So far how trades effect Fantasy Baseball

Cantu to the Rangers- This could actually be huge for Cantu, just like it has been for Vlad, Josh Hamilton, and even Andruw Jones last year . The ball travels well there and he is hitting .350 at Rangers Ballpark. He joins one of the weaker divisions in baseball and should be valued slightly higher then he was before the trade.

Oswalt- The guy is having a good season regardless of his W-L. Some claim he is pitching at a level similiar to his prime. Oswalt will move to a tough division, but a renewed sense of hunger should help him. The Phillies will start to hit and Oswalt has a high ceiling at this point.

Tejada to Padres- This does help the Padres to bring a veteran to the club. But, he does not really have that much pop anymore and now his stadium just got even bigger.

Capps- This is huge for Capps owners but in a bad way. He has had a great year but now has no value unless Raunch somehow falls apart. Storen needs to be picked up in all leagues.

Guzman to Rangers- The Rangers are going very hard this trade dealine. Guzman for the short-term will be valuable to owners. When Kinsler comes back however, he may be a platoon player. Ian Desmond will now be the full time SS for Washington and we will have an eye on how he reacts to it.

Edwin Jackson- Not sure if this is where he will stay. Some say he will now be used as trade bait to bring in someone like Berkman or Dunn. Stay tuned

Will update as more trades occur

Friday July 30th

Hughes @ W. Davis -

Masterson @ Marcum

Galarraga @ Lester

Anderson @ D.Hudson

Arrieta @ O'Sullivan

Fister @ Baker

Feldman @ Ervin -

Oswalt @ Stammen

Medlen @ Cueto

Kennedy @ Pelfrey -

Parra @ TBD

Karstens @ Carpenter

Dempster @ Francis

Volstad @ LeBlanc

Monasterios @ Lincecum

Alert Add Brown!

Only if you have room though. While the kid is a stud and has performed at all levels, it is very hard for a rookie to come in and excel at the Major League level right away. The return however is well worth the risk of getting rid of your worst player on your team. Little is known what will happen when Victorino comes back, but if Brown performs then the only thing they can do is leave him. He had 20 HRs at the Minor League level and had 17 SBs while hitting .327.

In need of power?

I have three names for you for the second half all owned in less than 40% of leagues.


Pedro Alvarez- Good hitter with some pop, has slugged 7 Hrs in the last month.

Mike Stanton- 7 hrs also, but he had 20 in the minors before he came up. He will hit 50 one day. His avg will never be that high but he is not a bad hitter.

Luke Scott- 6 over the last month and 17 on the year. He hit 25 last year, look for him to surpass that mark.

Madison Bumgarner starts tomorrow against a Marlins team who has fared well against lefties this season. This is a good test for the youngster to see what he is made of. He currently is 4-2 with 31 strikeouts in 41 innings to go with a 2.43 ERA. He is owned by only 40% but I will be picking him up and not starting him to see how he does. If he has another good start then I will be happy to have him and if not I will lose him to FA.

If Cantu is traded

As the trade deadline approaches it seems that Cantu will be traded to either the Rockies or the Giants. If this is the case what will this mean to his owners. He is not having a great year thus far and if he gets traded to one of the NL West teams his stock will not improve. He only has 3 HR's at Coors Field, AT&T Park, and Chase Field combined. He is hitting .190 at Petco Park with 1 HR. Dodgers Stadium is the only field he has success, where he is hitting .343 with 2 HR's. However the Giants only have one series left at Dodger Stadium. I would try and trade him now or you will be dropping him shortly

Top Hitters 30 in Fantasy Baseball:

1.Miguel Cabrera 68R 24HR 85RBI .347
Miguel is a sure contender for the Triple Crown and has had a strangle hold on the power categories all season while leading the league in average. Miguel shows no signs of slowing down and could be the next, dare I say, Albert Puljos.

