Will Middlebrooks - Middlebrooks stayed hot yesterday, going 2-4 with his 6th homer in the 6-4 victory over Detroit. The 23 year old has forced Boston to keep him up in the majors even after the return of Kevin Youkilis,...

1. Ryan Dempster (SP - Cubs) - It was easily Dempster's worst outing of the season. He lasted just 4.1 IP and allowed 6 ER, 3 HR, 4 BB, and 6 hits. Lucky for him, the Cubs bounced back and...

James Shields (SP - TB) - Shields was victimized by BABIP against the White Sox, allowing six runs (five earned) on 10 hits in six innings despite striking out eight, walking one and not surrendering a home run. His ERA...

Hitters 2 Billy Hamilton CIN SS A 12 SB in a recent 6-game run gives him 52 in 47 G with a .389 OBP. Free Billy! 3 Wil Myers KC OF A 1.034 OPS in first 12 AAA games. Playing...

Carlos Quentin (LF-SD)- Quentin went 3-for-4 with a double and a home run in the Padres loss to the Cubs on Tuesday in his second game back from the disabled list. Analysts have speculated that Quentin will have a...

Melky Cabrera - Cabrera is putting up ridiculous numbers this year for the Giants, including a 426/452/667 line for the month of May after another five hits in the last two games. He has improved his contact rate to over...

Adrian Gonzalez - Now that Albert Pujols is back to being Albert Pujols, baseball fans can turn their attention to Boston and focus on another great slugger who can't seem to get on track. Adrian Gonzalez collected a single...

Starlin Castro (SS-CHC) - Castro profiles as a perennial All-Star, but there is still some work he needs to do to reach his ceiling. Sunday, Castro was 1-for-4 with his third homer of the season and is now batting .313/.322/.432....

1. Hiroki Kuroda (SP - Yankees) - Kuroda had one of his best starts, if not THE best, of the season. He hurled an 8.0 IP, 4-hit shutout against the A's on Sunday to earn his 4th win of the...

This is a sample of Insiderbaseball.com's weekly Prospect Central column featuring in-depth analysis of over 120 prospects each season. Please visit Insiderbaseball.com or click the "Home" tab at the top of the page to see all the great insights...

1) Kyle Kendrick (SP/RP, PHI) - Kendrick dealt the Cards a complete game shutout Saturday at Busch Stadium. He scattered seven hits, did not walk anyone, and needed only 94 pitches (70 strikes) to dispatch the Cardinals. It was Kendricks'...

Ryota Igarashi- TOR- Cold- In his latest call up, Igarashi has again failed to translate minor league success to the major league level. He has appeared in both Toronto games since being called up Friday and has allowed 4 runs...

1) Dillon Gee (SP, NYN) - Nine strikeout over seven innings against the Padres Friday night gave Gee a total of 52 strikeouts in 56.2 IP for the season. Gee's strikeout rate (8.3 K/9) is the best he's ever posted...

Eric Hosmer - The Royals' first baseman finished Friday's game 1-for-4 with a run scored. I've written this about Eric Hosmer multiple times in the past two seasons - he's got to improve his balls in play distribution. After...

Devin Mesoraco (C-CIN)- Mesoraco went 1-for-3 with a walk and a grand slam on Thursday night. The home run was his second of the season, and he improved his slash line to .213/.310/.344 for the season. Mesoraco has not gotten...

Jhonny Peralta (SS - DET): I checked in on Jhonny Peralta a few weeks back, noting some of the odd discrepancies between his indicators and his performance early in the season. Peralta's posting a career best 31% LD Rate...

1. Wandy Rodriguez (SP - Astros) - Wandy continued to deal on Wednesday, hurling his 8th QS of the season in 10 starts. He scattered 8 hits in 7.0 IP and allowed 1 ER (a solo HR), no walks and...

Hitters 2 Billy Hamilton CIN SS A 40 SB in 41 G and a .386 OBP. Rumors of an eventual move to CF. 3 Wil Myers KC OF A 1.160 OPS gets him AAA promotion. .333 there through first 15...

Daniel Bard - It's been a difficult season thus far for Daniel Bard, who faced the Orioles on Wednesday and yielded two earned runs on five hits while striking out two and walking four in 5 1/3 innings. Bard's been...

Justin Morneau 1B (MIN) - Morneau hit his 6th homer of the year last night, and owners who took a flier on him have to be really encouraged. It is a small sample for sure but the power numbers...

R.A. Dickey (SP - NYM) - Dickey delivered his most dominant outing of the year in Pittsburgh, punching out a season-high 11 Pirates and allowing them just a run on five hits and a walk in seven innings. The knuckleballer...

Matt Adams - Matt Adams is likely to start at 1B for the Cards for at least the next week-plus as the Cards deal with their latest run of injuries. Adams is a 2009 draftee that has done nothing but...

