Alex Rios - It's almost like Adam Dunn and Alex Rios made a bet in the pre-season to see who could be worse in 2011. Right now, Dunn's probably winning but Rios isn't too far behind, especially with his .208/.255(!)/.301 line. Rios went 1-for-3 on Monday against the Tigers and has hit just 6 HRs to go along with 23 RBI for the season. Equally disappointing are Rios' steal totals as he's swiped just 8 bags in 13 attempts. I, along with many of Rios' fantasy owners, have been waiting for him to start producing like he did in the first half of last season. Unfortunately as we near August, it's becoming less likely the outfielder will be able to turn around his dreadful season. Despite his past power and steal combination, I'd cut Rios as he has no value at this point.
Brandon McCarthy - One of the more entertaining players on Twitter (@B__McCarthy), Brandon McCarthy takes on the Rays this evening in Oakland. McCarthy's 2-5 record doesn't tell the story of how well he's pitched this season. He's only striking out a shade under 6 batters per game but he's also limiting the walks (1.45 BB/9) and has surrendered just 3 HRs in 86 innings. McCarthy's 47% GB% is an encouraging sign as are his 2.59 FIP and 3.74 ERA. In fact, assuming McCarthy's low strand rate of 62% regresses to a more normal range, his ERA should fall a bit more. Interestingly, despite throwing his fastball 3 mph faster than previous seasons (91 mph in '11 compared to 88-89 mph prior to '11), McCarthy has thrown the pitch 13% less than in 2009, while introducing a cutter which he throws 22% of the time. The change in approach has certainly helped McCarthy become fantasy-relevant this season. I wasn't sold earlier in the year but he's shown enough consistency to merit a spot on rosters in 12 or 14 team leagues.
Brandon Morrow - For the second straight season, Brandon Morrow's FIP (2.64) and xFIP (3.25) are both significantly lower than his ERA (4.34). He continues to rack up the whiffs, posting a 10.36 strikeout rate and he's lowered his walk rate by half a batter per game. In 101 innings, Morrow has only allowed 5 HRs and his WHIP sits at a decent 1.27. The problem for Morrow is that he continues to own a poor strand rate (65%) and is allowing line drives at a horrible 25% clip. The odd thing is that Morrow's LD rate was just 17% last season and his BABIP was .342 meaning his BABIP in 2011 has actually dropped by 31 points despite the fact he's yielding more liners. I remain bullish on Morrow but it's frustrating that he hasn't been able to post a better ERA so far this season. He faces the Orioles later today.
Josh Tomlin - As an Indians fan, I wish myself and everyone else who predicted Josh Tomlin's regression would have been wrong. Alas, that wasn't the case and Tomlin, who posted a 2.45 ERA in April and 3.03 ERA in May, enters today's start versus the Angels with a 4.12 ERA. Tomlin has struggled in his past 10 starts in June and July, allowing 38 ER in 61 innings after yielding just 20 ER in 65 innings in April and May. He continues to struggle with the long ball, allowing 18 HRs in 126 innings this year after giving up 10 bombs in 73 innings in 2010. That's a problem for a pitcher who owns just a 37% GB% and relies on fly balls for the majority of his outs. Tomlin continues to do an impressive job limiting the free passes (3% BB%) and his K/BB is an excellent 4.67. That said, as long as he keeps allowing a 22% LD% mark and 10% HR/FB rate, he's going to struggle to keep his ERA under 4.00.
David Price - David Price's ERA may be 3.67 entering tonight's start against Oakland but he's pitching better than last season at least according to his key peripheral stats. Still just 25, Price continues to show improvements as he's upped his strikeout rate to 8.66 this season, nearly cut his walk rate in half and maintained an excellent sub-1.00 HR rate. He's also managed to lower his WHIP from 1.19 in 2010 to just 1.08 this season. While his ERA is nearly a run higher this season, his xFIP is just 3.02 compared to 3.83 last year. Price's fantasy owners should expect the southpaw's ERA to improve soon. If there's an owner in your league who expected a sub-3.00 from Price this season and is disappointed by his current performance, make a trade offer to see if you can steal an ace for the stretch run.
For daily fantasy baseball advice and info, follow me on Twitter.
