Sunday, the 31st

As promised, we had out first guest poset yesterday with a terrific article onhitting stats from Zeus. If you did not get a chance to see it, I highly recommend that you do. We saw close to 200 hits again yesterday and, again, I cannot tell you how good that is to see. I am truly overwhelmed with the response and positive feedback we have had thus far. I have said it before, but that is exactly why I am doing this. My wife is getting a little tired of the time spent in doing so, but dedication has its price. Please keep reading and expect the upgrades to continue over time.

YESTERDAY

What a night! I would be willing to bet that you had a good day at first, if nowhere else, as all of the top dogs put up at least 5 points. My bats were led be Kinsler who had 11 the hard way, Gonzo and Cruz with 8 and 7 from old man Matsui. Dexter Fowler, the El Cheapo Especial, gave me a decent 3 and my only bust was Raul of all people. In the end, my bats gave me 45 for the day. Add in another 25 from Carpenter and the 70 total points put me back on the Leaderboard in 41st place. However, I am only 6 points away from dropping off again. With that little of a cushion, I better have another good day.

TODAY

Today's winning lineups will see a good effort from the bats as the vast majority of teams will have Greinke on the stump. If you went in another direction, this could be a make or break kind of day. Go Greinke! Here is the final lineup:

C: Soto (Should start the night game)
1B: Cabrera
2B: Kinsler
3B: ARoid
SS: Zobrist
LF: Ibanez (Won't bust again, will he?)
CF: Sizemore (I see now that has has a sore elbow)
RF: Upton (Hitting very well)
DH: Scott (Probably a day late)
PS: Greinke (Join the club)

TOMORROW

Weather: Should not be in play. Pick freely.

Teams facing lefties: Yankees, Brewers, Mariners, Orioles

Teams facing rookie starters: White Sox vs. Cahill (2-5 4.45 ERA, 24K in 54 IP)

Pitchers:
Joba (has only gone past 6 IP once, 2-0 2.86 on road, 1-1 4.84 in May)
Oz (allowed 3 earned or more in last 5 starts, 5.34 ERA in May)
Colon (Oakland sucks, 2ER total in last 3 starts, .231 BAA)
Volquez (gave up 7 earned to the Cards on May 10th)
Kuroda (has been out since April, and is likely to be on a low pitch count)
Wellemeyer (up and down, lok K's, .216 BAA, Cincy sucks and Votto is out)
I don't feel good about it, but I am going to have to risk Wellemeyer over Colon. I just can't trust the Sox bats to support Bartolo.

First:
Swisher (2-4, 2HR)
Tex (2-3 and hot, .244 on road)
Berkman (6-17)
Pujols (2-6, 2HR)
Huff (13-40, HR, weak vs. lefties)
Aaron Cook rarely strikes anyone out, so Berkman will be putting balls in play. That's a good thing.

Second:
Cano (had an ice pack on his hand after Saturday's game)
Uggla (4-13, HR, his power is off of RHP)
Utley (pitchers park)
I think I'll go with Chase vs. poor pitching

Third:
ARoid (3-7)
Cantu (2-5)
It's an easy pick for me, Madonna's boy toy all the way

Short:
Jeter (5-8)
Hanley (5-12, HR)
Tejada (1-3 and very hot)
I'm very tempted now to load up on Yankees, but just can't pull it off. I'll take Miguel, no matter how old he might be. Hanley is struggling.

Left:
Damon (5-9)
N. Morgan (3-3)
Braun
Ibanez (1-1,HR)
Pierre
I don't feel good about Raul in that park, Braun has been on and off, and Pierre is back at home. I'm going with Damon for now, but Morgan may be a good money saver if I end up needing it.

Center:
McLouth
Victorino (3-5, HR)
Jones (3-7)
Jones hits righties best and Victorino is a fireplug.

Right:
Pence (3-9)
Cake (6-14, average vs. lefties)
Upton (2-3)
Upton is the only one for me today.

DH:
Sheff (only hits lefties well)
Scott (when will it end?)
Thome
I have no idea why, but I am going to take a flyer on Thome

C:
VMart ( looked good until he got hurt, is questionable at this time)
Posada (1-2)
Johjima (2-3)
Weiters (rookie phenom, or so they say)
I want to see what this rookie for the O's can do.

It is a very limited schedule tomorrow and is not going to be a day that I look forward to. No trustable pitchers are going, the batting matchups are not overwhelming, my God. I just hope it doesn't blow up on me. Here is the final:


C: Weiters
1B: Berkman
2B: Utley
3B: ARoid
SS: Tejada
LF: Damon
CF: Victorino
RF: Upton
DH: Thome
PS: Wellemeyer

STAT CORNER

The top 7 starters in WHIP in the last 30 days:
1. Verlander 0.76
2. Greinke 0.87
3. Peavy 0.87
4. CC 0.93
5. Cueto 0.95
6. Weaver 0.95
7. Bush 0.98

Strikeouts matter, but so do walks. The top 5 starters in K/BB ratio in the last 30 days:
1. Piniero 9.55
2. Greinke 9.25
3. Haren 8.75
4. Slowey 8.33
5. Buehrle 6.33

The top 6 in OBA allowed inthe last 30 days:
1. Verlander .214
2. Peavy .233
3. Greinke .238
4. CC .245
5. Weaver .251
6. Outman .260

DISCLAIMER

My picks are my picks. I do not tell anyone who to put on their teams. If you choose to follow my lead, do so at your own risk. Thanks for reading, please come again, tell a friend and.....

FU Kerry Wood