PLAYERS TO PICK UP
MIKE SOROKA (SP Colin Kaepernick Jersey , Atlanta Braves, 38 percent owned in Yahoo) – Soroka returned from the disabled list Wednesday, and despite being on a pitch limit, he made the most of his return to the mound against the Mets. He allowed just one hit and one walk in 6.1 innings, while striking out four batters. He won’t ever be a huge strikeout pitcher, but he should be owned in the majority of leagues as a fourth starter.
WILLY ADAMES (SS, Tampa Bay Rays, 11 percent) – Adames will get every chance to earn the everyday shortstop role for the Rays. He has the upside to contribute across the board, and he should be owned in 12-team leagues with a middle infielder.
MIGUEL SANO (3B, Minnesota Twins, 81 percent) – Sano is owned widely but might be at his low as a fantasy asset. The Twins shocked the baseball world by sending him to Triple-A on Thursday, as he’s struggled to get it going after his 2017 All-Star season. If you have the patience and the room, now’s the time to buy low on Sano, who has out-of-this-world potential.
TOM MURPHY (C, Colorado Rockies, 1 percent) – If a catcher has a pulse, fantasy owners should be interested. Chris Iannetta or Tony Wolters aren’t a threat, as they aren’t even hitting their weight. Murphy, meanwhile, was hitting .289 in Triple-A, and he just got the call to Colorado. He’s a power-hitting catcher with a pedigree, and that gives him a real chance to be a top 5 catcher in fantasy going forward if he gets everyday at-bats.
TWO-START PITCHERS TO STREAM
DYLAN COVEY (SP, Chicago White Sox, 18 percent) – Covey has been a pleasant surprise for fantasy owners this season with his good strikeout rate, low walk rate and 2.29 ERA for the White Sox. There are better matchups out there than Cleveland and Oakland Kyle Juszczyk Jersey , but Covey should earn your trust in a two-start week.
MIKE MONTGOMERY (SP, Chicago Cubs, 17 percent) – Montgomery has filled in admirably for the injured Yu Darvish. He gives an added boost to those in points leagues, as he has relief pitcher eligibility. Montgomery is slated to start against the Dodgers and at the Reds next week.
JAIME BARRIA (SP, Los Angeles Angels, 27 percent) – With Shohei Ohtani out for the foreseeable future, Barria will get his shot to stick in the Angels rotation on a full-time basis.
HITTERS TO STREAM
BRIAN ANDERSON (3B, Miami Marlins, 46 percent) – If Anderson were in any other market, he’d be more highly owned. Anderson and the Marlins get six games against the Giants and the Rockies on the road next week. He’s worth streaming and owning for the long run.
JAY BRUCE (OF, New York Mets, 34 percent) – The newly-signed three-year deal hasn’t quite worked out for Bruce or the Mets yet, but Coors Field could be the scenery he needs to get going.
DUSTIN FOWLER (OF, Oakland Athletics 4 percent) – In Oakland’s six games next week, only one is scheduled to be against a lefty, which benefits Fowler. The Padres and White Sox are both in the top 10 for stolen bases allowed by a team this year. Expect Fowler to get plenty of run.
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This column was provided to The Associated Press by the Fantasy Sports Network, Associated Press writer Eddie Pells won story of the year honors for coverage of the NCAA basketball corruption probe in the annual contest for AP staffers by the Associated Press Sports Editors.
The story reported in collaboration with nearly four dozen AP sports writers around the United States to examine how universities with top basketball programs were responding to a federal corruption investigation of the sport.
Other contest winners from the AP:
Tim Dahlberg won the Grimsley Award for body of work covering some of the biggest events of the year, including the Super Bowl , World Series , the Floyd Mayweather-Conor McGregor fight, the British Open and a look back at the 50th anniversary of the Ice Bowl – the 1967 NFL Championship game between the Green Bay Packers and the Dallas Cowboys.
Paul Newberry won in the deadline writing category for his story on the Atlanta Falcons blowing a 28-3 lead to the New England Patriots in the 2017 Super Bowl.
Aaron Beard won the enterprise writing category for his college corruption story on sports agents and the difficulty in prosecuting them despite alleged underhanded ways in which they target teenage athletes.
Steve Whyno won the final writing category as his feature story describing how financial advisors, Zamboni drivers and others get the call to be a backup NHL goalkeeper.
Photographer Charles Krupa won for best portfolio for his collection of work including a series of photos featuring NASCAR at New Hampshire Motor Speedway.
”Krupa’s portfolio was by far the best,” the judges said. ”He did some spectacular action photography. All of his images stood out.”
Other photography awards went to:
David Goldman won the award for feature photo for his image with people gathered outside to watch hockey on a big screen.
Bernat Armangue won the final award for action photo for his image of a man trying to move to avoid getting gored by a bull.
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