This article is part of our The Lineup Card series.
Projected Starters - A look at Saturday's matchups (all times Eastern)
Twins (Ricky Nolasco - R) at Indians (Justin Masterson - R), 1:05
Yankees (CC Sabathia - L) at Blue Jays (Drew Hutchinson - R), 1:07
Orioles (Chris Tillman - R) at Tigers (Justin Verlander - R), 1:08
Reds (Alfredo Simon - R) at Mets (Jon Niese - L), 1:10
Padres (Ian Kennedy - R) at Marlins (Nathan Eovaldi - R), 1:10
Braves (Alex Wood - L) at Nationals (Taylor Jordan - R), 1:35
Brewers (Yovani Gallardo - R) at Red Sox (Jon Lester - L), 1:35
Cardinals (Adam Wainwright - R) at Pirates (Edinson Volquez - R), 1:35
Rangers (Yu Darvish - R) at Rays (Alex Cobb - R), 1:40
White Sox (Chris Sales - L) at Royals (James Shields - R), 2:10
Angels (Jered Weaver - R) at Astros (Scott Feldman - R), 2:10
Phillies (A.J. Burnett - R) at Cubs (Carlos Villanueva - R), 2:20
Mariners (Erasmo Ramirez - R) at Athletics (Tommy Milone - L), 4:05
Diamondbacks (Wade Miley - L) at Rockies (Brett Anderson - L), 4:10
Giants (Matt Cain - R) at Dodgers (Zack Grienke - R), 8:00
Day Game After Night Game: ATL/WAS, STL/PIT, LAA/HOU, MIL/BOS, SD/MIA, TEX/TB, ARZ/COL
Injuries
Day-to-Day
Martin Prado, 3B, ARZ - (Finger) Expected to return to lineup after laceration on Friday.
Jenrry Mejia, P, NYM - (Ankle) Ran Saturday morning with no problem.
Oswaldo Arcia, OF, MIN - (Wrist) Out of the lineup Saturday, and will rest for a couple days.
Billy Hamilton, OF, CIN - (Finger) Scratched from the lineup Saturday because of jammed finger.
Jason Castro, C, HOU - (Foot) Returned to lineup Saturday.
Dexter Fowler, OF, HOU - (Illness) Sat out Friday against the Angels.
Ryan Braun, OF, MIL - (Thumb) Wasn't in Saturday's starting lineup, and optimistic about Sunday.
David Ortiz, DH, BOS - (Calf) Took a planned day off Saturday.
Gio Gonzalez, P, WAS - (Illness) Will have three-plus days to recover from stomach virus.
Mike Carp, OF, BOS - (Back) Scratched from lineup Saturday with tightness.
Evan Gattis, C, ATL - (Illness) Stomach flu may keep him out for the weekend.
Players on the DL
Cody Gearrin, P, ATL - (Elbow) Appears to be headed for Tommy John surgery.
Cameron Maybin, OF, SD - (Arm) Had five at-bats in extended preseason game Saturday.
Sean Burnett, P, LAA - (Elbow) Went unscathed in a simulated game Saturday.
Doug Fister, P, WAS - (Back) May play catch Sunday.
Aroldis Chapman, P, CIN - (Head) Resumed light workouts two weeks after being struck in the face.
Devin Mesoraco, C, CIN - (Oblique) Will be activated from the DL either Monday or Tuesday.
Hisashi Iwakuma, P, SEA - (Finger) Healthy enough for a rehab appearance in two weeks.
Jonathan Broxton, P, CIN - (Elbow) Will be activated from DL Tuesday.
Taijuan Walker, P, SEA - (Shoulder) May join Mariners' rotation after one more rehab start.
Josh Beckett, P, LAD - (Thumb) Hurt ankle while trying to field a bunt during a rehab game.
Jason Giambi, DH, CLE - (Ribs) Needs to on timing before joining Indians.
Gordon Beckham, 2B, CWS - (Oblique) Scratched from rehab game.
Mark Teixeira, 1B, NYY - (Hamstring) Scheduled for an MRI on Monday after getting placed on DL on Saturday.
Jhoulys Chacin, P, COL - (Shoulder) Experienced no pain while throwing the last few days.
Tyler Chatwood, P, COL - (Hamstring) Set to make rehab start Tuesday.
Craig Breslow, P, BOS - (Shoulder) Made second consecutive rehab appearance Friday.
Jeremy Affeldt, P, SF - (Knee) Will need two more minor league rehab appearances.
