It's the final week of the fantasy baseball season. With that, the final kick for the finish line is in full effect. It's time to dig in and sprint, as fast as you can, for the tape. Here are some guys that don't have big names but are surging as the season nears it's conclusion. Maybe they can help you to hoist that championship trophy.
The Red Sox only play five games this week.
Teams that have made the playoffs are very likely to rest players, an even if it's just for one game, that can make the difference.
Young pitchers are likely to have their starts cut short if any problems arise during the start. Teams don't want to extend young arms at the end of the season.
Two-start hurlers this week just might end up being 1-time starters.
Be hyper-vigilant with your lineups this week.
AT THE DISH
Charlie Blackmon leads baseball the past two weeks with a .433 batting average. He's been pounding out the extra base hits with a homer, a triple and seven doubles. He's also driven in eight runs while scoring nine times. I added him in a couple of leagues.
Gregor Blanco is batting .267 with three homers and 13 steals this season. Blah city. However, he's been a star in Sept batting .413 with a .491 OBP and .969 OPS over 17 games. I know, right? He's also scored seven runs while swiping two bags (too bad he's been caught three times).
Cesar Hernandez is a middle infielder on the Phillies. He's also hit .308 with a .370 PBP over 27 big league games, and the last 10 games he's played he's produce 14 hits. Yeah, who knew? He doesn't have a homer or steal though, so it's really all about average and runs (10 runs in those 10 games as well).
Elliot Johnson is batting .203 with a .515 OPS. He's a pathetic, over matched hitter. No way around that. However, he's also a strong source of stolen bases, and he's rolling right now. He's swiped six bases in his last 15 games, and look at that, he's even hitting .271 in September.
Ed Lucas is batting .254 with four homers and one steal in 331 at-bats. But like others here, he's rolling now. In his last nine game he's had at least two hits six times. He's hitting .328 over his last 17 games albeit with one homer and no steals.
Danny Valencia is batting .364 against lefties (88 at-bats). He's batting .404 at home (57 at-bats). He's hitting .353 since the All-Star break (85 at-bats). He's hitting .328 in September (58 at-bats). That's a whole lot of good.
ON THE BUMP
Robbie Erlin of the Padres allowed nine runs on July 7th and that earned him a trip back to the minors. Since being recalled he's made four starts an in that time he's allowed a total of five earned runs. He only has one scheduled start against the Diamondbacks this week. Teammate's Eric Stults and Tyson Ross are set up for two outings each against the D'backs and Giants.
Brandon McCarthy is set to start against the Padres in San Diego and in Washington against the Nationals. If he makes those two starts he's a solid option this week, especially since he's gone at least six innings in each of his last five outings while allowing a total of 10 earned runs.
Charlie Morton is lined up to make two starts, both on the road, versus the Cubs and Reds. One solid matchup and one spotty one. He hasn't exactly killed it on the road this season (3.88 ERA, 1.41 WHIP), but he does have a 1.29 WHIP and 3.19 ERA over his last 10 starts.
Todd Redmond's last four starts have been impressive. In those four outings he's walked five batters, struck out 23 and won three games. Oh yeah, he's also allowed only seven earned runs. He's set to make two starts for the Jays this week. He's only owned in one percent of Fleaflicker leagues.
Yordano Ventura is scheduled to take the bump twice. The youngster throws mid to high 90's, and in his first outing in the bigs he held the Indians to one run over 5.2 innings. Always tough to trust a rookie in the final week of the season, especially when he's only got 5.2 innings under his belt, but this kid has a dynamic wing.
By Ray Flowers
Player News
Clayton Kershaw (toe, knee) fired six hitless innings on Tuesday in a minor league start in the Rookie-level Arizona Complex League.
Kershaw had no issues against lower-level hitters after making a couple rehab outings previously for Triple-A Oklahoma City. The future Hall of Fame southpaw is targeting a mid-May return to the Dodgers’ rotation, so he figures to make at least one additional rehab start before being activated to make his season debut.
Gabriel Moreno is day-to-day with left side soreness.
Moreno was scratched from Tuesday’s lineup in what was described as a manager’s decision at the time. The Diamondbacks revealed after the contest that their starting catcher is dealing with left side soreness. It’ll be Jose Herrera handling the catching duties in his absence.
Julio Rodríguez went 3-for-4 with a solo homer and two runs scored on Tuesday to lead the Mariners to a 5-3 win over the Athletics.
Rodríguez put the Mariners on the board early with solo homer off Jeffrey Springs in the first inning. He added a base hit in the third inning and was hit by a pitch in the seventh. Rodríguez reached for a fourth time with a single in the ninth and scored on a base hit by Cal Raleigh. The 24-year-old outfielder is hitting .221/.323/.407 with six homers, 25 runs scored, and five steals across 161 plate appearances.
Cal Raleigh drove in two runs with a pinch-hit single against the Athletics on Tuesday.
Raleigh entered to pinch hit for Mitch Garver with the bases loaded in the ninth trailing by one run. He came through with a line drive base hit to bring home two runs and give the Mariners the lead. The 28-year-old backstop has been among the top fantasy performers at the position, slashing .246/.364/.577 with 12 homers, 25 RBI, and four steals across 154 plate appearances.
Brent Rooker went 3-for-5 with two runs scored and two steals against the Mariners on Tuesday.
Rooker drew a walk in the first inning and stole second before scoring on a base hit to put the A’s on the board. He reached again in the third with a single and stole second again for his second swipe of the day. Rooker later doubled in the eighth and scored a second time before collecting a third hit in the ninth. The 30-year-old slugger is having a solid season at the plate, slashing .255/.323/.497 with nine homers, 25 runs scored, 19 RBI, and two steals across 164 plate appearances.
Carlos Vargas struck out two batters in a scoreless ninth inning to earn the save against the Athletics on Tuesday.
Andrés Muñoz was unavailable for the Mariners on Tuesday after pitching in two of the last three days. It was Vargas who got the call in the ninth to close out the game with a two-run lead. He stranded two runners, striking out two to record the save and secure the win for Seattle.