BJ to get TJ

Could it get any worse for the Blue Jays? They are currently in last place in the AL East, 9.5 games behind 1st place Boston and almost as far out of the wild card race. Behind Halladay and Burnett, their rotation consists of Ohka, McGowan and Marcum. Who? Yeah thats what I thought. Oh yeah and now, Jeremy Accardo is their closer. Frasor is still the Closer on the teams official depth chart but we all know how that experiment went. Why is Accardo the closer? Not only is BJ Ryan on the DL, but he is going to have Tommy John Surgery and will miss the rest of the season. Time to look towards next year Toronto.

Taking a look at the Reds

UPDATE: Bailey will not be called up to replace Milton for this start but he still may be worth adding. He is a top prospect and will be up sooner rather than later.

One major move and one possible move thrust the Reds to the front of my mind today. The first priority is that one of my breakout picks for the year has just been demoted. Edwin Encarnacion could make a great buy low canidate for a lot of teams and I think the Reds acted hasitly in demoting him. If someone in your NL only or deep mixed league drops him, you would be wise to grab and stash him. I think he could still have a fantasy impact later in the year.

In other news, the Reds still have not announced who will start in Eric Milton's place on Sunday. Speculation is swirling that it may be the beginning of the Homer Bailey era in Cinci. That would make the top 3 pitching prospects all debuting in the first 6 weeks of the season: Bailey, Lincecum, and Hughes. If Bailey is unowned in your league you need to add him.

And we wonder why the Rangers don't win...

Why do we wonder why the Rangers don't win? When you make moves like trading John Danks and another stud to the White Sox for Brandon McCarthy, you don't deserve to win. But that isn't even what I'm complaining about this time. Eric Gagne was activated from the DL and of course, he's going back to the closers role. If it ain't broken don't fix it! You know Gagne is going to get hurt again and Otsuka probably doesn't enjoy being toyed with like this. Let Otsuka close, and let Gagne be the setup man -- in between vacations to the DL.

Fantasy Impact: I doubt anybody dropped Gagne when he went on the DL but clearly, he needs to be on your roster if somebody did. And, don't go about dropping Otsuka, you'll regret it when Gagne makes his next trip to the DL -- in probably a week or so.

Zumaya, Igawa, Clemens and More

A couple of thoughts about the happenings of baseball recently:

- Zumaya will miss 12 weeks as he is scheduled to have surgery for a finger injury. Anybody hoping Zumaya would become the closer at some point this year needs to temper their expectations. Zumaya will probably remain in the setup role for the rest of the year but if there are DL spots and you have room he is worth hanging onto because he can contribute with an IP and strikeouts 3 out 4 nights once he is healthy.

- Kei Igawa was sent to class A Tampa after struggling in the majors. Igawa was merely a PR signing to keep up with the Red Sox in Japan but that is one expensive PR signing. Class A seems a little bit harsh, doesn't it? Igawa didn't have any fantasy value to begin with but if you were still holding out hope for him, it's time to drop him.

- More details have surfaced about the Roger Clemens signing. It appears Clemens should be ready to start in the majors by mid-june at the absolute latest. Additionally, Clemens contract includes a similar clause as his contract last year that states that he doesn't have to travel with the team if he is not scheduled to pitch.

- A couple of players have been suspended recently. Scott Proctor, Joe Torre, Matt Capps, and Juan Salas. The Proctor and Capps suspensions were minimal. Joe Torre obviously has no fantasy implications. Salas was suspended for 50 games for violating the MLB's drug policy. But he isn't really fantasy worthy either.

- Brian Lawrence signed with the New York Mets. He is expected to make some minor league rehab starts and then get a shot at the major league rotation. He doesn't really have any fantasy value either.

Soriano Gets In The Game at 2B

What? Alfonso Soriano back at 2nd base? Fantasy Owners don't get too excited. He only got work there because all the other 2nd baseman (Theriot shifted to short when Izturis was pinch hit for) were out of the game after needing offensive help in the bottom of the 9th. Well, the Cubs tied the game and needed a 2nd baseman for extras so in comes Soriano. I wouldn't expect Soriano to get eligibility in any leagues unless you only need to have played their once to get eligibility in which case Soriano's stock just skyrocketed.

