This article is part of our The Lineup Card series.
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Projected Starters – A look at Sunday's matchups (all times Eastern):
Tigers (Brad Penny – R) at Blue Jays (Jo-Jo Reyes – L), 1:07
Nationals (Livan Hernandez – R) at Marlins (Anibal Sanchez – R), 1:10
Dodgers (Clayton Kershaw – L) at Mets (R.A. Dickey – R), 1:10
Astros (J.A. Happ – L) at Pirates (James McDonald – R), 1:35
Rays (Wade Davis – R) at Orioles (Brad Bergesen – R), 1:35
Twins (Carl Pavano – R) at Red Sox (Daisuke Matsuzaka – R), 1:35
Yankees (C.C. Sabathia – L) at Rangers (Alexi Ogando – R), 2:05
Athletics (Tyler Ross – R) at Royals (Jeff Francis – L), 2:10
Brewers (Chris Narveson – L) at Cardinals (Kyle McClellan – R), 2:15
Reds (Johnny Cueto – R) at Cubs (Ryan Dempster – R), 2:20
Indians (Fausto Carmona – R) at Angels (Dan Haren – R), 3:35
Diamondbacks (Joe Saunders – L) at Padres (Aaron Harang – R), 4:05
Rockies (Jorge De La Rosa – L) at Giants (Ryan Vogelsong – R), 4:05
White Sox (Mark Buehrle – L) at Mariners (Erik Bedard – L), 4:10
Braves (Jair Jurrjens – R) at Phillies (Cole Hamels – L), 8:05
Day Game After a Night Game: COL, SF, ARI, SD, CHW, SEA, CLE, LAA, NYY, TEX, WAS, FLA, LAD, NYM, OAK, KC, HOU, PIT
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)
Ricky Romero, SP, TOR – (Oblique) He started Saturday's game. Get him in your lineups unless he suffers a setback.
Francisco Liriano, SP, MIN – (Illness) His next start has been pushed back to Tuesday.
Jose Bautista, OF, TOR – (Neck) He ran and took batting practice Saturday. Toronto expects him to be back in the lineup at DH Sunday.
Nick Swisher, OF, NYY – (Illness) He was scratched from Friday's game with an illness, but he's back in the lineup Saturday.
Carlos Ruiz, C, PHI – (Back) Ruiz's status should be updated in about a day or two, but he's considered day-to-day right now.
Placido Polanco, 3B, PHI – (Toe) Polanco left Friday's game in the seventh inning with a bruised right toe. He was in the preliminary lineup for Saturday's game.
Miguel Cairo, 3B, CIN – (Knee) Cairo hasn't started since April 30, but he's available to play Saturday, indicating his knee is getting better.
Pedro Alvarez, 3B, PIT – (Quad) Alvarez's quad is improving, but he still feels pain when he runs. There is no timetable for his return.
Matt Lindstrom, RP, COL – (Arm) Lindstrom will pitch through his arm soreness.
Paul Janish, SS, CIN – (Ankle) Janish sat out Saturday's game, and he sounds doubtful for Sunday.
Ryan Theriot, SS, STL – (Lower Leg) Theriot was hit by a pitch in Friday's game, and he was not in the starting lineup Saturday.
Mike Morse, OF, WAS – (Knee) Morse has been used as a pinch-hitter the last two games, but he still wasn't ready to start Saturday.
Players on the DL
Carlos Carrasco, SP, CLE – (Elbow) He was originally only scheduled to make one rehab start, but Carrasco struggled Friday. We're in a wait-and-see status..
Jayson Nix, 3B, TOR –Nix is still experiencing soreness in his leg and may not be able to appear in rehab games for another week.
Delmon Young, OF, MIN – (Oblique) Young could return early next week.
Bobby Jenks, RP, BOS – (Arm) Jenks won't pick up a baseball until next week and will then have to work his way back.
Kendrys Morales, 1B, LAA – (Ankle) The Angels don't expect him to return until June at the earliest.
