Rotohelp.com

by Tim Polko

Schedule recommendations for teams with 7 games

Good for hitters / Good for pitchers
Chicago White Sox: 4 Road at CLE; 3 Home vs. TEX.
Milwaukee: 4 Road at PIT; 3 Home vs. WAS.
Oakland: 3 Home vs. KC; 4 Home vs. MIN.

Good for hitters / Bad for pitchers
Cleveland: 4 Home vs. CLE; 3 Home vs. LAA.
Detroit: 4 Home vs. NYY; 3 Home vs. BOS.
New York Yankees: 4 Road at DET: 3 Road at BAL.
Pittsburgh: 4 Home vs. MIL; 3 Home vs. SD.

Bad for hitters / Good for pitchers
Atlanta: 3 Home vs. LAD; 4 Home vs. ARI.
Los Angeles Dodgers: 3 Road at ATL; 4 Home vs. PHI.

Bad for hitters / Bad for pitchers
Arizona: 3 Road at NYM; 4 Road at ATL.
Minnesota: 3 Road at LAA; 4 Road at OAK.
Philadelphia: 3 Home vs. WAS; 4 Road at LAD.

Schedule recommendations for teams with 6 games

Good for hitters / Good for pitchers
New York Mets: 3 Home vs. ARI; 3 Home vs. SF.
St. Louis: 3 Home vs. HOU; 3 Home vs. CHC.

Good for hitters / Bad for pitchers
Baltimore: 3 Home vs. TB; 3 Home vs. NYY.
Boston: 3 Road at TOR; 3 Road at DET.
Colorado: 3 Road at SD; 3 Home vs. FLO.
Florida: 3 Home vs. SF; 3 Road at COL.
Houston: 3 Road at STL; 3 Home vs. CIN.
Seattle: 3 Road at TEX; 3 Home vs. KC.
Tampa Bay: 3 Road at BAL; 3 Home vs. TOR.
Texas: 3 Home vs. SEA; 2 Road at CHW.
Toronto: 3 Home vs. BOS; 3 Road at TB.
Washington: 3 Road at PHI; 3 Road at MIL.

Bad for hitters / Good for pitchers
Los Angeles Angels: 3 Home vs. MIN; 3 Road at CLE.
San Diego: 3 Home vs. COL; 3 Road at PIT.
San Francisco: 3 Road at FLO; 3 Road at NYM.

Bad for hitters / Bad for pitchers
Chicago Cubs: 3 Home vs. CIN; 3 Road at STL.
Kansas City: 3 Road at OAK; 3 Road at SEA.

Pitchers with 2 starts(to deploy everywhere you own them):
Scott Baker: Tue:@LAA(Jef.Weaver); Sun:@OAK(B.Halsey?)
Miguel Batista: Tue:@NYM(A.Soler); Sun:@ATL(Jor.Sosa)
Jeremy Bonderman: Mon:NYY(R.Johnson); Sat:BOS(T.Wakefield)
Mark Buehrle: Tue:@CLE(C.Sabathia); Sun:TEX(K.Millwood)
Matt Clement: Mon:@TOR(R.Halladay); Sun:@DET(R.Colon)
Doug Davis: Mon:@PIT(V.Santos); Sat:WAS(Ra.Ortiz)
Zach Duke: Tue:MIL(J.de la Rosa); Sun:SD(M.Thompson)
Roy Halladay: Mon:BOS(M.Clement); Sat:@TB(M.Hendrickson)
Dan Haren: Mon:KC(S.Etherton); Sat:MIN(B.Radke)
Randy Johnson: Mon:@DET(J.Bonderman); Sat:@BAL(J.Halama?)
John Lackey: Mon:MIN(B.Radke); Sun:@CLE(C.Sabathia)
Cliff Lee: Mon:CHW(J.Vazquez); Sat:@LAA(K.Escobar)
Jon Lieber: Mon:WAS(M.O'Connor); Sat:@LAD(B.Penny)
Noah Lowry: Tue:@FLO(B.Moehler); Sun:@NYM(S.Trachsel)
Greg Maddux: Tue:CIN(B.Claussen); Sun:@STL(J.Marquis)
Jason Marquis: Mon:HOU(R.Oswalt); Sun:CHC(G.Maddux)
Kevin Millwood: Tue:SEA(G.Meche); Sun:@CHW(M.Buehrle)
Matt Morris: Mon:@FLO(S.Olsen); Sat:@NYM(O.Hernandez)
Brett Myers: Tue:WAS(T.Armas); Sun:@LAD(A.Sele)
Roy Oswalt: Mon:@STL(J.Marquis); Sat:CIN(B.Arroyo)
Brad Penny: Mon:@ATL(J.Thomson); Sat:PHI(J.Lieber)
Andy Pettitte: Tue:@STL(An.Reyes); Sun:CIN(El.Ramirez)
Brad Radke: Mon:@LAA(J.Lackey); Sat:@OAK(D.Haren)
C.C. Sabathia: Tue:CHW(M.Buehrle); Sun:LAA(J.Lackey)
Aaron Sele: Tue:@ATL(Jor.Sosa); Sun:PHI(B.Myers)
Jamie Shields: Tue:@BAL(R.Lopez); Sun:TOR(G.Chacin)
Mike Thompson: Mon:COL(J.Jennings); Sun:@PIT(Z.Duke)
John Thomson: Mon:LAD(B.Penny); Sat:ARI(C.Vargas)
Steve Trachsel: Mon:ARI(C.Vargas); Sun:SF(N.Lowry)
Javier Vazquez: Mon:@CLE(C.Lee); Sat:TEX(V.Padilla)
Kerry Wood: Mon:CIN(Cl.Lee); Sat:@STL(M.Mulder)

