Today's Fantasy Rx

Anaheim: Jarrod Washburn, LH Starter
10-5 on a 62:28 K:BB in 113.2 IP over 19 GS
with 126 H, 18 HR, a .92 G-F, and a 4.83 ERA.

Washburn's elevated ERA makes little sense considering his developing skills. The 29-year-old owns career-best marks of a 2.3 BB/9 and .92 G-F, suggesting a pitcher with less downside than his homer rate and ERA depict. Unfortunately, Washburn's 31341 current QA log doesn't demonstrate much immediate fantasy potential, and Anaheim's declining defense leaves him with a surprisingly high 10.0 hit rate that further reduces his qualitative contribution. At least his 10 wins elevate his current value given the lack of pitchers with double-digit victories, so shop Washburn to see if you can exchange his potential for someone with a better chance of pitching consistently effectively over the balance of the year.

We'll continue tomorrow with National League underachieving pitchers.

Today's Fantasy Rx: No AL contender appears in need of a closer upgrade, and with Jose Mesa likely headed to SBC or Wrigley, don't expect more than a couple of decent relievers to cross over by the end of the month. However, at least a few quality pitchers could head to teams like Minnesota, Texas, and possibly even Boston and New York. Randy Johnson obviously merits a maximum FAAB bid, although if he stays in the NL, Kris Benson looks like the next best option for teams with playoff aspirations. Of the secondary group of prospective AL starter from teams that might decide to dump, Cory Lidle warrants more consideration than Paul Wilson, Tony Armas, and Shawn Estes. Other prospective free agents that I expect to remain with their respective NL teams include Carl Pavano, Matt Clement, Kevin Millwood, Russ Ortiz, and Roger Clemens, but if any of them unexpectedly switches leagues, rank them only slightly behind Randy when deciding how to allocate your FAAB.