dbacks in the desert. Devon Travis hit leadoff the last time from corse178's blog
MINNEAPOLIS -- Through 18 meetings this season, the Minnesota Twins and the Cleveland Indians are all square at nine wins each after Minnesotas dramatic 12-inning 2-1 victory on Saturday night in the second of a four-game series at Target Field. James Conner Womens Jersey .Joe Mauers run-scoring single in the bottom of the 12th inning plated Brian Dozier after the Twins second baseman was advanced to second on a balk called on Indians reliever Joe Colon.Since Mike Napolis impressive 456-foot home run to Target Fields upper deck on Friday gave Cleveland a 5-4 lead in the top of the fifth, the two teams have scored a total of three runs in 16 1/2 innings. Both bullpens have been outstanding in the series, combining to allow just one run and 10 hits in 21 2/3 innings to go with 10 walks and 13 strikeouts.They kept marching guys out there and we couldnt find a way to score, Twins manager Paul Molitor said of the Indians bullpen after Saturdays game.Cleveland catcher Chris Gimenez credited both teams with what he called a very, very well-pitched game after they played 9 1/2 innings of scoreless baseball. He also said the extra workload could be beneficial to the Indians not just for the short term but in the bigger picture.Its really good for a lot of our younger guys to get some of these experiences, especially in these types of games, Gimenez said. Were coming down to the end of the season and any type of experience can help like that for the long run.But fatigue could be a factor, as Cleveland and Minnesota prepare to play their final two games of the season against each other beginning with Sundays matinee. Its not going out on a limb to say both managers would likely prefer to see their starters pitch deep into Sundays game.Indians manager Terry Francona appears to be the most likely to get his wish granted with starter Corey Kluber (15-9, 3.16 ERA) taking the mound. Kluber is 1-1 this season and 7-5 in his career with a 3.73 ERA against the Twins.More impressively, Kluber is 7-1 in his last 11 starts and has struck out at least seven batters 10 times during that span, including a season-high 11 in Clevelands 8-4 win over Minnesota on Aug. 31.Molitor will counter with rookie Jose Berrios (2-5, 9.21) who was dominant for Triple-A Rochester this season, going 10-5 in 17 starts with a 2.51 ERA while striking out 125 and walking 36.But the major leagues have been a different story for Berrios, who has struggled mightily at times for the Twins and is 0-4 in his last five starts. Berrios, 1-1 with a 7.20 ERA against the Indians this season, picked up his most recent victory with a six-inning effort in a 12-5 Minnesota win at Cleveland on Aug. 1. Benny Snell Jr. Jersey . Just as Montreal was settling into the first full working week of a new year, the Impact announced the appointment of their new head coach. Kevin Greene Steelers Jersey . To the surprise of many, it isnt the Wolverines but their in-state rivals the Michigan State Spartans. http://www.steelersrookiestore.com/Steelers-Antonio-Brown-Jersey/ . Defencemen Drew Doughty, Shea Weber and forward Ryan Getzlaf also scored for the Canadians, who started their gold-medal defence 2-0. Goalie Roberto Luongo, getting the call in place of Game 1 starter Carey Price, was solid when needed in making 23 saves for the shutout. The first Wednesday after the All-Star break is unusual because there are more afternoon games than games under the lights. Beware, the festivities commence with an early 12:30 p.m. ET start in Cincinnati.?The slate also features several returns from the disabled list, including starting pitchers?Felix Hernandez?and?Matt Cain. Unfortunately for Hyun-Jin Ryu, he returns to the disabled list, shaking up a Dodger rotation already shaken up by the news Clayton Kershaw has been shut down indefinitely. Finally, Drew Pomeranz returns to the American League, though hell face a familiar National League rival. For these details and everything else you need, we present you Wednesdays Daily Notes.PitchingThe San Diego/St. Louis doubleheader has altered pitching matchups for today. Colin Rea will face Carlos Martinez in Game 1, while Paul Clemens and Jaime Garcia will meet in Game 2. Elite Welcome to fun with xFIP, starring Cleveland Indians right-hander?Carlos Carrasco. Last year, Carrascos actual ERA was 3.63, but he