Pitchers with 2 starts to deploy only in leagues that don't count qualitative stats:
Gustavo Chacin: Tue:BOS(J.Beckett); Sun:@TB(J.Shields)
Roman Colon: Tue:NYY(A.Small); Sun:BOS(M.Clement)
Jorge de la Rosa: Tue:@PIT(Z.Duke); Sun:WAS(M.O'Connor)
Seth Etherton: Mon:@OAK(D.Haren); Sun:@SEA(J.Washburn)?
Jason Jennings: Mon:@SD(M.Thompson); Sun:FLO(S.Olsen)
Rod Lopez: Tue:TB(J.Shields); Sun:NYY(A.Small)
Mike O'Connor: Mon:@PHI(J.Lieber); Sun:@MIL(J.de la Rosa)
Scott Olsen: Mon:SF(M.Morris); Sun:@COL(J.Jennings)
Eli Ramirez: Mon:@CHC(K.Wood); Sun:@HOU(A.Pettitte)
Victor Santos: Mon:MIL(D.Davis); Sat:SD(J.Peavy)
Aaron Small: Tue:@DET(R.Colon); Sun:@BAL(R.Lopez)
Jorge Sosa: Tue:LAD(A.Sele); Sun:ARI(M.Batista)
Claudio Vargas: Mon:@NYM(S.Trachsel); Sat:@ATL(J.Thomson)
Jarrod Washburn: Mon:@TEX(J.Rheinecker); Sun:KC(S.Etherton?)

Diamond Challenge

SP(6)
Johan Santana: Fri:@OAK(K.Saarloos)
Roy Oswalt: Mon:@STL(J.Marquis); Sat:CIN(B.Arroyo)
Pedro Martinez: Wed:ARI(B.Webb)
Chris Carpenter: No start(DL?)
Randy Johnson: Mon:@DET(J.Bonderman); Sat:@BAL(J.Halama?)
Jake Peavy: Sat:@PIT(V.Santos)
Roy Halladay: Mon:BOS(M.Clement); Sat:@TB(M.Hendrickson)
Mark Buehrle: Tue:@CLE(C.Sabathia); Sun:TEX(K.Millwood)
Curt Schilling: Fri:@DET(K.Rogers)
Felix Hernandez: Wed:@TEX(J.Koronka)
John Lackey: Mon:MIN(B.Radke); Sun:@CLE(C.Sabathia)
Dan Haren: Mon:KC(S.Etherton); Sat:MIN(B.Radke)

We'll happily deploy our six doubles. Street returns to the lineup for Dempster, who's falling apart.

With the Rockies returning home in the second half of the week, Atkins, Holliday, and Hawpe flip for Encarnacion, Tracy, and Gathright. Barmes stays seated, and then since we have extra cap room, Pujols forces Tex to the bench.

Rotohelp.com(4th lg; 83rd div; 1255th overall)
Week 9: May 29-June 4

C	Victor Martinez		1020
C	Josh Willingham		340 
1B	Albert Pujols		2060
1B	Ryan Howard		880
2B	Chase Utley		1190
2B	Rickie Weeks		620
3B	David Wright		1210 
3B	Garrett Atkins		610 
SS	Felipe Lopez		1070
SS	Jose Reyes		1030 
OF	Jason Bay		1380 
OF	Chone Figgins		1350 
OF	Pat Burrell		1040 
OF	Matt Holliday		1040
OF	Nick Swisher		620 
OF	Brad Hawpe		440
DH	Travis Hafner		1180
DH	Jim Thome		1070

SP	Roy Oswalt		1830 
SP	Randy Johnson		1360 
SP	Roy Halladay		1230 
SP	Mark Buehrle		1120 
SP	John Lackey		940 
SP	Dan Haren		860 
RP	Huston Street		1300
RP	Mike Gonzalez		1120 
RP	Jon Papelbon		890
RP	Chris Ray		820

Total Salary for Week 9: 	29620

Diamond Challenge - 2nd Season

Given the last couple of weeks in the season-long contests, we're altering our normal strategy for this contest, which begins tomorrow. First, we're cutting our Coors platoon down to the two outfielders worth owning. Second, instead of lowballing our bullpen, we're opting for the cheapest four relievers that own unquestioned closing jobs, play for respectable teams, and own solid skills. Lastly, we're only selecting a minimum of offensive bench players to maximize our starting pitching options, which should provide greater flexibility given the reduced salary cap of this contest. We hope to avoid spending purchases on pitching, instead using our buys and free agent moves to augment our offense as needed.

We considered and then selected the following:

Catchers: We still like Victor Martinez and Josh Willingham, but given their recent slumps, Joe Mauer and Ramon Hernandez just appear safer. Only his upcoming suspension kept Michael Barrett from earning serious consideration.

