Do you ever read or send text messages while driving? And are you worried about accidents?

Time to dish up the latest news in fantasy baseball over the past week, courtesy of TheFantasyGeek.com. This is an excerpt from The Geekly Update. To read the whole column, click here...

KEEPIN’ IT ON THE D.L.

Holy hell there were a ton of visits to the D.L. this week…

Aaron Harang is hung up with a bad back. Matt Maloney filled in, but isn’t worth your time.

Yovanni Gallardo won’t help yo’ team until after the break. He’s shelved with a tight oblique. Not sure who will fill in at this point.

Will Venable won’t be playable for 15. His bad back has opened up an opportunity for Aaron Cunningham.

Shaun Marcum is a black mark on fantasy rosters these days. He has a strained shoulder, but should be back before long. Mark Rzepzineorigj;lkjsldkfj3#$ was called up to replace Marcum.

Manny Ramirez went from day-to-day to out for the next two weeks after his hammy didn’t immediately improve. Reed Johnson should see most of the PT in left field the next dozen or so games.

Manny Being Injured.

Luke Scott won’t be “great” for a while. Felix “Apple” Pie will step in and eat up those at bats. Pie was off to a hot start before getting hurt early in the season, so he may be worth a look in deeper leagues.

Clay Buchholz buckled under with a strained hammy. So Felix Doubront stepped in and pitched okay.

Shin-Soo Choo has a boo boo. His busted hand will cost him 6-8 weeks. In his stead, Michael Brantley will man the outfield for the Indians. He could be a cheap source of steals.

Ryan Ludwick will be a dud for the next 15, due to a strained calf. Nick Stavinoha is the temporary right fielder for the Cards.

Jason Varitek made room next to Victor Martinez on the Sox D.L. So much for his extra playing time. That now goes to Kevin Cash, who is anything but money.

Breaking news:

Jake Peavy‘s shoulder muscle is detached from the bone and he could be done for the year. That makes top prospect Daniel Hudson an interesting add in deeper leagues. Get him NOW in AL-Onlys.

INKED & AXED

Here’s our take on the players fantasy owners are adding and dropping the most. (Change in Ownership Percentages via CBS Sports leagues)

Hot Commodities

Matt LaPorta (up 25%): The kid finally showed flashes last week with a bunch of bombs. He then proceeded to tick off his new owners by suffering a concussion in an outfield collision. Still, his upside is intriguing and his dual eligibility (3B & OF) is nice.

Dexter Fowler (up 15%): Fowler has been more than fair since rejoining the big club in Colorado. They’ll play him as long as he’s raking, but that outfield is still a cluster-rock with Seth Smith, Brad Hawpe, Carlos Gonzalez and Ryan Spilborghs all vying for at bats. The Rocks should see what they can get for Hawpe in trade.

Wandy Rodriguez (up 13%): So the minute I get sick of Wandy’s act, he goes and does a 180. He’s still available in one league in which I dropped him, but I can’t pull the trigger. Wins against SF and PIT are nice, but I need to see one more solid start (next up: STL) before I believe in the “Magic Wandy” again.

Cold Product

Jeff Francis (down 8%): Great, I do a feature on Rockies pitchers and then Francis has to go and show up in “Most Dropped.” Honestly, he should be. He hasn’t been effective lately. Allowing 8 runs in 3 innings is a good way to get the ax from fantasy owners.

Carlos Zambrano (down 6%): The argument and subsequent suspension were the last straw for “Z” owners. He’s just not good enough anymore to warrant the patience needed to deal with him.

Armando Galarraga (down 6%): “Mr. Almost Perfect” has quickly fallen out of favor. It’s been almost a month since Galarraga had a good WHIP game and he’s striking out next to no one.

BIG SURPRISES

Guys who stepped up over the past week:

Clint Barmes (.400 BA, 2 HR, 7 RBI) – Doing his best Tulo impression. Owners who picked up Barmes as an injury replacement will take it. I like Clint’s scrappy game. He should continue to provide some value over the next month.

BARMES IS NOBLE: Clint Barmes is stepping up as a middle infield injury replacement.

Sean Rodriguez (.428 BA, 1 HR, 2 SB) – There’s still a chance everyone’s favorite deep sleeper can pan out this season. He’s getting consistent playing time for the moment.

Ricky Nolasco (14 IP, 11 H+BB, 20 K, 2 W) – He’s brutal in the first half then turns it on in the second half…kinda like the opposite of how Dan Haren was before this season. The chance to buy low on Ricky may have just expired.

SUDDEN DEMISES

Stars who stumbled:

Adrian Gonzalez (.052, 0 HR, 2 RBI) – The San Diego stud does tend to be a bit streaky. He’ll get back to pounding ‘em out of Petco before long.

Justin Smoak (.000 BA, 1 HR, 1 RBI,) – Okay, so Smoak isn’t exactly a star yet. But I can’t ignore his 0-fer week in 20 at bats. Dude didn’t even register a Total Base. Bench him for now, and cut him in mid-size, non-keeper leagues.

Hiroki Kuroda (1.2 IP, 10 H+BB, 6 ER, L) – Well now, that wasn’t pretty. Kuroda is tuning out to be a very average pitcher. No that there’s anything wrong with that. He still fills out a rotation nicely.

STAT THAT LOOKS LIKE A TYPO…BUT ISN’T

9

That’s how many runs the Rockies scored in the ninth inning in a comeback win over the Cardinals on Tuesday night. Not the best outing for Ryan Franklin, who got drubbed for 6 runs in 1/3 IP. Ouch.

HARDBALL HELP

Bo: Should I drop Jason Bartlett for Miguel Tejada?

The Fantasy Geek: I would. Bartlett was a one-year wonder. And Tejada has been doing well the past couple of weeks. No reason he can’t keep it up.

Si Korot: Miguel is hot and Bartlett is getting lost in the TB shuffle

WHERE AMAZING POLLS HAPPEN

 Where will Cliff Lee end up?
New York Yankees
Philadelphia Phillies
Texas Rangers
Tampa Bay Rays
Minnesota Twins
Cincinnati Reds
Seattle Mariners
Other:
VoteView Results
Share ThisPolldaddy.com



For more, visit TheFantasyGeek.com
And for updates, follow The Geek on Twitter