Saturday's Roto Roundup: Stephen Strasburg Injured

Stephen Strasburg was cruising in his Saturday night start when he experienced pain in his right elbow. He was immediately removed from the game and diagnosed with a flexor strain. I assume we have seen the last pitch thrown by Strasburg this season. There is no reason for the Nationals to put him on the mound again this season.

On a positive note for the Nationals, starter Jordan Zimmerman could be activated to replace him in the rotation, as he threw 5 shutout innings in his rehab start on Friday night.

The Yankees put Alex Rodriguez on the DL after Saturday's game. It appears recently called up Eduardo Nunez will take his spot in the lineup, but is not ownable in mixed leagues.

Nationals shortstop Ian Desmond went 4-5 with 2 runs scored on Saturday night, raising his triple slash line to .279-.318-.420, with 9 HRs, 50 RBIs and 14 SBs. He has hit in 9 of his last 10 games going 17-37.

Yankees starter Javier Vasquez lasted just 3 innings, giving up 4 runs on 8 hits, 3 of which were home runs. It's safe to say the Vasquez's value in the free agent market has dropped.

Wow. The Rangers were praised for trading for Cliff Lee back in June, but he has been getting knocked around of late. Saturday night, the Orioles put 8 runs on the board against Lee, on 10 hits, 4 of which were HRs. In his 9 starts with the Rangers, Lee has given up 4 runs or more in 5 of those 9 starts.

Orioles rookie third baseman Josh Bell hit his first two major league homers off of Cliff Lee and drive in 5 runs on Saturday night. The Orioles are hoping for many more HRs from Bell going forward.

Cubs third baseman Aramis Ramirez went 3-4 with 2 RBI in the Cubs win over the Braves. His triple slash line looks pretty poor-.239-.292-.438 with 18 HRs and 61 RBIs in 356 at bats. Ramirez has been injury prone the last two seasons, but I think he can come cheap on draft day in 2011.

Marlins starter Ricky Nolasco has been diagnosed with a torn meniscus in his right knee and will require surgery. Nolasco had a solid season, going 14-8 with a 4.22 ERA and 1.23 WHIP.

Padres outfielder Chris Denorfia went 2-4 with 2 RBIs on Saturday and is now hitting .294-.358-.480 with 8 HRs, 35 RBIs and 6 SBs for the season. Could he be the Padres starting centerfielder in 2011?

Red Sox catcher Victor Martinez went 3-5 with 3 RBIs on Saturday. VMart is now hitting .284-.336-.447 with 10 HRs and 49 RBIs on the season. Is it safe to say he has hurt his free agent status in the offseason as well? Is he a DH going forward?

Tigers starter Max Scherzer won his 9th game of the season on Saturday, holding the one earned run in 7 innings, striking out 8 in the process. He has given up 2 runs or less in 8 of his last 10 starts, lowering his ERA from 4.88 to 3.73.

Diamondbacks outfielder Justin Upton went 2-3 with a HR, 2 runs scored, a SB and 2 RBIs on Saturday night. He has been a bit of a disappointment this season as I expected a 30-20 season from him, although he is on pace for a 20-20 season.

Astros starter Wandy Rodriguez pitched well enough to win, giving up 2 earned runs in 6 innings, but the 10 strikeouts were a pleasant surprise for fantasy owners. In his last 10 starts, covering 67.1 innings, Wandy has struck out 72 batters while walking just 14, and lowering his ERA from 5.30 to 4.00. He began the season in pretty poor fashion, but has righted the ship over the last two months.

The Phillies activated first baseman Ryan Howard a few days early on Saturday. He was originally scheduled to come off the DL on Monday, but his rehab went well enough for the Phillies to activate him. He should be in all fantasy lineups going forward.