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For a good part of Thursday, Chris Carpenter had given up a run without giving up a hit.
Well, I'd say the Chris Carpenter comeback is looking pretty good so far, wouldn't you?
While watching Carpenter mow down one Pirate after another Thursday, I started to wonder what Cardinals manager Tony La Russa would do should the pitcher's no-hit bid continue past the seventh inning. I mean, Carpenter hasn't exactly been durable of late, and there's a big picture to think about, so how many pitches would be enough? Carpenter then allowed a single and was lifted for a pinch hit after seven brilliant innings, having allowed one hit, two walks and one unearned run while striking out seven, all in 92 pitches. After he left, his team scored two runs to get him a victory. Wow.
The big picture in fantasy, of course, is how fast everyone can get to their waiver wires to see whether the former Cy Young winner is available. Carpenter began Thursday owned in 86.2 percent of ESPN leagues, down 2.7 percent from Wednesday, which shows me some were using him as merely a spot starter, then cutting him. For most of you, he's not available, but I'm guessing some of his owners are going to be skeptical he can keep up this level of performance -- and health -- and will look to cash him in as a sell-high option. After all, in the past two seasons, he started only four games. If ever there were a time to move a guy, this would appear to be it, after his first win since September 2006 and first one-hit outing in nearly four years.
I don't see that as being necessary, however. Carpenter, soon to be 34, should know by now that lying about his health is a bad move, and he said he felt great this spring. And the statistics bore that out. Carpenter made six starts and boasted a 1.52 ERA and sub-1.00 WHIP in spring ball. He looked fine to me, too. He looked even better Thursday. Still, his being drafted as the No. 51 starting pitcher in the average ESPN.com fantasy league shows at least some apprehension by fantasy owners.
Ultimately, we don't know whether Carpenter's elbow and shoulder, each a major concern since his 15-win season in 2006, will hold up enough for a DL-free season. I'm no doctor, and I'm guessing even actual doctors don't know. Our injury maven, Stephania Bell, wrote in her blog a few days ago that the Cardinals were cautiously optimistic and Carpenter could be in for a big season. I'm with Bell on this matter. Don't sell high on Carpenter, because you might be missing a great comeback. He did it in 2004; he could do it again.
Previous editions: 4/9: Uehara wins debut | 4/8: Morrow struggles
• Not only was Carpenter's performance of great interest to fantasy owners, but look who saved the 2-1 win over the Pirates. It wasn't Jason Motte, who got torched Opening Day and hasn't hurled since. It wasn't Ryan Franklin or Josh Kinney, both supposedly next in line. Chris Perez is still a Memphis Redbird; Bruce Sutter is still retired. No, it was lefty Dennys Reyes, who registered the third save of his storied career and first since 1999. Reyes retired Nate McLouth (lefty), Ryan Doumit (switch-hitter) and Craig Monroe (right-hander, but pinch hitting for lefty Eric Hinske). Will Reyes continue to get saves? I say Motte will get the next shot, but knowing Mike Shanahan ... um, I mean, LaRussa, flip a coin in with this deep, crowded bullpen.
• Rick Porcello and Ricky Romero entered April with differing degrees of hype, and fantasy owners noticed. Porcello was owned in a cautious 6.5 percent of leagues, while Romero was widely ignored at half a percent. Romero, however, looked a lot better Thursday in Toronto, in the first matchup of first-round pitching draft picks each making a major league debut. Romero allowed only a pair of runs, one on a Curtis Granderson home run, while his teammates lit up Porcello in the sixth inning to get him the win. Neither young hurler looks ownable to me at this point in a 10-team mixed league, and I'd still prefer Porcello based on his pedigree, but keep an eye out.
• It was a matchup of high-WHIPsters in Cincinnati, and Bronson Arroyo allowed five runs and still bested Oliver Perez. Look, if you own Perez, you know there will be games like this in which he walks five. He did walk 105 hitters last season, after all. Perez got torched Thursday, allowing eight runs and reminding us why some fantasy owners -- myself included -- want no part of him. I'd be wary of Arroyo for a while as well, as he fights off carpal tunnel syndrome. He wasn't exactly fooling Mets hitters in earning the win.