2.Robinson Cano 67R 18HR 66 RBI .334
Cano is putting up numbers that no one could fathom from a second baseball. A great combination of average and power, Cano is a leading candidate for MVP on one of the best line-ups in baseball History. Cano provides everything you need an more at the second base position.

3. Josh Hamilton 65R 23HR 71RBI .354
Hamilton has returned to his 2008 form with a monster set of numbers. Hamilton has been the constant variable of the Ranger’s success this season and.

4. Carl Crawford 71R 11HR 51RBI 33SB .314
No team is complete without a base stealer and Crawford has made that his niche in his time with the Rays. But don’t let one of the fastest players in the Bigs fool you, Crawford has the pop every team need to respect. With an OBP of .370, there’s no doubt Carl will end up 100 runs scored and 50 stolen bags.

5. Vladimir Guerrero 62R 20HR 76RBI .313
Stella got her groove back. Vlad has revamped his career in Arlington. Second in the AL in RBI with 20HR Vlad the Impaler has held his own in a very potent Ranger lineup.

6. Joey Votto 65R 24HR 65RBI .310
Votto has put his name in the rink of top hitter in the NL Central. Which is saying a lot considering there are guys like Puljos, Fielder, Hart, Braun and Holliday. Arguably the reason why the Reds are in the Playoff race.

7. Albert Puljos 60R 22HR 68 RBI .302
A “down” year for Puljos (a career year for any other player in the Show). However a big second half is expected by Puljos if the Cards are going to overthrow the surprising Reds in the Central. Expect the average to rise along with the production from the best hitter in the game.

8. Kevin Youkalis 72R 18HR 60RBI .305
The most valuable Red Sox this year, Youkilis has put up good production with a banged up Boston line-up. When the Red Sox regain their 2 spark plugs (Pedroia and Elsbury) expect more production from the already productive Youk.

9. Ryan Howard 62R 22HR 75RBI .303
The big Swinging Howard has cut down the strikeouts this season while raising his average. Howard, like Youkilis, plays on a banged up lineup but with players returning for the Phils, Howard’s number could only get better from here. With 75RBI already, Howard could possibly reach 110 by season’s end.

10. Alex Rios 61R 16HR 56RBI 23SB 3.08
Rios is a well-rounded fantasy point getter. Shows pop with 16 HR but the speed with 23SB. All while maintaining an average above .300

11. David Wright 53R 15HR 68RBI 15SB .301
Wright has held his up his end of the bargain in New York this season, but it’s a shame he’s the only one to do it a full season thus far. But still Wright maintaining a .300 average while supplying run production for the Mets, David has also swiped 15 bags at this point. It’s easy to believe he will end up with a 20/20 season yet again.

12.Chris Young 56R 17HR 63RBI 21SB .265
It’s tough to play hard day in and day out in the desert but Young seems to know a secret. While his average isn’t in the .300 ballpark, the rest of his line is very impressive. Another 20/20 player Young has a chance with a brief power surgence to make the 30/30 mark, as well as being in the 85-90 RBI range.

13. Rickie Weeks 66R 19HR 62 RBI .275
Weeks, the second best second baseman to have this season has already set a franchise record for HR by a second baseman. All at the leadoff spot in the Brewer’s lineup. You couldn’t ask for more out of your second baseman, but Weeks isn’t done yet. He is on pace for 30 HR and 80 RBI and runs scored.

14. Carlos Gonzalez 58R 17HR 61RBI 13SB .305
The sweet singing lefty in the Rocky Mountains is one of the best-kept secrets of baseball. This young complete player does it all. Expect another 20/20 man out of Gonzalez and a possible 30/30 man for years to come.

15. Aubrey Huff 60R 19HR 57RBI .305
Will someone tell me why Aubrey huff is only owned by 78% of teams? Maybe everyone but Aubrey knows he is 34 years old, but that hasn’t slowed this old dog. Huff is the bat that will lead the Giants in a second half push

16. Adrian Beltre 48R 16 HR 62RBI .336
Beltre is the best off-season pick-up this year. Adrian’s power has followed him to Boston. Even though he gets it done on one knee at times, Beltre has accompanied Youkilis this season with carrying the Sox.

