Daily Notes for Friday: Good day to avoid Lilly, Snell, Igawa
It's a good day for pitching matchups, but if you're seeking wins, you might find it particularly distressing to learn that some of Friday's best options go head to head. We've got Roy Halladay-C.C. Sabathia, Jon Garland-James Shields and Aaron Cook-Jake Peavy, so don't get too caught up in chasing that elusive W. Meanwhile, Kei Igawa gets the most unpleasant matchup in his 2008 debut, pitching in Detroit, while the Rangers get another crack at the A's Greg Smith, who struck them out 10 times in their past meeting.
| Time | Visitors | L/R | Record | ERA | WHIP | Home | L/R | Record | ERA | WHIP | |||
| 2:20 p.m. |  | Dan Haren | R | 4-1 | 3.12 | 0.99 | @ |  | Ted Lilly | L | 2-4 | 5.97 | 1.41 |
| 7:05 p.m. |  | Roy Halladay | R | 3-4 | 3.00 | 0.98 | @ |  | C.C. Sabathia | L | 1-5 | 7.51 | 1.77 |
| 7:05 p.m. |  | Kei Igawa | L | 0-0 | 0.00 | 0.00 | @ |  | Kenny Rogers | L | 2-3 | 6.27 | 1.69 |
| 7:05 p.m. |  | Tom Glavine | L | 0-1 | 4.50 | 1.73 | @ |  | Ian Snell | R | 2-2 | 5.09 | 1.65 |
| 7:10 p.m. |  | Matt Belisle | R | 1-2 | 6.91 | 1.88 | @ |  | Mike Pelfrey | R | 2-2 | 5.27 | 1.90 |
| 7:10 p.m. |  | Jon Garland | R | 4-3 | 5.08 | 1.51 | @ |  | James Shields | R | 3-2 | 3.80 | 1.36 |
| 7:35 p.m. |  | Ricky Nolasco | R | 1-3 | 6.10 | 1.52 | @ |  | Tim Redding | R | 4-2 | 3.20 | 1.14 |
| 8:05 p.m. |  | Todd Wellemeyer | R | 3-1 | 4.07 | 1.21 | @ |  | Manny Parra | L | 1-2 | 5.86 | 1.99 |
| 8:05 p.m. |  | Greg Smith | L | 2-1 | 2.54 | 1.03 | @ |  | Scott Feldman | R | 0-1 | 5.40 | 1.47 |
| 8:10 p.m. |  | Steve Trachsel | R | 1-4 | 7.43 | 1.95 | @ |  | Gil Meche | R | 2-4 | 5.98 | 1.52 |
| 8:10 p.m. |  | Jon Lester | L | 2-2 | 3.94 | 1.49 | @ |  | Boof Bonser | R | 2-4 | 4.29 | 1.24 |
| 10:05 p.m. |  | Aaron Cook | R | 5-1 | 2.40 | 1.15 | @ |  | Jake Peavy | R | 4-1 | 2.22 | 1.03 |
| 10:10 p.m. |  | Jose Contreras | R | 2-3 | 4.08 | 1.24 | @ |  | Carlos Silva | R | 3-1 | 4.20 | 1.33 |
| 10:15 p.m. |  | Cole Hamels | L | 3-3 | 3.10 | 1.07 | @ |  | Patrick Misch | L | 0-0 | 5.40 | 1.30 |
| 10:40 p.m. |  | Brian Moehler | R | 0-0 | 7.04 | 1.83 | @ |  | Derek Lowe | R | 2-2 | 3.66 | 1.37 |
All times are ET.
