The long awaited arrival of Jackie Bradley, Jr. highlights this Week’s Week That Was.

Jackie Bradley, Jr.:  Jackie Bradley, Jr. set the world on fire this week.  In the last 7 days, the Bosox outfielder hit .467 with 12 runs, 3 HR and 13 RBI.  Oh, and his OPS was a cool 1,582 (yep, you read that right).  This serves as a loud reminder to roto owners: do not expect too much too soon from youngsters and do not give up on them too soon.  Bradley has seemingly been around for a long time but is still only 25 despite playing in his third big league season.  Given that he hit .305 with a .382 OBP in AAA this year, his success – albeit not THIS much – should not have come as such a surprise.  Buy for this year and for years to come.

Luis Severino:   Luis Severino gave up 3 runs on just 5 hits Sunday but struck out 9 in a loss to the Blue Jays.  Thus far, Severino is winless but has an impressive 3.18 ERA and 18K over 17 innings.  Not too shabby for 21 year old debuting during a pennant race.  His fastball averages (yes, averages) over 95 MPH and just as he has done in the minors, he is keeping the walks under control.  The talent is obvious.  The only question was whether he could pitch in the pressure cooker that is NY. So far, the answer is a resounding yes.  If someone in your league is focused on the fact that he has not registered a win yet, take advantage.  Severino is here to stay.

Matt Shoemaker:  The Angles sent Matt Shoemaker to AAA.  Wow, that was quite a fall but it should not have been a surprise.  Before last year’s rise from nowhere, Shoemaker was a 27 year old minor leaguer who barely threw 90 MPH and who had posted an ERA under 4.64 at only one stop in his entire minor league career.  We cannot take away from his miraculous 2014 but no one should have held on to memories of that miracle at the expense of their fantasy team.  I hope you did not.

Nicholas Tropeano:  The beneficiary of the Shoemaker demotion should be Nick Tropeano.  Frankly, I am shocked it took this long for Tropeano to get back to the big leagues.  In his two starts in the show this year, Tropeano has a 3.00 ERA, 1.17 WHIP and a cool 4.5 K/BB ratio.  I see much success in the future here.  Why, well, first, he gets swings and misses – 11.7% so far this year in the show.  Second, in 2014 while not bouncing to the show and back, Nick posted a 3.03 ERA and WHIP under 1.00 in the hitter friendly PCL.  This is a guy to buy if you still can.     

John Lamb:  Lamb’s first start in Cincy was mixed.  The 5 ER is not special but 7 K in 6 innings is pretty nice.  This is a major part of the haul the Reds reeled in for trading Johnny Cueto.  Given his AAA 2.67 ERA and K/9 > 9, there is strong reason for optimism.  Team CTW believes as we bid big in LABR NL as we run through the dog days of August just 3 points off the lead. 

Jake Arrieta:   Last week, we wrote: “Jake Arrieta stayed scorching hot, throwing 7.6 innings of scoreless ball Sunday.  As noted right here on fantasy alarm, Arrieta has given up three runs or less in 10 straight starts and during that span, he has posted special numbers: 1.23 ERA, 0.80 WHIP and 8.5 K/9 in 73.3 innings. If you are in a pennant race this year, pay the premium.  If you can deal him in a keeper league, make sure you get a king’s ransom.  Oh, and if you need more support, the 50+% ground ball rate and the 10+% swinging strike rate say the success is for real.” Well, I hope you listened as all Arrieta did was go out and toss 6 and 2/3 innings while giving just 2 earned runs, striking out 5 and notching a win.  Convinced yet?

Corey Kluber:  Last week, we wrote “Corey Kluber was awesome Sunday, tossing a complete game three hitter while striking out 10.  In his encore year, Kluber has tossed 171 innings with 186K, only 33 BB and a 1.08 WHIP.  Only that 3.46 ERA is less than superstar.  Given that his swinging strike rate has increased over his special 2014, his ERA should continue to come down as he leads many a fantasy team to a title.  I cannot imagine you can land him in your league but if you can, stop reading and start dealing!”  Wow, if the window was not nailed shut, it certainly is now.  The reigning Cy Young award winner took the hill this week and pitched a 1 hit complete game while striking out 7.  Just awesome.

And now the moment you well, may or may not be waiting for, the Baron of Bottom of the Page pontificates a/k/a Schultz says: “Ah -- The Ides of August. The time of year when practically half the root-baseball world resigns themselves to their fate and begins planning their domination of the fantasy football world. While many roto-moguls are able to straddle the two worlds, many others - those who don't rise to the level of moguldom - do not (or simply cannot). Especially in keeper leagues, good fortune befalls the Roto-owner that hears the name Chris Johnson and immediately checks to see if Giovanny Urshela has been injured as opposed to thinking CJ2K has a new home. For those still paying attention to the 2015 baseball season, there's still some work to be done, even if it is just set to the table for 2016. Colorado has never been then most advantageous locale to look for starting pitching. For every half season of Ubaldo Jimenez dominance, there are full seasons of Mike Hampton-like disappointment. That shouldn't dissuade you from taking a flyer on Jon Gray, who has looked exceedingly sharp in his first three MLB starts. The number 3 pick in the 2013 draft (behind Mark Appell and Kris Bryant) was deprived of a two win week by an abysmal bullpen and will be on a onerously strict pitch count for the rest of the year. However, once he learns to pitch in the rarefied Rocky Mountain air, there's going to be a lot of value there.

Boston may not be a bad place to look if you are seeking undervalued talent. The bloom is long off the rose of Jackie Bradley Jr. and neither Rusney Castillo nor Blake Swihart did much to impress in the first half. With The Red Sox looking ahead to 2016, there's little reason to think they won't give these three every opportunity to shine from here on out.  Anyone looking for a little boost for the homestretch would do well to see what's going on in Beantown.”

Response: Ides of August – I like it.  Of course, I prefer the Dog Days of August (which is an astrological reference for those who did not know).  Not sure I fully buy any Colorado starting pitcher but I guess time will tell.