Is there any way that Coco Crisp will lose playing time to Wily Mo Pena?

I am still toying with the proper format for this column.  For the time being, I’ll stick with the current “around the league” approach, but I’d like to also keep you up-to-date on some of the expert leagues I belong to.  In theory, if you see how I am managing my team, it might persuade you to make a certain move (or dissuade you, for that matter).

American League East

Baltimore Orioles

At what point do Jay Gibbons owners cut bait?  He didn’t play in two games this past weekend because the Indians had back-to-back left-handers on the mound, but he was also out of the lineup on Monday against the right-handed pitching Steve Trachsel.  And he isn’t getting benched because of some hot prospect the Orioles are evaluating, but Mr. Cowboy up himself in Kevin Millar.  Recall that Gibbons is owed nearly $17 million over the next three years so he gets paid whether or not he is in the lineup.  Of course, Orioles manager Sam Perlozzo cites Gibbons’ poor average in 85 at-bats this season as the reason he is being benched, overlooking his career 0.464 slugging percentage in 2500 at bats.  But, I digress…everyone knows the Orioles are the laughingstock of the American League and (in my book) are even money to finish with the worst record in the AL.  Benching Jay Gibbons for Kevin Millar against right-handed pitching is one way to help them reach this “distinction”.   At any rate, if and when Gibbons strings together a few games where he gets hits, he’ll start to play more.  However, his value right now will never be lower.  If you need some power, definitely troll around for Gibbons since his owners are likely very disgruntled at this point.

Boston Red Sox

Is there really any way that the Red Sox will sit Coco Crisp in favor of Willy Mo Pena?  Nope, there isn’t.  If you own Pena, be happy with the pop he provides in limited playing time.  The pressure for Pena to perform if he is replacing a healthy regular (like Crisp) would increase dramatically as would the patience of the Red Sox Nation after a Pena golden sombrero one afternoon.  When Crisp, JD Drew, or Manny Ramirez get injured, then Pena will fill in and everyone will be less critical of his obvious short comings.  Note that this same argument applies for the Alex Cora / Dustin Pedroia situation as well.  Neither guy (barring injury) will reach 450 at-bats and neither guy will get under 200 at bats.  Basically, they are both almost useless from a fantasy baseball perspective since neither has pop nor do they steal bases.

There are certainly rumors out there that something isn’t quite right with Jonathan Papelbon.  If you think baseball management tends to deceive the media and fans regarding player injuries, Toronto GM JP Riccardi has informed me that this is, in fact, not the case.  So don’t worry about it.  Trust them…Oh, and from a fantasy perspective, you might want to open up a reserve spot for either Brandon Donnelly or Hideki Okajima if they are available in your league, in case Papelbon is, in fact, injured.

What Joe Torre is saying here - "Nice job, Igawa." What Joe Torre is thinking here - "We got him instead of Dice-K?"

New York Yankees

Darrell Rasner pitched a competent game on Sunday against the Mariners.  He’s capable of being an innings-eating fifth starter, which would be good for both the Yankees and your fantasy roster (only because of wins potential).  Scheduled to get optioned to Triple-A yesterday, Rasner’s performance on Sunday allowed the Yankees to farm out Kei Igawa instead. 

Tampa Bay Devil Rays

I will relate a funny story here.  One day I was filling one of those 8 oz. Play-Tex baby bottles with water (the ones with disposable liners).  Well, I poured the water right through the bottle and the water spilled all over the counter.  I was distracted by a variety of things at this point and could not comprehend why the water was not staying in the bottle.  Part of me thought it went through a hole in the liner.  Apparently undeterred, I did the exact same thing and, not surprisingly, the water spilled all over the counter.  I thought to myself, “I poured it through the same hole in the liner.  How odd.”  Then my brain made a calculation on the probability of this occurring and sheepishly concluded that there was, in fact, no liner in the bottle. 

I tell this story because when I think about the Devil Rays trying to convince themselves that Edwin Jackson is an asset in the rotation, it is as if they are trying to determine why the water is not staying in the liner.  Enough already.  Jackson has basically no control and has really never shown good control at any level.  Jackson has 18 walks in 28 innings pitched on this season so far, which is on the heels of a nine walk, 20 innings pitched spring.  Oh, and he walked 25 in 36 innings last year in Tampa Bay.  Really, what is the hurry with Jackson?  The 22-year old right-hander has had three stops at Triple-A and posted earned run averages of 5.86, 8.62, and 5.55.  Send him down to Durham and let him throw a year of sub-4.00 ERA ball before he again sees the Major Leagues.  Of course, if you are a fan of, say, Toronto (who faces Jackson on Saturday), you want him in the rotation for the Devil Rays the whole season. 

On a related note, Andy Sonnanstine threw an eight-inning shutout in his last start, walking one and striking out five batters. Sonnanstine now has 42 strikeouts and only seven walks in 38 innings pitched in Triple-A this year.

Toronto Blue Jays

The Blue Jays do not own a leadoff hitter on their roster now.  But, do they need one?  Yes, it would be nice to set the table for the big hitters, but if all that happens out of your leadoff spot is you get good hitters more at bats in a game, that is still a good thing.

Last week I recommended Dustin McGowan and he (and his poor control) was lit up.  This week he avoided a potential Wednesday match-up with the Red Sox (and Matsuzaka) in favor of a Saturday affair with Tampa Bay (and Edwin Jackson).  That is a big win-win for McGowan owners.