TOP MLB NEWS ITEMS FROM WEDNESDAY 3/3/10 TO THURSDAY 3/11/10

We have many great articles planned leading up to the 2010 Fantasy Baseball season including sleepers, busts, rookies, strategy, full player rankings and projections all wrapped up into a nifty draft kit to help you win your league next year. Below, we analyze the top fantasy baseball news items from the previous week.

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HELLO, GOODBYE (transactions)

Hank Blalock 1B (TEX) signed with TB. Blalock will be a LHB to compete with the RHB Pat Burrell at DH. Don't expect much from either player in 2010, but you could do worse seeking power at the tail end of your AL-only draft... Garret Anderson OF (ATL) signed with LAD. He'll vie for the fourth outfielder position on the team. Watch how it plays out in spring training. He could be worthy of a reserve selection in deep NL-only leagues if he wins the job... Kiko Calero RP (FLA) signed with NYM. He should be a key set-up man in that pen and is an NL-only waiver wire consideration if you suffer ERA/WHIP problems come May 1st.

EVERYBODY HURTS (injury news)

Jose Reyes will miss 2-8 weeks due to a thyroid problem. Because of the uncertainty of the injury, we say let somebody else take a chance on him now. Alex Cora should play SS for the Mets for the time being. He's a useless fantasy player, but if you just need players that get AB on your NL-only bench, go ahead and roster him... Brandon Webb SP ARI may begin the season on the DL. He's another player to let somebody else take... Joe Nathan RP MIN has a torn UCL in his elbow and will likely have season-ending Tommy John surgery. The Twins may use Jon Rauch, in the closer role. They could also consider Matt Guerrier. They also may make a trade for a player like Jason Frasor TOR or Kerry Wood CLE. For now, take Rauch and Guerrier late in AL-only drafts on spec... Russell Martin C LAD is out for six weeks with an abdomen strain. We weren't high on him anyway, and this seals the deal. Avoid Martin in 2010... Alex Gordon 3B KC broke his thumb and will miss a month. Missing spring training will set him back, but if you can get him at a nice discount in AL-only leagues, then do so, as broken bones heal better than bum knees or backs... Brendan Ryan SS STL and Freddy Sanchez 2B SF may both open the season on the DL. Take either one at an injury discount in NL-only leagues, as they should produce decent numbers for you from May to September... Justin Duchscherer SP OAK is not likely to be available come Opening Day. He's likely to be a headache even in AL-only formats, so avoid him in all leagues in 2010... Mike Aviles SS KC is progressing well in his recovery from Tommy John surgery. He could reclaim his starting SS job a couple of months into the season. Al-only leaguers may be able to get him cheap late in their drafts and turn a profit on his small price tag... Angel Guzman RP CHC has a ligament tear in his shoulder. He's likely toast for 2010. Don't draft him.

LOVE IS A BATTLEFIELD (playing time issues)

Jose Bautista 3B/OF TOR is a player to target late in AL-only leagues. He may not break camp with a full-time job, but he'll get enough AB to help your squad anyway... Kyle McClellan is currently ahead of Rich Hill in the battle for the STL SP5 job. Consider adding him as a reserve in your NL-only job if he does in fact win the job... Seth Smith OF COL is only an OF4 for COL, but he's tattooing the ball this spring. He's a good OF5 in NL-only leagues.

ELECTRIC YOUTH (rookie/prospect watch)

Ian Desmond SS WAS is having a nice spring. He'll begin the season as a reserve or in AAA, but he should absolutely be drafted late in NL-only drafts, as he'll contribute at some point this year... Aaron Crow SP KC is looking good so far. Don't expect him to break camp with the team, but consider him with a very late reserve pick in AL-only leagues as a potential mid-season call-up that could have some initial success in the bigs this year.

I'M ON FIRE (hot players)

Target Phil Hughes P NYY in all leagues this season. He's attempting to incorporate a changeup into his repertiore this spring. We like him to end up with solid numbers as the NYY SP4 (assuming an injury in front of him at some point) this year. Especially target him in keeper leagues... Sean Rodriguez IF/OF TB is looking like a good player to target late in AL-only leagues. He has power potential and is off to a hot start in spring training.

COLD AS ICE (cold players)

Joba Chamberlain P NYY is getting lit up like a Christmas tree this spring. He's almost certain to spend the year as a set-up man in the bullpen. Draft accordingly... Brett Myers SP HOU is having a bad spring and is likely done as a fantasy starter. He can still pile up strikeouts, but the ERA and WHIP are too damaging. Pass... Jeremy Bonderman SP DET is having a tough spring. We believe that his surgically repaired shoulder is too damaged to fare well in the majors again. Don't draft him... The Royals thought they'd give Kyle Farnsworth a shoit at a rotation gig. He was blasted in a spring start the other day. He is just a middle relieveron a bad team. Move along. Nothing to see here.

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