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Welcome RotoBallers to our Two-Start Pitcher Streamers article - Waiver Wire Streamers and Starts for Week 6, from April 29 to May 5. With multiple teams having six or seven games on their schedule, we're looking at a nice variety of two-start pitchers.
Each week of this fantasy baseball season, this fantasy baseball waiver wire pickups column will identify starting pitchers expected to make two starts in the upcoming week. It can be considered as fantasy baseball streamers ahead of the Sunday night waiver wire run for leagues with weekly transactions.
There are 35 pitchers currently scheduled to make two starts during this period. We will be looking at pitchers who are less than 50% owned in Yahoo leagues. Listed will be those who are rostered over 50%, those who are best available under 50%, and risky options under 50%. There are a few other two-start pitchers available, but they should be avoided.
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Two-Start Pitchers - Over 50% Rostered
- Grayson Rodriguez (vs. NYY, @ CIN)
- Nestor Cortes (@ BAL, vs. DET)
- Ryan Pepiot (@ MIL, vs. NYM)
- Joe Ryan (@ CHW, vs. BOS)
- Bryce Miller (vs. ATL, @ HOU)
- Max Fried (@ SEA, @ LAD)
- Luis Severino (vs. CHC, @ TB)
- Cristopher Sanchez (@ LAA, vs. SF)
- MacKenzie Gore (@ MIA, vs. TOR)
- Javier Assad (@ NYM, vs. MIL)
- Nick Lodolo (@ SD, vs. BAL)
- Logan Webb (@ BOS, @ PHI)
Best Available Two-Start Pitcher Streamers
Bailey Falter (6% Rostered), Pittsburgh Pirates
Scheduled Starts: @ OAK, vs. COL
While he hasn't been a revelation, Bailey Falter's season has been surprisingly pleasant with a 3.33 ERA, 0.89 WHIP, and 6.7% walk rate through five starts. He's bound to slip a little, as suggested by a 17.3% strikeout rate and 4.49 FIP. However, a lowly Athletics offense and a Rockies offense outside of Coors are some of the weakest opponents a pitcher could get. I feel comfortable with Falter for another week.
Trevor Rogers (5% Rostered), Miami Marlins
Scheduled Starts: vs. WAS, @ OAK
Trevor Rogers has quietly been among the better pitchers in the league, just not in terms of results. Sidelined for nearly an entire year after going down with a season-ending injury last April, a 4.10 ERA is impressive, especially considering he had to survive two starts against a juggernaut Atlanta Braves offense.
One should naturally expect someone coming off an injury like Rogers to return to form as the season progresses, but the 26-year-old is already where he needs to be. His 2.82 FIP ranks 18th in the league among pitchers with at least 20 innings pitched.
A slumping Miami lineup is hard to trust, but match-ups against the Washington Nationals and Oakland Athletics should allay any concerns. Run with Rogers this week.
Trevor Rogers changeups 🔥 pic.twitter.com/6uOBMC95SA
— Fish On First (@FishOnFirst) April 23, 2024
Risky Two-Start Streamer Picks
Hunter Brown (45% Rostered), Houston Astros
Scheduled Starts: vs. CLE, vs. SEA
Hunter Brown is not nearly as bad as his 9.68 ERA indicates. However, the red-hot Guardians (seventh in runs scored in 2024) and Mariners offenses (ranked fifth in wOBA since April 14) are not the teams you'd bet on for his eventual comeback.
Jon Gray (42% Rostered), Texas Rangers
Scheduled Starts: vs. WAS, @ KC
Jon Gray's looked incredible through his first five starts, with a 2.92 ERA, 2.92 FIP, and 29.1% strikeout rate. A 10.1% walk rate and 1.46 WHIP are currently areas of weakness, but a 5.27 xERA, .480 xwOBAcon, 47.8% hard-hit rate, and 37.3% fly ball rate really raise red flags. Gray is getting hit hard, and he's yet to be punished for it -- outside of his season debut against the Cubs (five runs allowed across 3 2/3 innings).
Kansas City ranks fifth in the league in hard-hit rate, second in fly ball rate, and 10th in runs, meaning the 32-year-old's miracle run may end in Kauffman Stadium next weekend.
Clarke Schmidt (36% Rostered), New York Yankees
Scheduled Starts: @ BAL, vs. DET
Clarke Schmidt's stuff has markedly improved since 2023, with a 112 Stuff+ grade and 26.9% strikeout rate requiring more respect for the 28-year-old starter. However, Clarke Schmidt hasn't transcended to be a no-doubt stream against a dangerous Baltimore Orioles offense (sixth by runs scored, fourth by wOBA).
