Daily Notes for Wednesday: Former A's teammates face off
Maybe it's just me, but I like matchups like the game in Phoenix on Wednesday. Former No. 1 and No. 2 starters on the same team pitted against each other after one was shipped off so they could afford to re-sign the other. Dan Haren versus Joe Blanton will be the contest I make sure to catch.
Chase Headley also gets his first chance to really strut his stuff. He's expected to be recalled on Tuesday, but faces lefthander Andy Pettitte. Headley is hitting .258 with a .709 OPS versus lefties in Triple-A this season. Compare that to his .321 average and 1.017 OPS versus righties down in the minors. Darrell Rasner and his right arm make a much better opponent for Headley to make his mark.
| Time | Visitors | L/R | Record | ERA | WHIP | Home | L/R | Record | ERA | WHIP | |||
| 1:05 p.m. | | Justin Masterson | R | 3-1 | 2.90 | 1.06 | @ | | Kyle Kendrick | R | 6-2 | 4.54 | 1.47 |
| 3:45 p.m. | | Armando Galarraga | R | 6-2 | 3.31 | 1.03 | @ | | Barry Zito | L | 2-10 | 5.88 | 1.86 |
| 7:05 p.m. | | Brian Moehler | R | 3-3 | 4.76 | 1.39 | @ | | Jeremy Guthrie | R | 3-7 | 3.71 | 1.27 |
| 7:05 p.m. | | Jake Peavy | R | 5-3 | 2.64 | 1.10 | @ | | Darrell Rasner | R | 3-4 | 3.64 | 1.21 |
| 7:10 p.m. | | Derek Lowe | R | 4-6 | 4.03 | 1.30 | @ | | Bronson Arroyo | R | 4-5 | 5.31 | 1.61 |
| 7:10 p.m. | | Carlos Zambrano | R | 8-2 | 2.98 | 1.30 | @ | | Andy Sonnanstine | R | 7-3 | 4.89 | 1.39 |
| 8:05 p.m. | | Shaun Marcum | R | 5-3 | 2.43 | 0.99 | @ | | Ben Sheets | R | 7-1 | 2.72 | 1.07 |
| 8:05 p.m. | | Jo-Jo Reyes | L | 3-4 | 4.42 | 1.34 | @ | | Eric Hurley | R | 0-0 | 6.00 | 1.00 |
| 8:10 p.m. | | Jason Bergmann | R | 1-4 | 5.48 | 1.43 | @ | | Kevin Slowey | R | 3-6 | 4.70 | 1.14 |
| 8:11 p.m. | | Tom Gorzelanny | L | 5-5 | 6.65 | 1.77 | @ | | Mark Buehrle | L | 3-6 | 4.47 | 1.41 |
| 8:15 p.m. | | Brian Bannister | R | 5-6 | 5.00 | 1.30 | @ | | Joel Pineiro | R | 2-3 | 4.41 | 1.31 |
| 9:05 p.m. | | Aaron Laffey | L | 4-3 | 2.83 | 1.15 | @ | | Jeff Francis | L | 2-6 | 5.49 | 1.52 |
| 9:40 p.m. | | Joe Blanton | R | 3-9 | 4.23 | 1.36 | @ | | Dan Haren | R | 6-4 | 3.41 | 1.03 |
| 10:05 p.m. | | Oliver Perez | L | 5-4 | 4.98 | 1.52 | @ | | Jon Garland | R | 6-4 | 4.13 | 1.46 |
| 10:10 p.m. | | Ryan Tucker | R | 1-1 | 5.40 | 1.70 | @ | | R.A. Dickey | R | 1-2 | 4.71 | 1.40 |
Out
Rafael Soriano, RP, Braves (elbow)
Day-to-day
Brian Giles, OF, Padres (shoulder)
Scott Hairston, OF, Padres (elbow)
J.J. Hardy, SS, Brewers (shoulder)
Paul Konerko, 1B, White Sox (ribs)
Paul McAnulty, OF, Padres (back)
Yadier Molina, C, Cardinals (concussion)
Melvin Mora, 3B, Orioles (knee)
Xavier Nady, OF, Pirates (shoulder)
Carlos Quentin, OF, White Sox (thumb)
Hitters: Carl Crawford needs to be activated in all leagues. His suspension will be served out on Tuesday and he should be back in the lineup on Wednesday. ... With different interleague series on the docket now, we have some different teams losing and gaining a DH. Oddly, the regular DHs for the Red Sox (David Ortiz), Tigers (Gary Sheffield), Indians (Travis Hafner) and A's (Frank Thomas) are all on the DL anyway, so no one of shallow, mixed league significance is losing at-bats. The Royals may choose to play Miguel Olivo over John Buck at catcher to capitalize on Olivo's hot bat. Finally, Matt Stairs will find his way into the lineup at the expense of Brad Wilkerson or Kevin Mench. Stairs has a ridiculous 6-for-14 (.429) mark with four home runs versus Ben Sheets. ... Keep a close eye on Melvin Mora's status, as he loves to face Brian Moehler (6-for-6 lifetime). ... Be choosy with your Tampa Bay Rays, as only Cliff Floyd, Gabe Gross and Dioner Navarro have ever faced Carlos Zambrano. Big Z won't be able to use his bat to support himself this time, but he can certainly limit the abilities of some hitters (mainly righties). ... Don't be too hasty with Magglio Ordonez or Brandon Inge versus Barry Zito. Inge is 3-for-24 (.125) and Ordonez is 3-for-23 (.130) versus Zito. ... The Rockies feast on lefties, so make sure to have regulars like Matt Holliday and Garrett Atkins in the lineup, but also go deeper to get Chris Iannetta and Ryan Spilborghs in your lineup as well. All four players I've mentioned have an OPS over 1.000 versus lefties and get to tee off on Aaron Laffey.

