This is the sixth installment of my Help Me Help You blog. Each Friday I will feature one or two fantasy or baseball related questions which I receive via email at sandlotsabermetrics@gmail.com during the week.
Brad Penny just had another setback; I think it's about time to drop him. I could use some help in saves for pitching and home runs, RBI's and stolen bases for hitting. Here are some of the better free agents on the waiver wire: Max Scherzer, Johnny Cueto, Brad Lidge, Octavio Dotel, Drew Stubbs, Carlos Quentin, and Aubrey Huff. Who should I add in my 10 team league?
Joel, I recall your pitching staff being fairly solid and you said you really need help in saves if anything on the pitching side. Since all of the top waiver wire pitchers you mentioned are starters, they don't really seem to fill a need on your team.
I don't really trust Lidge at this point, so until he puts together a string of three or four clean outings I wouldn't bother with him. Dotel's value is limited because he plays on a sub-.500 team. Though he has 19 saves on the season, Dotel's 4.89 ERA negates much of his fantasy appeal. Therefore, I would focus on the hitting options.
You say you need help in home runs, stolen bases and RBI's. Each of the three position options have some merit. Quentin is having a down year right now, but I think he is in line for a monster second half. He might not necessitate an immediate add in a 10 team league, but I would keep an eye on him.
Stubbs in on pace for a 20-20 season, but his .240 average really hurts his fantasy value. I think the clear winner here is Huff. He's batting .300 and is on pace for 100 RBI's and 30 home runs. Though he might not hit those numbers, he should be a viable fantasy starter for the rest of the season.
Add Huff now, and keep an eye on Quentin and Stubbs if you need to fill another hole.
Feel free to email me at sandlotsabermetrics@gmail.com with fantasy questions to feature in my weekly Help Me Help You blog.
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