First Basemen: Selecting Albert Pujols, Travis Hafner, and Ryan Howard seemed easy, and after brief looks at David Ortiz and Lance Berkman, we again opted for Jim Thome.

Second Basemen: Alfonso Soriano simply won't fit under our budget, and with second base generally a terrible position, Chase Utley and Rickie Weeks stay on our team.

Third Basemen: Although we seriously debated keeping Garrett Atkins and Edwin Encarnacion, we decided we needed a pure power source to join David Wright. Morgan Ensberg emerged as a better option than Troy Glaus due to superior plate discipline despite a slightly heftier salary.

Shortstops: Nomar, Felipe Lopez, and even Miguel Tejada merited some consideration, but with a general need for speed, Jose Reyes and Hanley Ramirez seemed the safest selections.

Outfielders: Jason Bay, Matt Holliday, and Brad Hawpe automatically secured spots. Scott Podsednik easily edged Chone Figgins and Juan Pierre. Nick Swisher remains a superb value, and then we rostered Corery Patterson, Alex Rios, and Austin Kearns. We generally intend to deploy Patterson, but when the Rockies head on their four remaining weeks of road trips, Rios and Kearns own perfect schedules and cost us nearly the same salary.

Relief Pitchers: Jon Papelbon and Chris Ray were easy choices despite pitching in the same division. Continued excellence similarly awarded a spot to Bobby Jenks. We spent plenty of time debating our last closer, but after long looks at Todd Jones, Mike Gonzalez, and especially Tyler Walker and Jose Valverde, we nearly picked Tom Gordon for his greater consistency. However, a last-second look around the league produced Akinori Otsuka as an outstanding option given his seemingly secure job, strong skills, and very cheap salary.

Starting Pitchers: With only two position players and no relievers on our bench, we sought a starting staff loaded with a variety of dominant pitchers, also giving consideration to who offers us the best combination of starts over the next month. Chris Carpenter only missed out due to his recent injury problems.

Starters that stayed with our squad from our full-season teams include Johan Santana, Roy Oswalt, Pedro Martinez, Jake Peavy, Roy Halladay, Curt Schilling, John Lackey, and Dan Haren. The easiest new choices were John Smoltz, Brandon Webb, C.C. Sabathia, Mike Mussina, and Chris Capuano.

After examining a variety of starters, we eventually opted against a bevy of nominally respectable starters like Andy Pettitte, Mark Buehrle, Josh Beckett, and Francisco Liriano. Jose Contreras tempted us, and Jeremy Bonderman stayed on the edge of discussions before we finally decided against taking any Tigers or Reds due to general concerns regarding the continued success of both teams. Instead, Brad Penny, Scott Kazmir, and Tom Glavine comprise the remainder of our sixteen starters.

SP(6)
Johan Santana: Fri:@OAK(K.Saarloos)
Roy Oswalt: Mon:@STL(J.Marquis); Sat:CIN(B.Arroyo)
Pedro Martinez: Wed:ARI(B.Webb)
John Smoltz: Fri:ARI(En.Gonzalez)
Jake Peavy: Sat:@PIT(V.Santos)
Roy Halladay: Mon:BOS(M.Clement); Sat:@TB(M.Hendrickson)
Curt Schilling: Fri:@DET(K.Rogers)
Brandon Webb: Wed:@NYM(P.Martinez)
C.C. Sabathia: Tue:CHW(M.Buehrle); Sun:LAA(J.Lackey)
Mike Mussina: Wed:@DET(N.Robertson)
John Lackey: Mon:MIN(B.Radke); Sun:@CLE(C.Sabathia)
Chris Capuano Wed:@PIT(I.Snell)
Dan Haren: Mon:KC(S.Etherton); Sat:MIN(B.Radke)
Brad Penny: Mon:@ATL(J.Thomson); Sat:PHI(J.Lieber)
Tom Glavine: Fri:SF(M.Cain)
Scott Kazmir: Thu:@BAL(E.Bedard)

Taking Otsuka instead of Gordon gives us the cap room to run all six doubles, although we also will deploy Kearns over Patterson and Rios to sneak under the cap.

Rotohelp.com
Week 9: May 29-June 4

C	Joe Mauer		770
C	Ramon Hernandez		690
1B	Travis Hafner		1180
1B	Ryan Howard		880
2B	Chase Utley		1190
2B	Rickie Weeks		620
3B	David Wright		1210 
3B	Morgan Ensberg		1010
SS	Jose Reyes		1030 
SS	Hanley Ramirez		400
OF	Jason Bay		1380 
OF	Scott Podsednik		1370
OF	Matt Holliday		1040 
OF	Austin Kearns		700
OF	Nick Swisher		620 
OF	Brad Hawpe		440
DH	Albert Pujols		2060
DH	Jim Thome		1070

SP	Roy Oswalt		1830  
SP	Roy Halladay		1230
SP	C.C. Sabathia		980
SP	John Lackey		940 
SP	Dan Haren		860
SP	Brad Penny		820
RP	Bobby Jenks		1150
RP	Jon Papelbon		890
RP	Chris Ray		820
RP	Akinori Otsuka	690

