Kevin Gregg is not a perfect replacement for Kerry Wood, but he will prove a whole lot cheaper and less injury prone. When the Cubs traded pitching prospect Jose Ceda to the Marlins for the 30-year-old Gregg Thursday, they effectively ended their longstanding relationship with Wood and altered the look of their bullpen. Gregg will fit in nicely, pitching either in front of or behind electric set-up man Carlos Marmol.

While Gregg falls well short of Marmol in terms of pure stuff, he is a much tougher, more experienced competitor. This looks like Marmol’s year to emerge as a top-flight closer, but just in case he doesn’t, the veteran Gregg will be there to close games. Read more »

As you get ready to celebrate Thanksgiving in a few weeks, please take a moment to think of John Lackey, because his worst nightmare just came true.

The 30-year-old righty, who posted a 12-5 record with a 3.75 ERA this past regular season, was probably licking his chops at the idea of feasting on feeble AL West lineups in 2009, boosting his numbers before hitting the market as a free agent in 2010. Read more »

On April 31, Florida Marlins second baseman Dan Uggla was hitting .245 with 4 home runs and 12 RBIs. With the onset of May and a drop from second to sixth in the Marlins lineup, he has not only propelled his team into the National League East lead, but also established himself as a premier Major League and fantasy second baseman.

He provided confirmation of his elite status again Sunday with a two-run homer off of San Francisco Giants starter Pat Misch, his league-leading16th of the season and team record 12th of May. Read more »

A trade to the Florida Marlins took left-hander Andrew Miller off our fantasy radars, but he is pitching his way right back on it. With his seven shutout innings and career-high nine strikeouts against the Diamondbacks on Thursday, Miller improved to 4-1 in his last six starts and continued a streak of four straight outings allowing two earned runs or less.

The damage Miller did to his early earned run average and WHIP - he was 0-2 with an 11.37 ERA after three starts - still has a glaring effect on his bottom line. It took Thursday’s gem to lower those numbers to 5.33 and 1.66, respectively. Read more »

Monday’s games began early with a couple of doubleheaders in Pittsburgh and Cleveland. Both doubleheaders featured shutouts in Game 1, as three Pirates combined to blank the Atlanta Braves 5-0 and the Tribe beat the Toronto Blue Jays 3-0 on a five-hitter by right-hander Fausto Carmona. 

The night ended with a couple of American League West shootouts and yet another three-hit effort from world’s hottest hitter Lance Berkman. In between, the Cubs smacked the Padres, Rays pitcher Matt Garza shut down the Yankees, and the following stories unfolded. Read more »