Streaming
starting pitchers into lineups has become an increasing trend in fantasy
baseball. The idea is to drop one of your lesser starters and pick up a guy for
a spot start, increasing your counting stats while not hurting your ratio stats
too much. So who are the best bets for streaming? You want to look for guys who
are consistent — three runs, six innings guys. You don’t want someone who could
throw a shutout on a good day, but has a poor matchup and could just as likely
allow eight runs in three innings. Here’s a look at some of the best options
this season:
-Livan Hernandez (3.88 ERA, 1.40 WHIP):
He has allowed four runs or fewer and gone at least six innings in nine of his
ten starts. He won’t give you a ton of K’s, but he’ll provide solid innings.
-Carlos Silva (4.17 ERA, 1.29 WHIP):
Very similar to Hernandez — allowed four runs or fewer, and gone at at least
six innings in eight of nine starts. He also won’t strikeout many, but he doesn’t
walk guys either.
-Nick Blackburn (3.77 ERA, 1.36 WHIP):
Blackburn allowed five runs in one start, but hasn’t allowed more than four in
any other start. He’s yet to walk more than three — he did that just once — and owns a good 3:1 K/BB ratio.
Some of the guys
I’ve stayed away from:
-Edwin Jackson (3.29 ERA, 1.35 WHIP):
He’s been very good of late, but be cautious. In three of his nine starts he’s
allowed five runs or more. He’s gone less than six innings in four of his
starts. The upside is that in his other starts where he’s allowed one run or
less.
-Paul Byrd (3.61 ERA, 1.12 WHIP): Byrd
has allowed four runs or more in three of his eight starts. In five of his starts,
he’s allowed a combined total of just four runs. In three of his starts, he’s
struck out at least four. In the other five games, he’s struck out a combined
total of five hitters. Very hit or miss across the board.
-Mark Buehrle (5.27 ERA, 1.54 WHIP):
Buehrle has bad numbers, but some people go with name recognition. Don’t. He’s
been good in some starts — three runs or less in five starts — but the others
have been awful — five runs or more in four starts.
When you’re
streaming pitchers don’t just look at a player’s ERA and WHIP to decide who to
pick up. Let’s be honest… you’re not going to find a stud on the waiver wire in
deeper leagues, so you’re really just looking for someone who’s been
consistently average — someone who won’t kill you, but can give you solid
innings.
Elsewhere...
* Jon
Lester stole the
show last night by firing a no-hitter. He only allowed two walks and struck out
nine in the game. He has now lowered his ERA to 3.46 and his WHIP to 1.32. Over
his last five starts Lester has allowed just six earned runs and only one home
run. His control is still somewhat of a concern, but he’s at least spot-starter
worthy.
* From a no-hitter to someone who
keeps getting hit hard. Brett Myers
lost his fourth straight decision, allowing three runs over six innings. His
ERA is now 5.86 and his WHIP is a whopping 1.61. The silver lining in this dark
cloud is his 50 strikeouts, giving him a 5:2 K/BB rate. However, the dark
lining around the sliver of hope is his league leading 15 home runs allowed.
* In the same game, Tim Redding threw 6.1 shutout innings,
dropping his ERA to 3.16. He’s allowed more than three runs only twice this
season, so it’s possible his hot start is legit. Consider him a spot-starter at
this point.
* Ryan
Ludwick went
3-for-4 with his 12th HR and now has an OPS of nearly 1.200. He’s hit four homers
in his last three games and while he has shown this type of power before, the
high OBP and AVG are not the norm. If you can find an eager owner and sell him
high, now would be a good time.
* Looking to regain his ‘05 pre-deer
meat-incident form, Clint Barmes hit
another home run — his fourth — and has a line of .361/.397/.588 in 36 games.
If he’s available in your league and you need a SS, grab him.
* After last night’s 0-for-3
performance, Mark Grudzielanek is
still second in the AL in batting average with a .323 average. He’s a career
.290 hitter, so this isn’t completely unexpected — he just won’t do much else.
If you’re looking for a middle infield pickup that won’t kill you, take a look
at Grudzielanek.
* Frank
Thomas went 3-for-4
with two home runs, pushing his total to five on the year. You’ll get
occasional spurts of power from Thomas, but not much more.
* After an MRI on Monday, Jake Peavy is headed to the DL. He’s
had soreness in his elbow that’s already forced one missed start.
* Joe
Borowski made his
first rehab start and will be making another tomorrow. He could be back by next
week, and according to Eric Wedge, he’ll resume closing.
* Alex
Rodriguez should be
back today. Get him in your lineup.
QuickTIPS
Spot-start
candidate:
Joel Pineiro
vs. San Diego: Pineiro has a 3.21 ERA and an astounding 8:1 K/BB ratio against
the Padres.
Avoid:
Aaron Cook
vs. San Francisco: Cook has a 4.47 ERA and 14 more walks than K’s against the
Giants in 98.2 IP.
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