James Paxton (34% Rostered), Los Angeles Dodgers
Scheduled Starts: @ ARZ, vs. ATL
James Paxton is on the Los Angeles Dodgers, which is usually enough to stream. On the other hand, James Paxton also sports a 5.78 FIP and matches up against two of the league's top offenses (Atlanta ranked first by wOBA, Arizona ranked fifth by wOBA).
Sean Manaea (28% Rostered), New York Mets
Scheduled Starts: vs. CHC, @ TB
Sean Manaea has been a nice surprise to kick off the year, with a 3.33 ERA, 3.41 FIP, and 25.2% strikeout rate through five starts. However, a 13.1% walk rate should worry you against a Chicago offense ranked fifth in runs scored.
Kenta Maeda (23% Rostered), Detroit Tigers
Scheduled Starts: vs. STL, @ NYY
Kenta Maeda recovered nicely after a disastrous start against the Texas Rangers (six runs allowed in 2 2/3 innings), with five scoreless innings against the Tampa Bay Rays. It's hard to trust Maeda against Soto and Company.
Jameson Taillon (19% Rostered), Chicago Cubs
Scheduled Starts: @ NYM, vs. MIL
Jameson Taillon has looked like a new pitcher in his first two starts, with a 1.69 ERA against the Marlins and Astros. Unfortunately, Milwaukee's a different beast (ranked third by wOBA), and Taillon's still largely unintimidating arsenal has only struck out batters at an 18.2% clip. His time of reckoning will come eventually -- Milwaukee's got the best chance to make that happen.
Dean Kremer (18% Rostered), Baltimore Orioles
Scheduled Starts: vs. NYY, @ CIN
Dean Kremer has cut his walk rate to an impressive 5.3%, and a 23.7% strikeout rate is a marked improvement from previous years. However, he's still hovering at a 4.61 ERA/4.66 FIP, and those numbers may get worse after matchups against talented New York and Cincinnati offenses.
Yariel Rodriguez (15% Rostered), Toronto Blue Jays
Scheduled Starts: vs. KC, @ CHW
Yariel Rodriguez saw his stock slip slightly after an unimpressive outing against the Kansas City Royals (three runs allowed through four innings). Yet to throw more than four innings in a start, the 27-year-old can't go deep enough in games to provide enough fantasy value -- especially in a week with another start against a formidable Royals offense.
Griffin Canning (11% Rostered), Los Angeles Angels
Scheduled Starts: vs. PHI, @ CLE
Griffin Canning's 7.50 ERA is due for some positive regression, but he'll need to be a lot better than he's ever been before he gets anywhere near a two-start stream against two playoff-caliber offenses.
Steven Matz (7% Rostered), St. Louis Cardinals
Scheduled Starts: @ DET, vs. CHW
Steven Matz has taken a visible step back, with a 14.7% strikeout rate, 87 Stuff+ grade, and 8.4% SwStr rate being the primary drivers behind his awful 5.55 ERA. We'll have to see this juicy two-start week against two of the league's worst offenses pass him by.
Joe Boyle (4% Rostered), Oakland Athletics
Scheduled Starts: vs. PIT, vs. MIA
Expectedly, Joe Boyle's stuff has held its own in 2024, with a 23.3% strikeout rate and 108 Stuff+ grade. As many anticipated, Joe Boyle's awful control has made his incredible stuff a moot point, with a 15.5% walk rate, 1.80 WHIP, and 7.06 ERA through five starts.
Despite the ghastly stat line, he's shown flashes of excellence this season. It comes down to how much the 24-year-old can afford to mislocate against a given team: he was able to silence bats in his starts against Detroit and Washington (combined one run allowed across 10 innings), but he couldn't get away with much against the Red Sox, Guardians, and Yankees (17 runs allowed across 10 2/3 innings).
If we're drawing a line in the sand on the Boyle matter, there should be an argument to leave a Pirates offense that ranks 18th in scoring on the side of Boston, Cleveland, and New York.
Joe Boyle, 99mph Paint. 🖌️🎨
Oh wait...it was a balk.
Redo...HR. Doh. pic.twitter.com/t0JnEYt6wn
— Rob Friedman (@PitchingNinja) April 24, 2024
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