
Fantasy notes for May 16
Click through for information on specific matchups, injuries and weather for the day’s games.
Starting pitcher rankings for May 16
| Name | |||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | | Felix Hernandez | R | @CLE | 10 | 3-2 | 2.29 | 1.05 | 2-1 | 1.82 | 1.08 |
| 2 | | Gio Gonzalez | L | PIT | 9 | 4-1 | 1.94 | 1.01 | 3-1 | 1.88 | 1.08 |
| 3 | | Yu Darvish | R | OAK | 8 | 5-1 | 2.84 | 1.42 | 3-1 | 2.36 | 1.16 |
| 4 | | Madison Bumgarner | L | STL | 6 | 5-2 | 2.80 | 1.13 | 2-1 | 2.61 | 1.11 |
| 5 | | Chris Capuano | L | @SD | 7 | 5-0 | 2.06 | 1.03 | 3-0 | 0.44 | 0.68 |
| 6 | | Johan Santana | L | CIN | 7 | 1-2 | 2.92 | 1.16 | 1-0 | 2.45 | 1.01 |
| 7 | | Matt Garza | R | PHI | 7 | 2-1 | 2.56 | 0.98 | 1-0 | 0.75 | 0.83 |
| 8 | | Jeremy Hellickson | R | BOS | 6 | 3-0 | 2.95 | 1.24 | 1-0 | 2.70 | 1.16 |
| 9 | | Gavin Floyd | R | @LAA | 8 | 3-3 | 2.53 | 0.95 | 2-1 | 1.26 | 0.77 |
| 10 | | Ubaldo Jimenez | R | SEA | 9 | 3-3 | 5.18 | 1.78 | 1-3 | 6.14 | 2.00 |
| 11 | | Hiroki Kuroda | R | @TOR | 6 | 3-4 | 3.56 | 1.37 | 2-2 | 2.52 | 1.20 |
| 12 | | Erik Bedard | L | @WAS | 8 | 2-4 | 2.57 | 1.37 | 2-0 | 2.45 | 1.27 |
| 13 | | Mark Buehrle | L | @ATL | 5 | 2-4 | 2.81 | 1.15 | 1-2 | 2.93 | 1.16 |
| 14 | | Jaime Garcia | L | @SF | 8 | 2-2 | 4.09 | 1.48 | 0-2 | 6.27 | 1.55 |
| 15 | | Randy Wolf | L | @HOU | 5 | 2-3 | 5.63 | 1.72 | 2-1 | 3.52 | 1.57 |
| 16 | | Clay Buchholz | R | @TB | 5 | 4-1 | 8.31 | 1.97 | 3-0 | 7.77 | 2.14 |
| 17 | | Bud Norris | R | MIL | 4 | 3-1 | 3.95 | 1.27 | 2-1 | 3.70 | 1.19 |
| 18 | | Felipe Paulino | R | BAL | 3 | 1-1 | 3.09 | 1.20 | 1-1 | 3.09 | 1.20 |
| 19 | | Rick Porcello | R | MIN | 5 | 3-3 | 5.18 | 1.39 | 2-2 | 4.50 | 1.31 |
| 20 | | Mike Minor | L | MIA | 1 | 2-2 | 6.59 | 1.39 | 0-1 | 9.82 | 1.86 |
| 21 | | Clayton Richard | L | LAD | 6 | 1-5 | 5.32 | 1.43 | 0-4 | 4.91 | 1.52 |
| 22 | | Tommy Milone | L | @TEX | 5 | 5-2 | 3.92 | 1.08 | 3-1 | 4.74 | 1.09 |
| 23 | | Patrick Corbin | L | @COL | 5 | 2-1 | 4.50 | 1.31 | 2-1 | 4.50 | 1.31 |
| 24 | | Kyle Drabek | R | NYY | 1 | 2-4 | 3.66 | 1.50 | 0-4 | 5.06 | 1.69 |
| 25 | | Jerome Williams | R | CHW | 5 | 3-1 | 4.19 | 1.29 | 2-0 | 3.07 | 1.16 |
| 26 | | Tommy Hunter | R | @KC | 3 | 2-2 | 5.14 | 1.36 | 1-1 | 4.63 | 1.24 |
| 27 | | Kyle Kendrick | R | @CHC | 3 | 0-3 | 7.32 | 2.03 | 0-2 | 6.00 | 1.75 |
| 28 | | Mike Leake | R | @NYM | 3 | 0-5 | 7.11 | 1.61 | 0-3 | 7.90 | 1.76 |
| 29 | | Jamie Moyer | L | ARI | 3 | 1-3 | 4.66 | 1.66 | 0-1 | 6.43 | 1.95 |
| 30 | | Nick Blackburn | R | @DET | 1 | 1-4 | 7.18 | 1.63 | 1-3 | 8.10 | 1.80 |
Rk.: The author's ranking of that pitcher for that day only. T: Pitcher throws left-handed or right-handed. Opp: The pitcher's opponent for the day. QR: "Quality Rating," or the starting pitcher's matchup rating -- separate from the author's ranking -- which accounts for past history (three years' worth as well as past 21 days), opponent and ballpark. OPS is the primary statistic used in the calculation. Ratings range from 1-10, with 10 representing the best possible matchup, statistically speaking, and 1 representing the worst. So, for example, a 10 is a must-start rating, while a 1 should be avoided (if possible); a 1-2 is poor, 3-4 is fair, 5-6 is average, 7-8 is very good and 9-10 is excellent. W-L: Pitcher's win-loss record. ERA: Pitcher's earned run average. WHIP: Pitcher's average number of walks plus hits surrendered per inning.
