Dear Mr. Fantasy: Price may not be right in '08

You can e-mail your Fantasy Baseball questions to DMFantasyBaseball@cbs.com. Be sure to put Dear Mr. Fantasy in the subject field. Please include your full name, hometown and state.

Mr. Fantasy has taken a chill pill.

This week's edition features an examination of Rafael Furcal's health, an expectation for Chris Young's return, an alternative viewpoint for David Price's 2008 season and not a single debate over whether or not a league should have overturned a trade. How refreshing.

So before someone writes in wanting me to assess the fairness of trading Corey Hart for Justin Morneau, let's take our first question.

I'm in a deep 14-team mixed league, and I have Edgar Renteria as my starting shortstop. Bobby Crosby is an available free agent, and I have trade chips in Jay Bruce and Aubrey Huff sitting on my bench. Is it worth it to hang on to Renteria? Should I pick up Crosby, or should I go after someone via trade? -- Patrick Hardy, Hyde Park, N.Y.

A lot of owners seem to be interested in the rehab status of one Chris Young. (US Presswire)

SW: I see no reason to think you'd improve your situation by picking up Crosby. Renteria has better numbers overall even in the power categories, where you'd think Crosby would have an advantage. Considering the depth of your league and the pieces you have to deal, I think you should make a trade. If you package one of those outfielders, you could possibly get Miguel Tejada in return -- or maybe someone better if you find a Bruce enthusiast.

I just saw the news that Rafael Furcal will be out for at least eight weeks. I'm in a Head-to-Head mixed league and will most likely be in the playoffs beginning Week 23 -- the week after Furcal would make his projected return. Would Furcal be worth stashing when right now I have J.J. Hardy and Yunel Escobar splitting time at shortstop? -- Chris McMillin

SW: The answer to your question depends so much on the size of your league, the size of your bench and the number of DL slots you have. I'll tell this, though: In a 12-team Rotisserie league with seven bench slots and a whopping five DL slots, I considered cutting Furcal for the first time Thursday. I quickly dismissed the idea, but again, the league had five DL slots. I might have done it in a league with one or zero. In any case, you have a long wait ahead, and it might end with no reward at all. Furcal could still end up missing the whole season considering the amount of rehabilitation back surgery often requires.

I had a trade scenario that I would like your feedback on. My pitching staff consists of Cliff Lee, Daisuke Matsuzaka, Ben Sheets, John Lackey, Dustin McGowan, Johnny Cueto and Fausto Carmona. I received an offer to get Chase Utley and Manny Parra for Cliff Lee and Jose Lopez. To me, this trade seems like a no-brainer with the depth I have at pitching. Would you agree? -- Sam Gorgone, East Stroudsburg, Pa.

SW: Forget your depth at pitching. You don't turn down an offer for a first-round talent like Utley unless the other guy asks for half your team in return. Lee has looked great and will probably find himself at the top of someone's Fantasy rotation all season, but he still might have a harsh dose of reality ahead. He doesn't have the track record to continue performing this way, and I halfway expect him to finish with an ERA on the wrong side of 3.00. Meanwhile, Parra has shown improvement, and Lopez is waiver fodder in most mixed leagues, so you don't really lose anything there. Make the deal.

Todd Helton and Joey Votto are killing me and have just about become dead weight. Billy Butler and David DeJesus are available. Should I make a move or stand pat? I looked at Helton's stats, and he is a better second-half hitter. -- Ryan Ptak

SW: Helton is historically a better second-half hitter, yes, but he's also a steadily declining hitter, so his struggles so far might simply indicate he's turned a corner as far as Fantasy viability goes. Still, I wouldn't give up on him just yet. Votto has about as much upside as Butler, so I wouldn't discard the former for the latter. I'd like you to pick up DeJesus if you can because, although I have my doubts about him, he looks like a breakout player. I don't think I'd cut either Helton or Votto for him, though.

