Friday Lineup Card: Kung Fu Grip

Projected Starters – A look at Friday's matchups:

Phillies (TBA) at Nationals (Craig Stammen – R), 7:05
Indians (Justin Masterson – R) at Blue Jays (Shaun Marcum – R), 7:07
Diamondbacks (Ian Kennedy – R) at Mets (Mike Pelfrey – R), 7:10
Tigers (Armando Galarraga – R) at Red Sox (Jon Lester – L), 7:10
Braves (Kris Medlen – R) at Reds (Johnny Cueto – R), 7:10
Yankees (Phil Hughes – R) at Rays (Wade Davis – R), 7:10
Brewers (Manny Parra – L) at Astros (TBA), 8:05
Mariners (Doug Fister – R) at Twins (Scott Baker – R), 8:10
Orioles (Jake Arrieta – R) at Royals (Sean O'Sullivan – R), 8:10
Athletics (Brett Anderson – L) at White Sox (Daniel Hudson – R), 8:10
Pirates (Jeff Karstens – R) at Cardinals (Chris Carpenter – R), 8:15
Cubs (Ryan Dempster – R) at Rockies (Jeff Francis – L), 9:10
Marlins (Chris Volstad – R) at Padres (Wade LeBlanc – L), 10:05
Rangers (Scott Feldman – R) at Angels (Ervin Santana – R), 10:05
Dodgers (Carlos Monasterios – R) at Giants (Tim Lincecum – R), 10:15

Day game after night game: None

Injuries – A brief look at players that have been missing time with minor ailments and their expected returns.

Day-to-Day (includes players expected to make their return from the DL)

Albert Pujols, 1B, STL – (Calf) Played on Thursday despite feeling tightness in his calf on Wednesday night.
Jimmy Rollins, SS, PHI – (Foot) Still has swelling in his right foot, but expected to return during this weekend's series.
Jason Bay, OF, NYM – (Concussion) Sat out Thursday's game, and could be headed for the DL if he doesn't show improvement soon.
Alex Gonzalez, SS, ATL – (Illness) Sat out of Thursday's game with 101-degree fever.
Chris Iannetta, C, COL – (Personal) He was scratched Thursday and may miss a few days to celebrate the birth of his daughter.
Ross Ohlendorf, SP, PIT – (Head) Appears to have no ill effects after struck in the head by a line drive on Wednesday and plans to make his next start.
Andrew McCutchen, OF, PIT – (Shoulder) Scratched Thursday after feeling soreness during batting practice.
B.J. Upton, OF, TB – (Ankle) May be used as a pinch-hitter, but will not start before the weekend.
J.D. Drew, OF, BOS – (Hamstring) Will miss some days, but may be able to avoid the DL.
Ben Zobrist, 2B, TB – (Back) Sat out Thursday's game with back stiffness.
Travis Hafner, DH, CLE – (Shoulder) Scratched from Thursday's lineup.
Andrew Bailey, RP, OAK – Has been unavailable since July 21 with back pain and is consulting with doctors. He could be headed for the DL.
Mitch Talbot, SP, CLE – (Arm) Removed from Thursday's start after two innings due to discomfort.

Players on the DL

Kyle Blanks, OF, SD – (Elbow) Undergoing Tommy John surgery on Friday that won't allow him to return for 7-10 months.
Reed Johnson, OF, LAD – (Back) Threw in the outfield and took batting practice in the cage on Wednesday.
Shane Victorino, OF, PHI – (Oblique) Expected to miss three weeks.
Brandon Webb, SP, ARI – (Shoulder) Cancelled his scheduled bullpen on Wednesday after being unable to get loose. He will try to return as a reliever if he is unable to get healthy enough to start by the end of the season.
Stephen Strasburg, SP, WAS – (Shoulder) Placed on the 15-Day DL. He'll be eligible to return on August 6 and already feels strong enough to return. The Nationals are just being cautious with their franchise player.
Jason Marquis, SP, WAS – (Elbow) Could return to the rotation as early as next week.
Todd Helton, 1B, COL – (Back) Scheduled to begin his rehab on Friday with the design of being activated on Monday.
Mike Adams, RP, SD – (Oblique) Reported no issues during his bullpen on Thursday and will not need a rehab assignment before returning sometime next week.
Jamie Moyer, SP, PHI – (Elbow) Has no plans of undergoing surgery. He will begin rehabbing in a few weeks with the intention of returning to pitch next season.
Joel Pineiro, SP, LAA – (Oblique) Will miss the next six-to-eight weeks. Could potentially return to action in September.
Derek Holland, SP, TEX – (Shoulder) Needed just 60 pitches to pitch five effective innings in his latest rehab start at Triple-A. Will throw one or two more rehab starts before returning to the Rangers.
Scott Kazmir, SP, LAA – (Shoulder) Could start a rehab assignment in the next week or two.
Ian Kinsler, 2B, TEX – (Groin) Placed on the 15-Day DL Thursday. Eligible to return on August 12.
Mark Lowe, SP, TEX – (Back) Transferred to the 60-Day DL on Thursday.

