Fantasy Baseball Tonight 6/10; Guys Getting Hot......and Pavano

Troy Tulowitzki is also starting to get hot, or is it just a tease? He homered for the second time in three games, drove in a run for the third time in four games, and six hits over the last four contests. There is an outside chance he might be available in your league. If so, I still don't think I pick him up, unless you are playing someone outright awful at SS or MI. However, if he gets to the weekend and he is still hitting, that is when I would make a move on him. That rookie season might seem like a long time ago, but the potential to repeat it is there.

Jose Lopez is catching fire in the last few days. With two homers on Wednesday, that is three homers in the last three days, and he now has four three hit games since May 31st. He did have 17 homers and 89 RBI last year, and while he might not match those numbers, he is definitely on the uptick. Depending on your second baseman he might be worth a look, but I wouldn't drop anyone too great to pick him up at this point. Definitely keep a watch on him the next couple of days.

Matt Wieters had his second consecutive two hit game on Wednesday, and fantasy owners across the country are hoping that this is the start of something big. Obviously I don't need to talk about Wieters potential or what you can expect. But I know a lot of you spent through the nose to get him, and are panicking about his .143 average. Of course, not every prospect pans out, but this kid has got to start hitting soon, right?

Carl Pavano was starting to gain more and more trust from fantasy players, and then, BAM! he gives up nine runs to the Royals. If there is one good thing to say about this outing for Pavano, he did only walk one guy. I know that is not enough to keep any Pavano owner happy, but I like to look at the bright side of things. I think Pavano can win twelve games, but don't go crazy and think you are going to get this huge resurgent season from him where he will win 17 games.

Gil Meche had his best outing of the season as he shutout the Cleveland Indians over seven innings and struck out 11. After a real rocky start, Meche has allowed two runs or less in five straight starts. His strikeout numbers have been all over the map, but for the season they haven't been bad. I came into the season liking Meche for a fourth or fifth starter, but I have soured on him some after his rocky start. I don't own him in any league, and even after tonight I'm not running out and grabbing him. He has definitely caught my attention and is on the radar screen though.

Jeremy Hermida homered for the second straight day against the Cardinals, and he now has three in the last ten days. With three hits on Wednesday, he now has 13 hits over the last ten days. Now, let me just say two things about him. One, he was always supposed to be a fairly successful prospect. Two, injuries have consistently derailed any kind of season he was going to have. As most of you know, I try to stay away from the guys who are consistently injured. I especially don't like big time prospects who tend to be injury prone. I am not buying in to this hot streak with Hermida. Let him be someone else's headache. You don't need the stress.

Cards' rookie Colby Rasmus now has a nine game hitting streak going, and he connected on his seventh homer of the year for St. Louis. Even more impressive was the fact that he was batting cleanup for the Cards, a clear indication of the confidence that Tony LaRussa is growing with him. At this point, he is definitely woth being on a roster even in a 12 team league, and in keeper leagues, you definitely want to get your hands on him.

Geovany Soto had lost some playing time recently, and it looks like it might have woken him up. He did only have one hit, but Soto did homer for the second time in four games, and has finally started to hit. He is a guy that I would be picking up if he were available in my league. I know he got off to an incredibly bad start, but I still have confidence in him, but there has to be a hot streak in his future. Stay patient with Soto in 2009, I think that as the season progresses, you will see a rise in his numbers.

Jake Fox was sent back to the minors when the Cubs recalled Aaron Miles. They really never did give him a chance to make an impact, and that is mostly due to the fact that he is absolutely terrible on defense. He is someone to consider stashing if you are in a keeper league, but I have no idea when he might be back. I am sure they will have him work at some specific position until he gets good enough to return to the majors. He did hit .417 in limited at bats while in the majors.

If I am going to pound on a guy, I have to give him credit when he does something good. I have called Shairon Martis the worst 5-0 pitcher ever. On Wednesday he only allowed two earned runs over seven innings,and that is a great improvement over where he has been. However, his strikeout to walk ratio is still a concern, as he walked two and struck out one. Please, continue to let him sit in free agency, he is not worth owning.

Aaron Harang continues to have his impossible to predict season. Harang has hit the whole spectrum of appearances. He has been lights out, he has been average, he has been horrible. And he goes from one end of the spectrum to the other without any notice and in a hurry. Tonight, Harang threw 7.2 shutout innings, two starts after allowing eight runs. All in all, I think Harang is definitely worth having on your team, and I wouldn't want to trade him. But he certainly will make you crazy at least once a month.

John Lackey certainly took his lumps today, allowing eight earned runs over five innings, walked two and struck out two. I still have plenty of confidence that Lackey will get hot and have a fine season. Remember he missed a ton of time to start the season, and is likely just getting rounded into shape. I have long thought that Lackey is one of the more underrated pitchers in fantasy baseball. If you have him, stick with him, I believe he will be fine. If you were thinking of targeting him in a trade, now is a great time.

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