This coming week is the annual break for the MLB All-Star Game, and with the lack of games on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday, there will be no two-start options to examine this week. Managers will be adjusting their MLB lineups, especially the starting rotations following the break in action, with the result that a monkey wrench is tossed into our forecasting of those arms that will be available for streaming purposes, as well. It behooves the successful fantasy manager to keep checking the fantasy baseball news for purposes of populating the rotation during the upcoming short week following the All-Star Game. Because of the uncertainly with regard to upcoming starting pitcher situation, we shall take a different tack this week and look back at a handful of pitchers that have been discussed in the prior 14 weeks here. Let us take a gander at those that have met or exceeded expectations in the first half of the season.

 

Jose Berrios, Toronto Blue Jays

When the Blue Jays tendered him a huge seven-year contract extension before the opening of the 2022 season, the expectations were sky high that he would continue to produce as he had when acquired from the Twins in 2021. Expectations are tricky, though, but certainly no one expected such a horrendous departure from his previous performance on the bump to take place. No wonder that many refused to take a chance on the righthander when drafts took place in March, yet he had corrected those blemishes that made last season such a disaster. His K rate has improved (albeit not to previous strikeout plus per frame rates he previously displayed but better to be certain), he has stopped handing out dingers right and left, and his ratio stats are back in attractive range: 3.50 ERA, 1.14 WHIP through 108.0 IP (18 starts). Those who were willing to take a discounted chance on him have been rewarded for minimal investment.

James Paxton, Boston Red Sox

The veteran southpaw has already been in more games this season than he had seen action in over the 2020-2022 seasons, despite missing time due to hamstring issues that sidelined him to start this season. He is a SP difficult to rely upon due to his injury history, including Tommy John surgery, but his results this year have been nothing short of fantastic.: 2.70 ERA and 0.96 WHIP, a set of ratios that that many would envy. He also is missing a better than fair share of bats, with an 11.0 K/9 ratio over his 50.0 IP in 2023. He will be back with the Red Sox following paternity leave after the ASG has been played, and would be a good target to add to your rotation, although that comes with significant concern considering his prior injury history.

Paul Blackburn, Oakland Athletics

The Oakland 29-year-old righty does not have a stat line that screams add me to your fantasy rotation, and looking over his performances since he returned from some finger (fingernail, blister) issues that kept him working in rehab until late May, his results resemble a roller coaster ride more than a steady glide. Still, the 10.0 K/9 rate jumps out as an attractive skill desired from middle of the rotation arms. He does take to the hill for an underperforming team, but there are also rumors that the A’s may be looking to move him prior to the trade deadline, and almost any other team’s offense would be an upgrade for him.

Bryan Woo, Seattle Mariners

The Mariner rookie, despite stumbling out of the gate in his MLB career (six earned runs over 2.0 IP in Texas), has been everything projected for him in his brief time in the majors, posting a 2.36 ERA and 0.94 WHIP over the next 26.2 IP, and racking up an impressive 35:7 K/BB ratio over that stretch. The bad news: his time on the mound in the second half is likely limited, with him having tossed 44.0 IP at Double-A prior to his promotion to the show. Since last season saw him max out at 57.0 IP in 2022, the Mariners are going to use kid gloves with their special rookie hurler. Because he will have limited exposure in the second half of the season, you may be able to pounce on him next year in your draft(s) if you keep him on your fantasy radar over the winter.

Nathan Eovaldi, Texas Rangers

The veteran righthander has presumably exceeded expectations for both his new team, the Rangers, and fantasy owners, outpacing his useful 2022 ERA of 3.87 by better than one run (2.83) and also pushing down an acceptable 2022 WHIP of 1.23 to a superb 1.02 over his 117.2 IP to date. He continues his trend to keep the ball in the park by inducing a high percentage of groundballs from opposing hitters. He is backed by a strong offense, as well, leading to a double digit win total heading into the break.

Brayan Bello, Boston Red Sox

Bello has been a saving grace for the Red Sox, whose pitching rotation has been devastated by injuries this season. The 24-year-old second year SP has been consistently tossing the ball into the sixth and seventh inning for Boston, and is putting up some fine ratios with an ERA just over 3.00 (3.04 to be precise) and a useful WHIP at 1.19 through his 80.0 IP this season. He is an average K producer (7.9 K/9) but helps himself by generating a high percentage of grounders from opposing hitters, and not allowing those batters to clear the wall too frequently, either, with only one homer allowed since May 23rd. His ownership across platforms varies widely: he is owned in about a third of leagues on ESPN, double that on Yahoo, and 86% on CBS, and would be a good addition to your rotation for so long as the BoSox keep handing him the ball.

Reviewing the first 14 weeks of the season, those are the some of the pitching options that stand out as being above and beyond what many expected these arms to produce. There will be others that appear as the second half of the season proceeds as potential streaming options, and next week the two-start options will emerge again, so keep reading as you pursue your fantasy baseball championship title(s).

 

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