Roto Rush: Carl Crawford's 6 Thefts

Poppin' out the box scores and right into your cubicle, the Roto Rush is your double espresso shot of fantasy baseball advice every weekday.

Who would have thought that Dexter Fowler's five stolen base game wouldn't even last a week as the high steals game in 2009. Carl Crawford did him one better Sunday, taking six in as many chances. Crawford is now 17-17 in stolen base attempts this season. Lost in the shuffle was that his 4-4 day at the plate caused his average to rise all the way up to .317.

Crawford has been fantasy relevant for quite a while, so it's easy to forget he's only 27 years-old. Though he only garnered 25 steals for his owners last season, it appears Crawford is well on his way back to the 50-steal plateau. Now, if only we would start seeing the power stroke return ...

Bits From the Box Scores
• Don't look now, but Barry Zito doesn't suck anymore -- at least that's what his last three starts have told us. In those outings, Zito has worked 20 1/3 innings and only allowed 3 earned runs. That's good for a 1.33 ERA. His gigantic, looping curve appears to be baffling hitters once again, and he's found his command (11 strikeouts to only 4 walks during the stretch). Unfortunately, he still hasn't gotten a victory.

• The reason Zito didn't get the victory is that Jason Hammel was almost as good. The 6-foot-6 righty hurled 6 scoreless innings. Unfortunately, he was only able to mount 1 strikeout. I'd need a bit more than this to start rushing to the waiver wire.

• Is Derrek Lee's power back? He crushed a ball onto Waveland Avenue Saturday afternoon, and followed it up with a grand slam Sunday, giving him 3 home runs on the year. I can't believe I'm saying this, after all the bad things I've said about Lee this past two seasons, but he's worth watching in all leagues. He's not old (33) and he's hitting in the middle of a potent lineup. He's never going to hit over 30 home runs again, but he has had increased power in his stroke recently. I could see another 20 bombs this season, and, in that lineup, it should mean around 80 more RBI. If someone gave up on him early in your league, he's worth a look.

• John Baker is freaking legit. The 28-year-old, who toiled in the minors for nearly seven years, is finally getting a chance to play nearly every day, and he's making good on it. Thus far, we've seen him hit .300 in 306 career at-bats. Most importantly, he's hitting the ball hard. Even when he makes out, he's getting his money's worth. That's a sign he's going to keep things going. His BABIP of .354 is really high, but it was .367 last year in 233 plate appearances. There may not be a ton of normalizing here.

• Heading into the year, we warned you Michael Bourn wouldn't be a great fantasy option because he's such a bad hitter. Don't look now, but he's hitting .301, which means he's going to get his on the basepaths. After swiping 2 bags on Sunday, Bourn has 8 total on the year. He's worth a look in all leagues where you need steals help. As long as he's getting on base he'll help you.

• How long can the Braves continue to run Jo-Jo Reyes out there instead of just allowing Tommy Hanson to pitch in the bigs?

• I believe in Johnny Cueto. He's not going to keep this 1.65 ERA for long, but he's showing signs of being fully ready to handle an entire major league season's worth of work.

• After Sunday's gem against the Indians, we've now witnessed two straight studly outings from Justin Verlander. In those games, he's thrown 14 innings and allowed a single earned run. He's struck out 20 and walked only 3. Dare we believe he's returning to 2006-2007 form? I wouldn't go that far just yet, but it's worth inquiring to his owner what they want for him. You could see someone believe they are selling him high -- meaning you get a potential ace on the cheap. The strikeouts are a great sign that he's regaining his stuff.

• Cliff Lee's line is very interesting. On the surface, you have to like that he had another quality start. Still, 12 hits allowed in 7 innings? That's hardly domination. His WHIP and hits per 9 innings numbers are closer to where they were before 2008 than in his Cy Young season. I have confidence that he'll continue this disappointing season.

• The Blue Jays pitching staff is just too good to be true at this point. Scott Richmond is the latest example. He came from Independant ball and had a 4.45 ERA in the minors last season. He's 29 years-old. Yet he's sitting here 4-0 with a 2.67 ERA. His BABIP of .258 is part of the mounting rate stat evidence that his numbers will normalize to the mean quite soon.

