Poppin' out the box scores and right into your cubicle, the Roto Rush is your double espresso shot of fantasy baseball advice every weekday.Just by quickly looking at these numbers, which starting pitcher would you rather have on your fantasy roster?
Pitcher No. 1: 4 GS | 26.0 IP | 1.38 ERA
0.88 WHIP | .194 BAA
Pitcher No. 2: 4 GS | 26.1 IP | 2.05 ERA | 0.87 WHIP | .163 BAA
Both are phenomenal, but most of you, at first glance, would take Pitcher No. 1, right? Maybe not.
Pitcher No. 1 is Dan Haren and Pitcher No. 2 is Chad Billingsley, who last night earned another win and is sporting a 4-0 record. Haren, on the other hand, just got his first win on Wednesday and is 1-3. What's the difference?
The difference is run support. In Haren's four starts the Diamondbacks have scored only three runs. That's a miserable 0.75 runs per game for a starting pitcher who is doing everything he's needs to do to win. The Dodgers average 6.75 runs per game when Billingsley pitches giving him a nice cushion, not that he's needed it.
Other hard luck pitchers whose team's offense isn't giving them the support they need: Tim Lincecum's Giants scored 10 runs for him in an early no-decision, but have only scored once in his last two starts. Lincecum is 0-1. Wandy Rodriguez enjoyed the Astros scoring him seven runs in his only win, but they've only scored three times in three other starts which have resulted in a no-decision and two losses. The Braves aren't doing Jair Jurrjens any favors, either. His ERA is 1.42 and he won his first two starts where the team averaged six runs per game. But he's taken a loss and a no-decision in his most recent two starts where the Braves have only managed one run.
The Afflicted: Even though it's likely just a bruise, those of you who own Cole Hamels had to of freaked out when he was hit by a line drive from Prince Fielder's bat. Hamels later declared himself healthy after being removed in the fourth inning after the line drive caught the back of his pitching arm. The Blue Jays sent two pitchers to the disabled list yesterday as Ricky Romero and B.J. Ryan both need mending. Romero has a strained left oblique and Ryan, who has tightness in his left trapezius, will watch Scott Downs take over as the Jays closer while he's gone.
Bits from the Box Scores:
• Albert Pujols blasted two home runs yesterday and drove in three runs to add to his league-leading 21 RBI. On the season he's batting .345 with six homers and has an OPS of 1.184. He also stole his second base of the season on Thursday. If he's going to add stolen bases to his weapons arsenal this will get unfair for opposing hitters really quick. Maybe Pujols is a machine.
• The Mets' "new lineup" produced eight runs on Thursday, which should be enough to win on most nights. Carlos Beltran was 3-5 with a home run and is now hitting .404 for the season. Ryan Church hit his first home run of the season and while he's not shown much power, his eight walks are a boon for those of you in on-base percentage fantasy leagues. Church's slash stats of .333/.429/.521 are even more impressive when you consider he only has one home run.
• With two doubles and a home run last night against the Cubs, Joey Votto is the early favorite in the Votto versus Chris Davis conundrum. Votto has an
OPS of 1.075. • Speaking of Chris Davis, he was 1-3 last night and has five hits over the last seven days. He only had five hit for the season prior to this small run. This could be the early stages of him heating up.
• Aaron Harang picked up his second win on Thursday as he pitched seven strong innings allowing only an unearned run. Take away his one bad start against the Astros where he gave up five earned runs and he'd have an ERA of 0.43. I'm thinking that Harang may be recovering from the disaster he called 2008.
• Collecting two more hits last night, Aaron Hill is batting .377 on the season and has an OPS of 1.039. The second baseman has five home runs already and looks like the hitter we remember from 2007.
Lineup Lock Time: The Rangers and Orioles play at 7:05 PM ET, so do the Twins and Indians. In fact every game on Friday is a night game.
