C.J. Wilson is dead to me. That Texas dog was in the BANK, and in came 3 frickin' runs. Normally, I wouldn't go this ballistic about a 1-2 day, but it was the first sub-500 day since the All Star break, snapping a streak of winners and break-evens that has stretched almost 3 weeks. Now the question is, how does the bounce-back day go?
NL
Mark Reynolds - Reynolds has been crushing the ball, and is 4-for-7 with a homer off Zach Duke.
Ryan Spilborghs - .444 average in 9 AB against Jamie Moyer, including 2 homers
Matt Stairs - Will he get into the starting lineup? Not sure, but he's 5-for-8 with 2 homers against Jason Hammel
The Marlins - They get a ripe J.D. Martin against a team they've beaten 10 straight times. Josh Johnson has started against the Nats 3 times, and his team has won all 3. His ERA against Washington is near 4, but if you eliminate one Austin Kearns grand slam, that number drops precipitously.
Derrek Lee - Hitting .429 off Johnny Cueto, but low on power numbers
Alfonso Soriano - 7-for-15 off Cueto, and he's gone deep 3 times.
Ryan Theriot - Theriot's been struggling a little lately, but he's batting over .400 in 19 career AB off Cueto, so perhaps tonight he wakes up
Johan Santana & Joel Pineiro - Two pitchers at the top of their game. The Cardinals lineup has but one batter (Yadier Molina) with any success of Johan, and while a few Mets have decent numbers against Pineiro in seasons' past, this is a new Joel in 2009.
AL
Jarrod Washburn - How about giving up 1 run in 16 innings against the Orioles? Pretty dominant.
Nick Markakis - One of the few O's who seems to be able to see Washburn relatively well. Still, Jarrod's pitching for a new team in a huge ballpark, so it's tough to see things changing much in this matchup.
Joe Mauer - Only 3 AB against David Huff, but he's batting 1.000 with a homer
Travis Hafner - I wondered if this name would ever pop up in the fantasy roundup; Hafner is 10-for-21 against Scott Baker with four dingers. His presence in the Cleveland lineup changes the course of this game.
Grady Sizemore - Sizemore was out when the Indians faced Baker earlier this year, but he's batting .387 in 31 AB against him.
Johnny Damon - Basically the only Yankee with numbers against Halladay, Damon is 3-for-6 this season, and batting .360 in 50 AB overall.
Alex Rios - Batting .333 against Andy Pettitte with a homer and 4 RBI
Jose Bautista - I'm tossing this in here because it's an unusual name to see on the roundup - Bautista is a respectable 7-for-21 off Pettitte including a home run.
Matt Garza - The Red Sox have done zero against Garza this year; the only Sox regular with even mild success off Garza is Jacoby Ellsbury (.391, 23 AB)
Jason Bartlett - 8-for-18 off Jon Lester.
Evan Longoria - 5-for-12 with a homer off Lester
A Few Other Rays - Navarro, Pena, Crawford and Zobrist are all hitting over .270 lifetime off Lester, as well.
Bobby Abreu - A .417 average against Jose Contreras, compounded with a home run and the Angels recent offensive explosion means good things for Bobby
Carlos Quentin - He only has 6 AB against John Lackey, but he's 4 of 6 with 2 home runs, oh my.
TOP PLAYS
1) Cincinnati Reds vs.
Chicago Cubs (+102) - Johnny Cueto has been struggling, and he's facing a lineup that has certainly done some damage against him (as evidenced by the Roundup). We're getting solid odds on the Cubs thanks to Tom Gorzelanny. Remember folks, this guy was a Major League starter for a while before hitting a few hefty speed bumps. He's been pitching well in the Minors and in relief, and should bring some of that confidence back to the Bigs in a start against a team mired in a huge, huge slump. Cueto has also been battling some back issues, and loosening up before the start has been causing him to leave pitches up early in the game. ***WINNER***
2)
Tampa Bay Rays (-118) vs. Boston Red Sox - Flat out, Garza has owned the Sox, and Lester's biggest problem is the team from Tampa. This game is in Florida, where the Rays play extremely well, and while I don't think Lester is going to tank (which would make our lives very easy), I do think the Rays offensive ability to hit Lester will be the difference in this one. ***WINNER***
3) Chicago White Sox vs.
Los Angeles Angels (-138) - The Angels have won 5 straight...again...and are hitting the ball at a clip that could make your head spin. The White Sox are a solid home team, but are coming off a loss to the Yankees, and tonight face a starter that's rounding into midseason form, John Lackey. Lackey has had mixed results against the Sox, though Carlos Quentin is the only starter that has done any marked damage against Lackey in the past. This could very well be the game that snaps the Angels' "over" streak, but we won't concern ourselves with that, we'll just ride the hot team against a pitcher (Contreras) who pitched very well when he came back from the Minors, but has lately started showing signs of slowing. ...LOSER...