Today's Fantasy Rx

Schedule recommendations for teams with 7 games

Good for hitters / Bad for pitchers
Chicago White Sox: 4 Home vs. CLE; 3 Home vs. CHC.
Cleveland: 4 Road at CHW; 3 Home vs. COL.
Houston: 4 Home vs. PIT; 3 Road at TEX.
Pittsburgh: 4 Road at HOU; 3 Road at CIN.

Bad for hitters / Good for pitchers
Anaheim: 4 Home vs. OAK; 3 Road at LA.
Los Angeles: 4 Road at SF; 3 Home vs. ANA.
Oakland: 4 Road at ANA; 3 Home vs. SF.
San Francisco: 4 Home vs. LA; 3 Road at OAK.

Schedule recommendations for teams with 6 games

Good for hitters / Good for pitchers
Boston: 3 Home vs. MIN; 3 Home vs. PHI.
Cincinnati: 3 Road at NYM; 3 Home vs. PIT.
Detroit: 3 Road at KC; 3 Home vs. ARI.
New York Yankees: 3 Road at BAL; 3 Home vs. NYM.
St. Louis: 3 Home vs. CHC; 3 Road at KC.

Good for hitters / Bad for pitchers
Chicago Cubs: 3 Road at STL; 3 Road at CHW.
Colorado: 3 Road at Mil; 3 Road at CLE.
Milwaukee: 3 Home vs. COL; 3 Road at MIN.
Montreal: 3 Home vs. PHI; 3 Road at TOR.
Philadelphia: 3 Road at MON; 3 Road at BOS.
Seattle: 3 Road at TEX; 3 Home vs. SD.
Tampa Bay: 3 Road at TOR; 3 Home vs. FLO.
Texas: 3 Home vs. SEA; 3 Home vs. HOU.
Toronto: 3 Home vs. TB; 3 Home vs. MON.

Bad for hitters / Good for pitchers
Arizona: 3 Road at SD; 3 Road at DET.
Atlanta: 3 Road at FLO; 3 Road at BAL.
Florida: 3 Home vs. ATL; 3 Road at TB.

Bad for hitters / Bad for pitchers
Baltimore: 3 Home vs. NYY; 3 Home vs. ATL.
Kansas City: 3 Home vs. DET; 3 Home vs. STK.
Minnesota: 3 Road at BOS; 3 Home vs. MIL.
New York Mets: 3 Home vs. CIN; 3 Road at NYY.

Pitchers with 2 starts(to deploy everywhere you own them):
Bartolo Colon: Tue:OAK(T.Hudson); Sun:@LA(K.Ishii)
Doug Davis: Tue:COL(J.Jennings); Sun:@MIN(K.Lohse)
Adam Eaton: Tue:ARI()S.Sparks); Sun:@SEA(C.Nageotte)
Casey Fossum: Mon:@SD(I.Valdez); Sat:@DET(J.Bonderman)
Matt Ginter: Tue:CIN(P.Wilson); Sun:@NYY(M.Mussina)
Jimmy Gobble: Tue:DET(M.Maroth); Sun:STL(J.Marquis)
Rich Harden: Mon:@ANA(J.Lackey); Sat:SF(K.Rueter)
Dustin Hermanson: Tue:LA(K.Ishii); Sun:@OAK(T.Hudson)
Livan Hernandez: Tue:PHI(B.Myers); Sun:@TOR(P.Hentgen)
Tim Hudson: Tue:@ANA(B.Colon); Sun:SF(D.Hermanson)
Kazuhisa Ishii: Tue:@SF(D.Hermanson); Sun:ANA(B.Colon)
John Lackey: Mon:OAK(R.Harden); Sat:@LA(Od.Perez)
Esteban Loaiza: Tue:CLE(S.Elarton); Sun:CHC(G.Maddux)
Kyle Lohse: Tue:@BOS(C.Schilling); Sun:MIL(D.Davis)
Greg Maddux: Tue:@STL(); Sun:@CHW(E.Loaiza)
Mike Maroth: Tue:@KC(J.Gobble); Sun:ARI(S.Sparks)
Jason Marquis: Tue:CHC(G.Maddux); Sun:@KC(J.Gobble)
Mike Mussina: Tue:@BAL(M.Riley); Sun:NYM(M.Ginter)
Clint Nageotte: Tue:@TEX(R.Drese); Sun:SD(A.Eaton)
Roy Oswalt: Tue:PIT(K.Benson); Sun:@TEX(R.Drese)
Carl Pavano: Tue:ATL(Jar.Wright); Sun:@TB(C.Gaudin)
Odalis Perez: Mon:@SF(K.Rueter); Sat:ANA(J.Lackey)
Kirk Rueter: Mon:LA(Od.Perez); Sat:@OAK(R.Harden)
C.C. Sabathia: Mon:@CHW(S.Schoeneweis); Sat:COL(J.Fassero)
Curt Schilling: Tue:MIN(K.Lohse); Sun:PHI(R.Wolf?)
Scott Schoeneweis: Mon:CLE(C.Sabathia); Sat:CHC(C.Zambrano)
Steve Sparks: Tue:@SD(A.Eaton); Sun:@DET(M.Maroth)
Ismael Valdez: Mon:ARI(C.Fossum); Sat:@SEA(Fr.Garcia)
Paul Wilson: Tue:@NYM(M.Ginter); Sun:PIT(K.Benson)
Jaret Wright: Tue:@FLO(C.Pavano); Sun:@BAL(M.Riley)

