Clearing The Bases

Arizona Diamondbacks: Outfielder Adam Eaton suffered a setback in the rehab on his elbow. He has felt discomfort the past couple of days and believes something is wrong. No diagnosis has been made as of yet, but this is obviously not a good thing…..In mixed fantasy leagues that only start one catcher, it may be time to say good bye to Miguel Montero. I know I have him on three or four of my fantasy teams and the Rangers A.J. Pierzynski and the Brewers Jonathan Lucroy (who is also struggling) are available. I might give him another week, but no more.

Atlanta Braves: Man you have to love C Evan Gattis. The guy doesn’t have a regular job with the return of C Brian McCann, OF Jason Heyward, and 1B Freddie Freeman, but all he does is hit when he does play…..Speaking of guys who may not have a starting job, the return of SP Brandon Beachy is about a month away and if no one in the rotation were to suffer an injury, then someone who is pitching well will have to go to the bullpen. We know it won’t be Tim Hudson. Kris Medlen has pitched in the bullpen before but it would seem unlikely he would do so now. Julio Teheran would seem to be the most likely but he has turned it around and you might risk regression by not starting him every five days. Paul Maholm is probably the least talented starter but also a veteran who knows how to win. Could Mike Minor be the odd man out?

Chicago Cubs: Matt Garza’s start was good news for the Cubbies, if he can pitch well and demonstrate that he is healthy, then he will bring back a good piece or two by the trade deadline…..Arodys Vizcaino, he who was acquired from the Braves in the Paul Maholm deal and who had Tommy John surgery in April of 2012, will appear in a rehab game in early June, and if all goes well could be ready to pitch for Chicago around the All-Star Break.

Cincinnati Reds: So the SP Tony Cingrani watch is officially over as he was sent down to AAA. In the end the Reds probably did the right thing as none of the starters performed below expectations and deserved to be removed from the rotation. Cingrani will be back when the need arises, and it will, it’s unlikely the Reds won’t suffer another injury in the rotation…..Outfielder Chris Heisey is getting closer to a return, maybe within two weeks…..Outfielder Billy Hamilton is starting to hit better at AAA, but there still isn’t any room for him on the major league roster, he may be no more than a September call up this year.

Colorado Rockies: To all those fantasy owners that rushed out to claim RP Rex Brothers when closer Rafael Betancourt had to be taken out of the game Tuesday, relax, Betancourt is not going on the DL, matter of fact he could be ready to pitch as early as Friday…..In what can only be considered a surprising move, 2B Josh Rutledge was sent down to AAA. Rutledge still has a bright future, but also needs to learn some plate discipline…..Those waiting on OF Michael Cuddyer to return from his neck injury, Friday looks to be the day.

Los Angeles Dodgers: If and when manager Don Mattingly is going to get fired, and right now I’d bet on sooner rather than later, he is apparently is going to go out guns blazing. Yesterday he stated that he was going to field the most competitive team possible and that meant benching OF Andre Ethier. He also stated that it’s hard for he and his coaches to bring out the best in the team without help from above. At this rate I would be surprised if he made it through Memorial Day.

Miami Marlins: Outfielder Giancarlo Stanton has started to take live batting practice, another step in his recovery from his hamstring…..Although the Marlins haven’t made it official, it seems that Steve Cishek no longer is a lock to hold down the closer’s job. He may still get some save opportunities, but so may just about any other reliever in the bullpen.

Milwaukee Brewers: No real new news on OF Corey Hart but it still seems that a best case scenario would be a return to action sometime in early June. Remember though, Hart will play 1B in his return, not the OF, which should make life a little easier on his knee…..Second baseman Rickie Weeks is back to his old tricks of not hitting and driving fantasy owners crazy…..Jim Henderson has pitched very well and is in no danger of losing his closer role anytime soon.

New York Mets: What are the Mets going to do with 1B Ike Davis? They seem to be giving him as much rope as possible to hang himself with and he’s doing a good job of it. Not only is he not hitting but now he is taking those problems into the field making a couple of big time miscues this week. Listen, I’m not saying get rid of him, not at all, but it’s time to send him down to AAA and see if he can work out his problems down there…..So far OF Rick Ankiel has been a pretty good addition but we all know that will fade away, it’s just a matter of time.

Philadelphia Phillies: This season has already been a disappointing season for the Phils but one bright spot has been the play of 2B Chase Utley who has looked like the player he used to be, so it has to be pretty disconcerting that he suffered an oblique injury (they do seem to be all the rage this year). He has had an MRI, no word yet on the severity of the injury…..Don’t look now but OF Delmon Young is starting to hit and while I wouldn’t be dying to add him in a 10 team mixed, just about anything else is understandable.

Pittsburgh Pirates: Starting pitcher Francisco Liriano has gotten off to a hot start in his return from the DL. If he can be truly consistent and stay healthy, what a boon for this team. The biggest worry for Pittsburgh is the depth of their rotation, of course another hitter or two wouldn’t hurt either…..More help is on the way with SP Charlie Morton also. He needs to make two rehab starts before he is ready to take Jeanmar Gomez’ spot in the rotation…..Starting pitcher James McDonald is likely to throw a rehab start next week before he also comes back to the lineup.

St. Louis Cardinals: It’s official now Chris Carpenter is trying to make a comeback as a starting pitcher. Good timing also as Jaime Garcia was lost for the season with a tear in his labrum…..Garcia’s injury shouldn’t have surprised anyone. Not having surgery last year just delayed the inevitable…..Outfielder Oscar Tavares has been dealing with an ankle injury in AAA, he should be back in the lineup shortly, but is still not anywhere near close to a promotion to the big leagues…..Third baseman David Freese has been out of the lineup lately due to his thumb injury. He took a few stitches in the thumb while applying a tag last weekend and it swelled up a bit.

San Diego Padres: Outfielder Cameron Maybin (wrist) is healthy enough to begin a rehab assignment, which should begin this weekend, but even when he is healthy enough to return to action, he may not get back his starting job right away…..Outfielder Carlos Quentin is out of the lineup again with knee problems. It doesn’t look major, but it did require an injection…..If you’re one of those fantasy owners who is struggling at catcher don’t forget that Yasmani Grandal returns on May 28.

San Francisco Giants: It’s been that kind of year for SP Ryan Vogelsong, he’s in the middle of pitching his best game of the season, and then breaks some fingers while swinging a bat. He actually took a full swing as the ball hit his fingers as they were wrapped around the bat, this is something you just don’t see every day. Tell me again why pitchers should bat? I know the Cubs are thrilled with 1B Anthony Rizzo and his potential but so are the Padres with Andrew Cashner. Could end up being a number one starter.

Washington Nationals: Closer Rafael Soriano created a bit of a stir Tuesday when after blowing a save he blamed Bryce Harper’s positioning. Now Harper did seem to be a bit gun shy of the wall but you know Nats management has been instructing Harper not to crash into them anymore. Not to mention most pitchers will tell you they would rather their OFs play shallow as any ball hit in front of them is the OFs fault, but any ball hit over their heads is their fault. Soriano didn’t complain yesterday when he got the save in a game where Harper provided all the offense…..Something to keep note of, 3B Anthony Rendon has been playing 2B at AAA, that would be a shot across the bow of current 2B Danny Espinosa.

Feel free to follow me on Twitter @georgekurtz.