Fantasy notes for July 28-29
Click through for information on specific matchups and injuries for the day's games.
Starting pitcher rankings for July 28
| Name | |||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  | Jordan Zimmermann | R | @MIL | 7 | 7-6 | 2.31 | 1.07 | 2-0 | 0.72 | 0.72 |
| 2 |  | Matt Harrison | L | CHW | 6 | 12-5 | 3.02 | 1.25 | 1-1 | 2.40 | 1.27 |
| 3 |  | C.J. Wilson | L | TB | 9 | 9-6 | 2.89 | 1.21 | 0-2 | 5.06 | 1.39 |
| 4 |  | CC Sabathia | L | BOS | 6 | 10-3 | 3.30 | 1.23 | 1-0 | 2.08 | 0.92 |
| 5 |  | Wandy Rodriguez | L | @HOU | 7 | 7-9 | 3.79 | 1.27 | 1-3 | 5.06 | 1.45 |
| 6 |  | Ian Kennedy | R | NYM | 6 | 8-8 | 4.20 | 1.28 | 2-1 | 3.86 | 1.05 |
| 7 |  | Jeff Samardzija | R | STL | 4 | 7-8 | 4.25 | 1.30 | 1-1 | 1.80 | 1.00 |
| 8 |  | Chad Billingsley | R | @SF | 7 | 5-9 | 4.15 | 1.40 | 1-1 | 3.75 | 1.17 |
| 9 |  | Johnny Cueto | R | @COL | 6 | 12-5 | 2.23 | 1.17 | 3-0 | 1.45 | 1.39 |
| 10 |  | Joe Kelly | R | @CHC | 7 | 1-3 | 2.78 | 1.37 | 0-2 | 2.00 | 1.17 |
| 11 |  | Anibal Sanchez | R | @TOR | 6 | 5-7 | 3.94 | 1.26 | 1-1 | 2.70 | 1.15 |
| 12 |  | Matt Moore | L | @LAA | 6 | 6-7 | 4.23 | 1.40 | 1-2 | 4.58 | 1.30 |
| 13 |  | Nate Eovaldi | R | SD | 6 | 1-6 | 4.15 | 1.47 | 0-1 | 3.86 | 1.71 |
| 14 |  | Bartolo Colon | R | @BAL | 4 | 6-8 | 3.97 | 1.25 | 0-1 | 3.63 | 1.12 |
| 15 |  | Justin Masterson | R | @MIN | 7 | 7-8 | 4.12 | 1.37 | 2-1 | 5.09 | 1.78 |
| 16 |  | Mike Minor | L | PHI | 3 | 5-7 | 5.49 | 1.35 | 0-1 | 2.08 | 0.85 |
| 17 |  | Barry Zito | L | LAD | 6 | 8-6 | 3.75 | 1.34 | 2-0 | 3.32 | 1.05 |
| 18 |  | Jon Lester | L | @NYY | 4 | 5-8 | 5.46 | 1.46 | 0-3 | 15.32 | 2.84 |
| 19 |  | Chris Young | R | @ARI | 7 | 2-4 | 3.91 | 1.30 | 0-2 | 5.06 | 1.38 |
| 20 |  | Philip Humber | R | @TEX | 4 | 4-5 | 6.25 | 1.49 | 1-1 | 8.00 | 1.56 |
| 21 |  | Randy Wolf | L | WAS | 5 | 3-6 | 5.46 | 1.54 | 1-0 | 3.07 | 1.36 |
| 22 |  | Joe Blanton | R | @ATL | 4 | 8-8 | 4.70 | 1.22 | 1-1 | 4.03 | 1.07 |
| 23 |  | Tommy Hunter | R | OAK | 4 | 4-5 | 5.57 | 1.37 | 1-1 | 2.51 | 0.98 |
| 24 |  | Kevin Millwood | R | KC | 3 | 3-8 | 4.13 | 1.38 | 0-2 | 4.56 | 1.44 |
| 25 |  | Samuel Deduno | R | CLE | 1 | 1-0 | 3.94 | 1.81 | 1-0 | 3.94 | 1.81 |
| 26 |  | Christian Friedrich | L | CIN | 1 | 5-7 | 5.71 | 1.56 | 1-1 | 4.60 | 1.34 |
| 27 |  | Bruce Chen | L | @SEA | 5 | 7-8 | 5.54 | 1.37 | 0-1 | 9.16 | 1.98 |
| 28 |  | Armando Galarraga | R | PIT | 2 | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- |
| 29 |  | Ross Ohlendorf | R | @MIA | 2 | 3-0 | 5.16 | 1.69 | 1-0 | 2.63 | 1.17 |
| 30 |  | Henderson Alvarez | R | DET | 1 | 6-7 | 4.61 | 1.39 | 1-0 | 6.94 | 1.54 |
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.
