We go around the majors' pitching staffs and Fantasy Baseball's two-start pitchers every Sunday in the Fantasy Pitching Planner.
Staff reflections
Arizona Diamondbacks: All five starters will work in succession, including must-start two-start pitcher Randy Johnson.
Atlanta Braves: John Smoltz had his scheduled start pushed back from Sunday to Tuesday because of discomfort in his right shoulder and an injured right pinkie finger. Smoltz, who is 7-2 with a 2.82 ERA, is expected to start one of the doubleheader games against Florida. Buddy Carlyle will start the other one. Right-hander Lance Cormier was activated from the 15-day DL to start Sunday and should stick around as the No. 5 starter. Tim Hudson and Smoltz will both be two-start pitchers.
Baltimore Orioles: With a day off Thursday, Erik Bedard will be the team's lone two-start pitcher. Jeremy Guthrie could be skipped Saturday, but we doubt it at this point. He's an option for deeper AL-only leagues.
Boston Red Sox: All five starters will work in succession, including two-start pitchers Julian Tavarez and Daisuke Matsuzaka. As always Tavarez could be removed on a start's notice if the Red Sox choose to activate Jon Lester from the DL. Lester is not injured after offseason chemotherapy and the Red Sox have him on his second rehab assignment, which can last only as long as 30 days.
Chicago Cubs: All five starters will work in succession, including two-start pitchers Jason Marquis and Ted Lilly.
Chicago White Sox: All five starters will work in succession, including two-start pitchers Jon Garland and Mark Buehrle.
Cincinnati Reds: The Reds returned LHP Bobby Livingston to Triple A Louisville on Saturday, but haven't forgotten his 6 2/3 inning outing the night before. "If we need a spot start, he might be a high possibility," said manager Jerry Narron. "Next Saturday is a possibility." Livingston cannot be recalled the next time the No. 5 spot is up Saturday without someone going on the DL. "So start checking your board to see who's rested next Saturday," Narron coyly told MLB.com. Eric Milton (elbow) is not close to coming off the DL, so there are three leading candidates. "(Victor) Santos, (Phil) Dumatrait and Homer Bailey," Narron told the official site. Santos is in long relief for the Reds, while Dumatrait has struggled recently in Triple-A. Bailey had one of his worst Triple-A outings of the season Saturday, but he still struck out eight and improved to 6-1. Giving up four runs, seven hits and three walks in six innings, his ERA rose to 2.31. Ignore Milton, Dumatrait and Santos in all leagues still. Bailey is their man Friday or Saturday.
Cleveland Indians: RHP Jake Westbrook (strained left abdominal) allowed five runs and seven hits in 1 1/3 innings in his first rehabilitation assignment for Triple-A Buffalo on Friday night against Toledo. Manager Eric Wedge said Westbrook will start again for a minor league team Wednesday and throw 65 to 70 pitches. After RHP Fausto Carmona threw 121 pitches in a complete-game win over Minnesota on May 17, Wedge said they would monitor his pitch count closely. Carmona threw 70 pitches in six innings against Kansas City in his next start and 91 in six innings Friday night. Carmona and struggling Cliff Lee and Jeremy Sowers are pitching for their rotation spots this week, because Westbrook might return in Fantasy Week 11 (June 11-17). C.C. Sabathia is a must-start two-start pitcher.
Colorado Rockies: RHP Josh Fogg (strained left groin) is eligible to come off the DL on June 7. "We'll have six starters, but we'll use five," manager Clint Hurdle said. This means Taylor Buchholz and Jason Hirsh will be pitching for their rotation spots Tuesday and Thursday. Fogg is likely to get another rehab outing unless Hirsh bombs Tuesday. Consider Hirsh a risky two-start pitcher in deeper NL-only leagues, especially because he could be demoted to allow Fogg to slot over the weekend.
Detroit Tigers: All five starters will work in succession, including two-start pitcher Nate Robertson.
Florida Marlins: Sergio Mitre has been pushed back to Tuesday, while Wes Obermueller is slated to start Monday on short rest. Rick Vanden Hurk is ready to be called up from Double-A Carolina to start the second game of a doubleheader Tuesday in a spot basis. Paul Mildren is insurance if Mitre cannot go Tuesday. Ignore Vanden Hurk or Mildren because it's a one-shot deal Tuesday, assuming Mitre doesn't require a DL stint. RHP Josh Johnson makes his first rehab start Sunday for Class A Jupiter. He has been sidelined since January with a right elbow injury, but hopes to make three rehab starts before rejoining the Marlins. Mitre might be the team's lone two-start pitcher, because Obermueller can be skipped and Vanden Hurk nor Mildren would start Sunday because Mitre could go on regular rest. Mitre is a risky two-start pitcher because of the injury.
