DFS PLAYBOOK PRO – An exciting offering from the Alarm is the DFS Playbook Pro. I will be doing a daily breakdown of the hitters – Hitting Coach – while Howard Bender looks into the Pitchers (Pitching Coach). You can find the link to the Hitting and Pitching articles under the DFS Playbook pro tab at the top right of the screen.
OTHER LINKS TO BOOKMARK
CHASE UTLEY IS BACK
Finally healthy, Chase Utley will return to action for the Phillies Friday after missing a month and a half with a sprained right ankle. How much will Utley play? A lot from the sound of it, but maybe not enough to be a mixed league threat. "I'm going to do as much as I can to try to get [Utley] in there four days a week," Phillies interim manager Pete Mackanin said. Remember, Utley can still be traded at some point before the August 31st waiver deadline, something that the Phillies would love to do.
What does this mean for the current duo of Cesar Hernandez and Freddy Galvis.?
Hernandez has hit .323 with a .783 OPS in 40 games since June 17th, and when Utley is out there it sounds like Cesar will see time at third or shortstop and continue to play a lot. Hernandez has also stolen 13 bases in 14 attempt bringing a huge infusion of speed to the fantasy game. Galvis is batting .272 with a mere .311 OBP, and five homers and 11 doubles show that all he does is slap the ball around. He’s really not a very good hitter unless a lefty is on the bump (.347/.367/.379). Sounds like he could see some time in center field with Utley returning but he will see his overall playing time cut substantially.
Let’s cheer for Utley and realize that despite his age and current reputation that the guy might still have something left in his bat… if he can just stay healthy.
FISTER TO PEN
Stephen Strasburg will return to the rotation Saturday against the Rockies. Who is removed from the rotation – Doug Fister or Joe Ross? Adios Mr. Fister at the expense of Ross who has been lights out (Daily Trends, August 4th). The problems for Fister are extensive at the moment.
4.60 ERA, 1.42 WHIP
5.02 K/9
1,26 HR/9
Swinging strike percentage is 5.3 percent. It’s 6.7 percent for his career.
Not looking good for him to have any mixed league value the rest of the way. Hell, he may not have NL-only value with the way he’s going.
A DOM BROWN SIGHTING?
Dominic Brown hit 12 homers with 25 RBIs in the month of May in 2013. That’s 12 homers in 109 at-bats. For the rest of his big league career he’s hit 40 homers in 1,436 at-bats. His entire career has really been built off of a two week run in May of ’13. But, and give him some credit, he’s hitting well now. Over his last 13 games he’s batting .354 with three homers and 13 RBIs. He’s also walked just once and his overall numbers this season are terrible (.252/.296/.364), as usual. If you want to ride that wave have at it. Realize though that this guy has been replacement level, actually worse than that.
EATON AWAKENS
Finally.
Adam Eaton was one of my favorites heading into the 2015 season. He looked terrible for most of the first half, and his overall production will not get to the levels I had hoped. I pushed him hard this spring too. Sorry about that. However, if you held on, or if you were able to add him on the cheap in a deal or off waivers you’re finally getting your payoff.
Over his last 12 games Eaton is hitting .426 with a .518 OBP. Off the charts good. But there is more. He’s scored 15 runs. Stupendous. Then there is this. He’s finally running with six thefts in that time. Suddenly he’s up to 11 steals and 66 runs scored through 100 games putting him on pace to match last year’s effort (last year he had 15 and 76 in 123). Though his average is still languishing at .269, it’s on the way up and he’s provide something he never has before – a bit of power. Coming into the season he had six homers. This year he’s hit nine. He has pushed his fly ball rate up to 28 percent (career 24), and that’s not a good thing. If he were to hit the ball on the ground a bit more his outlook would be improved even more. Guess what? Over his 12 game run his fly ball rate is 21 percent. Keep doing that kid.
The merc with a mouth...
CREDIT WHERE IT’S DUE
Ben Paulsen is batting .347 with three homers and 13 RBIs his last 13 games for the Rockies. Time to admit that the guy has been really good this year. Not over the top or anything, but his current pace over 150 games would equate to a .300-18-75-62. If you’re rolling that type of production out there as your corner infielder in a mixed league there no issue at all. Would be nice if he lifted the ball a bit more, that 48 percent ground ball rate is just too high, but that’s quibbling a bit.
DO YOU KNOW ABOUT ME?
Carlos Sanchez plays second base for the White Sox. The last two weeks he’s hit .327 with three homers and seven runs scored. The youngster has had a rough season overall – his .229./259/.333 slash line is enough to bring tears – but as I noted things have gotten a heck of a lot better of late. He might be on waivers in your league. Nine walks in 357 career plate appearances scares me, and though he’s produced power of late it’s not his game. Thinking short term addition, that’s it.
IMPORT REVIEW
Jung-ho Kang has been all over the place. Starter. Bench player. Cold. Hot. Through it all he’s had one heck of a season. Not an off the 
charts fantasy effort, but solid nonetheless. Data points.
He’s appeared 55 times a third and 36 times at shortstop. That means he qualifies at third, corner infield, shortstop and middle infield. That’s great flexibility and adds a ton to his fantasy value.
He’s batting .291 with a .362 OBP and .446 SLG. All of those numbers are solid and speak to his overall game.
Kang has only eight homers and five steals though a 15/10 pace, while hitting .291, certainly is nothing to sneer at if you’re playing him up the middle.
Over his last 16 games he is batting .383 with a .413 OBP and .650 SLG. Somehow, despite all that offense and three homers, he’s knocked in only five runs.
Like what I’m seeing, though more walks would be welcomed.
POLANCO A LOST CAUSE?
No.
Gregory Polanco is not a lost cause.
If we roll back the clock to August 1st, 2014 we find Polanco with 527 plate appearances. How has he performed in this time? It’s not pretty with seven homers, 24 steals, 72 runs scored and a .238 average. But remember this. The guy has just 727 big league plate appearances and isn’t yet 24 years old. We expect everyone to be a star right away. Doesn’t always happen. Moreover, were you aware that his effort with the bat this season mirrors last year almost exactly? His OPS is up .031 points but his AVG (.235 last year and .245 this season), OBP (.307 and .318) and SLG (.343 and .363) are nearly identical. Hoping there’s another step, and I think there is, but it doesn’t look like we will be seeing it until 2016.
Ray Flowers can be heard Monday through Friday at 8 PM EDT on SiriusXM Fantasy Sports Radio (Sirius 210, XM 87). You can also hear Ray Sunday nights at 9 PM on the channel talking fantasy sports. Follow Ray’s work at Fantasy Alarm and on Twitter (@baseballguys).