The Chicago Cubs placed Ted Lilly on the 15-day disabled list with a left shoulder inflammation. In addition to this injury Lilly will also undergo arthroscopic surgery on his left knee. Ted Lilly is expected to miss about 3 to 4 weeks. Kevin Hart is completing the rotation in the southpaw’s absence.
Ted Lilly has a 9-7 record over 19 starts in 2009 with a 3.59 ERA and 1.15 WHIP. In 123 innings he struck out 107 batters and has a K/BB ratio of 4.1.
Fantasy Impact: Lilly’s injury leaves a gap for fantasy owners in terms of useful stats, if only for a relatively short period of time. Jason Marquis (COL) or Chris Volstad look like decent short-term replacements. Please read “Pitch Or Ditch” as well for possible day-to-day fixes.
Scott Downs of the Toronto Blue Jays is back on the disabled list with a bruised left toe, the same injury that forced the closer to go on the 15-day disabled list in June. Scott Downs will not be rushed back into action and fantasy owners should be prepared to miss him for more than 2 weeks. Jason Frasor is expected to take over the closer role again.
Scott Downs has 9 saves, as opposed to 3 blown saves, but saw his ERA rise from 1.98 to 3.41 since his return from the DL in July.
Fantasy Impact: Jason Frasor is the only option from a fantasy point of view. He replaced Downs earlier this season and did a good job. Put Downs on DL if you can but Frasor may well be the closer for some time.
The Texas Rangers have decided to put Ian Kinsler on the 15-day disabled list with a strained hamstring. The second baseman is not expected to miss more than 2 weeks. Omar Vizquel will likely see more playing time at second base.
Ian Kinsler is batting a subpar .242 this season but has 71 runs, 23 home runs, 63 RBI and 22 stolen bases in 96 games.
Fantasy Impact: Ian Kinsler is the kind of player you can hardly replace but Jose Lopez (SEA) is most likely to limit the damage over the next two weeks. I was fortunate enough to have Mark DeRosa (STL) on waiver wire.
Corey Hart of the Milwaukee Brewers went on the 15-day disabled list because of appendicitis. The outfielder will likely miss all of August. Bill Hall has been recalled from Triple-A and is expected to share playing time in right field with Frank Catalanotto.
Corey Hart is having a slightly disappointing season. He is batting .264 with 56 runs, 11 bombs, 40 RBI and 9 stolen bases in 98 games. Halfway through the season it is safe to say that he won’t be a 20/20 player this year.
Fantasy Impact: Corey Hart should be stashed in all leagues and formats. The best available players on waiver wire may only be Nick Swisher (NYY) or Pat Burrell (TB).
Here are a few players who are expected to come off the DL soon:
Geovany Soto (CHC), Catcher, could be back in fantasy week 18 (August 3 – 9).
Lance Berkman (HOU), First Base, might return August 7.
Vladimir Guerrero (LAA), Outfielder, might return August 4.
Jason Giambi (OAK), First Base, expected to return August 4.
Pedro Martinez (PHI), Starting Pitcher, could return in fantasy week 19 (August 10 – 16).
this article is courtesy of novafantasysports.com
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