Fantasy Al West

Jeff Clement's first stint at the big league level did not pan out quite so well. To say that he struggled -- batting .167 with 0HR, seven walks and 20 strikeouts in 48 at bats -- would be an understatement. But as soon as he got demoted to the minors, he started ripping the cover off the ball. Again.

Hence, the Mariners have decided to call Clement back to the bigs. He hasn't played in the majors since returning yet, but he should strap back on the padding and/or take a trip to the outfield soon.

He has been playing at AAA-Tacoma though, absolutely raking the ball -- nine homers, another nine doubles, getting on base at a .375+ club and only 17 strikeouts in May and June combined -- since returning. Which would explain why the M's didn't mind bringing him back up (well, that and their MLB worst record).

Now, Clement is going to be catcher eligible for fantasy purposes, but he might not always play there, giving him the potential to be a half-season/poor man's Josh Willingham from 2006.

Is he a must add in every fantasy league? Um, no. Smaller leagues don't want to burn waiver claims or take the risk that he will do what he did last time. But if you have a 12 team league (or bigger) or use two catchers, I think I'm grabbing him for the upside. Right now, the internet related buzz says to hold off on grabbing him, but if you don't beat the buzz, you end up continuing to play Jesus Flores.

The downside is there (see his first promotion) but the power from that spot, especially if you're in a keeper league, is too strong to ignore.

Hot off the presses, J.J. Putz left the mound with an ailing pitching elbow today in Toronto, and young fireballer Brandon Morrow took over to garner his first career save.

Putz already had some injury woes earlier this season, and if this is indeed an injury to his pitching elbow he may be lost for the season. It's not like the Mariners are going to literally give up on the 2008 season, but if they have to make a decision on whether they want him healthy for the start of next season or not, no chances will be taken with his long term health.

As for Morrow, I have mentioned a Joba-like rotation move for him, but this could change everything. He's got sick stuff and would easily become a dominant closer. Coming into today, Morrow sported a 1.06 ERA with 23 whiffs in 17 innings.

The only downside is that the Mariners do, in fact, suck. His save opportunities would be few and far between. Still, that doesn't mean he wouldn't be a valuable contributor to the category ... Brian Wilson has 18 saves for the hapless Giants. Unlike Wilson, Morrow will provide stellar help in ERA and WHIP when he's on the hill.

Keep an eye on Putz in shallow leagues because you don't want to jump the gun for a middle reliever.

In deeper leagues where Morrow is still available, go get him now and beat the crowd.

Kids Are Alright will examine some hot minor league prospects and their potential to be fantasy relevant towards both seasonal and keeper leagues.

Brandon Wood, who was called up by the Angels Monday night, is the epitome of potential/upside/etc. He was once heralded, in certain circles, as the next Alex Rodriguez. This is based on the perception that he could hit 45 home runs from the shortstop position. A few things derailed that silly notion though. First, his fielding was inadequate for the position. And second -- also more importantly -- he has almost zero patience at the plate.

Witness his 2007 season, which saw him strikeout an absolutely ridiculous 120 times in 111 minor league games. He walked a whopping 45 times and posted a pedestrian .338 OBP. But, man, can he crush the ball. He had 23 homers in 2007, and that has to be considered pretty mediocre as well.

Are things different this year, as we turn a fantasy eye towards the newest prospect to hit the major league scene? Well, a little. He has a ridiculous Pacific Coast League leading eight home runs. And he has six doubles as well, so the power potential is there. But he also has an embarrassing 29:5 K:BB ratio. That's just not good for anyone. And his average is at .273, which isn't entirely shocking, given his past production in that area.

But, Wood's power potential, all of those strikeouts and failures to get on base aside, makes fantasy owners drool. It's a lot less appealing from third than short, sure, but it's still enticing. Which is why Wood is a nice pickup as long as you are not using him for starting purposes. If he comes out hot, you deal him. No questions asked. Don't be suckered, just hope the hype builds and then bank off of it. His second look around the league is going to be a lot uglier, and if you end up starting him for too long, you'll have to eat the average hit he's gonna give you.

Over the past seven days, a ridiculous 24 major league pitchers have blown a save opp. Now, all of these guys aren't closers, they just happened to land in save situations and cough up some runs. However, a few of them are.

One of those guys is C.J. Wilson. Wilson blew his first save of the season on Sunday afternoon, walking three, allowing two hits and giving up two earned runs to take the loss and the BS.

