Imaginary Diamond

Philadelphia Phillies outfielder Jayson Werth has never had the opportunity to be a true, full-time player in the major leagues. Always good for platoon duties, Werth has a dynamic skill set that can benefit a fantasy lineup, if given consistent at-bats. Friday night was certainly beneficial, as he tied Phillies franchise records with three home runs and eight RBIs in a 10-3 win over the Toronto Blue Jays.

For ESPN’s box score, recap and game video, click here.

With his monster performance, Werth upped his season stat line to .288 with 9 home runs, 26 RBIs, 21 runs and 6 stolen bases. He stands at 6-foot-5 and is versatile enough to hit for power, steal bases and play multiple outfield positions. The latter fact has kept him in the lineup and producing, as he can spell Shane Victorino in center and split time with free agent acquisition Geoff Jenkins in right. Read more »

Fantasy leagues are typically never won solely on the shoulders of your aces. Strong pitching staffs that can dominate a league are made up of a well rounded, consistently producing set of arms.

Here is a list of ten guys that you should seriously consider adding to your pitching arsenal. Some use to be big names, some aren’t big names and some probably never will be, but numbers clinch fantasy leagues and so far these guys are dealing. These players are available in over 50% of fantasy leagues. Read more »

Arizona Diamondbacks pitcher Brandon Webb won his ninth consecutive start on Thursday night, working into the eighth inning of Arizona’s 8-5 win over Colorado. Webb took a shutout into the late innings, but was roughed up in the seventh and eighth innings.

It hasn’t taken a top-notch effort every start, as a mix of run support, luck, and his own brilliance has Webb off to the best start by a pitcher since 1985, according to the Elias Sports Bureau. His final line against the Rockies: 7.1 IP, 6 H, 3 ER, 1 BB, 8 Ks. Read more »

No matter how you’re looking at it, from a fantasy or reality perspective, Lance Berkman has been the runaway choice for Most Valuable Player honors.

The 32-year old slugger hit his league-leading 15th home run against the Giants on Thursday night, lifting the Astros to their 11th win in 13 games and continuing a remarkable May hot streak. Berkman leads the majors in doubles, homers, RBIs and OPS, and he is hitting .587 with a .648 on-base percentage this month. Read more »

The Baby ‘Backs sit atop our baseball team power rankings, as we make a belated debut to the 2008 season. Across the country, the upstart Tampa Bay Rays and Florida Marlins have climbed to the top of the mighty AL and NL East divisions and into our ever-important top 10.

Underachievers are sprinkled throughout the bottom half of the rankings, with the 17th-ranked Milwaukee Brewers and 22nd-ranked Seattle Mariners heading the class. Kansas City and Pittsburgh again reside near the cellar, but are both showing signs of hope and improvement. The same can’t be said in Washington, where there is too little talent to dream of a sudden turnaround. Read more »

Los Angeles Dodgers prospect Clayton Kershaw had a rough audition for a major league call-up on Monday, allowing five runs on five hits in 3.1 innings at Double-A Jacksonville. A quality outing, and Dodgers brass wouldn’t have been able to resist calling Kershaw up for a start on Saturday. Instead, he’ll stay in Jacksonville, continue to work on his change-up and await a call sometime by the end of the month.

In fantasy, this may end up being a good thing in the long run. Kershaw was told to throw more change-ups in the start and didn’t have a good feel for the pitch, according to the Dodgers official site. So, rather than promote Kershaw, Torre has indicated that either Hong-Chih Kuo or Chan Ho Park will start Saturday, says MLB.com’s Ken Gurnick. Read more »

This bullpen situation could culminate in the end of manager Ned Yost’s tenure in Milwaukee. Every night is a mad scramble to the finish, and every night Yost presses the wrong buttons and costs the team ball games.

Eric Gagne, after a 24-hour demotion, is his closer, but no one else in the bullpen seems to understand what his role is. Gagne was unavailable on Wednesday night, and Yost put his trust in Guillermo Mota, who stumbled in the ninth to blow a 4-3 lead. Read more »

The debate can rage on about whether New York Yankees pitcher Joba Chamberlain’s post-strikeout celebrations are excessive. He’s made it perfectly clear to Goose Gossage, David Dellucci, and whoever else is listening that he’s not changing for any of them.

To harp on the subject seems like a waste of time, a circular argument that leads to one conclusion: today’s players are different, for better or worse. It is true that today’s players play more for the name on their backs of their jerseys and less for the logo on the front. We are coming to terms with that. Read more »

As the fantasy season wears on, owners are now aware of the problems that their squads face; unless they just drafted very poorly, most owners will realize that they’re lacking in one or two categories that are causing problems week after week.

While the problems may be obvious, the solutions are usually frustrating; most of the players remaining on the waiver wire won’t help much, and other owners may either be irrational or tentative to trade ideas (or even worse, inactive). Read more »

Cincinnati Reds shortstop Jeff Keppinger broke the patella in his left knee on Tuesday night when he fouled off a Mark Hendrickson pitch in the second inning of the Reds’ 8-7 win over Florida, the Cincinnati Enquirer reported. A postgame X-ray revealed a fracture, but an MRI will determine the extent of the injury, John Fay said in his Reds Insider blog. Read more »