Placed on the DL
Mark Teixeira, 1B, NYY
Called Up
Marcus Walden, P, TOR
Austin Romine, C, NYY
Aaron Brooks, P, KC
Nick Martinez, P, TEX
Sent Down (to Triple-A, unless otherwise noted)
Jeremy Jeffress, P, TOR
Pedro Ciriaco, SS, KC
Daniel McCutchen, P, TEX
Closer Watch
Royals - Greg Holland threw a perfect ninth inning which also included two strikeouts to get his first save of the season Friday against the White Sox. There are no questions about Holland's role as the Royals closer, but he wasn't impressive in his debut Monday against the Tigers where after four pitches in a tied game he gave up a walk off single to Alex Gonzalez.
Mets - Jose Valverde got his first save as a New York Met Friday against the Reds. The 36-year-old Dominican made it interesting by giving up a walk and then a a single to consecutive batters with only one out, but was able to get Joey Votto to fly out and Jay Bruce to strikeout for the Mets first win of the year. With Bobby Parnell possibly out for the season with a shoulder injury it should be interesting to see if Valverde will continue to take the mound in save situations.
Key Matchups
Hot Batter Matchups – April 6, 2014Matchup Info | Career Matchup Stats | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Batter | Pos | Game | Pitcher | AB | H | XBH | HR | RBI | BB | K | AVG | OBP | SLG | OPS |
| T. Plouffe | 3B | MIN @ CLE 1:05PM | J. Masterson | 16 | 4 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 8 | .250 | .400 | .500 | .900 |
| M. Izturis | 3B | TOR vs NYY 1:07PM | C. Sabathia | 21 | 9 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 3 | 3 | .429 | .500 | .476 | .976 |
| A. Lind | 1B | TOR vs NYY 1:07PM | C. Sabathia | 15 | 7 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 6 | .467 | .467 | .533 | 1.000 |
| J. Hardy | SS | BAL @ DET 1:08PM | J. Verlander | 31 | 8 | 4 | 3 | 7 | 1 | 6 | .258 | .273 | .581 | .853 |
| I. Kinsler | 2B | DET vs BAL 1:08PM | C. Tillman | 12 | 4 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 1 | .333 | .385 | .667 | 1.051 |
| B. Phillips | 2B | CIN @ NYM 1:10PM | J. Niese | 18 | 7 | 3 | 2 | 3 | 1 | 3 | .389 | .421 | .778 | 1.199 |
| L. Overbay | 1B | MIL @ BOS 1:35PM | J. Lester | 28 | 9 | 4 | 2 | 8 | 3 | 9 | .321 | .387 | .607 | .994 |
| M. Reynolds | 1B | MIL @ BOS 1:35PM | J. Lester | 26 | 7 | 4 | 1 | 3 | 3 | 3 | .269 | .387 | .500 | .887 |
| C. Barmes | SS | PIT vs STL 1:35PM | A. Wainwright | 21 | 7 | 4 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 4 | .333 | .391 | .619 | 1.010 |
| R. Martin | C | PIT vs STL 1:35PM | A. Wainwright | 22 | 9 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 4 | 3 | .409 | .519 | .500 | 1.019 |
| A. McCutchen | OF | PIT vs STL 1:35PM | A. Wainwright | 28 | 12 | 6 | 1 | 3 | 2 | 4 | .429 | .452 | .750 | 1.202 |
| J. Tabata | OF | PIT vs STL 1:35PM | A. Wainwright | 16 | 6 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 1 | 2 | .375 | .412 | .688 | 1.099 |
| N. Walker | 2B | PIT vs STL 1:35PM | A. Wainwright | 19 | 6 | 1 | 1 | 6 | 3 | 2 | .316 | .409 | .474 | .883 |
| M. Holliday | OF | STL @ PIT 1:35PM | E. Volquez | 20 | 8 | 3 | 2 | 4 | 1 | 4 | .400 | .429 | .750 | 1.179 |
| A. Ramirez | SS | CWS @ KC 2:10PM | J. Shields | 42 | 18 | 4 | 2 | 5 | 3 | 4 | .429 | .467 | .643 | 1.110 |
| D. Viciedo | OF | CWS @ KC 2:10PM | J. Shields | 19 | 8 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 3 | .421 | .476 | .421 | .897 |
| B. Butler | DH | KC vs CWS 2:10PM | C. Sale | 34 | 14 | 5 | 3 | 10 | 3 | 5 | .412 | .447 | .735 | 1.183 |
| E. Aybar | SS | LAA @ HOU 2:10PM | S. Feldman | 21 | 10 | 4 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 1 | .476 | .500 | .762 | 1.262 |
| R. Ibanez | OF | LAA @ HOU 2:10PM | S. Feldman | 15 | 5 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 4 | .333 | .375 | .600 | .975 |
| H. Kendrick | 2B | LAA @ HOU 2:10PM | S. Feldman | 18 | 8 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 1 | 2 | .444 | .474 | .667 | 1.140 |
