N.L. FAAB Log: June 15, 2009

Charlie Morton $7. Other bids $2, $1, $1.
One of the pieces of the Nate McLouth trade, Morton only threw an inning this week in his Bucs debut before a strained hammy knocked him out of the game. Reviews on Morton are mixed. His supporters point to a mid 90s heater, a plus curve and change, and a decent slider. Detractors point out that his control is poor and that he's never been considered a top prospect by most. His control has been much better this year, though, Morton does have an opportunity, and is worth a shot in pitcher-favorable Minnesota against the Twins. Long-term I'm not sure he'll make it, but at 25 the Pirates are probably going to give him multiple opportunities to sink or swim.
UPDATE: The lingering hamstring issue is pushing his start back to Saturday and into a less favorable match-up at Coors.

Casey McGehee $7. Other bids $2, $1, $1, $1.
McGehee looks more like organizational foot solider than someone to keep an eye on, but the 26-year-old did hit his first MLB HR today, and should get some starts against lefties over Craig Counsell and Bill Hall as long as he's on the roster. He's hitting for decent average right now, but it's more likely he'd settle in as a .240-.250 hitter with little power or speed. Stay closer to the minimum bid.

Brad Thompson $3.
Thompson's filling in for the injured Kyle Lohse, and put up a decent start this weekend against the Indians. He's a junkballer, non-prospect who keeps the ball on the ground but whose incredibly low strikeout rates scream "DANGER, WILL ROBINSON, DANGER!!!" He gets the Royals this week, and while it's a favorable match-up, it's hard to recommend a pitcher who gets by on this much guile, moxie, and spunk.

Fernando Nieve $2. Other bids $2, $1, $1, $1.
Rotoworld called Nieve's numbers at AAA "impressive", but they must be looking at the back at someone else's virtual baseball card: what I see is a solid AAA showing with a FB% that would get me a little nervous if I owned him. I think that Nieve's injuries have held him back in the past but that doesn't necessarily mean he's a sure sign for success now. With a home match-up against the Rays this week, he's worth a flyer.

Cliff Floyd $2.
Believe it or not, Floyd is still a DH only after starting there twice this weekend in Anaheim. With the Padres playing all of their interleague games at home this week, Floyd's going to go back to pinch hitting. He's not worth picking up this week.

Joe Beimel $2. Other bids $2, $1.
Beimel picked up a save this week against the Reds, so it's possible that he could be Manny Acta's choice du jour for closer. Of course, the tepid bids here express how I feel: predicting who Acta's going to anoint the closer this week is a sad and tired game that nobody wins. Beimel's worth a shot, and he hasn't allowed an ER in June, but at the moment it doesn't look like any reliever in this pen is a good bet to save more than 5-7 games.

David Weathers $2.
Weathers picked up a save this week after closer Francisco Cordero blew it, but Cordero's still the closer until further notice. This solidifies the fact that Weathers is probably the back-up should something happen to Cordero, and Weathers' overall numbers have been solid enough that you can certainly feel comfortable picking him up and waiting and seeing.

Jeff Suppan $2.
Suppan's put up some OK starts here and there, but for the most part he's been getting clobbered this year. His FIP of 5.64 tells me that his 4.48 ERA could be much worse and that Suppan's an accident waiting to happen. He's pitching in Cleveland this week, and I would avoid.

Jason Hammel $1.
Hammel has decent stuff, but a high BABIP resulted in him getting whacked around much of the year. He's quietly turned it around in his last three starts, and might be worth adding in N.L.-only leagues for his start this week against the Pirates. Long term, I still suspect Hammel's future might be in the pen, but I imagine the Rox are committed to him in the rotation for 2009.

Micah Owings $1.
Owings has been up and down all year, and while he shows flashes of the brilliance that led to the D-backs tabbed him in the third round back in 2005, I find myself wondering if Owings isn't going to be nothing more than a borderline MLB starter - if he's lucky. He's not hitting 90 MPH on the gun with any frequency, and he's not deceptive enough to get by with the stuff he has on a prolonged basis. He has the Braves this week at Great American.

Angel Guzman $1.
With Carlos Marmol struggling, Guzman has quietly moved up the depth chart in Chicago and could even be next in line for saves should Kevin Gregg falter. Guzman even picked up a stray save recently in a 14-inning affair against the Reds. Given Gregg's poor WHIP, I'd at the very least keep an eye on Guzman.

Andres Torres $1.
With Fred Lewis slumping, Torres has parlayed a hot hand into quite a few OF starts for the Giants. He's a 31-year-old non-prospect, but he does have great basestealing speed and could parlay even a limited role into 10-15 SB. Definitely grab him if he's available in your league if you need the swipes.

Alberto Gonzalez $1.'
Gonzalez's empty .300+ batting average has led to a couple of starts a week, but he doesn't provide any kind of serious Roto value. His speed from the low minors hasn't translated well to the majors, and Gonzalez's defensive prowess and versatility doesn't help us at all.

Frank Catalanotto $1.
With the Brewers playing exclusively in A.L. parks this week, the Cat might get a couple of starts at DH. He's barely hitting though, and it's entirely possible that the limited value Catalanotto once provided is now gone. Light a very tiny candle for him.

Ramon Troncoso $1.
Even as he continued his scoreless streak, Troncoso struggled in late May into early June before turning it around in his last few outings. He has three saves, which gives him some back-up value on a team that has generated a lot of opportunities so far. He's not going to replace Jon Broxton, obviously, but Troncoso has looked good this year and his heavy sinking fastball combined with a strong pitchers park makes him a strong play in deep N.L. only leagues.

Kevin Correia $1.
Don't look now, but Correia has quietly put together solid back-to-back starts for the Padres at home against Arizona and in L.A. He's actually a solid two-start option this week at home against the Mariners and A's minus their DHes. His K/IP rate is up considerably from last year, so despite the so-so ERA/WHIP, Correia definitely could be a candidate for continued success if things break right for him.

Robinzon Diaz $1.
He's been splitting the starts at catcher down the middle lately with fellow Ryan Doumit sub Jason Jaramillo. However, Diaz has offered virtually no power and is probably not worth a throw even in N.L.-only leagues.