By Matt Buser
September 14, 2007
Change is one constant in fantasy sports. Players get hot and cool down, get hurt and get well, and move in and out of roles. Fantasy owners are constantly reacting to these changes (or at least they should be). Let's take a look at the Buzz Index from the past few days to see which players are currently causing the most change in fantasy baseball, and take a deeper look at what the fuss is all about.
Buzz Index (Baseball) – adds
Garret Anderson (LAA – OF) 15,896 adds
Anderson has made his way onto more and more fantasy rosters as he continues to rake. He has a "Last Month (total)" rank of sixth overall thanks to a .339 average (38-for-112), 18 R, 10 HR, 41 RBI, and 1 SB in 29 games.
Upshot: He's actually done most of his damage in less time than that – over the past 22 games, he's hit .384 (33-for-86) with 18 R, 10 HR, and 37 RBI, raising his season line from .273/.298/.415 to .297/.335/.505 in the process.
Greg Maddux (SD – SP) 14,889 adds
The 41-year-old Maddux has tapped the fountain of youth in the waning stages of the season. His "Last Month (total)" rank of 15 is second among all pitchers, as he's gone 5-0 in six starts with a 1.89 ERA and 0.89 WHIP in 38.0 IP during that stretch.
Upshot: Maddux has been peaking just in time to help fantasy teams get over the championship hump. Incredibly, he hasn't walked a single batter in his past 54.1 IP, a span covering eight-plus starts and dating back to July 28. Before you go thinking that his recent success is a product of SP-friendly Petco Park, realize that three of his past four starts have come on the road.
Chad Billingsley (LAD – SP, RP) 13,945 adds
Billingsley's "Last Month (total)" rank of 25 isn't too far behind Maddux's, and is good for fifth overall among pitchers. He's 4-0 in six starts with a 2.13 ERA, 1.13 WHIP, and 36 K in 38.0 IP during that time.
Upshot: His start was pushed up a day on Wednesday due to a Derek Lowe hand injury, so there's a decent chance that some fantasy owners missed out on 1 ER and 5 K in 6.0 IP for the win versus the Padres. Billingsley has a 2.81 ERA, 1.30 WHIP, and .244 BAA in 13 starts since the All-Star break, so he's proving his mettle as a starter. He should be in the Dodgers' rotation on a full-time basis next season, and will be a valuable fantasy asset if he can make even slight improvements to his walk rate.
Pat Burrell (Phi – OF) 12,003 adds
Burrell is on a hot streak yet again. He's hit .363 (8-for-22) over the past seven games with 7 R, 4 HR, and 10 RBI.
Upshot: While he's had his ups and downs, Burrell has been quite productive overall for the past two months, hitting .307 (48-for-156) over the past 45 games, with 30 R, 16 HR, and 43 RBI. He's raised his season line from .249/.408/.438 to .266/.408/.525 in the process.
Edwin Encarnacion (Cin – 3B) 11,080 adds
Encarnacion has awakened from a season-long slumber, batting .415 (27-for-65) over the past 17 games, with 14 R, 5 HR, and 18 RBI.
Upshot: The 24-year-old Encarnacion's line was just .266/.338/.375 as of August 22, but now stands at .288/.352/.428. Many people were expecting this to be a breakout campaign from the young third-sacker, but it hasn't materialized – be anticipating the same expectations for Encarnacion at the start of the 2008 season.
Hank Blalock (Tex – 3B) 10,077 adds
Blalock has been mashing since returning from a three-plus month DL stint due to a ribcage injury. Over his past nine games, Blalock has hit .323 (10-for-31) with 6 R, 3 HR, and 10 RBI.
Upshot: Blalock has been splitting time with Sammy Sosa at DH, as he's not yet healthy enough to return to the field. If you have added Blalock, be sure to keep an eye on the Rangers' daily lineups.
Mark Ellis (Oak – 2B) 10,071 adds
Staying true to form, Ellis has saved his best work for the latter part of the season. He's followed up 20 R in 28 games during the month of August with a .459 average (17-for-37), 9 R, and 8 RBI in 10 games during September.
Upshot: For his career, Ellis has a .255/.322/.369 line in 1,090 AB before the All-Star break, and a .285/.356/.452 line in 1,209 AB after the break. So far this season, Ellis has hit .287/.339/.478 in 57 games post-break, with 38 R, 9 HR, and 23 RBI.
