Rusney arrives, Stanton goes
Giancarlo Stanton suffered multiple facial fractures, dental damage and a facial laceration that required stitches when he was struck in the face by an 88 mph Mike Fiers fastball on Thursday. You’ve probably seen the video. If you haven’t, don’t (so much blood spilled from Stanton’s broken mouth that the grounds crew was called upon to clean up after he was carted off the field in a stretcher). For all that trouble, the umpire called a strike. You see, Stanton, in his eagerness to throw up his hands in an attempt not to get his face pushed in, apparently waived his wrists a degree too far.
The 24-year-old wants to return to the field this season, which makes sense coming from a competitor who was also amidst an MVP race (Clayton Kershaw, Andrew McCutchen and Jonathan Lucroy are now the frontrunners). Realistically, it’s time for Stanton to focus on his recovery, because his season is (very probably) over, even though his injuries thankfully didn’t require surgery. Assuming he’s done, Stanton finishes the season with an inspired .288/.395/.555 slash line over 145 games. At the time of his injury, he led the National League with 37 home runs, 105 RBI, and a .950 OPS. That’s top-five fantasy performer territory.
Stanton owners don’t have time to lament the loss amidst the fantasy baseball playoffs, so let’s talk replacements (every player I’m about to mention is owned in less than 50-percent of Yahoo! leagues). If you don’t need to replace Stanton’s power, Boston’s Mookie Betts (49%) will chip in on multiple categories and is guaranteed everyday at-bats through the end of the season (we’ll get to that in a second). Angel Pagan and Adam Eaton (both 48%), and Dexter Fowler (32%) are three bend-but-don’t break options if you like your team and don’t need to chase a specific category. A.J. Pollock (19%) and Avisail Garcia (16%) are both back and have shaken off the rust from extended absences quickly. Speaking of playing well, Gregor Blanco (17%) has been spraying the ball in recent weeks in addition to chipping in his usual speed. If your team depended on Stanton’s power and must search for a semblance of it, you can roll the dice on somebody like Domonic Brown (33%) closing the season strong, or you could try Steve Pearce (21%), who is also guaranteed regular at-bats due to a teammate’s misfortune. Rusney Castillo is another option if you want to roll the dice. We’ll discuss him below.
o Chris Davis was suspended for 25 games—including the postseason—by Major League Baseball for testing positive for amphetamines on Friday. At the time the suspension was announced, Baltimore had 17 regular season games remaining, meaning Davis is ineligible for their first eight playoff games, if the Orioles go that far. If they don’t, Davis’ 2015 season will start late. Davis said he was using Adderall, a medication for which he used to have an exemption, but for whatever reason didn’t this year. It’s relevant to note that 119 players had ADHD medicinal exemptions granted last season. After slapping down a career year in 2013 (.286/.370/.634 with 42 doubles, 53 homers and 138 RBI while finishing third in MVP voting), Davis finished the 2014 regular season with a meager .196/.300/.404 slash line, 26 homers and 72 RBI.
o Dustin Pedroia underwent successful season-ending surgery on his left wrist on Thursday. The veteran told reporters he expects to be fully healed in time to enact his regular offseason routine. Expect those preparations to be diligent, because Pedroia isn’t going to want to repeat his 2014 campaign. He submitted career-lows in batting average (.278), on-base percentage (.337), slugging percentage (.376), home runs (7), doubles (33), total bases (207) and stolen bases (6). To put that in perspective, he averaged a .303/.371/.459 slash line with 15 round-trippers and 19 steals from 2008-2013. Pedroia explained that the injury sapped his hand strength, hindering the follow through in his swing, effectively neutering his offensive output. It’s very possible that Pedroia will be undervalued in spring drafts, when he’ll be 31 years old.
Boston could have seamlessly shifted Brock Holt to second base to replace Pedroia, but that plan hit a snag before it even had time to flower. Holt, who hasn’t played in over a week, was diagnosed with a concussion on Friday. If we weren’t in September and rosters hadn’t been expanded, Holt would be on the disabled list right now. At the juncture in which this column went to press, it was impossible to peg when Holt might return. The Red Sox intend to play Mookie Betts regularly at second base for now, though they still believe the 21-year-old is a better fit in the outfield in the long run. In the short term? Well, it actually shakes out pretty well, because the injuries that opened a spot for Betts to switch to opens outfield at-bats for Cuban wunderkind Rusney Castillo, who the Red Sox intend to promote on Tuesday. Castillo needs to be owned in all AL-only leagues, and he’s worth a speculative add in mixed leagues if you have a disposable roster spot. The 27-year-old Castillo, who signed a record seven-year contract with the team for $72.5 million on August 22, has shredded minor league pitching over the last few weeks.
o The Mets shut down David Wright on Tuesday due to what he described as constant rotator cuff pain brought about by that tricky mistress inflammation, an injury he sustained when sliding awkwardly on a slippery field way back in mid-June. He ends the season with a .269/.324/.374 slash line and only eight homers over 134 games. The veteran third baseman will turn 32 before next season, but I’m not quite as high on his short- or long-term fantasy prognosis as I am Pedroia’s. Yes, Wright slashed a pristine .307/.391/.501 over the past two seasons, but I doubt I’ll be able to talk myself into believing his body will hold up next spring. Wright has only made it through one season without a major injury in the last four, and it will take a man with more gamble than me to wager that he’ll reverse that trend in 2015. The Mets are using Wright’s injury to get a longer look at rookie infielder Dilson Herrera, whose presence shoves Daniel Murphy to Wright’s old hot corner post. Expect Murphy to get shopped heavily this offseason. I’ve always thought Murphy was underrated; I’ll be curious to see what the Mets are able to extract in return.
o It’s unlikely that they’re still available in your league, but a heads up anyway: Drew Storen, Josh Fields and Wade Davis have been accruing saves recently.
o In other closer news, Sean Doolittle returned from the disabled list on Friday after missing three weeks with an intercostal strain. Fill-in Eric O’Flaherty had blown his last save opportunity, and Doolittle posted a 2.28 ERA, 0.70 WHIP, and 80/5 K/BB ratio in 55 1/3 innings prior to his injury, so the left-hander won’t have a problem returning to the ninth inning and picked up a save in his first opportunity on Saturday night.
o Anthony Rizzo (back) continues to be thisclose to getting back on the field, but his return has seemed imminent for so long that fantasy owners are right to move on. I thought we’d get clarification this week as to whether Rizzo would be start-able during a key fantasy week forthcoming, but, at this juncture, it appears too risky to make that call in mixed leagues. Rizzo has not yet returned to the lineup, and Cubs manager Rick Renteria said Friday that the stud young first baseman was unlikely to play this weekend. He hasn’t played since August 26.
o Milwaukee elected to abandon its six-man rotation—which formed after Matt Garza was activated from the disabled list—and demote rookie lefty Jimmy Nelson to the bullpen. Nelson logged a 2-7 record with a 4.38 ERA and 1.38 WHIP in 11 starts. I’d be shocked if the top-100 prospect weren’t in next season’s Opening Day rotation.
o Josh Hamilton’s balky right shoulder has kept him out of action for over a week now. Angels skipper Mike Scioscia told the media that doctors believe Hamilton will be able to return to the field “in relatively short order," but that proclamation doesn’t help owners in weekly leagues that must make a lineup decision. Unless you receive good Hamilton news on Sunday, it’s probably too risky to trot him out there.