Scott Kazmir, SP, LAA – (Back) Kazmir could be cleared to begin a rehab assignment if everything goes well in his extended spring training game this weekend.
Jason Kendall, C, KC – (Shoulder) Kendall has pushed his expected return date back to mid-June or July.
Brian Matusz, SP, BAL – (Back) Matusz is aiming to return to the team by early June.
Nelson Cruz, OF, TEX – (Quad) Placed on the 15-day DL retroactive to May 4. He'll be eligible to return May 19.
Jarrett Hoffpauir, 2B, SD – (Quad) Hoffpauir was moved to the 60-day DL.
Nick Hundley, C, SD – (Oblique) The Padres are being cautious with him and expect him to return as soon as his DL stint is over.
Brian Tallet, RP, STL – (Hand) Tallet's scheduled throwing session has been pushed back a week, delaying his return.
Bryan Augenstein, RP, STL – (Groin) The Cardinals still don't have a timetable for his return, but he's been playing long toss.
Skip Schumaker, 2B, STL – (Elbow) Schumaker remains a few weeks away from returning, but he's increasing his workload in rehab.
Roy Oswalt, SP, PHI – (Back) Oswalt is concerned that his back injury may be a serious issue. The team will reevaluate him after a few more days of rest.
Ross Ohlendorf, SP, PIT – (Shoulder) The team wants him to build up his arm strength before they send him on a rehab assignment.
Logan Morrison, OF, FLA – (Foot) Morrison will begin a rehab assignment Monday and is still targeting a return on May 13.
Clay Hensley, RP, FLA – (Shoulder) Hensley was placed on the 15-day DL.
Rafael Furcal, SS, LAD – (Thumb) Furcal has resumed baseball activities.
Chase Utley, 2B, PHI – (Knee) Utley hit two home runs and went 5-for-7 in his first extended spring training game Saturday. He needs to play defense before the team will send him on a rehab assignment.
Rick Ankiel, OF, WAS – (Wrist) Ankiel was placed on the 15-day DL retroactive to May 3.
Transactions - Players that have been demoted, called up, traded, released, you name it. We'll cover it here.
Called Up
Julio Teheran, SP, ATL
Burke Badenhop, RP, FLA
Craig Gentry, OF, TEX
Scott Mathieson, RP, PHI
Roger Bernardina, OF, WAS
Sent Down
Dusty Hughes, RP, MIN
Brandon Hicks, 3B, ATL
Placed on DL (15-day unless otherwise noted)
Nelson Cruz, OF, TEX
Roy Oswalt, SP, PHI
Clay Hensley, RP, FLA
Rick Ankiel, OF, WAS
Activated from DL
Kevin Slowey, RP/SP, MIN
Closer Watch - A closer look at intriguing ninth-inning situations (check out our Closer Grid with the link to the left).
Cincinnati – Francisco Cordero blew his first save of the season Saturday. There are going to be people out crying for Cordero to be removed from the closer role and for Aroldis Chapman to replace him. Don't listen to those people. They're drama hounds. Cordero converted 79 saves over the last two seasons. Manager Dusty Baker will not remove Cordero from the closer role unless his arm falls off.
Chicago White Sox – Matt Thornton came into Friday's game with the score tied and eventually allowed the Mariners to collect the game-winning run. He has a 7.36 ERA with an 0-3 record and 14:6 K:BB ratio in 11 innings of relief. Sergio Santos is the team's closer, but it's still shocking to see just how terrible Thornton has done this season after coming into the season as the closer.
Los Angeles Dodgers – Jonathan Broxton was placed on the 15-day DL Friday, and the Dodgers expect him to be out about a month. Vincente Padilla will get the first crack at converting saves while Broxton is out, but many believe Hong-Chih Kuo could take that role from Padilla.
San Diego – Heath Bell blew his first save of the season Friday, but the Padres still came away with the win in extra innings. He's more in danger of being traded than he is of losing his job outright.
