Who’s hot: Fantasy Baseball
Wilin Rosario – The Rockies Catcher exploded onto the seen last season, his first full season in the Bigs. He crushed 28 homers and hit .270/.312/.530 in 396 at-bats. Those numbers from any rookie would make GMs drool. But those stats from a catcher will make adult bibs a must. This year Rosario is clipping at 20 homers .286/.313/.494 in 385 at-bats through Thursday. He produced 71 RBIs in 2012 and he is already at 70 this season. The homers are slightly down but the increase in RBIs and batting average means Rosario is growing as hitter. He has power but now he has a better understanding of how to be a situational hitter. In fact on the season with RISP Rosario is hitting .282/.304/.473. When batting with zero balls Rosario is batting .357/.354/.573. In the last 14 days Rosario is hitting .349/.349/.651 overall with four homers, 14 RBIs and just six strikeouts. His SO/BB totals on the season are 94 to 15 which is not great. Recently though he has no walks and only six strikeouts in his last 43 plate appearances. Rosario has adopted the nickname the “Baby Bull,” but maturity is coming full circle right now. Trade for him in keeper leagues, especially in NL-only leagues.

Aaron Hill – Hill was once a power hitting force in Toronto. He regained that status last season when he posted a .302/.360/.522 line during his second season with Arizona. A major injury derailed him earlier this year. However in the last 14 days he has slashed four homers and posted .377/.421/.698 line. Because of missed so much time, you mightnbe able to buy low on him. Hill has the ability to go on tears and he is blazing right now. On the season he is hitting over .300 against righties and lefties.

Donnie Murphy – This journeyman utility infielder is now 30 years old. In 340 Triple-A plate appearances this season he hit 12 homers with a .265/.338/.457 line for the Iowa Cubs. In 2012 he hit 13 homers in 125 plate appearances with a .302/.400/.726 line for New Orleans Zephyrs. He has 92 career minor league homers in 3,157 plate appearances over 12 seasons. Murphy has also hit 26 career major league homers in 703 plate appearances. Eight of those 26 homers have come this season in 16 games and 63 plate appearances with the Chicago Cubs. His hitting is a smooth .328/.381./.810. To put it unflatteringly Murphy was signed as organizational depth for the Cubs who already had Starlin Castro and Darwin Barney up the middle. Murphy has never had a starting gig in the Majors for any decent length of time hence his career hitting line of .216/.280/.413 is not impressive. His career strikeout percentage is a terrible 27.6% and with the Cubs in those 16 games its 25.4%. The Cubs have simply given Murphy a chance to play and he is reacting like a professional should when given a promotion. If he was to keep averaging a homer in every other game, well that would help any Fantasy team. Moreover, if you translate Murphy’s career Major league numbers into a full 162 game slate he has 16 homer and 60 RBI potential. Not bad for your average joe second baseman. The Cubs will ride Murphy whilst he is hot but don’t put in a waiver claim for Murphy and expect eight more jacks the rest of the season. His 2B/3B eligibility on most sites make him a nice back up option. He is hot right now with four homers over the last week but enter your waiver bid with crossed fingers.

Scooter Gennett – Gennett was summoned back up from Triple-A when Rickie Weeks finally got hurt enough to go on the DL. He has responded by punching out four homers and .444 batting average with 1.235 OPS. in the last 14 days. Those were his first four Major league homers. He only hit three in 349 plate appearances at Triple-A Nashville this season. “Scooter” Ryan Joseph Gennett is a former 16th round selection by Brewers. He has risen through the minor league ranks at the rate of one class per season, with the exception of his Major league promotion this season. He has respectable minor league line of .297/.337/.371. Like most middle infielders there is always hope that power will come with age for Gennett. He is seeing the ball very good right now and this could mean the Rickie Weeks days of Mendoza lining it are done in Milwaukee. Gennett has great potential in dynasty or even keeper leagues. He might continue to hit and that can help you rise in September. NL-only leaguers should definitely take a flier on Gennett.