Houston Astros: All five starters will work in succession, including two-start pitcher Wandy Rodriguez.
Kansas City Royals: All five starters will work in succession, including two-start pitchers Gil Meche and Jorge De La Rosa.
Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim: LHP Joe Saunders was optioned to Triple-A Salt Lake after another solid fill-in start. RHP Dustin Moseley was a candidate for the spot start, but manager Mike Scioscia said he didn't want to disrupt Moseley's momentum as a late-inning reliever in place of RHP Justin Speier, who is on the DL. Bartolo Colon (shoulder) might return to the rotation June 8 at St. Louis, but if he cannot go, the Angels can just skip his turn. They have days off Thursday (June 7) and the following Monday (June 11) and can go with a four-man rotation until the weekend of June 15-17. Consider Colon a risky start. Kelvim Escobar would join Jered Weaver as a two-start pitcher if Colon is indeed skipped again.
Los Angeles Dodgers: Jason Schmidt returns in time for a two-start week, moving Mark Hendrickson to a lefty bullpen role. Hong-Chi Kuo will remain the No. 5 starter for now, but it's likely the Dodgers skip him whenever the schedule allows. He won't be skipped this week. Eventually Chad Billingsley will be the team's No. 5 starter down the stretch. Derek Lowe and Schmidt are both must-start two-start pitchers.
Milwaukee Brewers: All five starters will work in succession, including two-start pitcher Dave Bush, who could be pitching for his rotation spot with Yovani Gallardo dominating in Triple-A.
Minnesota Twins: Manager Ron Gardenhire is gaining confidence in his starters -- and plans to keep using this rotation -- including Kevin Slowey after his impressive major league debut Friday night. "I'm going to keep running them out there," Gardenhire said. "It's about letting people do their jobs. If guys in there right now struggle, we'll make adjustments." Boof Bonser is the team's lone two-start pitcher. Matt Garza will be left to grumble about his status back in Triple-A.
New York Mets: All five starters will work in succession, including must-start two-start pitcher Tom Glavine.
New York Yankees: Roger Clemens won't return Monday now and is targeting a return next week vs. the Pirates. Kei Igawa was going to get a start Monday before getting sent back to Triple-A, but he made his start Sunday and is now out of the mix. The Yankees' Monday starter is TBD. Tyler Clippard will be the team's lone two-start pitcher.
Oakland Athletics: All five starters will work in succession, including two-start pitchers Dan Haren and Lenny DiNardo.
Philadelphia Phillies: All five starters will work in succession, including ageless two-start pitchers Jon Lieber and Jamie Moyer.
Pittsburgh Pirates: All five starters will work in succession, including high-risk two-start pitchers Paul Maholm and Shawn Chacon. LHP Sean Burnett, a former first-round draft choice and a candidate for the No. 5 spot in the rotation, went on Triple-A Indianapolis' DL on Friday because of arm fatigue. He is 4-4 with a 4.37 ERA in 11 starts. Burnett was upset when he didn't make the rotation out of spring training, but has been up and down in the minors. He is not being shut down because of a specific injury, but because his arm hasn't felt right lately. He had reconstructive elbow surgery nearly three years ago.
San Diego Padres: All five starters will work in succession, including two-start pitcher Chris Young. Justin Germano has solidfied himself as the No. 5 starter. The Padres activated RHP Clay Hensley from the 15-day DL and optioned him to Triple-A Portland. "He needs to go down there and make some more consistent pitches," manager Bud Black said.
San Francisco Giants: All five starters will work in succession, including must-start two-start pitchers Barry Zito and Matt Cain.
Seattle Mariners: RHP Jeff Weaver threw a bullpen session Thursday and is scheduled to throw an 85-pitch simulated game Sunday, after avoiding a minor league rehabilitation stint the Mariners initially wanted him to go on. Weaver, 0-6 with a 14.32 ERA, is on track to rejoin the rotation next weekend at San Diego. Weaver said his fatigued throwing shoulder is much stronger because of aggressive weight training. Felix Hernandez is the team's lone two-start pitcher.
St. Louis Cardinals: By winning his first career start, RHP Todd Wellemeyer earned a second start Tuesday when the Cardinals play Cincinnati. He is the team's lone two-start pitcher, but his status could change if he falters. Consider him a high-risk option for the deepest of NL-only leagues.
Tampa Bay Devil Rays: The revamped rotation features a two-start debutee in Andy Sonnanstine and J.P. Howell, who pitched Sunday and is next slated to go Friday. James Shields is also a two-start pitcher, but all Devil Rays starters are risky options on a regular basis. Sonnanstine is a decent prospect long term, as are Howell and Shields, but the team doesn't offer much in the way support or consistency.
