Well, that was a fun trade deadline. Did you hate your team’s moves, or are you a Padres fan?
We have a pretty good idea of how things are shaking out with rotations, so let’s get right into it as we look ahead at Week 17 of the fantasy season.
Like I do every week, I’ll break the pitchers down two-start pitchers into six categories:
- Don’t Think Twice: These are the aces that you start no matter what.
- Widely-Rostered Options: Players rostered in the majority of leagues who should provide a positive return.
- In the Danger Zone: It’s a dice roll to start them given matchups or other factors.
- Streamers Rostered in Under 50% of Leagues: These guys should live on the waiver wire, but you can start them this week.
- Streamers Rostered in Under 25% of Leagues: Same as above but applied to deeper leagues.
- Not Unless You’re Desperate: I don’t recommend these guys unless you’re swinging for the fences.
Let’s take a look at those pitchers scheduled to make two starts for the upcoming week, as projected on CBS as of Friday evening.
Don’t Think Twice
- Zack Wheeler (SP – PHI): (8/9 vs. MIA, 8/14 vs. MIN)
- Shane Bieber (SP – CLE): (8/9 @DET, 8/14 @TOR)
- Chris Bassitt (SP – NYM): (8/8 vs. CIN, 8/14 vs. PHI)
- Luis Castillo (SP – SEA): (8/8 vs. NYY, 8/14 @TEX)
- Jose Urquidy (SP – HOU): (8/9 vs. TEX, 8/14 vs. OAK)
- Blake Snell (SP – SD): (8/8 vs. SFG, 8/14 @WAS)
- Lance Lynn (SP – CWS): (8/9 @KCR, 8/13 vs. DET)
Widely-Rostered Options
Zac Gallen (SP – ARI): (8/8 vs. PIT, 8/13 @COL)
I’d love to just put Gallen in the top tier, but we know the rule about a pitcher throwing in Colorado. Gallen did throw a quality start in his last outing at Coors, but it was the minimum (6 IP, 3 ER).
Blake Snell: (8/8 vs. SFG, 8/14 @WAS)
Snell has been sneakily good since July, which shouldn’t come as a major surprise given his track record of being a streaky pitcher. But it’s been next level with a 2.56 ERA. That should continue this week as he gets the Giants and Nationals in a juicy two-step.
In the Danger Zone
Miles Mikolas (SP – STL): (8/9 @COL, 8/14 vs. MIL)
Blah. Mikolas has been fun this season and a nice surprise, but it’s probably best to fade him with Coors on the docket.
Martin Perez (SP – TEX): (8/9 @HOU, 8/14 vs. SEA)
The downfall has to happen, right? I say it to myself after every single Perez start. But he’s sort of maintained his success this season, posting a 3.41 ERA in July despite a 22 K%. I still don’t think he’s good (comparatively, of course), and have a hard time trusting him against two good offenses.
Jameson Taillon (SP – NYY): (8/8 @SEA, 8/14 @BOS)
You don’t know what to expect from Taillon in any given start this season, which has me leaning toward sitting him in these two matchups.
Alex Wood (SP – SF): (8/8 @SDP, 8/14 vs. PIT)
I love, love, love the Pirates matchup. But with the new-look Padres lineup, it’s best to sit him this week to limit the damage.
Streamers Rostered in Under 50% of Leagues
Cole Irvin (SP – OAK): (8/8 vs. LAA, 8/14 @HOU)
Irvin has a sub-2.50 ERA over his last 40 innings pitched, which dates back to July 1. Be careful, though, as there has been a ton of BABIP luck (.186 in July). I’d start him against the Angels but not the Astros if I had the choice.
Johnny Cueto (SP – CWS): (8/9 @KCR, 8/14 vs. DET)
It’s still weird that Cueto is having a good season in 2022, but here we are. I don’t trust him overall, but if you aren’t starting him against the Royals and Tigers, when are you starting him?
Keegan Thompson (SP – CHC): (8/8 vs. WAS, 8/14 @CIN)
B.O.B. wants to pretend that airplanes in the night sky are like shooting stars, and I want to pretend like Thompson’s last start didn’t happen. He was pretty, pretty good in July, posting a 2.57 ERA with just one home run allowed in 21 innings. He gets the stripped-down Nats and Reds this week, making him a sneaky start.
Braxton Garrett (SP – MIA): (8/9 @PHI, 8/13 vs. ATL)
Garrett has been really solid of late for the Marlins, but he goes from a cupcake two-start week to facing two top offenses in Atlanta and Philadelphia. I’m benching him, but if he can survive this week, he’s on the 12-team radar for the rest of the season.
Streamers Rostered in Under 25% of Leagues
Yusei Kikuchi (SP – TOR): (8/8 @BAL, 8/14 vs. CLE)
I don’t really want to start Kikuchi here, but I’m not fearful of the matchups. In four of his last five starts, Kikuchi has had a K% of 31.3. We’re seeing nice signs and he can be used in 15-teamers this week.
Not Unless You’re Desperate
- Jordan Lyles (SP – BAL): (8/8 vs. TOR, 8/13 @TBR)
- Graham Ashcraft (SP – CIN): (8/8 @NYM, 8/14 vs. CHC)
- Kris Bubic (SP – KC): (8/9 vs. CHW, 8/14 vs. LAD)
- Kyle Bradish (SP – BAL): (8/9 vs. TOR, 8/14 @TBR)
- Rich Hill (SP – BOS): (8/9 vs. ATL, 8/14 vs. NYY)
- Zach Thompson (SP – PIT): (8/9 @ARI, 8/14 @SFG)
- Tyler Alexander (SP – DET): (8/9 vs. CLE, 8/14 @CHW)
- Anibal Sanchez (SP – WSH): (8/8 @CHC, 8/14 vs. SDP)
- Tommy Henry (SP – ARI): (8/9 vs. PIT, 8/14 @COL)
Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | Spotify | Google Podcasts | Stitcher | SoundCloud | iHeartRadio
Whether you’re new to fantasy baseball or a seasoned pro, our Fantasy Baseball 101: Strategy Tips & Advice page is for you. You can get started with our Sabermetrics Glossary or head to a more advanced strategy – like Maximizing Your Potential in Multi-Lineup Contests – to learn more.
Michael Waterloo is a featured writer at FantasyPros. For more from Michael, check out his archive and follow him @MichaelWaterloo.