Out
Kevin Cameron, RP, Padres (elbow)
David Eckstein, SS, Blue Jays (hip)
Chone Figgins, 3B, Angels (hamstring)
Orlando Hudson, 2B, Diamondbacks (hamstring)
John McDonald, SS, Blue Jays (ankle)
Paul Lo Duca, C, Nationals (hand)
Johnny Estrada, C, Nationals (elbow)
Day-to-day
Chris Denorfia, OF, A's (back)
Ray Durham, 2B, Giants (hamstring)
Rafael Furcal, SS, Dodgers (back)
Conor Jackson, 1B, Diamondbacks (head)
Mike Jacobs, 1B, Marlins (quadriceps)
Angel Pagan, OF, Mets (shoulder)
Brandon Phillips, 2B, Reds (calf)
Nick Punto, 2B/3B/SS, Twins (hamstring)
Richie Sexson, 1B, Mariners (personal)
Michael Young, SS, Rangers (hip)
Pat Neshek, RP, Twins (elbow)
Hitters: Young Diamondbacks sluggers Conor Jackson and Justin Upton tear up left-handed pitching, both with an OPS around 1.000 against that side, and should continue their hot hitting against Ted Lilly. … Don't get roped into a matchups play of David Dellucci against Roy Halladay; Dellucci is 0-for-8 with three K's lifetime against the right-hander. … Searing-hot Nate McLouth shouldn't be at all a worry against a left-handed pitcher like the Braves' Tom Glavine. He's a .314 hitter with a .926 OPS against southpaws and 3-for-8 lifetime against Glavine. … To say Brian McCann owns the Pirates' Ian Snell might be an understatement. He's 7-for-12 with three homers and seven RBIs lifetime against the right-hander. Also, Yunel Escobar is 3-for-3 with a triple in his career against Snell. … Not that you couldn't make the case that everyone hits the Reds' Matt Belisle, but among the less obvious Mets choices, Carlos Delgado should make a fine play. He's 4-for-7 lifetime against Belisle, and generally brings his strongest performances against the league's weaker right-handers. … Left-handed hitters tend to tee off against the Mets' Mike Pelfrey -- he allows a .341 batting average and .939 OPS to them for his career -- which bodes remarkably well for Adam Dunn, Ken Griffey Jr. and Joey Votto. … Jeremy Hermida is 3-for-5 with two doubles and three RBIs lifetime against Tim Redding, and he's already 3-for-10 with two doubles in two career games in Washington's Nationals Park. … Not that you should ever consider sitting him, but the resurgent David Ortiz is 5-for-6 with a double and two home runs lifetime against the Twins' Boof Bonser. … Good rule of thumb with the Rockies battling the Padres' Jake Peavy: If you'd use them most days, keep 'em active for this one, too. But don't get more creative than that. … Andre Ethier is a .366 BA/1.023 OPS hitter against right-handers this season, and is 3-for-3 with a double lifetime against the Astros' Brian Moehler. … Jimmy Rollins (ankle) is expected to rejoin the Phillies on Friday, and could be activated in time for their game. Assuming he gets the go-ahead to play, he's well worth putting back into your lineup right away.
Pitchers: Lilly did manage a solid outing against the Diamondbacks in a loss in Arizona last Aug. 25 -- 6 IP, 4 H, 2 ER -- but this is a much-improved D-backs lineup, particularly against a left-hander. He's not pitching close enough to his full potential to be a strong bet facing a poor matchup. … Halladay versus Sabathia is a marquee pitching matchup, and it's really a shame one of them has to lose -- or at least get a no-decision. I don't play for wins alone, especially not in battles like these, and expect enough ERA/WHIP/K's help to warrant using both. … I'll offer a big, fat "no, thank you" to Kei Igawa, who's facing a loaded Tigers lineup averaging six runs per game since April 14. Sure, he had a 3.86 ERA and 1.13 WHIP in seven starts for Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre, but he has yet to prove anything at the big league level. … With Snell off to a sluggish start and the Braves as a team boasting lifetime .333 BA/.946 OPS rates against him, this is probably a better time to avoid him, if your roster affords you the luxury. … Their names might not be quite at Halladay/Sabathia levels, but the Angels' Garland and Rays' Shields should probably lock up in a similar pitchers' duel. Garland is 3-0 with a 2.62 ERA and 1.02 WHIP in five career starts in Tampa Bay's Tropicana Field, while Shields is 13-6 with a 3.45 ERA and 1.15 WHIP in 30 career starts in his home ballpark. Again, I don't play for wins, I want good outings first and foremost. … The Brewers are actually one of the league's weaker offenses against right-handers, with a .684 team OPS against that side, and Todd Wellemeyer is off to a respectable enough start to warrant NL-only and deep-mixed consideration. … Manny Parra has failed to last beyond the fifth inning in either of his two starts against the Cardinals this season, mainly because of bloated pitch counts. He's a weak option in start No. 3 against them. … The White Sox have historically battered around Carlos Silva; as a team, they've batted .374 with 20 homers and a 1.070 OPS lifetime against him. Those are MVP-caliber numbers, so the safe play is to steer clear. … Derek Lowe has a 2.23 ERA and 1.02 WHIP in six career starts against the Astros.
