Full Court Press 4/15: Oh No, Here come the Injuries

It’s Tax day! Fantasy wise, today is a day of pain (no literally, this hurts). Even though a lot of us will be getting tax returns, it can buy us back a healthy hitter or pitcher.  Let’s get right to it with the Full Court Press. 

MLB: Injuries- 

Chris Carpenter leaves the mound- Chris Carpenter left last night’s start in the fourth inning. Kyle McClellan replaced Carpenter, followed by a solid performance from projected closer Jason Motte, who came in during the sixth inning.  Chris Carpenter, who strained his left rib cage, will be heading back to St. Louis on Thursday to receive testing. LaRussa told reporters that it looks like Carpenter “Will be out for a while.” That is the first signal to the DL for Carpenter. There is some rumor that  the Cards could stretch out McClellan’s arm to start. Other guys who could fill the void include P.J. Walters, Clayton Mortenson and possibly Mitchell Boggs. 

Dice-K Arm Decay- Guess who has Dice-K and Chris Carpenter? That’s right, yours truly. Matsuzaka left yesterday’s game with supposed “Arm Fatugue.” I don’t believe this is a serious injury, but if he does hit the D.L., either Clay Buchholz or Justin Masterson would take over that final pitching spot. It would be interesting if Masterson got the bump to the rotation, it could open up a spot for Daniel Bard in the bullpen. 

Jesse Litsch Down and Out- One of the biggest sleepers going into 2009, Toronto starter Jesse Litsch is heading to a new squad; The Disabled list. Bill Murphy, who has a little fantasy value, will take his spot on the Toronto roster. Their closer situation is getting rather interesting in the northernmost country. B.J. Ryan is still the supposed closer, but his velocity is way off, and control has been a major issue. I wouldn’t be surprised to see a roster move soon. Ryan will be on the D.L. sooner rather than later. 

A Wiser Lineup-  The White Sox have placed Dewayne Wise on the 15 day D.L. Named the opening day leadoff hitter, Wise struggled, finding his way back to the bottom of the order. The White Sox have called up Jerry Owens, who could have a bit more fantasy value. Owens had 32 stolen bases in 2007.  Not a bad pickup in a deep AL-Only league. 

Another Guillen Injured- Carlos Guillen has not played left field since Sunday, due to Achilles tendon soreness. This is going to effect many players, considering it will most likely keep Marcus Thames out of the lineup. Jeff Larish should see more time in left, and the flexibility  of releasing Gary Sheffield is now gone. It is hard to target any of these guys, until they get hot. Both Larish and Thames though have monsterous power potential. 

Nady has Elbow Pain- Now is the time to pick up Nick Swisher. Nady is set to have an MRI with sharp elbow pain, with the hopes that it is just sore tissue. At this point, it seems that Nady is just day-to-day, but if things get serious it could definitely bump the fantasy value of Nick Swisher, and even Brett Gardner. I wouldn’t drop Nady just yet, but those looking for some power, go grab Swisher. He is a consistent 20 home run type producer. 

News and Notes:  

Evan Longoria to sit out- Possibly the hottest hitter in baseball will miss the next two games due to family matters. Willy Aybar will get the starts for the Rays. Not a bad pickup to see if he can get something sparked. If so, he could ultimately fill in more all around the diamond.  This shouldn’t worry owners, just a heads up for the next two games. 

Joe Mauer is back on Track- Joe Mauer will be starting a minor league assignment last week, as he makes his way back into the Twins lineup. Mauer ran well on Monday, and will head on down to the gulf coast league for some seasoning. The organization wants him back by the end of April, and that seems obtainable right now. What are we to expect though? Here is a slight look. In 2007, when Mauer missed 50+ games, he hit .293 with 609 RBIs and 7 homers. 

Weeks back in the lineup- Brewers leadoff hitter Rickie Weeks should be back in the leadoff spot on Wednesday. The second baseman missed Tuesday’s game due to being hit in the jaw by an Edison Volquez fastball on Monday. Weeks has scored 7 runs in 8 games so far this season. He has also put together a solid OBP. Weeks is getting on base at an .353 average. 

Milledge Wake Up Call- As you have already noticed, Lastings Milledge has been optioned to AAA Syracuse after making two bad errors in centerfield and starting off slowly to start the season. This should boost up the Elijah Dukes bandwagon. If you are a Christian Guzman owner, then this is the time to start him. It seems that he will move into the lead off spot. In 2998, he hit .337 in the leadoff position. 

Pitch or Ditch: Today’s Probables

Aaron Laffey vs. the Royals: Pitch- Laffey is taking over Scott Lewis’ spot in the rotation, and is taking on a Royals offense that has yet to put anything positive together. Last May, Laffey was the rookie of the month, mowing down hitters with ease. The Odds are for Laffey, who is facing a boatload of lefties (Jacobs, Dejesus, Gordon, Teahen) and is trying to protect from a sweep.  The odds of him to pick up a win are solid, considering his counterpart, Sidney Ponson has a 9+ ERA against the Indians in 13 appearances. 

Andy Pettitte vs. the Rays: Pitch- After a solid first start, the Yankee lefty is a solid start today against the Rays. Though B.J. Upton is back in the lineup, Evan Longoria will be out of today’s game. His control is there, and he used all four pitches in his first start.

Andrew Miller vs. The Braves: Pitch- Miller is putting things together folks! The big lefty is healthy and making his first start against a team he has dominated in the past. In four career starts against the Braves, He is 2-0 with a 0.69 ERA.