Total Salary for Week 9: 	27870

Internet Challenge

SP(6)
Johan Santana: No start.
Roy Oswalt: Mon:@STL(J.Marquis)
Pedro Martinez: Wed:ARI(B.Webb)
Chris Carpenter: No start(DL?)
Randy Johnson: Mon:@DET(J.Bonderman)
Jake Peavy: No start.
Roy Halladay: Mon:BOS(M.Clement)
Mark Buehrle: Tue:@CLE(C.Sabathia)
Curt Schilling: No start.
Felix Hernandez: Wed:@TEX(J.Koronka)
John Lackey: Mon:MIN(B.Radke)
Dan Haren: Mon:KC(S.Etherton)
Elmer Dessens: 3 Road at OAK.

Pedro, Halladay, Buehrle, Lackey, and Haren are easy calls, but since we have the cap space, we'll risk Randy rather than deploying Dessens or blowing another move on a starter. Street also flips for Dempster.

Our bench stays the same with Helton, Atkins, Holliday, and Hawpe still on the road.

Rotohelp.com(13th lg; 336th overall)
Week 9a: May 29-June 1

C	Victor Martinez		1020
C	Josh Willingham		340 
1B	Albert Pujols		2060
1B	Ryan Howard		880
2B	Chase Utley		1190
2B	Rickie Weeks		620
3B	David Wright		1210 
3B	Edwin Encarnacion	600 
SS	Felipe Lopez		1070
SS	Jose Reyes		1030 
OF	Jason Bay		1380
OF	Chone Figgins		1350 
OF	Pat Burrell		1040 
OF	Chad Tracy		1040
OF	Nick Swisher		620 
OF	Joey Gathright		450
DH	Mark Teixeira		1470
DH	Travis Hafner		1180 

SP	Pedro Martinez		1700
SP	Randy Johnson		1360 
SP	Roy Halladay		1230 
SP	Mark Buehrle		1120 
SP	John Lackey		940
SP	Dan Haren		860
RP	Huston Street		1300 
RP	Mike Gonzalez		1120
RP	Jon Papelbon		890
RP	Chris Ray		820

Total Salary for Week 9a:	29870

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

With a surprising excess of cap space, we're finally adding Pujols and cutting Helton. While we'll still end up over a 1000 under the cap, we firmly believe our planned lineup offers the most immediate upside, especially since we're not quite ready to select a replacement shortstop for Clint Barmes.

SP(6)
Johan Santana: Fri:@OAK(K.Saarloos)
Roy Oswalt: Mon:@STL(J.Marquis); Sat:CIN(B.Arroyo)
Chris Carpenter: No start(DL?)
Pedro Martinez: Wed:ARI(B.Webb)
Randy Johnson: Mon:@DET(J.Bonderman); Sat:@BAL(J.Halama?)
Javier Vazquez: Mon:@CLE(C.Lee); Sat:TEX(V.Padilla)
John Lackey: Mon:MIN(B.Radke); Sun:@CLE(C.Sabathia)
Roy Halladay: Mon:BOS(M.Clement); Sat:@TB(M.Hendrickson)
Dan Haren: Mon:KC(S.Etherton); Sat:MIN(B.Radke)

Six doubles gives us a chance to make up some ground, and then Street replaces Dempster, who likely will depart our team for good next week with the Cubs imploding beyond belief.

Florida's trip to Colorado keeps Willingham active and sends Hermida to the lineup. Martinez, Holliday, Atkins, and Pujols also deploy, leaving us with a bench of Joe Mauer, Tex, Ellis, Encarnacion, Barmes, Chad Tracy, Jonny Gomes, and Cory Sullivan.

Rotohelp.com(FB: 10th lg; 681st overall)
& Rotohelp.com(BB: 12th lg; 1510th overall)
Week 9: May 29-June 4

 
C	Victor Martinez		1940
C	Josh Willingham		1000 
1B	Lance Berkman		2860
1B	Ryan Howard		1950
2B	Chase Utley		2270
2B	Rickie Weeks		1300
3B	David Wright		2480 
3B	Garrett Atkins		1330
SS	Felipe Lopez		1800 
SS	Bobby Crosby		1640
OF	Jason Bay		2550 
OF	Grady Sizemore		2200 
OF	Matt Holliday		2140
OF	Nick Swisher		1550 
OF	Jeremy Hermida		1000
OF	Curtis Granderson	1000 
DH	Albert Pujols		3870
DH	Travis Hafner		2680

SP	Roy Oswalt		3200 
SP	Randy Johnson		2910
SP	Javier Vazquez		2810 
SP	John Lackey		2760
SP	Roy Halladay		2480 
SP	Dan Haren		1940 
RP	Huston Street		2320
RP	Mike Gonzalez		1820 
RP	Jon Papelbon		1590
RP	Chris Ray		1580

Total Salary for Week 9:	58970

Today's Fantasy Rx: While we debated the merits of most of the players we eventually selected for our 2nd Season team, we consider a few as must-owns given their cost and likely production: Ryan Howard, Rickie Weeks, Jason Bay, Matt Holliday, Brad Hawpe, and Jonathan Papelbon. Others that deserve extremely serious consideration regardless of strategy include Albert Pujols, Travis Hafner, Jose Reyes, Scott Podsednik, Nick Swisher, Chris Ray, Johan Santana, Pedro Martinez, Brandon Webb, and Dan Haren.