Pitchers with 2 starts to deploy only in leagues that don't count qualitative stats:
Kris Benson: Tue:@HOU(R.Oswalt); Sun:@CIN(P.Wilson)
Ryan Drese: Tue:SEA(C.Nageotte); Sun:HOU(R.Oswalt)
Scott Elarton: Tue:@CHW(E.Loaiza); Sun:COL(J.Jennings)
Josh Fogg: Mon:@HOU(T.Redding); Sat:CIN(J.Bong?)
Chad Gaudin: Tue:@TOR(P.Hentgen); Sun:FLO(C.Pavano)
Pat Hentgen: Tue:TB(C.Gaudin); Sun:MON(L.Hernandez)
Jason Jennings: Tue:@MIL(D.Davis): Sun:@CLE(S.Elarton)
Tim Redding: Mon:PIT(J.Fogg): Sat:@TEX(J.Wasdin)
Matt Riley: Tue:NYY(M.Mussina); Sun:@ATL(Jar.Wright)

Diamond Challenge

We're adding Danny Graves as our last free agent, dropping Juan Pierre, who isn't as cost-effective as Crawford or Podsednik since we're great in steals but bad everywhere else on offense. For now, Graves replaces Arthur Rhodes, however if Rhodes reclaims his job or we just need cap space in a given week, Graves can replace Gagne. While Graves also isn't pitching great, he's producing nicely for his salary and at least won't hurt us while contributing at least a save or two a week.

SP(6)
Pedro Martinez: Fri:PHI(V.Padilla)
Curt Schilling: Tue:MIN(K.Lohse); Sun:PHI(R.Wolf?)
Randy Johnson: Wed:@SD(D.Wells)
Mike Mussina: Tue:@BAL(M.Riley); Sun:NYM(M.Ginter)
Roy Halladay: Wed:TB(V.Zambrano)
Tim Hudson: Tue:@ANA(B.Colon); Sun:SF(D.Hermanson)
Javier Vazquez: Thu:@BAL(S.Ponson)
Mark Mulder: Fri:@ANA(Ra.Ortiz)
Roy Oswalt: Tue:PIT(K.Benson); Sun:@TEX(R.Drese)
Kerry Wood: No start(DL)
Kevin Brown: No start(DL)
Josh Beckett: Sat:@TB(M.Hendrickson)
Jeremy Affeldt: 3 Home vs. DET; 3 Home vs. STL.

We'll take the four doubles, Affeldt, and then deploy Randy over Pedro since he pitches in a safer park against a worst offense.

Hudson, Cintron, and Veron Wells stay seated, and then Crede replaces Mora, who might not play for a few days.

