Today's Fantasy Rx

Arizona: Jon Cannon, 29, LH Swingman
7-7 on a 79:51 K:BB in 95.1 IP over 14 GS(27 G)
with 99 H, 12 HR, and a 4.63 ERA for AAA Tucson(PCL).

He only reached AAA briefly in 2002 after six previous seasons in the minors and then spent last year with the Long Island Ducks of the Atlantic League. Now, Arizona's exodus of talent to the disabled list and out of the franchise leaves Cannon as the remaining respectable option at Tucson. He at least possesses intriguing dominance and might emerge as a dependable reliever, although he soon might be tried in the rotation depending on the progress of Edgar Gonzalez and Lance Cormier. Of course, I see no evidence that Cannon owns a skill set that will enable him to contribute positively in the majors, so ignore him along with almost every other Diamondback pitcher until their staff gains some stability.

Internet Challenge

SP(6)
Curt Schilling: Sat:CHW(J.Garland)
Randy Johnson: Sun:@NYM(S.Trachsel)
Kevin Brown: Sun:@SEA(G.Meche)
Kerry Wood: Sat:LA(K.Ishii)???
Josh Beckett: Sun:@MIL(D.Davis)

No starts: Pedro, Mussina, T.Hudson, Vazquez, Schmidt, Oswalt, Affeldt.

While Wood might miss Saturday's start depending on when MLB rules on his appeal of a suspension stemming from an April incident, we see no reason not to run him given our lack of alternatives and his comparably cheap salary. Affeldt will complete our staff.

With Piazza, Fullmer, and Kaz Matsui all fighting injuries, and Crede and Podsednik apparently falling out of favor with their respective teams due to ineffectiveness, our benched players seem obvious.

The Umpire Hunter(19th lg; 533rd overall)
Week 19b: August 13-August 15

C	Jason Varitek		680 
C	Victor Martinez		450
1B	Lyle Overbay		400
1B	Mark Teixeira		760
2B	Alfonso Soriano		1930
2B	Mark Loretta		820 
3B	Scott Rolen		1460 
3B	Hank Blalock		850
SS	Alex Rodriguez		2010 
SS	Alex Cintron		450 
OF	Carlos Beltran		1760
OF	Vernon Wells		1150
OF	Carl Crawford		1040 
OF	Brad Wilkerson		690
OF	Adam Dunn		690
OF	Miguel Cabrera		570 
DH	Juan Pierre		1470 
DH	Orlando Hudson		550

SP	Curt Schilling		1610 
SP	Randy Johnson		1550 
SP	Kerry Wood		1190
SP	Kevin Brown		1180 
SP	Josh Beckett		990 
SP	Jeremy Affeldt		650
RP	Eric Gagne		1890
RP	Octavio Dotel		1250
RP	Danny Kolb		940 
RP	Joe Nathan		720 

Total Salary for Week 19b: 	29700

Today's Fantasy Rx: Some young pitchers will reach the majors well ahead of schedule over the next month as teams struggle to replace disabled players or even just show off their farm system. Don't rush to grab anyone who hasn't spent at least a full season, if not two or more years, in the upper levels of the minors while compiling solid skills. Pitchers generally rank as obvious risks barring contrary evidence, and investing in unproven youth can torpedo the qualitative stats for contending fantasy teams.