The Giants Barry Bonds needs just 15 more home runs to catch Aaron

LOS ANGELES DODGERS

NOTES: Juan Pierre had at least two hits in six of his last seven games, raising his season average a full 100 points from .180 to .280.  Over that same time period he’s racked up 11 runs and three steals.  Jeff Kent isn’t the power bat he used to be, but he’s been absolutely raking lately, hitting .524 with a .545 OBP last week.  Veteran OF Luis Gonzalez has been hot as well, going .400/.571 last week, but the problem with both hitters has been their anemic power output, as they managed just eight RBI’s between them.

Randy Wolf was phenomenal against the Pirates on Friday, striking out ten batters in six innings of work.  Closer-in-waiting Jonathan Broxton has yet to give up a run this season, and ha 10 strikeouts in as many innings, while incumbent closer Takashi Saito is a perfect six for six in save opportunities on the year with a 1.04 ERA.

INJURIES: OF Matt Kemp experienced a setback in his rehab program, and was limited to hitting in a simulated game and light catch. Jason Schmidt reportedly feels better after some rest, but there is still no timetable for his return.

Player Watch: Matt Kemp’s setback buys Andre Ethier some much needed time to get back on track offensively. After a hot stretch of seven games that saw Ethier collect 10 hits, two homeruns and seven RBI’s, he’s gone hitless in his last two games.

Prospect Watch: Neither James Loney nor Andy LaRoche are playing well enough in Las Vegas to warrant a call just yet.  Loney has knocked in 14 runs in 17 games, but his .254 average and 11/7 K/BB ratio need improvement.

MILWAUKEE BREWERS

NOTES: Lost in the resurgence of Billy Hall and Prince Fielder’s two homerun game Monday night is the phenomenal week that SS JJ Hardy had.  He it five homeruns last week, four of which came over just a three game stretch.  He added 10 RBI’s to a very solid .290 average in that time span as well.  He’ll obviously regress a bit, but he’s definitely worth starting in NL leagues, and someone to keep an eye on in mixed leagues.  Geoff Jenkins continued his hot start, hitting .375 last week, though you’d like to see more power from his bat.

Claudio Vargas was rocked back to earth by the Cubs this weekend, but don’t panic with him just yet.  His peripherals all point towards a guy who should succeed more than he fails this season.  Dave Bush and Ben Sheets both bounced back nicely against the Astros after rough starts earlier in the week.  Both pitchers are premier control guys with solid strikeout ability, patience is mandatory in both cases.

INJURIES: None.
 
Player Watch: Corey Hart is still getting the shaft by Brewers management. What does he have to do to prove he deserves 500 at bats?  In just 11 at bats last week, the speedy young outfielder hit .545 with a .643 OBP and three steals. At some point the wheels are going to fall off of the Geoff Jenkins bandwagon, and we can only hope that Hart is the primary beneficiary of the extra at bats.

Prospect Watch: Yovani Gallardo had another strong outing on the 19th, striking out seven in six innings for the win.  To date Gallardo has a superb 26/4 K/BB ratio and looks more than ready to take the next step.

NEW YORK METS

NOTES: The Mets have discovered their power bats again and are absolutely demolishing opponents pitching, led by Carlos Beltran (.424, two HR, nine RBI, two SB), Jose Reyes (.406, six SB), Moises Alou (.520, two HR, seven RBI), and Shawn Green (.379, two HR, five RBI). 

Second year starter John Maine went 2-0 last week, posting a 1.84 ERA and 12 strikeouts in 14 innings. El Duque and Oliver Perez both looked overpowering in their starts last week, each getting the win and striking out ten and nine respectively.

INJURIES: Nothing new to add.

Player Watch: Top young hurler Mike Pelfrey was roughed up last week allowing four runs in five innings. The Mets offense is good enough that the team can afford to wait on Pelfrey a bit.

Prospect Watch: Lastings Milledge has really picked it up for AAA New Orleans, .429 with five steals in his last eight games . There isn’t a spot for him on the team the way Alou and Green have been hitting, but he’s definitely put himself back on the radar.

PHILADELPHIA PHILLIES

NOTES: Don’t look now, but the Phillies are surging. In a move that surprised virtually everybody, Philadelphia moved it’s winningest pitcher from last season, Brett Myers, to the pen, swapping him with Jon Lieber.  Myers is setting up for Tom Gordon for the time being, though manager Charlie Manuel has already said that Myers will get some save opportunities and has a chance to take the job from Gordon.  Cole Hamels struck out 15 in a dominant complete game performance on Saturday, which likely made it easier for fans to cope with the Myers move.  Freddy Garcia followed it up on Sunday, with a strong start his own, tossing a four hitter for the victory.

Ryan Howard returned from a sprained knee ligament, and proceeded to hit a two-run blast in his first game back.  Jimmy Rollins continued his hot hitting and Chase Utely looks to have found his power stroke, with two homers and seven RBI’s last week.
 
INJURIES: None outstanding. Ryan Howard missed a few games, but is now back in the lineup.

