By Dalton Del Don – Senior Writer
A quick look around the league in regards to injury issues:
Felix Hernandez – Having watched every pitch Hernandez threw Tuesday night, let me tell you how misleading the boxscore was – 3.2 innings, seven hits, three runs, three walks, five Ks. First off, he gave up three consecutive infield singles during the third inning, one that went no farther than 35 feet. Also, Orlando Cabrera, who went 3-for-3 with two RBI, entered the night batting .429 against him.
With the excuses out of the way, the control wasn’t there – but much more importantly, the stuff was. Hernandez’s fastball consistently hovered in the 95-96 MPH range (his normal speed, despite what the ESPN radar gun might tell you), his changeup was filthy and most surprising of all, he even mixed in the curve from time to time. The breaking pitches were often flat, and he didn’t throw his slider, but considering how pessimistic I was beforehand, to call this outing encouraging would be an understatement. That said, the big test will be how he feels when he wakes up Wednesday. Remember when Vince Vaughn would tell his kids “ear muffs” in “Old School?” Well, if you’re in my fantasy baseball league please do the equivalent of that with your eyes right now – I still think selling Hernandez 85 cents on the dollar is the smart thing to do. There’s just too much risk involved to at least not attempt to see what he can net you back, especially after proving his health on the mound. I hope I’m wrong.
Rocco Baldelli – I joked that Baldelli probably hurt his hamstring while writing this paragraph. Apparently, I was about 45 seconds premature. Fred Taylor blushes when he sees Baldelli go down. When the old man from “A Christmas Story” gets his prize (the leg lamp) sent to him, the box it arrived in was named after Baldelli. There’s one saving grace, however, and that is the fact that it’s tough to go 0-for-4 from the trainer’s room. If they make an “Unbreakable 2,” this guy should replace Sam Jackson’s character. I’m frustrated with Rocco Baldelli.
Jeremy Hermida – Hermida, best known for becoming the first major leaguer in more than a century to hit a grand slam during his first career at-bat, entered last year as one of the favorites to win NL ROY. Since then, he’s been constantly injured and mostly unproductive when on the field. Still, he’s just 23 and has 20/20 potential. He homered during his first rehab start and his second big league start this season, so he doesn’t appear to be too rusty. Unless it’s extremely shallow, Hermida pretty much needs to be owned in all leagues.
Huston Street – Gulp. Street is scheduled to get a second opinion from Dr. Lewis Yocum on Wednesday morning along with a second MRI, never news fantasy owners like to hear. His initial test Monday showed no structural damage in the elbow, but there is tendinitis in there. This doesn’t sound like it’s going to have a happy ending.
Hong-Chih Kuo – Recalled from Triple-A Tuesday, Kuo is currently set to work out of the pen. He had struck out 19 batters over 11.1 innings for Las Vegas, and possesses a deadly fastball-slider combo. During September of last year, Kuo posted a 3.06 ERA with a 42/9 K/BB ratio in 32.1 innings. If your league is deep and active, he’s probably worth adding immediately, but if not, he’s worthy of a pickup as soon as he joins the Dodgers’ rotation, something that figures to happen sooner or later. His command may not lead to a great WHIP, but he has pretty big strikeout potential.
Chipper Jones – This is why I recommended selling Jones after naming him the MVP of the NL during April. At least the injury is to his thumbs and not his chronic foot problem, but any hand ailment with a hitter is worrisome. It doesn’t sound serious, and Jones is obviously a stud when at the plate, but he’s still more likely to play in 130 games than he is 150. Don’t go holding a fire sale or anything, but Brandon Funston recently had him ranked No. 20 overall on his Big Board, so if you can get that kind of talent in return, by all means do so.
Josh Beckett – Say it ain’t so, Josh. Beckett has looked like an entirely different pitcher this season, largely due to keeping the ball in the park – last year he allowed 36 homers in 204 innings, he had allowed just two HRs through 50 innings this season. But as always, Beckett is dealing with yet another blister problem, which in all likelihood lands him on the DL. There’s not much you can do but wait it out, and it’s an injury he should be able to return from, but there’s no telling when the problem will crop up again. He’s not going to finish with a 2.66 ERA and 1.03 WHIP while throwing in the AL East, but the talent is there for him to post numbers not too far removed.
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