Also, if you haven't noticed the huge banner already -- you're just blind -- IT'S GOING TO BE HUGE. I claim to revolutionize fantasy baseball and this is going to be able to uphold that promise. Me and the Fantasy Man are teaming up to provide you hours of reading material -- more than you will ever find anywhere else and it will be out in november!

Clemens shocks baseball

Roger Clemens shocked baseball with an ingame announcement today that he would return to play for the Yankees. It seems that the Yankees have figured out how to fix up that rotation but will it be enough?

Fantasy-wise it is unclear still how long it will be before he is pitching for the big league club but he is a must add in all leagues.

Cards Ace Carpenter Out 3 Months

The woes continue for the St. Louis Cardinals. The Cardinals ace, Chris Carpenter, will undergo arthroscopic surgery next week after suffering a setback in his recovering. Carpenter has been out since his first start, on opening day, with the injury. St. Louis is currently last in the NL Central. Additionally, highly touted prospect Anthony Reyes has been struggling.

If you were waiting for Carpenter to come back and rejuvinate your pitching staff, it is time to look elsewhere. Even after he comes back it will likely take him a couple of starts to get back to his old self. If you drafted Carpenter with your second or third round pick you are going to need to get a little lucky to compete this year. Braden Looper continues to pitch very well as the team's #2 pitcher and Kip Wells is pitching well as the #1 but Reyes has struggled.

This may open the door for a trade to bolster the Cardinals staff. Could struggling Mariners pitcher Jeff Weaver make a return to the Cardinals? If he does, he may be worth a chance. What about White Sox starter Mark Buehrle? If he is not traded to the Cardinals mid season he will likely sign with them in the offseason. The White Sox don't look good this year and they should probably cut their losses and trade him instead of losing him for nothing.

Top 25 Updated

If you look on the sidebar you will notice that the top 25 has been updated to reflect the beginning of the season. Some of the biggest movers included Soriano, Berkman and Lee falling and Sizemore, Rollins, Peavy, Halladay and Hernandez rising. A couple new people joined the top 25: Peavy, Halladay, Hernandez, Aramis Ramirez, Wells and a couple fell out of favor: Jeter, Wright, Teixeira, Carpenter and Suzuki.

Oh and in case you haven't already guessed, this is the first time in two years someone not named Pujols has graced my #1 spot.

A look ahead at 2008 Free Agency

I thought it would be interesting to try and figure out where the possible 2008 free agents will sign. So below are my predictions as of now. Feel free to rip them to shreds because these are just my opinions and even at the beginning of free agency this task is nearly impossible.

* List as of 4-26-07
** ’08 age in ()

Catchers

Jorge Posada (36) – Resigns with Yankees
Ivan Rodriguez (36) ($13MM club option for '08) – Option is used
Paul Lo Duca (36) – Boston Red Sox
Michael Barrett (31) – Resigns with Cubs
Jason Kendall (34) – New York Mets

First basemen

Adam Dunn (28) ($13MM club option for '08) – Option is used

Second basemen

Jeff Kent (40) ($9MM club option vests with 550 PAs this year) – Option vested
Marcus Giles (30) ($4MM club option for '08) – For only 4 million you have to use the option
Luis Castillo (32) – San Fransisco Giants
Tadahito Iguchi (33) – Traded before he hits FA

Shortstops

Omar Vizquel (41) - Retires
David Eckstein (33) – Minnesota Twins
Juan Uribe (29) - $5MM club option for '08 – Traded before he hits FA
Cesar Izturis (28) - $5.45MM club option for '08 – San Fransisco Giants

Third basemen

Alex Rodriguez (32) – Stays with Yankees
Mike Lowell (34) - Angels
Mike Lamb (32) - Resigns
Pedro Feliz (33) - Resigns

Left fielders

Eric Byrnes (32) – Baltimore Orioles
Adam Dunn (28) ($13MM club option for '08) – Option is used
Geoff Jenkins (33) ($9MM club option for '08) – Brewers but not with the option
Luis Gonzalez (40) - Retires
Barry Bonds (43) - Retires
Brad Wilkerson (31) – Washington Nationals