Felix Hernandez- SEA- Hot- King Felix was back home and took advantage of it. After 2 road starts in which he gave up a total of 10 earned runs over 10.1 IP he handled the Rangers with relative ease in...

Dee Gordon (SS-LAD) - Gordon is going to be given a "few days" off in an effort to help him break out of a season-long slump. His K% is relatively reasonable at 19.4%, though with his contact ability, I would...

Sean Marshall (RP - CIN) - Marshall was pulled against the Yankees after giving up a two runs on four hits in just a third of an inning as Jose Arredondo came on for the save. After the game, manager...

Alex Rodriguez (3B - NYY): A-Rod took another 0-4 on Sunday and is now down to .270/.368/.399 on the season. The average and on-base percentage aren't particularly of concern for Rodriguez, but the .399 slugging % is eye-opening if...

Brandon Morrow SP (TOR) - Morrow really appears to be putting it all together as he hurled a complete game shutout yesterday in which he struck out 8 and walked just 1. Morrow has been able to find a...

Jeff Samardzija (SP-CHC)- Samardzjia lost his second game of the season on Friday against the White Sox, but pitched well in the outing. He allowed three runs on six hits (two home runs) with two walks and eight strikeouts...

Eric Hosmer (1B, KC) - Hosmer was on the bench for a second consecutive game in part because a left-hander was on the mound. Against southpaws, Hosmer has just five hits in 43 PA (.125) and he struggled against them...

Brandon League (RP-SEA)- League blew his third save of the season and earned the loss on Thursday against the Indians after allowing two runs on two hits and three walks with one strikeout. He now has a 3.12 ERA...

Brandon Beachy (SP - ATL): The remarkable career path of Brandon Beachy continues to amaze me. Undrafted out of college, Beachy landed a contract through tryouts with the Braves. The lack of pedigree immediately landed Beachy a bullpen role...

Rich Thompson- TB- Rise Value- Thompson (not to be confused with the A's relief pitcher of the same name) was acquired by the Rays and made a pinch running appearance yesterday. This was his first major league appearance since 2004....

Jake Peavy (SP - CHW) - Peavy had his roughest outing of the season, allowing six runs on nine hits (two home runs) in 5 1/3 innings against the Tigers, walking two while fanning four. He carried a shutout through...

Adam Wainwright SP (STL) - Wainwright enters tonight's start in SF as a must start option in all fantasy formats. Despite his 6.16 ERA Wainwright's peripherals are as strong as ever. In fact, his xFIP sits at 2.94. Wainwright's...

Todd Frazier - Frazier hasn't exactly grabbed the 3B job and run with it, going 1-11 with 6 K's since Scott Rolen made his latest trip to the DL, but there's some potential here (particularly if Dusty stays out of...

Ivan Nova - Ivan Nova took on the Fightin' Showalters on Monday and allowed five earned runs on seven hits. He struck out four and walked three. Nova has missed a bunch more bats this season, improving his whiff rate...

1. Andy Pettitte (SP - Yankees) - Andy Pettitte returned for his first start of the season on Sunday against the Mariners. Cobwebs were certainly expected, but in general the results were positive on Sunday. He pitched 6.1 IP and...

Juan Pierre (OF-PHI) - Pierre was 2-for-4 with a double and RBI Sunday and is now batting a robust .351/.402/.383. He would probably have more than five stolen bases if not for the fact that the Phillies have to have...

Andy Dirks - Dirks reached base twice more yesterday, extending his hitting streak to 7 games and bringing his line to 379/423/652 for the year. I was ready to brush this off just like everyone else, but after a closer...

This is a sample of Insiderbaseball.com's weekly Prospect Central column featuring in-depth analysis of over 120 prospects each season. Please visit Insiderbaseball.com or click the "Home" tab at the top of the page to see all the great insights...

Vance Worley (SP - PHI): If you've read along with the thoughts Schuyler and I have been posting on Worley this season you'll notice a common theme: initial skepticism followed by eventual caving. Our skepticism centered around Worley's inability...

Adam Dunn - The Big Donkey continued his torrid pace on Friday by belting his 11th HR of the season (he hit 11 all of last season) and finished 2-for-2 with two walks. He also didn't strike out in a...

Josh Beckett (SP - BOS) - Beckett was rocked by the Indians in his return to the rotation after missing a start to a strained lat muscle, giving up seven runs on seven hits (two home runs) in just 2...

Stephen Strasburg- WAS- Hot- Strasburg got a season-high 13 strikeouts in yesterday's start against the Pirates. He now has a 3-0 record and 1.64 ERA on the year. Strasburg has gotten a little lucky, with a .269 BABIP, but his...

1. Jonathan Lucroy(C, MIL) - Lucroy added a pair of hits in four at-bats against the Reds Wednesday to bring his batting average for the season up to .321. Lucroy's Contact rate is just shy of 88 percent this season,...