Transactions – Players that have been demoted, called up, traded, released, you name it. We'll cover it here.

Placed on the DL (15-Day unless otherwise noted)
Ian Kinsler, 2B, Rangers
Stephen Strasburg, SP, Nationals
Mark Lowe, SP, Rangers (transferred to the 60-Day DL)

Called Up
Jeff Frazier, OF, Tigers
Mitch Moreland, OF, Rangers
Greg Holland, RP, Royals

Sent Down
Jeff Larish, 1B, Tigers
Brendan Donnelly, RP, Pirates
Carlos Villanueva, RP, Brewers
Jack Taschner, RP, Pirates

Traded
Roy Oswalt, SP, Phillies
J.A. Happ, SP, Astros
Scott Podsednik, OF, Dodgers
Lucas May, C, Royals
Jorge Cantu, 1B/3B, Rangers
Miguel Tejada, 3B/SS, Padres

Closer Watch – A closer look at intriguing ninth-inning situations (check out Dave Regan's Closer Grid with the link to the left).

Chicago White Sox – Bobby Jenks appears to have reclaimed his role as the closer already. He struck out the side on Wednesday night to put an exclamation point on the evening. His demotion appears to have been an overreaction and act of posturing by manager Ozzie Guillen more than anything. Hopefully you held onto him and didn't make any rash decisions when his demotion was announced last week.

Oakland Athletics – Craig Breslow was the most recent pitcher to step in and earn a save for the Athletics while Andrew Bailey has been out with back spasms. Bailey remains day-to-day.

Key Matchups – Spotlight on hitters and pitchers with favorable matchups against their opponent on a particular day (generally, individual matchups with fewer than 10 at-bats are not included). *Check Status

Hot

Travis Hafner v. Shaun Marcum – 3-for-10 (.300), 1 HR, 3 RBI, 1:1 BB:K (.364 OBP)
Adam LaRoche v. Mike Pelfrey – 6-for-8 (.750), 0 HR, 3 RBI, 2:0 BB:K (.800 OBP)
Miguel Montero v. Mike Pelfrey – 5-for-9 (.556), 0 HR, 1 RBI, 1:0 BB:K (.600 OBP)
Carlos Lee v. Manny Parra – 9-for-17 (.529), 1 HR, 3 RBI, 4:1 BB:K (.619 OBP)
Lance Berkman v. Manny Parra – 5-for-14 (.357), 0 HR, 1 RBI, 3:3 BB:K (.500 OBP)
Michael Bourn v. Manny Parra – 5-for-14 (.357), 2 HR, 2 RBI, 0:6 BB:K (.357 OBP)
Pedro Feliz v. Manny Parra – 5-for-10 (.500), 1 HR, 2 RBI, 0:1 BB:K (.500 OBP)
Jose Lopez v. Scott Baker – 9-for-21 (.429), 0 HR, 1 RBI, 0:2 BB:K (.429 OBP)
Ryan Doumit v. Chris Carpenter – 6-for-19 (.316), 2 HR, 3 RBI, 1:3 BB:K (.350 OBP)
Derek Lee v. Jeff Francis – 7-for-9 (.778), 1 HR, 1 RBI, 3:1 BB:K (.833 OBP)
Torii Hunter v. Scott Feldman – 9-for-21 (.429), 0 HR, 5 RBI, 4:2 BB:K (.520 OBP)
Mike Napoli v. Scott Feldman – 11-for-23 (.478), 2 HR, 6 RBI, 1:4 BB:K (.500 OBP)
Erick Aybar v. Scott Feldman – 9-for-18 (.500), 0 HR, 2 RBI, 0:1 BB:K (.526 OBP)
Michael Young v. Ervin Santana – 20-for-50 (.400), 3 HR, 11 RBI, 2:11 BB:K (.407 OBP)
Ian Kinsler v. Ervin Santana – 10-for-28 (.357), 1 HR, 3 RBI, 2:5 BB:K (.419 OBP)
Chris Davis v. Ervin Santana – 4-for-14 (.286), 2 HR, 3 RBI, 1:5 BB:K (.333 OBP)
Blake DeWitt v. Tim Lincecum – 6-for-11 (.545), 0 HR, 1 RBI, 0:1 BB:K (.545 OBP)

Tim Lincecum vs. Los Angeles Dodgers – Big Time Timmy Jim is synonymous with HOT, so this post feels a bit redundant. Even without referencing his stellar .207/.314/.280 slash line through 193 batters faced against the Dodgers' current lineup, Lincecum should be a lock to start for your fantasy team every time he takes the mound. Blake DeWitt is the only Dodger that has enjoyed success against Lincecum, and I'm not even sure if he's still in the majors he's such a transparent fantasy commodity.

