Max Scherzer

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This very well could be the most active week you’ll see this season in your league’s free agent market. With top prospects like Max Scherzer, Nick Adenhart, Jeff Clement, Wladimir Balentien and Brandon Wood all receiving promotions to the big leagues this week, the race will be on to acquire those players via free agency.

Every fantasy league has different methods they use to acquire minor-leaguers who get promoted to the big leagues. Some use the “last place gets first choice” method, and even in that method tough decisions will have to be made. Others use a “Free Agent Allocation Budget”, better known as FAAB, where owners make blind bids using an imaginary budget like $1,000. The National Fantasy Baseball Championship, which I run, uses FAAB and this week folks spent up to half of their FAAB on Scherzer and 20-30 percent on some of the other prospects.

Here is a look at this week’s call-ups and the order I’d go after them:

Max Scherzer, SP, Diamondbacks: I’ve talked about him the last two weeks and this week Arizona made the call to Tucson and promoted their top prospect. The 11^th overall pick of the 2006 amateur draft made an impressive debut as he threw 4.1 perfect innings in relief on Tuesday, striking out seven. He will start on Monday and could remain in the rotation with another strong outing. He’s the top player to get via free agency this week as he has the talent (38 Ks, 3 BBs and 1.17 ERA in 23 innings at Triple-A) and the opportunity to excel now. Get him if you can.

Jeff Clement, C, Mariners: The Mariners’ top prospect was promoted this week shortly after Seattle signed C Kenji Johjima to a three-year contract extension. Interesting. While the Mariners are committed to Johjima’s arm and glove, they like Clement’s bat too much to keep him in the minors. The 2005 first-round pick (third overall) tore up the Pacific Coast League this spring as he hit .397 with five homers and 20 RBIs in just 23 games there. Since his call-up, he’s caught twice and DH’d twice, a scenario that should continue for the rest of the year. In some fantasy leagues, Clement is UT-only because he didn’t catch at all during his nine September games of 2007. But if he’s catcher-eligible in your league, grab him now as he could be one of the best hitting catchers in the AL very soon.

Wladimir Balentien, OF, Mariners: The Mariners promoted Balentien from Triple-A Tacoma after he hit .254 with six homers and 20 RBIs in 17 games there and he has started the last four games in right field. He’s a streaky hitter who chases a lot of bad balls, but his power is unquestionably among the best in the minors. He’s averaged over 20 homers per year since 2004 and he even has double-digit stolen base potential. He’s a riskier pickup than Scherzer or Clement, but the upside is there if he can cut down on his strikeouts.

Nick Adenhart, SP, Angels: The Angels’ No. 2 prospect – behind Brandon Wood – had a solid spring, but was sent to the minors to try and harness his control. He dominated at Triple-A Salt Lake by going 4-0 with a 0.87 ERA, while holding opposing batters to a .170 average. However, he did give up 15 walks in 31 innings while striking out 19 and his wildness showed up during his debut on Thursday. Pitching on only three days rest, he gave up five earned runs on five walks and three hits to take the loss. He will get at least two more starts before John Lackey comes off the DL and he’s a worthy pickup in fantasy leagues. Just realize that this 21-year-old is still learning his craft and more rough outings and a demotion back to Triple-A are likely right ahead.

Brandon Wood, 3B, Angels: This could be a short-term promotion for Wood, depending on how serious Chone Figgins’ hamstring injury is. He was called up on Monday from Triple-A Salt Lake to platoon at third base until Howie Kendrick came off the DL. Then Figgins got hurt and now he could face a DL stint. Wood continues to progress in the minors as he was hitting .273 with eight homers and 18 RBIs in 21 games at Salt Lake, but he seems to press too much when he gets to the majors. He struck out five of his first nine at-bats in Los Angeles and will be back at Salt Lake if he keeps that trend up. Keep an eye on him, but proceed with caution for now.

Jo-Jo Reyes, SP, Braves: Reyes is a second-year pro who had brief success last year before going back to the minors because of wildness. He started this season at Triple-A Richmond and had five solid starts, going 1-1 with a 1.17 ERA and 25 strikeouts with only eight walks in 23 innings. With John Smoltz going on the DL, Reyes was called up to start on Thursday against the Reds and he earned the win, allowing one run on four hits and three walks, while striking out five. Smoltz will go back to the bullpen when he comes off the DL, so Reyes has a good chance to stick in the rotation if he keeps throwing like that. He’s a definite pick-up in NL-only leagues and could be a worthy pickup in mixed leagues as well. The opportunity for success is certainly there.

What a Week

The injuries just keep piling up as Major League Baseball is on pace to set a new record for most trips to the DL and most days lost to the DL. This week saw top picks like Alex Rodriguez – the consensus No. 1 fantasy pick who hasn’t missed an extended period of time since 1999 – Troy Tulowitzki, Jorge Posada, John Smoltz, Chad Cordero and Phil Hughes land on the DL. Tulowitzki was a top 40 pick who had a terrible April and now will be sidelined until at least the All-Star break. That’s a tough break to overcome for his fantasy owners.

Smoltz went on the DL and will no longer be in the starting rotation when he returns from the DL later this month. Smoltz is having shoulder problems and the Braves have already said that he will return as their closer for the time being and then evaluate the situation later. But this is bad news for owners who had banked on Rafael Soriano getting 30-plus saves this year. Soriano will still be used when Smoltz can’t pitch consecutive days, but this changes a lot for fantasy owners who had counted on Soriano for saves and Smoltz for wins and strikeouts.

Down on the Farm

With so many hot prospects coming up to the majors this week, what’s left in the minors? Well, have no fear because several top pitchers are still just waiting for the call and it could come soon. The Reds are foolishly going with Matt Belisle in their rotation while Homer Bailey continues to excel at Triple-A Louisville. He struck out 10 batters in his last outing and now is 4-2 in six starts with a 2.29 ERA, 32 strikeouts and only nine walks in 39 innings. It’s time to get him up to the big leagues and see what he can do. The Dodgers’ Clayton Kershaw continues to dominate at Double-A Jacksonville and is due for a promotion to Triple-A or the big leagues soon. The 20-year-old lefty has posted a 1.11 ERA in six starts, while striking out 36 and walking only 11 in 32.1 innings. This kid is going to be special once he gets to the majors.

The Pirates’ best player this year has been CF Nate McLouth, so there’s no need to replace him. But CF Andrew McCutchen is looking great at Triple-A Indianapolis and could earn an outfield spot in the majors soon enough. The 21-year-old was hitting .304 with six homers, 16 RBIs, nine stolen bases and a .403 on-base percentage during his first 28 games at Indy. He has a lively bat and is among the fastest players in baseball. He could definitely add a spark to this lineup now. Also keep an eye on Oakland OF Carlos Gonzalez, who is hitting .343 with three homers and 10 RBIs at Triple-A Sacramento. Billy Beane is doing a great job of stocking this franchise with top prospects while winning now and Gonzalez is one of the best he has for the future.

Greg Ambrosius is the director of the National Fantasy Baseball Championship -- the industry's only multi-city high-stakes fantasy baseball event. Send questions to Greg at greg.ambrosius@fwpubs.com.