Fantasy notes for July 3
Click through for information on specific matchups, injuries and weather for the day's games.
Starting pitcher rankings for July 3
| Name | |||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  | Felix Hernandez | R | BAL | 9 | 6-5 | 3.09 | 1.22 | 2-1 | 2.17 | 1.10 |
| 2 |  | Johnny Cueto | R | @LAD | 7 | 9-4 | 2.26 | 1.14 | 3-1 | 1.24 | 0.93 |
| 3 |  | Jordan Zimmermann | R | SF | 7 | 4-6 | 2.77 | 1.15 | 1-1 | 2.25 | 1.40 |
| 4 |  | Chris Sale | L | TEX | 9 | 9-2 | 2.27 | 0.97 | 1-0 | 3.05 | 1.11 |
| 5 |  | Jon Lester | L | @OAK | 8 | 5-5 | 4.53 | 1.34 | 2-1 | 4.35 | 1.26 |
| 6 |  | Chris Capuano | L | CIN | 5 | 9-3 | 2.69 | 1.10 | 1-1 | 2.33 | 1.15 |
| 7 |  | Tim Lincecum | R | @WAS | 9 | 3-8 | 5.60 | 1.49 | 1-1 | 4.00 | 1.11 |
| 8 |  | Vance Worley | R | @NYM | 7 | 4-4 | 2.92 | 1.26 | 1-2 | 2.70 | 1.05 |
| 9 |  | A.J. Burnett | R | HOU | 5 | 9-2 | 3.31 | 1.24 | 3-0 | 2.33 | 1.19 |
| 10 |  | Roy Oswalt | R | @CHW | 7 | 2-0 | 4.26 | 1.97 | 2-0 | 4.26 | 1.97 |
| 11 |  | Wei-Yin Chen | L | @SEA | 7 | 7-4 | 3.73 | 1.32 | 2-2 | 4.38 | 1.38 |
| 12 |  | Ivan Nova | R | @TB | 5 | 9-2 | 4.03 | 1.37 | 2-0 | 1.30 | 1.12 |
| 13 |  | Jonathon Niese | L | PHI | 4 | 6-3 | 3.55 | 1.27 | 2-1 | 3.10 | 1.23 |
| 14 |  | Marco Estrada | R | MIA | 5 | 0-3 | 4.50 | 1.12 | 0-0 | 4.50 | 1.17 |
| 15 |  | James Shields | R | NYY | 4 | 7-5 | 4.04 | 1.40 | 0-1 | 3.98 | 1.62 |
| 16 |  | Jair Jurrjens | R | CHC | 6 | 1-2 | 6.07 | 1.79 | 1-0 | 2.03 | 0.98 |
| 17 |  | Trevor Bauer | R | SD | 1 | 0-0 | 4.50 | 2.00 | 0-0 | 4.50 | 2.00 |
| 18 |  | Duane Below | L | MIN | 10 | 2-1 | 2.70 | 0.93 | 0-0 | 3.38 | 1.69 |
| 19 |  | Lucas Harrell | R | @PIT | 6 | 7-6 | 4.33 | 1.33 | 1-2 | 2.53 | 1.03 |
| 20 |  | Dan Haren | R | @CLE | 6 | 6-7 | 4.53 | 1.37 | 2-1 | 8.31 | 1.73 |
| 21 |  | Andrew Cashner | R | @ARI | 6 | 3-3 | 3.63 | 1.33 | 0-0 | 2.84 | 0.47 |
| 22 |  | Joe Kelly | R | COL | 3 | 1-0 | 3.38 | 1.50 | 1-0 | 3.86 | 1.47 |
| 23 |  | Zach McAllister | R | LAA | 3 | 2-1 | 3.82 | 1.27 | 1-0 | 3.18 | 1.41 |
| 24 |  | Jeff Francis | L | @STL | 2 | 1-1 | 5.47 | 1.50 | 1-0 | 2.95 | 1.22 |
| 25 |  | Anibal Sanchez | R | @MIL | 6 | 4-6 | 3.94 | 1.22 | 1-1 | 6.48 | 1.62 |
| 26 |  | Vin Mazzaro | R | @TOR | 1 | 3-2 | 4.74 | 1.54 | 1-1 | 6.52 | 1.66 |
| 27 |  | Brett Cecil | L | KC | 2 | 1-1 | 6.06 | 1.59 | 1-1 | 6.06 | 1.59 |
| 28 |  | Bartolo Colon | R | BOS | 2 | 6-7 | 4.22 | 1.30 | 1-1 | 7.71 | 1.86 |
| 29 |  | Chris Volstad | R | @ATL | 3 | 0-6 | 7.46 | 1.61 | -- | -- | -- |
| 30 |  | Nick Blackburn | R | @DET | 1 | 4-5 | 7.74 | 1.74 | 2-1 | 7.71 | 1.76 |
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.
