Friday Lineup Card: It Wood Help Your Chances

Projected Starters – A look at Friday's matchups:

Tigers (Jeremy Bonderman – R) at Orioles (Chris Tillman – R), 4:35
Tigers (Rick Porcello – R) at Orioles (Jeremy Guthrie – R), 7:05
Nationals (Jordan Zimmerman – R) at Mets (Pat Misch – L), 7:10
Brewers (Mark Rogers – R) at Reds (Travis Wood – L), 7:10
Pirates (Paul Maholm – L) at Marlins (Adalberto Mendez – R), 7:10
Yankees (Andy Pettitte – L) at Red Sox (Daisuke Matsuzaka – R), 7:10
Phillies (Kyle Kendrick – R) at Braves (Brandon Beachy – R), 7:35
Cubs (Casey Coleman – R) at Astros (Bud Norris – R), 8:05
Angels (Jered Weaver – R) at Rangers (Tommy Hunter – R), 8:05
Rays (James Shields – R) at Royals (Bruce Chen – R), 8:10
Indians (Fausto Carmona – R) at White Sox (Tony Pena – R), 8:10
Blue Jays (Ricky Romero – L) at Twins (Carl Pavano – R), 8:10
Rockies (Jorge De La Rosa – L) at Cardinals (Jake Westbrook – R), 8:15
Diamondbacks (Zach Kroenke – L) at Dodgers (John Ely – R), 10:10
Athletics (Trevor Cahill – R) at Mariners (Luke French – L), 10:10
Padres (Clayton Richard – L) at Giants (Matt Cain – 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)

Aaron Harang, SP, CIN – (Ankle) His ankle is fine despite being discolored. He's a long shot to make the playoff roster at this time.
Placido Polanco, 2B, PHI – (Elbow) Received a cortisone shot in his sore left elbow Wednesday. He'll play in one or two games this weekend.
Nick Evans, OF, NYM – (Shoulder) Scheduled to undergo an MRI Thursday that should help determine whether he plays anymore this season.
Kosuke Fukudome, OF, CHC – (Knee) May miss the remainder of the season with a mild left knee strain.
Brian Roberts, 2B, BAL – (Illness) Missed Tuesday and Wednesday's games.
Andy Pettitte, SP, NYY – (Back) His back stiffened up in his last start. The Yankees will likely watch him closely on Friday.
Gordon Beckham, 2B, CHW – (Hand) Is unlikely to receive any more at-bats this season, but he could be used as a pinch-runner at times.
David Murphy, OF, TEX – (Groin) MRI revealed a mild left groin strain. He'll likely be held out of the remainder of the regular season.
Carlos Quentin, OF, CHW – (Ankle) A sore ankle forced him out of Wednesday's game and kept him out of the starting lineup Thursday. He expects to play again this season.
Evan Longoria, 3B, TB – (Quadriceps) Sat out again Thursday, but the Rays will look to get him some at-bats this weekend to have him ready for the playoffs.

Players on the DL

Carlos Beltran, OF, NYY – (Knee) Diagnosed with inflammation in his knee and will miss the remainder of the season.
Brandon Webb, SP, ARI – (Shoulder) Only hit 78-82 mph with his fastball during an instructional league appearance Wednesday.
Jake Arrieta, SP, BAL – (Elbow) Has opted to rehab his elbow instead of undergoing surgery to remove a bone spur. He should be ready for spring training.
Justin Morneau, 1B, MIN – (Concussion) Has had four straight days of good workouts. He may be trying to sneak into some games this weekend so he can make the playoff roster as a pinch hitter.
Josh Hamilton, OF, TEX – (Ribs) Expected to return to the starting lineup on Friday.

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)
Guillermo Moscoso, RP, Ranges (placed on the 60-Day DL)

Activated from the DL
Adam Ottavino, SP/RP, Cardinals
Mark Lowe, RP, Rangers

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 – Matt Thornton received his second save of the last four days Wednesday, but it's unclear whether he's the front runner for saves right now or if Chris Sale was merely unavailable.

Los Angeles Dodgers – Ronald Bellisario earned the save on Wednesday, and it was his second straight day being brought into the game in a save situation.

Milwaukee Brewers – John Axford redeemed himself Wednesday by recording his 23rd save of the season. Trevor Hoffman then picked up the save in the second game of the Brewers' doubleheader against the Mets. Axford is the pitcher to own.

San Francisco Giants – Ramon Ramirez picked up the save Thursday, but he was only used because Brian Wilson had pitched 2.2 innings over the prior two days.

