh, okay.
Martin Prado – 4-for-5 as he filled in for Kelly Johnson who’s trying to recover from being awful.
John Smoltz – 4 IP, 1 ER, 4 baserunners. He pitched fine, but was lifted during a rain delay. No word yet who lifted him. It’s probably safe to rule out Baldelli.
Jacoby Ellsbury – Hit a homer from the eight hole. Lugo led off. Maybe Francona’s been reading Torre’s tell-all.
Gordon Beckham – 3-for-4, and a homer. He’s starring opposite Casey McGehee in, The Rise of the MI.
Cliff Lee – 3 IP, 7 ER. I wonder if he was wearing a 2007 throwback jersey.
Chris Woodward – Got the start at third in Beltre’s absence. Good to see the Mariners looking towards the future starting their 33-year-old journeyman.
Brandon Morrow – 4 2/3 IP, 1 ER, 10 baserunners. No! You were supposed to throw 6 innings this time out. Oh, well. Two steps forward, one step back.
Willy Aybar – 3-for-5 with his 7th homer and batted third. He’s the Aybar that can help you in AL-Only leagues.
Sean West – 4 1/3 IP, 5 ER. You want all the excitement owning rookie pitchers, here’s the other side of that coin. He now has a 26:21 K to Walk ratio. I ran my ultraviolet light over my bed sheets and it read, “Blech.”
Jorge Cantu – 3-for-4 yesterday and .323 in the last week. Is that light at the end of the tunnel?
Prince Fielder – Hit his twentieth homer yesterday and now has 74 RBIs. Where’s the love for the big man? Does he need to go to rehab to be appreciated? He kicked meat. For a 400 pound man that should be enough.
Marlon Byrd – 2-for-5, 5 RBIs and two homers as he batted third. What’s this, Ron Washington taking cues from Leyland? Whoever’s nearest to the water cooler gets to bat third? Bee tee dubya, Hamilton will be back this weekend so Washington can take the names out of the hat when filling out the lineup card.
Elvis Andrus – 4 steals yesterday. With only 11 steals coming into the game, Andrus was a bit of a disappointment in the steals department so far, but if he can get to 35 on the year, he’ll definitely be worth owning.
Scott Baker – 5 IP, 1 ER, 1 K, only 7 baserunners and somehow threw 111 pitches. I’m guessing lots of souvenirs into the stands. He hasn’t had a terrible start since the end of May. Definitely should be starting him every time out.
Albert Pujols – Has 30 homers with a .233 hitter behind him, followed by the skinnier of The Flying Molina Bros.
Mark DeRosa – Hurt his wrist and had to leave the game. Hopefully this will drive down the FAAB price on him in Rudy’s NL-Only league. Rudy’s bidding $751 if anyone from other blogs reads this.
Fernando Rodney – 1 IP, 2 ER. One day Donkey-corn, next day Kazaam! (This reminds me of something. I was in the middle of writing a roundup one night and I wrote something similar to, “One day Donkey-corn, next day Kazaam,” and I started thinking about the people who stumble across Razzball and think they are reading absolute gibberish. That’s all, just thought I’d share that thought.)
Jason Marquis – Threw a two-hitter vs. the Dodgers. In other news, water is dry.