The waiver wire is a bit thin on fantasy starters worthy of a spot start Wednesday, but I've dug up five quality hurlers available in the majority of ESPN.com fantasy leagues:
Erik Bedard (16.4 percent ESPN.com fantasy ownership) had his Monday start pushed back a couple of days due to back spasms, giving him a more favorable matchup with the Washington Nationals instead of the Miami Marlins. Bedard has dominated the Nats in his career, posting a 1.35 ERA, a 1.10 WHIP, a .200 opponents' BA and 30 strikeouts in 20 innings in four career starts against them. Bedard also has been a great road starter the past four seasons (3.00 ERA, 122 K's in 117 IP) and should be able to continue this success at Nationals Park.
Whenever Randy Wolf (0.9 percent ESPN.com fantasy ownership) faces the Houston Astros, he instantly becomes worthy of a fantasy start. In his career, spanning 20 starts against the Astros, Wolf is 9-5 with a 2.98 ERA and 1.08 WHIP, holding them to a .219 average. Since joining the Milwaukee Brewers in 2010, Wolf is 5-0 with a 1.32 ERA and 1.01 WHIP in seven starts versus Houston. He hasn't lost at Minute Maid Park since 2002, a span of nine starts, going 5-0 with a 2.35 ERA in Houston's home stadium. Wolf has been bad this year, but so have the Astros' hitters in the past eight games (1.6 runs per game, .191 BA, 2 HRs, 63 K's, 13 BBs). Take the risk and start Wolf on Wednesday.
Felipe Paulino (0.5 percent ESPN.com fantasy ownership) has made just two starts this season, but the first one was six shutout innings against the New York Yankees. He has pitched pretty well at Kauffman Stadium since joining the Kansas City Royals (4.03 ERA, 7.9 K/9), and he should be able to limit a Baltimore Orioles team that has never faced him. This is admittedly more of a hunch than some of the others on this list, but I expect a quality start from Paulino on Wednesday.
Rick Porcello (5.5 percent ESPN.com fantasy ownership) being included on this list is based strictly on the matchup of facing the Minnesota Twins and especially his dreadful mound opponent, Nick Blackburn. Porcello has a 2.86 ERA and 1.30 WHIP in 12 career starts versus the Twins, and this Minnesota lineup has been atrocious for the entire month with a May slash line of .182 BA/.284 OBP/.273 SLG and just 33 runs in 13 games (2.5 per game). If you're in a deeper league, give Porcello a spot start Wednesday.
Mike Minor (49.3 percent ESPN.com fantasy ownership) has been completely tattooed in his past three starts (11.81 ERA, 2.06 WHIP), but he's got nowhere to go but up. It's not like he's lost the zip on his fastball; he's just missing with pitches within the strike zone, allowing seven homers in this three-start span. But there also are encouraging signs, such as his 20 strikeouts and just seven walks in 16 innings, including seven K's and zero free passes his last time out. Minor has usually thrived at home in his brief career (6-3, 3.87 ERA, 76 K's in 76 2/3 IP) and should be able to limit a Miami Marlins squad that batted .222 with a .315 slugging percentage at Turner Field last year. NL-only owners should give the 24-year-old Minor a start.
