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Welcome back, RotoBallers, to our starting pitcher fantasy baseball waiver wire pickups for Week 10 (May 27 - June 2). In this weekly piece, we search for starting pitchers rostered in less than 50% of Yahoo! leagues. These are SP options to consider that might be good additions to your fantasy roster, especially for streaming.
Last week, we recommended some starting pitchers to scoop up whose rostership was lower than they should be. For those of you in deeper leagues, we will split that into another section, looking at starting pitchers rostered in less than 30% of Yahoo! leagues. We also look at pitchers beyond this coming week and look for tasty matchups a bit further down the road. One consideration for many fantasy players is that the bottom portion of your roster in deeper fantasy leagues should be churned frequently. That means you are playing matchups and looking for pitchers who can exploit weak-hitting teams. Start anybody pitching against the following teams: Chicago White Sox, Miami Marlins, and Colorado Rockies.
Another caveat here: you are unlikely to find guys on the waiver wire that will strike out tons of hitters or be extremely exciting in most instances. What I look for are guys who can contribute to my bottom lines: a win perhaps (although chasing them is foolish and tricky), while not destroying my carefully manicured ratios. Keep your expectations modest; think it will do no harm and hope for the best. Let's get after it.
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Happy Memorial Day weekend. Please do not forget the reason why we have this holiday. Memorial Day was originally established during the Civil War as a way to remember those who have died in military service for the United States. Enjoy the day off and that barbecue, but take a few moments to pause and consider why we have this day.
Fantasy Baseball Waiver Wire Pickups for Shallow Leagues
Recommendations for leagues of any size rostered between 30-50% on Yahoo
Reese Olson, Detroit Tigers (rostered in 47% of leagues)
Olson earned his first win of the season yesterday afternoon over the Toronto Blue Jays. He pitched into the seventh inning and earned the win, posting four strikeouts as well. Olson has a 1.92 ERA and 1.06 WHIP with 47 strikeouts in 56 innings covering 10 starts. He will get the Boston Red Sox next weekend at Fenway Park. Olson should not be sitting on the waiver wire in half of all leagues. The K rate isn't amazing but everything else looks really good here.
Tyler Anderson, Los Angeles Angels (rostered in 41% of leagues)
Anderson will usually be on the waiver wire in many leagues because he doesn't get the strikeouts. But, he does win; he has five wins on the season to go with a tidy 2.52 ERA and 1.06 WHIP. Anderson only has 44 strikeouts in 64 innings. He's got three wins in three consecutive starts. Anderson gets the New York Yankees next weekend, so you might want to sit him there, but he's worth a small investment with what he has been doing. Anderson is only two years removed from winning 15 games with a 2.57 ERA and 1.00 WHIP. Wake up and add him to the back of your rotation before someone else does in your leagues.
Braxton Garrett, Miami Marlins (rostered in 40% of leagues)
I wrote about Garrett here last weekend, and he pitched a gem on Friday evening, tossing a complete game shutout over the Arizona Diamondbacks. He struck out six. Garrett had two forgettable starts after coming off the IL with a shoulder impingement, where he gave up 11 combined earned runs. He gets the San Diego Padres next, and that start should see him on your roster. Better days are coming for Garrett. See his three starts so far this year below.
Michael Wacha, Kansas City Royals (rostered in 39% of leagues)
It's the same old story with Wacha. He gets blown up one day and then runs off three good starts. That is exactly what he has done in Kansas City. He has gone six, six, and seven innings in his last three, earning wins in all of them, with three, seven, and six strikeouts. Wacha has four wins on the season, with a 4.45 ERA, 1.32 WHIP, and 47 strikeouts in 56 innings. Use him while he's doing well right now. Check out his Statcast numbers below. He's doing a great job limiting hard contact which helps keep him in games.
Fantasy Baseball Waiver Wire Pickups for Deeper Leagues
Recommendations for deeper leagues rostered between 30% or less on Yahoo!
Alec Marsh, Kansas City Royals (rostered in 26% of leagues)
Marsh has flown under the radar this year for the Royals, but he should be firmly on yours. He has four wins in eight starts, with a 2.72 ERA and 1.07 WHIP. He has 36 strikeouts in 43 innings. One reason Marsh does not get rostered, besides the relatively low strikeout numbers, is likely due to his inability to pitch deeper into games. But Marsh pitched six full innings in his last start, earning a win and nabbing five strikeouts in the process. He gets the Minnesota Twins this week. Marsh has given up one run or less in five of his eight starts this year. Check out Marsh's pitch distribution below.
Ben Lively, Cleveland Guardians (rostered in 23% of leagues)
Lively has been a journeyman pitcher but we all know something happens to guys in Cleveland. He has three wins, a 2.84 ERA, a 1.24 WHIP, and 38 strikeouts in 38 innings. In his last start against the New York Mets, Lively got the win, pitching into the sixth inning and gaining seven strikeouts. Lively gets the Los Angeles Angels today.
Jose Soriano, Los Angeles Angels (rostered in 19% of leagues)
Soriano has been up and down, but his last two starts have been keepers. Against St. Louis, he pitched into the sixth inning and got six strikeouts. Soriano followed that by pitching into the eighth against Texas and earned the win while striking out five. Soriano gets a ton of groundballs, where his 63.8% is in the 98th percentile of all MLB.
Ryan Weathers, Miami Marlins (rostered in 14% of leagues)
Weathers has been in this column before, and for good reason. He's got two wins, a 3.49 ERA, a 1.11 WHIP, and 46 strikeouts in 56 innings. In his last two starts, he's gone eight and seven innings, striking out eight and four, respectively. And he has four quality starts in a row. Weathers gets the Arizona Diamondbacks today. Note the subtle pitch mix change over the last two seasons; relying less on the four-seamer and more on his changeup and sinker. This has resulted in some gains for Weathers this year.
Other Fantasy Baseball Waiver Wire Options
- Miles Mikolas, St. Louis Cardinals (rostered in 10% of leagues)
- Matt Waldron, San Diego Padres (rostered in 7% of leagues)
- Spencer Arrighetti, Houston Astros (rostered in 7% of leagues)
Happy hunting for starting pitchers this weekend! If you have questions, you can always message me on X @mdrc0508. You can even tell me you hate these picks. Remember that fantasy baseball is supposed to be FUN above everything. Enjoy it!
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