Roto Riteup: September 9, 2015

Sixteen years ago today Sony Sega launched the Dreamcast console in North America. It sported a 56k dial up modem for my very first taste of online gaming. Sure it was laggy and pretty terrible, yet it was still a landmark event in video game history nonetheless.

On today’s agenda:
1. Bad news for a pair of Yankees
2. Marcus Stroman to return Saturday
3. Welcome back, Corey Dickerson
4. Streaming Pitching Options

Bad news for a pair of Yankees
First baseman Mark Teixeira may miss the remainder of the regular season as the bone bruise on his right shin isn’t healing the way the club hoped. According to general manager Brian Cashman, Tex received a pair of injections to help with the nerve issues in his leg, however the slugger is still on crutches. Teixeira was placed on the 15-day disabled list on September 4, retroactive to August 27, and it seems unlikely he’ll log any plate appearances in the final month of the season. This news does provide playing time for rookie Gregory Bird. The 22-year-old has socked five home runs in 91 plate appearances and holds a solid .250/.330/.475 line so far, good for a 120 wRC+. If Bird isn’t already owned in your league, make sure to pick him up as he has clear playing time now. He’s available in 75 percent of CBS formats, 87 percent of ESPN leagues and 94 percent of Yahoo! settings.

Add Nathan Eovaldi to the list of “probably done for the season” players as the right-hander is dealing with elbow inflammation in his throwing arm. The Yankees remains optimistic Eovaldi will return for the (likely) playoff bound club, though he will be shut down for at least two weeks. He’s already received a platelet-rich plasma injection in an attempt to speed up the healing process, but until Eovaldi is reevaluated at a later date, no word on if he will be able to be a factor in the playoffs. For us roto nerds in redraft leagues, go ahead and drop him.

Marcus Stroman to return Saturday
I admit I’ve covered Stroman’s return quite extensively, but I can’t help myself. His upside is just so tantalizing! The Blue Jays announced Stroman is to be activated and start Saturday’s game between the first place Jays and second place Yankees. It’s a pretty heavily weighted game to bring Stroman and his surgically repaired left knee back to, and according to Jays GM Alex Anthropoulos, Stroman is 100 percent healthy. Make sure to grab him now as he seems likely to stay in the rotation by taking someone’s spot, potentially Drew Hutchison‘s or Mark Buehrle’s. The aging southpaw was originally scheduled to pitch Saturday, however Buehrle received a cortisone shot in his left shoulder on Tuesday and was thus bumped. I’ll be tuning into the game to watch Stroman’s velocity and command, though it should be noted he’s on a sub-100 pitch count. The talented right-hander is free to pick up in 58 percent of CBS leagues as well as almost 80 percent of Yahoo! and ESPN formats.

Welcome back, Corey Dickerson
At long last the Rockies activated the talented outfielder on Tuesday. Dickerson has been out of action since July 30 due to a pair of non-displaced rib fractures and was limited to a pinch hit appearance yesterday. I’m expecting the Rockies to ease him a back into full time as they have no real reason to push him. For weekly leaguers, make sure to carefully watch how many games Dickerson appears in this week before inserting him into your lineups next week.

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

A pitcher for today: J.A. Happ at CIN (Keyvius Sampson)
The Reds hit left-handers fairly well, so this is a bit risky, yet the pickings are pretty slim today. Happ has posted much better results in the senior circuit than his numbers with the Mariners, as both his strikeout and walk rates have improved. It’s only been 34 1/3 innings so I’m going crazy for Happ just yet, but it’s nice to see a 1.57 ERA, even if his 2.27 FIP/3.25 xFIP/3.38 SIERA are all significantly higher. He can be streamed in 50 percent of CBS settings and more than 60 percent of ESPN or Yahoo! leagues.

A pitcher for tomorrow: Jorge de la Rosa at SD (Tyson Ross)
The walks worry me, but de la Rosa will be in a pitcher’s park so hopefully they don’t come around to hurt him. Also, the Padres are pretty unintimidating when squaring off against a left-hander and de la Rosa can miss bats with an 11.8 percent swinging strike rate. He’s free to utilize in about 80 percent of the big three fantasy sites.