Fantasy Mlb Transactions

As Watson noted earlier, there has been a fairly decent seismic shift in the National League Arms Race, what with the Cubs acquiring Rich Harden only 24 hours after the Brewers picked up CC Sabathia. And just like it affects real baseball, the trade does some things for fantasy owners as well. So, why not look at the four biggest names in the trade?

Rich Harden, SP -- I've said it once, and I'll say it again: sell high on Harden. Billy Beane rarely gets suckered and this deal kind of looks like one of those times, no? Which makes me think "ruh-roh" with regard to Harden's health. Especially when you remember that during his next to last start in an Oakland uni, he was barely topping 90 mph. But his move to one of the most offensively potent teams and a World Series contender should boost his value in theory, making him a prime sell.

The Brewers apparently don't feel content walking down the Cubs in regular fashion (they are only 3 1/2 games back) and have instead decided, according to Tom Haudricourt's Brewers Blog at the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel, to trade for C.C. Sabathia.

I just was told by a reliable club source that the Brewers have a deal in place with Cleveland for left-hander C.C. Sabathia, contingent on the paperwork being done and medical records exchanged.

But believe me, folks, that's a deal. All that other stuff is formality.

All I know so far is that top prospect Matt LaPorta is in the deal. I was told two lower-level minor leaguers also are included. The Brewers refused to include another top prospect such as Alcides Escobar or Mat Gamel.

Obviously this is huge news; Sabathia has been the primary name mentioned in all major trade talks over the past few months. Word had not-so-quietly leaked that the Indians were willing to concede this season in the AL Central and look to acquire young talent in exchange for the free agent to be. LaPorta fills that need as he ranks at the top of the Brewers farm system and could be an impact player in Cleveland in the near future. More details as the facts surrounding the trade get released.

It seems like Jeff Francoeur has been in the majors longer than three years. And it also seems like he was supposed to find his swing and really break out this year. While the first one is still technically true, there's no guarantee for how long, as apparently the Braves confirmed Wednesday that they have debated sending Frenchy to the minors to work on his swing.

One primary reason that the Braves haven't shipped Francoeur back to the Minors is the potential backlash they might receive from their fans, who have remained faithful to No. 7, despite the fact that he entered Wednesday night's game against the Phillies hitting just .239 with a .294 on-base percentage and .383 slugging percentage.

[...]Even before he homered in his Major League debut on July 7, 2005, Francoeur was a favorite among Braves fans. Growing up in suburban Atlanta, he was named the high school Player of the Year for Georgia in both football and baseball.

"This is really the first time he's ever struggled," said Braves All-Star catcher Brian McCann, who has been Francouer's best friend since they were 12 years old.

Francoeur has struggled mightily this season, hitting .234/.291/.379 with only eight homers and 20 walks. But, as Philly proved by sending Brett Myers down to AAA, sometimes the most awkward move is the one necessary to jumpstart a player.

But do I actually think they'll send Frenchy down there? No way. Popularity aside, the guy's confidence won't be helped by a demotion, and the Braves need his gascan arm sitting out in right field. Of course, I might be delusional, since I think the freeswinger will turn it around and have a monster second half too.

It would be hard to blame uber-prospect Clayton Kershaw for getting upset at his demotion back to the minor leagues; he has pitched well thus far, despite not getting any run support from the Dodgers. I actually watched him last night and the 12-6 he froze Hunter Pence on in the fifth after dialing up 96 the pitch before was a perfect example of his potential to dominate.

But the Dodgers have more than just watching a youngster unleash nasty deuce-balls, and he understands that.

It's disappointing, but it's a business," he said. "I'm going to Jacksonville to keep pitching like I'm supposed to. I didn't expect it. Right now, I'm just disappointed."

Well, of course he's disappointed. (So am I, for the record.) Kershaw has pitched very well at times, while at others looking very much like a rookie, but what did the Dodgers expect? The biggest issue with PE#1 was his control: he only walked one or less batters once, during his first start of the season.