Saturday's notes
Saturday's docket features a great deal of top-notch arms, as 10 of the 30 pitchers are owned in at least 84 percent of ESPN.com fantasy leagues (Anibal Sanchez, Jon Lester, CC Sabathia, Wandy Rodriguez, Jordan Zimmermann, Matt Harrison, Johnny Cueto, Ian Kennedy, Matt Moore and C.J. Wilson). Five of these hurlers are facing pitchers that are owned in 0-to-1 percent of ESPN.com leagues, so many of these games appear to be lopsided. However, there are four minority-owned pitchers (less than 40 percent of ESPN.com leagues), who all happen to reside in the National League and are worthy of fantasy consideration on Saturday:
Jeff Samardzija (34 percent ESPN.com fantasy ownership) has been unbelievable in July, yet he's still available in nearly two-thirds of ESPN leagues. In four starts this month, he's 2-1 with a 1.67 ERA, 0.93 WHIP and 9.7 K/9, fanning 29 and walking just seven over 27 innings. However, he does not have an ideal matchup on Saturday at St. Louis, where he carries a 5.93 ERA and 2.20 WHIP in 13 2/3 career innings. But the last time he faced the Cards this season on April 24 at home, he shut them out for 6 2/3 innings, recording nine strikeouts. With such phenomenal July numbers, overlook his futility in St. Louis and start him in all fantasy leagues on Saturday.
Chad Billingsley (36 percent ESPN.com fantasy ownership) had a great outing in his return from the disabled list, holding a tough St. Louis Cardinals lineup to one run in six innings. With four strikeouts and just one walk, Billingsley increased his K-to-BB ratio to an even 3.0 on the season and 4.6 over his past seven starts (41 K, 9 BB in 42 IP). One of those outings was at AT&T Park, where he held the San Francisco Giants to three runs in six innings with seven strikeouts and three walks. On Saturday he faces the Giants again, trying to improve on a solid 3.33 ERA and 7.6 K/9 in 135 career innings against his NL West rival, which has 55 K's and just 17 BBs (3.2 ratio) in its past six games. Now that he appears to be over his elbow injury, he's worthy of a roster spot in most fantasy leagues, and should have a quality start on Saturday.
Joe Kelly (4 percent ESPN.com fantasy ownership) is not a big strikeout pitcher (5.2 K/9 in 2012), but he certainly gives fantasy rotations a boost in the other areas. He's reeled off six straight quality starts (2.75 ERA, 1.28 WHIP), throwing exactly six innings in each outing and inducing as many ground balls as fly balls in each start. On Saturday he'll take the mound at home, where he has not allowed more than two earned runs in any of his five starts, posting a 2.30 ERA. He also has a .180 opponents' BA in his past three Busch Stadium starts. Speaking of Busch, the Cards are 13-4 at home versus the Chicago Cubs in the past two seasons, outscoring them 30-7 in the past four meetings in St. Louis. All of this makes Kelly a good play in deeper formats on Saturday.
