Troubled Starters

Dontrelle Willis of the Tigers was optioned down to A-Lakeland and for me it wasn't soon enough. Willis has been horrible this entire season, albeit it being short season for him. Unless he finds something down in A-Lakeland he is an afterthought in the fantasy world.

Homer Bailey of the Reds was hit hard by the Cardinals in 3.2 innings of work. He gave up 8 hits and 5ER's while walking 3 and only striking out 2. Owners who have Bailey should be a little concerned because of the high walk rate and as mentioned in a previous post he is going to face some strong lineups in the near future. If you are not in a keeper league, this guy is someone you should be looking to for the second half of the season when he faces opponents who are less likely to hit him hard.

Daniel Cabrera of the Orioles seems to have reverted back to his old self of late. In his last two starts he has given up 15H's and 12ER's in only 11 innings of work. I would see if someone would like to take him off your hands in a trade or just bench him for his next start and see if he bounces back. If he does not bounce back...drop him.

Random Notes

Josh Barfield of the Indians was called up and will be the regular starting 2nd baseman. AL-Only league owners should grab this guy because he will give you some decent stats and with AL-only leagues players are hard to come by that are full time players and who give positive returns.

D-Train, Dontrelle Willis, of the Tigers was terrible in his 2nd start starting rotation after returning from the DL. For owners who are hoping for D-Train of 2005 where he went 22-10, well keep dreaming. This pitcher has fallen and seems to be staying on the ground. Only keep him on your team if you want a high ERA and a last place finish in your fantasy teams.

Adrian Beltre of the Mariners is struggling and has dropped his average to .226 after an 0-5 night against the Blue Jays. He currently has 13HR's and is on pace for 20-25 but owners who have him as their 3rd baseman must be disappointed in his terrible average. Do not drop him because he does have value. If you have an extra spot on the bench maybe bench him for now and see if he can get out of the slump he currently sits in.

D-Train

The D-Train is back in the majors and threw 1 inning during a relief appearance for the Tigers. As mentioned previously, he will be working from the bullpen to work out some kinks in his pitching. So far it doesn't look good. In this 1 inning of work he allowed a run on 1 hit and 2 walks. This is not a good sign, the 2 walks, because his control is what was getting him into trouble prior to his stint on the DL.

Owners, don't bother with Willis yet. He doesn't offer too much value at the moment.

Willis and Galarraga

Dontrelle Willis of the Tigers will return from the DL and move into the bullpen to get his control back in order before heading to the starting rotation. Armando Galarraga will continue in his role as a starter.

This isn't huge news since Willis shouldn't be found on any rosters but with Galarraga holding his own on the mound this season (3-1, 35.1IP, 14BB, 24K, and 3.06ERA) he's worth a spot on rosters.

Dontrelle Willis

Dontrelle Willis of the Tigers was placed on the 15Day-DL with a hyperextended knee. Willis has always been a workhorse by pitching 197+ innings in the past 4 years but since his amazing 2005 season where he went 22-10 he's hasn't come close to repeating.

In mixed leagues he isn't worth keeping on your roster unless you have a DL spot open or if you have a HUGE bench. The 2005 season gave him name value but overall he hurts fantasy teams more than he helps. Since he is on the DL you won't get full value for him so get what you can. The only upside is he's on the Tigers and the lineup they have should score plenty of runs so he might be on the right end of wins but seems to always give you a high ERA. Also, his K rate has declined since his 2005 season.