So, your pitching staff's taken a beating. There's more red DL marks than Red Cross.
Fear not. Help is here.
Three pitchers have risen from Waiver Wire mediocrity to pickup worthy status in just about every format, except the shallowest.
Your wire will vary, depending on how many folks are in an early-season comma, but here are three names to look at, currently ranked 15-17 by Yahoo! scoring, if you need armed reinforcements. (Listed in order of preference:)
Wandy Rodriguez, LHP, Astros (1-1, 1.89 ERA, 1.00 WHIP, 18Ks, 19 IP): Time to wave the magic Wandy? You bet. OK, so I'm a bit biased, as a Wandy owner in the Observer mixed-league, but after flirting with the left-handed Minute Maid strikeout artist in previous seasons, Wandy is proving himself early to be someone you can trust. Will this short-term relationship last more than a few spring dates? We shall see. But after mowing down the Reds with 7 innings of 2-hit, 2-BB, 10K wizardry, there's a sneaky feeling this one could go the distance.
Edwin Jackson, RHP, Tigers (1-0, 2.14 ERA, 0.81 WHIP, 13 Ks, 21 IP): The first time I heard about Jackson was in 2003, working for the Times-Union in Jacksonville, Fla. After moving up to the No. 4 ranked prospect in all of baseball in 2004, Jackson battled injury and inconsistency (where have we heard that before), before landing with the Rays and putting together a nice, but pedestrian season as Tampa Bay's fifth starter. With too many cooks in the Rays' kitchen (namely David Price), Jackson became expendable and sent packing for OF Matt Joyce. Playing in spacious Comerica, this could be year his 4-pitch arsenal, including a 95 mph fastball and lethal 89 mph slider all come together. He's especially tempting in a 4x4, as the 6.1 K rate will keep you above water in strikeouts, but just barely.
Ricky Romero, LHP, Blue Jays (2-0), 1.71 ERA, 1.10 WHIP, 13Ks, 21 IP): Romero and Jackson are almost waiver wire twins. Only with Jackson, we've seen what he can do pitching a couple years in the AL East, while Romero is a virtual unknown. Both have the same K rate this year, and both have checkered minor league pedigree. Romero has never been that highly-touted (ranked just 8th best prospect in Toronto's system in 2009), but injuries to Shaun Marcum and Dustin McGowan have opened the door. Control has always been an issue with Ricky (3.8 BB rate in the minors), but so far, just 4 walks in 21 IP has Romero sounding like a real estate agent: Location, location, location. His latest gem against the A's is not exactly like facing the '27 Yankees. We don't really know what to expect from Romero, but he just got snapped up in our 10-team mixed league and he's worth rostering in yours, too.
2 comments:
Brad Bergeson might be a good pickup on the Orioles. He pitched well last night and it's likely O's will keep him in rotation. Ding!
Jordan Zimmerman is a must if he's still on the waiver wire. I like your points on Jackson, Romero, and Wandy. All were top draft picks or prospects and some times it takes a few bumps in the road before they pay off. Think how many rough years The Unit and Schilling had before they finally hit their marks. I like these type of late-April acquisitions.
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