17. Cory Hart 48R 22HR 70RBI .292
Hart has raised his average while maintaining the power all season. A sleeper in the beginning, many didn’t believe in Cory. But Cory is good friends with Drizzy-Drake an said, “Well point the biggest skeptic out, I’ll make them a believer.” I believe! Amen!

18. Paul Konerko 52R 21HR 66RBI .301
Paul has assumed his usual position of coordinating a second half push of his White Sox, but this year started a little early. (With a little help: see Rios and Quentin) Konerko should finish with 30-34 homeruns and a potential 90RBi season. Did we mention he is hitting over .300?

19. Evan Longoria 62R 14HR 65RBI 14SB .302
Longoria has stepped up as a young leader for the Rays and needs to continue with the production to make the playoffs, but it wont be easy.

20. Martin Prado 69R 12HR 41RBI .320
Prado is the spark plug of the first place Braves and should get the credit he deserves. Baseball is better when the Braves play well. Thank you Mr.Prado.

21.Hanley Ramirez 51R 13HR 54RBI 20SB .290
Pat Riley, will you please bring an All-Star group to the Marlins??? A down year? Yes. But Hanley will continue to hit. If only the Marlins would follow in the Heat’s footsteps, who knows how well Hanley would do with help in the lineup.

22. Adrian Gonzalez 55R 20HR 61RBI
Another leader of a surprising NL contender, Gonzalez isn’t doing anything he hasn’t done before. You can expect 30-35 HRs from A-Gon as well as the 90 RBI range.

23. Nick Swisher 61R 17HR 56RBI .303
With the lineup and ballpark Swisher plays in, 30 HRs isn’t far fetched. Neither is 80 Runs and 75 RBIs.

24. Ryan Braun 59R 15HR 60RBI 12SB .282
Braun might have fallen back to Earth after last season (.320 32 HRs). But with the potency in the Milwaukee lineup, it’s not hard to believe a power bug may get passed around and Braun could come down with the HR flu.

25. Justin Morneau 53R 18HR 56RBI .345* (296 AB)
The Twins are in need of Justin Morneau to return to their lineup if they want to catch the White Sox. But rest assure his monster year will continue.

26. Carlos Quentin 50R 19HR 66RBI .243
Hear me out. Quentin struggled out of the gate this season, which contributes, greatly to his mere .243 average. But he has really turned it on. Also a notorious second half hitter on a notorious second half team, Quentin is the man you want on your team right now. If he can stay healthy, he will be among the biggest sluggers from here on out.

27. Delmon Young 45R 13HR 75RBI .328
Delmon is the quietest player to have 75RBI this year, and possibly the best 7 or 8-hole hitter of all time. Seriously, when was the last time your 8-hole hitter was raking in 75 RBIs and not even be at season’s end? Plus his .328 average and potential to reach 20 HR by October, Delmon is a great player to trade for/pick up if he is available in your league (if you’re playing with baseball illiterates).

28. Buster Posey 28R 8HR 33RBI (199AB)
“All hail Buster Posey, Buster Posey, Buster Posey, with singles and doubles and triples and home-runs, All hail Buster Posey, Posey”
Has no one told this kid he’s not at FSU anymore? Goll-E I thought he hit my college team’s pitching well. Posey is a great pick up for the stretch, many believed he wouldn’t have so much production this early in his career, but he hasn’t missed a beat from his days in the garnet and gold. If you need some more pop from your catcher, or even average (umm…368), then pick up Posey.


29. Torii Hunter 56R 16HR 64RBI
With the addition of Haren the Angles are saying they aren’t ready to crawl into a hole and hand the Rangers the division yet, and that means you can expect Hunter to put this team on his shoulders. You can expect the Halos and Hunter to heat up come August and you better hope you have him on your roster by then. You can see 22HR and 80RBI by season’s end for Torri.

