Fantasy Baseball Two-Start Pitchers: Week 22

This will be the final Two-Start Pitching article for the 2016 season. With September minor league call-ups just around the corner, the number of two-start options will dwindle, even more so than this week’s set of pitchers. There are a couple of pitchers I did not expect to place in the bottom tier this week, but results, or lack thereof, consigns Gerrit Cole and Joe Musgrove to the realm of pitchers I want no part of in Week 22. There is also not much to recommend in the middle tier and those who are near the bottom of this group are only there and not in the final tier because of match-up potential this scoring period.

Please realize that I am working off the most recent rotation information available when the article is written, but that circumstances do change due to weather conditions, injuries and general craziness with managers. If a pitcher I have listed as having two starts ends up with one (or perhaps none) in the upcoming week, I apologize but I only provide analysis, I do not set the lineups or rotations.

Without further ado, here are this week’s two start pitchers:

These are the pitchers you want to start no matter the opponent or venue. Straily has been dealing on the mound, tossing nine QS out of his last 10 starts. He has also collected six wins in his last seven starts, and his ERA is now sitting at a very useful 3.57, and he has picked up his strikeout rate over that period, too.

Only nine pitchers make the middle tier this week, and they can easily be divided into two sub-tiers. The first sub-tier opens with Boyd and runs down to Manaea. Boyd gives up too many homers to be truly trustworthy, but he is also working on a three game quality start streak, where he has yielded just four earned runs over the past 19 innings. He is only an average strikeout pitcher, but should be a good option in his first start at home against the White Sox, at a minimum. Shoemaker has been the victim of limited offense from his hitters, as he has not pitched poorly for the most part this season. He has received only 3.08 runs per game, the lowest of any AL starting pitcher in 2016. He is striking out hitters at a rate of nearly eight per nine innings, and is showing excellent control this season again. His first start against the Reds is fine matchup, although his road start at the end of the week at Seattle is not as tempting. Koehler stumbled a bit in his last outing, yet still only gave up three earned runs (four runs total over six innings), and is on a seven game QS streak. He pitches away from Miami for both his Week 22 starts, which decreases his value a tad, as he has been a better option at home this season. He is adept at limiting the long ball, though, and that should help him against Cleveland in his second start of the week. Davies has been effective overall this season, with the occasional misstep thrown in, as with his previous two starts against Cincy and the Cubs before holding the Rockies to just one earned run. His home/road splits indicate that his best starting opportunity will come on Monday against the visiting Cardinals, although facing the Pirates and Gerrit Cole on the road is certainly a decent starting option, as well. Manaea has been victimized by the long ball, giving up eight homers over his last six starts. He has been a better pitcher at home, but taking on the Red Sox in his second start and their ace, Rick Porcello is not the best matchup. He has been hit much harder on the road, but Minute Maid Park is towards the bottom of the list of MLB stadiums in terms of home run production. I did consider putting him in the bottom tier, but he flashes enough talent to stick in the middle tier for now.

The second sub-tier starts with Iwakuma and winds up with Teheran. Iwakuma has lost two straight games, but really has not pitched poorly, as he has thrown five consecutive QS. His major issue this season is the home run rate he is posting (1.3 HR/9). His home/road splits do not indicate any concerns about his pitching away from Safeco Field, so he makes for a decent option in both his starts, although facing Texas on the road is never an ideal matchup. Bauer is inconsistent on the mound, as he seems as likely to toss a quality start as to get knocked around. He is a good source of Ks, and keeps the ball in the park effectively (8.08 K/9, 0.9 HR/9). His control hurts him, however, as he is walking 3.51 hitters per nine innings. He has actually pitched much better on the road this season, so two home games are not the positive you would expect, but I do especially like his first matchup against the Twins. Pineda gets a pair of road starts in Week 22, which should help reign in his home run allowing tendencies at Yankee Stadium. His second start at Baltimore is worrisome, however, and thus he might be most useful in his first start of the week at Kansas City. Teheran has not looked like an ace, having yielded nine earned runs over his past two starts since returning from a back injury. The good thing is that he gets to face the Padres and Phillies in his two starts, neither being a major offensive threat by any means. He will look to turn things around in Week 22, and should be a good source of strikeouts.

I put both Cole and Musgrove at the top of the bottom tier, since I really hesitated about not including them in the middle tier. The problem is, neither one is pitching well right now, and thus I cannot recommend sticking them in your starting lineups unless and until they shake off the funk that current affects them. I would still be willing to start Cole against the Brewers in his second start, and might take a chance on Musgrove at home against Oakland. The rest of these SPs are best to leave on the wire or your bench.

Please note that the Fantasy Alarm Forums are now open for your use, to ask questions or provide your own commentary and wisdom. I enjoy responding to comments, or if you do not want to put your question out for public consumption, feel free to write me at ia@fantasyalarm.com for a more personal response to your specific issue. The more detail you can provide about your team and league, including settings (H2H vs roto, points or categories, weekly or daily moves, roster size, league size, etc.) the better my response will be suited to your individual situation. I am open to questions about issues apart from starting pitching, too, as I play fantasy sports as well as serve as an analyst. As ever, good luck and Godspeed in all your fantasy endeavors.