Center fielders

Ichiro Suzuki (34) – Texas Rangers
Andruw Jones (31) – Los Angeles Angels
Torii Hunter (32) – Seattle Mariners
Eric Byrnes (32) – Baltimore Orioles
Corey Patterson (28) – Philadelphia Phillies
Milton Bradley (30) - Resigns
Aaron Rowand (30) – Chicago White Sox
Mike Cameron (35) – Minnesota Twins
Kenny Lofton (41) – Retires

Right fielders

Jermaine Dye (34) – San Fransisco Giants
Bobby Abreu (34) ($16MM club option for '08) – Tough Call but I say they use the option
Ichiro Suzuki (34) – Texas Rangers
Milton Bradley (30) - Resigns
Geoff Jenkins (33) ($9MM club option for '08) – Brewers but not with option
Trot Nixon (34) – Resigns
Jose Guillen (32) ($9MM club option for '08) – Option is used
Shawn Green (35) ($10MM club option for '08) – Resigns but not with option
Eric Hinske (30) - Resigns

DHs

Shea Hillenbrand (32) - Resigns
Mike Piazza (39) - Retires
Barry Bonds (43) - Retires
Mike Sweeney (34) - Athletics

Starting pitchers

Carlos Zambrano (27) - Resigns
Curt Schilling (41) - Resigns
Jason Jennings (29) - Resigns
Freddy Garcia (32) - Resigns
Kenny Rogers (43) - Retires
Mark Buehrle (29) - Cardinals
Jon Lieber (38) – Traded prior to hitting FA
Bartolo Colon (35) – Texas Rangers
Joe Kennedy (29) - Athletics
Tomo Ohka (32) - Resigns
John Thomson (34) - Resigns
Kip Wells (31) - Resigns
Wade Miller (31) - Resigns
Livan Hernandez (33) - Resigns
Randy Wolf (31) ($9MM club option for '08) – Option is used
Paul Byrd (37) ($8MM club option for '08) – Resigns but not with option
Jeff Weaver (31) - Cardinals
Tom Glavine (42) ($9MM player option for '08) – Option is used
Kris Benson (33) ($7.5MM club option for '08) - Resigns
Jaret Wright (32) - Royals
David Wells (45) - Retires
Eric Milton (32) – Resigns
Kyle Lohse (29) - Resigns
Matt Clement (33) – Forced to retire due to injury
Rodrigo Lopez (32) - Resigns
Josh Fogg (31) – Resigns
Byung-Hyun Kim (29) – Traded prior to FA
Odalis Perez (31) ($9MM club option for '08) - Resigns
Brett Tomko (35) ($4.5MM mutual option for '08) – Option is used

Closers

Mariano Rivera (38) - Resigns
Jason Isringhausen (35) ($8MM club option for '08) – Option is used
Bob Wickman (39) - Retires
Francisco Cordero (33) - Resigns
Armando Benitez (35) - Resigns
Eric Gagne (32) - Resigns
Todd Jones (40) - Retires
Jorge Julio (29) - Phillies

Middle relievers

Scott Linebrink (31) - Resigns
Kerry Wood (31) – Resigns

Don’t get mad at me, I did this really fast. Have fun reading and debating. If you have any questions email me: stew0610@ameritech.net

Saltalamaccia Debuts

Top Braves prosect Saltalamaccia debuted today because McCann had a bruised thumb and his back up was sent to the DL but could it be more than that? With both Saltalamaccia and McCann at catcher, if both stay on the team one of the two will have to move to 1B. However, to get the best value out of the two it would probably be wise to trade Salty. The probable reason that the Braves decided to call up Salty is to display his major league ready skills to possible suitors. How soon could he be traded? By my estimations, as soon as McCann is fully healthy if Salty has been playing well he could be shipped out. Stay tuned for more trade rumors on him for the next couple of weeks.

In other big news in fantasy baseball, Billy Butler was called up by the Royals and named an every day starter. He doesn't play great defense but his bat is certainly major league ready. He's certainly worth a shot in most leagues and certainly in AL only leagues. I'd put him about on par with Hunter Pence at this point.

Thats all for now. As always, I'll take your questions via email: stew0610@ameritech.net