ESPN

Offenses are going to take a serious backseat Tuesday, as more than half of the day's scheduled pitchers have sub-4.00 ERAs, and eight of them even have ERAs below 3.00. One such pitcher, the Chicago Cubs' Carlos Zambrano, is expected to make his return from the disabled list and face the Washington Nationals. Zambrano sounds motivated to come back strong, with the Chicago Tribune reporting that he admitted to being "lazy" in working on his abdominal muscles. A focused Zambrano for the stretch run is just what Cubs fans and fantasy owners need. Check to see where he lands on Tuesday's rankings:

For starters

Selected notes: Judging by OPS, the White Sox have the second-best offense in the majors against left-handers, so it's tempting to think Jon Lester might have a rough go. But it's tough to overstate how dominating Lester has been the past couple months: since May 31, he has posted a 2.13 ERA in 101 2/3 innings, striking out an equally ridiculous 10.58 batters per nine innings. Pitching that well in the AL East is quite the feat; despite the tough matchup, it's hard to expect anything less than continued greatness. … After allowing three home runs to the Phillies in his last start, Dan Haren has now allowed nine home runs in his past six starts, a red flag when considering most NL teams don't hit for a ton of power. As a result, he has allowed five runs in three of his past four starts. Fortunately, a start against the Giants should clean that up. Haren has a career 2.89 ERA in 13 starts against the Giants, and limited them to one run in six innings in a start earlier in the season. … Zambrano tossed five shutout innings in a Single-A rehab start, with a pitch count of about 75 pitches. That seems to set up Zambrano to contribute immediately upon his return, and since he'll be going up against the likes of Garrett Mock, there's no doubt you have to throw him out there if for no other reason than he has a good chance at a win. Fortunately, the other shoe has dropped for the Nationals' offense, as their team-wide hot streak has, for the most part, come to an end (they're hitting only .239 in the past week). Zambrano should be decent, but probably not great, in his return. … Considering Brett Anderson's strikeout potential -- he has struck out at least five batters in his past seven starts -- it's surprising he's not owned in more than 7.7 percent of ESPN leagues. Aside from allowing seven runs to the White Sox, one of the best offenses against left-handers, Anderson has pitched extremely well despite a tough schedule. Now that he draws the Mariners on the schedule, just the second "mediocre" offense he has been lucky enough to face in the past two months, Anderson makes for a great pickup. … Thanks to severe problems with his command, Clayton Kershaw hasn't made it past the fifth inning in three of his past four starts, walking a combined 14 batters in those three starts. His stuff is as good as ever, with 20 Ks in those 12 innings, but free passes like that could kill you in Coors Field, where the Rockies slug .488. Not to mention, Colorado also has been solid against left-handed pitching (.802 OPS, tied for sixth-best in the majors). Walking that many batters requires Kershaw's stuff to be downright filthy to get out of all the jams he'll get himself into, and while that's certainly a possibility with him, the downside is too great to gamble on him.

Now batting

Hitters' count

• Adam LaRoche, 1B, Braves: Small sample size applies, but in 59 at-bats against lefty hitters, Mat Latos has allowed a .288 AVG/.389 OBP/.508 SLG, including four home runs allowed. LaRoche, of course, is in the midst of a scorching-hot run -- he has reached base in 11 consecutive games, hitting .548 with six home runs in those games -- so the homer-prone Latos is likely to come under fire.
• Nick Swisher, 1B/OF, Yankees: Amazingly, until he went 0-for-4 Sunday, Swisher had reached base in 31 consecutive starts dating back to July 10. He also had an eight-game hitting streak snapped. But he's a good bet to start one anew versus Kevin Millwood, who he is 10-for-26 (.385) lifetime against Swisher, with three home runs and two doubles to boot.
• Adam Lind, OF, Blue Jays: While Lind's .286 average in 21 at-bats against James Shields might not be eye-popping, but the fact that he has made every hit count surely is. All six of his hits have gone for extra bases, three of them leaving the park, and he's 4-for-11 with two doubles and two dingers against Shields this season.
• Pat Burrell, OF, Rays: In his past 10 games, Burrell is batting .370 with three home runs and two doubles, so it definitely looks like his season-long slump is coming to an end. Right-handers are hitting .300 against his opponent Tuesday, Brett Cecil, and outside of this season, Burrell has mashed lefties (.929 career OPS), so another big game should be in store.
• Gordon Beckham, 3B/SS, White Sox: In his short career, Beckham has been exceptional against left-handed pitching, hitting .368 in 68 at-bats. Thirteen of his 25 hits are of the extra-base variety, and his strikeout-to-walk ratio is also much better against lefties. He might be facing tough lefty Jon Lester, but he still looks like a good play.
• Felipe Lopez, 2B, Diamondbacks: Lopez has gone 4-for-8 with a double and a home run against Bronson Arroyo this season, increasing his average to against Arroyo to .400 in 25 career at-bats. With three walks and four extra-base hits, it seems Lopez has his number.

