Late start today, folks. I apologize. I was following all four of my starters through their games. I’ve got one piece of great news, two pieces of good news and one piece of bad news. The great news: all four guys got a win. That puts me within striking distance. Good news number one: thus far, excluding the possibility of Bobby Jenks and/or Kerry Wood getting a little work in later tonight, my guys have a 3.22 ERA on the day. That should be good enough to shave a couple of points off the total. Good news number two: again excluding Jenks/Wood’s potential work, my guys racked up 20 strikeouts today; Justin Verlander rang up 10 on his own. Now comes the bad news: my WHIP on the day is 1.61. Parra, Verlander and Billingsley were all exceptionally wild and labored far too much. All in all, I’ll take the wins, Ks and ERA, but I could have lived without the bad WHIP. Oh, and bat-wise, a few of my guys were knocking bombs and ribbies left and right. James Loney drove in two, Russell Martin went deep and also brought two in, and Evan Longoria and Hunter Pence both went yard; Longoria was even kind enough to bring an extra guy in with his shot. Needless to say I’m pretty thrilled about the RBI and HR boosts, since I’m sorely lacking in both. I can’t really evaluate the only game left, which is already in progress, so I’ll take a quick look at a few of today’s biggest fantasy movers and losers, and offer a little advice on what to do with them.

1B Mark Teixeira (3-4, 3 HR, 4 RBI): Let’s call this the Carlos Silva Effect — two of those bombs came off the mediocre Silva. If you have Teixeira, you don’t really need to do anything — just leave him in the lineup and watch your RBI total shoot through the roof.
SP Justin Duchscherer (7.2 IP, 6 H, ER, 2 BB, 3 K, W): If you’ve been holding out on picking this guy up, expecting a collapse, you’re not alone — and you’ve also waited far too long. He’s leading the AL in ERA. Snag him and start him. Bonus: His next matchup is against the Giants.
SP Johnny Cueto (5 IP, 4 H, ER, 7 K, L): That’s a damn good line for any pitcher who visits Yankee Stadium, nevermind a 22-year-old who’s been wild and inconsistent for most of the year. Today was just a hard-luck loss, because he pitched very, very well. Don’t drop any aces or Mark Buehrle-type innings eaters for this guy, but if you’ve got room in your rotation or a semi-weak backend guy, take a chance on Cueto, especially if you’re in need of Ks — he punches out nearly a batter per inning.
1B Prince Fielder (3-4, 2B, 3 R, 2 HR, 3 RBI): Parra would have been in serious trouble today without Milwaukee’s mashing lineup behind him, more specifically Fielder. It’s probably too late to trade for him unless your league is full of clinically braindead clowns (which, come to think of it, IS more likely than you might think in fantasy sports), so if you stuck with him through all his early-season woes then consider yourself very fortunate, because games like this are the first of your many rewards for being patient with him.
SP Brandon Webb (7 IP, 8 H, 4 ER, BB, 4 K, L): This is the biggest danger with sinkerballers, even elite ones like Webb. When their pitches don’t drop, they tend to get shellacked (see: Carlos Silva, Jason Jennings). This was the third consecutive mediocre start for Webb, so if he’s your ace, it’s time to start exercising just a little bit of caution. He may have some kind of issue that we aren’t hearing about, so keep an eye on him between now and his next start, which should be against the hot-hitting Marlins on Saturday.
2B-SS Mike Aviles (1-5, 3 RBI): That’s right, I’m recommending a Royals player… sort of. Granted it’s only been 64 at-bats, but .328/.353/.625 is what I’d classify as a red-hot start. Right now I’d take a flyer on him in AL-only leagues — all others should definitely start watching him as well, especially owners who could use an upgrade at middle infielder.
C Jason Varitek (0-5): Tek doesn’t have a hit since June 15th, when he blasted a three-run shot to left off Garrett Olson. He’s 0 for his last 24, which has dropped his average by nearly 30 points. Unless catchers are really, REALLY at a premium in your league, you should consider letting him go until he finds some kind of swing again.