Cold

Dewayne Wise v. Justin Masterson – 2-for-10 (.200), 0 HR, 0 RBI, 0:2 BB:K (.200 OBP)
Stephen Drew v. Mike Pelfrey – 4-for-16 (.250), 0 HR, 2 RBI, 1:1 BB:K (.278 OBP)
Victor Martinez v. Armando Galarraga – 1-for-9 (.111), 0 HR, 2 RBI, 3:0 BB:K (.308 OBP)
Hunter Pence v. Manny Parra – 4-for-20 (.200), 0 HR, 1 RBI, 2:2 BB:K (.273 OBP)
Franklin Gutierrez v. Scott Baker – 1-for-15 (.067), 0 HR, 1 RBI, 0:6 BB:K (.067 OBP)
Ronny Cedeno v. Chris Carpenter – 3-for-18 (.235), 1 HR, 1 RBI, 0:2 BB:K (.253 OBP)
Alfonso Soriano v. Jeff Francis – 2-for-12 (.167), 0 HR, 0 RBI, 0:2 BB:K (.167 OBP)
Andruw Jones v. Brett Anderson – 1-for-8 (.125), 0 HR, 0 RBI, 2:2 BB:K (.300 OBP)
Juan Rivera v. Scott Feldman – 3-for-20 (.150), 0 HR, 2 RBI, 1:1 BB:K (.182 OBP)
Alberto Callaspo v. Scott Feldman – 1-for-13 (.077), 0 HR, 1 RBI, 0:0 BB:K (.077 OBP)
Josh Hamilton v. Ervin Santana – 2-for-18 (.111), 0 HR, 1 RBI, 0:2 BB:K (.111 OBP)
James Loney v. Tim Lincecum – 4-for-23 (.174), 0 HR, 1 RBI, 2:6 BB:K (.240 OBP)
Matt Kemp v. Tim Lincecum – 2-for-17 (.118), 0 HR, 0 RBI, 1:8 BB:K (.211 OBP)
Russell Martin v. Tim Lincecum – 0-for-14 (.000), 0 HR, 0 RBI, 3:5 BB:K (.176 OBP)
Casey Blake v. Tim Lincecum – 2-for-12 (.167), 0 HR, 1 RBI, 0:7 BB:K (.167 OBP)

Mike Pelfrey vs. Arizona Diamondbacks – Pelfrey has struggles against the Diamondbacks to the tune of allowing them to hit a slash line of .337/.424/.469 against him through 118 plate appearances. He was rocked in his only other start against the Diamondbacks this season and was removed after allowing six runs over 1.1 innings. In six career starts, he has a 0-5 record with a 6.75 ERA, 1.76 WHIP, 308 BAA, and 22:17 K:BB ratio. Pelfrey should probably be benched for his Friday start.

Manny Parra vs. Houston Astros – Parra has struggled against the Astros to the tune of allowing them to hit a slash line of .324/.408/.514 against him through 124 plate appearances. In eight career starts, he has a 4-3 record with a 5.18 ERA, 1.94 WHIP, .335 BAA, and 43:24 K:BB ratio. He has the ability to throw a good outing, but, even when he limits a team's opportunities to score, he gives up too many walks and home runs. Parra hasn't pitched deeper than the sixth inning in any of his starts this year, limiting his potential to earn wins. The Astros have one of the worst offenses in baseball, but Parra is too inconsistent to count on for positive production in standard sized leagues.

Recommended Pickup

Barry Enright, SP, ARI – Enright was called up at the end of June and has given up three or less runs in each of his first five starts. He's pitched at least 5.0 innings in each of his outings and has a 2-2 record with a 2.73 ERA, 1.28 WHIP, and 23:10 K:BB ratio over 29.2 innings pitched. Enright is a good add in deep mixed leagues and NL-only leagues right now, but, if he can continue to limit his walks, he could become of use in some standard sized mixed leagues. The return of Kris Benson or Brandon Webb could bump him from the rotation, but their returns this season are looking tentative at best. Through 93 innings at Double-A this year, Enright had a 2.88 ERA, 1.03 WHIP, and 83:15 K:BB.

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