Shadow of the Umpire(14th lg; 128th div; 3349th overall)
Week 12: June 21-June 27

C	Javy Lopez		940
C	Jason Varitek		680
1B	Mark Teixeira		760
1B	Lyle Overbay		400
2B	Alfonso Soriano		1930
2B	Mark Loretta		820
3B	Mike Lowell		1230
3B	Hank Blalock		850
SS	Alex Rodriguez		2010 
SS	Brian Roberts		610 
OF	Carlos Beltran		1760
OF	Carl Crawford		1040
OF	Scott Podsednik		980
OF	Brad Wilkerson		690 
OF	Adam Dunn		690
OF	Miguel Cabrera		570 
DH	Brad Fullmer		700
DH	Joe Crede		600

SP	Curt Schilling		1610 
SP	Randy Johnson		1550
SP	Mike Mussina		1380
SP	Tim Hudson		1320 
SP	Roy Oswalt		1200 
SP	Jeremy Affeldt		650
RP	Eric Gagne		1890
RP	Octavio Dotel		1250 
RP	Danny Graves		1070
RP	Matt Herges		670

Total Salary for Week 12: 	29850

Diamond Challenge 2nd Season

SP(6)
Pedro Martinez: Fri:PHI(V.Padilla)
Curt Schilling: Tue:MIN(K.Lohse); Sun:PHI(R.Wolf?)
Randy Johnson: Wed:@SD(D.Wells)
Roy Halladay: Wed:TB(V.Zambrano)
Javier Vazquez: Thu:@BAL(S.Ponson)
Jason Schmidt: Fri:@OAK(B.Zito)
Mark Mulder: Fri:@ANA(Ra.Ortiz)
Roy Oswalt: Tue:PIT(K.Benson); Sun:@TEX(R.Drese)
Roger Clemens: Thu:PIT(S.Burnett or K.Wells)
Brad Penny: Wed:ATL(J.Thomson)
Ben Sheets: Thu:COL(A.Cook)
Jon Lieber: Wed:@BAL(E.Bedard)
Jeremy Affeldt: 3 Home vs. DET; 3 Home vs. STL.

Along with Schilling, Oswalt, and Affeldt, Pedro and Randy seem solid, and then we'll opt for Sheets over Penny since Colorado can struggle on the road and Sheets registers more strikeouts than Penny.

Our Colorado platoon sits as Blalock, Uribe, and Craig Wilson return to the lineup. Crawford then forces Abreu to the bench, enabling us to slide under the cap.

Umpire: The Masquerade
(3rd lg; 25th div; 221st overall)
Week 12: June 21-June 27

C	Jason Varitek		680
C	Victor Martinez		450
1B	David Ortiz		800 
1B	Lyle Overbay		400
2B	Jeff Kent		1450
2B	Mark Loretta		820
3B	Scott Rolen		1460 
3B	Hank Blalock		850 
SS	Alex Rodriguez		2010 
SS	Juan Uribe		600
OF	Manny Ramirez		1420 
OF	Lance Berkman		1390
OF	Melvin Mora		740
OF	Ken Griffey		700 
OF	Matt Lawton		720
OF	Miguel Cabrera		570 
DH	Carl Crawford		1040
DH	Craig Wilson		620

SP	Pedro Martinez		1800 
SP	Curt Schilling		1610
SP	Randy Johnson		1550 
SP	Javier Vazquez		1280
SP	Ben Sheets		870
SP	Jeremy Affeldt		650
RP	Danny Graves		1070
RP	Danny Kolb		940 
RP	Arthur Rhodes		800
RP	Joe Nathan		720

Total Salary for Week 12: 	27930

Internet Challenge

SP(6)
Curt Schilling: Tue:MIN(K.Lohse)
Randy Johnson: Wed:@SD(D.Wells)
Mike Mussina: Tue:@BAL(M.Riley)
Roy Halladay: Wed:TB(V.Zambrano)
Tim Hudson: Tue:@ANA(B.Colon)
Javier Vazquez: Thu:@BAL(S.Ponson)
Roy Oswalt: Tue:PIT(K.Benson)
Jeremy Affeldt: 3 Home vs. DET.

No starts: Pedro, Wood, Brown, Beckett.

Schilling, Randy, Mussina, Halladay, and Vazquez appear strong, and then we'll run Affeldt for cap purposes.

We want Crede deployed since he's finally producing, so we'll sit Piazza to make room. Cintron similarly subs for Kaz Matsui, Beltran replaces Pierre to add more power potential to the lineup, and then Hudson, Wells, and Podsednik stay benched.