Texas Rangers: The Rangers list TBDs on Friday and Saturday vs. Milwaukee. It is expected Robinson Tejeda and Brandon McCarthy (blister) take those turns. Vicente Padilla is the team's lone two-start pitcher.
Toronto Blue Jays: RHP Tomo Ohka is back in the rotation Wednesday, but Shaun Marcum (back) is questionable for his weekend start -- although he thinks he will be able to go. If he can't, RHP John Thomson (sore shoulder) is an option to replace him. He earned a victory for Triple-A Syracuse on Wednesday and is 2-1 with a 1.59 ERA in four starts with the Chiefs. A second MRI on LHP Gustavo Chacin (sore shoulder) this week showed no structural damage, but Chacin is still in pain and is not throwing. "He's on the slow track," GM J.P. Ricciardi said. Roy Halladay is a must-start two-start pitcher.
Washington Nationals: Manager Manny Acta said RHP John Patterson, who is on the 15-day DL with right elbow and biceps soreness, would work on offspeed pitches in his next bullpen session. If all goes well, Patterson would then move on to pitch in a simulated game. Also, RHP Shawn Hill learned his pitching elbow is not seriously injured and his recovery from a strained left shoulder can proceed as planned. Hill (3-3, 2.70 ERA), who is on the 15-day DL, felt discomfort in his pitching elbow after changing his mechanics to compensate for a left shoulder strain that he suffered April 20 while running the bases. He had his elbow examined Saturday by an orthopedist in Cleveland and won't throw again until his left shoulder is pain-free. The open No. 5 spot Friday is between struggling long reliever Levale Speigner and potential call-up Joel Hanrahan. Ignore both at this point. Mike Bacsik is the team's lone two-start pitcher, a high-risk one.
Week 10 (June 4-10)
| This week's matchups | |||
| AL early | NL early | Intl late | Intl late |
| KC@CLE | SF@PHI | PHI@KC | BOS@ARI |
| NYY@CHW | LAD@PIT | PIT@NYY | SEA@SD |
| MIN@LAA | CHC@MIL | WAS@MIN | OAK@SF |
| BOS@OAK | CIN@STL | HOU@CHW | CLE@CIN |
| BAL@SEA | PIT@WAS | COL@BAL | LAA@STL |
| TB@TOR | HOU@COL | MIL@TEX | TOR@LAD |
| DET@TEX | SF@ARI | NYM@DET | TB@FLA |
| FLA@ATL | CHC@ATL | ||
| Bold denotes a four-game series. | |||
| Florida and Atlanta will play a doubleheader June 5 as a makeup game from an April 14 rainout. That gives the Braves two four-game series, totaling eight games this week. The following teams play seven games this week: Boston, Chicago Cubs, Chicago White Sox, Kansas City, L.A. Dodgers, N.Y. Yankees, Oakland, Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, San Francisco and Tampa Bay. | |||
Two-start pitcher options
| This week's two-start pitchers | |||
| Must-start options | |||
| Pitcher | Start No. 1 | Start No. 2 | |
| C.C. Sabathia | vs. KC De La Rosa | at CIN Harang | |
| Dan Haren | vs. BOS Tavarez | at SF Zito | |
| Erik Bedard | at SEA Hernandez | vs. COL Hirsh? | |
| Tim Hudson | vs. FLA Mitre | vs. CHC Marquis | |
| Chris R. Young | vs. LAD Schmidt | vs. SEA Hernandez | |
| Daisuke Matsuzaka | at OAK DiNardo | at ARI Johnson | |
| John Smoltz? | vs. FLA Obermueller | vs. CHC Lilly | |
| Aaron Harang | at STL Wellemeyer | vs. CLE Sabathia | |
| Jered Weaver | vs. MIN Bonser | at STL Wellemeyer? | |
| Derek Lowe | at PIT Maholm | vs. TOR Ohka | |
| Barry Zito | at PHI Lieber | vs. OAK Haren | |
| Felix Hernandez | vs. BAL Bedard | at SD Young | |
| Tom Glavine | vs. PHI Moyer | at DET Robertson | |
| Randy Johnson | vs. SF Cain | vs. BOS Matsuzaka | |
| Matt Cain | at ARI Johnson | vs. OAK DiNardo | |
| Jason Schmidt | at SD Young | vs. TOR Halladay | |
| Advisable options | |||
| Pitcher | Start No. 1 | Start No. 2 | |
| James Shields | vs. KC Meche | at FLA Kim | |
| Ted Lilly | at MIL Vargas | at ATL Smoltz | |
| Roy Halladay | vs. TB Sonnanstine | at LAD Schmidt | |
| Mark Buehrle | vs. NYY Clippard | vs. HOU Rodriguez | |
| Boof Bonser | at LAA Weaver | vs. WAS Bacsik | |
| Jason Marquis | at MIL Bush | at ATL Hudson | |
| Jon Garland | vs. NYY TBD? | vs. HOU Jennings | |
