Andy LaRoche- PIT- Hot- The LaRoche Pittsburgh kept after being discovered over their legal limit and having to get rid of one has been improving of late. Not as much as Adam in Atlanta, but certainly better than the .188 with a single homer in 85 ABs he posted in July. Andy is hitting .261 but has an OBP of .370 due to drawing 7 walks and only striking out 6 times. He also has 2 homers in 46 ABs giving him a career high. Granted, that career high is only 6, but it may be showing some blossoming power.
Stephen Strasburg- WAS- Rookie- The Deal of the Century was finished with less than 2 minutes to spare and Stephen Strasburg is now a National. He will be in uniform tomorrow or Thursday when he arrives at Nationals Park. Don’t get too excited, though. He won’t be on the roster, just making an appearance and getting acclimated to his team. The Nationals would like to get him pitching before the end of the season, since his last outing was May 30th. However, there is not much time left in the minor league seasons and they probably won’t have him make his pro debut in the majors. If he does, however, try to have the fastest trigger finger in your keeper league if that helps and grab him. Strasburg is the most polished pitcher to come out of college and is likely to have an impact in 2010.
Tommy Hanson- ATL- Hot- Hanson turned in another quality start, giving up 2 runs on 6 hits in 6 IP and not walking a batter for the second straight outing. This month he has struck out 21 (including 7 last night) in 18.2 IP. Hanson threw only 100 pitches in last night’s game, so his usage is still conservative, which bodes well long term. The Braves are treating Hanson well and he is looking like a potential front line starter.
Prince Fielder- MIL- Hot- Fielder seems to have shaken off the slump he had after the Home Run Derby. His numbers since then have now risen to a .300 average and 9 homers in 120 ABs. He is not pulling a Josh Hamilton after all.
Carlos Villanueva- MIL- Cold- It can’t get much worse for Villanueva. He sucked as a reliever and now he sucks as a starter. Unless there are radical rules changes made to the way baseball is played, there is not much left for him. I wouldn’t be surprised to see the words “for the purpose of giving him his unconditional release” attached to his name soon. Heck, Vicente Padilla would be a better option for the Brewers at this point.
There are over 100 player news blurbs posted in the member area each morning. Members can read the rest of today's player news by clicking here. Not a member? Join today.
