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Top daily fantasy baseball streamers and waiver wire adds for 5/8/21. Mike Marteny identifies MLB hitters and starting pitchers to stream based on matchups.
Welcome to the another edition of our daily fantasy baseball streamers! Are you playing in leagues with daily moves and looking to beef up those rosters? We here at RotoBaller are there for you and all of your streaming needs. Whether you are just trying to get that elusive category win or you are trying to give your pitching staff a lift because you streamed dumpster Fiers earlier this week, we can help. Each day RotoBaller will provide you with some of the best streaming options to consider in both shallow and deep fantasy baseball daily leagues. Streaming hitters and pitchers to exploit matchups are important to help you win your league.
It is important to know your league if you're going to stream. I'm not just talking about which teams your leaguemates root for. I'm talking about whether strikeouts count against you for hitters or if fielding stats are included. Most importantly, you need to know how many transactions you have per week. You don't want to blow your allotment within a couple of days. You can also use these recommendations to help build your DFS lineups. This article will use rostered percentages and position eligibility from ESPN leagues.
16 pitchers are under 50% owned, but of those, only one is owned in more than 15% of leagues. That means we have a lot of subpar pitchers out there today. However, some of them are in good spots. We'll find some suitable streamers for you!
Be sure to check all of our fantasy baseball lineup tools and resources:- Fantasy baseball trade analyzer
- BvP matchups data (Batter vs. Pitcher)
- PvB matchups data (Pitcher vs. Batter)
- Who should I start? Fantasy baseball comparisons
- Daily MLB starting lineups
- Fantasy baseball closer depth charts
- Fantasy Baseball live scoreboard
- Fantasy baseball injury reports
Hitter Streamers for 5/8 - Shallow Leagues
Josh Rojas (2B/SS/OF, LHB, ARI) - 45% Rostered
Matchup: vs. NYM LHP Joey Lucchesi
The lefty-lefty matchup will play here. Lucchesi doesn't have stark splits either way, but he has allowed a .240 average to lefties. He doesn't give up many long balls to lefties, but if you're just looking to boost the average, Rojas is a strong play. He picked up a hit off of lefty David Peterson last night and is now hitting .421 with three homers and five RBI in the last week. There's really no reason not to use Rojas while the hot streak lasts.
Aaron Hicks (OF, SHB, NYY) - 41.1% Rostered
Matchup: vs. WAS RHP Max Scherzer
Sure, Max is a dominant pitcher, but he gives up a lot of home runs. He has given up seven in six starts this year despite the sparkling 2.54 ERA. Hicks might strike out three times, but he is starting to hit the ball very well over the last week. He is 9-20 with a homer and four RBI in that span. He has more hits (6) and outs (4) in the series against the Astros that just concluded. Give me the red-hot Hicks against Max. If anyone homers off of him, it will be Giancarlo Stanton or Hicks.
Jeimer Candelario (1B/3B, RHB, DET) - 33.8% Rostered
Matchup: vs. MIN RHP Jose Berrios
This is another tough matchup for Candelario, but unless Berrios pitches a complete game, Candelario should get at last one at bat against that poor bullpen. Candelario is hitting .458 with two homers, five RBI, and six runs scored in the last week. More good news for Candelario: Berrios has not gone more than six innings in a start this year and he has not has a scoreless outing since Opening Day.
Avisail Garcia (OF, RHB, MIL) - 25.7% Rostered
Matchup: at MIA bullpen game
The Marlins haven't announced a starter, but it is believed that this will mostly be a bullpen game for Miami. The power hasn't come yet for Avi, but he is hitting .545 (12-22) with six RBI, a steal, and two runs scored in the last week. That average is a nice little boost in any league. Having Avi pad your RBI total is nice as well.
Hitter Streamers for 5/8 - Deep Leagues
Willie Calhoun (DH, LHB, TEX) - 9.8% Rostered
Matchup: vs. SEA RHP Ljay Newsome
I can only guess that the low ownership is because Calhoun is not OF eligible on ESPN yet. That can really cramp the roster setup. However, Calhoun has been leading off against righties, and it's not hard to see why. He is hitting .360 with two homers, three runs, and four RBI in the last week. This Seattle pitching staff, starters or relievers, likely isn't going to slow him down. If you have the UTIL slot to spare, Calhoun can help your average and counting stats.
Harrison Bader (OF, RHB, STL) - 7.3% Rostered
Matchup: vs. COL RHP Chi Chi Gonzalez
Bader has two homers and two steals in the last week and he seems to be back in an everyday job in the St. Louis outfield. I understand flocking to Tyler O'Neill, but Bader has hit righties marginally better than O'Neill in their careers. I like the speed aspect for Bader as well. We are honestly just looking for counting stats here if you can take the hit in average. Gonzalez has given up eight runs in 14.1 road innings this year and the Cardinals may be the best offense he's faced away from Coors.
William Contreras (C, RHB, ATL) - 8.6% Rostered
Matchup: vs. PHI RHP Vince Velasquez
I know, streaming catchers isn't conventional, but Contreras has started his career 4-13 with a homer, three RBI, and three runs scored. He's playing in a potent lineup, so his potential is higher than most of his peers on waivers in deep leagues right now. Contreras is guaranteed time with Travis d'Arnaud out for and extended period of time. Ride him while he's hot, even if it isn't a permanent solution. Velasquez has been a tomato can this year. I like any Brave player you can stream today.
Jake Marisnick (OF, RHB, CHC) - 4.8% Rostered
Matchup: vs. PIT RHP Wil Crowe
With Nico Hoerner sidelined, Marisnick should see an uptick of playing time. His recent hot streak doesn't hurt anything either. Marisnick has always hit right-handed pitching well enough to stick in the lineup, but he doesn't offer much speed or power. However, Marisnick is showing more pop than usual with four homers in the last seven games. He should be far higher owned than he is, especially into a matchup like this. The entire Pittsburgh pitching staff has struggled this season.
Pitcher Streamer for 5/8 - Shallow Leagues
Carlos Martinez (RHP, STL) - 33.6% rostered
Matchup: vs. Colorado
Colorado hasn't been as bad away from Coors this year as usual, but they only have nine homers as a team in 13 road games. As for Martinez, he has not allowed a homer in four straight starts and has allowed just two earned runs in 21.1 innings over his last three starts combined. The strikeouts aren't what we have come to expect from Martinez, but he has learned how to pitch. The important part is that he is keeping runners off the bases and not allowing runs. Unless your league counts K/9 or K/BB, Martinez will be a big help to your ratios today.
Pitcher Streamer for 5/8 - Deep Leagues
Adrian Houser (RHP, MIL) - 6.8% Rostered
Matchup: at Miami
Not much to see with Houser here. He wont get you a lot of strikeouts, but at the same time, he has been pretty efficient recording outs. Houser got a win in Milwaukee against the Marlins, but it wasn't a pretty outing by any means. He still gave up three runs, but the seven strikeouts, a season high, are encouraging. That's what will get me to come back today, especially in DFS formats. Miami strikes out enough to give Houser value in a spot start.
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