Jamey Carroll- CLE- Hot- Carroll went 2-for-3 yesterday to extend his current hitting streak to 6 games. In that span he has gone 8-for-20 and raised his batting average from .172 to .231. Carroll’s Batting EYE has declined during the streak, though, as he has only drawn 1 walk while striking out 3 times. His average has been negatively impacted by bad luck, as he has a .232 BHIPx, but a regression to the mean may not help him that much. In Carroll’s career year of 2005, when he hit .300 in 463 ABs, he got a lot of good luck, in the form of a .291 BHIPX, to hit that level. So, even if he ends up with an average BHIPx when the season ends, his yearlong production will also end up average.

Scott Linebrink- CHA- Hot- In leagues that count holds, Linebrink has been invaluable. He picked up his 13th hold yesterday in what was his 14th consecutive appearance without allowing a run. Linebrink has accumulated 24 IP in 2008, which gives his 1.13 ERA and .88 WHIP impact beyond his holds. He has benefited from luck, as his .222 BHIP% shows, but he has cut his walk ratio down from .36 BB/IP in 2007 to .21 this season and his strikeout ratio has increased from .71 to .75, so even an expected regression to the mean in the opponents’ batting against department would not damage his value too much.

Matt Garza- TB- Hot- Yesterday was the Return of the Strikeout for Matt Garza. Prior to this season he had a .79 K/IP ratio in 133 major league innings. Before yesterday he had only recorded 19 Ks in 44-1/3 IP this year, for a ratio of .43. After striking out 10 in 8 innings, that number is up to .55 and possibly set to climb higher. Although a bit on the extreme side, yesterday’s performance is more in line with Garza’s historical trends than his early season weak K production.

Armando Galarraga- DET- Hot- After getting battered a bit in his last outing, which came after a 111-pitch start the time before, Galarraga bounce back with a very solid effort against the Angels. He allowed 2 runs on 4 hits and 3 walks in 8-1/3 IP while striking out 3. Getting the walks under control was a good sign. He had given up 10 in his previous 12 IP but had far better command yesterday. The more often he puts up games like yesterday, the more he looks like a permanent fixture in the rotation.

Jeff Larish- DET- Rookie- Jeff Larish has shown good control of the strike zone for a power hitter. In 1184 minor league at bats he has 68 homers and 278 strikeouts while drawing 213 walks. Larish has power to all fields, but the big question is whether it will be of the warning track type in the majors. He will get a chance to show what he can do at the major league level as he will DH in all 3 games this weekend. He is no Jay Bruce, but is a decent sleeper candidate for help in the homer category.

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