Roto Riteup: July 23, 2012

Look who’s penning today’s Roto Riteup. Zach is back, back again. Tell your friends.

• It looks as though Carlos Quentin won’t be leaving San Diego anytime soon, as the left fielder agreed to a three-year contract extension. While Quentin can still technically be traded before the trade deadline, those odds have now dipped below 0.0001 percent. Quentin has surely taken to the National League, despite San Diego not being the best place to hit homers, even if you are a right-handed hitter. The biggest conundrum surrounding Quentin’s fantasy value is now his ever questionable health, an issue no one has the answer to. Quentin’s value now goes back up in NL-only leagues due to the low odds of being dealt.

• Somehow, Jaime Garcia is getting ready to begin a minor-league rehab assignment, despite needing an entirely new left arm. Garcia has been dealing with shoulder and elbow problems, and hasn’t pitched since the beginning of June because of it. For the most part, Jaime was his usual self before hitting the DL, though his fastball velocity has dipped over a mile an hour compared to 2011. If Jaime is available, you might as pick him up sometime in the middle of next week when his rehab stint gets closer to actuality. If you’re the bolder type, you’re welcome to wait until the news is promising and Jaime is actually pitching in games.

• Another left-handed starter is working through his injuries in an attempt to make it back to the bigs this year. I’m talking, of course, about Brett Anderson of the Oakland A’s. Once one of the best young arms in baseball, Anderson had not pitched in a game for about a year prior to Saturday’s rehab start in High-A. It didn’t exactly go well, but Anderson’s skills are not what is in question here, so I wouldn’t pay much attention to it. Anderson is looking at getting back to the big leagues before September, so he could be a very valuable asset for the stretch run. Owners have pretty much forgotten about Anderson, so you’ll be able to wait on snatching him up.

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: Joe Kelly vs LAD
Kelly against Kemp and Ethier is a bit scary, but I’ll take the chance at home.

A Pitcher for Tomorrow: Freddy Garcia at SEA
The Chief may be facing King Felix, but the Mariners can’t hit at home, and Freddy knows Safeco well. Other options include Brett Cecil (vs OAK).

A Hitter for Today: Aaron Hill vs COL (Jonathan Sanchez)
Sanchez gets to try his hand in the NL, but he doesn’t get a nice cushy park for his first start.