Toronto – Frank Francisco picked up his second straight save Friday after Shawn Camp gave up three runs in the ninth to create the opportunity. Friday's save situation was of the one-out variety, and Jon Rauch had already been in the game, so it's hard to say who would have been used if all things were equal.
Washington – Drew Storen entered Friday's game at the start of the eighth and pitched 1.2 innings to earn the win, while Sean Burnett came out to retire the final batter of the game and pick up the save. Storen remains to the guy to own for saves.
Key Matchups
Hot
Chris Coghlan vs. Livan Hernandez - 7-for-12 (.583), 0 HR, 0 RBI, 0:2 BB:K
Wes Helms vs. Livan Hernandez - 6-for-19 (.316), 1 HR, 5 RBI, 1:2 BB:K
Scott Hairston vs. Clayton Kershaw - 5-for-13 (.385), 0 HR, 0 RBI, 0:2 BB:K
Andrew McCutchen vs. J.A. Happ - 4-for-11 (.364), 1 HR, 1 RBI, 1:3 BB:K
Matt Diaz vs. J.A. Happ - 5-for-9 (.556), 1 HR, 1 RBI, 2:1 BB:K
Albert Pujols vs. Chris Narveson - 4-for-10 (.400), 2 HR, 4 RBI, 4:1 BB:K
Aramis Ramirez vs. Johnny Cueto - 5-for-19 (.263), 2 HR, 4 RBI, 4:4 BB:K – 1.072 OPS
Alfonso Soriano vs. Johnny Cueto - 8-for-23 (.348), 3 HR, 3 RBI, 1:5 BB:K – 1.114 OPS
Reed Johnson vs. Johnny Cueto - 3-for-8 (.375), 0 HR, 0 RBI, 0:1 BB:K – 1.000 OPS
Edgar Renteria vs. Ryan Dempster - 8-for-24 (.333), 2 HR, 7 RBI, 4:3 BB:K
Ramon Hernandez vs. Ryan Dempster - 6-for-12 (.500), 1 HR, 3 RBI, 2:2 BB:K
Chase Headley vs. Joe Saunders - 4-for-12 (.333), 0 HR, 1 RBI, 0:0 BB:K
Xavier Nady vs. Aaron Harang - 10-for-27 (.370), 1 HR, 3 RBI, 0:3 BB:K
Freddy Sanchez vs. Jorge De La Rosa - 10-for-22 (.455), 2 HR, 6 RBI, 1:4 BB:K
Miguel Tejada vs. Jorge De La Rosa - 6-for-15 (.400), 1 HR, 2 RBI, 1:0 BB:K
Chipper Jones vs. Cole Hamels - 9-for-27 (.333), 2 HR, 6 RBI, 6:3 BB:K
Cesar Izturis vs. Wade Davis - 4-for-9 (.444), 0 HR, 1 RBI, 0:1 BB:K
B.J. Upton vs. Brad Bergesen - 5-for-10 (.500), 1 HR, 4 RBI, 0:2 BB:K
J.D. Drew vs. Carl Pavano - 6-for-13 (.462), 0 HR, 0 RBI, 0:1 BB:K
David Ortiz vs. Carl Pavano - 5-for-9 (.556), 1 HR, 3 RBI, 2:3 BB:K
Jason Varitek vs. Carl Pavano - 4-for-10 (.400), 0 HR, 0 RBI, 1:1 BB:K
Jason Kubel vs. Daisuke Matsuzaka - 5-for-10 (.500), 0 HR, 1 RBI, 3:1 BB:K
Justin Morneau vs. Daisuke Matsuzaka - 6-for-12 (.500), 1 HR, 2 RBI, 0:2 BB:K
Elvis Andrus vs. C.C. Sabathia - 4-for-10 (.400), 0 HR, 0 RBI, 1:2 BB:K
Conor Jackson vs. Jeff Francis - 13-for-38 (.342), 4 HR, 10 RBI, 3:3 BB:K
Kevin Kouzmanoff vs. Jeff Francis - 9-for-20 (.450), 2 HR, 6 RBI, 1:2 BB:K
David DeJesus vs. Jeff Francis - 4-for-12 (.333), 0 HR, 0 RBI, 1:3 BB:K
Grady Sizemore vs. Dan Haren - 9-for-17 (.529), 2 HR, 3 RBI, 3:3 BB:K
Ichiro Suzuki vs. Mark Buehrle - 20-for-45 (.444), 0 HR, 4 RBI, 1:3 BB:K
Miguel Olivo vs. Mark Buehrle - 6-for-23 (.261), 2 HR, 4 RBI, 1:5 BB:K
Jack Cust vs. Mark Buehrle - 5-for-12 (.417), 1 HR, 3 RBI, 1:5 BB:K
A.J. Pierzynski vs. Erik Bedard - 6-for-11 (.545), 1 HR, 1 RBI, 0:0 BB:K
Anibal Sanchez vs. Nationals – Sanchez has limited the Nationals to an embarrassing .237/.275/.272 slash line over 114 at-bats, and he's made Jayson Werth (15 strikeouts in 22 at-bats) look like a little leaguer at the dish. Start him in all formats Sunday, and sit Werth in everything smaller than the Intergalactic Omni-Roster League.
