BBC Preview: Phillies, Yankees have full weeks ahead

For even more statistics and advice to help you set your Baseball Challenge lineup, check out Tristan's Week 23 Fantasy Forecaster!

Quantity, quantity, quantity. It's an important factor in the Baseball Challenge, and for an obvious reason: You can't rack up points when your players aren't playing.

That's why as the calendar advances to September, keeping tabs on potential makeup games and doubleheaders is key. For example: Did you know that the Phillies are the only team in baseball with 31 games yet to play? This week, they're the one team with eight contests on the schedule.

The Yankees represent the American League's "loaded-schedule" candidate, with seven games to play at home, including a Monday doubleheader. Check the statistics from my Forecaster, but the Yankees have experienced a significant home-field advantage all year, and they'll face an Orioles team they have owned all year to end the week. Even if their pitching struggles, as it has from time to time, there's no offense in baseball that can match that of the Yankees.

Another trait that keeps the Phillies and Yankees -- though obvious choices -- among the stronger teams to draw your lineups from: They're two teams with playoff aspirations, and therefore less likely to rest regulars to get a look at youngsters competing for 2010 roles. If either squad clinches a playoff spot early, rest for starters might become an issue, but not now. Load up!

Tristan's top weekly pitching staffs

1. Philadelphia Phillies (@HOU-1, @WAS-3, NYM-4 -- two-start pitchers J.A. Happ and Pedro Martinez), 5.9 price tag: It's not just a quantity thing -- the Phillies play eight games in a week where 19 other teams play six or fewer -- it's also a matter of quality -- the Phillies have 16 wins, a 2.60 ERA and 1.10 WHIP in their past 22 contests. This rotation has become so deep that "sixth starter" Jamie Moyer, who will presumably get the extra start in Sunday's doubleheader, has a 0.87 ERA in 10 1/3 innings of relief since his move to the bullpen, as well as a 9-4 record, 3.86 ERA and 1.25 WHIP in his past 15 appearances overall. Don't you think almost any other team in baseball would be happy with those numbers from its No. 3 starter? BBC owners should reap the benefits of a busy week.

2. Colorado Rockies (CIN-4, @SD-3 -- two-start pitchers Ubaldo Jimenez and Jason Marquis), 6.0: Here's a team that'd surely be happy with Moyer occupying its fifth-starter role, because Jose Contreras and Josh Fogg really don't cut it. Still, even with one of those two -- likely Contreras -- getting one of these seven starts, BBC owners can feel safe in the fact that neither of these opponents can hit, three of the games will be played at pitching-friendly Petco Park and the Rockies have their two best starters each working twice this week.

3. Los Angeles Angels (@KC-1, SEA-3, CHW-3 -- two-start pitchers Ervin Santana and Scott Kazmir), 4.4: Picking the Angels' staff is a ballsy move, but if you're going to dig into the proverbial "second division" in terms of pitching-staff pricing, this is the staff you want. No longer must the Angels rely on mixing and matching Triple-A starters to fill their fifth- (and sometimes fourth-) starter positions, not with Kazmir now in L.A. But it's not just personnel that make the pick; what makes it is that the Mariners and White Sox don't scare me in terms of offenses, and the Angels can score. That means wins, wins, wins.

4. Chicago Cubs (@PIT-3, CIN-3 -- two-start pitchers Ted Lilly), 6.3: This is it. If the Cubs are to have any hope in the wild-card race -- they're currently six games back of the Rockies -- they need a big week. This is sure the week for it, with games against the division-rival Pirates and Reds, ranked 27th (.702) and 30th (.685) in terms of team OPS since the All-Star break. With a healthy Lilly -- he has four consecutive quality starts since his return from the DL -- the Cubs can roll their best five starters all week, meaning a low-risk option for BBC owners.

Tristan's daily matchup tips

Monday, Sept. 7 -- It's a bit of a toughie to pick any team to win both ends of a doubleheader, especially when both games are against the Rays, but because the Yankees will pitch both A.J. Burnett and CC Sabathia versus Tampa Bay on Monday, I'll go for the double dip. Burnett is the only one with a performance concern, and he's 2-0 with a 2.14 ERA in three starts against the Rays this year. [e] Indians rookie Carlos Carrasco looked like a pitcher not yet ready for the majors in his debut, and the Rangers' offense is hungry and can still smell October. Chris Davis has been on a tear since his promotion; he's batting .314 in his past nine games.

Tuesday, Sept. 8 -- Tim Lincecum. Giants versus Padres. 'Nuff said. OK, I'll throw in that he has a 1.67 ERA in 11 career starts against San Diego. [e] The Cardinals have a favorable track record versus Brewers left-hander Manny Parra, particularly their right-handed hitters. Ryan Ludwick and Albert Pujols both have a career OPS greater than 1.000 against Parra, and don't think for a second that Matt Holliday and Yadier Molina don't match up splendidly against him.

