Crunchtime

Fantasy Famine

Javy Lopez, Mike Liberthal, and Charles Johnson: It's not 1999 anymore! Unfortunately these three flops probably know it better than most. Once considered to be above average alternatives for those who couldn't rake in Piazza or Pudge, injuries have reduced these once future stars to average backstops. If you still own one of these three underachievers, cut 'em loose.

Solution: Still available for the taking in over 50% of leagues, Benito Santiago is a decent option. An All-Star selection, his once dead bat seems to be rejuvenated.

The entire Met's Lineup: The New York Mets spent the off season adding what they thought to be a lethal power punch in Mo Vaughn, Robbie Alomar, and Jeremy Burnitz. Instead, they find themselves with the same 2-runs-a-game lineup that frustrated fantasy owners across the land. Although Alomar and Vaughn have begun to heat up, it's a little late and will take MVP efforts by the two of them for the second half to keep fantasy owners from feeling gypped. Burnitz, who was thought to be a reliable source of power, smashing over 30 dingers in each of the past three seasons, has simply stunk! The only thing he brought over from Milwaukee was his sub .250 batting average. Unless the HR's begin to show up in a hurry, it would be a safe move to let him go.

Solution: If you happened to go crazy and draft all three of the aforementioned along with Mike Piazza in hopes of a juggernaut lineup, then hopefully you've learned your lesson that there's already one in place just north of Queens (c'mon, you know who I'm talking about).

Moises Alou: Alou's name must be here because of injury, right? Wrong! Although he had his annual stint on the DL early in the year, the brittle run-producer has been healthy for quite some time and still lacks the stroke that helped him post seasons of .330 30-110. Is Chicago not the right place, or is formerly one of fantasy baseball's most consistent hitter's peaked and heading into mediocrity?

Solution: Mark Bellhorn. Who? Yeah, Mark Bellhorn another A's prospect who the Cubs picked up a while back, but has surprisingly put up some very respectable numbers from the infield. Bellhorn's slugging percentage is over .550 and as the Cubs leadoff hitter, he should be able to score a fair amount of runs to complement his surprising bat.

Other slow starters deserve to be mentioned here too, such as Chan Ho Park and Juan Gonzalez.

It's not too late in the season to make a run and here are a couple of rising stars that may not be seen on the radar of most owners.

Raul Ibanez: Fine, after setting his team record 13 RBI in three games performance. Ibanez is now a huge blob on everyone's radar, but should his performance really be considered that much of a shocker? According various player raters, Ibanez put up better overall production than any other outfielder in baseball (eat your heart out Vlad Guerrero owners) over the past 30 days while still managing to remain a secret on the lackluster Kansas City Royals. With Mike Sweeney out nursing his injury, count on good power numbers from the former Mariners catcher.

Kevin Mench: Overshadowed by A-Rod and Raffy, Mench manages to make a name for himself in the crowded Rangers lineup. Arguably the second best rookie bat behind Toronto's Eric Hinske, Mench posted a .580 slugging percentage while knocking the ball out of the park 11 times in 140 at bats. With the Rangers lineup loaded with talent, expect pitchers to continue to overlook Mench as he continues to hit the long ball.

Ted Lilly: Now that he's finally escaped the bullpen in the big apple, Lilly will have a chance to shine in the A's rotation. With a full time slot in Oakland, don't be surprised if he becomes this year's Corey Lidle winning around 70% of his games down the stretch.