Player Watch: Right fielder Shane Victorino is starting to live up to some of the preseason hype that singled him out as a potential bargain for steals.  Last week the fleet footed outfielder hit .319 with five stolen bases.

Prospect Watch: Michael Bourn still has yet to do anything of substance with a bat in his hand.  We know he can run, but can he hit better than Joey Gaithright, another speed prospect who never panned out?

PITTSBURGH PIRATES

Gorzelanny keeps shutting teams down.

NOTES: Tom Gorzelanny beat the Dodgers in six Saturday in another fine outing.  Mixed leaguers should start paying attention here. There may be better pitchers on the Pirates, but Gorzelanny arguably has the best stuff out of any of them.  Four of their hitters are hitting over .345 (Jason Bay, Jack Wilson, Chris Duffy and Jose Bautista, but no one has really hit for power yet.  Wait on Bay in particular, he’s a legitimate stud.

INJURIES: None.
 
Player Watch: Last years NL batting champion has yet to get it going this season, but give it time, Freddy Sanchez is too solid a hitter to keep slumping and is due to turn things around.  He’ll have value in NL only leagues soon enough  and his positional flexibility gives him value in mixed league despite being primarily an hitter for average.

Prospect Watch: Andrew McCutchen has started to heat up, raising his season average to .313 over 32 at bats.  He’s still aways away.

ST. LOUIS CARDINALS

NOTES: Mr. Pujols, Mr. Rolen…welcome back.  Pujols hit .348 with two homeruns and five RBI’s last week, while Rolen exploded back into the box scores with a five hit, three RBI performance against the division rival Cubs on Sunday night. Second year outfielder Chris Duncan has cooled considerably after a fast start, hitting just .217 last week.

Braden Looper continues to defy conventional wisdom by continuing to pitch well and keep his team in games.  Last week he went 1-0 with a 1.29 ERA.  The young hurlers, Adam Wainwright and Anthony Reyes, whom everyone was so excited about at the beginning of the year, struggled mightily last week, giving up 16 runs in two starts between them. 

INJURIES: Right fielder Juan Encarnacion is playing pain free in his minor league rehab assignment, and could join the team in the next week.

Player Watch: Preston Wilson hit .353 with two homeruns, an RBI and a stolen base last week.  He’s a very capable hitter when he can stay healthy.  With Encarnacion and the brittle Jim Edmonds in the outfield, Wilson should see plenty of at bats as a sub this season.

SAN DIEGO PADRES

NOTES: Adrian Gonzalez is absolutely mashing the ball. He hit .400 with a .455 OBP last week to go along with two more homeruns and eight RBIs.  In fact, the only two starter who hit below .300 for the Padres last week were Terrmel Sledge and Kevin Kouzmanoff who continues to struggle at the plate.  Marcus Giles is putting up a strong fight against Tim Hudson as NL comeback player of the year. Last week he hit .440 with five RBI’s and a steal.

It’s a good thing the Padres bats have come alive, because their pitching staff was a bit inconsistent last week. Chris Young and Clay Hensley and David Wells managed to put together relatively strong starts, but ace Jake Peavy and Hall of Famer Greg Maddux were both knocked around for four and seven earned runs respectively.

INJURIES: Catcher Josh Bard is scheduled to rejoin the team on April 27th.
 
Player Watch: While the rest of the San Diego bats got going last week, third baseman Kevin Kouzmanoff continued to look overmatched.  We’ve been told all spring that the man can hit, it’s time for him to step up to the plate.

Prospect Watch: Craig Stansberry is hitting .378 for AAA Portland and could potentially see some time in San Diego if Kouzmanoff keeps floundering.

SAN FRANCISCO GIANTS

NOTES: Matt Cain went 1-0 with a complete game three hitter and a 0.56 ERA in two starts last week.  Hid did give up seven walks, but he worked his way around them without suffering any damage. The Giants got quality starts from every one of their pitchers last week, with none giving up more than two runs in a game. On offense the Giants were dreadful last week, and were carried by the pitching staff and a power surge from Barry Bonds, who hit three more homers. 

INJURIES: None.

Player Watch: Bonds was devastating at the plate last week hitting .500/.579/1.286 along with three more bombs that brought him to within 15 homeruns of Aaron’s record.

Prospect Watch: Top pitching prospect Tim Lincecum has 32 strikeouts in 25 innings for AAA Fresno. It’s only a matter of time, a very short matter of time, before Lincecum joins the Giants for good.

WASHINGTON NATIONALS

NOTES: Ryan Zimmerman drove in 5 runs last week, and has started to settle into a good groove.  Felipe Lopez owners are happy to see him swiping bases again (two last week), while Ryan Church and Dmitri Young have seen their averages drop towards the Mendoza line.

 INJURIES: Nothing new.
 
Player Watch: OF Austin Kearns is starting to make contact and could supply some decent power, at  least on the road.

Prospect Watch: Winston Abreu has struck out 16 in 12 innings for AAA Columbus.