What is a sleeper? Well, that depends on who you ask. Sleepers have so many different qualifiers to them. With the amount of amazing content out there across platforms, it’s hard to find a true sleeper that no one is “in” on.
We aren’t worried about listing someone that you’ve never heard of or taking a shot on someone to simply try to be different. We are about helping. So, what I decided to do is list players that can help in various sizes of redraft leagues.
- Fitz’s Positional Primers
- Justin Mason’s Draft Day Cheat Sheet
- Players the Experts Draft
- Latest Fantasy Baseball Mock Draft
Sleepers Starting Pitchers (2023)
I’ve identified a starting pitcher that is going within every 50 picks of FantasyPros ADP, starting at pick 200 and working my way to pick 500.
Picks 200-250
Alex Cobb (SP – SF): ADP 238
One of my favorite pitchers to draft this year and maybe my most-rostered SP is Cobb. I also put a small wager on him to win the Cy Young because at +15000 odds, why not? The Giants have been notorious for their work with pitchers, and Cobb was no different last season. The surface numbers weren’t exactly what you wanted, but his under-the-hood numbers scream major positive regression taking place this year. Sign me up for all of the Cobb.
Picks 251-300
Trevor Rogers (SP – MIA): ADP 267
Yeah, Rogers was absolutely brutal last season. There’s no way around it. Except, well, maybe there is. Most of the poor performance came in the first half, and Rogers showed signs of life in the second half. The Marlins are my favorite team to target for arms from an organizational standpoint, and I’m buying in for Rogers to have a big bounceback. Take a look at what he did over his last few starts of the season last year.
Trevor Rogers’ last four starts of the 2022 season:
3.72 ERA
3.37 FIP
2.66 xFIP
2.83 SIERA
29.9 K%
24.7 K-BB%
1.09 WHIPYea…I’ll have a few shares.#FantasyBaseball pic.twitter.com/Y9L6g3fX6V
– Michael Simione (@SPStreamer) February 6, 2023
Picks 301-350
Kenta Maeda (SP – MIN): ADP 310
What I watch in Spring Training is velocity and control. I watch it even closer for pitchers who were injured the season before and are making a comeback. For Maeda this spring, he has both. He seems to be a forgotten man, which is great for fantasy players. Typically, pitchers are treated with kid gloves when returning from Tommy John surgery, but Maeda should face no restrictions and should provide a good 160 innings this season.
Picks 351-400
Kyle Bradish (SP – BAL): ADP 382
Bradish won’t be a sleeper much longer, as he’s getting a ton of Spring Training buzz. Why’ll his debut wasn’t great last year for the Orioles, his velocity and spin rates are up this spring, which are the two elements we were watching closely with him. Baltimore is a pitcher’s park now, and Bradish just may be the best of the bunch there. He has true SP3 upside with a fantastic slider.
Picks 401-450
Clarke Schmidt (SP/RP – NYY): ADP 448
Speaking of wide-awake sleepers, enter Schmidt, who should be pushing top-300 ADP soon. With the injuries that the Yankees have already suffered in their rotation, Schmidt should break camp not just with the team, but in the rotation, as well. What’s most notable about his spring aren’t just his great numbers – he’s been shoving – but that he’s introduced a cutter that is just eating opponents alive.
Picks 451-500
Kyle Gibson (SP – BAL): ADP 475
It’s tough sledding at this point in the ADP, but we’ll go with someone who I just can’t quit. That’s Gibson. I like him more now in Baltimore, too, as the park suppresses power to right-handed hitters. I always try to target veteran pitchers for redraft leagues who can provide me with solid innings and give me SP5 value. Gibson is boring, but he fits that to a T.
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Michael Waterloo is a featured writer at FantasyPros. For more from Michael, check out his archive and follow him @MichaelWaterloo.