Jair Jurrjens vs. Phillies – Jurrjens has limited the Phillies to a slash line of .203/.276/.319 over 138 at-bats.
Brad Penny vs. Blue Jays – Penny has limited the Blue Jays to a slash line of .191/.214/.382 over 68 at-bats.
Cold
Omar Infante vs. Livan Hernandez - 4-for-23 (.174), 0 HR, 0 RBI, 0:2 BB:K
Jayson Werth vs. Anibal Sanchez - 2-for-22 (.091), 0 HR, 0 RBI, 0:15 BB:K
Brandon Phillips vs. Ryan Dempster - 3-for-21 (.143), 1 HR, 2 RBI, 2:6 BB:K
Jay Bruce vs. Ryan Dempster - 1-for-8 (.125), 0 HR, 0 RBI, 3:4 BB:K
Fred Lewis vs. Ryan Dempster - 1-for-8 (.125), 0 HR, 1 RBI, 2:4 BB:K
Chris Denorfia vs. Joe Saunders - 3-for-12 (.250), 0 HR, 0 RBI, 1:1 BB:K
Ryan Ludwick vs. Joe Saunders - 0-for-8 (.000), 0 HR, 1 RBI, 1:1 BB:K
Henry Blanco vs. Aaron Harang - 2-for-15 (.133), 0 HR, 0 RBI, 0:7 BB:K
Stephen Drew vs. Aaron Harang - 2-for-11 (.182), 0 HR, 0 RBI, 0:2 BB:K
Aaron Rowand vs. Jorge De La Rosa - 4-for-24 (.167), 0 HR, 1 RBI, 0:8 BB:K
Pat Burrell vs. Jorge De La Rosa - 1-for-10 (.100), 0 HR, 1 RBI, 3:4 BB:K
Jimmy Rollins vs. Jair Jurrjens - 4-for-26 (.154), 0 HR, 0 RBI, 3:0 BB:K
Shane Victorino vs. Jair Jurrjens - 5-for-25 (.200), 0 HR, 0 RBI, 3:5 BB:K
Dan Uggla vs. Cole Hamels - 6-for-40 (.150), 1 HR, 3 RBI, 4:12 BB:K
Jose Bautista vs. Brad Penny - 2-for-13 (.154), 0 HR, 2 RBI, 1:4 BB:K
Juan Rivera vs. Brad Penny - 3-for-14 (.214), 0 HR, 2 RBI, 0:2 BB:K
Corey Patterson vs. Brad Penny - 2-for-10 (.200), 0 HR, 1 RBI, 0:1 BB:K
Nick Markakis vs. Wade Davis - 3-for-19 (.158), 0 HR, 2 RBI, 1:2 BB:K
Brian Roberts vs. Wade Davis - 4-for-17 (.235), 0 HR, 0 RBI, 1:4 BB:K
Luke Scott vs. Wade Davis - 3-for-14 (.214), 0 HR, 1 RBI, 2:2 BB:K
Mike Cameron vs. Carl Pavano - 1-for-15 (.067), 0 HR, 0 RBI, 0:6 BB:K
Torii Hunter vs. Fausto Carmona - 5-for-31 (.161), 0 HR, 2 RBI, 1:10 BB:K
Asdrubal Cabrera vs. Dan Haren - 1-for-11 (.091), 0 HR, 0 RBI, 0:3 BB:K
Chone Figgins vs. Mark Buehrle - 6-for-37 (.162), 1 HR, 5 RBI, 2:6 BB:K
Adam Kennedy vs. Mark Buehrle - 3-for-19 (.158), 0 HR, 1 RBI, 0:1 BB:K
Jack Wilson vs. Mark Buehrle - 2-for-15 (.133), 0 HR, 0 RBI, 2:3 BB:K
Chris Narveson vs. Cardinals – Narveson has been lit up by the Cardinals to the tune of a .333/.417/.597 slash line over 72 at-bats.
