Thursday’s Roto Roundup: What Happens Next in Arizona?

This article was written by Jason Hunt over at Fake Teams

Well, this was probably the most surprising news of the day: Both manager A.J. Hinch and general manager/part owner Josh Byrnes were fired by the Diamondbacks yesterday. You can read more of the reaction by the fans over atAZ Snakepit, but I have to imagine that ownership could very well dictate to interim general manager Jerry DiPoto that they need to dismantle the team, and move everyone short of Justin Upton, Mark Reynolds, and maybe Stephen Drew. Ray talked about the rumors surrounding ace starting pitcher Dan Haren yesterday, and Kelly Johnson the day before. Either way, it really seems like we're about to see a lot of playing time change hands in the coming weeks. Definitely worth watching at this point, especially for all of you playing in NL-only leagues. I can see Kelly Johnson moving soon, along with Adam LaRoche and potentially even some of the starting rotation as well.

Carlos Silva had another good start yesterday, striking out 6 batters and allowing 2 earned runs over 7 innings. Unfortunately, the offense wasn't able to pick him up, and he got a no-decision. I don't think he'll be in my top-25 for starting pitchers, but he could very well end up in that next tier down.

Matt LaPorta hit a homerun in his 3rd straight game yesterday, and the guys on Fantasy Focus were asked whether or not they would rather have LaPorta or Todd Helton for the rest of the season. Having seen what has happened of late, I am inclined to agree with them and say LaPorta.

Trevor Cahill won his 8th game of the season yesterday, and his 6th in as many decisions. He struck out 4 and only allowed 1 earned run over 7 innings. Granted that it was the Orioles, but he's been pitching well for quite a few starts in a row now. If for some reason he is still unowned in your league, you need to go get him.

Also in Baltimore, Josh Bell made his major league debut, going 1 for 4 with a strikeout. He was the main return for the Orioles for trading George Sherrill to the Dodgers, and just continues to make the Erik Bedard trade look like an even bigger steal for the Orioles. That said, Bell has struggled quite a bit against left handed pitching in the minors, and I wouldn't pick him up except in deep leagues and AL-only.

Johan Santana can't seem to buy a break at this point. He went 7 innings, allowed 1 run and struck out 7, but got a no-decision as the Mets offense couldn't figure out what to do with Livan Hernandez. I think Santana's performance has been subject to more bad luck than he probably should have been at this point, but I'm not sure where he's going to rank for me later on.

Buster Posey hit his 2nd homerun of the season, and has been installed as the starting catcher with the trade ofBengie Molina yesterday. The beneficiary for the rest of the season seems to be Pat Burrell, who has had a bit of a resurgence since joining the Giants.

Daily Red Sox Injury: On an off-day, it sounds like Jason Varitek has broken either his foot or his leg (reports seem to vary), and will be out 4-6 weeks. The newly acquired Kevin Cash could very well end up the starter until Victor Martinez returns, but either way the team cannot catch a break with regard to injuries.