Fantasy notes for September 7
Click through for information on specific matchups, injuries and weather for the day's games.
Starting pitcher rankings for September 7
| Name | |||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  | Felix Hernandez | R | OAK | 10 | 13-6 | 2.51 | 1.04 | 2-1 | 1.88 | 1.04 |
| 2 |  | Stephen Strasburg | R | MIA | 10 | 15-6 | 2.94 | 1.12 | 1-1 | 3.18 | 1.06 |
| 3 |  | Cliff Lee | L | COL | 8 | 4-7 | 3.52 | 1.15 | 2-0 | 1.91 | 0.99 |
| 4 |  | Kyle Lohse | R | MIL | 6 | 14-2 | 2.81 | 1.10 | 2-0 | 3.33 | 0.99 |
| 5 |  | Yovani Gallardo | R | @STL | 6 | 14-8 | 3.79 | 1.32 | 3-0 | 3.86 | 1.29 |
| 6 |  | Jonathon Niese | L | ATL | 6 | 10-8 | 3.55 | 1.17 | 1-2 | 2.66 | 1.13 |
| 7 |  | Max Scherzer | R | @LAA | 5 | 15-6 | 3.93 | 1.32 | 3-0 | 0.82 | 0.82 |
| 8 |  | Tim Lincecum | R | LAD | 7 | 8-14 | 5.21 | 1.46 | 2-1 | 3.18 | 1.18 |
| 9 |  | Lucas Harrell | R | @CIN | 6 | 10-9 | 3.81 | 1.32 | 0-1 | 3.79 | 1.21 |
| 10 |  | A.J. Griffin | R | @SEA | 10 | 4-0 | 2.26 | 0.89 | 1-0 | 1.29 | 0.43 |
| 11 |  | Josh Beckett | R | @SF | 6 | 6-12 | 5.03 | 1.33 | 1-2 | 3.93 | 1.47 |
| 12 |  | Phil Hughes | R | @BAL | 4 | 13-12 | 4.18 | 1.27 | 2-2 | 2.77 | 1.08 |
| 13 |  | A.J. Burnett | R | CHC | 3 | 15-5 | 3.63 | 1.24 | 1-1 | 5.33 | 1.54 |
| 14 |  | Homer Bailey | R | HOU | 5 | 10-9 | 4.09 | 1.35 | 0-2 | 4.15 | 1.19 |
| 15 |  | Paul Maholm | L | @NYM | 4 | 11-9 | 3.79 | 1.22 | 0-2 | 7.47 | 1.66 |
| 16 |  | Jeremy Hellickson | R | TEX | 5 | 8-10 | 3.41 | 1.27 | 1-2 | 3.50 | 1.00 |
| 17 |  | Tyler Skaggs | L | @SD | 9 | 1-1 | 2.60 | 1.21 | 1-1 | 2.60 | 1.21 |
| 18 |  | Derek Holland | L | @TB | 5 | 10-6 | 4.79 | 1.21 | 3-0 | 4.21 | 1.09 |
| 19 |  | Andrew Cashner | R | ARI | 7 | 3-3 | 3.44 | 1.28 | -- | -- | -- |
| 20 |  | Wei-Yin Chen | L | NYY | 3 | 12-8 | 3.79 | 1.23 | 1-1 | 4.58 | 1.13 |
| 21 |  | Francisco Liriano | L | KC | 5 | 5-11 | 5.11 | 1.48 | 2-1 | 3.80 | 1.59 |
| 22 |  | Travis Wood | L | @PIT | 5 | 4-11 | 4.64 | 1.24 | 0-3 | 5.11 | 1.18 |
| 23 |  | Ervin Santana | R | DET | 4 | 8-11 | 5.32 | 1.30 | 2-1 | 3.54 | 1.03 |
| 24 |  | Luis Mendoza | R | @CHW | 4 | 7-9 | 4.48 | 1.43 | 1-1 | 5.06 | 1.36 |
| 25 |  | Felix Doubront | L | TOR | 2 | 10-7 | 5.03 | 1.50 | 0-1 | 10.13 | 2.00 |
| 26 |  | Jeanmar Gomez | R | @MIN | 4 | 5-7 | 5.08 | 1.34 | 1-0 | 4.05 | 0.90 |
| 27 |  | Jeff Francis | L | @PHI | 3 | 5-4 | 5.73 | 1.48 | 1-0 | 4.82 | 1.45 |
| 28 |  | Henderson Alvarez | R | @BOS | 1 | 7-12 | 5.04 | 1.50 | 0-2 | 11.37 | 2.37 |
| 29 |  | Jacob Turner | R | @WAS | 2 | 1-3 | 7.33 | 1.46 | 0-2 | 6.55 | 0.91 |
| 30 |  | Liam Hendriks | R | CLE | 1 | 0-7 | 6.11 | 1.64 | 0-2 | 4.08 | 1.42 |
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.
Rankings notes
Stephen Strasburg is 4-2 with a 2.38 ERA against the Miami Marlins in his short career. Although this is not expected to be his last start, a hook after six innings seems likely regardless of how well he's pitching. Still, in that time, he could easily fan 10 batters and earn a victory, a combo he has achieved five times in 2012.
Cliff Lee has actually won two straight games, allowing just one earned run in his past 14 innings. Since the start of July, Lee has an ERA of 2.84 and a typically phenomenal K/BB rate of 10.29. No need to fear starting him against a Colorado Rockies team hitting 60 points worse on the road than at home.
