TOYOTA TUNDRA – PICKUPS OF THE WEEK

In addition to Monday's nine featured Pickups of the Week, Yahoo! Sports fantasy expert Brandon Funston offers a Wednesday update on five hitters on the rise that weren't profiled in Monday's POW. The same criteria applies - players must be available in more than half of Yahoo! leagues. On Friday, we'll offer the same drill for pitchers.

Will thrilling Fenway faithful with power display in Youkilis' absence

Will Middlebrooks (3B) Boston Red Sox
Boston will have some tough decisions to make when Kevin Youkilis returns from the DL. Youk's replacement, Middlebrooks, has an extra-base hit in each of the five games he's played since being called up in early May. The Red Sox don't want to move their top prospect to the outfield, so a demotion back to Pawtucket, where he set a torch to Triple-A pitching, is a strong possibility. But Youkilis (back) is probably still a week or two away from a return and, if Middlebrooks continues to hit like he has, the team might be forced to figure out how to make things work with both players on the roster.

• Y! % 36%

• LW rank5

• AVG.409

• HR3

• RBI9

• R5

• SB1

Utilityman hoping tools finally unlock major league success

Tyler Greene (2B/SS/OF) St. Louis Cardinals
Greene has hit .300 with 23 home runs and 31 steals in his past 148 games for Triple-A Louisville. On the major league level, those lofty numbers have been lost in translation. This past week, however, Greene is flashing some of that power and speed that's mostly been missing in his time with the Cardinals – two home runs, two steals. His middle infield eligibility and minor league track record make him an interesting player for fantasy owners to watch should he force his way into regular playing time.

• Y! % 2%

• LW rank25

• AVG.385

• HR2

• RBI4

• R4

• SB2

Keeps tabs on this Bird on the waiver wire

Robert Andino (2B/3B/SS) Baltimore Orioles
Like Greene, Andino has shown some speed and pop at the Triple-A level but has been mostly a utilityman afterthought at the major league level … until now. In his past 10 games, Andino is hitting .368 with two home runs and six runs batted in. The O's have been flirting with him in the leadoff spot, where he's resided in two of the past five games. He becomes a much more intriguing fantasy prospect if he can hit higher up in the order on a consistent basis.

• Y! %30%

• LW rank131

• AVG.308

• HR2

• RBI5

• R2

• SB0

Lucroy delivering lucrative batting average returns

Jonathan Lucroy (C) Milwaukee Brewers
For those playing the catcher shuffle, constantly picking up the latest hot backstop off the waiver wire, Lucroy is your man. He's riding a seven-game hitting streak, with multiple hits coming in five of those games – he's tied with Yadier Molina for the lead among catchers in multi-hit games (10). And once Corey Hart and Aramis Ramirez find their groove, Lucroy's No. 6 spot in the batting order should produce at least serviceable RBI totals.

• Y! % 21%

• LW rank158

• AVG .435

• HR0

• RBI4

• R2

• SB0

Here's one Dyson that doesn't suck

Jarrod Dyson (OF) Kansas City Royals
Dyson is only for the speed needy. He has 23 steals in 56 career games, including three in his past nine contests for the Royals. The KC leadoff hitter is hitting .311 with 11 runs in his first 11 May games. But given his career profile, the stolen bases are Dyson's only bankable fantasy commodity. Consider the batting average gravy, and enjoy it while it lasts.

• Y! %3%

• LW rank56

• AVG.321

• HR0

• RBI2

• R6

• SB2

• LW rank denotes where a player is ranked in the Yahoo! fantasy baseball game for the last week.