We are in the home stretch of the fantasy regular season, and we are going to be a little bit picky with who we are just throwing into our lineups for two starts. It’s a short week as it is, with fewer options — especially viable ones — that we have on a week-to-week basis.
Let’s get right into it as we look ahead to Week 22 of the fantasy season.
Like I do every week, I’ll break the pitchers down the 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 afternoon.
We are in the home stretch of the fantasy regular season, and we are going to be a little bit picky with who we are just throwing into our lineups for two starts. It’s a short week as it is, with fewer options — especially viable ones — that we have on a week-to-week basis.
Let’s get right into it as we look ahead to Week 22 of the fantasy season.
Like I do every week, I’ll break the pitchers down the 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 afternoon.
Don’t Think Twice
Widely-Rostered Options
Joe Ryan (9/13 vs. KC, 9/18 @CLE)
Ryan got pushed back to this week for his double-step, which is solid since it gives him two better matchups. I know that Cleveland is good, but the Royals with them compared to the Yankees has me trusting him a lot more.
Trevor Rogers (9/12 vs. TEX, 9/17 @WAS)
Rogers has put together two straight quality starts, and he had eight strikeouts in six innings his last time out against the Phillies. This week, the opponents are a lot easier, as he gets to take on Texas — who is an underrated offensive team — and the Nationals, which is a lay-up.
Michael Kopech (9/13 vs. COL, 9/18 @DET)
Kopech returned from the IL and struggled immediately against the Mariners, giving up four runnings in 3 2/3 innings. It’s tough to trust a pitcher coming off an injury with those results in your playoffs, but against the Rockies on the road and the Tigers in Detroit, I’m risking it. You should, too, in 12-team leagues.
In the Danger Zone
Alex Cobb (9/12 vs. ATL, 9/18 vs. LAD)
Second-half Cobb is who we expected first-half Cobb to be, and with his underlying numbers, we should have gotten that. But you may want to hold off this week, as he faces two top offenses in Atlanta and the Dodgers. If you need strikeouts, I’d be fine rolling him out there against Atlanta, at least.
Nick Pivetta (9/13 vs. NYY, 9/18 vs. KC)
Pivetta has a 3.41 ERA and just shy of a strikeout per inning over the last month, but his rostership is just at 35 percent. He’s a dicey one this week, as the Royals are a juicy matchup, but the Yankees could end any positive net gain with a swing of the bat.
Streamers Rostered in Under 50% of Leagues
Hunter Brown (9/12 @DET, 9/18 vs. OAK)
A rookie pitcher who wasn’t bad in his debut! Who would have thunk it? Brown struck out five Rangers over six shutout innings in his debut. Expect that level of success to continue as our streamer of the week against the Tigers and A’s.
Streamers Rostered in Under 25% of Leagues
Bailey Falter (9/13 @MIA, 9/18 @ATL)
Over his last 23 2/3 innings, Falter has a 2.66 ERA and a 0.89 WHIP. He’s a great option if you’re protecting ratios, but you’d love to see him miss more bats. But guess what? He’s a lefty, and the Marlins are absolutely, positively dreadful against left-handed pitching this year. Fire him up.
Mike Minor (9/12 vs. PIT, 9/17 @STL)
This is more reserved for those in 15-team leagues, but Minor has a 2.60 ERA over his last three starts. We don’t love the Cardinals matchup, but he’s worth using this week in deeper leagues with the Pirates on tap.
Not Unless You’re Desperate
Eduardo Rodriguez (9/12 vs. HOU, 9/18 vs. CHW)
Ken Waldichuk (9/13 @TEX, 9/18 @HOU)
Glenn Otto (9/12 @MIA, 9/17 @TB)
Kris Bubic (9/13 @MIN, 9/18 @BOS)
Ryne Nelson (9/12 vs. LAD, 9/18 vs. SD)
Cody Morris (9/12 vs. LAA, 9/17 vs. MIN)
Javier Assad (9/12 @NYM, 9/18 vs. COL)
Bryse Wilson (9/12 @CIN, 9/17 @NYM)
Cole Ragans (9/12 @MIA, 9/18 @TB)
Luis Cessa (9/13 vs. PIT, 9/18 @STL)
Johan Oviedo (9/13 @CIN, 9/18 @NYM)
Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | Spotify | Google Podcasts | Stitcher | SoundCloud | iHeartRadio
If you want to dive deeper into fantasy baseball, be sure to check out our award-winning slate of Fantasy Baseball Tools as you navigate your season. From our Lineup Assistant – which provides your optimal lineup, based on accurate consensus projections – to our Waiver Wire Assistant – that allows you to quickly see which available players will improve your team, and by how much – we’ve got you covered this fantasy baseball season.
Michael Waterloo is a featured writer at FantasyPros. For more from Michael, check out his archive and follow him @MichaelWaterloo.