Click here to read the previous article.

Please e-mail your comments to tim@rotohelp.com.


Rotohelp Our Philosophy		2006 Week in Preview: 5.29-6.4 by Tim Polko Today's Fantasy Rx Schedule recommendations for teams with 7 games Good for hitters / Good for pitchers Chicago White Sox: 4 Road at CLE; 3 Home vs. TEX. Milwaukee: 4 Road at PIT; 3 Home vs. WAS. Oakland: 3 Home vs. KC; 4 Home vs. MIN. Good for hitters / Bad for pitchers Cleveland: 4 Home vs. CLE; 3 Home vs. LAA. Detroit: 4 Home vs. NYY; 3 Home vs. BOS. New York Yankees: 4 Road at DET: 3 Road at BAL. Pittsburgh: 4 Home vs. MIL; 3 Home vs. SD. Bad for hitters / Good for pitchers Atlanta: 3 Home vs. LAD; 4 Home vs. ARI. Los Angeles Dodgers: 3 Road at ATL; 4 Home vs. PHI. Bad for hitters / Bad for pitchers Arizona: 3 Road at NYM; 4 Road at ATL. Minnesota: 3 Road at LAA; 4 Road at OAK. Philadelphia: 3 Home vs. WAS; 4 Road at LAD. Schedule recommendations for teams with 6 games Good for hitters / Good for pitchers New York Mets: 3 Home vs. ARI; 3 Home vs. SF. St. Louis: 3 Home vs. HOU; 3 Home vs. CHC. Good for hitters / Bad for pitchers Baltimore: 3 Home vs. TB; 3 Home vs. NYY. Boston: 3 Road at TOR; 3 Road at DET. Colorado: 3 Road at SD; 3 Home vs. FLO. Florida: 3 Home vs. SF; 3 Road at COL. Houston: 3 Road at STL; 3 Home vs. CIN. Seattle: 3 Road at TEX; 3 Home vs. KC. Tampa Bay: 3 Road at BAL; 3 Home vs. TOR. Texas: 3 Home vs. SEA; 2 Road at CHW. Toronto: 3 Home vs. BOS; 3 Road at TB. Washington: 3 Road at PHI; 3 Road at MIL. Bad for hitters / Good for pitchers Los Angeles Angels: 3 Home vs. MIN; 3 Road at CLE. San Diego: 3 Home vs. COL; 3 Road at PIT. San Francisco: 3 Road at FLO; 3 Road at NYM. Bad for hitters / Bad for pitchers Chicago Cubs: 3 Home vs. CIN; 3 Road at STL. Kansas City: 3 Road at OAK; 3 Road at SEA. Pitchers with 2 starts(to deploy everywhere you own them): Scott Baker: Tue:@LAA(Jef.Weaver); Sun:@OAK(B.Halsey?) Miguel Batista: Tue:@NYM(A.Soler); Sun:@ATL(Jor.Sosa) Jeremy Bonderman: Mon:NYY(R.Johnson); Sat:BOS(T.Wakefield) Mark Buehrle: Tue:@CLE(C.Sabathia); Sun:TEX(K.Millwood) Matt Clement: Mon:@TOR(R.Halladay); Sun:@DET(R.Colon) Doug Davis: Mon:@PIT(V.Santos); Sat:WAS(Ra.Ortiz) Zach Duke: Tue:MIL(J.de la Rosa); Sun:SD(M.Thompson) Roy Halladay: Mon:BOS(M.Clement); Sat:@TB(M.Hendrickson) Dan Haren: Mon:KC(S.Etherton); Sat:MIN(B.Radke) Randy Johnson: Mon:@DET(J.Bonderman); Sat:@BAL(J.Halama?) John Lackey: Mon:MIN(B.Radke); Sun:@CLE(C.Sabathia) Cliff Lee: Mon:CHW(J.Vazquez); Sat:@LAA(K.Escobar) Jon Lieber: Mon:WAS(M.O'Connor); Sat:@LAD(B.Penny) Noah Lowry: Tue:@FLO(B.Moehler); Sun:@NYM(S.Trachsel) Greg Maddux: Tue:CIN(B.Claussen); Sun:@STL(J.Marquis) Jason Marquis: Mon:HOU(R.Oswalt); Sun:CHC(G.Maddux) Kevin Millwood: Tue:SEA(G.Meche); Sun:@CHW(M.Buehrle) Matt Morris: Mon:@FLO(S.Olsen); Sat:@NYM(O.Hernandez) Brett Myers: Tue:WAS(T.Armas); Sun:@LAD(A.Sele) Roy Oswalt: Mon:@STL(J.Marquis); Sat:CIN(B.Arroyo) Brad Penny: Mon:@ATL(J.Thomson); Sat:PHI(J.Lieber) Andy Pettitte: Tue:@STL(An.Reyes); Sun:CIN(El.Ramirez) Brad Radke: Mon:@LAA(J.Lackey); Sat:@OAK(D.Haren) C.C. Sabathia: Tue:CHW(M.Buehrle); Sun:LAA(J.Lackey) Aaron Sele: Tue:@ATL(Jor.Sosa); Sun:PHI(B.Myers) Jamie Shields: Tue:@BAL(R.Lopez); Sun:TOR(G.Chacin) Mike Thompson: Mon:COL(J.Jennings); Sun:@PIT(Z.Duke) John Thomson: Mon:LAD(B.Penny); Sat:ARI(C.Vargas) Steve Trachsel: Mon:ARI(C.Vargas); Sun:SF(N.Lowry) Javier Vazquez: Mon:@CLE(C.Lee); Sat:TEX(V.Padilla) Kerry Wood: Mon:CIN(Cl.Lee); Sat:@STL(M.Mulder) Pitchers with 2 starts to deploy only in leagues that don't count qualitative stats: Gustavo Chacin: Tue:BOS(J.Beckett); Sun:@TB(J.Shields) Roman Colon: Tue:NYY(A.Small); Sun:BOS(M.Clement) Jorge de la Rosa: Tue:@PIT(Z.Duke); Sun:WAS(M.O'Connor) Seth Etherton: Mon:@OAK(D.Haren); Sun:@SEA(J.Washburn)? Jason