Hitters: For bonus at-bats, the Astros, Padres, Cubs, Braves, Nationals, Pirates, Mets and Marlins will be able to deploy a DH. Look for Houston to shift Lance Berkman into the DH role, giving Darin Erstad some bonus plate appearances. Tony Clark will continue to get regular at-bats for the Padres and is a decent deep-league option. Micah Hoffpauir will get extra at-bats for the Cubs at first base with Derrek Lee shifting into the DH role, but he should be someone to watch for scouting purposes only. Greg Norton should DH for the Braves against a righty. Dmitri Young and Aaron Boone should both get into the lineup thanks to the DH spot for the Nationals. The Pirates likely will shift things around to make sure Doug Mientkiewicz gets some at-bats against an old American League foe in Mark Buehrle. Newly arrived Trot Nixon may be the DH for the Mets, as he has 20 at-bats against Jon Garland in his career in the AL. Wes Helms might be a deep-league option for the Marlins; he has no at-bats versus R.A. Dickey but he has a home run in two at-bats versus Tim Wakefield, one of the only knuckleballers around. ... Sticking with the Dickey-Wakefield comparison, as few (if any) Marlins have faced Dickey, Jorge Cantu is a great corner option for your lineup against Dickey. He is 7-for-21 (.333) with four walks against Wakefield's knuckleball. ... Now starting regularly, Ben Francisco has a .346 average against lefties. He'll catch Jeff Francis on Wednesday. ... Not that Scott Hairston or Paul McAnulty were going to block Chase Headley from at-bats now that he is being called up, but with their injuries and a DH spot to fill all but guarantees Headley will get a start in this game.
Pitchers: It'll still be closer by committee in Atlanta with Rafael Soriano out. If you are desperate for those saves, Manny Acosta and Blaine Boyer are probably the best bets to have active in your lineup. ... If you are going to try out a young righthander with a decent ceiling as a spot start, now is the time to roll out Ryan Tucker. The Marlins rookie has been mowing down batters in Double-A before his callup this season (1.41 ERA, 62 K's in 70 IP). The matchup with Seattle is particularly exciting because the Mariners still rank dead-last in OPS versus righties (.666). ... This might be your last chance to get a spot start out of Justin Masterson (as Daisuke Matsuzaka is healing up), but the rookie righty has been brilliant. His release point disguises the ball well and his slider and sinker cause trouble all around. The Phillies will be his toughest test yet, but after tossing a gem at Great American Ball Park in his last outing, I have no concerns. ... Bronson Arroyo looked positively brilliant in his most recent outing, and there were signs of a turnaround before he finally clicked. Look for another above-average outing against the Dodgers, who are currently third-last in OPS versus righties (.678). ... Jo-Jo Reyes was allowed to throw 109 pitches in his most recent outing, a sure sign that talk of limiting his pitch counts aren't panning out. The Rangers may be the best hitting club versus right-handers (.835 OPS), but plummet to 14th in the league versus lefties (.760). I like Reyes to handle the Texas lineup for at least a quality start and half-dozen strikeouts. ... A matchup with the White Sox might appear like something to exploit with Tom Gorzelanny, as the AL Chicago team rates near the bottom of the league in hitting against lefties. Don't be so sure though, as the Nationals rate even lower against lefties and still gave Gorzelanny a hard time in his last outing. ... It was nice to see Kevin Slowey bounce back from his worst start of the season, but the Washington Nationals aren't going to roll over for him here. The Nats have an .853 OPS over the previous seven days and may hand Slowey a tough outing. ... If you need a win, look no further than Armando Galarraga. I mean, that is what the Tigers do, right? His matchup with San Francisco actually looks good, though, as the Giants are much tougher on lefties. ... Darrell Rasner has allowed nine, nine and eight hits in his previous three outings. Up against Jake Peavy, there isn't much hope for a win either, so don't gamble on Rasner.
The highest chance of precipitation is 30 percent in New York and Arlington, where isolated thunderstorms have a slight chance of affecting the Padres-Yankees and Braves-Rangers games. ... The chance of any rain is 20 percent or lower in Cincinnati, Baltimore, Denver, Chicago and Philadelphia. ... Weather-proof games will be played in Tampa Bay (Cubs-Rays), Milwaukee (Blue Jays-Brewers), Minnesota (Nationals-Twins), Arizona (A's-Diamondbacks) and Seattle (Marlins-Mariners).
Sean Allen is a fantasy baseball and hockey analyst for ESPN.com. You can e-mail him here.


