Let’s see how the ‘bargain bin’ hurlers did last week:

3-1 record, 28 IP, 20 K’s, 3.86 ERA, 1.18 WHIP, 34.39 RH point average.
Season to Date stats: 262 1/3 IP, 21-9 record, 166 K’s, 2.88 ERA, 1.17 WHIP, 32.65 RH point avg.

The stellar production continues from the ‘bargain bin’. I was hoping Jurrjens would do well in his debut on here, but he stunk it up with a -5.41 point performance. There are quite a few ‘new faces’ in this week’s batch, let’s hope they can keep up the pace.

Here are this week’s bargains:

Prediction: a rough estimate of the number of Rotohog points I feel the pitcher will put up.
Break Even #: the number of points the pitcher will need to put up in order to exceed his price.
Value: how much the pitcher is worth, based on my predicted number of points.

Mon. 7/21 – Randy Johnson ($7.79), Ari vs. CHC – At 44 years old, RJ has not been able to blow his fastball by hitters like he used to. As a result, he is 6-7 with an ERA of 5.23. However, his stellar 8.72 K/9 shows that he still has a little left in the tank. I wouldn’t recommend using RJ on a regular basis, but he should do well in this matchup with the Cubs. Prediction: 18.45 points - Break Even #: 17.52 points – Value: $8.89

Tue. 7/22 – Kyle Lohse ($8.24), Stl vs. Mil – Since May 24th, Lohse has been one of the best pitchers in all of baseball. In his last 11 starts he has gone a ridiculous 9-0 with a 2.22 ERA. I don’t anyone expects him to continue that dominance, but how could you not start him at a price just over $8?   Prediction: 24.59 points - Break Even #: 17.90 points – Value: $16.15

Wed. 7/23 – Ricky Nolasco ($5.89), Fla vs. Atl– Nolasco is an underrated pitcher that doesn’t come with much risk. Don’t be scared away by his 11.32 ERA against the Braves this season, look for him to have a better approach against them and put up a quality start.   Prediction: 25.78 points - Break Even #: 15.92 points – Value: $17.56

Thur. 7/24 – Matt Garza ($5.95), TB @ KC – There really is no place like ‘dome’ for Garza. He has a stellar 2.03 ERA when pitching in a dome and an awful 6.69 ERA when pitching outdoors. It’s important to note that most of the starts in which Garza has gotten shelled were against good hitting teams. He is a steal for this start if you can get him around $6. Prediction: 27.66 points - Break Even #: 15.97 points – Value: $19.79

Fri. 7/25 – John Lannan ($3.48), Wsh @ LAD – Lannan has been pitching well this year (3.29 ERA), but hasn’t been getting any run support (6-9 record). If he is lucky enough to get 2-3 runs from his weak hitting team, look out…he could get a win.  Prediction: 18.73 points - Break Even #: 15.61 points – Value: $9.22’

Sat. 7/26 – Derek Lowe ($7.84), LAD vs. Wsh – Lowe is a very safe play here. If you have to choose one guy to play from my bargain bin this week, Lowe should be the guy! He has a good chance to get the win here and will likely throw a quality start. Prediction: 28.54 points - Break Even #: 17.56 points – Value: $20.82

Sun. 7/27 – Nick Blackburn ($4.44), Min vs. Cle – Blackburn has owned the Indians this year, going 2-0 in his 2 starts against them with a 1.32 ERA and a WHIP of 1.17. He also doesn’t mind pitching during the daytime, where he has gone 3-1 with a microscopic ERA of 1.89. Prediction: 19.77 points - Break Even #: 17.84 points – Value: $10.45