The Baseball Ticker: Week of July 17, 2006

by Bryan Roth
July 17, 2006

Editor's note: If you have any fantasy baseball questions please send Bryan a message at AHPfantasybaseball@hotmail.com

Five-start pitchers worth starting:
Chien-Ming Wang (7/17 vs. Seattle, 7/22 @ Toronto)
Jeff Weaver (7/17 vs. Atlanta, 7/23 @ Los Angeles Dodgers)
Dontrelle Willis (7/18 vs. Washington, 7/23 vs. Pittsburgh)
Roy Oswalt (7/18 @ Chicago Cubs, 7/23 @ New York Mets)
Jon Lester (7/18 vs. Kansas City, 7/23 @ Seattle)
Francisco Liriano (7/18 vs. Tampa Bay, 7/23 @ Cleveland)

You make the call:
Jake Westbrook (7/17 @ Los Angeles Angels, 7/23 vs. Minnesota)
Ted Lilly (7/17 vs. Texas, 7/22 vs. New York Yankees)
Matt Cain (7/17 vs. Milwaukee, 7/22 vs. San Diego)
Cole Hamels (7/17 @ San Diego, 7/23 vs. Atlanta)
Ricky Nolasco (7/17 vs. Washington, 7/22 vs. Pittsburgh)
Woody Williams (7/7 vs. Philadelphia, 7/22 @ San Francisco)
Nate Robertson (7/18 vs. Chicago White Sox 7/23 vs. Oakland)
Kelvim Escobar (7/18 vs. Cleveland, 7/23 @ Kansas City)
Jon Garland (7/18 @ Detroit, 7/23 vs. Texas)
Vicente Padilla (7/18 @ Toronto, 7/23 @ Chicago White Sox)
Mike Pelfrey (7/18 @ Cincinnati, 7/23 vs. Houston)
Tom Gorzelanny (7/18 vs. Colorado, 7/23 @ Florida)
Chad Billingsley (7/18 @ Arizona, 7/23 vs. St. Louis)
Sidney Ponson (7/18 vs. Seattle, 7/23 @ Toronto)

Other two-start pitchers:
Casey Fossum (7/17 @ Minnesota, 7/22 vs. Baltimore)
Luke Hudson (7/17 @ Boston, 7/22 vs. Los Angeles Angels)
John Koronka (7/17 @ Toronto, 7/22 @ Chicago White Sox)
Horacio Ramirez (7/17 @ St. Louis, 7/23 @ Philadelphia)
Aaron Sele (7/17 @ Arizona, 7/22 vs. St. Louis)
Russ Ortiz (7/17 vs. Oakland, 7/23 @ Tampa Bay)
Kirk Saarloos (7/17 @ Baltimore, 7/23 @ Detroit)
Kyle Snyder (7/17 vs. Kansas City, 7/22 @ Seattle)
Jarrod Washburn (7/17 @ New York Yankees, 7/23 vs. Boston)
Enrique Gonzalez (7/17 vs. Los Angeles Dodgers, 7.22 vs. Colorado)
Zach Jackson (7/17 @ San Francisco, 7/23 @ Cincinnati)
Kip Wells (7/17 vs. Colorado, 7/22 @ Florida)
Scott Baker (7/17 vs. Tampa Bay, 7/22 @ Cleveland)
Byung-Hyun Kim (7/17 @ Pittsburgh, 7/23 @ Arizona)
Juan Cruz (7/18 vs. Los Angeles Dodgers, 7/23 vs. Colorado)
Clay Hensley (7/18 vs. Philadelphia, 7/23 @ San Francisco)
Tim Corcoran (7/18 @ Minnesota, 7/23 vs. Baltimore)
Brandon Duckworth (7/18 @ Boston, 7/23 vs. Los Angeles Angels)
Sean Marshall (7/18 vs. Houston, 7/23 @ Washington)
Eric Milton (7/18 vs. New York Mets, 7/23 vs. Milwaukee)
Jamey Wright (7/18 vs. Milwaukee, 7/23 vs. San Diego)

Playing seven games this week:
Blue Jays, Diamondbacks, Marlins and Padres.

At the hitter’s parks this week:
At Chase Field in Arizona: Dodgers (7/17-20) and Rockies (7/21-23)
At Citizens Bank Park in Philadelphia: Braves (7/21-23)
At Great American Ballpark in Cincinnati: Mets (7/18-20) and Brewers (7/21-23)
At US Cellular Field in Chicago (AL): Rangers (7/21-23)

Ratchet them up! (Second half buys)

Kevin Youkilis (1B/3B, Red Sox): At this point, it’s becoming painfully clear that Youkilis is worth owning in any fantasy format. His power doesn’t standout among first basemen, but he won’t hurt you in any category and playing for the Red Sox helps his run total. Batting near the top of the lineup, he’s already scored over 60 times.