Johnny Cueto vs. Cubs – Cueto has allowed the Cubs to hit a slash line of .305/.382/.563 over 128 at-bats. It might be best to sit him Sunday.
Brad Bergesen vs. Rays – Bergesen has, unsurprisingly, allowed the Rays to hit a slash line of .297/.352/.563 over 64 at-bats.
Carl Pavano vs. Red Sox – Pavano has allowed the Red Sox to hit a slash line of .343/.367/.490 over 102 at-bats.
Jeff Francis vs. Athletics – Francis has been abused so badly by the Athletics that he has a restraining order filed with Oakland County requiring that the Athletics' batters keep at least 60 feet and six inches away from him at all times. Unfortunately, that distance hasn't kept the Athletics from posting a bruising .333/.400/.667 slash line over 84 at-bats.
Erik Bedard vs. White Sox – Bedard has allowed the White Sox to hit a slash line of .342/.384/.532 over 79 at-bats.
Recommended Pickup
Chris Davis, 1B, TEX – Davis has played in the last three games for the Rangers with Nelson Cruz (quad) out of the lineup. The Rangers moved Cruz to the 15-day DL Saturday, making Davis a great short-term pickup and flier in most leagues. His struggles in 2010 were well documented (one home run and a .192 average in 120 at-bats), but Davis has great power potential and always hit for a tremendous average in the minors. A hot streak could get him regular playing time going forward. He can be used as a short-term option while Cruz is on the DL, and there's the chance that he could develop into a regular.
Bonus pick-up:Julio Teheran, SP, ATL – Teheran is one of the top pitching prospects in baseball. He made an unspectacular debut Saturday, but I would have made him my recommended pickup if the Braves weren't planning on sending him back down to the minors after Saturday's game. In some leagues, simply starting one major league game will make him eligible in the player pool. Those with larger rosters that can afford to stash him should take a look at the waiver wire to see if he is still around. If you aren't familiar with him, get familiar. You'll see his name here again later this season.
Other Recent Recommendations:Eric Hosmer, Josh Tomlin, Mark Melancon, Tom Gorzelanny, Justin Smoak
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C Ramon Hernandez, CIN ($5,438)
1B Albert Pujols, STL ($7,996)
2B Ben Zobrist, TB ($10,614)
3B Aramis Ramirez, CHC ($3,713)
SS Hanley Ramirez, FLA ($5,949)
OF Grady Sizemore, CLE ($9,105
OF Jack Cust, SEA ($3,233)
OF Conor Jackson, OAK ($6,400)
UTIL Chipper Jones, ATL ($7,005)
UTIL Andrew McCutchen, PIT ($6,661)
SP Anibal Sanchez, FLA ($10,462)
SP Brad Penny, DET ($6,584)
RP Leo Nunez, FLA ($2,806)
P Jair Jurrjens, ATL ($10,918)
Total: $96,884
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