Ahh, the weekend. It’s something that we all look forward to. And I know you are all looking forward to today’s Roto Riteup, so we’ll jump right in.

• In case you haven’t heard, Carlos Quentin is back and he is back in a big way. Since his return to action a mere nine games ago, Quentin is sitting at a .484/.543/1.097. Of course that isn’t sustainable, but seeing him already sock five home runs is encouraging. When healthy, Quentin certainly is a force at the plate. He is owned in just 64% of Yahoo! leagues, so if for some reason he slipped through the cracks of your league, pick him up. His ESPN ownership is all the way up at 98% however.

• If you’re set in the outfield but you need some infield help, then Kyle Seager could be just the man you’re looking for. Since May 26th, Seager has two homers, 10 RBI’s and a .311 average. For the season he has an impressive .275/.324/.475 line, good for a 124 wRC+. As a prospect he always had more doubles power than home run power, Seager has surprised us by popping seven home runs already. That is more than twice as many as last season in what is essentially the same number of plate appearances. He is still popping doubles at a very good clip, hitting 13 so far. ZiPS thinks he will end the year around 39 doubles and that kind of extra-base hit production from someone who is shorstop eligible is a very nice thing indeed. His ownership rating in both Yahoo! is a mere 70% and ESPN isn’t much better at 74%. Read the rest of this entry »

Today is Friday, and thus represents the light at the end of the work week tunnel. Today is going to be a good day. Today’s Roto Riteup was created especially for you.

• After just coming off of the disabled list a week ago, it seems as though Yoenis Cespedes could miss some more time in the upcoming days. He pulled up lame and holding his left hamstring after a first inning single in yesterday’s win over the Texas Rangers. He is currently being listed as day-to-day with a strained hamstring, but it is certainly something to watch for. Those of us in weekly leagues should pay close attention to the A’s twitter feed before the deadline passes to set our lineup for next week.

• The St. Louis Cardinals placed Jaime Garcia on the 15-day DL yesterday after he had an examination on his throwing shoulder. Garcia is set to see a second doctor today and the door is open to see a third doctor. The reason for all these varying opinions is that although it has been officially named as a shoulder strain, the root of the pain still remains a mystery. Garcia’s ERA is a rather ugly 4.48, but his 2.74 FIP is much better and even his 3.59 xFIP is a considerable step up from ERA. I would stash him on your DL for now. Read the rest of this entry »

Today’s Roto Riteup is full of fun and adventure. Just kidding, it’s full of baseball, you silly goose!

• Interleague play starts up again today, so you’ll have to be extra careful when setting your lineups to assure certain American League players will be seeing the field.

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Do you know how hard it is to find things to put in the Roto Riteup when all everyone is worried about is the draft? It’s really hard.

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I may have used a certain phrase quite a bit yesterday, but that doesn’t mean you should stray away from reading today’s Roto Riteup.

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Happy Birthday, Grandma. Now, I know you said no presents, but I’m giving you a Roto Riteup anyway.

• Roy Oswalt made his 2012 debut in Triple-A this weekend, throwing two innings and tossing 34 pitches. Oswalt was reportedly sitting at 91-92 mph, but then again, he only threw two frames. Don’t expect to see Oswalt in the big leagues for about three weeks, but that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t be stashing him away in AL-only leagues if he’s available.

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According to the people who have too much time on their hands, June 3rd has been named national Repeat Day. Have no fear, I won’t repeat yesterday’s Roto Riteup.

• The experiment with Ichiro Suzuki batting third didn’t apparently didn’t impress Seattle Mariners manager Eric Wedge, so he moved Ichiro back to his customary lead off role for just the second time this year on Saturday. Ichiro immediately hit a home run in his first plate appearance. He also tacked on another solo shot in the third inning. I’ve touched on how Ichiro just isn’t the same elite player anymore, but he is still an above average player. Don’t expect this kind of power out of him regularly, but it is nice to see him contribute to the fantasy squad more than just steals for the first time in over a year. Read the rest of this entry »

As stated last week, RotoGraphs will now be bringing you the best most comprehensive fantasy news and advice on the weekend too. So sit back, watch some cartoons in that bathrobe that you wear once a month and catch up on some of fantasy baseball relevant news from yesterday in today’s edition of the Roto Riteup.

