Twitter: @RobShawSports and @BloombergSports

 

Bloomberg Sports Anchor Rob Shaw discusses three pitchers who you can look to for some production in fantasy baseball this week.

 

Jeremy Hefner, SP, Mets

 

The New York Mets are one of the hottest teams in baseball right now and the excellent pitching has been contagious, so much so that even little known rookie Jeremy Hefner has gotten into the action as a replacement for the injured Miguel Batista.

 

If you’re wondering whether Hefner will be able to take care of business this week, what you should pay attention to are two statistics.  First the BB/9, because so far in Major League Baseball of all pitchers with at least 15 innings of work, Hefner has the best command walking just one batter in 17 innings of work.  Next, a key difference between his struggles in the rain delay loss to the lowly Padres compared to the win over the rival Phillies was his ability to finish off batters with two strikes.  The Padres went 6-12 against Hefner with two strikes while the Phillies were just 1-10.  Hefner will be pitching for a spot in the Big Leagues, as Batista is returning from the DL and Chris Young is slotted to return to the Mets as well.

 

Chris Young, SP, Mets

 

One thing to note about Chris Young, the 6’9 hurler, is that when healthy he is effective.  After a successful tenure with the Rangers and the Padres, Young got off to a fine start with the Mets last season, offering a 1-0 record with four starts with a 1.88 ERA.  Young may have to be a little better this season, as the fly ball pitcher will have to respond to the fences being drawn in at Citi Field.  However, there is cause for optimism as he’s enjoyed success even in Texas, and his first start comes at Washington, one of the more pitcher-friendly ballparks in baseball.  On the other hand, his second start may come at Yankee Stadium, so buyer beware.

 

Drew Smyly, SP, Tigers

 

Drew Smyly looks like a good bet this week as he gets two starts, the first coming at home against the Cleveland Indians.  Smyly has come back to reality a bit in recent weeks, but the control is real, he just has to learn to keep the ball within the park.  Also, after making four of his last five starts on the road, Smyly returns to the pitcher-friendly Comerica Park.  The Indians are also coming back to earth, losing seven of their last nine games.  Smyly’s second start this week comes at the pitcher-friendly Great American Ballpark, but at least there won’t be designated hitters involved.

 

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