| S. Castro | SS | CHC vs PHI 2:20PM | A. Burnett | 22 | 9 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 2 | .409 | .409 | .455 | .864 |
| C. Gonzalez | OF | COL vs ARI 4:10PM | W. Miley | 15 | 7 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | .467 | .467 | .667 | 1.133 |
| W. Rosario | C | COL vs ARI 4:10PM | W. Miley | 14 | 6 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 4 | .429 | .429 | .714 | 1.143 |
| A. Ethier | OF | LAD vs SF 8:05PM | M. Cain | 68 | 30 | 6 | 1 | 5 | 5 | 10 | .441 | .467 | .574 | 1.040 |
| A. Gonzalez | 1B | LAD vs SF 8:05PM | M. Cain | 69 | 20 | 9 | 4 | 13 | 10 | 16 | .290 | .375 | .551 | .926 |
| J. Uribe | 3B | LAD vs SF 8:05PM | M. Cain | 13 | 5 | 2 | 0 | 5 | 1 | 2 | .385 | .429 | .615 | 1.044 |
Matchup Info | Career Matchup Stats | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Batter | Pos | Game | Pitcher | AB | H | XBH | HR | RBI | BB | K | AVG | OBP | SLG | OPS |
Hot Pitcher Matchups – April 6, 2014Matchup Info | Career Stats Allowed To Batters On Opposing Team | |||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Pitcher | Game | AB | H | XBH | HR | RBI | BB | K | AVG | OBP | SLG | OPS |
| Justin Verlander | DET vs BAL 1:08PM | 208 | 39 | 13 | 5 | 17 | 13 | 59 | .188 | .237 | .304 | .541 |
Matchup Info | Career Stats Allowed To Batters On Opposing Team | |||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Pitcher | Game | AB | H | XBH | HR | RBI | BB | K | AVG | OBP | SLG | OPS |
Cold Batter Matchups – April 6, 2014Matchup Info | Career Matchup Stats | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Batter | Pos | Game | Pitcher | AB | H | XBH | HR | RBI | BB | K | AVG | OBP | SLG | OPS |
| J. Bartlett | SS | MIN @ CLE 1:05PM | J. Masterson | 12 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2 | .167 | .286 | .167 | .452 |
| J. Kubel | OF | MIN @ CLE 1:05PM | J. Masterson | 17 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 4 | 7 | .176 | .333 | .235 | .569 |
| K. Suzuki | C | MIN @ CLE 1:05PM | J. Masterson | 13 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 4 | 1 | 6 | .154 | .214 | .385 | .599 |
| J. Willingham | OF | MIN @ CLE 1:05PM | J. Masterson | 12 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 6 | .167 | .231 | .500 | .731 |
| J. Bautista | OF | TOR vs NYY 1:07PM | C. Sabathia | 23 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 4 | 8 | .087 | .222 | .217 | .440 |
| D. Navarro | C | TOR vs NYY 1:07PM | C. Sabathia | 14 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 1 | .143 | .176 | .143 | .319 |
| N. Cruz | OF | BAL @ DET 1:08PM | J. Verlander | 20 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 6 | .100 | .100 | .100 | .200 |
| C. Davis | 1B | BAL @ DET 1:08PM | J. Verlander | 17 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 9 | .176 | .263 | .176 | .440 |
| A. Jones | OF | BAL @ DET 1:08PM | J. Verlander | 27 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 1 | 8 | .111 | .143 | .222 | .365 |
| D. Lough | OF | BAL @ DET 1:08PM | J. Verlander | 12 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | .167 | .167 | .250 | .417 |
| M. Wieters | C | BAL @ DET 1:08PM | J. Verlander | 19 | 3 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 4 | .158 | .238 | .474 | .712 |
| D. Young | OF | BAL @ DET 1:08PM | J. Verlander | 30 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 10 | .200 | .273 | .200 | .473 |
| J. Bruce | OF | CIN @ NYM 1:10PM | J. Niese | 13 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 1 | 6 | .154 | .267 | .385 | .651 |
| J. Votto | 1B | CIN @ NYM 1:10PM | J. Niese | 15 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 4 | 7 | .133 | .316 | .333 | .649 |
| J. Gomes | OF | BOS vs MIL 1:35PM | Y. Gallardo | 13 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 4 | 4 | .154 | .353 | .385 | .738 |