| Questionable options | |||
| Pitcher | Start No. 1 | Start No. 2 | |
| Gil Meche | at TB Shields | vs. PHI Lieber | |
| Julian Tavarez | at OAK Haren | at ARI Owings | |
| Dave Bush | vs. CHC Marquis | at TEX Padilla | |
| Nate Robertson | at TEX Padilla | vs. NYM Glavine | |
| Jamie Moyer | at NYM Glavine | at KC De La Rosa | |
| Sergio Mitre? | at ATL Hudson | vs. TB Sonnanstine | |
| Jon Lieber | vs. SF Zito | at KC Meche | |
| High-risk options | |||
| Pitcher | Start No. 1 | Start No. 2 | |
| Jason Hirsh? | vs. HOU Rodriguez | at BAL Bedard | |
| Wandy Rodriguez | at COL Hirsh | at CHW Buehrle | |
| Vicente Padilla | vs. DET Robertson | vs. MIL Bush | |
| Jorge De La Rosa | at CLE Sabathia | vs. PHI Moyer | |
| Andy Sonnanstine | at TOR Halladay | at FLA Mitre? | |
| Tyler Clippard? | at CHW Buehrle | vs. PIT Chacon | |
| Shawn Chacon | at WAS Bacsik | at NYY Clippard | |
| Paul Maholm | vs. LAD Lowe | at NYY Clemens? | |
| Lenny DiNardo | vs. BOS Matsuzaka | at SF Cain | |
| Mike Bacsik | vs. PIT Chacon | at MIN Bonser | |
| Todd Wellemeyer? | vs. CIN Harang | vs. LAA Weaver | |
Pitch a question
Frank Kingsley, Chicago: Pleasant problem: My pitching staff is pretty solid. I have Carlos Zambrano, Roy Halladay, Barry Zito, A.J. Burnett, Mark Buehrle, Mariano Rivera, Joe Blanton, Fausto Carmona, Rich Hill and Kelvim Escobar. Unfortunately, three must sit. Who do I dare bench?
Emack: We would sit Carmona, Rivera and Zambrano this week with that group.
Dave Carlson, Lockport, Ill.: In a 16-team, Head-to-Head league where double starts are key, I can use only four of these pitchers: Roger Clemens (vs. ChiSox and Pirates), Jered Weaver (vs. Twins and Cards), Chris R. Young (vs. LAD and Seattle), Aaron Harang (Cards and Tribe), Jason Hirsh (vs. Astros and O's), plus Johan Santana (vs. Nats) and Jeremy Bonderman (vs. Mets). A nice problem to have, I know, but which four do you recommend? I'm leaning toward Clemens, Young and Weaver, plus Johan. Hirsh's opponents are intriguing, but he has struggled. Then there's Harang, with his high K potential including the game against St. Louis; could his two starts yield more points Head-to-Head points than Santana's lone game against the Nats?
Emack: Santana starts every week he is healthy, we say. That's a real mismatch, too. Don't bother thinking about sitting him with the Nats on the schedule. Weaver, Harang and Young are our other picks for you, because Clemens is no longer a two-start pitcher now that's he's missing Monday's start.
Greig Rosano, Wallingford, Conn.: I have Josh Johnson stashed on the DL. We are allowed five starting pitchers, with no reserves other than the DL. I have Ben Sheets, Matt Cain, Erik Bedard, Andy Pettitte and John Maine. Standard scoring applies. When Johnson comes back, do you consider him an upgrade over any of my five?
Emack: No. Johnson doesn't have the support Pettitte, Maine and Sheets get. Cain and Bedard are better knockout pitchers than Johnson promises to be off the DL.
Michael Getzler, New York: I have Fausto Carmona, Jeremy Bonderman, Bartolo Colon, Ian Snell, Bronson Arroyo, John Lackey, John Maine, Jason Marquis, Roy Oswalt, Cole Hamels and Tom Gorzelanny. Kelvim Escobar is a free agent, and Marquis is my only two-start pitcher. Which seven should pitchers should I start? And if I should pick up Escobar, who should I drop?
Emack: We would sit Carmona, Arroyo, Colon and Gorzelanny. Colon might not start this week and Arroyo has been struggling. Hold off on Escobar this week and consider him as a two-start pitcher next week over Arroyo (if he's abused again) or Carmona (if he's getting demoted or sent to the bullpen with the potential return of Jake Westbrook.
You can e-mail Emack your Fantasy Baseball pitching questions to DMFantasyBaseball@cbs.com. Be sure to put Attn: Pitching Planner in the subject field. Please include your full name, hometown and state. Be aware, due to the large volume of submissions received, we do not guarantee personal responses or answers to all questions.