James Loney (LAD – 1B) 7,443 adds
Loney has gone on a HR binge, hitting five over the past six games. Loney's September splits include a .405 average (17-for-42), 10 R, 5 HR, and 13 RBI in 11 games.
Upshot: Loney has just one less HR (five) in his past 25 AB than he had in his previous 251 AB (six). He hit just 36 HR in 2,203 career minors AB, but has 15 in 378 career big-league AB. He will undoubtedly hit for average, so if the 23-year-old's power continues to develop, then he could be a sneaky-good late draft pick next season.
Buzz Index (Baseball) – drops
Jeremy Bonderman (Det- SP) 28,398 drops
Bonderman is likely to be done for the season, as he's experienced pain in his throwing elbow due to pinched cartilage. The injury is not considered serious, and an MRI revealed no structural damage, but his 5.01 ERA and 1.38 WHIP weren't helping fantasy teams, anyway.
Lowdown: This was supposed to be the true breakout campaign for the 24-year-old Bonderman, but he's been fairly ineffective since blister problems crept up in mid-May. As of June 3, he had a 3.27 ERA and 1.12 WHIP in 66.0 IP. In 108.1 IP since, he's put together a 6.07 ERA and 1.54 WHIP, and his season BAA is .278. Not yet 25 years of age, Bonderman has logged 923.1 career IP, with a 4.78 ERA, 1.37 WHIP, and 768 K.
Erik Bedard (Bal – SP) 23,127 drops
Bedard's breakout season has ended early thanks to a strained right oblique muscle. The 28-year-old lefty went 13-5 in 28 starts, with a 3.16 ERA, 1.09 WHIP, .212 BAA, and 221 K in 182.0 IP. His current season rank of 25 overall places him fourth among pitchers.
Lowdown: Bedard's ADP was 124.7 this season, as the 30th SP drafted, on average. Don't count on his coming at such a bargain next season.
Troy Glaus (Tor – 3B, SS) 15,287 drops
Glaus' disappointing season is also over, as he will undergo surgery next week to repair a nerve in his left foot. He hit .262 in 115 games, with 60 R, 20 HR, and 62 RBI in 385 AB.
Lowdown: Glaus is a career .254 hitter who has now missed significant time in three of the past five seasons, so it's likely that he'll be moved down a few notches on draft sheets next season. He certainly will be on mine.
Orlando Hudson (Ari – 2B) 14,124 drops
Hudson is yet another player who has seen his season come to an early end, as he has undergone surgery to repair a torn ligament in his left thumb. In 517 AB on the season, Hudson hit .294 with 69 R, 10 HR, 63 RBI, and 10 SB in 139 games.
Lowdown: Hudson is expected to need six to eight weeks to recover from the procedure, so he should be at 100 percent well before the start of spring training next season.
Tim Wakefield (Bos – SP) 13,299 drops
Wakefield has followed up a brilliant August (4-1 in five starts, 2.45 ERA, 0.97 WHIP in 33.0 IP) with a horrific September (two starts, 17.55 ERA, 3.15 WHIP in 6.2 IP).
Lowdown: Wakefield's poor efforts couldn't have come at a worse time, as many of the most active fantasy owners are engaged in H2H playoff battles or roto stretch runs. If you took a chance on Wakefield, then you have my condolences.
Rick Ankiel (StL – OF) 11,093 drops
Ankiel is just 2 for his past 22 (.091), with no XBH, no RBI, and a 0:7 BB:K ratio over the past six games.
Lowdown: Ankiel has been floundering since reports that he received shipments of HGH in 2004 have come to light. There's a decent chance that Ankiel wasn't going to continue to hit .350-plus, but it's unlikely that the timing is completely a coincidence.
Kazuo Matsui (Col – 2B) 10,708 drops
Matsui has missed four straight games since straining his right hamstring on Saturday. He doesn't figure to be at 100 percent until early next week.
Lowdown: H2H owners who needed an active player made the smart move to cut him loose for the week – keep an eye on the box scores through the weekend to see if Matsui is plugged back into the lineup.
Willy Taveras (Col – OF) 9,957 drops
Taveras continues to be bothered by a strained right quad, and he hasn't been in the lineup for the past four games.
Lowdown: Taveras' main asset is his speed, and it's unlikely that he'll be near 100 percent again this season. Cut him loose. Matt Buser is a Yahoo! Sports fantasy expert. Follow him on Twitter. Send Matt a question or comment for potential use in a future column or webcast. Updated on Friday, Sep 14, 2007 12:23 pm, EDT Email to a Friend | View Popular
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