pitched better as suggested by a 2.66 xFIP. This season, Carrasco sports a dazzling 2.49 ERA, but thats artificially low according to a 3.56 xFIP. The primary lesson is to focus on skills, and let the outcome take care of itself.As probably assumed from the above, Carrascos skills have taken a step back this season. Hes fanning fewer hitters while allowing more long balls. Still, pitching to a 3.56 ERA is very good, especially for an American League hurler, so even if there is a post-All-Star break correction, Carrasco is still one of the better fantasy assets. Next up for Carrasco is a road date with the Kansas City Royals. While theres not much strikeout upside for DFS tournament play, Carrasco is set up well for cash action.Felix Hernandez is set to make his long-awaited return, last having pitched on May 27. The Seattle Mariners righty was shelved with a right calf strain but is now reportedly fully recovered and ready to go with no restrictions. Before hitting the disabled list for only the third time in his career, Hernandez was scuffling in terms of skills, whiffing fewer while walking more hitters than in any other season. He draws a great matchup for his return, with the middling Chicago White Sox continuing a series in Safeco Field, toting a below-average weighted on-base average (wOBA) and a slightly above-average strikeout rate versus right-handers. If priced down, King Feliz is GPP-worthy; otherwise, hes another solid cash option.With yesterdays postponement, Carlos Martinez will start the first game of todays double header between the St. Louis Cardinals and San Diego Padres. Keep in mind the contest is only available on a limited number of DFS slates. If youre playing one, Martinez is a great start as the Friars offer some added strikeout potential. Speaking of his strikeout potential, if you own Martinez in a seasonal league and missed Paul Sporers notes from yesterday, hes what my colleague had to say:We havent talked a lot about Carlos Martinez this year in fantasy circles despite a better ERA and WHIP combo than his 2015 breakout. His 2.85 ERA is 15th-best among qualified starters, but it comes with just a 7.6 K/9, down from last years 9.2 mark. The narrative would suggest that hes fanning fewer in favor of more control and/or efficiency, but neither holds up under scrutiny. Martinezs walk rate is down marginally from 3.2 to 3.0, which would net him all of three fewer walks if he matched his 2015 innings total. Meanwhile, his pitches-per-plate appearance rate is static at 3.7. Hes just generating fewer swings, especially outside of the zone, which has cost him 1.5 percentage points on his swinging strike rate. He did fan a season-high 11 his last time out (in just five innings, too) after fanning seven the start before. He has six starts of at least seven strikeouts, so the spikes are still there, its just that the floor is lower. Martinez had fewer than five strikeouts in eight of 31 starts last year; hes done so in seven of 17 already this year.Solid With the reminder that the San Diego Padres are productive versus lefties, St. Louis Cardinals veteran Jaime Garcia is in play for GPP consideration because the Friars also fan frequently against southpaws. Garcia will enjoy home-field advantage at pitcher-friendly Busch Stadium.Drew Pomeranz makes his Boston Red Sox debut against a familiar foe, the San Francisco Giants, who continue an interleague series in Fenway Park. The visitors are a tough matchup for Pomeranz, with an above-average wOBA versus southpaws in tandem with a stingy strikeout rate. Pomeranz should get run support with Matt Cain taking the hill for the Giants, making Pomeranz a contrarian GPP play.Michael Pineda, Chris Archer and Marcus Stroman are next on the rankings but arent in favorable settings for DFS deployment. Further down the solid tier, Gio Gonzalez, Hector Santiago and Ian Kennedy similarly do not project the safe floor desired for cash, nor do they have the upside potential intrinsic to tourney success. Justin Layne Youth Jersey. Chicago Cubs righty Kyle Hendricks checks in next and, as usual, profiles more for cash play than GPP action, though the New York Mets whiff at an above-average clip, so he is also viable for tournaments.Oakland right-hander?Daniel Mengden entered the break on a down note, then followed that with another subpar outing coming out of the All-Star break. To be fair, the start