For those of you who surf countless sports sites for the hottest tip on fantasy sports, look no further than right here on the Hot Stove where from now on I will be giving you weekly tips on what to do about certain fantasy baseball issues that arise during the week. Every Saturday or Sunday I will be posting an update on key injuries, minor league call ups, and managerial decisions. In addition, there will be tips on which players to trade for, trade away, and drop and pickup. Now enough with the rambling, lets get to the juicy stuff:

Key Injuries and Updates

Jake Peavy SP SD- As all Peavy fantasy owners know, Peavy has been sidelined with discomfort and stiffness in his right elbow. What really scared his owners was that Peavy had said that this pain in his elbow felt similar to 2004 when he missed the month of June. Fortunately, this season’s injury is not the same inflamed tendons in his pitching elbow. Peavy is scheduled to throw a 3 inning simulated game today and if all goes well, Peavy will be activated this week. Did you hear that? It was a collective sigh of relief from every Jake Peavy fantasy owner in America.

Jeremy Bonderman SP DET- In breaking news, Bonderman is expected to miss the rest of the regular season after he undergoes a procedure to remove a blood clot. Doctors expect Bonderman to fully recover but not be able to come back and pitch this season for the Tigers. While Bonderman hasn’t been producing this season, he has shown improvement in his previous 4 starts before going on the Disabled List. Does this mean Dontrelle Willis will finally get his act together with the added pressure on the Tigers rotation? My guess would be probably not considering Willis hasn’t thrown 3 straight strikes since President Bush’s first term in office.

Brad Hawpe OF COL- Even though he was struggling before he went on the DL, Hawpe tends to perform better before the All-Star break. He is too decent of a hitter to perform like this all season. In his first game coming off the DL, which was last night, Hawpe homered and walked twice. It doesn’t appear that Hawpe’s hamstring injury is going to have a long term effect on him and he should start driving in more runs and raise his .234 average. It just doesn’t seem that Hawpe can hit this poorly in Coors field all year in a very solid lineup.

Players You Want

Salomon Torres RP MIL- It doesn’t appear that Eric Gagne will be winning his closer job back from Torres anytime soon. In his last 6 appearances, Torres has 5 saves, 1 win, and has only given up a combined 3 hits and walks with no earned runs allowed either. Torres had some experience closing in Pittsburgh, but with a better team in Milwaukee, it appears Torres will get more chances to succeed.

Randy Winn OF SF- Now this is a very limited player that you want. Over the past couple weeks, Winn has been performing at a very high level, with the Giants scoring runs in bunches over that time span. However, Winn is known to have a lot of hot stretches, and then cool down right afterwards. For the meantime, Winn should help your team for the next couple weeks and then once he starts playing poorly again, find room for him at the bottom of your bench because 2 months from now, you may need that hot 4th outfielder once again.

Alexi Casilla 2B MIN- Since becoming the everyday second basemen for the Twinkies, Casilla has been a very productive fantasy player. Second base is one of the shallowest positions in terms of talent in fantasy baseball. Don’t expect monster numbers from him, but he can hit around .300 for the rest of the season and steal around 20 bases. If the Twins offense ever picks up and Joe Mauer and Justin Mourneau get hot, Casilla’s value will skyrocket.

Players To Get Rid of

Clay Buchholz/Bartolo Colon SP BOS- One of these two pitchers are going to be the odd man out in Beantown. With Daisuke Matsuzaka returning from injury relatively soon, whoever performs better is going to keep that last spot in Boston’s rotation. Colon suffered a rough loss against Seattle on Friday night and Buchholz has been rehabbing in Pawtucket, waiting to be called up. Only time will tell who becomes that 5th starter and with the impressive performances from rookie Justin Masterson, it is going to be one crowded bullpen and dugout in Fenway.

Chone Figgins 2B,SS,3B,OF LAA- Normally a very consistent, productive, and versatile fantasy player, Figgins is marred by an injured hamstring. This is huge when dealing with Figgins and his fantasy value. If he can’t steal bases and steal infield singles, Figgins will suffer a drop in categories such as runs, stolen bases, and average. Figgins is listed on the DL and probably when he comes back, will not be the exceptional performer he normally is.

Oliver Perez SP NYM- Many fantasy owners were hoping that Perez would be able to perform like he did last year. However, Perez hasn’t been able to find the plate with most of his pitches and all of the pitches he is forced to throw causes his outings to be shorter. Perez is also capable of the “Shock and Awe” start, for example his outing against the San Fransisco Giants last week in which he only lasted .1 innings giving up 6 earned runs, along with 5 hits and 2 walks. This sort of start can really destroy a fantasy owners week right from the start.

Minor League Player To Watch

David Price SP TB- The number 1 pick in last year’s draft from Vanderbilt University, Price has been coasting through Single-A lineups like Rosie O’Donnell at the buffet line at Sizzler. Playing for the Vero Beach Devil Rays, Price has not given up a run in his last 18 innings pitched, while also striking out 18 batters. However, Price not yet available for pickup in fantasy baseball leagues but with the Tampa Bay Rays in the hunt in the American League East, expect Price to be called up and to pitch meaningful innings in August and September, perhaps even before then.