You smell that? It's smoke. And it's what Tommy Hanson is throwing in Triple-A Gwinnett right now.
Oh and, by the way, Tom Glavine needed a trip to Dr. James Andrews. He is perhaps just a couple of weeks from calling it a career.
Add it up, and Hanson won't be long from the Braves rotation and dominating for Fantasy owners in all leagues. One Tom Terrific headed for retirement and the Hall of Fame, the other is on the way to an NL Rookie of the Year campaign.
Sure, Jo-Jo Reyes gets the first crack at filling in for Glavine this Saturday in Pittsburgh, but since when has Reyes proven to be anything more than a temporary problem for a permanent solution? Oops, we meant anything more than a temporary solution for a permanent problem.
The Braves need a No. 5 starter this season, assuming Glavine's shoulder doesn't suddenly feel all groovy. We certainly don't expect it to. He will give it two weeks and probably retire.
"I'm willing to put in a little more time, but I'm not willing to put in another six weeks or eight weeks because by then, you know what, I'm going to have to start all over again, and I'm not interested in doing that," Glavine said after being diagnosed with rotator cuff inflammation.
After Reyes gets exposed for the Quadruple-A pitcher he is on Saturday, we figure Hanson will be on call to the major leagues. Already owned in 60 percent of CBSSports.com leagues, the time to take the flier is now. You need to get your hands on him days, even weeks, before he gets the call. He is that good.
Through two Triple-A starts limited by 85- and 95-pitch counts, Hanson has struck out 17 batters in 10 innings. He has walked just four, allowed six hits and just one earned run. Opposing batters are hitting .171 against him. He's just tuning up here.
"I think I'm right on schedule," Hanson, 22, told the Gwinnett Daily Post after his most recent start Tuesday. "I was able to get into the sixth inning and I wasn't tired. I wasn't able to follow through enough on my fastballs, so I'll work on that. But I feel good."
If not for Glavine's once-expected April 18 debut, Hanson would have been the Braves' No. 5 starter out of spring training.
His next turn is Sunday, April 19 vs. Norfolk and Matt Wieters, who faces David Price this Thursday night. We dig the elite prospect synergy there.
Hanson's start will be right after Reyes makes his season debut in Glavine's spot. A bad start by Reyes and a good one by Hanson could lead the No. 3 most-owned minor leaguer on CBSSports.com to make his Braves debut in Fantasy Week 4 (April 27-May 3).
After Reyes' start, the Braves won't need a No. 5 starter again until April 28. That date is a little tricky for Hanson, because he is on an April 19-April 24-April 29 schedule right now.
We suppose we will get a hint Hanson will arrive if Reyes is optioned to the minors right after his Saturday start. Watch the live game, the news wire and transactions reports closely Saturday.
On the verge notes
- Jordan Zimmermann -- The No. 4 most-owned minor leaguer's major league debut has been pushed to April 20 vs. Atlanta. Assuming he doesn't get skipped later in the week, he could be a two-start pitcher in Fantasy Week 3 (April 20-26). If he does, he will be a two-start pitcher the following week. Owned in exactly half of CBSSports.com's leagues, he has the potential to be a nice sleeper even pitching for the lowly Nationals.
- Bradley Bergesen -- With Alfredo Simon (elbow) going on the DL, perhaps for an extended period, the Orioles need a No. 5 starter Tuesday, April 21. Brian Bass could be used out of the bullpen, but Bergesen is a great call-up candidate if they want a long-term term solution. Of all of the Orioles elite pitching prospects, Bergesen has the lowest ceiling, but he is also the most ready and most likely to arrive soon, the O's said this spring. It sure helps that Bergesen has a 2.45 ERA and a .154 batting-average against through two starts (11 innings). Oh, conveniently, Tuesday is currently his regular day to pitch.
- Jeff Clement -- With Kenji Johjima (hamstring) banged up, Clement could have positioned himself for a call-up if Johjima needed a DL stint. But Clement is hitting just .053 (1-for-19) and is struggling coming off offseason knee surgery.
- Logan Morrison -- The Marlins slugging prospect broke his wrist and is out a couple of months now. We don't expect to see him in the majors as anything more than a token September call-up now.
- Daniel Bard -- The 100 mph arm is smoking as the closer in Triple-A. He will be a viable Rotisserie reliever by midseason. Teams never can have enough good relief arms, even the deep Red Sox bullpen. They are off to a slow start, but they have an embarrassment of pitching riches.