• The mighty power Rangers finished off a series sweep of the beleaguered Indians, scoring 29 runs in three games. Incredibly, Josh Hamilton did little in the series. Marlon Byrd, owned in less than 1 percent of ESPN standard leagues, homered and knocked in five, while Andruw Jones, hitting cleanup, delivered three hits and scored twice. We all know about the owned Rangers -- Hamilton, Ian Kinsler, Michael Young, Chris Davis -- but there's more here. Byrd could usurp left field from David Murphy, and Jones might have value after all.
• Of course, the Rangers did much of this damage Thursday against Carl Pavano. His ERA is 81.00. I think it will decrease, but don't hold me to that. The last time a pitcher making a team debut allowed nine runs and retired three or fewer hitters was in 1953.
• Fantasy owners don't think of second-tier second basemen Orlando Hudson and Akinori Iwamura as speed burners, but these fellows -- going 19th and 20th, respectively, at second base in average ESPN live drafts -- already have combined for five stolen bases. Hudson, hitting .250 but with three steals, has never swiped more than 10 in a season. Iwamura, hitting .500, has topped out at 12 in his major league career. Hey, buy into this. Many players steal due to a change in team philosophy or personal motivation. They have it in them if they choose to run, so even if they haven't in the past, embrace it. It also could stop today.
• So much for Brandon Inge continuing his pace for 162 home runs. Man, just when you get confidence in someone. OK, Inge still is a reasonable option for 25 or more homers, and he's catcher eligible. With Thursday's 0-for-3, he's hitting .286, which is worrisome after such a great start. All four of his hits are for extra bases.
• Good for the Mariners in splitting a four-gamer in Minnesota. I'm not sure which was more impressive: Jarrod Washburn throwing eight shutout innings or Brandon Morrow walking only one hitter in the ninth inning. Washburn still scares me in fantasy, despite his best outing since 2007. Morrow, though, has big value as a closer. On Tuesday, he walked the final three hitters he faced, and on Thursday, he walked Michael Cuddyer on four pitches. After that, however, he looked good, fanning Justin Morneau and Joe Crede, then getting Jason Kubel to fly out.
• Lineup oddities, at least to me: Was that Blake DeWitt leading off and playing shortstop? Surely Joe Torre realized that wasn't Rafael Furcal out there. Eventually, it was. DeWitt isn't playing much, but if he adds a third infield position to his eligibility, we won't complain. Travis Snider has a homer and two doubles in four games, yet continues to hit ninth, after even Michael Barrett. It won't last long. The RBI chances are coming soon. Joe Crede hit fifth for the Twins, protecting Justin Morneau. After Crede was Delmon Young. Uh-oh -- might we need to worry about Morneau's protection? And finally, it didn't take White Sox manager Ozzie Guillen long to tinker. Dewayne Wise, now 0-for-10, hit eighth -- Alexei Ramirez up to seventh! -- and speedy catcher A.J. Pierzynski went to the No. 2 spot, with Chris Getz leading off. It didn't matter against Kyle Davies.
Nick Swisher, Yankees
A forgotten man in fantasy, but remember, he did hit 35 homers in 2006, and in his four seasons, he's averaged 25 homers a year. Yeah, the .244 career batting average is a drag, but today, he's hitting .667 after his homer and five RBIs against the Orioles. If Swisher hits, the Yankees will find room. Watch out, Hideki Matsui.
Kyle Davies, Royals
Apparently his strong September (4-1, 2.27 ERA) didn't entice standard league fantasy owners, as he's owned in 2.9 percent of ESPN leagues. Davies breezed through the White Sox, allowing three hits in eight innings, and matched his career best with eight strikeouts. Maybe this all is for real. I believe (kinda).