• Did you give up on Justin Upton a few weeks ago? I wouldn't have blamed you. The thing is, he's starting to feel it now. In his last 10 games, Upton is hitting .371 with 4 home runs and 11 RBI. He's also scored 9 times and stolen a base. The number one overall pick in the 2005 draft will turn 22 this season, but he's loaded with talent. We're seeing it pay off, and it's entirely possible this is his breakout season. His brother, Bossman Junior, broke out at 22.

• Not only is J.J. Hardy scuffling badly at the plate (still only hitting .160), but he's too streaky to chance sitting. The second you do, he's liable to go on one of those power surges -- he hit 6 home runs in 6 games from July 1 to July 6 last year, for example.

• I hope the people who rushed to the waiver wire for Heath Bell are enjoying his inactivity, because it's a sign of things to come. He recorded his 7th save April 18, and has 1 since then. I'm sorry to be so harsh -- ah, who am I kidding? I love it -- but the Padres suck. When they jumped out to a 9-3 record -- the very day Bell saved his 7th game -- everyone who knew baseball knew it was a farce. Since then, the Padres have played to their ability. They've gone 2-11 and Bell's been picking splinters from his backside. Expect that to continue. If you dropped Frank Francisco or Chad Qualls for Bell, it's a shame you didn't have enough patience or foresight. We sound like a broken record, but fantasy baseball is a marathon. Let this be a lesson to not fall in love with small sample sizes.

• My condolences to John Danks owners. Having a two-start week with a guy who entered with a minuscule ERA looked like fantasy gold. Instead, he's been tattooed. Don't give up on him, though, because he's got worlds of talent.

• Elvis Andrus is helping more than we thought he would at this point in his career. He looked to be only really helpful as a defensive player, but he's hitting .274 and has stolen 3 bases. He's adequate as a middle infielder in larger AL-only leagues.

• Scott Baker fell apart after losing a no-hitter, and he's now an incredibly disappointing 0-4 on the year. He only lost 4 games all season in 2008. Perhaps more disconcerting is he's getting knocked around the park. He's giving up an excessive 3.5 home runs per 9 innings. None of his other rate stats point to really bad luck. He's just getting hit hard. I'd still give him a few more chances in larger leagues, but it's time to start peeking around for other options.

• I might be a bit nuts, but I'm actually starting to buy into Russell Branyan. He's never played full-time, and it appears the Mariners are going to leave him alone in the lineup. His batting average won't last by any stretch (he's hitting .324, but is a .233 career hitter), but the power will. There isn't a ton of good pitching in the AL West -- though the Angels are getting two studs back soon -- and he's a lock for 30+ homers at this point. From his spot in the lineup, that's likely worth over 100 RBI as well.

• So much for the Matt Holliday resurgence, huh? After hitting home runs in back-to-back games he went 0-7 on Sunday.

The Afflicted: Carlos Zambrano left his start with a hamstring injury. He's a very risky start for weekly lineup leagues at this point, as it's unclear if he'll be skipped or not. Ryan Braun sat out for the second consecutive day Sunday with a bad back, but claims he'll avoid a DL-stint. Aramis Ramirez should be returning Monday night, but we'll see. He's taunted us before. Oliver Perez could be headed for the DL, basically because he sucks. Jermaine Dye's hand is still a slight issue, but his X-Ray's were negative. He'll be back within the next few days. Teammate Josh Fields also got hit in the hand area. His left wrist is not feeling well after a hit by pitch Sunday night, and he'll likely miss at least Monday's game.

Lineup Lock Time: Take it easy, you've got until 7:05 PM ET tonight, when several games get going.

Star Watch: This will likely be the last week you have to sit on Alex Rodriguez. Ervin Santana and John Lackey will begin rehab assignments on Monday and Tuesday, respectively, so they'll be back soon as well. Joe Mauer is back, and he's already paying huge dividends. In 10 at-bats, he's gathered 7 hits, 3 runs, 3 RBI and a home run.

Tuesday's Ace in the Hole: Max Scherzer is still owned in many leagues, but if you play in a yearly league and his owner has given up on him, you might get a sneaky good start. The Dodgers have a solid offense, yes, but Manny Ramirez is questionable for the series, and Scherzer has had great success against the Dodgers in his thus-far-short career.

Tuesday's Dud: Livan Hernandez isn't very good anyway, but I couldn't help passing this nugget along. He's 3-15 with a 5.52 ERA in 24 career starts against the Braves.