30. Justin Upton 54R 16HR 49RBI 13SB .280
Upton’s numbers aren’t quite his 2009 campaign but I know it’s tough to play in that desert. With no adrenaline and no playoff hopes in Arizona it makes it tough to show up to the ballpark everyday. On that note, Upton is a solid bat and legs to have in your lineup. He is a young 5-tool player and I believe he will want to play a little out of selfishness to stack his numbers a little. He is hitting above is .274 career mark and could be a 20/20 guy this season. I wouldn’t trade much for him, but definitely consider him if the right price is asked.

Don's top 15 pitchers list going forward

Pitching is such a crucial part of winning your fantasy league, so stop messing around and send out some offers for these guys. Lets take a look at who you should have going forward...

Top 15 Pitchers:

1. Josh Johnson- Josh who? Yea about 6 months ago Josh Johnson was yet another Florida Marlin that was under the radar. He has proved all the skeptics wrong and cannot be barreled up. 5 homeruns given up this year... Look for the dominance to continue.

2. Roy Halladay- 140 K's with a 2.28 and he is having a bad year? The Phillies will heat up and his run support will improve, look for him to be right at the top when its all said and done.

3. King Felix- OH KING FELIX WHERE HAVE YOU BEEN? In Seattle striking out 142 batters and holding onto a 2.75 ERA. Get him on your team and get ready for the second half ride.

4. Adam Wainwright- His numbers do not lie... Three very good seasons in the town that Nelly built. His ERA is still going down down baby.

5. Ubaldo Jimenez- What have you done! You have the best stuff in baseball but you are not throwing strikes! C'mon Son throw some damn strikes and help a brotha out.

6.Clifford Lee- This starts to get tricky. When you think of second half pitchers you have to think about Lee, CC, and Lester. Lee takes the top of the three right now because he is so clutch down the stretch and already has great numbers. Some say his numbers will inflate in Texas and I say you suck, your wrong.

7. Lester- He is a machine, a strikeout/ winning machine. Why would yahoo rank him 66th best player going into the year? The guy had 16 wins and 214 K's last year. Roy Halladay had 17 wins with 208 K's. What am I missing?

8. CC- The luxury of playing in New York is that you can have a 5.0 ERA and still probably come up with 15 wins. Well he has a 3.18 ERA and is $$$ down the stretch. 13 wins already, Look for 19-21 Wins.

9. Lincecum- He is always so good and is having a good year. But so many pitchers are catching up and/or surpassing him. He will do more of the same in the second half.

10. Jered Weaver- 147 K's wow! He is striking out more than he has ever. Could this be maturity or some good luck. I would say some good luck, however the Angels are in it to win it so he will get his wins and nice a ERA.

11. Chris Carpenter- He is always a threat to go to the DL but if not he is one of the best in the game hands down. He is already having a great year and if he was not injury prone, he would be around 6 in my list.

12. Clayton Kernshaw- He has never hit the 200 Inning mark in his career but if he does then owners will be salivating over his K total. He is a strike out artist and if the Dodgers pick it up, he will get his wins.

13. Liriano- When he is on he is un-hittable. He has a filthy change and plus fastball. He has never thrown this many innings before but he will be fine.

14. Gavin Floyd- Yes he is on this list. Over the last month he has 3 wins and a 1.35 ERA. This streak of greatness extends past the last month however and he needs to be owned. He has done this 3 years in a row. He starts of terrible and has an exceptional finish.

15. David Price- Almost 6 k's and outing is outstanding. He was suppose to be a super star and is starting to truly live up to the hype. He has fell off a little, but he is a competitor.

Bubble: Gallardo, Verlander, Latos, Johan Santana, Colby Lewis, Wandy Rodriguez.

Side Note: Strasburg would make the list, however this is for the second half and his innings will be capped.

Tuck's Top Hitters come's out Tuesday...





Written by Sean