N.L. FAAB Log: June 29, 2009

Mark DeRosa $32. Other bids $31, $30, $30, $27, $24, $23, $23, $23, $17.
There's not really much of a need to discuss who DeRosa is, so I'll focus instead on the tepid bidding here. Given that he's eligible at 2B, 3B, and OF and could hit 10-12 HR the rest of the way there probably should have been at least a $50 bid. I'm sure someone better could come along at the end of July, but getting an additional month's worth of stats from someone like DeRosa is worth higher bids than these.

Dan Meyer $8. Other bids $5, $4, $3, $2, $2, $2.
With Meyer picking up a save this week, and Leo Nunez nursing an ankle injury, Rotowire speculates that Nunez should be back in the role this week while Fangraphs likes Meyer based on his numbers. I tend to agree with Rotowire and lean toward Nunez, but Meyer's worth a bid because it's entirely possible that Fredi Gonzalez plays the hot hand. Meyer's been terrific all year and even if he doesn't close should be owned in all 4x4 leagues right now.

Alex Romero $7. Other bid $1.
I suspect that Romero will go back to being a 4th OF once he cools off, but he's hit so far since his call-up from AAA Reno, and it's not like the Diamondbacks offense is so terrific that Romero can't continue to amass a 10-15 AB a week even as a back-up. He's probably not going to do much more than hit for average and steal the odd base, though, so he's a 5th Roto OF option at best unless he does play every day.

Fernando Tatis $3. Other bids $3, $1.
With all of the injuries to the Mets, Tatis has moved from 1B to LF but has stayed in the line-up. He hasn't nearly been as productive as he was in his unexpected 2008 comeback. He could hit for more power but I'd watch closely...Tatis is at the age and stage of his career where sudden erosion wouldn't be shocking. The bottom line is that he's playing now and will keep playing as long as the Mets are short-handed.

Brian Sanches $2.
Marlins middle reliever and minor league journeyman who mostly pitched in the majors for the Phillies between 2006-2007. He's putting up a gaudy ERA with a WHIP and other peripherals that don't support it. It's highly unlikely he'll close at any point this season.

Joe Thurston $1.
With the acquisition of DeRosa, Thurston should be the odd man out in St. Louis. After a fast start, Thurston had cratered anyway, posting a 469 OPS in his last 40 AB. A well-timed hot streak could get him some more playing time at 2B, 3B or OF, but Thurston is a borderline player anyway since he doesn't hit for power and doesn't utilize his speed enough on the basepaths to make it worth your while.

Clay Zavada $1.
Hats off to Zavada for what he's done so far - 16 1/3 scoreless with 17 whiffs - but he's a junkballer (Baseball Prospectus described him in their annual as "a trick pitcher with a Bugs Bunny change-up and little else) who the league is probably going to catch up with at some point down the line. Also keep in mind that Zavada hadn't reached Double-A until this year at the not-so-tender age of 24.

Jonathan Sanchez $1.
An awful start to the season by Sanchez led to his demotion to the pen earlier this week. He was striking out nearly a batter an inning even as a starter, so he could be a sneaky 5x5 weapon if he keeps up the K rate and gets steady work in middle relief. Sanchez is a good guy to stash in leagues where you can reserve active major leaguers; I like him better long term than a lot of the guys we're going to see the Giants trot out there in the coming weeks.

Eliezer Alfonzo $1.
With Nick Hundley on the shelf, Alfonzo has split the catching duties with Henry Blanco nearly down the middle in San Diego. Alfonzo's a long way removed from his 12 HR campaign in 2006, though, and miserable plate discipline dooms him to a career as a fill-in and AAA insurance policy.

Craig Stammen $1.
Stammen is being moved to the pen with the imminent return of Scott Olsen, so this is a future play more than anything else. I suppose that Manny Acta could name Stammen his closer of the day at some point, but then the same could be said for you, me, the ballboy, the peanut vendor, and Joe Biden.
UPDATE: As I was writing this in the wee hours last night, the Nationals decided to keep Stammen in the rotation, and option Shairon Martis instead. Stammen gets a little slack since he was roughed up by the Red Sox in his last start, but given his poor K/IP rates, he's going to still need a lot of luck regardless of the line-up he's facing.

Brad Thompson $1.
Since I wrote about Thompson two weeks ago, he's put up a solid start against the Royals and a shaky one against the Mets. His poor K/BB ratio isn't a good sign; Thompson needs to throw strikes to be effective and not nibble.

Chris Coste $1.
Coste DHed a little bit for the Phillies, but now that interleague play is over his playing time should once again dwindle down to two or three starts a week at most. He has shown sneaky power in the past but not this year, making him nothing better than a middle-of-the-road #2 catcher even in deep leagues.

Anderson Hernandez $1.
After a torrid April (relatively speaking), Hernandez hasn't cracked a 600 OPS since and is a liability both to the Nationals and to Rotisserie teams. He steals the occasional base, but is certain to drag down your BA if you let him. He's stretched out as a starting 2B.