12: Daisuke Matsuzaka permitted only 12 home runs in 2008 and already is a quarter of the way there this season after his tough outing against the Rays, in which Matt Joyce, Evan Longoria and Shawn Riggans took him deep. Matsuzaka already walks too many hitters and often doesn't go deep enough in games, but he must avoid the big hits to have success. Matsuzaka also said he didn't have life on his fastball. It's only one game, but watch his gopher ball progress.
• The Rockies acquired Jason Hammel from Tampa Bay a few days ago and did it with an eye toward Hammel starting for them. It's just a shame it comes at the expense of Franklin Morales, who pitched so well Wednesday. Hammel was added to the major league roster for Friday. Morales will pitch at Triple-A Colorado Springs and should be back in the majors soon.
• Sometimes the transactions that do not happen are newsworthy. The Cubs left catcher Geovany Soto active after an MRI on his shoulder revealed no structural damage, which obviously is good news. Soto might sit this weekend's series against the Brewers, so Koyie Hill owners will be happy, but overall, this injury appears minor.
• Click here for all the latest MLB transactions.
AJ Mass: Absolutely. Greinke was just at the tail end of my preseason Top 20 SP. I think he and Gil Meche are solid, even if the Royals end up sub-500.
-- Full chat transcript
Keith Law: He's better than I thought -- throwing harder this spring with if anything better command. If he pitches like he did the day I saw him, with four average or better pitches and plus command, there's not much more he would need to do.
-- Full chat transcript
Friday's fantasy chat schedule:
Brendan Roberts, 11 a.m. ET
James Quintong, 3 p.m. ET
• While Hanson got off to a huge start, Matt Wieters, the top hitting prospect, had a quiet debut for Triple-A Norfolk, as he went 0-for-3 with a walk and two strikeouts against Durham.
• Brett Wallace was considered for the Cardinals' third-base job early in spring training before giving way to David Freese. But while Tony La Russa figures out how much playing time Freese will get, Wallace got his season off to a great start by hitting two homers and driving in six for Double-A Springfield.
• Speaking of 2008 first-round picks, Gordon Beckham also had a great season debut, as he went 4-for-6 with three runs scored and drove in the game-winning run in the 11th inning for Double-A Birmingham against Chattanooga. Beckham, who was in the mix for the White Sox's starting second-base job in the spring, started at shortstop.
• Ichiro Suzuki went 7-for-10 in an extended spring training game (he led off every half-inning he played) and remains on track to return from his bleeding ulcer Wednesday, the first day he's eligible to be activated off the DL.
• Perennial Indians prospect Adam Miller is slated to throw 35 bullpen pitches Friday in extended spring training. A few weeks ago, it appeared Miller's right middle finger might need surgery, which would sideline him for a year, if not end his career. At least now there's hope.
• Max Scherzer was on the hill for Class A Lake Elsinore, and he didn't disappoint a capacity crowd of more than 8,000 as he faced 20 Visalia hitters, allowing one hit. He did walk four and allow two runs, one earned, and struck out five. Scherzer is scheduled to come off the DL (sore shoulder) and start for Arizona on Tuesday.
• The worry about Rich Harden is injury, never performance. He makes his season debut in Milwaukee. The Brewers hit a lot of home runs, and Harden had a rough spring. Not that opponent Braden Looper is a better option. If you own Harden, you have to use him.
• The Royals have received terrific starting pitching so far. Now get ready for Sidney Ponson. Batter up, Yankees! Mark Teixeira has hit .533 against Ponson, Derek Jeter .377 and Johnny Damon .346. Why is Luke Hochevar in the minors? It doesn't seem fair.
• Hanley Ramirez has more strikeouts (four) than hits (three) when facing John Maine, with only one extra-base hit (a home run) in 16 at-bats.
• Torii Hunter has three home runs and four steals in 37 at-bats versus Tim Wakefield; he has only one walk, but with a .378 average and a .649 slugging percentage against Wakefield, there must not be many balls to take.
• Jose Contreras has owned Justin Morneau over the years, as the Twins slugger has just three hits in 26 career at-bats (.115), with a double as his lone extra-base hit.
• Check out Daily Notes for more information on Friday's games.