Jennings: Mon:@SD(M.Thompson); Sun:FLO(S.Olsen) Rod Lopez: Tue:TB(J.Shields); Sun:NYY(A.Small) Mike O'Connor: Mon:@PHI(J.Lieber); Sun:@MIL(J.de la Rosa) Scott Olsen: Mon:SF(M.Morris); Sun:@COL(J.Jennings) Eli Ramirez: Mon:@CHC(K.Wood); Sun:@HOU(A.Pettitte) Victor Santos: Mon:MIL(D.Davis); Sat:SD(J.Peavy) Aaron Small: Tue:@DET(R.Colon); Sun:@BAL(R.Lopez) Jorge Sosa: Tue:LAD(A.Sele); Sun:ARI(M.Batista) Claudio Vargas: Mon:@NYM(S.Trachsel); Sat:@ATL(J.Thomson) Jarrod Washburn: Mon:@TEX(J.Rheinecker); Sun:KC(S.Etherton?) Diamond Challenge SP(6) Johan Santana: Fri:@OAK(K.Saarloos) Roy Oswalt: Mon:@STL(J.Marquis); Sat:CIN(B.Arroyo) Pedro Martinez: Wed:ARI(B.Webb) Chris Carpenter: No start(DL?) Randy Johnson: Mon:@DET(J.Bonderman); Sat:@BAL(J.Halama?) Jake Peavy: Sat:@PIT(V.Santos) Roy Halladay: Mon:BOS(M.Clement); Sat:@TB(M.Hendrickson) Mark Buehrle: Tue:@CLE(C.Sabathia); Sun:TEX(K.Millwood) Curt Schilling: Fri:@DET(K.Rogers) Felix Hernandez: Wed:@TEX(J.Koronka) John Lackey: Mon:MIN(B.Radke); Sun:@CLE(C.Sabathia) Dan Haren: Mon:KC(S.Etherton); Sat:MIN(B.Radke) We'll happily deploy our six doubles. Street returns to the lineup for Dempster, who's falling apart. With the Rockies returning home in the second half of the week, Atkins, Holliday, and Hawpe flip for Encarnacion, Tracy, and Gathright. Barmes stays seated, and then since we have extra cap room, Pujols forces Tex to the bench. Rotohelp.com(4th lg; 83rd div; 1255th overall) Week 9: May 29-June 4 C Victor Martinez 1020 C Josh Willingham 340 1B Albert Pujols 2060 1B Ryan Howard 880 2B Chase Utley 1190 2B Rickie Weeks 620 3B David Wright 1210 3B Garrett Atkins 610 SS Felipe Lopez 1070 SS Jose Reyes 1030 OF Jason Bay 1380 OF Chone Figgins 1350 OF Pat Burrell 1040 OF Matt Holliday 1040 OF Nick Swisher 620 OF Brad Hawpe 440 DH Travis Hafner 1180 DH Jim Thome 1070 SP Roy Oswalt 1830 SP Randy Johnson 1360 SP Roy Halladay 1230 SP Mark Buehrle 1120 SP John Lackey 940 SP Dan Haren 860 RP Huston Street 1300 RP Mike Gonzalez 1120 RP Jon Papelbon 890 RP Chris Ray 820 Total Salary for Week 9: 29620 Diamond Challenge - 2nd Season Given the last couple of weeks in the season-long contests, we're altering our normal strategy for this contest, which begins tomorrow. First, we're cutting our Coors platoon down to the two outfielders worth owning. Second, instead of lowballing our bullpen, we're opting for the cheapest four relievers that own unquestioned closing jobs, play for respectable teams, and own solid skills. Lastly, we're only selecting a minimum of offensive bench players to maximize our starting pitching options, which should provide greater flexibility given the reduced salary cap of this contest. We hope to avoid spending purchases on pitching, instead using our buys and free agent moves to augment our offense as needed. We considered and then selected the following: Catchers: We still like Victor Martinez and Josh Willingham, but given their recent slumps, Joe Mauer and Ramon Hernandez just appear safer. Only his upcoming suspension kept Michael Barrett from earning serious consideration. First Basemen: Selecting Albert Pujols, Travis Hafner, and Ryan Howard seemed easy, and after brief looks at David Ortiz and Lance Berkman, we again opted for Jim Thome. Second Basemen: Alfonso Soriano simply won't fit under our budget, and with second base generally a terrible position, Chase Utley and Rickie Weeks stay on our team. Third Basemen: Although we seriously debated keeping Garrett Atkins and Edwin Encarnacion, we decided we needed a pure power source to join David Wright. Morgan Ensberg emerged as a better option than Troy Glaus due to superior plate discipline despite a slightly heftier salary. Shortstops: Nomar, Felipe Lopez, and even Miguel Tejada merited some consideration, but with a