Prospects: Liriano-Price reaching critical mass

Sometimes you just have to root for your favorites to fail. Seriously. GMs do.

People in Minnesota and Tampa Bay's front offices don't quite stick pins in their Francisco Liriano and David Price voodoo dolls, but they need to see their prized lefties bounce back from adversity. It builds character and tickles this guy in the tummy when they are able to.

Dominating without failure in the minor leagues looks nice on a stat sheet, but bouncing back from a good rogering and making adjustments is the type of thing baseball people want to see before they call your number.

We say this because the most-owned minor leaguer on CBSSports.com, Mr. Liriano at 71 percent, rebounded from his two worst Triple-A starts to post his best start of the season Monday. He picked up his fifth victory in six starts with seven shutout innings, nine strikeouts, one walk and just four hits allowed Monday. That came after he made it just 5 and 5 1/3 innings with nine hits and five earned runs allowed in each of his previous two starts.

Now, the Twins have seen what they needed to see. It should not take long for them to react.

But the Rays will have to wait a little longer for Price to give them a sense of his resiliency.

The Montgomery Biscuit lefty remains too good for the minor leagues. He tossed six shutout innings in Double-A on Tuesday night, striking out five, walking two and allowing five hits. In two Double-A starts, Price is now 2-0 with a 1.50 ERA and 2-to-1 strikeout-to-walk ratio, allowing a hit per inning and a .209 batting-average against.

The best pitching prospect, since ... well, pick your pitching phenom of choice -- Felix Hernandez, Dwight Gooden or lightning-armed lefties Scott Kazmir or Sandy Koufax -- is a combined 6-0 with a 1.74 ERA, 49 strikeouts, 13 walks and a .218 batting-average against in his first eight professional starts in his month-plus career. He has just been unhittable at both of his stops.

Unlike Liriano, Price has a pretty good chance to be available in your non-keeper leagues. He is stashed in only 31 percent at the time of the writing. Like usual, this story will drive up ownership, perhaps to as high as 50 percent.

Last time we featured him in this space, readers and even acquaintances said we were hyping a player way too soon. "The Rays won't call him up this year," they were convinced.

But these aren't your big brother's Rays. Heck, these are Rays no one has seen before, holding the best record in baseball and the No. 1 spot in CBSSports.com's Power Rankings for the first time ever. It is a different time for that franchise.

To those of you who disagreed with our projection of Price as an Aug. 1 call-up -- the Rays' equivalent of a trade-deadline ace pitcher acquisition -- repeat after us:

• The Rays thought he could have arrived late last year after drafting him No. 1 overall in June. He signed late, however ...
• Then they thought he could compete for the No. 5 rotation spot this spring.
• A tender elbow and zero pro experience on an uber talent gave them a few months caution.

We aren't projecting Price to arrive ahead of projection. August 1 would be almost a calendar year later than the others originally projected -- not us, we were skeptical back then, as we always are with recent draftees.

We like to see them pitch. And fail a little bit. And then dominate.

Liriano has done just that and now the Twins have to figure out who he bumps:

1. Kevin Slowey leads the staff with a 3.47 ERA and is coming off a complete-game shutout. Negatory.
2. Scott Baker has tossed five consecutive quality starts. Nope.
3. Livan Hernandez leads the staff with eight victories (also a 5.22 ERA), but he is the lone veteran presence. Trade bait, maybe, but not a demotion candidate.
4. Glen Perkins, the last one to join this current rotation, hasn't allowed more than three earned runs since early June. Maybe not.
5. Nick Blackburn is the least experienced and real hittable -- 118 hits in 97 2/3 innings entering play Wednesday. Now we have something.

It won't matter once the Twins decide Liriano is ready. Like Price, he is a get-of-the-way arm -- too good to hold back regardless of what you have.

Here are the potential Price-fixers:

1. Kazmir ... uh, why did we bother to type that?
2. James Shields? Same deal. Not a chance.
3. Matt Garza? No way. Did you see him Tuesday night against the defending champion Red Sox?
4. Andy Sonnanstine leads the team with nine victories, but he does have the highest ERA at 4.60 and the so-so stuff. Maybe.
5. Edwin Jackson has the only losing record on the staff and experience in relief. Hmmm, possibly him moreso.

The point here is you can really score a stretch-run Fantasy ace on the cheap in the coming weeks, be it Liriano or Price. Own them in all leagues you can afford to wait a few weeks on a potential superstar Fantasy pitcher.

Taking a vote

A quick poll around CBSSports.com on the simple question -- Liriano or Price? -- with no parameters on what kind of league or whether we are talking short term or long term:

Senior Fantasy Football Writer Dave Richard: "I take the guy who hasn't had elbow surgery." One for Price.

Señior, subtly different than Senior, Fantasy Basketball Writer Sergio Gonzalez: "Price." Two.

FSWA Golf Writer of the Year Ross Devonport: "Price." Trifecter.

That does it for the July 4 vacation-hit Fantasy row. Let's head down the hall to the Vendateria (a cafeteria of vending machines) ...

Senior Newsroom Editor George Maselli, who was at the water cooler: "Price. He's all upside." Four-bagger.

Senior, um, well, some dude waiting for his rations: "Well, I have never heard of Price, so Liriano. Who's Price?"

College Football Producer J. Darin Darst: "Liriano? Is this a trick question?"

Darn. Not a clean sweep, as yours truly walks away in pretend disgust. (Don't worry, Mr. Maselli filled them in on Price's long-term projectability and they are not paid to know about pitchers with fewer than two months of pro baseball).

Emack's vote, if you care: Price.

Newbie needs

Dave Grabowski, Dumont, N.J.: You keep saying in your updates that David Price is most likely going to be called up in August or September. Who is he going to replace in the rotation? None of the Rays starters are pitching that badly.

Emack: We will say Jackson right now, but reserve the right to change it to Sonnanstine before Aug. 1. Liriano's scapegoat will be Blackburn, Perkins or Hernandez in that order.

Tim Campbell: Do you even watch the Twins games, or just read about them the day after? Liriano is not going to change much of anything by coming to the majors unless he is used as another lefty out of the bullpen, which the Twins desperately need. All you so-called experts can't seem to get him off your mind. Baker and Blackburn are as good as any 1-2 starters in the AL Central, and I will put them up against anyone else's 1-2 with the exception of maybe Boston. I am just tired of reading about a guy who really never was, except for a few months two years ago. Three months doesn't make him a stud. He probably won't be that good again. Base your opinions on the facts, not the what if or when this happens. The Twins will be there at the end of season, with or without Liriano.

Emack: Um, wrong. To be fair, that comment came from a reader of the Power Rankings. Thought we would present an opposing view. Anyone agree? Didn't think so. Liriano won't relieve and no one in the Twins rotation can match his potential. Baker and Slowey are outstanding strike-throwers and control-and-command guys, but Liriano is a bat-misser.

You can e-mail Emack your Fantasy Baseball prospect questions to DMFantasyBaseball@cbs.com. Be sure to put Attn: Prospects in the subject field. Please include your full name, hometown and state. Be aware, due to the large volume of submissions received, we cannot guarantee personal responses to all questions.