Roto Rush: Vlad Goes Yard Twice, Including 400th of Career

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

Vladimir Guerrero's had a rough 2009, with injury issues and his dwindling power (his .466 slugging percentage would easily be his career low if the season ended today) causing concern the 34-year-old was full-on in the middle of a career decline.

With two cracks of the bat Monday night, "Vlad the Impaler" reminded us that he's been swinging a hot stick of late. In fact, he's been the old Vlad for quite some time. He just needed to shake the Earth a little bit to ensure everyone took notice.

Since June 24, Guerrero is hitting .347 with a 1.084 OPS. He's clubbed 7 home runs and driven home 15 in that time period, in which time he's only had 72 at-bats.

In the middle of that stretch a disabled-list stint, but it didn't slow him down. Since returning August 4, Vlad has a hit in all seven games (.357 average) and gone deep 4 times. His latest jack was the 400th of his illustrious career.

His season batting average is all the way up to .299 (was just .208 on May 29), his power is really coming around and his OPS+ just finally climbed above 100. You can safely start him in all leagues once again and if he's available (he is in 10 percent of Yahoo! leagues), go get him immediately.

Vlad is back.

Bits From the Box Scores:
- Special night for Troy Tulowitzki, as pointed out by Ed Price in Starting Five. Let's hope you didn't give up on him during his early season swoon, because he's proving an absolute beast at present.

- And so endeth the Tom Gorzelanny honeymoon. His outing Colorado resulted in 1 1/3 innings, 6 hits, 6 earned runs, 2 home runs and a foot injury.

- In case it wasn't clear who was better suited as closer for the Marlins, Matt Lindstrom and Leo Nunez sent out a reminder. Lindstrom worked only a third of an inning and gave up 2 hits and 3 runs (only 1 of which was earned), while Nunez rescued him with a perfect 2/3 of an inning and his 12th save of the season. In fact, he hasn't blown a save chance since becoming closer when Lindstrom went on the disabled list in late June. He's a quality closer in most fantasy formats while Lindstrom can be left on the scrap heap.

- Hunter Pence has been struggling for quite a while. He was hitting a robust .358 at one point in the season, but it dipped all the way down to .287 after Sunday's loss to the Brewers. He does have three 2-hit games in the past seven, though, so there's hope for a turnaround. He has immense talent, and his plate discipline has largely been OK. I'm counting on a big finish to the season.

- After returning from injury, Kyle Lohse rough a rough July and it carried over into his first start of August. Monday night, though, Lohse dialed himself in -- working 6 innings and allowing only 4 hits and 1 earned run. Of course, he was playing the Reds and what's left of their offense.

- Mike Pelfrey continued his roller-coaster of a season, getting roughed up in 6 innings by the Diamondbacks. He has 10 quality starts out of 22, but that includes a stretch of five straight during May. He did piece together two in a row at the conclusion of July, but he's now 0-2 with a 6.55 ERA and a 1.64 WHIP in August. He still has long-term potential, but it appears the risk is too high and you should be watching from afar until he gains some consistency.

- Hiroki Kuroda is quietly putting together a solid streak right now for the Dodgers. He's 2-0 with a 3.38 ERA and a 24:5 K:BB ratio in his last five starts. The best part for the Dodgers? They are 5-0 along the way. He's still giving up too many hits, but Kuroda will be a good source of wins down the stretch with the occasional outburst of strikeouts.

- Last week I warned against starting Jonathan Sanchez against good offenses. Yes, the Dodgers qualify. Stick to spot-starting him.

- Aaron Hill has 27 home runs. It's August 11. He entered the season with 28 career bombs in 1,899 plate appearances. There's no reason to explain when you can just enjoy.

- Derek Jeter is enjoying a huge bounce-back season after a disappointing 2008 campaign. He's now hitting .315 with 13 home runs and he's stolen 20 bases (last year he went .300, 11, 11 in those categories). Non-fantasy related, he obviously has enough gas in his tank to reach 3,000 hits (he has 2,677).

- How about the outing from Gio Gonzalez? Or, should I say outings? Since an absolutely chilling (in the sense that a really scary horror movie is chilling) outing on July 20, Gio is 3-0 with a 1.46 ERA in 24 2/3 innings. He's struck out 26 during those starts as well. We know the potential the 23-year-old sandwich pick (between first and second rounds of the MLB draft) has, and it appears he's learning his craft at the major league level. Take note. He's a future stud.

- Matt Wieters just keeps putting along here in his eagerly awaited rookie season. Any brief hot streak seems to fall right back into mediocrity. He's not hitting poorly, but he's not doing anything to really help fantasy owners. The reason I say this is because come draft time next year we need to remember there was a reason for all the hype and not let a one-year learning experience cloud judgment. Just file it away in your memory.

- Jacoby Ellsbury set a career high with his 51st stolen base Monday night. Considering he's also hitting .301 and he's only 25, we can safely expect him to be a must-start fantasy player for a long time.

- Edwin Jackson had a bad start against the Red Sox, who were probably a bit peeved after getting swept in the Bronx. Consider the 4-inning, 9-hit,4-earned run outing an aberration.

- Miguel Montero is showing the Diamondbacks he can be their long-term answer behind the dish. The 26-year-old had a rough beginning to the season, but he's been on fire for a while. Since June 27, he's hitting .353 with 8 home runs and 25 RBI (in 31 starts). His OPS is 1.004 over that time as well. He should be getting a look in all yearly leagues right now and many keeper ones as well.

- Pat Burrell continues to be a much bigger bust than Milton Bradley. For all the negative press the Cubs are getting for signing Bradley, his failures pale in comparison to the futility being provided by "Pat the Bat." Bradley's rate numbers at present (AVG/OBP/SLG): .265/.400/.401. Burrell's? .224/.330/.373. Low and behold, both the Cubs and Rays would be left out in the dark should the playoffs begin now, and it would be a huge disappointment to both franchises after last season.

- Adrian Beltre has hit in six straight games. During the streak, he's hitting .423 with a .906 OPS. He power will come back soon, and he's even stolen a base. If you need corner infield help, go grab Beltre. He's got the track record to show he can get hot down the stretch.

Rios Fallout: The White Sox acquired Alex Rios for free -- unless you include the billion dollars they owe him for the next five years. For this season, the fantasy impact will be quite significant. There is now a logjam for the South-Siders. Between outfield and designated hitter, the White Sox have Jermaine Dye, Scott Podsednik, Carlos Quentin, Jim Thome and Rios. The only logical choice for removal from the lineup in favor of Rios would be Pods, but he's provided such a huge spark for the White Sox, you wouldn't think they'd completely remove him. Instead, the smart money is on Rios starting sometimes in center, sometimes in right and sometimes as a DH. Overall, though, the biggest hit in playing time will be to Rios himself. He won't be playing everyday anymore.

The Afflicted: Johnny Cueto left his start with an injured hip flexor. Considering the way he was pitching recently, it was probably a blessing in disguise for his remaining fantasy owners.

Lineup Lock Time: Sit tight, it's not until 7:05 PM ET.