Nate Eovaldi (0.4 percent ESPN.com fantasy ownership) seemingly took a hit in fantasy value when he was traded from the playoff-hopeful Los Angeles Dodgers to the Miami Marlins in the midst of a fire sale. However, the L.A. hitters have not done Eovaldi any favors with a mere 3.0 runs of support. He has a solid matchup in his Marlins debut as he'll face the lowly San Diego Padres. Although Miami's offense has been in a funk (13 runs during 1-7 stretch), it should be able to provide Eovaldi some runs against his mound opponent, Ross Ohlendorf. The Padres right-hander has been horrible outside of pitcher-friendly Petco Park this season, posting a 7.20 ERA and 2.13 WHIP. Eovaldi has allowed more than three runs just twice all season, and he is in the midst of a strong July, posting a 2.93 ERA and 13 strikeouts in 15 1/3 innings. All of this makes Eovaldi a strong start in NL-only formats.
Starting pitcher rankings for July 29
| Name | |||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | | Felix Hernandez | R | KC | 9 | 9-5 | 2.80 | 1.16 | 3-0 | 1.13 | 0.88 |
| 2 | | Clayton Kershaw | L | @SF | 10 | 7-6 | 3.14 | 1.08 | 1-2 | 5.40 | 1.24 |
| 3 | | Roy Halladay | R | @ATL | 9 | 4-5 | 4.32 | 1.16 | 0-0 | 6.55 | 1.27 |
| 4 | | Ryan Vogelsong | R | LAD | 9 | 8-4 | 2.26 | 1.11 | 1-1 | 2.25 | 1.10 |
| 5 | | Adam Wainwright | R | @CHC | 9 | 8-10 | 4.31 | 1.28 | 1-2 | 3.05 | 0.92 |
| 6 | | R.A. Dickey | R | @ARI | 6 | 13-2 | 2.97 | 1.03 | 1-1 | 6.52 | 1.66 |
| 7 | | Josh Johnson | R | SD | 10 | 6-7 | 4.14 | 1.34 | 1-2 | 4.58 | 1.02 |
| 8 | | Zack Greinke | R | TB | 7 | 9-3 | 3.44 | 1.20 | 0-1 | 6.00 | 1.40 |
| 9 | | Gio Gonzalez | L | @MIL | 8 | 13-5 | 3.13 | 1.11 | 2-2 | 3.63 | 1.07 |
| 10 | | Travis Blackley | L | @BAL | 10 | 3-2 | 3.15 | 1.05 | 1-0 | 2.35 | 0.91 |
| 11 | | Ubaldo Jimenez | R | @MIN | 7 | 8-9 | 4.97 | 1.60 | 1-2 | 6.75 | 1.90 |
| 12 | | Jeremy Hellickson | R | @LAA | 7 | 5-6 | 3.42 | 1.30 | 1-1 | 3.44 | 0.98 |
| 13 | | James McDonald | R | @HOU | 6 | 10-4 | 3.15 | 1.12 | 2-1 | 6.35 | 1.68 |
| 14 | | Tim Hudson | R | PHI | 8 | 9-4 | 3.71 | 1.22 | 3-0 | 3.20 | 1.22 |
| 15 | | Hiroki Kuroda | R | BOS | 5 | 10-7 | 3.34 | 1.18 | 2-0 | 4.00 | 1.04 |
| 16 | | Scott Feldman | R | CHW | 3 | 4-6 | 5.37 | 1.40 | 2-0 | 1.00 | 0.89 |
| 17 | | Lucas Harrell | R | PIT | 7 | 7-7 | 4.07 | 1.34 | 0-1 | 1.42 | 1.26 |
| 18 | | Doug Fister | R | @TOR | 7 | 4-7 | 4.03 | 1.27 | 3-1 | 2.89 | 1.00 |
| 19 | | Wei-Yin Chen | L | OAK | 7 | 8-6 | 3.82 | 1.21 | 1-2 | 4.56 | 1.10 |
| 20 | | Gavin Floyd | R | @TEX | 4 | 8-8 | 4.46 | 1.32 | 2-0 | 1.32 | 1.32 |
| 21 | | Mat Latos | R | @COL | 7 | 8-3 | 4.30 | 1.27 | 1-1 | 5.52 | 1.70 |
| 22 | | Paul Maholm | L | STL | 3 | 9-6 | 3.88 | 1.24 | 3-0 | 1.13 | 0.83 |
| 23 | | Clayton Richard | L | @MIA | 5 | 7-11 | 4.17 | 1.21 | 1-3 | 6.41 | 1.24 |
| 24 | | Joe Saunders | L | NYM | 3 | 5-6 | 3.51 | 1.31 | 1-1 | 3.79 | 1.00 |
| 25 | | Felix Doubront | L | @NYY | 1 | 10-5 | 4.54 | 1.40 | 2-1 | 5.19 | 1.33 |
| 26 | | Mark Rogers | R | WAS | 2 | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- |
| 27 | | Will Smith | L | @SEA | 6 | 2-3 | 6.26 | 1.43 | 1-1 | 3.38 | 1.20 |
| 28 | | Brett Cecil | L | DET | 2 | 2-3 | 5.82 | 1.45 | 0-2 | 6.06 | 1.47 |
| 29 | | Brian Duensing | L | CLE | 4 | 1-6 | 4.86 | 1.38 | 0-1 | 9.39 | 2.35 |
| 30 | | Jonathan Sanchez | L | CIN | 5 | 1-7 | 8.01 | 2.08 | 0-3 | 13.09 | 2.45 |
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.