Jimmy Rollins (SS, Phillies): Last year, Rollins raised his batting average by 30 points in the second half, including a September in which he hit .402. Overall, he’s stolen 16 and 21 bases in the last two second halves and scored more than 60 runs both times.

Nick Markakis (OF, Orioles): That .274 batting won’t pop out at you as an outfielder, but he’s hit .338 in June and his batting .375 in July. After getting those rookie jitters out of the way, things are looking up. The lack of power is disappointing (2 home runs, both in April), but at least he’s hitting.

Jeremy Hermida (OF, Marlins): Following a .345 June, Hermida has cooled off a bit in July. But, with regular playing time he should be putting up strong numbers again. The Marlins will figure out soon that Hermida needs to be an everyday player in one spot and he’ll take off from there.

BJ Upton (SS, Triple-A Durham): Upton will spend the next 2-3 weeks in Durham before getting called up to either fill in for a traded Julio Lugo at short or Ty Wigginton at third. Either way, he’s ready to help your team. He’s hitting .273 in Triple-A, but he’s got 39 stolen bases in 91 games, which should entice any fantasy owner.

Bartolo Colon (SP, Angels): Yes, he has had a rough last month. But with Los Angeles catching stride, is there any doubt that last year’s Cy Young winner won’t turn it around?

Noah Lowry (SP, Giants): He went from a 5.07 ERA to 2.43 in the first and second halves last year. This year, he had a 4.08 mark in the first half. Think it’ll be worth it to give him a shot?

Jeff Weaver (SP, Cardinals): A new town will help Weaver out a lot, especially being back in the NL. The move to Los Angeles was destined to fail, as Weaver was never good against any of the teams in the AL West. While he may not thrive to #1 starter status, he should have solid ratios and pick up a good amount of wins with Albert Pujols backing him up.

Seth McClung (RP, Triple-A Durham): McClung is currently spending some time with Upton, but he was sent to the minors to specifically become a closer. A team won’t do that unless they plan to use him in such a role. So, once he gets called up, hop on that.

Bob Howry (RP, Cubs): Ryan Dempster is already in a shaky situation as closer for Chicago, but if he gets traded (which is a distinct possibility) then Howry will take over for saves.

Ratchet them down! (Second half busts)

Paul Lo Duca (C, Mets): He has been great in the first half, as he always does, but just wait until fatigue sets in. For his career, Lo Duca hits 50 points worse in the second half. He’s actually right on par with his career first half mark (.300 with the Mets, .307 career).

Barry Bonds (OF, Giants): If you’re holding on to Barry hoping that he’ll snap out of it, think again. This weekend’s stolen base wasn’t showcasing how spry he is at almost 42. Stick a fork in him.

Hank Blalock (3B, Rangers): Some guys just aren’t second half players. He’s given a good effort in the first few months, but now is the time to trade him. He’s a .248 career hitter after the All-Star break.

Pat Burrell (OF, Phillies): He’s not too adept with batting average to begin with, but his .265 mark certainly isn’t helping any teams right now. Consider the fact that he’s a classic second half collapse guy and it’s time to trade him.

Corey Patterson (OF, Orioles): His .271 average isn’t bad, but that .308 OBP certainly is. Add in the fact he’s hitting .179 in July and hitless to start the post-break and it’s easy to see Patterson is falling back to Earth.

Tim Hudson (SP, Braves): I’ve never been crazy about Hudson, who seems to have success even though he doesn’t have great ratios. My point? Check out his strikeouts and walks:

April - 16:9
May - 38:14
June 20:19
July - 6:3

May stands out as alright, but you can’t win games if you keep people on base. That, and batters are hitting over .400 against him this month.

John Patterson (SP, Nationals): It’s time to give up on this guy, at least for this season. Last year was fantastic, but injury-prone pitchers will always be injury prone.

Bob Wickman (RP, Indians): If he doesn’t lose his job soon to Fausto Carmona, he’ll be traded anyway, opening up the closer’s role.

Pedro Martinez (SP, Mets): If it’s not his hip, it’s food poisoning. Pedro won’t be a bad option in the second half, but New York is going to especially careful with him now that they’ve all but rapped up a spot in the playoffs. The rest will be good for New York and the Mets, but baby gloves make it hard for fantasy owners to reap the benefits of having one of the best pitchers available.

Derrick Turnbow (RP, Brewers): I really don’t know how he does it. Not many guys can continually blow saves and still stay in the closer’s role. He has blown three of his last five appearances and has five losses on the season.

If you have any fantasy baseball questions please send Bryan a message at AHPfantasybaseball@hotmail.com