Fantasy Baseball Waiver Wire: Stuck in a Rut

By Muntradamus
BEAST DOME NATION.

Feel free to ask any questions below.  I will be live on the chat Monday Afternoon to answer all Fantasy Baseball questions!

JOSH RUTLEDGE – SS – COL

Stats as of 7/30: .379 Average. 2 HR. 8 RBI. 3 SB.

With Tulowitzki’s season looking more and more in doubt, and now the move of Marco Scutaro being traded to the Giants.  The Rockies are clearly committed to giving Rutledge the reigns to hold the job the entire season.  He is hitting near .380 through 55 games and has already showed that there is some power/speed combo to work with.  Playing in Coors while hitting above .300 at the thin SS position is enough to give him a look on all fantasy teams.  If Tulo comes back, Rutledge could easily move to 2B.

JEFF SAMARDZIJA – RP/SP – CHC

Stats as of 7/30: 4.19 ERA. (7-8). 1.31 WHIP. 121 Ks in 120.1 INN.

Samardzija is maybe the one piece of the puzzle the Cubs will not trade from their pitching staff.  After starting out the season dominant, then going through a rough spell of consistency.  Samardzija has come out the other side a man.  He is now dominating good teams such as the Cardinals and Pirates, and is currently on a 5 game QS streak with a 1.91 ERA and 36 Ks over that streak.  Wins may be hard to come by, but good pitching is hard to come by as well.

A.J. GRIFFIN – SP – OAK

Stats as of 7/30: 2.25 ERA. (3-0). 0.97 WHIP. 26 Ks in 36 INN. (6 Starts)

A rookie pitcher that everyone expected to slow down is playing better than maybe your superstar pitcher.  Griffin has been near flawless all season, and now shows he has K potential after getting 9 of them against Toronto.  Griffin is the real deal as well as this all of a sudden red hot A’s team.  Griffin would be added in way more leagues if he started the season in the majors, do not let another Oakland A’s pitcher go unnoticed on the wire as he is putting up his numbers against tough AL East teams.

JEMILE WEEKS – 2B – OAK

Stats as of 7/30: .222 Average. 2 HR. 16 RBI. 14 SB.

Weeks was supposed to be a 10 HR/40 SB player this year for Oakland.  That was not the case as he really did nothing with consistency all season.  Slowly he is starting to get it together again as he hit .304 with a SB and 2 RBIs this week alone.  He is back to hitting leadoff, and the A’s offense is one of the best in baseball.  He could turn it on quicker than we thing.

RYAN ROBERTS – 2B/3B – TB

Stats as of 7/30: .240 Average. 7 HR. 36 RBI. 6 SB.

Roberts was supposed to be a 20-20 guy this season.  The D-Backs saw it, and some members of the fantasy nation wanted to predict it.  Now that he has moved into an AL East hitting D-Rays team that uses him everyday while Longoria remains out.  He should be added in all leagues where you need a 2B option.  He qualifies at third, but he is really a good fantasy 2B option only.  His power is sporadic, he will steal bases every now and then, but most importantly you get a good RBI quality guy for cheap.  Do yourself a favor and add this utility player who will find PT wherever the Rays need to play him.

RICKIE WEEKS – 2B – MIL

Stats as of 7/30: .209 Average. 11 HR. 37 RBI. 7 SB.

There is a good chance someone in your league was frustrated and dropped Rickie at some point this season.  Well now is the time to pick him up as he looks just as good as he ever has in his career.  In the last 5 games he is hitting .555 with 2 HRs, 4 RBIs, and 1 SB.  Rickie is doing it all and we all have seen this potential before.  Add him now as you are picking up someone who would be drafted as a top 10 2B.