Sunday's notes
Sunday's MLB schedule is loaded with aces, featuring 13 starting pitchers that are owned in at least 98 percent of ESPN.com leagues -- Felix Hernandez, Clayton Kershaw, Roy Halladay, Ryan Vogelsong, Adam Wainwright, R.A. Dickey, Josh Johnson, Zack Greinke, Gio Gonzalez, James McDonald, Hiroki Kuroda and Mat Latos. That doesn't leave a ton of choices on the waiver wire, but there are still three quality options that are available in more than half of ESPN.com leagues:
Travis Blackley (3 percent ESPN.com fantasy ownership) made me look good when I recommended him before his last outing, when he held the Toronto Blue Jays to one run in seven innings, racking up eight strikeouts with just one walk. Despite this stellar outing, his ESPN.com ownership percentage has risen just two percent in the past week. Blackley is 3-0 with a 2.08 ERA, 0.85 WHIP and 6.0 K-to-BB ratio (30 K's, 5 BBs) in his past seven starts, and before you write off Blackley as a product of his pitcher-friendly home ballpark, consider that his road ERA (3.09) is actually better than his ERA in Oakland (3.21). His Sunday matchup is also favorable, facing a struggling Baltimore Orioles team that has scored just 2.7 runs per game and a slash of .219/.265/.344 over their past six contests. Start Blackley in all fantasy formats on Sunday.
Ubaldo Jimenez is now owned in just 44 percent of ESPN.com fantasy leagues, but he was mighty impressive in his last outing, blanking the Detroit Tigers for six innings, notching at least four strikeouts for the ninth time in his past 10 starts. Although he's surrendered nine homers and 27 walks during this span, Jimenez also has 55 K's in these 60 innings. He's also pitched very well against the Minnesota Twins, his Sunday opponent, going 2-1 with a 2.11 ERA and .354 opponents' slugging percentage in three career starts against them. Pick him up now and start him in the majority of fantasy formats on Sunday.
Lucas Harrell (1 percent ESPN.com fantasy ownership) has the great misfortune of pitching for the worst team in baseball, but he has been lights-out at the Houston Astros' home in Minute Maid Park this season. In eight home starts, he is 5-1 with a 1.89 ERA, 1.19 WHIP and 6.9 K's/9. On Sunday, he faces a Pittsburgh Pirates lineup that has fanned 72 times in eight road games this month and is also being opposed by struggling James McDonald. The Pirates right-hander has carted an 8.62 ERA and 2.17 WHIP in his past three starts. All of this reasoning makes Harrell a solid NL-only play on Sunday.
