Weeks Done

Poor, poor Rickie Weeks, and poor, poor Rickie Weeks owners. The talented yet oft-injured second baseman is out for the season after tearing a tendon sheath in his left wrist, and it's a big loss to the Brewers and to Weeks' fantasy owners. Weeks was hitting .272 with 9 homers, 24 RBI, and 28 runs scored, and he is still the 51st-ranked player overall in Yahoo leagues. It's a huge blow to Weeks' owners in NL-only leagues, and a pretty big one in mixed leagues, too, although in both cases you still should have had a capable backup in tow because of the injury history of Weeks. In one of my Yahoo mixed leagues, I had drafted Alexei Ramirez with the intention of playing him at second base, but with him slumping so badly I picked up Weeks to start there and I was benching Ramirez. Now with Weeks shelved, I waived him and re-acquired Freddy Sanchez (I had waived Sanchez for Weeks in the first place).

Since Weeks is definitely done for the season, he can be dropped in all formats. His injury for the Brewers has fantasy implications for sure. Although Craig Counsell started at second base yesterday and hit leadoff, Manager Ken Macha has indicated that he views Counsell more as a super-utility player and as his top pinch-hitter off the bench, and that he doesn't think the 38-year-old with bad knees could hold up as an everyday guy. (Wise thinking, Mr. Macha.) So expect to see Counsell getting no more than 3 starts per week, which does give him value in NL-only leagues. Casey McGehee also picks up some short-term NL-only value, though I don't think he will be considered as a long-term replacement at the keystone for the Brew Crew.

Mat Gamel is now a must-add in NL-only leagues, and is somebody that mixed leaguers should keep an eye on, too. Gamel has a big-time power bat, and if his defense weren't so bad he probably would have usurped Bill Hall as the starter at third base by now. Even with his subpar defense, the Brewers could go with Gamel at third and shift Hall over to second base, although that would make the Brewer infield defense horrible. But Gamel slugged a 3-run homer yesterday, and was on my Spring Training list of sleeper candidates, so I definitely am a believer in his bat. Hall, by the way, is doing exactly what I thought he would this season. He has a .200 average against right-handed pitchers and a .414 average against lefties. It's not like Hall is a defensive wizard at third, so if Gamel is hitting righties well (which stands to reason, since he's a left-handed hitter), Macha may do the smart thing and install Gamel as his starter at third against righties and play Hall at third against lefties. Then at second base, Macha could try to get by with a combination of Counsell, McGehee, and maybe top prospect Alcides Escobar. Escobar is a defensive whiz at shortstop but the Brewers just shifted him over to second base in AAA, perhaps foreshadowing a move in the big leagues later on.

The bottom line? If you own Weeks, drop him, and keep a very close eye on Gamel. He has the most to gain from the Weeks injury.