Sunday Lineup Card: Ventura Names a Closer

Projected Starters – A look at Sunday's matchups (all times Eastern)


Blue Jays (Joel Carreno – R) at Indians (Derek Lowe – R), 1:05
Red Sox (Clay Buchholz – R) at Tigers (Max Scherzer – R), 1:05
Marlins (Carlos Zambrano – R) at Reds (Bronson Arroyo – R), 1:10
Braves (Mike Minor – L) at Mets (Jonathon Niese – L), 1:10
Phillies (Vance Worley – R) at Pirates (James McDonald – R), 1:35
Twins (Anthony Swarzak – R) at Orioles (Jason Hammel – R), 1:35
Yankees (Phil Hughes – R) at Rays (Jeremy Hellickson – R), 1:40
Rockies (Juan Niscasio – R) at Astros (Bud Norris – R), 2:05
Cardinals (Lance Lynn – R) at Brewers (Randy Wolf – L), 2:10
Nationals (Jordan Zimmerman – R) at Cubs (Jeff Samardzija – R), 2:20
Royals (Jonathan Sanchez – L) at Angels (Ervin Santana – R), 3:35
Dodgers (Aaron Harang – R) at Padres (Clayton Richard – L), 4:05
Giants (Matt Cain – R) at Diamondbacks (Josh Collmenter – R), 4:10
White Sox (Gavin Floyd – R) at Rangers (Matt Harrison – L), 8:05


Day game after a night game: MIN/BAL, PHI/PIT, COL/HOU, NY/TB, MIA/CIN, LAD/SD, SEA/OAK


Injuries – A brief look at players who have been missing time with minor ailments and their expected returns


Day-to-Day (includes players expected to make their return from the DL)

Bryan LaHair, 1B, CHC – (Back) Was available to pinch-hit Saturday and expects to return to the starting lineup Sunday.
Liam Hendricks, SP, MIN – (Illness) Will miss his start Sunday. Hospitalized with food poisoning, if he loses too much strength, Hendriks could be in danger of missing more than one start.
Brendan Ryan, SS, SEA – (Neck) Scratched with a stiff neck Saturday. He slept wrong the night before and should be back in the lineup Sunday.


Players on the DL
Rick Ankiel, OF, WAS – (Leg) Expected to return sometime in the coming week and will likely start in center.
Carlos Quentin, OF, SD – (Knee) Will hit off a tee Sunday. Still projected for an early-May return.
Tim Hudson, SP, ATL – (Back) Pitched three innings in Saturday rehab start. Still projected to return in late April or early May.
Jose Contreras, RP, PHI – (Elbow) Threw a scoreless inning in rehab Saturday. Could return from the DL this week, but the Phillies may hold him out longer.
Chipper Jones, 3B, ATL – (Knee) Jones will return by Friday, and the Braves believe he could return even earlier.
Dustin McGowan, SP, TOR – (Foot) Has not resumed throwing and no timetable for his return.
Tsuyoshi Wada, SP/RP, BAL – (Elbow) Has three rehab starts schedule before the Orioles will look at bringing him off the DL. He could start when healthy, but the team also might use him in the bullpen.
Daric Barton, 1B, OAK – (Shoulder) Unlikely to return immediately when eligible to come off the DL on Monday.
Doug Fister, SP, DET – (Upper Body) Will be placed on the 15-day DL Sunday with a left costochondral strain.
David Huff, SP, CLE – (Leg) Has resumed throwing and will begin the year at Triple-A when healthy.
Rich Hill, RP, BOS – (Elbow) Working his way back from Tommy John surgery. Targeted for an early-May return, but it could be sooner.
Andrew Miller, SP, BOS – (Hamstring) Targeted for an early-May return, but it could be sooner.
Carl Crawford, OF, BOS – (Wrist) Remains on schedule to return to the team around the start of May.

Transactions – Players who have been demoted, called up, traded, released, you name it. We'll cover it here.



Placed on the DL (15-day DL unless otherwise noted)
Doug Fister, SP, DET



Activated from DL

NA


Called Up

Bryan Villarreal, RP, DET
Rodrigo Lopez, SP/RP, CHC


Sent Down
Luis Valbuena, 2B, CHC

Traded

Brian Tallet, RP, SD (from Pirates)



Closer Watch – A closer look at intriguing ninth-inning situations (also check out our Closer Grid)


Chicago Cubs – Carlos Marmol and Kerry Wood are having rough starts to the season, but don't overreact to their struggles too quickly. Marmol remains the man to own, and Wood's struggles help Marmol since Wood is the likeliest guy to step up in Marmol's absence. Rookie Rafael Dolis is a dark horse to claim the gig at some point this season, so it's worth having him on your closer-dar.

Chicago White Sox – Hector Santiago has been anointed as the White Sox closer after recording the save Saturday. Manager Robin Ventura said his plan is to use Jesse Crain in the seventh, Matt Thornton in the eighth, and Santiago as the closer. For the time being, Santiago is a must pickup in any leagues that have saves as a category. There's no need to second guess this situation any longer. Santiago is the man to own, and Thornton, Crain, and Addison Reed should all be safe to drop in anything but the deepest of leagues and other formats that require potential closers be stashed.

Tampa Bay – Though manager Joe Maddon has been feeding us the line that he'll pick a closer depending on each game's situation, it's been Fernando Rodney who has been used the Rays' first two late-game situations. Rodney is worth picking up as the interim closer in any leagues that have saves as a category. He's not the greatest pitcher in the world, but as long as Kyle Farnsworth is out (expected to be sidelined for 4-6 weeks at the least), Rodney should be given the majority of the Rays' save opportunities.

Bonus Pick Up: Since Santiago was the recommended pick up yesterday, prior to his getting a save (great foresight by Derek Van Riper), some other guys worth a look right now: Fernando Rodney (saves, TB), Drew Smyly (fifth starter, DET).

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Draft Street Lineup

C Russell Martin (NYY-C) $5,923
1B Carlos Pena (TB-1B) $6,993
2B Jason Kipnis (CLE-2B) $6,866
3B Hanley Ramirez (MIA-3B) $8,063
SS Dee Gordon (LAD-SS) $4,656
OF Matt Kemp (LAD-OF) $9,452
OF Curtis Grande… (NYY-OF) $8,860
OF Alfonso Soriano (CHC-OF) $6,236
U Adam Dunn (CWS-DH) $4,143
U Danny Espinosa (WAS-2B) $5,686
SP Max Scherzer (DET-SP) $11,746
SP Jordan Zimmer… (WAS-SP) $12,096
RP Craig Kimbrel (ATL-RP) $2,479
P Anthony Swarzak (MIN-SP) $6,301

Total: $99,500

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