Hitter matchup ratings for July 28
| Overall | ||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| | 4 | 6 | 1 | 8 | | 3 | 2 | 3 | 8 | |
| | 8 | 7 | 8 | 3 | | 5 | 7 | 1 | 5 | |
| | 7 | 10 | 1 | 2 | | 5 | 4 | 5 | 1 | |
| | 3 | 1 | 3 | 4 | | 5 | 2 | 5 | 6 | |
| | 4 | 8 | 1 | 3 | | 9 | 10 | 6 | 3 | |
| | 5 | 2 | 6 | 4 | | 9 | 5 | 9 | 5 | |
| | 10 | 7 | 10 | 1 | | 10 | 10 | 8 | 7 | |
| | 10 | 10 | 8 | 7 | | 6 | 8 | 3 | 9 | |
| | 5 | 5 | 3 | 2 | | 7 | 10 | 1 | 5 | |
| | 9 | 10 | 6 | 4 | | 5 | 5 | 4 | 4 | |
| | 5 | 1 | 6 | 8 | | 8 | 6 | 7 | 5 | |
| | 7 | 8 | 5 | 6 | | 1 | 1 | 1 | 8 | |
| | 5 | 4 | 4 | 4 | | 6 | 8 | 1 | 6 | |
| | 6 | 2 | 6 | 4 | | 5 | 3 | 6 | 5 | |
| | 10 | 10 | 8 | 10 | | 7 | 7 | 6 | 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.
Hitter matchup ratings for July 29
| Overall | ||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| | 4 | 5 | 3 | 5 | | 2 | 3 | 1 | 9 | |
| | 2 | 2 | 1 | 4 | | 5 | 3 | 4 | 5 | |
| | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | | 8 | 1 | 9 | 1 | |
| | 4 | 5 | 1 | 4 | | 9 | 5 | 10 | 6 | |
| | 2 | 2 | 1 | 1 | | 4 | 5 | 3 | 3 | |
| | 9 | 5 | 10 | 5 | | 2 | 3 | 1 | 5 | |
| | 7 | 3 | 7 | 3 | | 5 | 7 | 3 | 8 | |
| | 7 | 1 | 10 | 5 | | 7 | 4 | 7 | 8 | |
| | 5 | 6 | 2 | 5 | | 1 | 1 | 1 | 7 | |
| | 9 | 1 | 10 | 4 | | 1 | 1 | 1 | 4 | |
| | 6 | 5 | 6 | 8 | | 7 | 7 | 7 | 8 | |
| | 1 | 1 | 1 | 6 | | 3 | 5 | 1 | 7 | |
| | 4 | 5 | 1 | 4 | | 6 | 7 | 3 | 6 | |
| | 2 | 3 | 1 | 4 | | 4 | 5 | 1 | 3 | |
| | 6 | 1 | 8 | 10 | | 1 | 1 | 1 | 10 | |
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.
• Matt Harrison is 8-2 with a 1.69 ERA in his last 11 starts for the Texas Rangers.
• In 16 innings pitched over his past two starts, Ian Kennedy has given up three runs for the Arizona Diamondbacks. Over his career, Kennedy has gone 20-6 with a 2.91 ERA in the second half of the season.
• Jeff Samardzija will look to contain Yadier Molina, who is 6-for-12 (.500) off him, as well as Jon Jay, who is 5-for-10 (.500) against the young pitcher.
• Colby Rasmus is just 1-for-8 (.125 BA) with five strikeouts in his career against Anibal Sanchez.
• Yoenis Cespedes, who faces Orioles righty Tommy Hunter on Saturday, has been more effective against righties this year, batting .315 with 8 HR and 33 RBIs (.272, 5 HR, 17 RBIs against lefties).
• Carl Crawford has had a lot of success against Yankees lefty CC Sabathia throughout his career, going 22-for-69 (.319) with 4 doubles, a home run, and 5 RBIs.
• Derek Jeter has 19 hits in 52 career at-bats (.365 BA) with a home run and 5 RBIs against Red Sox lefty Jon Lester. Through Thursday, Jeter has been much more effective against left-handed pitching, batting .383 with a .414 on-base percentage and a .550 slugging percentage (.281/.334/.361 against right-handed pitching).
• Roy Halladay has posted a 4.32 ERA and 1.16 WHIP this season. This Sunday he will face off against the Braves, who is 12-for-27 (.444) against him this season.
