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Two Start Pitchers :: Week 21
by Scott Mickels
Published: August 20, 2010, 8:55 pm
 For Week 21, I have one email and one minor Injury Watch to get to. First, let's take on the Injury Watch. For this we head to Milwaukee where Brewers starter Dave Bush is dealing with a blister on his pitching hand. Despite pitching an effective 6 innings in his last start, the Brewers took him out of the game before the blister could get any worse. The reports out of Milwaukee are that the blister isn't lingering and Bush will be able to make his next start against the Dodgers. He's been hit-or-miss all season, so use him at your own discretion. Consider Bush a low-end Keep in Mind option in most leagues.
My email this comes to me from Ryan, so let's head to Mick's Mailbag…
Ryan writes: What the hell is wrong with Francisco Liriano? Can we get any consistency this year?!
As a fellow Liriano owner, I feel your pain to a degree. He throws 7 shutout innings against Cleveland only to not be able to get out of the 5th inning against the same Indians team two weeks later. I get that. With that said though, perhaps you should temper your expectations just a bit. Despite his recent struggles, he's still 5-0 in his last 7 starts and still sports a very respectable ERA and WHIP. Granted, he's still walking too many hitters, but the strikeouts are always there. More to your consistency question, no, he's likely not going to get any more consistent. Still, with the way he's pitched this year I think the occasional rough outing can be more than tolerated. He's playing for a contender and is getting great run support evidenced by the fact he gave up at least 4 earned runs in two of his last three starts, but he still came away with no-decisions in both outings. The main concern is his innings pitched. Keep in mind, Liriano has thrown for 146.1 innings so far this season, the most in his career, so he's likely wearing down just a bit. However, the Twins have been very smart in the past in regards to Liriano's health and progress, which leads me to believe if he's experiencing a dead arm or just general fatigue, I'm confident they'll handle it properly and not risk injury. I suppose you could always trade him if you're that unhappy with him, but I say stick with him and just enjoy the mostly good with the occasional bad.
Thanks for the email, Ryan! Good luck!
Now, on to what we all came here for, the Two-Start Pitchers!
Of course, if you have any pitching questions, or now any fantasy football questions, don't hesitate to email me with them at scottmickels@fantasyplaymakers.com.
NOTE: These starts are not set in stone. They can change for any variety of reasons; managerial moves, injuries, rain-outs, etc. Please keep in mind they are probable.
AMERICAN LEAGUE NO-BRAINERSNone
ADVISABLE OPTIONSGio Gonzalez, OAK: @ CLE, @ TEX
Colby Lewis, TEX: vs. MIN, vs. OAK
Francisco Liriano, MIN: @ TEX, @ SEA
Carl Pavano, MIN: @ TEX, @ SEA OTHERS TO KEEP IN MIND
Fausto Carmona, CLE: vs. ANA, vs. KC
Bruce Chen, KC: @ DET, vs. CLE
Gavin Floyd, CHW: vs. BAL, vs. NYY
Luke French, SEA: @ BOS, vs. MIN
Jeremy Guthrie, BAL: @ CHW, @ ANA
John Lackey, BOS: vs. SEA, @ TB
Brandon Morrow, TOR: vs. NYY, vs. DET
James Shields, TB: @ ANA, @ BOS
TRY TO AVOIDJeremy Bonderman, DET: vs. KC, @ TOR
Derek Holland, TEX: vs. MIN, vs. OAK
Scott Kazmir, ANA: vs. TB, vs. BAL
Dustin Moseley, NYY: @ TOR, @ CHW
Rick Porcello, DET: vs. KC, @ TOR
Marc Rzepczynski, TOR: vs. NYY, vs. DET
INJURY WATCH
None
NATIONAL LEAGUE NO-BRAINERSMatt Cain, SF: vs. CIN, vs. ARI
Cole Hamels, PHI: vs. HOU, @ SD
Tim Hudson, ATL: @ COL, vs. FLA
Josh Johnson, FLA: @ NYM, @ ATL
Adam Wainwright, STL: @ PIT, @ WAS
ADVISABLE OPTIONSJoe Blanton, PHI: vs. HOU, @ SD
R. A. Dickey, NYM: vs. FLA, vs. HOU
Jaime Garcia, STL: @ PIT, @ WAS
Hiroki Kuroda, LA: @ MIL, @ COL
Brett Myers, HOU: @ PIH, @ NYM
Clayton Richard, SD: vs. ARI, vs. PHI
OTHERS TO KEEP IN MINDJason Hammel, COL: vs. ATL, vs. LA
Livan Hernandez, WAS: vs. CHC, vs. STL
John Lannan, WAS: vs. CHC, vs. STL
Bud Norris, HOU: @ PHI, @ NYM
Ross Ohlendorf, PIT: vs. STL, @ MIL
TRY TO AVOID Casey Coleman, CHC: @ WAS, @ CIN
Rodrigo Lopez, ARI: @ SD, @ SF
Edinson Volquez, CIN: @ SF, vs. CHC
INJURY WATCHDave Bush, MIL: vs. LA, vs. PIT
* = this pitcher's two-start status is questionable.  Scott Mickels, FPM Staff Writer/Editor, Member of the Fantasy Sports Writers Association
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