Random Thoughts

I figured that I should post some thoughts before the Laker game tonight, because if they lose I will not be in a very good mood. So here goes...

• How is it that I know Jimmy Rollins better than you do, Charlie Manuel? I mean, I know you skippered your club to a World Series title last year, but come on now. I told you that Rollins needed to be kept in the sixth spot in the batting order for a while, because whenever J-Roll gets embarrassed, he hits. But you just had to go and restore him to the leadoff spot last night, didn't you? How did that work out for you, Charlie? Class, all at once now...J-Roll went 0-for-5. A two-game sabbatical to the #6 hole is not what Rollins needs, Charlie. He needs a two-week banishment, at least. As a Rollins owner in one league, I'd actually prefer that he hit sixth right now. In the meantime, I suppose I'll just suffer along with his miserable leadoff batting lines.
  

• Even with all the potential he has, I've (sadly) come to the conclusion that Clayton Kershaw simply cannot be trusted in mixed leagues, even shallow ones. There's always the chance that he could throw a gem--and he's still very hard to hit--but his inability to throw strikes means that he just can't get deep into games, even when he isn't allowing a lot of runs. His 4.50 ERA and 1.38 WHIP actually aren't terrible, and his 62 K's in 64 IP are good, but 64 IP in 12 starts means that he averages barely over 5 innings per start. He has pitched more than 5 1/3 innings in just 4 of his 12 starts, and when you do that, you simply don't give yourself a good chance to record victories. I know that you generally don't want to try to predict wins and losses, but if you know that the ERA and WHIP aren't anything special and the chances for wins are lessened, you can't roll with a pitcher like that. I have no problem at all with rostering Kershaw, due to the enormous potential, but I would keep him reserved for the time being, until he put together some sort of a consistent streak. Kershaw will be very special in time, but the time isn't right now.

• I haven't mentioned him in a while, but the Franklin Mint continues to roll along. Ryan Franklin picked up his 14th save of the year earlier today at Florida, going 1 2/3 innings to do it. No matter that he scattered 3 hits; I'll always give props to a save of more than 3 outs. Franklin is now the proud holder of a 1.14 ERA, a batting-average-against of just .174, a sparkling 0.85 WHIP, and just one blown save all year. He's not a strikeout closer (17 K's in 23 2/3 innings now), but with that type of efficiency, his owners aren't complaining. His numbers won't stay this good all year, but I see no reason that Franklin can't be an upper-level #2 closer from here on out. I see him as a version of Matt Capps from last year, except that Franklin's team is a contender, so he will record more saves.

• Matt Capps appears safe to trust again in mixed leagues. On May 18, Capps had a ghastly 7.62 ERA, but after picking up his 15th save of the year today (and fifth of June already), Capps has lowered his ERA to 5.23. He has not blown a save since May 15, and he actually only has two blown saves all year. He gave up 7 of the 12 earned runs he has allowed on the season in those 2 blown saves, which is why his ERA is so inflated. It looks like Capps is over the elbow issues that were hampering him earlier in the season, and he should be a pretty decent play as a #2 closer going forward.

• Maybe Andy LaRoche can be a useful major league third baseman, after all. I'm still not convinced based on one month of great play, but hey, it's certainly something to be positive about. LaRoche had failed miserably whenever he got at-bats with the Dodgers, he failed miserably last year after the trade to the Pirates, and he had a terrible April this season out of the gates. But after a 2-hit, 2-RBI game today--the two-run single was the winning margin in the game, also--LaRoche finds himself hitting a very solid .298, and his .784 OPS isn't terrible by any means. It would be nice if LaRoche could hit for more power (he has just two homers on the year), but again, considering that LaRoche looked hopeless up until a month ago, it's a start. Coming into today, over the last month, LaRoche was hitting .333 with 16 RBI, and that certainly holds NL-only league value.