Roto Riteup: August 4, 2016

My timeline, reacting to every one of my tweets:

On the agenda:
1. In framing
2. Injury updates
3. Various News and Notes
4. Streaming Pitcher Options

In framing
Over the last week, Russell Martin has seemingly been framing pitches like never before. Hung forever, left me strangling, called me baby. According to Stat Corner, he’s been worth 1.1 runs above average in August so far alone, pushing him to seventh in baseball this year at 6.1 RAA (well above his 2015 mark already, if it maintains). Out of curiosity, I pulled the numbers for the last three seasons, just to see who’s helped their pitchers the most.

Here are the catchers who caught at least 1,000 pitches this season and at least 4,000 since 2014. Keep an eye out for when the top and bottom catchers are/aren’t starting and you have one of their pitchers throwing.

Player	Team	Pitches	RAA	RAA per-1000
Yasmani Grandal	Dodgers	17388	49.7	2.86
David Ross	Cubs	9771	25.2	2.58
Buster Posey	Giants	20509	52.7	2.57
Miguel Montero	Cubs	19668	50.1	2.55
Francisco Cervelli	Pirates	15864	39.5	2.49
Hank Conger	Rays	13012	26.7	2.05
Christian Vazquez	Red Sox	7552	15.3	2.03
Kevin Plawecki	Mets	7239	13.9	1.92
Travis d’Arnaud	Mets	15010	25.4	1.69
Rene Rivera	Mets	14968	24.6	1.64
Jonathan Lucroy	Brewers	22658	34.9	1.54
Jason Castro	Astros	21658	33.3	1.54
Martin Maldonado	Brewers	9673	14.7	1.52
Caleb Joseph	Orioles	14931	21.8	1.46
Jose Lobaton	Nationals	9001	11.2	1.24
Tyler Flowers	Braves	20718	25.3	1.22
Bobby Wilson	Rangers	4872	5.3	1.09
Russell Martin	Blue Jays	21232	21.5	1.01
Chris Gimenez	Indians	6541	6.5	0.99
Chris Stewart	Pirates	7906	6	0.76
Jeff Mathis	Marlins	8005	5.6	0.70
Derek Norris	Padres	22478	15	0.67
Brian McCann	Yankees	22377	12.9	0.58
Yadier Molina	Cardinals	23425	12.7	0.54
Ryan Hanigan	Red Sox	11859	5.4	0.46
Geovany Soto	Angels	6200	2.8	0.45
Curt Casali	Rays	8564	1.7	0.20
Yan Gomes	Indians	19840	2.1	0.11
Drew Butera	Royals	6008	0.3	0.05
Evan Gattis	Astros	8644	0	0.00
Chris Iannetta	Mariners	19356	-0.5	-0.03
Cameron Rupp	Phillies	11904	-1.8	-0.15
Wilson Ramos	Nationals	20318	-8.8	-0.43
Josh Thole	Blue Jays	6326	-3.5	-0.55
Carlos Perez	Angels	9945	-6.2	-0.62
Josh Phegley	Athletics	7175	-4.9	-0.68
Tucker Barnhart	Reds	12322	-10.6	-0.86
Robinson Chirinos	Rangers	15351	-15.2	-0.99
Kurt Suzuki	Twins	22318	-22.4	-1.00
Devin Mesoraco	Reds	9257	-9.6	-1.04
A.J. Pierzynski	Braves	16308	-17.6	-1.08
Salvador Perez	Royals	27407	-34.8	-1.27
Stephen Vogt	Athletics	12827	-17.5	-1.36
Alex Avila	White Sox	14863	-20.9	-1.41
Sandy Leon	Red Sox	5588	-8.4	-1.50
James McCann	Tigers	12493	-19.2	-1.54
Matt Wieters	Orioles	11188	-17.7	-1.58
Welington Castillo	D-backs	14148	-23.7	-1.68
Nick Hundley	Rockies	12300	-21.3	-1.73
Carlos Ruiz	Phillies	17657	-31.7	-1.80
Christian Bethancourt	Padres	7425	-14	-1.89
J.T. Realmuto	Marlins	15560	-29.8	-1.92
A.J. Ellis	Dodgers	12742	-25.1	-1.97
Dioner Navarro	White Sox	15749	-37.8	-2.40
Chris Herrmann	D-backs	4475	-10.9	-2.44
Bryan Holaday	Rangers	6614	-18.2	-2.75
Jarrod Saltalamacchia	Tigers	11609	-33.2	-2.86

