Fantasy Dr X: Strike Zone

Week 1 Waiver Wire!

Finally, the wait is over.  The 2008 season has finally begun, and fantasy baseball owners are rushing to get their lineups finished and ready for week one of the season. Here are some infielders, outfielders, and pitchers that would make nice pickups before the season begins. By Lawrence Barreca.
 
Infield:

•    Willy Aybar (TB)-  With the young star-prospect Evan Longoria being sent back down into the minors for a month or two, Aybar will likely by the Opening Day 3B for the Rays.  Aybar is a guy that you can pick up for a few weeks if you need an injury reserve or a bench player.  He has potential with his bat, so look for him to be hitting the baseball until Longoria soon finds his way back to the pros.

•    J.R. Towles (HOU)-  Towles is going to be sharing time with current Astros catcher Brad Ausmus, but don't let that fool you.  Towles is younger, a better hitter, and is available in most fantasy leagues after the draft.  He can easily be picked up to use as either a number two catcher or injury reserve.  However, if he starts to rack up the points, he might make a great keeper option and number one catcher in any fantasy format.

•    Matt Stairs (TOR)-  With Reed Johnson getting released, it seems as though he will win the left field job for the Jays.  So why is he grouped here as an infielder?  He is also eligible at first base, and now with him probably starting in the lineup, he will get plenty of at-bats for the upcoming year.  If he hits as well as he did last season (.289 avg, 21 HRs and 64 RBIs in 357 at- bats), he could make a nice pickup to start on your fantasy squad.

•    Brandon Inge (DET)-  We all thought Inge was officially out of a job when Miggy Cabrera came to town.  Hold up!  With Curtis Granderson out, Inge is in.  He will most likely start in center field for the Tigers on Opening Day, giving fantasy owners a chance to use his hitting to their advantage.

Outfielders:

•    Carlos Gomez (MIN)-  Gomez officially won the starting center field job for the Twins, giving him the opportunity to get a good number of at-bats.  His hitting is a little below average; however, his speed is incredible.  If and when he gets on base, he will be looking to swipe a bag or two.  The more steals, the more fantasy points.

•    Justin Upton (ARIZ)-  For some reason, this Upton brother is never picked in any of my fantasy drafts.  He's got speed, he can swing the bat (nothing close to his brother, though), and he's a starter.  So why not pick him up?  I grabbed him to be a bench and injury reserve player.  At least I know that if I have an outfielder go down, I have a quality guy to back him up.

•    Andre Ethier (LAD)-  Currently, the left field job in Los Angeles is up for grabs; however, this spring, Ethier is making a strong case for himself.  He is currently hitting a monstrous .359/.481/.672, and could find himself the official starter the next few days.  If he does win the job, he may make a surprise pickup that can help you down the road.

 Pitchers:

  •    Kerry Wood (CHC)-  If he's still available in your league, you should go and grab Wood for one main reason: he's the closer for a team that can score runs.  One has to believe that he will get plenty of save opportunities, and if he does well, he could get 35+ saves this year.

•    Tom Gordon (PHI)-  With Brad Lidge on the 15-day DL, look for Gordon to be the guy to get the saves.  He has a great offense and good pitching that includes Hamels, Myers, Durbin, Romero and Eaton. That's the perfect equation for tons of save opportunities.  Look for him to get plenty of fantasy points for the week-and-a-half that he's their closer.

•    Matt Garza (TB)-  Garza has had an impressive spring so far, posting a 3.05 ERA with one more start before the season.  He's going to be the #2 pitcher in the rotation until Scott Kazmir comes back, meaning that his first opponent will be Baltimore.  Look for him to get a win against the O's and continue to pitch well from there.