On to the roundup for the week...
Why are the Baseball Gods trying to punish the Tampa Bay Rays? They lost Evan Longoria until September with a broken bone in his wrist, then Carl Crawford goes down with a torn tendon in his hand. Crawford will be done for the season, leaving a big hole to fill in the Rays lineup. Right now they are only 3 games in front of the Red Sox in the American League East and have to hope guys like Willy Aybar and Rocco Baldelli keep the ship afloat.
We also saw another interesting quote from Hank Steinbrenner this week. He was telling anyone within earshot that the Rays should enjoy this year but that
the Yankees will be back next year. Well, of course they will, because they can financially afford to buy anyone they want. I would not be surprised to see
either Mark Teixeira or Manny Ramirez in a Yankees uniform next year. You would think Hank would learn to be a bit more subtle like his dad! Yeah right...
Injuries:
Scott Rolen (3B, TOR) - He is out till early September with that troublesome shoulder.
Adam Jones (OF, BAL) - On the DL with a fractured left foot and could miss the rest of the season.
Mike Lowell (3B, BOS) - On the 15-day DL with a strained oblique.
Tim Wakefield (SP, BOS) - Out till September with a bad shoulder.
Who's Hot:
Rocco Baldelli (OF, TB) - Rocco is back and will take over CF for the Rays.
Willy Aybar (3B, TB) - Gets all the ABs at third while Longoria is out.
Jason Bay (OF, BOS) - Has fit in nicely with Boston and should ease the pain for Red Sox fans after the trade of Manny Ramirez.
Who's Not:
Garry Sheffield (DH, DET) - Was put on waivers but may not get through, leaving poor Jim Leyland with more gray hair.
Fantasy Studs (Last 7 Days):
1. Marlon Byrd (OF, TEX) - Went 17-27 a .630 BA.
2. Mark Teixeira (1B, LAA) - Hit 3 HRs and drove in 7.
3. Shin-Soo Choo (OF, CLE) - Batted. 400 after given an opportunity for more playing time.
4. Asdrubal Cabrera (2B, CLE) - Hit .471 for the week.
Fantasy Duds (Last 7 Days):
1. Daric Barton - Batted .181 for the week.
2. Jim Thome - Had a 3-22 week, a .136 BA.
Got a fantasy question you would like answered in my column? Send it to me via
e-mail at mikek@creativesports.com. Until next week, I wish you the best of luck.