Some hurlers are having success that you wouldn't expect, while those that you might expect to be dominating are having some issues. I won't neglect the offense either. There a few guys that swing the lumber that will be discussed as well.

Torii Hunter, a name we don't talk about much in the fantasy game anymore, is hitting .329 in the second half to raise his season long average up to .294. He hasn't been great this season, but with 12 homers, seven steals 64 RBIs and 62 runs scored in 109 games he's been a very solid 5th outfielder in mixed leagues.

Kenley Jansen is dealing with his heart issue again. He's been shut down and there is some thought that he could miss the rest of the season given that he missed nearly a month of last season with a similar ailment. At this point, if you're looking for some cheap saves, Ronald Belisario and Brandon League would appear to be your best bets. Belisario has looked great this year with a 2.84 ERA, 1.01 WHIP and 47 Ks in 50.2 innings, and he picked up the last save chance for the Dodgers. He has no experience in the 9th inning though. League, who came over from the Mariners, has a ton of closing experience (he had 37 saves last year). However, he's had a rough start to his Dodgers career with a 6.00 ERA and 1.56 WHIP over 11 outings. He thinks he solved a mechanical issue that has led to four scoreless outings in a row. I'd side with Belisario if I was picking a guy up, but many times managers go with the guy who has the experience.

James McDonald has been a special waiver-wire addition this year as he's won 12 games with a 3.57 ERA, 1.18 WHIP and 141 Ks over 159 innings for the Pirates. However, his performance has taken a decided turn for the worse since the Mid-Summer's Classic as his last nine starts have led him down the road of misery: 6.24 ERA, 1.65 WHIP, 1.37 K/BB ratio. Ugly is right. However, look at his season long marks again. The numbers sparkle for a guy who last year was 9-9 with a 4.21 ERA and 1.49 WHIP. Maybe James is getting his second wind. Just when fantasy owners were bailing, and the Pirates were talking about demoting him to the bullpen, he's rebounded with shutout efforts in two of his last three trips to the hill. That means he's allowed four runs in his last three outings leading to a 2-1 record with a 2.00 ERA an a 1.00 WHIP. Encouraging? How could it not be? At the same time it would be wise not to expect a full return to his first have levels of production, but maybe he'll be able to pull a rabbit out of his hat after all and finish the year on a high note after looking like the magic had almost run out.

Tommy Milone, described by my SiriusXM Fantasy Sports Radio co-host Kyle Elfrink (more on the show in my bio below) as a left-handed looking Greg Maddux, has had a wonderful first season in Oakland. Over 25 starts Milone is 11-9 with a 3.73 ERA. That's solid, but why is his effort wonderful given those numbers? It's about what underlies them. Milone is sporting a 1.19 WHIP, a strong number for a young arm in the American League, and one of the main reasons is a lack of walks just 31 in those 25 starts). While not an impressive strikeout arm with 117 in 159.1 innings, his lack of walks has still allowed him to post a 3.77 K/BB ratio, an excellent number. Milone has also been borderline spectacular at home with a 2.34 ERA and 0.91 WHIP over 12 starts. Obviously that means he has blown chunks on the road (5.30 ERA, 1.31 ERA). He'll never be an elite fantasy arm, but this guy has all the makings of being the A's version of Mark Buehrle, and that's pretty darn good.

Chris Sale is 15-5 with a 2.81 ERA, 1.06 WHIP and 155 Ks in 157 innings. He has been a dynamic option for the White Sox an a spectacular value in fantasy leagues given his draft day cost. But all is not well with Sale. Over his last seven starts he's allowed at least four runs on four occasions as his ERA his gone up nearly half a run. Is this merely regression, given that his overall numbers are still fantastic? Or, is this a sign that the young fellas arm is wearing down? I'd suggest the answer is a little bit of both. After all, Sale is still near the top of the leader board in ERA and WHIP in the American league, even with his slow down of late (his ERA is 3.98 over his last eight outings with a 1.27 WHIP). Also, he threw a total of 71 innings last season, a total he has already more than doubled this season. At this point you would be wise not to expect the type of hurler that posted a 2.81 ERA and 1.06 WHIP over 157 innings. You would be well served to expect production the rest of the way that matches his work since the All-Star Break. Maybe he will surprised and revert to sheer dominance, but the smart move is to expect the slow slide to continue.

Hunter Pence is a terrific ballplayer, but he's just not getting it done for the Giants. He did go deep Wednesday night, his second homer with his new club, but that leaves him with two homers in 105 at-bats as a Giant. Given that he's also hitting a mere .219 with a .626 OPS, he clearly hasn't shown himself to be the extremely consistent offensive force that he has been the past five years. The odds are heavily tilted toward him figuring things out and helping the Giants, big time, as they battle the Dodgers for the NL West crown.

Chris Tillman was a disaster in 2009 with a 5.40 ERA, 1.55 WHIP and 1.63 K/BB ratio.
Chris Tillman was a disaster in 2010 with a 5.87 ERA, 1.53 WHIP and 1.00 K/BB ratio.
Chris Tillman was a disaster in 2011 with a 5.52 ERA, 1.65 WHIP and 1.84 K/BB ratio.

Chris Tillman has been a light in the darkness in 2012 with a 3.26 ERA, 1.19 WHIP and 2.48 K/BB ratio.

That's right, through 10 starts Tillman has been what everyone thought he could be, even though he had never shown it in the bigs, and that is a near top of the rotation starter. Tillman has had two awful outings in 10 trips to the hill, but in the other eight games he has a 2.44 ERA and 1.01 WHIP. However, he's also allowed nine unearned runs out of 30 total, so it's not like he's been able to stop the bleeding once it starts. Still, he's allowed three or fewer earned runs in eight of 10 starts pretty much keeping the Orioles afloat most of the time he takes the hill. Not much negative to say right now about this righty, though his previous work at the big league level certainly says you should be wary of a continuance of his current levels of performance.

Ray Flowers can be heard daily on Sirius/XM Radio on The Fantasy Drive on Sirius 210 and XM 87 from 7-10 PM EDT, Monday through Friday. Ray's baseball analysis can be found at BaseballGuys.com and his minute to minute musings can be located at the BaseballGuys' Twitter account.