Waiver Wire - National League

OK. Here's the National League Waiver Wire for this week.

National League

Ryan Doumit | PIT | C/1B/OF - Might not be in the bigs for a whole lot longer, but while he is he has value. He has pretty good power, and could hit about 8 with 200 ABs. He has a pretty good 82% Contact rate, 8.9% BB rate, and 20.3% LD rate, so a .280 average seems likely. He should grab a good amount of RBIs hitting 5th and grab a few Runs.
Recommendation: Should be owned in 12 and 14-team leagues while he is starting. Should be owned in all NL-only leagues while he is starting.

Endy Chavez | NYM | OF - With Alou on the DL, Chavez will get some regular playing time. Carlos Gomez will start some games, but Chavez has a great Contact Rate and good BB and LD rates. Plus, he has good speed, so he could grab a few SBs.
Recommendation: Should be owned in 14-team leagues until Alou gets back. Should be considered in 10 and owned in 12 and 14-team NL-only leagues until Alou gets back.

Kevin Gregg | FLA | RP - Tankersley hasn't been pitching very well, and Kevin Gregg seems to be the favorite for saves until Owens gets back, which could be in a few days. I like Gregg a lot preseason, and had drafted him late in a couple of leagues with early drafts. Should be a good closer for the next few days.
Recommendation: Should owned in all leagues until Henry Owens returns.

Henry Owens | FLA | RP - Could be back on the 24th, and while his peripherals in the majors haven't been very good, he will have a job closing, at least for a while, and is worth owning. I like Kevin Gregg's numbers better, and if Owens falters Gregg would make a better closer this year.
Recommendation: Should owned in all leagues.

Jeremy Hermida | FLA | OF - Still owned in just 2.5% of ESPN leagues, and I've had a few questions on him this week, so I'll put him here again. Should have hit a few more HRs last year and could hit 15 with 400 ABs. Good patience and LD rate, but his 78% Contact Rate will need to improve for Hermida to hit more than .280-.285. Marlins lineup should help with RBIs and Runs, and Hermida can grab a handful of steals.
Recommendation: Should be considered in deep 10 and owned in 12 and 14-team leagues. Should be owned in all but the shallowest NL-only leagues.

Fred Lewis | SF | OF - Didn't have overly impressive minor league numbers in 2006, but this year he's had LD rates around 21% at both levels, in addition to 80% Contact Rates. He had an 11% BB rate in the minors and has a 7.9% BB rate in the majors. Has a little bit of power and can steal some bases. Might have some use in deeper leagues while Dave Roberts is out. Has been hitting at the top of the lineup quite often.
Recommendation: Should be considered in deep 12 and owned in 14-team leagues. Should be strongly considered in 10 and owned in 12 and 14-team NL-only leagues.

Rafael Soriano | ATL | RP - With Mike Gonzalez hurt, Soriano becomes the Braves's go-to-guy before the 9th inning, and it wouldn't surprise me if Wickman is out of a job before the year is over. Soriano would probably step in if that happened, with Gonzalez picking up a few saves here or there. Should be owned in leagues where relievers have value.
Recommendation: Should be owned in deep mixed leagues. Should be owned in 10, 12, and 14-team NL-only leagues.

Tim Lincecum | SF | SP - I'll talk about him more in depth later today, but he still is only owned in about 2/3 of ESPN leagues
Recommendation: Should be owned in all leagues, for now.

Yovanni Gallardo | MIL | SP - Gallardo is getting tough to ignore for the Brewers with a 12.46 K/9 and 3.02 BB/9 in AAA. There isn't a pressing need for a SP in Milwaukee, but it's tough to keep a guy like Gallardo down there. Could see a callup soon after June 1st.
Recommendation: Should be considered in 10 and stashed in 12 and 14-team mixed leagues. Should be stashed in all NL-only leagues.

Sergio Mitre | FLA | SP - Only a 5.45 K/9, but a 2.18 BB/9 and 57.4% GB rate are very good. BABIP and HR/9 look good, and Mitre should be a pretty solid pitcher as long as he can keep the walks down, which he hasn't been able to do in the past. Lack of Ks hurt his value in shallower leagues.
Recommendation: Should be strongly considered in 12 and owned 14-team leagues. Should be owned in 10, 12, and 14-team NL-only leagues.

Chris Young | ARZ | OF - Similarly valued to Hermida. Could hit 20 HRs and get 20 SBs. He's got a good (86%) Contact rate, but his 4.7% BB rate and 14.8% LD rate aren't very good. If it stays like that a .270 BA is pretty likely. He's in a good lineup though, and if he can stay at the top of it he should get a bunch of Runs. Should also get a decent amount of RBIs, maybe 65-70.
Recommendation: Should be considered in deep 10 and owned in 12 and 14-team leagues. Should be owned in all but the shallowest NL-only leagues.

Bob Wickman Activated by Braves

Bob Wickman was activated by the Atlanta Braves yesterday, who indicated that he will resume his normal closing duties. Mike Gonzalez and Rafael Soriano, who had formed a closing tandem while Wickman was sidelined, will be returned to their former roles. It wouldn't be a surprise to see one - or both - of these two to take the closer's job right back within a few weeks if Wickman doesn't shape up. A BB/9 over 7.00 is terrible and completely unacceptable for a closer. If Wickman doesn't lower than quickly, he might find himself in a middle relief role.

Look for an article on players to Buy Low and Sell High later today.

Wickman to the DL

Bob Wickman has been placed on the Disabled List by the Atlanta Braves. Mike Gonzalez figures to get most of the saves and is worth a pickup in all leagues. He should be one of the Top 10 or 15 closers while he has the role. In deeper leagues Rafael Soriano, an equally good candidate, should also be picked up as he may get some saves and might even get them all. No official announcement has been made yet as to the new closer, but there is a chance that whoever it is will keep the role when Wickman returns from the DL.

Closer Updates

Julian Tavarez is apparently the frontrunner now for the Red Sox closer job. I have added him to my closer rankings, but he doesn't seem to be much better than any of the other Red Sox options. I still expect a trade if Papelbon isn't healthy enough to do the job. Armando Benitez may be an option, but no deal has been discussed yet.

J.J. Putz had an MRI this morning. The Mariners will regret trading Rafael Soriano if Putz goes down for a while. Chris Reitsma seems to be the most likely to fill the role, but he is only an average fantasy option. Arthur Rhodes is also a possibility and a slightly better fantasy option. They have both been added to the Closer Rankings. The Mariners won't pursue Armando Benitez. The news about Putz is just another reason why I dislike taking closers early.

Jorge Julio is being discussed as a trade target by the Marlins. I don't believe they need Julio, but if they get him he would most likely step right into the closer's role. His Fantasy Score is 8.71, which would put him between Kevin Gregg (the current Marlins front runner) and Jason Isringhausen. He would make a pretty good fantasy option if he landed a closer job somewhere. The Giants have also talked about Julio in case they trade Armando Benitez.

Brian Stokes is now a closer option for the Devil Rays after being converted from a starter. He has poor control and doesn't strike out a lot of guys. He is decent at inducing groundballs, but I don't think he's much of an improvement over Seth McClung.