In today’s Fantasy baseball notes, we look at how good Andy Pettitte has been lately; Brian Giles‘ power regression; and Manny Ramirez‘s quiet hitting streak, among other things…

• How about Andy Pettitte? Other than a couple of shaky outings, he’s been lights out since… you guessed it… his buddy Roger Clemens returned to the Astros. Pettitte has really picked things up this month: 2-1, 2.66 with just 16 hits, one homer and four walks allowed in 20 1/3 IP. But how about those 24 Ks? Very sweet rate for the southpaw. Pettitte leads the NL in losses but ranks in the top 10 in wins, strikeouts and innings pitched. In the very, very slim chance he’s available in your mixed league, terminate him off the waiver wire with extreme prejudice.
• Do you need more evidence that Brian Giles is no longer a power hitter? Perhaps you’ve noticed that over the past week he’s been spending some time hitting out of the two-hole as opposed to his customary third spot in the order. Twenty-three home runs since the beginning of the 2005 season? Uh yeah… seek your power elsewhere, my friends.
• Manny Ramirez‘s hitting streak has quietly crept up to 27 games. On Saturday, he only got a chance to keep it alive when the game went into extra innings, and David Ortiz was denied an opportunity for another walk-off hit by being intentionally walked. That left the heroics up to Manny, who delivered and is now up to .325 for the season. He’s also just seven RBI away from a ninth straight 30-HR, 100-RBI year. Now that’s Manny being Manny, baby.
• We suppose we shouldn’t be surprised that Leo Mazzone hasn’t been able to work with Bruce Chen (0-7, 6.91 after winning 13 games last year). After all, it’s not as though Rockin’ Leo could get anything out of him when they were both in Atlanta.
• Chase Utley has been held hitless in two of his last five games and is down to .325 on the year. What’s wrong with this guy?
• Mike Lowell went 2-for-4 with a run on Saturday to snap a 9-for-47 slump dating back to July 25, his last multi-hit effort. He’s been getting dumped in mixed leagues and may now be available if your league is mid-sized or smaller.
• And the first 13-game winner in the National League is… Brad Penny. The NL’s All-Star starter has won three straight starts, coming on the heels of losing three straight starts, which was — you guessed it — after he won three straight starts before that. If that’s a pattern, then you don’t want Penny next week. Still, he’s just one win away from tying his career high and it’s not too soon to mention his name in Cy Young discussions, especially if the Dodgers continue their run and win the West. We’re loving that control from Penny — back-to-back starts without a walk. His command is an all-time high of 3.31 Ks per walk.
• Dodger rookie James Loney continues to increase the chance he’ll stick around after Nomar Garciaparra comes off the DL. Loney had a double and triple and pair of runs on Saturday and is now batting .275. Man, do the Dodgers have a sweet-looking minor league system.
• If the Giants keep falling out of it (15 losses in the past 18 games), Todd Linden will be a name worth watching down the stretch. He’s hitting .346 and deserves a chance to spell that all-40-something outfield. NL-only leaguers need to be ready to pick him up soon.
• Steve Finley went 2-for-5 Saturday and that might earn him some extra PT, especially considering he was just 2-for-16 all month before that performance. He had been being dropped in some NL leagues.

In recent years, during the Braves’ unprecedented run of success, many “experts” have predicted the demise of the club, but Atlanta always found a way to win. We have resisted such portents of doom, always suggesting until it happened, you had to give the benefit of the doubt to the Braves. more

Well, Cabrera was rancid and had to be demoted 10 days ago. Bedard also struggled at the outset, and his ERA was pretty unsightly (almost 6.00) after getting shelled in a June 1 start. Since then, however, the young Canadian southpaw has been among the top pitchers in all of baseball. In nine starts covering 60 IP, Bedard has given up just 40 hits and 16 walks while striking out 65 and recording a 1.95 ERA. He’s gone 7-1 over that stretch (including winning his past seven starts) and suddenly has a dozen wins, doubling his previous career best, and ranking fourth in the American League. Overall, Bedard has now lowered his ERA to 3.94 and looks to be one of the best bets for the second half, but his recent streak has rendered him unavailable in basically any kind of league. more