It is true that Yovani Gallardo is only 1-9 with a 7.05 ERA lifetime versus the St. Louis Cardinals. That said, he's 7-2 in the second half of the 2012 season, and his two poor outings versus the Cardinals this year (14 earned runs in 5 2/3 innings) both took place in April. Expect far better results this time around.
Homer Bailey has a 5.85 ERA since July 31, but for his career he's 4-0 with a 1.29 ERA against the Houston Astros. That includes an eight-inning no-decision against the club Monday, in which he struck out nine and allowed just three hits.
Andrew Cashner is back from the disabled list and will make his first start since suffering a lat injury in early July. During his rehab, he had a K/9 rate of 11.95, so streamers should definitely consider the San Diego hurler against Arizona, who have the fourth-most whiffs in the National League.
A.J. Burnett threw a one-hit shutout against the Chicago Cubs on July 31 and is a perfect 6-0 lifetime versus the team, with a 2.78 ERA in those games. Current Wrigley denizens are batting just .179 versus Burnett.
The Texas Rangers have won the last five games that Derek Holland has started, but he does have a lifetime 6.20 ERA when pitching against the Tampa Bay Rays, who have hit .300 against the pitcher as a team this season.
Hitter matchup ratings for September 7
| Overall | ||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| | 3 | 2 | 3 | 10 | | 4 | 5 | 2 | 1 | |
| | 6 | 4 | 5 | 4 | | 9 | 8 | 8 | 6 | |
| | 7 | 4 | 9 | 4 | | 7 | 3 | 7 | 5 | |
| | 10 | 10 | 8 | 4 | | 7 | 5 | 7 | 3 | |
| | 8 | 7 | 8 | 10 | | 1 | 1 | 1 | 7 | |
| | 8 | 6 | 8 | 3 | | 9 | 4 | 10 | 3 | |
| | 5 | 7 | 2 | 7 | | 7 | 2 | 7 | 7 | |
| | 10 | 4 | 10 | 6 | | 4 | 5 | 2 | 6 | |
| | 3 | 1 | 3 | 2 | | 3 | 1 | 4 | 2 | |
| | 6 | 7 | 3 | 7 | | 6 | 7 | 4 | 6 | |
| | 7 | 6 | 7 | 4 | | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2 | |
| | 5 | 1 | 7 | 7 | | 6 | 1 | 7 | 6 | |
| | 6 | 8 | 3 | 5 | | 3 | 6 | 1 | 5 | |
| | 4 | 4 | 3 | 6 | | 10 | 7 | 10 | 8 | |
| | 1 | 2 | 1 | 7 | | 10 | 1 | 10 | 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.
• Rays third baseman Jeff Keppinger is batting .350 (36-103) since August 1. Keppinger faces lefty Rangers lefty Derek Holland Friday night, and he's currently hitting .411 with a .995 OPS against lefties this season. Keppinger is available in 83% of ESPN fantasy leagues and could prove to be a nice addition as the season draws to a close.
• Brian McCann has struggled in his career against pitcher Jonathon Niese, going 1-12 (.083) with five strikeouts.
• Adam Jones has struggled in his career against Phil Hughes going 6-31 (.194 BA) with five strikeouts.
• Yovani Gallardo is 7-2 since the All-Star Break with a 3.88 ERA, but he is 0-2 with a 22.24 ERA versus the Cardinals this season.
• Max Scherzer has been a different pitcher since the All-Star break, sporting a 7-1 record with a 2.76 ERA. In his last five starts, he is 5-0 with a 1.03 ERA.
• Homer Bailey has struggled in 14 home starts this year posting a 3-7 record with a 5.58 ERA. On the road he is 7-2 with a 2.75 ERA. Bailey starts at home against the Astros on Friday.
• Juan Pierre could be a solid start on Friday. He is facing Jeff Francis, who he has 18 hits in 42 at-bats (.429) against in his career.
• Alfonso Soriano is 3 for 19 (.158) with no extra-base hit and 9 strikeouts in his career against A.J. Burnett.
• Matt Kemp is 9 for 39 (.231), including 17 strikeouts, in his career against Tim Lincecum.
• Henderson Alvarez has struggled of late. The Blue Jays starter is 0-5 with a 7.67 ERA in his last six starts.
• Current Indians hitters in their careers are a combined 3 for 17 (.176) with no extra-base hits and three strikeouts against Twins starter Liam Hendriks.
Brandon McCarthy, SP, Athletics: After taking a line drive off his head, McCarthy is remaining in the hospital to undergo further tests and observations in order to ensure there's no serious damage.
Edinson Volquez, SP, Padres: Will have his next start pushed back a few days due to a blister on his throwing hand. He will miss the weekend series versus the Arizona Diamondbacks as a result.
Jose Tabata, OF, Pirates: Day-to-day with a left foot contusion. Alex Presley will get a few extra at-bats while the outfielder heals up.
Aramis Ramirez, 3B, Brewers: Day-to-day with a lower back injury that forced him from Wednesday's game. He may well be able to return this weekend.
Xavier Nady, OF, Giants: Strained his hamstring Wednesday and likely will sit out a few games.
Chad Billingsley, SP, Dodgers: Will try to avoid having to undergo Tommy John surgery, which would cause him to miss all of 2013, by undergoing another round of plasma therapy.
Juan Carlos Oviedo, RP, Marlins: Underwent successful Tommy John surgery and hopes to return to the mound sometime in late 2013.
- AJ Mass is a fantasy football, baseball and college basketball analyst for ESPN.com.
- Author; How Fantasy Sports Explains the World.