- David Huff -- He is working on the same schedule as Aaron Laffey for the Indians, albeit back in Triple-A. If Laffey doesn't work out, Huff is the next likely call-up.
- Anthony Ortega -- He could have been a candidate to take the open rotation spot Saturday for the Angels, but he pitched Wednesday (poorly) and Darren Oliver will start out of the bullpen until the Angels begin to get the returns of veterans John Lackey (triceps), Ervin Santana (elbow) and Kelvim Escobar (shoulder) after May 1.
- Felipe Paulino -- He has a 0.75 ERA after a seven-inning start Tuesday and could be a candidate to be the Astros' No. 5 starter now that Brian Moehler (knee) and Brandon Backe (oblique) are on the DL.
- Jonathon Niese -- The Mets might hold Mike Pelfrey (forearm) out of his start Sunday and Niese is on schedule to take his place at this point. We don't think Niese is ready to be an impact Fantasy pitcher right now, though.
- P.J. Walters -- He will start Friday in Chicago and has a chance to hold down Chris Carpenter's (ribcage) rotation spot for the next month-plus. He is more steady than spectacular, so consider him risky and best left for NL-only leagues right now.
Prospect watch
Every Thursday, we list all the minor leaguers who are owned in at least 1 percent of our Fantasy leagues. It can help unearth the elite prospects before they hit the big time. There are currently 232 of them.
This number represents a huge increase from past reports, because we changed the way we display ownership on CBSSports.com. In the past, we only counted players who are active or reserved. Other lists, like DL and Minor spots, were excluded.
This is the reason you have seen so many minor leaguers and DL players atop our Most Added report in our Roster Trends. Those players weren't added this week; Roster Trends will reflect reality more accurately in Fantasy Week 3 (April 20-26).
Rookie watch
Top AL rookies to date
- Travis Snider, OF, TOR -- Leads all rookies with three HR and seven RBI.
- Elvis Andrus, SS, TEX -- This 20-year-old is off to a torrid start.
- Ricky Romero, SP, TOR -- Two starts in, Toronto isn't missing DL'd SPs.
- Scott Richmond, SP, TOR -- Three Blue Jays in the top five AL ROY race.
- Trevor Cahill, SP, OAK -- The next Brandon Webb is off to a nice start.
- Honorable mentions: Koji Uehara, SP, BAL; Brett Gardner, OF, NYY; Ryan Perry, RP, DET; Chris Jakubauskas, SP, SEA and Andrew Bailey, RP, OAK.
Top NL rookies to date
- Jordan Schafer, OF, ATL -- Nice start, but he has struck out a lot.
- Dexter Fowler, OF, COL -- His .722 SLUG second to Snider among rookies.
- Joe Thurston, 2B, STL -- Journeyman won't stay here long, but he's hot.
- Chris Dickerson, OF, CIN -- Platooning now, but he will earn at-bats.
- Kenshin Kawakami, SP, ATL -- Off to so-so start, but the NL is thin.
- Honorable mentions: Colby Rasmus, OF, STL; Travis Ishikawa, 1B, SF and Ronald Belisario, RP, LAD.
Newbie needs
Dan Kinghorn, Indianapolis: I am in an AL-only Fantasy league. I was set on Matt LaPorta, but I am now considering Gordon Beckham based on his positional value. Your thoughts?
Emack: It was clearly LaPorta, until we saw Beckham in spring training. He looks like a stronger Dustin Pedroia.
That, of course, means we see him moving to second base. The White Sox might also consider moving Alexei Ramirez back to second, but if Beckham arrives after June 1, it will be as a second baseman.
The slow start of Chris Getz and Brent Lillibridge certainly makes Beckham intriguing right now. He is hitting .440 (11-for-25) with a homer, six RBI, seven runs, four walks and five strikeouts (.533 OBP and .680 SLUG) through Double-A play Wednesday. LaPorta, a more likely June 1 impact guy, has started well, too: .400-1-3-6 (.455-.800).
If you're looking at long term, we might choose Beckham, 22, because he is an infielder, but if you want a slugger this year, it should be LaPorta, 24.
You can e-mail Emack your Fantasy Baseball prospect questions to DMFantasyBaseball@cbs.com. Be sure to put Prospects in the subject field. Please include your full name, hometown and state. Be aware, due to the large volume of submissions received, we cannot guarantee personal responses to all questions.