• The Astros' lone all-star, Jose Altuve, has only one hit in 10 career at-bats (.100) against Pirates' starter James McDonald.
• Travis Blackley is 2-0 with a 2.01 ERA, a 0.94 WHIP and 18 strikeouts in four appearances (three starts) in July.
• Adrian Gonzalez, who is 15-for-43 (.349) with 3 HRs and 13 RBIs since the All-Star break through Thursday, is 8-for-26 (.308) with 2 HR and 6 RBIs in his career against Hiroki Kuroda.
• Robinson Cano has really struggled against left-handed pitching this year, hitting only .250 with a .294 OBP and .361 slugging percentage through Thursday. Cano is hitless in seven career at-bats with three strikeouts against Red Sox lefty Felix Doubront.
John Axford and Francisco Rodriguez, RPs, Brewers: Manager Ron Roenicke said on Thursday that Milwaukee will use a closer-by-committee system. Axford will most likely receive the most save chances in the immediate future.
Albert Pujols, 1B, Angels: Day-to-day, sore elbow. He was hit with a pitch on Tuesday and did not play Wednesday. X-rays came back negative, so he could return on Friday night.
David Freese, 3B, Cardinals: Day-to-day, cramping in calf. He left Thursday's game early with his injury, but this does not appear to be anything major.
J.J. Hardy, SS, Orioles: Day-to-day, bruised rib cage. He was hit by a pitch on Thursday, but X-rays came back negative and he expects to play this weekend.
Kevin Youkilis, 3B, White Sox: Day-to-day, sprained left ankle. He injured himself on Wednesday, but since the sprain isn't severe, Youkilis expects to be in the starting lineup on Friday.
Pablo Sandoval, 3B, Giants: Day-to-day, strained left hamstring. He hurt himself on Tuesday stretching for a ball at first base and could wind up on the DL. The team is waiting until Friday to make a decision on his playing status.
Lance Berkman, 1B, Cardinals: Day-to-day, bruised right knee. He was hit by a pitch on his surgically-repaired knee and has not started since. He can be used as a pinch hitter though.
Yunel Escobar, SS, Blue Jays: Day-to-day, tightness in back. He has not played since Tuesday, but is expected to return to the field on Friday.
Trevor Plouffe, 3B, Twins: Day-to-day, bruised right thumb. He injured himself on July 20 and hasn't played since. Plouffe expects to return to the lineup on Friday.
J.P. Arencibia, C, Blue Jays: 15-day DL, fractured right hand. He injured himself when he was hit with a foul tip on Wednesday. Backup Jeff Mathis will receive most of the starts behind the plate until Arencibia returns.
Nick Swisher, OF, Yankees: Day-to-day, strained left hip flexor. He has not played since July 20, but expects to return to the field on Friday.
A.J. Pierzynski, C, White Sox: Day-to-day, strained right oblique. He has not played since Monday, but he should return to action this weekend.
Cameron Maybin, OF, Padres: Day-to-day, sore wrist. He hasn't started since July 17, but Maybin has been used as a pinch hitter and pinch runner during his absence from the starting lineup. He's expected to start on Friday.
Placido Polanco, 3B, Phillies: 15-day DL, back inflammation. The move was made retroactive to July 23, and Ty Wigginton will continue to play third base in Polanco's absence.
Alexi Amarista, 2B, Padres: Day-to-day, jammed left thumb. He injured himself on a headfirst slide Monday and has not started since. However, he did enter Wednesday's game as a defensive replacement, so he should be starting soon.
Erick Aybar, SS, Angels: Day-to-day, hairline fracture in right foot. He hurt himself on July 21 fouling a ball of his foot and could wind up on the DL. The good news is that Aybar's walking boot was removed. Maicer Izturis is replacing Aybar at shortstop.
Matt Garza, SP, Cubs: Day-to-day, cramps in right triceps/paternity leave. He left Saturday's game after three innings because of the triceps injury, and with the impending birth of his child, he will not pitch until Monday at the earliest.