general need for speed, Jose Reyes and Hanley Ramirez seemed the safest selections. Outfielders: Jason Bay, Matt Holliday, and Brad Hawpe automatically secured spots. Scott Podsednik easily edged Chone Figgins and Juan Pierre. Nick Swisher remains a superb value, and then we rostered Corery Patterson, Alex Rios, and Austin Kearns. We generally intend to deploy Patterson, but when the Rockies head on their four remaining weeks of road trips, Rios and Kearns own perfect schedules and cost us nearly the same salary. Relief Pitchers: Jon Papelbon and Chris Ray were easy choices despite pitching in the same division. Continued excellence similarly awarded a spot to Bobby Jenks. We spent plenty of time debating our last closer, but after long looks at Todd Jones, Mike Gonzalez, and especially Tyler Walker and Jose Valverde, we nearly picked Tom Gordon for his greater consistency. However, a last-second look around the league produced Akinori Otsuka as an outstanding option given his seemingly secure job, strong skills, and very cheap salary. Starting Pitchers: With only two position players and no relievers on our bench, we sought a starting staff loaded with a variety of dominant pitchers, also giving consideration to who offers us the best combination of starts over the next month. Chris Carpenter only missed out due to his recent injury problems. Starters that stayed with our squad from our full-season teams include Johan Santana, Roy Oswalt, Pedro Martinez, Jake Peavy, Roy Halladay, Curt Schilling, John Lackey, and Dan Haren. The easiest new choices were John Smoltz, Brandon Webb, C.C. Sabathia, Mike Mussina, and Chris Capuano. After examining a variety of starters, we eventually opted against a bevy of nominally respectable starters like Andy Pettitte, Mark Buehrle, Josh Beckett, and Francisco Liriano. Jose Contreras tempted us, and Jeremy Bonderman stayed on the edge of discussions before we finally decided against taking any Tigers or Reds due to general concerns regarding the continued success of both teams. Instead, Brad Penny, Scott Kazmir, and Tom Glavine comprise the remainder of our sixteen starters. SP(6) Johan Santana: Fri:@OAK(K.Saarloos) Roy Oswalt: Mon:@STL(J.Marquis); Sat:CIN(B.Arroyo) Pedro Martinez: Wed:ARI(B.Webb) John Smoltz: Fri:ARI(En.Gonzalez) Jake Peavy: Sat:@PIT(V.Santos) Roy Halladay: Mon:BOS(M.Clement); Sat:@TB(M.Hendrickson) Curt Schilling: Fri:@DET(K.Rogers) Brandon Webb: Wed:@NYM(P.Martinez) C.C. Sabathia: Tue:CHW(M.Buehrle); Sun:LAA(J.Lackey) Mike Mussina: Wed:@DET(N.Robertson) John Lackey: Mon:MIN(B.Radke); Sun:@CLE(C.Sabathia) Chris Capuano Wed:@PIT(I.Snell) Dan Haren: Mon:KC(S.Etherton); Sat:MIN(B.Radke) Brad Penny: Mon:@ATL(J.Thomson); Sat:PHI(J.Lieber) Tom Glavine: Fri:SF(M.Cain) Scott Kazmir: Thu:@BAL(E.Bedard) Taking Otsuka instead of Gordon gives us the cap room to run all six doubles, although we also will deploy Kearns over Patterson and Rios to sneak under the cap. Rotohelp.com Week 9: May 29-June 4 C Joe Mauer 770 C Ramon Hernandez 690 1B Travis Hafner 1180 1B Ryan Howard 880 2B Chase Utley 1190 2B Rickie Weeks 620 3B David Wright 1210 3B Morgan Ensberg 1010 SS Jose Reyes 1030 SS Hanley Ramirez 400 OF Jason Bay 1380 OF Scott Podsednik 1370 OF Matt Holliday 1040 OF Austin Kearns 700 OF Nick Swisher 620 OF Brad Hawpe 440 DH Albert Pujols 2060 DH Jim Thome 1070 SP Roy Oswalt 1830 SP Roy Halladay 1230 SP C.C. Sabathia 980 SP John Lackey 940 SP Dan Haren 860 SP Brad Penny 820 RP Bobby Jenks 1150 RP Jon Papelbon 890 RP Chris Ray 820 RP Akinori Otsuka 690 Total Salary for Week 9: 27870 Internet Challenge SP(6) Johan Santana: No start. Roy Oswalt: Mon:@STL(J.Marquis) Pedro Martinez: Wed:ARI(B.Webb) Chris Carpenter: No start(DL?) Randy Johnson: Mon:@DET(J.Bonderman) Jake Peavy: No start. Roy Halladay: