Roto Riteup — Presented by DraftKings: May 28, 2014

Today’s Roto Riteup author would like to point out that the holiday weekend is well over, so you better get back to work after you finish reading this, sucka.

On today’s agenda:
1. Negative MRIs for young guns…
2. But some injuries remain
3. Fun with Minor League stats
4. The Farmer’s Five

Negative MRIs for young guns
First up, Yordano Ventura had to sit in the depressing noisy tube, but his MRI came back clean for damage to his elbow. Ventura was pulled in the middle of Monday’s start due to pain he was feeling in said elbow, but now that all looks well, he’s supposed to just miss his next start so he can get some restorative rest. A world without Yordano Ventura is a world I don’t want to live in.

Second, Noah Syndergaard also had to cram his giant man-sized body into a tiny tube, but it was all to ensure his elbow was good to go. Syndergaard has already been on the DL to the minors, but the Mets wanted him to trek on up to NYC to see him for themselves. Noah would likely have been called up in late-June if not for his injury, but his timetable has taken an obvious step back now.

But some injuries remain
While the young guns got positive news, a contingent of other folks have had injury problems of their own. For starters, Nick Swisher hit the DL with a hyperextended knee, and since he was hitting a sexy .211/.312/.319 this year, he may actually be if greater value to you while on the DL.

Also hyperextending his knee was on Clay Buchholz, whose ERA over 7.00 this year has made a large section of America pee their collective pants. Like Swisher, it’s probably good for you if he misses time.

Mark Teixeira missed a second straight game with a wrist injury, but he hopes to be back for today’s game. Teix has been a nice surprise this year when he’s able to take the field. Another good player has been Nolan Arenado, who’s officially out until late-June or early-July with a broken finger.

Fun with Minor League stats
Javier Baez may have sucked to start the year, but he’s on fire now with an 11-game hitting streak through Monday, on which day he pounded two doubles. Baez is hitting a smooth .422 with a .867 SLG during his streak, but his overall line still makes me sad, so I’m not going to tell you that. If Baez gets his crap together, he could make a HR impact in the second-half of the year.

While not a top prospect or even a young man, Stephen Drew hitting well in his “rehab” assignment is a nice sign. Drew was 3-for-8 through Monday, smacking two doubles in those eight ABs. Drew is still supposed to be up with the Red Sox as soon as Sunday, and he should have a prominent role on your squad against right-handed pitching.

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The Farmer’s Five

SP: Clayton Kershaw, $12,600 – v CIN (Homer Bailey)
SP: Felix Hernandez, $12,200 – v LAA (C.J. Wilson)
2B/SS: Brian Dozier, $4,900 – v TEX (Joe Saunders)
OF: Josh Willingham, $3,400 – v TEX
OF: David Murphy, $4,200 – v CHA (Hector Noesi)

If you trust C.J. Wilson and want to save some money, go after him instead of Felix or Kershaw today, but the rest of the SP class doesn’t do much for my confidence level. I like the matchups for the three hitters, even if I wish the ballparks for each were flipped.

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