Starters=Volatility

Cliff Lee - Again, this is why you should never waste a high draft pick on any pitcher, except Johan Santana. They are too volatile. They have too man ups and downs when it comes to performance and injury risk. Lee was lit up for 4ERs over 5IPed. If you were an owner who drafted Lee high because of his great CY Young year of 2008, I feel sorry for you.

Roy Halladay - On a positive note, Halladay came back from a rough first outing to get a win against the Indians. Owners who have Halladay should not worry and expect him to be another Cy Young contender this year. With Wells, Rios, Snider, and Lind swinging the bats, you might see Roy with a few more wins. Very scary!!!

BJ Ryan - Sticking with the Jays, the bullpen more specifically the closers role needs to be looked at. Ryan was torched for 3ERs over 0.1IPed. If you are a BJ owner, make sure to back him up with Scott Downs.

Hank Blalock - Two years of injuries seems to have given Hank some time to get back to raking. If Hank stays healthy he could be a sleeper in Texas this year. This guy has posted some great fantasy numbers in the past and if he continues stay healthy and hits behind Hamilton owners could see a 25/90 year from this once upon time fantasy staple.

Rocco Baldelli - For AL-Only, this guy should be on your roster. Seems to be healthy and swinging the bat and connecting.

Marcum/Halladay

Shaun Marcum of the Jays was placed on the 15-Day DL with a right elbow strain. So far this season Marcum has shown he can handle big league hitters and this DL stint is brutal for owners because he has given owners great numbers. With a 2.65ERA, 86K, 27BB, and 1.00WHIP all in 98.2 innings. Adam Lind was called up to replace Marcum on the roster. Lind has been hitting AAA pitching this season.

Roy Halladay of the Jays is feeling no ill-effects from a line drive to head during his last outing. Owners should be happy because Halladay is an ace pitcher and any time on the DL would hurt fantasy owners.

Blue Jays Info

Alex Rios of the Jays is looking forward to a new month because the month of May has treated him with nothing more than a warm spot on the bench. Since May 1, Rios' average has dropped from .320 to .253. During this span, he has 15 hits (5 extra based hits with only 1HR), 3RBI's, 23K's, and 1SB. Owners who have Rios were all smiles during the month of April but are finding it hard to swallow his production or lack of it during this month. Don't worry about Rios, the hitting will return and his capability of being a 5-tool player is what should keep you motivated to keep him on your roster. If you look at the Jays lineup, they have all been struggling mightily in the past10-15 games.

Roy Halladay had a rare relief appearance after a prolonged rain delay. Owners who had him in their lineups soaked up 2.1 innings while adding 2K's. This is a prime example of keeping all your pitching positions filled even when a pitcher is not scheduled to start. During the course a season you usually grab a few innings and maybe even a win. Every stat counts.

Pitch Counts

After watching Roy Halladay of the Blue Jays pitch another complete game, his 4th in a row, I just had to say something here in this blog. Are you fucking insane!!! It's barely May and you are have your ace throw 4 complete games in a row. He's thrown 110, 117, 107, and 112 pitches in his last four outings. What the hell are the Blue Jays thinking when they keep this guy out on the mound for these pitch counts. Yes, I understand that these pitch counts aren't over the top but why not keep your ace from throwing excessive innings, especially early in the season, and keep the arm fresh for August and September. It boggles my mind because if they take him out in the 7th or 8th inning they save maybe 20-25 pitches each game. Times that number by 4 and you have another game.

Now looking into the games itself. The Jays are not hitting and have given Halladay 8 total runs in his complete games streak. But in the past 3 games, which are all losses, the Jays have put up a total of 4 stinkin' runs for Roy. Okay, so the Jays need Roy to pitch to keep them in the games but this isn't smart. Logging so many pitches this early in the season just doesn't seem healthy especially for someone who is your bread and butter, someone who is going to carry the team into the playoffs, and someone who is the life blood of the team.

As for the fantasy impact, since this is a fantasy blog, owners who have Roy in leagues where they count CG's you'll be blessed to have him. Only problem is will he last for the entire season.