before the break was against the resurgent Houston Astros, and his last time out he was roughed up by the Toronto Blue Jays. Mengden will look for retribution against the Astros, this time in pitcher-friendly O. Co Coliseum. The Astros continue to fan at an elevated rate versus righties, so Mengden and his 9.0 K/9 check in as a high-risk, high-reward GPP anchor.Justin Verlander is a microcosm of major league pitching. Hes boasting the second-best strikeout rate of his career while also surrendering homers at a career-high rate. There will be stretches of dominant outings dotted with a couple of clunkers. With the Minnesota Twins visiting Comerica Park, Verlander?is primed for one of his strong efforts, warranting consideration in all types of DFS formats.Streamers Half of the slates starters fall in the potential spot-starter range. We wont feature them all, so if we miss someone youre interested in using, please post your question in the comments or shoot me a tweet to @ToddZola.By default, a starter opposing the Atlanta Braves is safe for streaming, so Cincinnati Reds righty Anthony DeSclafani gets the thumbs up. He has earned it on his own merits as well, settling into a nice groove after a late start to the 2016 campaign.Jeremy Hellickson has tossed at least six frames in 11 of his past 12 outings. Hes in a good spot to add another with the Miami Marlins visiting Citizens Bank Park. Hellickson will be opposed by Wei-Yin Chen, whos also in play against the Philadelphia Phillies pedestrian attack against southpaws.Pittsburgh Pirates lefty Jeff Locke normally doesnt miss many bats, but with the Milwaukee Brewers visiting the Steel City, Locke has a chance at a couple of extra strikeouts. Regardless, hes in play with the affair being contested in pitcher-friendly PNC Park.Avoid On paper, its just the Tampa Bay Rays. But a closer look reveals the club is one of the best in the league versus southpaws. Jorge De La Rosa is therefore on my bench.After a pair of impressive outings heading into the break, the Colorado Rockies lit up Lucas Harrell in Turner Field. Its not a categorical avoid, but his start in the Great American Ballpark against the Reds feels like a second straight stinker is forthcoming.Patrick Corbin is in a tough spot as the Arizona Diamondbacks take on the Blue Jays in Chase Field. Even without a designated hitter, the visitors have plenty of firepower to make it a long night for the D-backs southpaw.HittingAs alluded to earlier, the Rays hit lefties very well, so those that use any sort of platoon-based analysis will be all over the visitors in this Coors Field affair with De La Rosa?on the hill for the home team. Logan Forsythe, Evan Longoria, Brandon Guyer, Steve Pearce and Steven Souza are in the rare spot as one of the best plays on the board.The Boston Red Sox will be the other chalk play as Matt Cain takes the ball for the visiting San Francisco Giants. David Ortiz, Travis Shaw, Brock Holt and Jackie Bradley Jr. are the primary beneficiaries with the platoon edge, though Mookie Betts, Dustin Pedroia and Xander Bogaerts are all in play. Using Shaw and Holt is an intriguing way to get some exposure and then look to differentiate elsewhere.The right-handed contingent of the Blue Jays is also looking good for their tilt with the Diamondbacks in the desert. Devon Travis hit leadoff the last time the club faced a southpaw. If hes back at the top, hes almost a must-play versus Corbin. Other candidates include the familiar Josh Donaldson, Edwin Encarnacion and Troy Tulowitzki.A full-on Reds stack is viable against Harrell, though using a mini-stack of Joey Votto and Jay Bruce gets the platoon edge with a couple of explosive bats. Billy Hamilton and Eugenio Suarez are also in play if you want to increase exposure.Martin Perez is very tough on lefty swingers, so its best to fade Kole Calhoun; however, his right-handed teammates Albert Pujols, Mike Trout and Yunel Escobar are in a good spot to do some damage.Most likely to go deep: Its hard to imagine Corbin not allowing a homer to the Jays, but since we always go to Donaldson or Encarnacion, lets give Tulowitzki the nod in a venue hes quite familiar with.Most likely to swipe a bag: Too easy? With A.J. Pierzynski doing the bulk of the catching for the Braves while Tyler Flowers is out, base runners such as Hamilton should have a field day. 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