Michael Leone - Page 3

Yovani Gallardo SP (MIL) - Gallardo was dominant last night as he struck out 13 batters and yielded just 2 hits and 1 ER over 6 IP. For the second straight season, Gallardo made significant improvement in terms of...

Jered Weaver SP (LAA) - I have a feeling Weaver may be overrated in 2012 drafts. His 2.44 ERA is a far ways away from his 3.01 FIP and even further from his 3.67 xFIP. Also, his K/9 dropped...

Ian Kennedy SP (ARZ) - Last night Kennedy won his 18th game of the season, but this is another case where wins do not accurately reflect the skill of the pitcher. By our formula for expected wins, Kennedy should...

Anthony Swarzak SP (MIN) - I'd avoid starting Swarzak in all leagues today. He has a 3.62 ERA, but an xFIP of 4.87 exposes his true skills - or lack thereof. I'm never a fan of pitchers with low...

David Ortiz DH (BOS) - Ortiz has missed some games with a heel injury, but appears to be ready to rejoin the starting lineup today. Fantasy owners in daily leagues need to get Ortiz back in their lineups ASAP....

Brandon Beachy SP (ATL) - Beachy continued his stellar rookie season last night by limiting the Diamondbacks to 1 run over 6 IP. As usual, Beachy had his strikeout pitch going; he struck out 7 while walking just 1....

Zack Greinke SP (MIL) - In keeper leagues, Greinke may be an undervalued commodity. The truth is he is elite. Greinke has a 2.92 FIP and 2.31 xFIP, but a deflated strand rate (66.7 LOB%) has inflated his ERA...

Justin Verlander SP (DET) - Just another day at the office for Verlander as he held the Minnesota offense completely in check yesterday. He allowed just 1 ER in 7.2 innings of work while adding 7 strikeouts and just...

Delmon Young OF (MIN) - While Young has certainly been a bust this season, I maintain he has value in standard mixed leagues going forward. When I told this to a friend in a discussion earlier today, he simply...

BJ Upton OF (TB) - With lots of speculation that Upton may be traded, there's a good chance that such a move would be beneficial to his fantasy value. For starters, only a contender would likely trade for Upton...

JP Arencibia C (TOR) - The Blue Jays got rolled last night, and JP Arencibia was the lone bright spot as he blasted 2 solo homers. Arencibia has solid power (now 14 homers and a .215 ISO) that should...

Chris Perez RP (CLE) - Perez blew a save and took the loss last night. He only got one out before giving up a 2-run walk off single by Danny Valencia. In total, Perez walked 2 batters and gave...

Francisco Cordero RP (CIN) - Cordero blew his third straight save yesterday, and his owners should be nervous. His 2.54 ERA is extremely misleading; Cordero has a 4.06 FIP. His skills are in decline. If you don't believe that...

Derek Jeter SS (NYY) - Even a Yankee hater such as myself can't help but getting giddy at the awesomeness of baseball, which was on fully display yesterday as Derek Jeter's 3,000th hit was a homerun on a day...

Corey Luebke SP (SD) - Luebke's transition from reliever to start has been a great success thus far as he did not allow a run for the second consecutive start. His final line against the Mariners: 6 IP, 0...

Jair Jurrjens SP (ATL) - Jurrjens dominated the Orioles last night, tossing a complete game shutout. Jurrjens was more dominant than usual, striking out a season high of 8 batters while walking just 1. I know it seems like...

Mark Teixeira 1B (NYY) - Teixeira had a 4 RBI day yesterday while hitting his 24th homer of the year in the process. Teixeira is on pace for a career high in homers. His current career high is 43,...

Josh Beckett SP (BOS) - Beckett was scratched last night because of an illness, but it does appear that he'll start on Saturday against the Pirates. Frankly at this point, Beckett (1.86 ERA) is a must start anywhere, but...

Huston Street RP (COL) - Street picked up his 20th save of the season last night, but he also gave up another run. Over his first 10 saves, Street had a 2.20 ERA, but over his past 10 saves,...

Justin Verlander SP (DET) - Justin Verlander was simply dominant last night, flirting with his second no hitter of the season. He "settled" for a complete game shutout in which he allowed just 1 walk and 1 hit while...

Ryan Dempster SP (CHC) - My opinion on Dempster remains unchanged: buy low candidate. It may be taking longer than owners would like, but I'm confident Dempster will turn it around. Believe it or not, Dempster currently is posting...

Carlos Carrasco SP (CLE) - Carlos Carrasco tossed 8.1 shutout innings last night, earning the victory at home against the Twins. The peripherals were solid too as Carrasco struck out 6 while walking just 1 and giving up just...

John Axford RP (MLW) - We had John Axford as a top 10 closer in the preseason, and after a rocky start Axford is making good on our prediction. He locked down his 15th save of the year yesterday...

Alexei Ramirez SS (CHW) - Entering the season, Fantistics had Alexei Ramirez as a top 5 SS with the only concern surrounding him being his lack of plate discipline. However, Ramirez has shown more patience this year (BB% up...

Ricky Romero SP (TOR) - Earlier in the year I warned about Romero wearing down as the season went long and not to get overwhelmed by his early season peripherals (as I did last season). Well after posting a...

Michael Brantley OF (CLE) - Michael Brantley is enjoying a breakout season in large part due to his increase in EYE (from .58 to 1.13). His current EYE is being driven slightly by a reduction in strikeouts but primarily...

Josh Tomlin SP (CLE) - Tomlin posted yet another quality start last night - 6 IP, 6 H, 1 BB, 3 K, 2 ER. I'm still not sold, though. The fact of the matter is Tomlin has been REALLY...

Ian Desmond SS (WAS) - Desmond is struggling in his sophomore season, hitting just .223/.256/.393. However, I think there's reason to be optimistic that things will be much better from here on out. For starters, Desmond's ISO has risen...

Ian Desmond SS (WAS) - Desmond is struggling in his sophomore season, hitting just .223/.256/.393. However, I think there's reason to be optimistic that things will be much better from here on out. For starters, Desmond's ISO has risen...

Alex Avila C (DET) - Avila continued his hot hitting into May as he hit 2 homers off of Bartolo Colon the other night. What was so impressive about the two homers is that both cleared the fence in...

Brandon League RP (SEA) - League pitched a scoreless ninth inning yesterday and is now 7-7 in save opportunities with a 2.45 ERA. I, for one, am very skeptically of League continuing this success. For starters, League has never...

Delmon Young OF (MIN) - I haven't lost faith in Young despite his slow start. In fact, I'm encouraged last year was not a fluke. Young is getting loft on his swing (38.8FB%), which is very important for his...

Cole Hamels SP (PHI) - Two nights ago Hamels dominated the Padres, and after a brutal first start of the season (6 ER, 2.2 IP) Hamels' ERA is all the way down to 2.92. For some reason, people tend...

Daisuke Matsuzaka SP (BOS) – Despite Daisuke’s successful Patriot’s Day start, I remain very skeptical and am even dropping him in some deeper leagues after delving into some of his swing data. Here are some very disturbing numbers. First of...

Delmon Young OF (MIN) – Young went 0-4 last night to drop his average to .167 and has now struck out 9 times versus just one walk. Truth is, with a free swinger like Young, cold stretches like this are...

Matt Kemp OF (LAD) – Kemp is off to a scorching start this year. He went 3-5 yesterday, which raises his average to an absurd .484. Kemp saw his K% rise last year, but early on appears to be making...