Roto Riteup: August 4, 2013

Look for the present author among the crowd in Detroit as the Tigers host the Chicago White Sox.

On today’s agenda:
1. David Wright to the disabled list
2. A rotation shakeup in Oakland
3. Ryan Ludwick to return next week
4. Kole Calhoun’s fast start

David Wright to the disabled list
Yesterday David Wright was diagnosed with a grade two strain of his right hamstring. The club placed him on the 15-day disabled list and he could miss three to five weeks. With no real playoff hopes the Mets may lean on the cautious side with their star third baseman.

The majority of the third base duties will most likely fall to Justin Turner, however it is possible that Josh Satin receives enough starts to gain eligibility there. As a long time fan of Satin and his on-base percentage, seeing him get third base eligibility would make him very appealing in the final weeks of the season.

A rotation shakeup in Oakland
After a lackluster start on Friday as well as not needing a fifth starter until August 13, the Oakland Athletics have sent Tommy Milone down to Triple-A. Milone has struggled throughout the year and owns a 4.39 ERA/4.38 FIP/4.39 xFIP. Athletics Manager Bob Melvin believes that Milone will work on his control while down in the minors, as last year he posted a 4.6% and this year he is up to 5.8%.

The A’s have other options to take Milone’s rotation spot, such as Sonny Gray or even Brett Anderson. There is no need to make a speculative add in 12-team mixed leagues regarding a start nine days from now, but if one plays in an extraordinarily deep league, Gray would the one to target. While Anderson could be back by then — he just threw 60 pitches and will have a rehab start on Tuesday — it seems likely that Gray is set to make his first major league start. Gray’s 2.72 FIP and 3.38 ERA in the PCL is impressive, as is his 3:1 strikeout to walk rate.

Ryan Ludwick to return next week
Cincinnati Reds general manager Walt Jocketty believes that Ryan Ludwick and Jonathan Broxton should be back with the big league club as soon as next week. Ludick will spell current left fielder Chris Heisey and his .219/.270/.397 line. Last year Ludwick clobbered 26 home runs and drove in 80 runs. Power isn’t the question when it comes to Ludwick, and anyone looking for some home runs and RBIs in the final stretch should look to pick him up in the coming days. Currently Ludwick is owned in less than 5% of both ESPN and Yahoo! leagues and 20% of CBS formats.

Kole Calhoun’s fast start
Seven games into his second taste of the big leagues, Calhoun finds himself hitting .409/.480/.682 and has hit two home runs in as many days. He’s also stolen one base and has hit leadoff for the past three games. Prior to his call up, Calhoun had 12 home runs and 10 steals in 274 plate appearances for the Salt Lake Bees of the PCL. Fellow OBP leaguers should note that Calhoun had a 32:32 strikeout to walk ratio with the Bees and his lowest walk rate of his minor league career was 9.5%. With a little power and speed — not to mention hitting in front of Mike Trout — Calhoun could make for a sneaky pick in deep or AL-only leagues.