C.J.'s not going to lose his job immediately by any means, and he's been a very nice, cheap source of saves. But how good does he look for the future? Well, the stats (2.25 ERA, 1.12 WHIP) look very nice. The peripherals look a little less friendly. His BABIP is sub .200 and he's seen a spike in fly ball percentage, in terms of what balls are doing after they leave bats after they leave his hands. Yet he hasn't allowed a single home run this year.

Now, you can take all of that and say, "So what, brah? Sample size." And I'll say, "Yeah, man, cool. Keep using him. I'm not offended if you don't listen." So we take this little formula: (low BABIP + high FB% + 0% HR/FB + horrible home park for pitching = lots of luck). Oh yeah, and he's only struck out two batters all season. So there's that.

Folks, Wilson is a nice lower end option at closer. And I think he has a strong future as a reliever, because he should, in theory, strike people out, and absolutely dominate left handed hitters. But all the junk above, even though it's early, make me a little skeptical.

Why not wait pair him with a decent starter and go right after C.C. Sabathia? Sure, Wilson just blew a save, but most of C.C.'s owners are scrambling to dump the hefty lefty and there is always someone looking for a guy that looks like a lock to save 25 games.

New Studs takes a look at players ready to make the leap from "possibly productive fantasy player" to "must-have fantasy stud." This is not a "you've never heard of this dude, but ... " series -- these should be names you already know.

Both of these guys came into the season with gobs of upside, but tempered expectations for different reasons. With one, we were worried that he's still not ready to make "The Leap," after having been teased by his potential the past two seasons. The other? Well, his team sucks. Really, really sucks. So did you really want to waste a high draft pick on a guy that can't win more than ten games? Judging from ADP charts, the answer was a resounding "NO!"

All of a sudden they have something in common: They are simultaneously making the jump from, "dude, he's pretty damn solid, but ... " territory into the "This guy is a freaking monster!" zone. When you drop the "but," the guy is ready to make an appearance on the ever-growing "New Studs on the Block," list.

Welcome aboard, Linc and King Felix. Please bring your nasty stuff and power arms as you join us ...

Major League Mongering will look at players rumored to be on the move between now and the July 31st pseudo-trade-deadline.

It's becoming more and more rare to see blockbuster deals at the deadline, but that might not be the case this year if there is any truth to these Mark Teixeira rumors. From MLB.com:

But one Major League scout confirmed the Braves and Rangers are still discussing a trade that would be headlined with Teixeira and almost definitely include Jarrod Saltalamacchia, Atlanta's 22-year-old switch-hitting catcher who stands as one of the most attractive prospects on the trade market.

This isn't the first time we've heard this rumor, and with the trade deadline just a week away, it's not surprising to see it pick up steam.

Why does this need to happen? The Braves are desperate for a big stick at first base. How desperate? Their current first basemen have combined for a pathetic .205 batting average and .621 OPS this year, which each rank dead last in the National League by wide margins. Scott Thorman, who's seen most of the starts, has been so bad that the Braves have played Saltamacchia out of position there and even picked up 800-year-old Julio Franco.

What might he bring in return? Like the report from MLB.com suggests, the Rangers probably wouldn't do this deal for anything less than a package involving Saltamacchia, widely regarded as one of the best catching prospects in the game who's unfortunately blocked at the big-league level in Atlanta by the 23-year-old Brian McCann. Other players that Atlanta might deal include young pitching prospect Jo-Jo Reyes or shortstop Elvis Andrus.

Major League Mongering will look at players rumored to be on the move between now and the July 31st pseudo-trade-deadline.

Why does this need to happen? It's pretty simple really. Jermaine Dye is in the last season of his contract, and the White Sox need to make some changes if they're going to compete for the AL Central again anytime soon. There's also the fact that Dye has become distant from the rest of the team ever since the White Sox gave Mark Buehrle a contract extension.

He wants to know why the team hasn't talked to him about an extension, and it's because they want to trade him.

The Dodgers need some power in their lineup, and though Dye has struggled this season, his bat has start to come to life again since the break. He's hitting .367 with 4 home runs and 7 RBI in his last seven games and looks to be on the verge of busting out of his slump.

Also the change of scenery would probably do Dye well. I'm sure he feels unappreciated in Chicago where he won a World Series MVP in 2005, and was the team's best player last season. Getting a fresh start on the west coast could be exactly what he needs.