I have been offered Derek Jeter and Jacoby Ellsbury or Jay Bruce for Jose Reyes. First of all, is this a good trade giving up my most consistent player in Reyes? Secondly, who is the better of those two outfielders? Currently, my outfield is Magglio Ordonez, Manny Ramirez, and Ken Griffey. Ellsbury or Bruce would replace the inconsistent Griffey, and Jeter would replace Reyes. What do you think? -- Josh Concon, Chicago

SW: Normally, I want the side of the deal that acquires the best player -- in your case, Reyes -- but if your wimpy outfield has you falling out of contention, I can understand your incentive to make this deal. It's more of a last resort than a sure-fire improvement, though, so you'll have to assess the standing of your team before pulling the trigger. As for which outfielder to choose, I would take Ellsbury unless you play in a format that awards too much for power and not enough for speed. Bruce might carry your team when going well, but Ellsbury's stats won't fluctuate as dramatically, making him more of a "sure thing."

I recently traded my only catcher, Geovany Soto, and now I am left with a terrible catching option. Someone in my league is offering me Jorge Posada and Robinson Cano for Brandon Phillips. Should I take this deal? -- Taylor Moran, Mountain View, Calif.

SW: I wouldn't do it, Taylor. As much as I expect Cano to improve in the second half, he still won't come close to offering the power or speed Phillips will. You don't have a Chris Iannetta, Kurt Suzuki or Jesus Flores you can claim off waivers? Don't get me wrong: I'd want Posada over any of those three, but you wouldn't gain enough by acquiring him to make up for what you'd lose by trading Phillips. Stand pat.

What's the deal with pitcher Chris Young of the Padres? I'm starting to doubt his usefulness for this season, and I haven't heard anything about his rehab. Is he worth holding on to? -- Keith, San Francisco

SW: Young recently had nasal surgery to correct a deviated septum -- one of the many after effects suffered from taking an Albert Pujols line drive off the head on May 21. The Padres target his return for late July, and I know if someone in one of my leagues cut him now, I'd put in a claim. He might not win many games pitching for the lowly Padres, but he's never won more than 12 anyway. You drafted him in Fantasy for his low WHIP, low ERA and high strikeout rate. On a positive note, the injury might even help him avoid his usual second-half swoon by limiting his number of innings. So yeah, Keith, if you've held on to him this long, keep holding.

You guys 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. -- Dave Grabowski, Dumont, N.J.

SW: You make a good point, Dave, and I'll address it because I have no problem taking a contrarian viewpoint if I think expectations get too unreasonable for a player. Just keep in mind you're about to read the opinion of only one man who has no inside knowledge of the Rays front office and has never personally seen Price pitch. He, therefore, can only answer with the best interests of his Fantasy team in mind.

As you say, the Tampa Bay rotation appears set. Scott Kazmir, James Shields and Matt Garza are locks to stay, and Andy Sonnanstine and Edwin Jackson haven't done anything to lose their jobs yet. Could they blow up in the second half and create an opening for Price? Absolutely, they could, but I don't know with how much assurance I can predict any pitcher to collapse. Likewise, any of the Rays' starting five could succumb to injury, but I try not to get in the habit of predicting injuries.

But if no Rays pitcher creates an opening through injury or incompetence, I don't see how, in the heat of a pennant race, the Rays could risk moving a 22-year-old into their starting rotation unless they have absolute confidence he'll do nothing but good. And absolute confidence is hard to find.

Personally, I have no doubt Price could become a Fantasy stud immediately upon his arrival, but will he? I can only invest so much in that uncertainty. So if you want to know if I think you should stash him in your league, I say it depends on the risk. I understand the potential, but who would you have to cut to clear a spot for him? I don't think Price has any better chance of assuming a rotation spot than, say, Arizona's Max Scherzer does, and we already know what Scherzer can do. So if you play in a deep enough league that someone owns Scherzer, then someone should also probably own Price. Otherwise, leave him be for now.

You can e-mail your Fantasy Baseball questions to DMFantasyBaseball@cbs.com. Be sure to put Dear Mr. Fantasy in the subject field. Please include your full name, hometown and state.