Hitter matchup ratings for May 16
| Overall | ||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 8 | 7 | 8 | 1 | | 6 | 6 | 5 | 6 | |
| 7 | 6 | 6 | 5 | | 7 | 9 | 4 | 5 | |
| 8 | 10 | 5 | 5 | | 8 | 10 | 6 | 5 | |
| 3 | 5 | 1 | 4 | | 10 | 10 | 9 | 7 | |
| 9 | 10 | 5 | 5 | | 4 | 2 | 5 | 4 | |
| 7 | 6 | 6 | 7 | | 4 | 2 | 5 | 5 | |
| 3 | 4 | 2 | 7 | | 3 | 6 | 1 | 6 | |
| 1 | 1 | 1 | 10 | | 4 | 1 | 4 | 5 | |
| 6 | 10 | 2 | 3 | | 5 | 1 | 5 | 4 | |
| 10 | 10 | 10 | 7 | | 4 | 3 | 3 | 2 | |
| 7 | 4 | 7 | 7 | | 3 | 3 | 3 | 5 | |
| 7 | 10 | 3 | 3 | | 5 | 6 | 3 | 5 | |
| 3 | 3 | 1 | 7 | | 5 | 10 | 3 | 6 | |
| 5 | 1 | 7 | 5 | | 4 | 6 | 1 | 4 | |
| 10 | 10 | 10 | 6 | | 3 | 1 | 3 | 7 | |
Hitter ratings account for the opposing starting pitcher's past history (three years' worth as well as past 21 days) as well as ballpark factors. "LHB" and "RHB" ratings account only for left- and right-handed batters, respectively. OPS is the primary statistic used in the calculation. Ratings range from 1-10, with 10 representing the best possible matchup, statistically speaking, and 1 representing the worst. So, for example, a 10 is a must-start rating, while a 1 should be avoided (if possible); a 1-2 is poor, 3-4 is fair, 5-6 is average, 7-8 is very good and 9-10 is excellent.
• Randy Wolf has pitched very well at Minute Maid Park throughout his career, going 6-2 with a 2.91 ERA and a 1.17 WHIP in 12 starts.
• Angels starter Jerome Williams is 6-0 with a 2.30 ERA and 0.96 WHIP in his career at Angel Stadium.
• Nick Swisher hit .210 (13-for-62) with a HR against Toronto last season. The only AL team he had a lower average against was Minnesota (.194).
• Johan Santana is holding left-handed hitters to a .114 average (4-for-35) this year with 12 strikeouts.
• Clayton Richard has a 2.21 ERA and a .203 opponents' batting average when pitching at Petco Park this year, compared to a 7.99 ERA and a .323 opponents' BA on the road.
• Jhonny Peralta is 5-for-26 (.192) with no extra-base hits and five strikeouts in his career against Minnesota's Nick Blackburn.
• Mike Minor has posted a 6.46 ERA in three career starts against the Miami Marlins with four HRs allowed and a 1.63 WHIP.
• Entering Tuesday, Adam Jones is 37-for-113 (.327) with 8 HRs this year against right-handed pitching, compared to just 6-for-33 (.182) and 2 HRs against left-handers.
• Aaron Hill is 11-for-26 (.423), including 3 HRs and a 1.27 OPS, in his career against Rockies starting pitcher Jamie Moyer.
• Gio Gonzalez is 2-0 at home this year with a 0.43 ERA, 22 K's in 21 IP with a 0.52 WHIP.
• Cubs starter Matt Garza is 2-1 with a 0.96 ERA in four career starts against the Phillies, striking out 26 hitters in 28 IP.
• Right-handed hitters are only 11-for-60 (.183) against Yu Darvish this season with 19 strikeouts.
• Johnny Damon is 11-for-22 (.500) lifetime against Seattle's Felix Hernandez, with four doubles and a HR.
• Since the start of the 2011 season, Allen Craig is hitting .333 (27-for-81) against left-handed pitching. Of his 27 hits, 17 have gone for extra bases, including seven home runs.
• Ryan Sweeney is a career .342 hitter (13-for-38) at Tropicana Field and a career .301 hitter against right-handed pitching, entering Tuesday.
Matt Kemp, OF, Dodgers: 15-day DL, left hamstring strain. He hopes to return before the end of the month. Tony Gwynn Jr. likely will fill in as Kemp's replacement in center field.
