MASH (7/24/14)

• In keeper leagues, it is time for the top teams to stabilize their teams with healthy players. This is an opportunity for teams buy low on know health risks. Take Jason Kipnis for example. he has been limited by an oblique injury all year. If a top team has him and you have healthy Ian Kinsler, look to trade for Kipnis. Most owners will do about anything for a win and will take the stability for this season and you get an upgrade for next season. Another player to target is Shin-Soo Choo who has had a bad ankle. Additionally, look over the HURT lists below for more injured players.

• Well, the Dodgers plan on pitching Josh Beckett even though he struggled in his last start (4 runs, 3 home runs in 3.2 innings). His indicators were similar to his previous 2014 values in velocity (see below) and Zone%. I still think he will make all his starts until the trade deadline (to see if the Dodgers need more pitching) and then he will be shut down. There is really no upside with him right now.

• Michael Wacha may end up being useless in redraft leagues since his earliest possible return is in early September. Maybe he is be worth picking up for teams in head-to-head playoffs.

• Yu Darvish gave an interview where he talks about the why baseball in Japan is conducive to less injuries. The part I found interesting is the differences the ball.

Q.So do you need to adopt to the environment, Strasburg was young but had TJ?

It’s not about adjusting period, I think pitching on 4 days rest is fine, there are a lot more banned substances compared to 10,20 years ago, I’m not saying they were using substances  but now a days you can’t even take cold medicine I think that may be a reason too. I don’t think that Matsuzaka,Tanaka, Wada, Fujikawa had damage to their ligaments in Japan, when they came over here they had medical checks so I don’t think they had any issues, so it developed after they came here. So why?  I think it’s the time between starts and heavier ball those kind of things.

• Adam Lind and Edwin Encarnacion may rejoin the team with little to no notice. The team is talking about adding them with no rehab starts

Fastball Velocity Watch for Pitchers Returning From the DL

• Cliff Lee’s average fastball velocity is down a couple mph. I bet he is still hurt and I would not start him in all but the deepest of leagues.

• Jon Niese’s velocity is at 2014 levels, but not to previous season levels

• Nick Vincent’s velo is down about 3 mph from before the DL stint.

• Josh Beckett’s looks fine.

• Nick Martinez’s is fine.

• Nick Masset is also fine.

HURT (Hitter’s Under-performance from Recent Trauma) Rankings (introduction/explanation) :

Any player with a HURT value over 100 (red) has the traits of a batter playing through an injury.

2014

June and July 2014

• No surprises in the yearly data.

• When looking as the last couple months only, Allen Craig’s name sticks out. Even though he struggled in the season’s first couple months, his ISO the last two month’s is .068. To see if he has turned his season around, watch his ISO graph for an upward turn.

PAIN (Pitcher Abuse INdex) Rankings (introduction/explanation)

Any player with a PAIN value over 100 (red) has the traits of a pitcher likely to be hurt.

Comparing 2013 to 2014

Comparing April and May 2014 to June and July 2014

• On the 2013 to 2014 comparison, Josh Tomlin is one few starters still pitching near the list’s top. Looking at his numbers though, he is steadily improving after having Tommy Surgery last season. For example, his velocity is creeping back up.

I would not be surprised to see his PAIN drop as the season winds down.

• No name caught my interest until Johnny Cueto’s at a 75 PAIN score. He has had a history of injuries so looked at why he was showing up. The main reason is his Zone% has drop from the season’s first half.

His owners probably didn’t expect what they got out of him so far this season. Anything else they get over the rest of the season is going to be gravy.

Players on the DL

(*) 15 Day Disabled List
(**) 60 Day Disabled List
(***) 7 Day Concussion List
(****) Free Agent
Red colored entries are updates since last report.

Major League Report

On DL