1.  Holliday from fame.  The Rockies have given a lot of fantasy owners a lot of heartache.  Troy Tulowitzki was supposed to be the rising star in baseball and in fantasy leagues, but he was as bad a player as you could find early on, then went down with an injury.  Manuel Corpas was going to be the next great closer, but he fizzled early and lost his job almost immediately after the season started.  Yorvit Torrealba signed a new contract and was preparing to be an All-Star closer, but he hasn't hit at all.  Jeff Francis was supposed to be the bona-fide ace the Rockies have been looking for, but maddening inconsistency has kept Francis from making much of an impact.  Finally, Ubaldo Jimenez was supposed to take a huge leap forward and become an impact pitcher, and though he has not been terrible this year (3.95 ERA), he has also been inconsistent and a little lucky (1.48 WHIP).  The one constant?  Matt Holliday, who has clearly taken the mantle from Todd Helton.  Holliday is having another banner year, hitting .340 with 24 HR, 78 RBI, and 94 runs scored.  Holliday's HR numbers might be down, but he has stolen twice as many bases this year (22), making him the best all-around player in baseball at the moment.

2.  More from Mora.  It's easy for me to sit back and say that a player is done.  All I have to do is look at date of birth, the overall season numbers, and I can say, "He's too old.  He's clearly lost it."  I can say all this without watching the player swing or throw the ball.  And that's what I did with Melvin Mora, the 36-year-old third baseman from the Orioles.  Last year, Mora's numbers, particularly his power numbers, dipped precipitously, and things were not looking good this year.  In fairness, a lot of people who watched Mora play observed that his bat had slowed, that he could only hit mistakes, and he was nearing the end of his career.  Ah, but what a difference a month can make.  Mora hit .311 with a .533 SLG in July, which made some of us pay attention, but not necessarily blink.  He not only continued his hot pace in August, he obliterated his past work, hitting .420 with a .773 SLG as of this writing.  Right now, Mora is as good an option at 3B as anyone, which is more than he could say at the All-Star break, when he was more likely than not sitting on waiver wires across fantasy leagues.

3.  Under the radar in Chicago.  One player who hasn't been mentioned much, if at all, in this column plays in one of the biggest media markets in the world.  He is Alexei Ramirez, the fine infielder for the White Sox.  Why he hasn't gotten much attention here, I cannot say.  He has one of my favorite qualities in a fantasy baseball player, that is, versatility.  He qualifies at 2B, SS, and OF in most leagues.  He hits for power (15 HR, 19 doubles, 2 triples).  He drives in runs (58 in 361 AB).  He steals some bases (nine).  He hits for average (.307).  So, again, why doesn't he get any attention here?  Again, I cannot say, but he is here now, so pay attention.  he won't sneak up on fantasy drafts next year.

4.  Under the radar in Kansas City.  Speaking of quietly getting the job done, Joakim Soria quietly picked up his 33rd save a couple of weeks ago.  Keep in mind, Soria has been the closer for only one-and-a-half seasons, and he has already racked up 50 saves in that span.  Soria's other numbers in that period are also impressive, and right now, for his career, he has pitched in 114 games, saved 50 out of 57 games, has a 2.23 ERA and 0.91 WHIP, and struck out 133 men in 125 innings.  Keep in mind that he has racked up these huge numbers for a poor Kansas City team.  Normally, I hesitate to give an unqualified endorsement to a young closer, because they tend to flame out early, but Soria is an exception.  He has a spectacular makeup, and his kind of dominance isn't easy to find.  There is no doubt he should be a keeper if you participate in a keeper league.

5.  C.C. and Roy watch.  Lo and behold, C.C. Sabathia did not pitch a complete game last week. Of course, he pitched only one game since the last column, and he still threw six innings of one-run ball, so it wasn't as if he was slacking off.  Ned Yost might have taken some of the criticism of Sabathia's pitch count to heart, since Sabathia threw only 96 pitches (as opposed to 130 the previous game).  As for Halladay, he, too, did not throw a complete game, but he did get his 15th win against the Yankees.  Both players still sit at eight complete games, and we will continue to watch and see if either of them can reach double-digits before the end of the season.