Francisco Liriano- MIN- Drop Value- Liriano was moved from the rotation to the Minnesota bullpen. The Twins are having a bad year and they may have pushed the panic button on Liriano too soon, especially since manager Ron Gardenhire says...

Hitters 1 Bryce Harper WAS OF A+ Appears he's here to stay, especially with the Werth injury. 4 Billy Hamilton CIN SS A Slowing down. Only 2 SB in last 4 games. Up to 31 on the year. 5 Wil...

Andrew McCutchen (CF-PIT)- McCutchen went 1-for-2 with a home run and two walks in the Pirates win over the Nationals. The home run was his first of the season to go along with his five stolen bases and .302/.370/.470...

Jarrod Parker SP (OAK) - Parker earned his third straight quality start last night, allowing just 2 ER over 7 IP. However, Parker did not pitch that well. He walked 5 batters compared to just 3 strikeouts and of...

Jeff Samardzija - I'm getting more and more impressed with Samardzija, who picked up another quality start yesterday in shutting down the Braves over 7 innings for win number 4. The control improvements we noted this spring seem to have...

Brandon Snyder (3B-TEX) - As if the Rangers needed more offense. Monday, Snyder got a rare start at third base, this one against his former team the Orioles. Safe to say it went well, as Snyder went 3-for-5 with a...

Mike Trout (OF - LAA): The fantasy world has been captivated by the strong start of phenom Bryce Harper, but I remain steadfast in my belief that Mike Trout is the premier fantasy asset between the two this year....

Bryce Harper - Give this kid credit, he's got moxie. After getting plunked by Cole Hamels on the first pitch of his first AB on Sunday, Harper went to third on a Jayson Werth single and then stole home when...

1. Dee Gordon (SS - Dodgers) - After hitting over .300 in the minors and posting a .350+ OBP, Gordon has struggled at the big league level. So far this season, he is at a .229/.269/.307, but has still managed...

Adam Jones OF (BAL) - Jones cracked his 7th homer of the year last night. In the pre-season I took the under on 23 homers for Jones and seeing as how he is almost a third of the way...

1. David Robertson (RP, NYY) - The addition of a cutter to Robertson's pitch repertoire last season transformed him from a solid middle inning reliever into an un-hittable dominating force in the late innings of games. His strikeout rate leaped...

Chad Billingsley (SP - LAD) - Billingsley struggled at Wrigley Field, allowing four runs on eight hits (one home run), walking three and striking out four. He has pitched well so far this season, but continues to struggle with the...

Under/Over Performing Pitchers May Update 2012 (see the Recommendations) In our continuing series on player recommendations, today we take a look at the pitchers who are deviating from their projected production. The past has shown us that pitchers have...

Jeff Niemann (SP-TB)- Niemann earned his second win of the season on Thursday holding the Mariners to three runs over 5.2 innings of work. He allowed seven hits and two walks while striking out five. Niemann, who has an ERA...

Ross Detwiler (SP - WAS): Detwiler made it 5-5 in starts he's held the opposing team to 3 ER's or less with 6 1/3 strong innings against the Diamondbacks. Detwiler limited ARZ to just 1 ER on 3 hits...

Chone Figgins- SEA- Cold- Figgins has been unlucky again this season, as he was in limited time in 2011. His .254 BABIP is over 70 points less than his career average, explaining a lot of his .198 average. His 26.0%...

1. Corey Hart (OF - Brewers) - Could we be seeing multiple position eligibility out of Corey Hart in the near future? There are reports floating around that Hart took some practice grounders at 1B before yesterday's game. Hart has...

Hitters 10 Travis d'Arnaud TOR C A- .390 in last 10 games after slow start. We'll see him later this year. 12 Anthony Rizzo CHC 1B A- .384 and ready when needed. LaHair hitting nearly as well for Cubs however....

Trevor Cahill (SP-ARI)- Cahill improved his record to 2-2 after limiting the Nationals to just one run over 7.1 innings of work. He allowed five hits and one walk with five strikeouts and lowered his ERA to 3.13. While benefiting...

Trevor Cahill (SP-ARI)- Cahill improved his record to 2-2 after limiting the Nationals to just one run over 7.1 innings of work. He allowed five hits and one walk with five strikeouts and lowered his ERA to 3.13. While...

Chris Davis - The Orioles' first baseman slugged his fifth HR of the young season and finished 3-for-4 against the Yankees on Tuesday. Up until this year, Davis had been a typical quad-A player who wasn't able to put it...

1. David Ortiz (DH, BOS) - Ortiz continued his white-hot start, belting two home runs to go along with a walk to raise his season line to an outstanding .405/.457/.726. Most impressive were that both were off lefty Tommy Milone,...

Bryan LaHair - Another day, another homer (and a double) for LaHair, as the Cub 1B finishes April with 8 doubles, 5 HRs, and a .780 SLG. His swinging strike% and overall K rate scream for some regression here, as...