Kuzul

Will Mark Teixeira ever turn things around?  What is going on in the Orioles & Diamondbacks bullpens?  Is Mike Leake for real?  Let’s look at these questions and all the rest from yesterday’s games:

Hitters:

• Mark Teixeira (0-6) — If that wasn’t bad enough, he struck out five times.  While some of the stats that matter aren’t too far off, he’s still hitting just .215 on the year.  Sooner or later he’s guying to take off and we all know it.  Don’t panic.
• Aramis Ramirez (3-4, 1 HR, 2 RBI, 2 R) — Considering he had gone 2-28 over his previous eight games, this was a welcome sight for fantasy owners.  This was his first HR & RBI since 5/17 and first run since 5/18.  He had just 7 RBI and 8 R in all of May.  He’s better then that and we all know it.  Injury concerns or not, he should improve.
• Mike Napoli (2-5, 1 RBI, 1 R) — He found himself back at 1B in this one.  For now, it seems like this is going to be a regular occurrence, at least until they import a new option.  He’s not going to be a viable 1B option, but keeping him in the lineup more will certainly increase his value as a catcher.
• John Jaso (0-4) — He returned to the lineup and was batting leadoff.  That alone makes no sense, but with Kelly Shoppach back the Rays are soon going to have to make a decision regarding their catching situation.  If Jaso doesn’t warm up, once again he could find himself on the outside looking in.  Make sure to monitor the situation closely.
• Colby Rasmus (3-4, 3 RBI, 1 SB) — He has clearly broken out of his slump, going 10-20 with 2 HR, 8 RBI and 7 R over his last five games.  If you have him on your bench, it’s safe to get him back in your lineup.
• Jayson Werth (1-4, 1 HR, 2 RBI, 1 R) — It’s his first home run since May 21, but he has had RBI in three straight.  Still, is this really the breakout from his prolonged slump?  He had gone 2-25, so it’s going to take a bit more.
• Andrew McCutchen (4-5, 1 HR, 1 RBI, 3 R) — This was his first multi-hit game since 5/25.  Yes, he had been productive, going 5-19 with 1 HR, 3 RBI, 3 R and 1 SB in his last six games, but we all know he has the ability to put up this type of performance at any time.  He’s hitting .320 with 7 HR, 17 RBI, 34 R and 13 SB on the season.
• Brian McCann (2-4, 4 RBI, 1 R) — Owners could take solace that even while struggling, he was adding something to their team.  Since May 30 he had gone 1-12, but had still scored 5 R.  Still, this is the type of performance everyone wants to see from him.

Pitchers:

• Andy Pettitte (7.2 IP, 2 ER, 5 H, 3 BB, 10 K) — We know what he is and a strikeout pitcher like this he is not.  Don’t get used to it.
• Tommy Hunter (9.0 IP, 1 ER, 5 H, 0 BB, 4 K, W) — That’s the way to make a name for yourself, isn’t it?  Stepping into the spot opened up by Derek Holland’s injury he’s trying to entrench himself in the rotation.  Considering he had a 4.05 ERA at Triple-A (albeit in the Pacific Coast League), I wouldn’t expect this type of performance to continue.
• Jonathan Niese (7.0 IP, 1 ER, 6 H, 1 BB, 6 K, W) — He returned from the DL with a bang.  We’ve discussed his skill set in the past and he certainly has the potential to be a usable option in all deeper formats.  If you need an option for next week, he certainly is viable with a start against the Orioles.
• Jake Peavy (7.0 IP, 2 ER, 6 H, 1 BB, 3 K) — One good start doesn’t mean much.  He’s still sporting a 5.90 ERA and had allowed 21 ER over his last four starts.  Does he have upside?  Sure, but he’s a huge risk as well.
• Luke Hochevar (7.0 IP, 1 ER, 6 H, 2 BB, 10 K) — He was out dueled by Justin Verlander (7.0 IP, 2 ER, 5 H, 3 BB, 4 K), but Hochevar certainly made an impression.  We’ve long heard about his potential upside and he’s shown flashes, but also has gotten blown up way too often.  If he could stabilize things he’d have fantasy value, but right now you just can’t trust him enough to throw him out there no matter what the matchup.
• Mike Leake (7.0 IP, 0 ER, 7 H, 0 BB, 5 K, W) — Who needs time in the minor leagues?  He’s now 5-0 with a 2.22 ERA, only once allowing more than 3 ER in a start.  There’s some luck involved (he entered with a .277 BABIP and 80.1% strand rate), but not enough to think what he is doing is completely fluky.  He’s generating a 53.3% groundball rate, meaning he has the stuff to succeed in that ballpark.  The bottom line is that it appears he’s anything but a flash in the pan.
• Jon Lester (6.1 IP, 0 ER, 4 H, 3 BB, 4 K, W) — This puts him at 7-0 over his last eight starts.  We all know how good he is, so it’s not worth the time.
• Will Ohman (0.0 IP, 4 ER, 2 H, 2 BB, 0 K) – Mike Gonzalez can’t get back soon enough.  Granted, this was a non-save situation, but the Orioles just don’t have a dependable option late in the game.  There’s little doubt that as soon as Gonzalez is healthy, he’ll be thrust right back into the closer’s role, so just keep holding onto him in all formats.
• Francisco Liriano (7.0 IP, 1 ER, 5 H, 2 BB, 10 K) — He certainly deserved better then a no decision.  He is sporting a 3.10 ERA, 1.27 WHIP and 76 K in 72.2 innings.  Needless to say, he appears to be back to form, huh?
• Dontrelle Willis (6.0 IP, 0 ER, 5 H, 4 BB, 3 K, W) — He may have won and thrown six shutout innings, but all is not well for Willis.  Let’s just say, to an extent, he did this with mirrors and magic wands.  He allowed too many base runners to think that this can continue.  It’s a nice first appearance, but I still wouldn’t touch him.
• Chad Qualls (1.0 IP, 0 ER, 0 H, 0 BB, 0 K, SV) — Amazingly the Diamondbacks continue to give him save opportunities.  He was successful on this night, but one more stumble in the near future and the plug could be pulled.  Be cognizant of that moving forward.

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