Tuesday's slate of pitchers is rather impressive. Nine pitchers are owned in 100 percent of ESPN.com fantasy leagues (Chris Capuano, Johnny Cueto, Dan Haren, Felix Hernandez, Jon Lester, Tim Lincecum, Chris Sale, James Shields, Jordan Zimmermann), two others are owned in at least 94 percent of ESPN leagues (A.J. Burnett, 95; Ivan Nova, 94), and three other arms are owned in more than 60 percent of ESPN leagues (Anibal Sanchez, 84; Vance Worley, 78; Trevor Bauer, 61). All of these hurlers should be starting in typical fantasy formats. There are also four other pitchers worth starting -- all National Leaguers -- especially in deep-mixed and/or NL-only formats:
Jonathon Niese (42 percent ESPN.com fantasy ownership) is coming off a fine month of June, going 3-1 with a 1.89 ERA, 1.20 WHIP, 34 K's and just five walks in 33 1/3 innings. He'll be facing the Philadelphia Phillies for the fourth time this season, which is a good thing, considering his 9.2 K/9 rate and .183 opponents' BA against them in 16 2/3 innings. Niese is also facing a Philly lineup that has dropped five straight games. In their three-game set in Miami, the Phils' offense scored a total of six runs, with 21 strikeouts and just three walks. Go ahead and start Niese in all fantasy formats Tuesday.
Marco Estrada (0.2 percent ESPN.com fantasy ownership) is still winless this season, but his outstanding 6.5 K/BB ratio as a starter (39 K's, 6 walks) shows that he's overdue for a victory. He is coming off a 12-strikeout performance in Cincinnati his last time out, allowing just three runs on five hits in six impressive innings. Although Tuesday's opponent, the Miami Marlins, are riding a four-game win streak, his mound opponent, Anibal Sanchez, has been terrible recently. Sanchez finished June with a 7.06 ERA and 1.57 WHIP in five starts. And in Milwaukee's past 11 home games, the Brew Crew is 8-3 with 6.2 runs per game, a .355 OBP and a .511 slugging percentage. This all makes Estrada startable in nearly every fantasy format.
Jair Jurrjens (16 percent ESPN.com fantasy ownership) has been solid in two starts since being recalled from Triple-A, holding two strong lineups -- the Boston Red Sox and the Arizona Diamondbacks -- to a .191 batting average and three runs in 13 1/3 innings (2.03 ERA). His opponent is much less formidable Tuesday, the visiting Chicago Cubs, who still have the worst record in the majors despite a three-game win streak. Like most pitchers recently, Jurrjens has enjoyed facing the Cubbies, posting a 1.47 ERA in three starts against them since the start of 2010. Although Jurrjens has more walks (14) than strikeouts (12) this season, he is a great win candidate against Chris Volstad, who is 0-6 with a 7.46 ERA and 1.61 WHIP in his first year in Chicago. Play Jurrjens in deeper formats Tuesday.
Lucas Harrell (2 percent ESPN.com fantasy ownership) made me look good when I recommended him before his last outing against the San Diego Padres, throwing a six-hit shutout with seven whiffs. That gives him 23 K's and just eight walks in his past four starts. I don't expect him to blank the Pittsburgh Pirates, but with both Andrew McCutchen (wrist) and Pedro Alvarez (leg cramps) hurting, there are not too many other bats in the Bucs' lineup that can do a lot of damage. Although Harrell has been much worse on the road this year (6.36 ERA, 1.49 WHIP) than he has been in Houston (1.99 ERA, 1.15 WHIP), it's not like Pittsburgh has been crushing the ball at PNC Park; they have a home triple-slash line of .225/.283/.356 there this season. Put Harrell in your NL-only lineup Tuesday.
Hitter matchup ratings for July 3
| Overall | ||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| | 5 | 3 | 5 | 8 | | 5 | 2 | 6 | 7 | |
| | 9 | 10 | 6 | 10 | | 2 | 4 | 1 | 5 | |
| | 1 | 1 | 1 | 7 | | 4 | 1 | 5 | 2 | |
| | 7 | 10 | 1 | 5 | | 6 | 5 | 5 | 5 | |
| | 5 | 8 | 2 | 6 | | 3 | 2 | 2 | 6 | |
| | 5 | 4 | 4 | 5 | | 7 | 6 | 6 | 5 | |
| | 6 | 1 | 7 | 4 | | 6 | 7 | 3 | 7 | |
| | 5 | 4 | 4 | 8 | | 8 | 3 | 9 | 3 | |
| | 8 | 7 | 8 | 2 | | 10 | 10 | 10 | 1 | |
| | 10 | 10 | 10 | 6 | | 4 | 4 | 3 | 5 | |
| | 7 | 6 | 8 | 9 | | 6 | 10 | 3 | 4 | |
| | 9 | 2 | 10 | 5 | | 6 | 6 | 5 | 3 | |
| | 8 | 8 | 6 | 5 | | 1 | 1 | 1 | 5 | |
| | 4 | 4 | 3 | 2 | | 10 | 10 | 8 | 8 | |
| | 6 | 8 | 3 | 8 | | 2 | 2 | 2 | 5 | |
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.
