A.L. FAAB Log: August 10, 2009

Alex Avila $10. Other bids $3, $1.
Avila's a college catching product who the Tigers still may have rushed to the majors because they were dissatisfied with their caddies to Gerald Laird all season long. Avila showed some decent pop at AA Erie but his batting average of .264 doesn't make for a pretty MLE. He did walk a lot, so maybe his OBP will make up for it. He's off to a hot start, so he's worth FAABing as a #2 guy if you've got a dead spot at catcher, but I'm not confident he'll start in 2010 if this is a next year bid.

Junichi Tazawa $10. Other bid $1.
John Sickels called Tazawa the "equivalent of a first round talent" in his last book, and Tazawa sure pitched like that in the minors this year. He's got good stuff and always gets praised for his poise on the mound. He's moving from the bullpen to the rotation this week to replace John Smoltz and assuming that the Sox offense is going to come back to life isn't a bad wins play going forward if he sticks in the rotation. He's also a relatively safe play in that the Sox have shown they'll keep throwing new bodies out there if something isn't working.

Dustin Nippert $6. Other bids $2, $1.
With the release of Vicente Padilla, it looks like Nippert has a permanent spot in Texas' rotation for now. He's pitched well of late in both the pen and the rotation, though his LD% looks awfully fluky and should rise going forward. On the other hand, he's got solid if not spectacular stuff and like Tazawa isn't a bad wins play if that's what you're looking for. He's a two-start pitcher this week with the Indians and Red Sox on tap.

Jeremy Accardo $2. Other bid $1.
The song remains the same for Accardo. He has been a solid option for the Jays out of the pen but it looks like Jason Frasor is the man right now in Toronto so Accardo's Roto value is limited. His high BB/IP rate doesn't help.

Jeremy Sowers $2.
I imagine that Sowers' buyer here is hoping to ride the hot hand; he's 2-0 with two ER allowed in 20 IP over his last three starts. Sowers is what he is, though: a pedestrian SP option at best whose marginal stuff is going to lead to some long days on the mound. He gets the Rangers this week in Cleveland, so isn't a pitcher I'd recommend for the match-up.

Esteban German $2.
The long-time veteran was called up to the Rangers to play some 2B while Ian Kinsler's on the shelf. He's an OK fill in option in deep leagues, too, but keep in mind that outside of a fluky 2006 German has never really offered much, and the SB he racks up in the minors (he had 33 this year) have never translated to the majors.

Lance Cormier $1. Other bid $1.
Cormier has put up some great numbers for the Rays despite the fact that he doesn't have a punchout pitch. J.P. Howell now looks fairly entrenched as the closer, so Cormier probably won't get any save opportunities. He keeps the ball on the ground and Joe Maddon has spotted Cormier well, so I think he's a decent option going forward.

Phil Coke $1. Other bids $1, $1.
Despite the subpar 4.98 ERA, Coke's been pretty solid this year, with a lot of the damage against him coming in a couple of bad outings against the White Sox (August 1) and the Angels (July 11). That's the problem, though: when Coke's a little off he's awful and Girardi hasn't been afraid to leave him out there to save the rest of the bullpen. It's fine to own Coke, but clunkers like the ones he's put up in those outings will kill your ERA/WHIP.

Glen Perkins. Claimed by 11th (tie) and 6th place teams.
Perkins has been blasted in two of his last three starts and had his turn in the rotation skipped this week. He's scheduled to undergo another MRI on his troubled shoulder and probably won't start this week either. This claim is by a non-contender who wants a $2 Perkins to look at in the off-season. I wouldn't touch him if I were still in contention; I suspect his injury is worse than we know.

Michael Saunders. Claimed by 8th, 6th, 3rd and 1st place teams.
Saunders has put up solid numbers for the Mariners so far, though he hasn't shown any of the power he flashed this year in the minors. He was described by Sickels as a toolsy prospect still working on his skills, so from that standpoint I've been impressed with what I've seen so far. Saunders should play quite a bit the rest of the way and is a good play for both teams playing for this year as well as next year.

Willy Aybar. Claimed by 7th and 6th place teams.
Aybar was waived last week due to a positional snafu and then he smacked two HR in a game. He's a decent source of MI power, and it looks like Joe Maddon is going to try to find ways to get Aybar a little more playing time down the stretch. That might be tougher if/when Akinori Iwamura returns in September, but Aybar is still a worthy claim/FAAB in all A.L.-only leagues.

Alexi Casilla. Claimed by 6th place team.
With the acquisition of Orlando Cabrera, the Twins infield is a crowded place and Casilla's already limited value has taken a hit as a result. He did play in back-to-back games over the weekend with at least one hit in each game so he might get more PT this coming week as a result. He's been so poor this year though that I can't recommend him as anything more than a desperation injury fill-in, even if you're desperate for the SB.

Danys Baez. Claimed by 4th place team.
Baez continues to be OK but - as predicted by most - Jim Johnson is the closer now in Baltimore and unless he blows a couple of saves in a row will probably stick in that role for a while.

Nick Green. Claimed by 3rd place team.
With Jed Lowrie getting hurt again, Green's the starter for the moment in Boston at SS. As many expected, his offense has fallen down the rabbit hole after a quick start, making Green an almost worthless play even as a regular, and a dangerous play as far as your BA is concerned.