Under My Microscope: Discovering Cueto
There are already countless storylines being followed out of the gate with the Rockies and Tigers flailing at the plate, the Royals and Nationals playing well and Kerry Wood and Eric Gagne already being monitored for possible shifts in the pen.
Each week, I'll step back from the diamond and take a survey of the action of the past week. It's a feature we call Under My Microscope. The first specimen to be reviewed this weekend has just been discovered in Cincinnati. Dusty Baker may be managing the second-oldest team in the game, but he's going to rely on youngster Johnny Cueto to make noise in the NL Central.
Honor roll — This week's top performers
I trumpeted his arrival this spring, and Cueto lived up to the hype. He struck out 10 hitters in his seven innings pitched and allowed only one hit, a solo home run to Justin Upton. Most impressively, Cueto did not allow a walk in the game. He'll face another stiff test in his next start against the Brewers.
The big knock on Angels hurler Jon Garland is that he doesn't strike out many hitters. If he can induce groundballs in buckets like he did against the Twins in his debut, then it won't matter. Garland scattered six hits in his eight innings against Minnesota. He allowed one earned run while surrendering one walk and registering zero strikeouts. However, Garland recorded 17 groundball outs. His ability to keep the ball down will dictate how well he performs in 2008.
The Angels also received a huge effort from Joe Saunders, who pitched eight shutout innings against the Twins. Saunders allowed four hits and one walk while striking out four batters. And, just like Garland, he induced 14 groundballs against five flyballs to earn the win.
Indians pitcher Fausto Carmona, like Garland, relies heavily on keeping the ball down and away from hitters. Carmona's control wasn't exceptional against Garland's former team (four walks against four strikeouts), but he did induce 16 groundballs against a single flyball. Seriously, that's some nasty breakage.
Prospect Blake DeWitt was pressed into action by the Dodgers following injuries to Nomar Garciaparra and Andy LaRoche, and the 22-year-old hasn't looked back. DeWitt currently leads the National League in hitting with a .556 batting average (5-for-9) alongside teammate James Loney, and has drawn three walks and stolen a base. DeWitt has yet to strike out.
Xavier Nady hammered two home runs in the 12-11 thriller over Atlanta on opening night and has added to his league-leading RBI total in each game. Nady also drove home the game-winner on Thursday night. He's got seven RBI in his 14 at-bats and has hit safely in all three games to open the year.
Don't tell Kansas City that the Tigers can't be tamed. Brian Bannister pitched seven brilliant innings against Detroit in his 2008 debut. Bannister allowed just two hits and issued zero walks while striking out four hitters. He'll next face a Twins team that scored just eight runs in its first four games.
What about Rich Harden? He dominated the Red Sox in the season opener in Japan with nine strikeouts in six innings of work. Harden faced Boston a second time and pitched five scoreless frames. The 26-year-old hurler has allowed one earned run in 11 innings while striking out 15 batters. The lone issue that can be pondered is the fact that Harden has walked seven hitters.
Scott Hairston won the battle for left field in San Diego coming out of spring training and has already paid dividends for the Padres. Hairston homered in back-to-back games against the Astros and enters the weekend series against the Dodgers with a robust .400 batting average (6-for-15) and three RBI.
Atlanta infielder Yunel Escobar is also off to a hot start, hitting safely in six of his first 16 at-bats (.375) with a triple, home run and six RBI. He owns a three-game hitting streak entering the season and will continue to see ample pitches to hit in the No. 2 hole ahead of the hot-hitting Chipper Jones (8-for-18 with six RBI of his own).
I would be remiss if I failed to acknowledge that 2007 NL Cy Young award winner Jake Peavy took the first step toward defending his crown with seven shutout innings of work in the opener against Houston (three hits, three walks and four strikeouts). I had a chance to catch up with Jake on Thursday in Lake Elsinore, California, where the Lake Elsinore Storm were set to retire Peavy's No. 22. I asked him about the importance of notching the early victory. "It's important to set the tone on Opening Day and establish the way, hopefully, that things are going to go for the season. I was able to throw pretty well and everybody did their job. It was a good day."
I asked Jake about his relationship with Greg Maddux and what he brings to the clubhouse. "It's no coincidence that I had my best year with Greg in the clubhouse. We talk about a lot of stuff, game planning, approaching hitters and he's been a great help to my golf game."
Detention — This week's fantasy underachievers
What happened to the offensive explosion that we anticipated from the Tigers? The Royals solved the Detroit lineup in their season-opening series, limiting them to five runs in three games while recording 24 strikeouts.
Travis Buck of the A's struggled terribly in three appearances against the Red Sox. Buck went 0-for-14 with seven strikeouts, including the dreaded "sombrero," when he struck out four times on Tuesday.
Seattle first baseman Richie Sexson makes the list with his 1-for-11 performance in the opening series. Sexson struck out four times while drawing two walks against the Rangers.
Dodgers catcher Russell Martin failed to record a hit in the opening series against the Giants. Martin drew two walks and struck out four times. However, he did steal a base. That's little consolation to those who drafted Martin in the third or fourth round.
Martin's early struggles were topped by slugger Justin Morneau of the Twins, who went 0-for-12 against the Angels. He drove in a run and drew two walks while leaving five runners on base.
The Cubs finally took a win from the Brewers on Thursday, due in part to the efforts of Alfonso Soriano, who drove in two runs. Soriano ended a season-opening streak of 12 hitless at-bats. He also stole a base in the 6-3 win.
San Francisco received nice outings from their younger starters against the Dodgers, but veteran lefty Barry Zito scuffled. Zito allowed eight hits and four earned runs in five innings of work (7.20 ERA and 1.80 WHIP).