• David Ortiz is hitting 5 for 43 (.116 BA) with 15 strikeouts and 2 extra-base hits in his career against Athletics starter Bartolo Colon. That is Ortiz's lowest career average against any pitcher (minimum 20 at-bats).
• Giants starter Tim Lincecum is 1-4 with a 7.59 ERA in 8 road starts this season (3.99 ERA in 8 home starts). Seven of the 8 home runs he has given up this season have come on the road.
• Nick Markakis is hitting 13 for 28 (.464) in his career against Tuesday's starter Felix Hernandez.
• Chris Capuano has a 1.87 ERA in 8 home starts this season (3.61 ERA on road).
• The widely available Brett Cecil has had great success in his career in the month of July. He has posted a 6-1 record with a 2.42 ERA in 14 starts, the only month where his ERA is under 4.00.
• In 5 career starts at Progressive Field (35 IP), Dan Haren is 3-0 with a 1.80 ERA, allowing 7 earned runs while striking out 34. In his lone start there this season, he went 8 innings in a win, striking out 7 and allowing just 1 run.
Joey Votto, 1B, Reds: Day-to-day, left knee inflammation. He left Saturday's game early and did not play Sunday. He could return to the starting lineup soon, though.
Andrew McCutchen, OF, Pirates: Day-to-day, sprained wrist. He did not play Sunday -- Alex Presley started in center field in his place -- but hopes to return soon.
Max Scherzer, SP, Tigers: Scratched from Tuesday's start, tight left hamstring. Duane Below will replace him, but Scherzer hopes to make his next scheduled start on Sunday.
Dee Gordon, SS, Dodgers: Day-to-day, leg injury. He injured his leg running the bases in the eighth inning Sunday night and did not play the ninth inning. It is unknown if he will miss any time.
Pedro Alvarez, 3B, Pirates: Day-to-day, leg cramps. He left Sunday's game early but hopes to return to the field soon.
Carlos Santana, C, Indians: Day-to-day, back injury. He hasn't played since June 27, but Santana should return to the field soon. Lou Marson has been replacing Santana at catcher.
Will Middlebrooks, 3B, Red Sox: Day-to-day, tight left hamstring. He left Sunday's game early with his injury, but it's unknown if he'll miss any more time.
Scott Rolen, 3B, Reds: Day-to-day, back spasms. He was unable to take the field in the first inning, and was replaced by Todd Frazier. He likely will miss a couple more games.
Andre Ethier, OF, Dodgers: Day-to-day, strained left oblique. He has not played since hurting himself on a slide June 27 but hopes to return to the field Monday.
Chris Johnson, 3B, Astros: Day-to-day, strained left lat. He was scratched from the lineup Sunday and replaced by Matt Downs. It's unclear when Johnson will be ready to play again.
Chad Qualls, RP, Yankees: Signed by Yankees. He was waived by the Phillies on Thursday, and picked up by New York on Sunday. He'll join the Yanks' bullpen.
David Price, SP, Rays: Day-to-day, tight lower back. He left Friday's start early but expects to pitch in his next rotation turn Wednesday night.
Jeremy Hellickson, SP, Rays: Day-to-day, bruised shin. He was hit with a line drive Saturday, but X-rays were negative. He expects to make his next start Thursday.
Erasmo Ramirez, SP, Mariners: 15-day DL, right elbow flexor strain. He left Saturday's game early because of his injury, and was replaced in the rotation by Hisashi Iwakuma, who will start Monday. Kevin Millwood (strained groin), who was supposed to start Monday, was pushed back to Friday in Oakland.
Michael Saunders, OF, Mariners: Day-to-day, illness. He has not played since June 28 because of flu-like symptoms and may not be ready for a few more days. With Franklin Gutierrez also injured (concussion), Chone Figgins is starting in left field, with Casper Wells playing in center.
Jesse Crain, RP, White Sox: Day-to-day, tightness in shoulder. He has not pitched since June 23, and there is no timetable for his return.
John McDonald, SS, Diamondbacks: Day-to-day, tightness in back. He has not played since June 24, and his return to the field is uncertain.
Lonnie Chisenhall, 3B, Indians: 15-day DL, broken bone in right forearm. He will miss up to three months as a result of getting hit by a pitch Friday. Jose Lopez started at third base Saturday, registering five hits and 3 RBIs. Jack Hannahan is also an option at the hot corner.
