Roto Riteup: July 24, 2015

Normally after today’s Roto Riteup you readers would have a break from me, but as previously mentioned, ya’ll are stuck with me for another seven days. Sorry.

On today’s agenda:
1. Quick thoughts on the trades
2. Travis d’Arnaud could return next weekend
3. Streaming Pitching Options

Quick thoughts on the trades
If you happened to work for 24 consecutive hours with no internet connection, perhaps you missed the two trades yesterday. My A’s shipped Scott Kazmir to the Astros in exchange for right-hander Daniel Mengden and catcher Jacob “The Sheriff” Nottingham. Neither prospect figures to get called up this season, so let’s focus on Kazmir’s new home. He immediately upgrades his supporting offense as the Astros have scored the third most runs and own the eighth highest wRC+ in baseball heading into yesterday’s games. The bullpen should help Kazmir earn the win when he hands the ball off, as the Astros have 79 shut downs versus 38 meltdowns compared to Oakland’s 49 and 44 numbers respectively. Even in the field the ‘Stros have out-shined the A’s as the Houston club owns a better UZR and DRS. Kazmir is exchanging a pitcher friendly park to one less so, however overall the trade should benefit Kazmir and his fantasy owners.

The senior circuit also saw an in-division trade as the Brewers moved Aramis Ramirez to the Pirates for right-handed reliever Jonathan Barrios. Given the injuries to the Bucs infield — both Josh Harrison and Jordy Mercer will miss several more weeks — it made sense to get some help. Presumably once Harrison returns, the club can use Ramirez at first base where, despite swatting a home run yesterday, Pedro Alvarez has struggled. Unfortunately for Ramirez he is moving from one of the best parks for right-handed hitters to one of the worst. Via our Guts! page, last season saw Miller Park have the fifth highest home run index for RHB whereas PNC Park ranked deadlast/Despite the tougher home park I still believe Ramirez is capable of a line better than his current .247/.295/.430 slash. If you’re looking for help at the hot corner, maybe buying low on him makes sense. One can find Ramirez free to pick up in 60 percent of Yahoo! or CBS leagues as well as 70 percent of ESPN formats.

Travis d’Arnaud could return next weekend
Mets skipper Terry Collins believes they could be getting d’Arnaud back in the lineup in about a week as the catcher will finally begin a rehab assignment today. Due to a left elbow sprain and a broken finger before that, d’Arnaud has managed just 77 plate appearances thus far. Likely as a result of being placed on the disabled list twice this season, many owners have dropped d’Arnaud. Right now he’s a catcher coming off of an injury who is at least a league average bat — probably better — and should be owned in all two-catcher leagues and most single catcher formats. He’s already owned in most CBS leagues, but as expected, his ownership rate in Yahoo! and ESPN is much lower and hovers around a mere 30 percent.

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

A pitcher for today: Jeff Locke vs WAS (Max Scherzer)
So lately these have been more steaming pitching options, because well, they’ve stunk. Today I like Locke because the Nats whiff against southpaws a fair amount and I’m fond of Locke’s ground ball rate. I’m not expecting a win out of him, though a solid outing with six+ strikeouts should be in order. He can be streamed in more than 70 percent of the three primary fantasy sites.

A pitcher for tomorrow: Rubby de la Rosa vs MIL (Taylor Jungmann)
I’m a sucker for great swinging strike rate. The Brewers are pretty “meh” against righties and I think de la Rosa gets the win plus more than his fair share of K’s. Look to utilize him in more than half of the CBS settings and over 80 percent of Yahoo! or ESPN leagues.