Wednesday, Sept. 9 -- Cliff Lee is coming off a down performance in his most recent start, but did you know that not once since April 11 has he gone back-to-back appearances without a quality start? He and the potent Phillies lineup head to Washington to take on Garrett Mock, and Philadelphia's pitching staff remains dirt cheap. [e] The Mariners' Ian Snell can be a terribly erratic thrower, and keep in mind the Angels' current hitters have combined to bat .481 with a 1.218 OPS in their careers against him.

Thursday, Sept. 10 -- Though John Lackey did struggle in his previous two starts versus Seattle this season, both of them came early in the year when he was fresh off the DL. More relevant to the matchup Thursday is that he's 6-3 with a 2.76 ERA and 1.12 WHIP in his past 10 starts overall, and pitching for an Angels team providing him plenty of run support. [e] The Rockies should be familiar enough with former teammate Kip Wells' repertoire that they'll be able to get to him. Plus, it's a Coors Field game, and Rockies hitters are automatics at home.

Friday, Sept. 11 -- The Cubs' Rich Harden has made quick work of the mediocre Cincinnati offense in three starts this season, during which time he has two wins, a 2.50 ERA, 0.79 WHIP and 25 K's. It's a home game -- the Cubs have a significant home-field advantage if you examine their record -- and one sure to amount to a ton of strikeouts (points, points, points!). [e] How about those Tigers versus left-hander Brian Tallet? Keep in mind Miguel Cabrera, Brandon Inge and Magglio Ordonez all have an OPS of .932 or greater versus southpaws.

Saturday, Sept. 12 -- I've got a lot of confidence in Ubaldo Jimenez right now, and on days he pitches, the Rockies thrive. He has 11 consecutive quality starts and a 2.49 ERA in them, and he'll be pitching at Petco Park, which is a cakewalk matchup. [e] Load up on Yankees, because they'll be facing a young left-hander in Brian Matusz, one who might be wearing down from a hefty workload in his rookie season. Remember, this Yankees team has by far the best team OPS in the majors versus lefties (.865).

Sunday, Sept. 13 -- I'll go double dip again, and pick the Phillies and their two home games versus the Mets. Pedro Martinez is coming off his best start yet of his comeback, while Jamie Moyer, the man Martinez bumped from the rotation, has been pitching like a motivated man in his long-relief role. To assume he can transform that into a successful start is no stretch. [e] On a double-dip day, especially one at a hitter-friendly ballpark, it's imperative that you load your lineup with hitters likely to play both contests. The Mets lack many appealing choices, but that Phillies offense is loaded with prime selections, like Ryan Howard, Jimmy Rollins, Shane Victorino, Chase Utley and Jayson Werth.

Tristan's BBC weekly-game lineup

Total Segment 2 points: 2,259.
Percentage: 94.7. Overall rank: 1,465th.
Ranking in Fantasy Editorial Group: 108th. Total points for 2009 season: 6,224.
Percentage: 98.4. Overall rank: 975th.

C -- Joe Mauer, Twins (@TOR-4, OAK-3), locked at 4.9 price tag, market price 5.7: Still my BBC MVP choice for this season.
1B -- Ryan Howard, Phillies (@HOU-1, @WAS-3, NYM-4), market 5.7: Eight games goes a long way, especially for a guy with 11 homers in his past 20 games.
2B -- Chase Utley, Phillies (@HOU-1, @WAS-3, NYM-4), locked at 4.6, market 5.2: Ditto Howard with the quality of games, and in Utley's case, he has six homers and a 1.003 OPS in his past 18 contests.
3B -- Alex Rodriguez, Yankees (TB-4, BAL-3), locked at 4.8, market 4.9: Seven home games is a huge advantage for A-Rod; he has hit 16 of his 24 home runs this season at the new Yankee Stadium.
SS -- Derek Jeter, Yankees (TB-4, BAL-3), market 5.2: Though Hanley Ramirez's hamstring apparently is fine, I've got enough worries about him down the stretch that I'll jump on a set of favorable weekly matchups like Jeter's.
LF -- Matt Holliday, Cardinals (@MIL-3, ATL-3), locked at 4.4, market 5.5: Your weekly running tally -- 184 BBC points in 37 games for the Cardinals.
CF -- Matt Kemp, Dodgers (@ARI-3, @SF-3), market 5.1: With 10 home runs, 28 RBIs and seven stolen bases in his past 30 games, Kemp is really generating a buzz that he's a worthy first-rounder in 2010 fantasy drafts.
RF -- Justin Upton, Diamondbacks (LAD-3, MIL-3), market 4.4: He's hitting .457 with a 1.344 OPS in nine games since being activated from the DL.
DH -- Hideki Matsui, Yankees (TB-4, BAL-3), market 4.7: Again, it's a favorable schedule for the Yankees, and they'll face five right-handed starters.
Pitching staff -- Phillies (@HOU-1, @WAS-3, NYM-4), market 5.9

Tristan's BBC daily-game stats

Tristan H. Cockcroft is a fantasy baseball analyst for ESPN.com and a two-time champion of the League of Alternative Baseball Reality (LABR) experts league. You can e-mail him here.