Roto Riteup: May 4, 2013

In a mere 22 days, Arrested Development will make a triumphant return. In the mean time, the Arrested Development documentary that was released yesterday should be able to hold you over.

On today’s agenda:
1. Neil Walker to the disabled list
2. Drew Stubbs is hitting
3. The return of Jhoulys Chacin

Neil Walker to the disabled list
After sitting out for a week with a hand laceration, the Pittsburgh Pirates placed Neil Walker on the 15-day disabled list. The move is retroactive to April 27 and thus Walker could be back in action as soon as May 12. For those of you looking for a week long replacement at 2B or MI, Ryan Raburn has been tearing it up, or if you happen to play in an NL-only format, Jordany Valdespin has three steals and two home runs on the year. Donovan Solano should be available as well, and while Solano doesn’t figure to contribute many counting stats, his batting average is solid and for a band-aid fix, a two-hole hitting second baseman isn’t bad.

Drew Stubbs is hitting
Yesterday Drew Stubbs smacked a trio of doubles (plus a single) and now has three straight multi-hit games. The recent hot streak has boosted Stubbs’ line up to .284/.340/.420 to go with two home runs and four steals. His .383 BABIP won’t last forever, but in the meantime why not ride the hot hand and grab a few stray steals along the way. He’s only hit ninth this season, so his RBI and runs will be low. Even yesterday — despite getting himself in scoring position three times and on-base four times — Stubbs managed to drive in just one run and score one run himself. Stubbs is available in over 95% of ESPN leagues, 85% of Yahoo! leagues, and 75% of CBS formats.

The return of Jhoulys Chacin
The bad news is that the Colorado Rockies are in the bottom 10 in terms of starting pitchers innings pitched, 27th in starter K%, and 23rd in starter FIP. The good news is that the Rockies are getting Jhoulys Chacin back from the disabled list tomorrow. He is scheduled to make his first start sine April 19 and should help stabilize the Rockies rotation. Chacin’s strikeout rate has dropped each year since 2010, but the projection systems like him to recuperate some of his K’s. His superficial 1.46 ERA is masked by his .221 BABIP and 87.4% strand rate. Expecting a sub 2.00 (or even 3.00) ERA the rest of the season would be naive, but Chacin has flashed the talent to be a sub 3.50 ERA pitcher in the past. Chacin is a stream candidate in most leagues as of right now, however if his strikeout rate bounces back, it wouldn’t be a bad idea to roster him. He is currently available in over 75% of ESPN leagues, 60% of Yahoo! formats and 40% of CBS leagues.