Pitchers' count

• Jorge Posada, C, Yankees: Posada has faced Kevin Millwood only 14 times, but in half of those plate appearances, he was set down on strikes. Even Posada's success has been only moderate, with two singles and two walks to his name, hitting just .167 overall.
• Marco Scutaro, 2B/3B/SS, Blue Jays: With a mediocre .212 average in 33 career at-bats against James Shields, including only one extra-base hit, chances are Scutaro will be mostly empty-handed after they square off Tuesday.
• Victor Martinez, C/1B, Indians: Unfortunately for Martinez, Jose Contreras has consistently owned him, holding him to a .161 average in 31 at-bats. Only one of Martinez's five hits has gone for extra bases, so even his slugging percentage is below .200.
• Brandon Phillips, 2B, Reds: It's shocking how, in 16 at-bats versus Braden Looper, Phillips has netted only one hit, a single. He's hitless in five at-bats this season -- although he does have a walk and a steal -- so things don't seem to be getting much better,either.
• Kelly Shoppach, C, Indians: Shoppach is hitting below the Mendoza Line versus right-handed pitching, currently at a .185 mark through 168 at-bats. It should go without saying then that Zack Greinke has a large advantage in this matchup, and Shoppach's 0-for-8 mark against Greinke, with four strikeouts to boot, attests to it.
• Albert Pujols, 1B, Cardinals: Might we have found Big Al's kryptonite? Pujols is 0-for-7 against Wandy Rodriguez this year, lowering his lifetime average against Rodriguez to .120 in 25 at-bats. Maybe the most surprising thing is that Pujols has zero extra-base hits, although with six walks, he's still being pitched to carefully. This is probably where Pujols goes 4-for-4 just to spite us.
• Carlos Lee, OF, Astros: Righties have just a .226 average and .566 OPS versus Adam Wainwright, and Lee has been just another victim, going 1-for-17 in his career, including 0-for-4 this season.
• Chone Figgins, 3B, Angels: Figgins has been just about useless versus Jarrod Washburn, going 4-for-32 (.125) in his career, with more than twice as many strikeouts (nine) as hits. He hasn't stolen any bases to make up for it -- hard to steal bases when you rarely reach base -- so keep him inactive when they meet again.

If you're hardcore

• Matt Diaz, OF, Braves: Diaz is so hot that he is eschewing a simple platoon role; in his past nine games, five of which were against a right-handed starter, Diaz has hit .482. Toss in six extra-base hits and three home runs, and Diaz is also displaying surprising power, making him an ideal short-term play in all leagues.
• Lyle Overbay, 1B, Blue Jays: Not only is Overbay 9-for-30 (.300) versus James Shields, he also has hit for power, with two doubles and three homers, including one earlier in the season. He's 5-for-11 with two doubles in his past three games, and hitting .346 on the month, so he deserves consideration.
• Ryan Spilborghs, OF, Rockies: He has gone 3-for-6 with two homers and two walks versus Clayton Kershaw, and with Carlos Gonzalez looking unlikely to play Tuesday, there's a good chance he could start and garner another opportunity to catch lightning in a bottle.
• Mark Ellis, 2B, Athletics: Since July 26, Ellis is 35-for-94 (.372) with 11 doubles, three home runs and two stolen bases, and he has hit much better away from home this season, batting .321 away from the Oakland Coliseum.
• Mike Jacobs, 1B, Royals: Quiet for most of the summer, Jacobs heated up a bit in August, hitting .340 in 47 at-bats. His usual power hasn't been there, but maybe a matchup with Justin Masterson, who tends to struggle against left-handed hitters, can change that.

Triage

Injury list: Out

• Johan Santana, SP, Mets (elbow)

Injury list: Day-to-day

• Garret Anderson, OF, Braves (back): He's targeting a Tuesday return but said there's a chance he might not return until Wednesday.
• Kyle Blanks, 1B/OF, Padres (heel)
• Ryan Church, OF, Braves (back): Like Anderson, the Braves hope he can return Tuesday, but his return sounds much more questionable than his teammate's.
• Joe Crede, 3B, Twins (ankle)
• Stephen Drew, SS, Diamondbacks (personal): Drew returned to Phoenix to attend a family emergency and might miss the next couple games.
• Elijah Dukes, OF, Nationals (thumb)
• Edwin Encarnacion, 3B, Blue Jays (knee)
• Carlos Gonzalez, OF, Rockies (hand; doubtful): Gonzalez sliced open his left hand with a steak knife Saturday and could miss the entire week.
• Adam Jones, OF, Orioles (back): Jones' injury sounds serious enough to keep him out a couple games.
• Nick Johnson, 1B, Marlins (hamstring): It's looking more likely that Johnson will end up on the disabled list. Consider him doubtful for Tuesday.
• Justin Morneau, 1B, Twins (illness): As long as Morneau doesn't come down with dizziness again, he's expected to return Monday.
• Martin Prado, 1B/2B/3B, Braves (headaches)
• Mark Reynolds, 3B, Diamondbacks (flu)
• Freddy Sanchez, 2B, Giants (shoulder)

Weather concerns

• Games in Toronto (Rays-Blue Jays), Milwaukee (Reds-Brewers), Minnesota (Orioles-Twins) and Seattle (A's-Mariners) will all be weatherproof.
• Miami has the typical chance of thunderstorms (30 percent), while in the Midwest, both Kansas City (also 30 percent) and Chicago (isolated storms approximately two hours after game time) have a moderate chance of rain. And in Denver, thunderstorms (40 percent) are expected to persist for most of the day and well into the night.

Adam Madison is a fantasy baseball analyst for ESPN.com.