The end of a season is just about the only time where fans and fantasy owners can sit back and appreciate what their favorite players have accomplished. All things are equal then, so all numbers count the same. But, up until that point, there’s an ebb and flow to every player’s season, where hot streaks, cold streaks and fundamental changes should alter how he is viewed by fantasy owners.

There are all kinds of ways to split the numbers and get a deeper sense for a player’s long-term value. One of the easiest, most common ways is to take periodic snapshots of his production. Constantly take looks at the last seven days, the last two weeks, this month, last month, before the All-Star break, after the All-Star break. The numbers and the trends reveal stories and tell you where players have been and where they could ultimately be going. Read more »

The starting rotation of the Minnesota Twins ranks 12th in the American League in strikeouts (463), sixth in ERA (4.3), and 11th in runs allowed (4.8). Journeyman softosser Livan Hernandez leads the team with eight wins. Needless to say, they aren’t the most flashy group in the league, but this patchwork rotation has spearheaded a 14-4 surge through interleague play that had the Twins just 1.5 games back of the White Sox in the AL Central entering Sunday.

Since giving up 8 earned runs in 3 innings June 8th against the division rival Chicago White Sox, righthander Kevin Slowey has been dominant in winning three of his last four starts. In 8 shutout innings Sunday against the Milwaukee Brewers, the NL’s 8th best offense, Slowey struck out eight, retired the first 10 Brewers he faced and allowed only one baserunner to reach third base. Just as impressively, he did it with a fastball-laden 109 pitches, nibbling at corners like his mound opponent Ben Sheets. Read more »

At this point in the year, the appeal of grizzled veterans with limited upside is starting to wear off. Your team doesn’t need a starting pitcher with 4.00 ERA, 1.40 WHIP type stuff, it could use a young arm with more risk and more reward. When you peel back the top layer of free agents, there are several young arms that fit the bill and are available in most leagues.

Of course, there are question marks with each player that has gone unwanted in the majority of leagues. But, knowing the names before the consistent results come is what fantasy championships are made of. Get to know the pitchers on this list because there’s a good chance they take the fantasy world by storm in the second half of the year. Read more »