Injury updates
There are a few notes to get to on players we’ve already talked about over the last few days. Let’s go rapid fire: The right quad injury that’s been limiting Yoenis Cespedes now has him headed to the DL, opening up a spot on the roster for Brandon Nimmo (again); Hanley Ramirez should avoid such a fate, as X-rays and an MRI revealed just a sprained left wrist for the Red Sox first baseman; As expected, Nick Tropeano is undergoing Tommy John to repair a torn UCL, something he’s been debating over the last two weeks; Lance McCullers, who left a Tuesday start with elbow discomfort, is headed back to the DL, though there’s no diagnosis beyond soreness; Clayton Kershaw has been transferred to the 60-day DL, meaning he won’t be available to return until at least Aug. 27. Sigh.

Various News and Notes
The Blue Jays continue to send mixed messages about what they’ll do with Aaron Sanchez. The acquisition of Francisco Liriano (yes!) meant Sanchez was moving to the bullpen eventually, but now it’s not a certainty, with John Gibbons saying the team is still deciding the best course of action. It’s tough, because he’s on pace to obliterate his innings high, but he’s also been perhaps the team’s best starter. With Liriano now in the fold and Marco Estrada dealing with back soreness, maybe the Jays can get more creative with an extended rotation and/or a couple of skipped starts for Sanchez rather than just shifting him to a relief role. Or not. I’m not a doctor, just a Sanchez owner who wants him to keep starting.

The Tigers, meanwhile, don’t intend to shut down standout rookie Michael Fulmer. He’s at 119.1 innings across levels this year and threw 124.2 last season, but the Tigers don’t sound nearly as concerned as the Jays here. To each their own (and as always, we don’t have the full information teams are working with).

Hey, there’s new injury news, too: Aaron Nola is hitting the DL with a right elbow strain, which opened up a window for Phil Klein to get a start (and then subsequently get optioned); Charlie Tilson is also headed to the DL, exiting his major league debut with a torn hamstring that will reportedly end his season.

Get Andrew McCutchen out of your lineups again Thursday. He’s being benched for the entirety of the team’s series against the Braves so he can unplug, to paraphrase his manager. McCutchen has hit .223/.279/.356 since June 1 and has been a pretty big disappointment to fantasy owners, so all parties involved will be hoping the quick reprieve clears his head for the stretch run.

Streaming Pitcher Options
If you enjoy streaming pitchers or play DFS, tune into the Roto Riteup for recommendations each and every day.

A pitcher for today: Drew Smyly vs KC (Ian Kennedy)
Available in 58 percent of leagues, the left-handed Drew Smyly will look to improve a woeful (and meaningless) 3-11 record against the league’s worst offense over the last month. Yes, things have gotten that bad for the Royals, who own just a 67 wRC+ over the past 30 days and who own just a .148 ISO against southpaws for the season as a whole. Smyly hasn’t been nearly as good as he he’s been the last few seasons, but he’s also been far better than his 5.29 ERA would suggest, striking out a batter an inning while staying stingy with the free pass.

A pitcher for tomorrow: Jameson Taillon vs CIN (Anthony DeSclafani)
Apologies for back-to-back recommendations at the 40-percent ownership level, but uhh, is there a good reason Jameson Taillon is still out there in more than half of leagues? He’s the owner of a 3.52 ERA, a strikeout-to-walk ratio of better than 7-to-1, and has really only been pushed once in his last four starts. The long ball is a minor concern, but the Reds are 28th in wRC+, 27th in wRC+ against righties, and 21st in road ISO. Stream Taillon, and if it works out, maybe give him a longer look over the next couple of weeks.