• The St. Louis Cardinals activated Allen Craig from the 15-day disabled list yesterday. His season triple slash is an impressive .345/.397/.456. No doubt that that line is inflated by his .359 BABIP, but Craig is no stranger to offensive success. Success at the major league level should not come as a surprise, as Craig has long been a pitcher’s nightmare, posting a .320/.379/.548 line in over 900 Triple-A plate appearances. In Yahoo! leagues Craig is already eligible at 1B, 2B and OF, making him a versatile bat to plug in almost anywhere in your lineup. Craig is owned in 62% of Yahoo! leagues and 70% of ESPN leagues. For anyone in a 12×12 mixed league, go pick him up.

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If you’re reading this at work then you only have but a few short hours before being released to the weekend. If you’re reading this in pajamas at noon, then I am jealous of you. Today’s Roto Riteup didn’t have a large quantity of games to pick from, but the quality of the games was high.

• According to the box score, Bud Norris was throwing a beach ball at the Colorado Rockies yesterday. The good news is that Norris had a 10.8 K/9. The bad news is that he only lasted an inning and two thirds. It was his second start in a row where he failed to go five innings, but the prior nine starts were all of average to excellent quality. As it stands right now, Norris currently has the highest strike out and the lowest walk rates of any season in the majors. He currently has a better K/BB, ERA and WHIP than Tim Lincecum and Yovani Gallardo to name a couple. I doubt he’s available in your league, but if for some reason he is, grab him.

• Another player in the Rockies/Astros game that is setting season highs is Carlos Gonzalez. CarGo isn’t a stranger to impressive offensive numbers, but as of right now his OBP is 25 points higher than his best single season and his SLG is 55 points higher than any previous best. His skill set is deep and varied, as his 14 homers are impressive and are his eight steals to zero caught stealing so far. His wOBA in Coors Field this year is an absurd .515 (as of this writing) compared against a very human, albeit very good, road wOBA of .357. If he continues to improve against left-handed pitching then the (already high) ceiling of his talents would be blown off.

• Last night Jarrod Saltalamacchia hit his 10th home run in just 136 plate appearances. For the season Salty is hitting an impressive .281/.316/.594. If you happen to play in an OBP league then he comes a little less valuable, but overall Salty is swinging the bat well. Of catchers with at least 130 PA’s, he has the most homers and ranks in the top 10 of runs, AVG and just outside the top 10 of RBI’s. He usually sits against left-handed pitching, but you can’t expect a catcher to play every day anyways. I can over look his platoon splits. He’s owned in just 47% of Yahoo! and 26% of ESPN formats. Although Salty doesn’t have a Mike Napoli 2011 season in him, he is still a undervalued fantasy team member.

• Dexter Fowler managed to get a hit, draw two walks and steal a base last night. How he is only owned in 55% of Yahoo! leagues and 36% of ESPN leagues I will never know. He’s sitting at .282/.382/.573 for the season. Do some math and meet me back here in a second. Yes. That is correct. Dexter Fowler currently has an ISO of almost .300. That won’t continue for the entire year, but he does have eight home runs on the year already compared to a previous single season high of nine in 2008 – down in Double-A ball. He now has five stolen bases and zero caught stealing too. I don’t really know what else to say to advocate Fowler as worthy of being owned. Look at those numbers!

For those of you who play daily fantasy games like FanGraphs: The Game, or just like to stream players, here are a couple matchups you may be able to exploit.

A Pitcher for Today: Adam Wainwright at NYM
I love Waino’s curve ball. I could watch a looped video of him throwing that thing for hours at a time.

A Pitcher for Tomorrow: Daniel Hudson at SD
I think Hudson gets back on track after a long DL stint and pitching in Petco could be the perfect remedy.

A Hitter for Today: Mark Trumbo vs TEX (Colby Lewis)
Trumbo smash. Trumbo smash good.

It’s not Friday, but cheer up, because it’s only a day away! Let the Roto Riteup take up a bit of your morning, and hey, feel free to write an angry comment if you feel like wasting even more time at work.

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