Carlos Beltran, OF, Cardinals: Day-to-day, knee. He is not in the starting lineup Tuesday for the second straight day because of knee soreness. Allen Craig started in right field Tuesday.
Troy Tulowitzki, SS, Rockies: Day-to-day, bone bruise in leg. He left Monday's game early after being struck in the leg by a foul ball. X-rays came back negative, but he's not likely to play Tuesday.
Torii Hunter, OF, Angels: Day-to-day, restricted list. Hunter has flown back home to be with his family after his son was arrested on charges related to sexual assault. It is uncertain when Hunter will return to action. Mark Trumbo, Peter Bourjos or Ryan Langerhans will be the starter in right field.
Freddie Freeman, 1B, Braves: Day-to-day, eye. He left Monday's game with blurred vision in his right eye. Freeman was replaced by Eric Hinske.
Juan Uribe, 3B, Dodgers: 15-day DL, left wrist soreness. Adam Kennedy and replacement call-up Elian Herrera will split time at third base with Uribe out.
Jack Hannahan, 3B, Indians: Day-to-day, back. He missed Monday's game with a sore back but could return to action Wednesday.
Rickie Weeks, 2B, Brewers: Day-to-day, wrist. He was hit in the hand with a pitch Friday but was used as a pinch hitter Monday. Weeks should return to the lineup Tuesday.
David Robertson, RP, Yankees: Day-to-day, sore oblique. He will undergo an MRI on his side Tuesday. Rafael Soriano replaced him as the team's closer, picking up the save Monday.
Jeff Niemann, SP, Rays: 15-day DL, broken leg. Niemann suffered a small fracture above his ankle after getting hit with a comebacker. He's expected to miss four to six weeks of action and likely will be replaced in the rotation by Wade Davis.
Danny Duffy, SP, Royals: Out for season, elbow. He suffered a torn left ulnar collateral ligament in his elbow and will miss the remainder of 2012. Vin Mazzaro will take his spot in the Kansas City rotation.
Ivan Nova, SP, Yankees: Day-to-day, foot. He left Monday's game with a sprained foot and could miss his next scheduled start. Nova would be replaced by David Phelps if that happens.
Desmond Jennings, OF, Rays: 15-day DL, sprained left knee. This move was made retroactive to May 12. Ben Zobrist has moved to the outfield to replace Jennings, while Will Rhymes starts at second base.
Mark Kotsay, OF, Padres: Day-to-day, back. He left Saturday's game with a lower back injury and has not played since. He could be available to play later this week.
Brandon Inge, 3B, Athletics: Day-to-day, sore groin. He has missed the past two games and is being replaced by Eric Sogard.
Kila Ka'aihue, 1B, Athletics: Day-to-day, hamstring. He hasn't played since May 11 because of his sore hamstring. Daric Barton is starting at first base during his absence.
Brian Fuentes, RP, Athletics: Named new closer. Fuentes has replaced struggling Grant Balfour as Oakland's closer, picking up a save in Saturday's win.
Wilson Ramos, C, Nationals: 15-day DL, torn ACL. Ramos suffered the injury Saturday and will miss the rest of the season. Jesus Flores becomes the everyday catcher in Washington.
Yoenis Cespedes, OF, Athletics: 15-day DL, strained muscle in left hand. He injured his hand last week and complained of more soreness when he took batting practice Saturday. The move was made retroactive to May 7. Collin Cowgill figures to remain the team's everyday center fielder until Cespedes returns to action.
Sandy Leon, C, Nationals: 60-day DL, high ankle sprain. He suffered the injury in his major league debut Monday after colliding with Chase Headley at home plate.
Clay Rapada, RP, Yankees: Day-to-day, flu. He left Monday's game with a viral infection.
Weatherproof games: Red Sox-Rays, Yankees-Blue Jays and Brewers-Astros.
Pirates-Nationals is expected to be interrupted by thunderstorms in the middle innings, but they won't last very long. Diamondbacks-Rockies also could experience storms in the final couple of innings, but they, too, will pass through the area fairly quickly.
Weather reports from accuweather.com.
Connect with Facebook to share your ESPN activities. Learn more »
Learn more- Social Sharing ON ▼
- ON OFF ▼
- Remind me every time I add an event to my Activity
- My Activity ▼
- Recently shared to your timeline:
