2017 Fantasy Baseball SP Streamers: Week 11

All in all Week 10 can be considered a success. Joe Ross bounced back from two weak starts in Week 9. He went 7.1 innings deep and struck out 12 with no walks. Junior Guerra gave up 1 run in just 5 innings of work, although he didn’t garner many K’s. Jaime Garcia took a loss in 7.2 innings of work, but he did earn a quality start and didn’t walk anyone (but he did give up 8 hits). The jury is still out on Dinelson Lamet for this week. It was mentioned that his first matchup against Arizona wasn’t great and sure enough that start inflated his 2.70 ERA inflated to 6.92 after a dreadful start in Chase Field. Lamet gets a shot at redemption this weekend, which was why he was mentioned in last week’s piece to begin with. You should feel confident going back to him on Sunday. Congratulations if you were brave enough to start Gas Can! It wasn’t a quality start, but it also wasn’t horrendous. Do not use him Sunday against the Yankees.

For the deeper league suggestions, Skoglund was an absolute bust. He was pulled againt the Padres after recording just 4 outs, but giving up two earned runs on 7 hits and 2 walks. Josh Tomlin pitches Saturday against the White Sox. If you need a quality start he’s worth throwing out there against the White Sox, but it’s far from ideal because his name is still Josh Tomlin. Jose Urena went 5 innings and gave up 3 earned runs, but remember he was mentioned last week as a potential “win” target and sure enough he got the win. Finally, Mike Foltynewicz was the shining star from last week’s piece. The K’s weren’t there, but it was still a very strong start. He has 14 K’s over his last two starts and hasn’t given up a run. Braves top pitching prospect Sean Newcomb makes his debut Saturday against the Mets in Sun Trust Park. He’s worth keeping an eye on and should be a streamable option this weekend if he’s available and your league rules allow you to pick him up for today.

10-12 Team Leagues

Brad Peacock (HOU): Peacock’s ownership is currently pretty high. As of this writing (Friday night) he’s getting knocked around by the Angels so this could scare owners into dropping him, which benefits the streamers! Peacock flies way under-the-radar especially in points formats where K’s are a premium. He has two high-upside pitches with his fastball and slider. He also has great velocity separation with his changeup (roughly a 10 mph dropoff) and he has an average curveball he occasionally mixes in. In relief and as a starting pitcher Peacock has a K/9 of 13.50 so if that doesn’t raise your eyebrows and peak your interests then you should check your pulse. The biggest weakness with Peacock is probably walks. He’s giving up 3.39 per 9 innings of work. Anytime BB/9 is over 3.00 it should be a cause for concern, but his WHIP, opponent BA, and FIP are all in his favor. Yes he got knocked around Friday night, but his next start comes Wednesday against the same Rangers lineup who on June 4^th he pitched 6 innings against, giving up just 1 earned run with 9 K’s, against 4 hits and 1 walk. Look for Peacock to spread his feathers and be a streaming gem next week. That’ll be the only Peacock joke.

Jimmy Nelson (MIL): Nelson is another guy who has high strikeout potential. Nelson gets a road start in St. Louis on Tuesday and then a home start against the Padres the following Sunday. He’s in play for both starts. The Padres offense is among the worst in baseball both at home and on the road so it’s never a bad idea to stream even a middle-of-the-road pitcher against the Padres. But he can even be started early next week against the Cardinals on the road at Busch Stadium. The Cardinals average just 3.72 runs at home and Busch is the 4^th-most pitcher friendly ballpark in terms of runs and the 6^th-most pitcher friendly ballpark in terms of HR’s, which really aren’t a weakness of Nelson’s to begin with. If you’ve read this piece in the past you know there’s bias towards guys who throw hard and Nelson fits that mold perfectly. He’s a great two-start option next week.

C.C. Sabathia (NYY): Get woke everybody, Cy Cy has made the Streamers list. That has to be what the two C’s stand for, right? Sabathia’s been pitching well recently. Check out how well he’s done in his last 5 starts (which have all amounted to 5 wins):

Sabathia gets two starts on the West coast in Week 11 against the Angels and Athletics. Given the recent run he’s been on you can probably throw him out there for both starts. The A’s have some power at home, but their overall average is worse at home and as long as Mike Trout isn’t in the Angels lineup, that offense is considerably worse.

If You Need to Chase a Win – Kyle Freeland (COL): You can make the argument that Freeland is a two-start pitcher next week, but it’s more favorable in his road matchup against the Pirates. Freeland’s numbers overall look okay (3.34 ERA), but with a 4.57 FIP and 1.57 K:BB ratio his weaknesses come to the forefront a bit more. The Pirates average just 3.54 runs per game at home and are slashing .239/.316/.366 in PNC. The road start is intriguing, but the Rockies offense isn’t as good as it is as Coors, but the win potential is still favorable. If you need to use Freeland for his 2^nd start do so with caution. Although it comes against San Francisco who might boast the worst offense in baseball, it comes at Coors Field, which is the most hitter-friendly ballpark in baseball, but still another opportunity for Freeland to get a win.

Keep an Eye on… Zack Godley (ARI): Godley currently has a start against the Brewers lined up for June 10^th, which isn’t pertinent to Week 11. It remains to be seen how the Diamondbacks want to mix Godley into their rotation as Randall Delgado is currently slated for a few spot starts in the rotation as well. The DBacks recently sent Godley down to Triple-A for 10 days to monitor his workload for the season. If he gets a start in Week 11 it would likely come against the Phillies so if that’s the case he’s worth streaming. Even if he’s not used next week be sure to flag him as a player to keep tabs on. Due to his innings restriction he could be a streamable player the rest of the summer since he’s not worth rostering full-time.

Deeper League Formats

Tyler Chatwood (COL): Don’t look now but Chatwood’s turning up the heat on the road. In his last two starts (on the road against the Padres and Cubs) he’s collected 2 wins with 12 K’s, 3 walks, and 8 hits. He’s surrendered a solo home run in each start, but those have been the only earned runs he’s given up. He draws Pittsburgh at home next week and you can reference the Kyle Freeland section if you need a reminder of how bad the Bucs are offensively. Chatwood’s early season road struggles could be behind him. Below are his home/road splits 13 starts into 2017:

Chatwood, like Freeland, also gets a home start against the Giants. The matchup is favorable but the ballpark environment is not. See how he does against the Bucs and there will be an update in next week’s piece on how to use the Rockies pitchers at home next weekend.