Roto Riteup: September 15, 2012

Since I know you’re all waking up early to catch some Premiere League games, why not read about your fantasy baseball team too?

• Even prior to yesterday’s 2-for-3 game, Brennan Boesch was hitting .286 over the past week. He’s been mired in a slump for most of the season, but it seems as though he’s picking it up for the stretch run. If you need a player who must have playing time, Boesch has hit fifth or sixth in the lineup 13 out of 14 times since August 23. With plenty of chances to drive in runs with Prince Fielder and Miguel Cabrera batting in front of him, Boesch could really rack up some counting stats in the closing weeks. His ownership rate is 20% in ESPN leagues and 24% in Yahoo! leagues.

• After hitting his third home run of the season, hopefully Domonic Brown will see some more playing time. He is sporting is usual strong plate discipline skills — 10.7% rate thus far — and his ISO is up to .129 on the season. His wRC+ is just 93 yet, but that is in sporadic playing time. I’m still mildly optimistic for him next season, and for now I’ve grabbed him in a league where I badly needed an OF. He should be free to pick up in over 95% of both Yahoo! and ESPN leagues.

• If you’re looking for help at third base (and who isn’t?) then Lonnie Chisenhall could work. He was on base three times in yesterday’s game, twice via hits and once via a walk. The walk is most significant because Chisenhall has never really been one to draw the free pass. Even in the minors, his BB% never reached above 10% at any level for any amount of time. The upside is that he rarely strikes out and he does posses solid power. Cleveland doesn’t have anything to play for other than to look ahead to next season, so expect Chisenhall to get plenty of playing time. You can pick him up in about 97% of ESPN or Yahoo! formats.

• Another option at third base is Manny Machado. He also reached base three times in his game yesterday and while his rate stats aren’t anything to brag about, his counting statistics do impress. With four homers and two steals over just 127 plate appearances bode well for his future fantasy value. Machado is owned in about 30% of Yahoo! leagues and almost 40% of ESPN formats. For the rest of this season, I’d take Machado over Chisenhall.

• Kris Medlen is good. I feel like 13 strikeouts in seven innings kind of speaks for itself.

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: Shaun Marcum vs NYM
Well, Fiers got touched up for four runs in the first two innings yesterday, but I’m feeling good about playing against the Mets today. He hasn’t been great since his return from the DL, but I like him today.

A Pitcher for Tomorrow: Brandon Morrow vs BOS
I am such a sucker for Morrow. Dat career SwStr%!! Unf.

A Hitter for Today: Garrett Jones at CHC (Jason Berken)
Sure the Pirates have slid to just one game over .500, but Jones is doing his job against right-handed pitching. Jones brings his 140 wRC+ against righties into Wrigley today. I like my chances here.