Additionally, tossing under a fairly rigid pitch count didn't help matters, as Kershaw never got to really extend past 90 pitches, much less five innings. His last start was arguably his best of the season but LA still couldn't hold on for the win and Clayton remains 0-2 so far in his MLB career.

Fantasy Spin: He's still a virtual lock to land back in the majors at some point, it's just a matter of where the Dodgers are in the pennant race when they decide to bring him back up. Also, if injuries continue to strike, there's a good chance he won't stay in Jacksonville that long. He's a must have in keeper leagues, but seasonal leagues, particularly smaller ones, can drop him and just keep an eye out.

Finally, mercifully, the San Diego Padres have decided to bring their top prospect, Chase Headley, to the major leagues. Headley got the call this weekend and will start his first game Tuesday when the Fathers face the Bronx Bombers in Yankee Stadium. So, you know, no pressure.

'He's on his way,' [GM Kevin] Towers said before Saturday's Interleague game against the Indians.

[...]"I think the environment is much better than it was three weeks ago," Towers said. "We have got a lot of guys contributing offensively. When he gets here, he shouldn't have to feel like he's got to carry this ballclub. We're playing good baseball now.

"To me, now is kind of the right time to have him here, when things are going well."

And by "going well", what Towers means is "after his June 1 arbitration date; well enough after, in fact, to make sure everyone forget that's why I kept him down in the first place."

Although, in fairness, the Padres have won seven of their last ten while leapfrogging the Giants and Rockies and somehow climbing within 6.5 games. Additionally, Jake Peavy is back, so maybe things aren't as bleak as they were earlier. Convenient, really.

Fantasy Spin: Headley is going to be OF eligible and likely 3B eligible as he'll spell Kevin Kouzmanoff. He's an impact player, who I would grab in most leagues (if you need 3B help), especially keepers. Of course, he is also a rookie and an OF, so be patient and don't expect him to pull a Ryan Braun or anything.

Well that didn't take long. John Smoltz, after only a few rehab starts, has been activated by the Braves and could close as early as tonight.

Smoltz, who had been on the disabled list since April 28 with a severely inflamed right biceps tendon and inflammation in his right rotator cuff, made three Minor League rehab appearances. He made his final appearance on Saturday, and pitched a scoreless inning for Class A Rome.

It's a testament to his durability that Smoltz was able to come back so quickly. He could close tonight, and although it seems like Bobby Cox would want to warm up him before tossing him to the ninth inning wolves, it's hard to imagine that the veteran gets butterflies in his stomach all too often these days.

Fantasy Spin: Get Smoltz active in all leagues. The Braves have had horrible luck in one run games, but if you just backdoored a closer after thinking you were losing a starter, this could actually work out well for you. He's had some success, I believe, in that role.

The "news" (read: rumor/speculation) that Evan Longoria could land some time at shortstop for the Tampa Bay Rays got us Fantasy FanHouse people kind of excited. Nerdy? Perhaps. But it would still be freaking sweet. Especially when you consider how frustrating it is to see some of the game's best hitters underused at a certain position (sure it doesn't matter to real baseball, but whatever).

1. Alex Rodriguez, (3B to SS) -- Sadly, this is just logical and the Yankees should have done it when he came over and was a better offensive and defensive shortstop than Derek Jeter. Unfortunately, he just didn't possess the intangibles that Captain November True Yankee did, and we're left to wonder what might have been.

2. Alfonso Soriano, (OF to 2B) -- Sweet Lou actually played him at second once this year (right after I traded him), which was spicy, but the days of Fonsy challenging Chase Utley for top two bagger are long gone. Which is a shame, because it's not like a) he's great in the outfield or b) the Cubs can't just swap he and Mark DeRosa. Either way, Matt Murton gets jobbed. Good times!

3. Albert Pujols, (1B to 3B) -- Although he wouldn't surpass our fictional A-Rod (see above), he would be a stone cold lock at second overall if he played third base, as he has in the past. The defensive needs of the position would probably take more of a toll on his offense, so Pooey is probably better at first, but since we don't care about defense, it's nice to dream.