The Umpire Hunter(15th lg; 494th overall)
Week 12a: June 21-June 24

C	Jason Varitek		680 
C	Victor Martinez		450
1B	Lyle Overbay		400
1B	Mark Teixeira		760
2B	Alfonso Soriano		1930
3B	Scott Rolen		1460 
3B	Hank Blalock		850
SS	Alex Rodriguez		2010 
SS	Alex Cintron		450
OF	Carlos Beltran		1760
OF	Ichiro Suzuki		1560 
OF	Carl Crawford		1040
OF	Brad Wilkerson		690 
OF	Adam Dunn		690
OF	Miguel Cabrera		570 
DH	Brad Fullmer		700 
DH	Joe Crede		600

SP	Curt Schilling		1610 
SP	Randy Johnson		1550
SP	Mike Mussina		1380 
SP	Roy Halladay		1350 
SP	Javier Vazquez		1280  
SP	Jeremy Affeldt		650
RP	Eric Gagne		1890
RP	Octavio Dotel		1250
RP	Arthur Rhodes		800
RP	Matt Herges		670

Total Salary for Week 12a: 	29850

Fantasy Baseball & Budget Baseball
(Same game = same rosters and moves for both teams)

SP(6)
Curt Schilling: Tue:MIN(K.Lohse); Sun:PHI(R.Wolf?)
Randy Johnson: Wed:@SD(D.Wells)
Javier Vazquez: Thu:@BAL(S.Ponson)
Pedro Martinez: Fri:PHI(V.Padilla)
Kerry Wood: No start(DL)
Tim Hudson: Tue:@ANA(B.Colon); Sun:SF(D.Hermanson)
Roy Halladay: Wed:TB(V.Zambrano)
Josh Beckett: Sat:@TB(M.Hendrickson)
Kevin Brown: No start(DL)
Jeremy Affeldt: 3 Home vs. DET; 3 Home vs. STL.

Along with Schilling, Hudson, and Affeldt, Randy and Pedro seem like logical picks. While Halladay and Vazquez look evenly matched, we'll run Halladay in the hope he winds up doubling.

Schneider replaces the slumping Estrada, and Helton sits with Colorado on the road, opening a spot for Orlando Hudson. We'll deploy Beltran for the injured Vernon Wells, and then leave Marcus Giles, Lowell, Cintron, Hideki Matsui, and Kearns on the bench.

The Umpire Chronicles(14th lg; 1527th overall)
& Umpire with a Soul(18th lg; 3062nd overall)
Week 12: June 21-June 27

 
C	Matt LeCroy		1100 
C	Brian Schneider		1100
1B	Mark Teixeira		1550
1B	Lyle Overbay		1000
2B	Alfonso Soriano		3060 
2B	Mark Loretta		1650 
3B	Hank Blalock		2020 
3B	Tony Batista		1640
SS	Orlando Cabrera		2460
SS	Brian Roberts		1260 
OF	Albert Pujols		3350 
OF	Carlos Beltran		3060
OF	Manny Ramirez		2960 
OF	Adam Dunn		1950 
OF	Brad Wilkerson		1870 
OF	Miguel Cabrera		1600 
DH	Derrek Lee		2690 
DH	Orlando Hudson		1420

SP	Curt Schilling		3090
SP	Randy Johnson		2900
SP	Pedro Martinez		2890 
SP	Tim Hudson		2840 
SP	Roy Halladay		2800 
SP	Jeremy Affeldt		1520
RP	Armando Benitez		2490
RP	Octavio Dotel		2400
RP	Matt Herges		1610
RP	Arthur Rhodes		1580

Total Salary for Week 11: 	59860

Today's Fantasy Rx: The next few weeks offer a wealth of free agent alternatives. You can grab Lyle Overbay, Hank Blalock, ARod, Jeromy Burnitz, Randy, and Graves today, Erubiel Durazo, Mike Young, Pat Burrell, and Melvin Mora next week. With Craig Wilson, Juan Uribe, Albert Pujols, and Curt Schilling also available by July 5th, strongly consider spending your remaining free agent moves now if you don't own most of these guys.