Ups and Downs: 05/14/2010

Ups and Downs: 05/14/2010

This edition of Ups and Downs will look at the players being added and dropped the most (according to ESPN leagues) by position and the possible reasons why.

C John Buck, TOR (+30.3%) is riding a 6-game hitting streak in which he's hitting .450 (9/20) with 3 HR, 6 RBI and 7 runs.
C Miguel Olivo, COL (-20.9%) was mired in a 2/28 (.071) slump and rumors of Chris Iannetta being brought up from AAA started to surface. Owners probably jumped off the Olivo bandwagon and onto the Buck bandwagon. Olivo answered with a 5/5, 1 HR game and probably will be a big add again soon.

1B/3B Troy Glaus, ATL (+16.5%) was thought to be a nice late-round pick but hit only .194 in April and promptly dumped by most teams. He's turning things around in May (.386 BA, 2 HR, 14 RBI in 11 games) and is definitely worth the pickup.
1B Todd Helton, COL (-14%) is only hitting .257 with 0 HR this season. Owners can't sit around and wait to see if he will heat up at this point. I'd stash him on the bench if I had the roster space but his dumps are understandable.

2B/3B Alberto Callaspo, KC (+12.6%) continues to validate being an everyday fantasy player (.304 BA, 13 R, 6 HR, 22 RBI, 2 SB) and should be owned in most formats.
2B/3B Jose Lopez, SEA (-16.3%) is definitely part of the reason why the Mariners offense has been so terrible this season (.216 BA, 8 R, 1 HR, 12 RBI, 2 SB) and should be dropped in shallow leagues for anyone on waivers with a pulse.

3B David Freese, STL (+15.1%) has tapered off a bit but definitely is worthy of all the adds (.310 BA, 13 R, 3 HR, 22 RBI, 1 SB). Owners usually hope for more power from the corner infield positions but Freese is providing plenty of reasons to be rostered.
3B Chipper Jones, ATL (-16.5%) is doing exactly what Chipper Jones has done in recent years; being drafted too high and then disappointing owners when he inevitably gets injured. If your roster can support him on the bench, he could be a nice add to stash away for when he heats things up when healthy.

SS Starlin Castro, CHC (+58.8%) burst on the fantasy scene and has lived up to the hype (.364 BA, 3 R, 1 HR, 6 RBI, 0 SB) through six games. If he's still available in your league, your league probably sucks and is way too shallow. Just saying.
SS J.J. Hardy, MIN (-16%) went on the DL and was promptly dumped by some teams. There definitely are better options out there (see Castro), especially if your DL spots are currently full. Could be a nice add once he returns from his injury in leagues that utilize a MI roster spot.

OF Aaron Rowand, SF (+27.7) roared off the DL with a 7-game hitting streak (11/32, .344 BA, 6 R, 3 HR, 11 RBI, 0 SB), validating the adds but has since gone 0/12 with zero runs, homers or ribbies. Look for him to be a popular drop soon.
OF Jose Guillen, KC (-19.8%) has one home run in has last 17 games and seen his average drop 100 points (.346 to .246). He was a hot early season add but I guess playing for the Royals finally caught up to him. Could Scott Podsednik's decline be on the horizon?

SP Jon Garland, SD (+43.4%) has never been considered much of a fantasy asset because of his low career K/9 rate of 4.7, but he's now 4-2 with a 1.71 ERA and 1.21 WHIP. He's only allowed 2 ER is his last five starts (32 IP) and his season's K/9 stands at 5.4. Pitching half of his games at PETCO make him a nice addition to any deep pitching staff.
SP Brian Matusz, BAL (-21.7%) pitches for the Orioles and most fantasy leagues use wins as a scoring category. Expect his drop rates to increase the more times he gets thumped by the rest of the AL East.

RP Alfredo Simon, BAL (+24.2%) is Baltimore's closer and whatever wins there are right now should be his to save. Until he implodes, he should be owned.
RP Franklin Morales, COL (-20.7%) was the Rockies closer until he went on the DL. He has no values if he's not closing games. Manny Corpas steps back into the closer role until Houston Street is ready to come off the DL. Corpas should show up as a popular add shortly.

How valuable, if any, is this information or can you easily find it on your own and I am just wasting everyone's time reporting it? HA! I'm just trying to garner comments and feedback as I continually try to find what, if any, value this blog has other than to feed my own addiction and need for personal validation. (Sounds like someone has "mommy" issues.)