We keep waiting for Daniel Cabrera to harness the power of his right arm and become a more consistent pitching option. The wait continues. Cabrera was hammered by the Rays on Wednesday, surrendering six hits and six earned runs in four innings pitched. As we've seen on numerous occasions in Cabrera's past, the walks did him in on Wednesday. Cabrera walked five hitters and surrendered two home runs in Wednesday's game.
Chicago starter Mark Buehrle failed to escape the second inning in his first start against the Indians. Buehrle allowed seven earned runs on seven hits (two home runs) and one walk. He'll get back on the hill against the Tigers this weekend.
Curve Busting — This week's fantasy surprises
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| Carlos Beltran's knee wasn't giving him much trouble at the plate against Florida, and he even managed to swipe a bag in New York's opening series. (Doug Benc / Getty Images) |
Carlos Beltran may not run as much given the health of his knee, but that isn't stopping the veteran outfielder from slamming balls off the wall. Beltran had five hits in the opening series against Florida, all five hits were doubles. He did steal a base.
The Braves scored 26 runs in their first four games despite the fact that Mark Teixeira and Jeff Francoeur drove in a total of three runs (each of them hit a home run).
Perhaps the biggest surprise of the season (I've already hailed the opening series sweep by the Royals) was the performance of the St. Louis pitching staff. The Cardinals pitched to a sterling 1.00 ERA in three games against the Rockies with more strikeouts (27) than hits allowed (22).
Ambulance chasing (Injury updates)
Victor Martinez strained his hamstring in the season-opening series against the White Sox, but it appears to be a minor injury. Martinez was available to pinch-hit on Thursday (he flied out to left) and should be back behind the dish this weekend against Oakland.
Yankees catcher Jorge Posada has experienced a stiff shoulder this week, a condition that has kept him out of the lineup for two straight games. According to the team's official website, the move was precautionary and Posada is expected to return to the field this weekend against the Rays.
Atlanta pitcher Mike Hampton experienced another setback in his attempt to return to the field, a strained pectoral muscle, in pregame warmups. Hampton will return to the disabled list. He last took the mound in August of 2005.
Miguel Cabrera missed Thursday's game against the Royals with a strained quadriceps, and though he's moving very gingerly, the team put him back in the lineup on Friday against the White Sox as the designated hitter. Perhaps the opening sweep by Kansas City and the injury to Gary Sheffield (see below) prompted the decision, but it seems risky. We'll keep an eye on this one.
Sheffield received word late Thursday that his finger injury, originally thought to be merely jammed, was actually a torn tendon. He was scratched from Friday's lineup and is currently listed as "day-to-day."
Pittsburgh shortstop Jack Wilson injured his left calf while running to first base on a base hit, per The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette . He was replaced in the lineup by Luis Rivas. Wilson is listed as day-to-day and should be available to the team this weekend.
Kansas City is riding high with the three-game sweep of the mighty Tigers to open the year, but outfielder David DeJesus is nursing a sprained ankle and may miss several games. DeJesus hurt his ankle during spring training and recorded only a single at-bat in the first series against Detroit.
Arizona hurler Randy Johnson was battered for five earned runs on eight hits in four innings during his second rehabilitation start for the Tucson Sidewinders. He struck out only one hitter and allowed two walks. Johnson is scheduled to make one more start for Tucson before rejoining the Diamondbacks.
St. Louis outfielder Chris Duncan missed his second game with a hamstring injury, per The St. Louis Post-Dispatch. Ryan Ludwick went 0-for-2 with two walks and a stolen base in his absence against the Rockies.
Per the Elias Stats Bureau, Pedro Martinez allowed home runs in the first and second innings of a start for the first time in his career in Tuesday's start against the Marlins. That was interesting trivia, but the bigger news of the day occurred when Martinez felt a "pop" in the fourth inning, an injury that was later diagnosed as a hamstring strain. The New York Times reports that Martinez may miss 4-to-6 weeks of action. Nelson Figueroa was recalled from Triple-A New Orleans and may receive a starting nod against the Phillies.
According to The Washington Post, first baseman/outfielder Dmitri Young of the Nationals underwent an MRI on his back Thursday. With Nick Johnson performing well to open the year, the Nationals can't wait on a full diagnosis before thrusting Young back into action.
Closer carousel
San Diego closer Trevor Hoffman got back on the proverbial horse on Thursday, demonstrating the "memory of a cornerback" with a shutout inning against Houston for his second save of the year. Hoffman had blown a save on Wednesday, allowing four earned runs on three hits with a walk.
Wood rebounded nicely from his disastrous first outing against the Brewers. Wood allowed three earned runs in his first appearance and then fanned two hitters in a shutout inning against Milwaukee on Thursday.
Gagne made his first appearance for the Brewers against the Cubs and promptly served up a three-run home run to Kosuke Fukudome. The Elias Sports Bureau reported that it was the first time that Gagne had blown a three-run lead. He still got the win. However, the Cubs jumped all over him for three hits and a walk in this outing, leaving eyebrows raised.
Joakim Soria of the Royals appeared in all three of Kansas City's wins over the Tigers. Soria pitched three shutout innings while striking out four batters. He allowed only two hits in that series and did not issue a walk while recording two saves.
Matt Capps appeared on Monday night as part of the disastrous ninth-inning collapse against the Braves. Capps allowed three earned runs on two hits and two walks. He took full advantage of his second battle with Atlanta on Thursday, throwing a shutout inning (one hit and one strikeout) to earn his first save.
J.J. Putz was placed on the disabled list with inflamed cartilage in his right side. Putz was in obvious pain following a strikeout of Michael Young, but then surrendered a huge home run to Josh Hamilton. Starter Miguel Batista was called upon to close out the game, but Mark Lowe is expected to take over the role in his absence.
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