Hitters: Rod Barajas is one of the few to hit Sabathia well; he's 6-for-14 with three home runs lifetime against the left-hander. … Jose Bautista has been hitting a bit better the first week-plus of May, and his OPS against left-handers for the season is higher than 1.000. He's 2-for-5 with a double lifetime against Glavine. … Paul Bako has been getting a healthy share of at-bats against right-handers, whom he hits for a .352 batting average and 1.019 OPS. Check the early lineup, but if you're scouting out a cheap No. 2 catcher, he's your man against Mike Pelfrey. … It'd be shocking if the Rays don't exploit Eric Hinske's favorable track record against Garland; he's 12-for-32 with two homers lifetime against the right-hander. … Both Ryan Ludwick and Yadier Molina are worth plugging into your lineup against Parra. Ludwick is a .273/1.006 hitter against left-handers this season and 3-for-8 with a home run lifetime against Parra, while Molina is a .345/.976 hitter against lefties this year and 2-for-6 lifetime against Parra. … Jack Cust is a painfully streaky baseball player and, voila, he's 10-for-20 with three homers in the month of May -- a hot streak! He took the Rangers' Scott Feldman deep on May 4 and this time battles the right-hander in Texas; good things should be expected. … Mark Grudzielanek is 16-for-41 with six doubles lifetime against the Orioles' Steve Trachsel. … He's barely even fantasy-worthy these days, but Jim Edmonds is worth the one-day plug-in, at least against the Rockies' Aaron Cook. He's 7-for-13 with two homers lifetime against the right-hander. … This might be one of Juan Uribe's last opportunities to keep his grasp on the starting second base role for the White Sox. He's 19-for-37 with five homers and 10 RBIs lifetime against Silva, but using him means having to check the early lineup to ensure he's actually in there first. … Rich Aurilia is one of the few Giants who can get to the Phillies' Cole Hamels; he's 5-for-11 with three doubles and a homer against the left-hander. … Consider Jayson Werth a must-start against every left-hander he faces, and he'll see one on Friday (the Giants' Patrick Misch). He's a .342/1.169 hitter against southpaws this season, .291/.900 for his career, and has started all 12 games the Phillies have played against a left-hander.
Pitchers: Take a look at Kenny Rogers in AL-only leagues, considering the Yankees boast a team OPS more than 100 points lower against left-handers than against right-handers. He already beat them with a quality-start effort in New York on April 29 (6 IP, 6 H, 2 ER), and the Yankees' two best career hitters against him, Jorge Posada and Alex Rodriguez, are on the disabled list. … Glavine is 3-0 with a 2.40 ERA and 1.53 WHIP in his past five starts against the Pirates, including a five-inning, seven-hit, two-run (one earned) outing on March 31. He doesn't strike out enough hitters to make a noticeable impact in shallow mixed leagues, but NL-only owners should consider him. … A's rookie lefty Smith tossed six innings of three-hit, one-run, 10-K baseball against the Rangers on May 4, and in six starts thus far, he has five quality starts. That's a hot streak I'll ride for as long as it lasts. … Gil Meche has a 2.95 ERA and 1.30 WHIP in 15 career starts against the Orioles, and those rates were 1.69 and 1.13 in three starts against them in 2007. The Orioles' offense, incidentally, has scored 21 runs total in its past eight contests. … Jon Lester has been lights-out in his past two starts, allowing one run on five hits in 14 innings total. He now battles the Twins, a team that boasts the game's worst team OPS against left-handers (.592). That's a fantastic matchup for him. … He stands little chance of a win, not battling Padres ace Jake Peavy, but Aaron Cook's matchup is a favorable one, at least from an ERA/WHIP perspective. The Padres have a poor offense, and Cook is 3-1 with a 1.54 ERA and 1.17 WHIP in five career starts in San Diego's Petco Park. … With the Mariners having their share of trouble with right-handers, and Jose Contreras off to a hot start, consider this a matchup to exploit. As a team, the Mariners boast .261/.677 lifetime rates against the right-hander.
"May flowers" have indeed arrived, as there are few weather concerns at all. Four Friday games are weatherproof: Angels-Rays, Cardinals-Brewers, Red Sox-Twins and White Sox-Mariners. Beyond that, the only real concerns: It'll be a bit cold, think 50 degrees or below, in those Great Lakes cities (Chicago, Cleveland and Detroit), and there's a 60 percent chance of rain in New York, threatening the Reds-Mets game. Rain is expected in Washington, D.C., during the day, but should subside by evening.
Tristan H. Cockcroft covers fantasy sports for ESPN.com. You can e-mail him here.
