Roto Riteup: April 22, 2019

The juiced ball is for real:

wow the @statcast numbers on this are INSANE pic.twitter.com/xKpr3kNEAg

— Cut4 (@Cut4) April 20, 2019

 

On the Agenda:
1. Blue Jay Blues
2. Various News and Notes
3. Streaming Pitching Options

 

Blue Jay Blues
Matt Shoemaker is done for the season after tearing his ACL on this play:

Replay on what happened:

Appears to be grabbing his knee. pic.twitter.com/E6SkfHK5b9

— Jessica Kleinschmidt (@KleinschmidtJD) April 20, 2019

Shoemaker was having a great start to his season, throwing 28.2 innings pitched with a 1.57 ERA and a 22% strikeout rate. Shoemaker has dealt with a plethora of injuries over the last few years, so it is unfortunate to see him suffer another one as he started to excel again.

Aaron Sanchez left Sunday’s start with a cracked finger nail. Sanchez has struggled with finger issues over the last couple of seasons so this shouldn’t come as a huge surprise. Sanchez was having a very nice start to the spring, throwing 26 innings of a 2.77 ERA and a 21% strikeout rate. He will likely hit the IL, but there is no word on how long he is expected to be out.

With Sanchez and Shoemaker both out, Sean Reid-Foley should return to the Blue Jays rotation, however, no word yet on who else will join the staff until Clayton Richard is ready to return.

 

Various News and Notes
Rich Hill is expected to rejoin the Dodgers rotation next Sunday. Hill has been making rehab starts in the minors as he recovers from a knee injury. Ross Stripling is expected to move to the bullpen once Hill is activated. Stripling has been good to start the year and will likely return to the rotation at some point, but the Dodgers have too many starters as of now.

Aaron Judge has been placed on the 10-day IL with an oblique injury. There was no timetable given for his return, but manager Aaron Boone said the injury was “significant.” This is bad news for a Yankees team that has already lost Gary Sanchez, Gregory Bird, Miguel Andujar, Troy Tulowitzki, Jacoby Ellsbury, Aaron Hicks, Giancarlo Stanton, Didi Gregorius, Jordan Montgomery, Luis Severino, and Dellin Betances. Their IL could beat their current 25-man roster in a exhibition game.

Austin Meadows was placed on the 10-Day IL with a sprained thumb. There is no current timetable for return. Meadows was off to a great start with the Rays this season, hitting .351/.422/.676 with six home runs and three stolen bases. Daniel Robertson and Guillermo Heredia will likely see more time in his absence.

Cole Tucker made his MLB debut on Saturday, going 1-for-3 with a home run that ended being the game winner for the Pirates versus the Giants. Tucker is a former first round pick for the Pirates that has taken some time to finally reach the Majors. Our prospect gurus Kiley McDaniels and Eric Longenhagen have him as a player with 50 raw power and 40 game power and 55 run. I think they may be underselling his power potential a little bit especially considering the juiced ball situation in the Majors. With full time playing time, he could be a 10/25 player. His defense should keep him on the field pretty much full time. He is a must pick up in all formats.

 

Streaming Pitching Options (Less than 50% owned)
Pitcher for Today: None

High Risk Option: Adrian Houser
Houser was a popular name with people who didn’t understand NFBC’s FAAB rules on Sunday night. He definitely has shown the ability to strike people out in the minors, but this is his first MLB start, so there is a ton of risk.

Pitcher for Tomorrow: Trent Thornton vs SF
Thornton has been rough over his last few starts, but he gets a Giants team that struggles on the road.

High Risk Options: Jeff Samardzija at TOR, Pablo Lopez at CLE, Erik Swanson at SD.
Swanson is probably the safest and looked good in his first start, but Shark and Lopez have a higher upside.