Fantasy Baseball Morning Update: September 12 shutdown for Strasburg
Scheduling note: I'll start blogging about football here this week, with posts on Tuesdays and Fridays. Because of that, the Tuesday/Friday baseball posts for the rest of the season will probably be done by 11 a.m. ET instead of the usual 8 a.m. The Monday/Wednesday/Thursday baseball posts will stay on the normal schedule.
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Mike Minor wasn't so great on Friday, Brett Anderson's Sunday start (moved from Saturday) was very strong, and Bronson Arroyo turned in a good start of his own on Sunday. With the streaming starter record at 87-54, today's pick is Ross Detwiler (owned in 24.5 percent of FOXSports.com leagues) against the Cubs, while Tuesday's selection is Toronto's Carlos Villanueva (10.4 percent owned) versus the Orioles.
Please note that today's schedule will be played mostly in the afternoon, beginning with Cubs-Nats and Indians-Tigers at 1:05 p.m. ET. Set your lineups accordingly.
On to the news:
- The Nationals announced on Sunday that Stephen Strasburg will start two more times, with his final appearance of the season coming on Wednesday, September 12. For all the controversy surrounding this decision, if you're a Strasburg fantasy owner, you knew this was coming. You've already prepared accordingly, right?
- Look for Alex Rodriguez to return to the Yankee lineup today for the first time since July 24. Teammate Mark Teixeira's return date is uncertain, but this weekend's series in Baltimore appears to be the target.
- Expecting Joey Votto to return to the Reds today? Think again, as he'll make another Triple-A rehab appearance this afternoon. Maybe tomorrow.
- Orioles SP Chris Tillman left his Sunday start due to elbow stiffness, and will have an MRI today. Tillman doesn't seem to think the issue is serious, but stay tuned.
- It was pretty great that big-time Rangers' prospect Jurickson Profar hit a home run in his first big league at bat on Sunday. Just remember that he'll spend most of his time on the bench this month.
- Speaking of prospects, the Cardinals are expected to promote SP Shelby Miller this week, but look for him to be used as a reliever.
- Remember when we all fell all over ourselves trying to pick up Hector Santiago in April, hoping he'd get a lot of saves for the White Sox? He's making his first start for them tonight. Don't expect too much.
- White Sox DH Adam Dunn is day-to-day with an oblique strain. Dunn was hoping to play last night, so he should be close.
- The Blue Jays are tentatively targeting a September 10 return for C. J.P. Arencibia, who has been out since July 25 with a broken hand.
- Good news from Tampa, where Jeff Niemann returned to the mound Saturday after a three-and-a-half-month absence. Too bad he's hurt again already.
- With hard-throwing Andrew Cashner set to return this week, the Padres might go to a six-man rotation. That just means we fantasy owners have another guy to keep track of when preparing to stream starters at PETCO Park.
- Phillies OF Domonic Brown has missed most of the last week with a sore knee, but they're hoping to get him back early this week.
- A's 3B Brandon Inge is probably done for the season after re-injuring his shoulder on Saturday. Full steam ahead for the Josh Donaldson fantasy bandwagon!
- The Dodgers expect to find out on Tuesday if closer Kenley Jansen (heart condition) will be able to return this season. Ronald Belisario and Brandon League have shared the role in Jansen's absence, but you have to wonder if manager Don Mattingly will define the roles in the event of bad Jansen news. If I was save-hunting today, I could see picking up Belisario (as noted in this week's edition of Free Agent Frenzy), but the "proven closer" tag makes League interesting. He's owned in about half of FOXSports.com leagues.
- Rockies SS Troy Tulowitzki (groin) will be re-evaluated after today's Triple-A game. If all is well, he could be reactivated right away.
- Braves SS Andrelton Simmons (broken pinky) could return to the lineup by this weekend.
- As a Yankee fan, I'm concerned with how the AL East race has tightened lately. Fortunately, I can take some solace in the Red Sox' misery.
See you back here tomorrow morning.