Mon:BOS(M.Clement) Mark Buehrle: Tue:@CLE(C.Sabathia) Curt Schilling: No start. Felix Hernandez: Wed:@TEX(J.Koronka) John Lackey: Mon:MIN(B.Radke) Dan Haren: Mon:KC(S.Etherton) Elmer Dessens: 3 Road at OAK. Pedro, Halladay, Buehrle, Lackey, and Haren are easy calls, but since we have the cap space, we'll risk Randy rather than deploying Dessens or blowing another move on a starter. Street also flips for Dempster. Our bench stays the same with Helton, Atkins, Holliday, and Hawpe still on the road. Rotohelp.com(13th lg; 336th overall) Week 9a: May 29-June 1 C Victor Martinez 1020 C Josh Willingham 340 1B Albert Pujols 2060 1B Ryan Howard 880 2B Chase Utley 1190 2B Rickie Weeks 620 3B David Wright 1210 3B Edwin Encarnacion 600 SS Felipe Lopez 1070 SS Jose Reyes 1030 OF Jason Bay 1380 OF Chone Figgins 1350 OF Pat Burrell 1040 OF Chad Tracy 1040 OF Nick Swisher 620 OF Joey Gathright 450 DH Mark Teixeira 1470 DH Travis Hafner 1180 SP Pedro Martinez 1700 SP Randy Johnson 1360 SP Roy Halladay 1230 SP Mark Buehrle 1120 SP John Lackey 940 SP Dan Haren 860 RP Huston Street 1300 RP Mike Gonzalez 1120 RP Jon Papelbon 890 RP Chris Ray 820 Total Salary for Week 9a: 29870 Fantasy Baseball & Budget Baseball (Same rules = same rosters and moves for both teams) With a surprising excess of cap space, we're finally adding Pujols and cutting Helton. While we'll still end up over a 1000 under the cap, we firmly believe our planned lineup offers the most immediate upside, especially since we're not quite ready to select a replacement shortstop for Clint Barmes. SP(6) Johan Santana: Fri:@OAK(K.Saarloos) Roy Oswalt: Mon:@STL(J.Marquis); Sat:CIN(B.Arroyo) Chris Carpenter: No start(DL?) Pedro Martinez: Wed:ARI(B.Webb) Randy Johnson: Mon:@DET(J.Bonderman); Sat:@BAL(J.Halama?) Javier Vazquez: Mon:@CLE(C.Lee); Sat:TEX(V.Padilla) John Lackey: Mon:MIN(B.Radke); Sun:@CLE(C.Sabathia) Roy Halladay: Mon:BOS(M.Clement); Sat:@TB(M.Hendrickson) Dan Haren: Mon:KC(S.Etherton); Sat:MIN(B.Radke) Six doubles gives us a chance to make up some ground, and then Street replaces Dempster, who likely will depart our team for good next week with the Cubs imploding beyond belief. Florida's trip to Colorado keeps Willingham active and sends Hermida to the lineup. Martinez, Holliday, Atkins, and Pujols also deploy, leaving us with a bench of Joe Mauer, Tex, Ellis, Encarnacion, Barmes, Chad Tracy, Jonny Gomes, and Cory Sullivan. Rotohelp.com(FB: 10th lg; 681st overall) & Rotohelp.com(BB: 12th lg; 1510th overall) Week 9: May 29-June 4 C Victor Martinez 1940 C Josh Willingham 1000 1B Lance Berkman 2860 1B Ryan Howard 1950 2B Chase Utley 2270 2B Rickie Weeks 1300 3B David Wright 2480 3B Garrett Atkins 1330 SS Felipe Lopez 1800 SS Bobby Crosby 1640 OF Jason Bay 2550 OF Grady Sizemore 2200 OF Matt Holliday 2140 OF Nick Swisher 1550 OF Jeremy Hermida 1000 OF Curtis Granderson 1000 DH Albert Pujols 3870 DH Travis Hafner 2680 SP Roy Oswalt 3200 SP Randy Johnson 2910 SP Javier Vazquez 2810 SP John Lackey 2760 SP Roy Halladay 2480 SP Dan Haren 1940 RP Huston Street 2320 RP Mike Gonzalez 1820 RP Jon Papelbon 1590 RP Chris Ray 1580 Total Salary for Week 9: 58970 Today's Fantasy Rx: While we debated the merits of most of the players we eventually selected for our 2nd Season team, we consider a few as must-owns given their cost and likely production: Ryan Howard, Rickie Weeks, Jason Bay, Matt Holliday, Brad Hawpe, and Jonathan Papelbon. Others that deserve extremely serious consideration regardless of strategy include Albert Pujols, Travis Hafner, Jose Reyes, Scott Podsednik, Nick Swisher, Chris Ray, Johan Santana, Pedro Martinez, Brandon Webb, and Dan Haren. Click here to read the previous article. Please e-mail your comments to tim@rotohelp.com.
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