| J. Jay | OF | STL @ PIT 1:35PM | E. Volquez | 12 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | .250 | .250 | .250 | .500 |
| Y. Molina | C | STL @ PIT 1:35PM | E. Volquez | 21 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 2 | 5 | .143 | .217 | .286 | .503 |
| A. De Aza | OF | CWS @ KC 2:10PM | J. Shields | 24 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 2 | .167 | .231 | .167 | .397 |
| A. Dunn | 1B | CWS @ KC 2:10PM | J. Shields | 26 | 5 | 1 | 1 | 4 | 5 | 10 | .192 | .323 | .308 | .630 |
| C. Gillaspie | 3B | CWS @ KC 2:10PM | J. Shields | 12 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | .250 | .250 | .250 | .500 |
| P. Konerko | 1B | CWS @ KC 2:10PM | J. Shields | 38 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 6 | 11 | .158 | .289 | .158 | .447 |
| L. Cain | OF | KC vs CWS 2:10PM | C. Sale | 27 | 8 | 3 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 5 | .296 | .296 | .481 | .778 |
| E. Hosmer | 1B | KC vs CWS 2:10PM | C. Sale | 25 | 6 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 8 | .240 | .240 | .280 | .520 |
| O. Infante | 2B | KC vs CWS 2:10PM | C. Sale | 13 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | .154 | .154 | .154 | .308 |
| M. Moustakas | 3B | KC vs CWS 2:10PM | C. Sale | 20 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 7 | .200 | .200 | .250 | .450 |
| S. Perez | C | KC vs CWS 2:10PM | C. Sale | 29 | 9 | 3 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 4 | .310 | .310 | .414 | .724 |
| A. Rizzo | 1B | CHC vs PHI 2:20PM | A. Burnett | 15 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 2 | 3 | .200 | .294 | .400 | .694 |
| L. Valbuena | 3B | CHC vs PHI 2:20PM | A. Burnett | 13 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 5 | .000 | .235 | .000 | .235 |
Matchup Info | Career Matchup Stats | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Batter | Pos | Game | Pitcher | AB | H | XBH | HR | RBI | BB | K | AVG | OBP | SLG | OPS |
Cold Pitcher Matchups – April 6, 2014Matchup Info | Career Stats Allowed To Batters On Opposing Team | |||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Pitcher | Game | AB | H | XBH | HR | RBI | BB | K | AVG | OBP | SLG | OPS |
| Jon Lester | BOS vs MIL 1:35PM | 75 | 23 | 12 | 4 | 14 | 7 | 17 | .307 | .381 | .573 | .954 |
| Adam Wainwright | STL @ PIT 1:35PM | 144 | 47 | 18 | 6 | 23 | 16 | 30 | .326 | .402 | .539 | .941 |
| Scott Feldman | HOU vs LAA 2:10PM | 69 | 26 | 10 | 2 | 10 | 4 | 9 | .377 | .422 | .593 | 1.015 |
| Matt Cain | SF @ LAD 8:05PM | 298 | 95 | 33 | 9 | 33 | 32 | 55 | .319 | .384 | .502 | .886 |
Matchup Info | Career Stats Allowed To Batters On Opposing Team | |||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Pitcher | Game | AB | H | XBH | HR | RBI | BB | K | AVG | OBP | SLG | OPS |
Recommended Pickup
Casey McGehee, 1B/3B, MIA - With 10 RBI's to his name in his first five games, McGehee leads MLB in the category up to the time this article was written. It is an impressive feat for the 31-year-old who spent the 2013 season across the globe helping the Tohoku Rakuten Golden Eagles win their first ever Japan Series title. McGehee certainly won't continue to produce at this pace, but he has shown that he is capable of doing so like he did in 2010 when he knocked in 104 runs to go along with a .285 average in 670 at-bats with the Brewers. There is little downside to picking up McGehee off the waiver wire in any league that he is available in even if there isn't space on your team's starting lineup because he may just help one of your opponents while his bat is still hot.
Other Recent Recommendations:Lucas Duda, Marcell Ozuna, Jose Valverde, Francisco Rodriguez, and Grady Sizemore.
DraftStreet Value Picks
SP: Erasmo Ramirez, SEA ($9,360)
C: Kurt Suzuki, MIN ($4,818)
1B: Casey McGehee, MIA ($5,062)
2B: Jose Altuve, HOU ($5,814)
SS: Adeiny Hechavarria, MIA ($5,089)
3B: Pedro Alvarez, PIT ($5,404)
OF: Adam Eaton, CWS ($4,997)
