Roto Riteup: March 14th, 2012

With the 2012 season just a few short weeks away, it’s time for the return of the Roto Riteup to the RotoGraphs lineup. If you were not reading the site late last season, this will be new to you. And you will enjoy it.

Now, onto the notes for the day, most of which involve injuries of some kind:

–  Francisco Liriano is one the biggest enigmas in baseball at the moment, right behind Jeff Francoeur and David Appelman. Liriano pitched for the Twins on Tuesday, and while he looked good early in his stint, he got rocked a little bit during his last inning of work against the Toronto Blue Jays. After the game, Liriano talked about how he feels like he’s trying to overthrow and rush things on the mound, which is not a recipe for big league success. His fastball was reported to be in the low-90s, but if he can’t control his fastball, he’ll be a sitting duck again this season. I’d take a flyer on Liriano in the last round or two of standard leagues if there’s any indication that he’s calmed down enough to pitch effectively.

–  Rockies’ starter Drew Pomeranz left Tuesday’s start with tightness in his right hip. He doesn’t sound all that concerned, and he’s likely going to start the year in the minors, anyway.

–  Jacob Turner, currently battling for the Tigers’ last remaining rotation slot, is being shut down for a little while due to a dead arm. Turner has fallen behind Andy Oliver in their battle to start the year in the majors, and this incident likely seals the deal for Oliver. Turner will likely start the year in the minors, but don’t fret; he’s still only 20-years-old.

–  Kendrys Morales is trying to recover from a very serious ankle injury, but the Angels’ first baseman had to take Tuesday off due to stiffness in his right calf. Manager Mike Scioscia dismissed the notion of the injury being serious, but when someone’s rehabbing a lower-leg injury and suffers another, you should probably be at least a little bit concerned.

–  Stephen Drew is likely not going to be ready for opening day, which should come as a surprise to no one. Drew absolutely shredded his ankle last season, and since he’s yet to even start running the bases, he’s a ways away at this point. John McDonald would likely get a fair share of his ABs should Drew miss significant time.

–  Salvador Perez hurt his knee. The Royals’ catcher still caught one inning, despite the injury supposedly taking place during pre-game warmups. Further information on the nature of Perez’s injury is not known at this time.

A Pitcher For Today/Tomorrow
During the season, you’ll be finding recommendations for starters you could stream for the day after the notes, but this being spring training, I’m going to assume you aren’t playing some strange high-stakes spring fantasy game.

If you have anything in particular you’d like to see in this year’s Roto Riteup, please say so in the comments. Feedback is appreciated.