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

J.D. Drew v. Andy Pettitte – 15-for-42 (.357), 3 HR, 4 RBI, 1:13 BB:K (.372 OBP)
Jorge Posada v. Daisuke Matsuzaka – 6-for-15 (.400), 0 HR, 2 RBI, 0:2 BB:K (.400 OBP)
Curtis Granderson v. Daisuke Matsuzaka – 6-for-14 (.429), 1 HR, 2 RBI, 1:0 BB:K (.467 OBP)
Vladimir Guerrero v. Jered Weaver – 5-for-14 (.357), 1 HR, 2 RBI, 1:1 BB:K (.400 OBP)
Nate McLouth v. Kyle Kendrick – 3-for-11 (.273), 2 HR, 3 RBI, 2:2 BB:K (.385 OBP)
Billy Butler v. James Shields – 5-for-11 (.455), 0 HR, 2 RBI, 1:2 BB:K (.500 OBP)
Melvin Mora v. Jake Westbrook – 7-for-16 (.438), 0 HR, 3 RBI, 0:2 BB:K (.438 OBP)
Jason Giambi v. Jake Westbrook – 6-for-14 (.429), 2 HR, 6 RBI, 5:2 BB:K (.579 OBP)
Juan Uribe v. Clayton Richard – 6-for-13 (.462), 1 HR, 3 RBI, 2:2 BB:K (.533 OBP)
Ryan Ludwick v. Matt Cain – 4-for-10 (.400), 1 HR, 3 RBI, 3:2 BB:K (.538 OBP)
Vernon Wells v. Carl Pavano – 8-for-20 (.400), 4 HR, 8 RBI, 0:2 BB:K (.381 OBP)
Mark Ellis v. Luke French – 5-for-10 (.500), 0 HR, 2 RBI, 1:2 BB:K (.545 OBP)
Rajai Davis v. Luke French – 5-for-11 (.455), 1 HR, 1 RBI, 1:3 BB:K (.455 OBP)

Jered Weaver v. Texas Rangers - .242/.294/.344 (through 297 batters faced)

Cold

Bill Hall v. Andy Pettitte – 2-for-16 (.125), 0 HR, 0 RBI, 0:5 BB:K (.125 OBP)
Felipe Lopez v. Andy Pettitte – 4-for-24 (.167), 0 HR, 3 RBI, 1:8 BB:K (.200 OBP)
Elvis Andrus v. Jered Weaver – 5-for-24 (.208), 0 HR, 1 RBI, 2:5 BB:K (.269 OBP)
Chris Davis v. Jered Weaver – 3-for-16 (.188), 0 HR, 3 RBI, 0:2 BB:K (.188 OBP)
Bobby Abreu v. Tommy Hunter – 2-for-11 (.182), 0 HR, 0 RBI, 2:1 BB:K (.308 OBP)
Alex Gordon v. James Shields – 2-for-12 (.167), 0 HR, 0 RBI, 0:3 BB:K (.167 OBP)
Yuniesky Betancourt v. James Shields – 4-for-19 (.211), 0 HR, 0 RBI, 1:1 BB:K (.250 OBP)
Aaron Rowand v. Clayton Richard – 2-for-12 (.167), 0 HR, 0 RBI, 0:1 BB:K (.167 OBP)
Miguel Tejada v. Matt Cain – 1-for-11 (.091), 0 HR, 0 RBI, 0:2 BB:K (.091 OBP)
Tony Gwynn v. Matt Cain – 3-for-16 (.188), 0 HR, 0 RBI, 0:3 BB:K (.188 OBP)
Alex Rios v. Fausto Carmona – 3-for-18 (.167), 0 HR, 0 RBI, 2:4 BB:K (.250 OBP)
John Buck v. Carl Pavano – 3-for-17 (.176), 1 HR, 2 RBI, 0:1 BB:K (.176 OBP)

Andy Pettitte v. Boston Red Sox - .303/.367/.453 (through 338 batters faced)
Daisuke Matsuzaka v. New York Yankees - .303/.387/.507 (through 163 batters faced)
Paul Maholm v. Florida Marlins - .325/.388/.571 (through 88 batters faced)
Jorge De La Rosa v. St. Louis Cardinals - .333/.413/.577 (through 92 batters faced)
Carl Pavano v. Toronto Blue Jays - .315/.353/.677 (through 134 batters faced)
Luke French v. Oakland Athletics - .324/.388/.592 (through 80 batters faced)

Recommended Pickup

Travis Wood, SP, CIN – At this point of the season, managers should be streaming pitchers if their league allows it. With that in mind, Wood is a good under-owned pitcher to throw out there in the final days of the season. Over the last month, Wood has a 3.30 ERA, 1.13 WHIP, and 27 strikeouts in 30 innings. He's going up against the Brewers on Friday and held them to two runs over five innings in his last outing against them.

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