Just a few short hours after I mentioned that Ian Stewart was getting no love from fantasy circles -- or real world circles -- he might suddenly be getting a lot more value in both worlds. With the return of Garrett Atkins, and the continued absence of Clint Barmes, Troy Tulowitzki and about eight other middle infielders, Stewart is getting starts at second base.

Stewart field five ground balls, including a pair of impressive plays in the sixth inning, in Colorado's 7-4 loss to Philadelphia, and finished 1-for-3 with a double. It was Stewart's first career start at second base.

'Is he going to be as athletic as Jonny [Herrera] or Q [Omar Quintanilla]? Probably not," Rockies manager Clint Hurdle said. "They're just a little more nimble. As far as athleticism, he did some nice things in Spring Training. We'll see how it works out. He made plays that were there for him.'

If Stewart can step in and play second, and one would think he could, he would instantly become a tremendous asset to the Rockies on the offensive end. He would also instantly have everyone saying "It took you this long to figure this out?"

Stewart has been -- pun intended -- pining on the bench behind Atkins for some time now and despite no real power option at second, the Rockies decided to develop him in the outfield.

Fantasy Spin: If Stewart is going to start and stick at second for the Rockies, he is a must add. Unless you have Chase Utley and Brandon Phillips or something. He has a ton of power and positional eligibility there would give him the upside of being a pretty stout option for fantasy owners.

The Jacksonville Suns did that thing where they pull a stud prospect pitcher early even though he is fine and pitching well. I say "that thing" because such a manuever is usually followed by a call-up to the major leagues. And that's the news coming out of Dodger-land as well, with Clayton Kershaw dealing and the Dodgers making a run in the NL West.

Beginning with Tuesday's game in Chicago, the Dodgers will need a fifth starter on almost a traditional five-day rotation through the All-Star break. The last time the spot came up Saturday in Anaheim, manager Joe Torre went with a tag-team of Chan Ho Park for four innings (one earned run), followed by Hong-Chih Kuo for four scoreless innings in a 6-3 win.

Bear in mind that a few weeks ago, when we thought Kershaw was getting the call, the Dodgers were not as hot on the heels of Arizona as they are now. The team was inconsistent, except for Andruw Jones, who stunk all the time. Suddenly, they are surging, just three games back. And they have a prospect that their manager has likened to Sandy Koufax (whether that's accurate or not is beside the point).

So a call-up coming seems pretty likely. Or at least pretty reasonable. So, um, welcome to the Kershaw-dome. And any other number of horrible Public Enemy jokes I will be slinging your way.

Fantasy Spin: If you haven't burned through your transaction cap listening to me on Kershaw advice, go ahead and run back out there and grab him. He's a phenom with an otherwordly curveball and tons of strikeout potential. Non-keepers want to be trying to move him as soon as he gets up, if not earlier, because of his innings cap and the hype involved.

Rafael Furcal remains on the disabled list, expected to play as early as Friday, and that creates a bit of a void for the Dodgers. Offensively, it just will not get filled. But defensively, they at least have some options. It was thought that one of those could be the eternally overrated Nomar Garciaparra, who played short with some team that traded him right before they won something.

But Nomar's ability to always be healthy will probably prevent that, as it turns out he and Furcal are moving in opposite directions in terms of getting on the diamond.

When Nomar Garciaparra took ground balls at shortstop this week, it led to speculation that the veteran might temporarily return to his natural position until Rafael Furcal returns from the disabled list.

But in the last few days, Furcal has made steady improvement from his back sprain, while Garciaparra's recovery from a strained calf muscle has stalled.

That would be an interesting move for sure, but not something that would really benefit the Dodgers. Garciaparra seems practically allergic to anything that will cause strain on his body from the obliques down, and I would probably set the over/under at games played at SS somewhere around .05 before he got hurt.

In the meantime, the team won't be crushed by forcing Chin-lung Hu or Luis Maza out on the field. Sure, they're not great options, but remember, as long as Andruw Jones (-7.8 VORP) is still getting at bats, anything is justifiable.

Fantasy Spin: Maza and Hu have little to no value in all but the deepest leagues, and Furcal should be benched in weeklies where possible, given he probably will not be worth much until Week 9.