X
Lost password?

Don't have an account?
Gain Access Now

X

Receive free daily analysis

NFL
NBA
NHL
NASCAR
CFB
MLB
MMA
PGA
ESPORTS
BETTING

Already have an account? Log In

X

Forgot Password


POPULAR FANTASY TOOLS

Expert Advice
Articles & Tools
Import Your Leagues
Daily Stats & Leaders
All Pitcher Matchups
Compare Any Players
Player Comparisons
Rookies & Call-Ups
24x7 News and Alerts

Starting Pitchers Breaking Out for Fantasy Baseball - The New Strikeout Kings

kyle wright fantasy baseball waiver wire pickups draft sleepers pitchers

We are nearly one month into the season and most starting pitchers have three or four starts under their belt. Some big names have dominated out of the gates, while others have faltered. And some lesser-known pitchers have made a splash by piling up some big strikeout totals. I do daily strikeout projections for DFS and sports betting, so I am constantly looking at pitchers' strikeout rates and trying to gauge if they can hit their props in the right daily matchups.

When you glance at the league leaders in strikeout rates, Corbin Burnes, Max Scherzer, Clayton Kershaw, Carlos Rodon, and Dylan Cease are names you expect to see. And they're all off to great starts of course, but this article is not about those pitchers.

Instead, I wanted to focus on the pitchers who are enjoying a big uptick in their strikeout rates and see if there's reason to believe that they can sustain their newfound success. I'll examine their SwStr%, CSW%, and walk rates as well as take a look at which changes they may have made to their pitch mixes in an attempt to gauge just how fluky these hot starts are.

Be sure to check all of our fantasy baseball lineup tools and weekly lineup resources:

 

The New Fantasy Baseball Strikeout Kings

When doing my preliminary research for this piece, I went right to the leaderboards and sorted every starting pitcher by strikeout rate. Then I removed all of the proven strikeout masters like Burnes, Kershaw, etc... Here is the list that I ended up with and it consists of a few different types of pitchers.

We have some guys who have already been good strikeout pitchers who have taken it to the next level this year. These pitchers have made only modest 2-5% increases to their strikeout rates, but in doing so have moved up into that elite tier of being a "strikeout pitcher."

Then we have some pitchers here who have made major gains and are now striking hitters out at a significantly higher rate than they did last year (or in previous years). These are the guys who will draw the most suspicion from fantasy owners as to their ability to keep replicating these results - and rightfully so. Small sample sizes can be deceiving and we are talking about only 20-25 innings pitched for most of these pitchers so far. It's a long season and major league hitters will figure pitchers out eventually if they're using gimmicks to get strikeouts early in the season.

 

From Good to Great, K-Rate Risers

Let's first take a look at some of the less surprising pitchers that made the list. These pitchers have made only modest gains in their strikeout rate, but it's pushed them up into the 28-33% range where we see elite strikeout pitchers.

Kevin Gausman - 33.6%

I'll start with the guy who's having the best overall year of perhaps any pitcher in baseball so far, Kevin Gausman. He was already really good at missing bats last season when he finished with a 14-6 record, 2.81 ERA, and a 29.4% strikeout rate.

This year he's been even better and while it's only been five starts, his 22.4% SwStr has been simply incredible. Gausman has yet to allow a walk, too, in his first 31.2 innings pitched. And I mentioned this in a tweet the other day, but it's not like he's had nothing but cupcake matchups either. He's faced the Red Sox twice, Yankees, Astros, and Rangers.

The key to Gausman's late-career renaissance has been his splitter, which has been regarded as one of the best of its kind in the majors. He has a 38.4% SwStr% with it this season, which is up from 25.8% last year. It's also producing more ground balls with a 68% GB%, up from 59% last year. Basically, his splitter, which was already really good, has been incredibly filthy this year and he uses it against lefties incredibly effectively.

But I think the biggest reason for him being so unhittable has been the improvement to his slider, which he uses against RHH. He's using it about 15% of the time, which is up from only 5% last year and the returns have been great. It's carrying a 26.6% SwStr% and a 35.9% CSW%.

Gausman is pounding the zone with fastballs and has the third-best first strike rate at 73%. He's getting ahead of hitters and then getting them to chase either the splitter or slider, both of which have been very effective. I'm not sure if he can sustain this pace all season, but we also have never seen this variation of Gausman before. He's refined his arsenal and is pitching as well as anyone in the game. It feels like the sky is the limit on what he could do and I wouldn't sell high on him. I have futures bet on him to win the American League Cy Young this year and I think it's well within his range of outcomes.

Nestor Cortes - 32%

I promise I won't write a novel about each of these players, but I am a huge Gausman fan and pretty happy for him that he's dominating like he is so far. Cortes worked out of the bullpen for part of the year last year for the Yankees but also made 14 starts. He pitched well enough to earn a spot in the rotation to start the year.

Cortes opened some eyes earlier this month when he struck out 12 Orioles in only five innings.

He followed that up with an 8-strikeout effort against the Guardians, too. But he feels like he's the least likely of this group to be able to sustain such a high K%. He's relying on too many called strikes as his SwStr% is only around 9-10%. He relies a lot on deception and uses multiple different deliveries and arm angles to mess with hitters' timing.

His slider right now has a 26% called strike rate but only a 1.6% SwStr%. And we've already seen the strikeouts start to disappear in his last two starts as he struck out only three batters against KC and Toronto.

My buddy Jon Anderson wrote about him here (as well as Gausman and others) and mentions how he doesn't see his strikeouts as sustainable either. I think he can continue to be a really good pitcher, but we are most likely going to see that strikeout rate settle and come back down to around where he was last season (27%).

Nathan Eovaldi - 28.1%

I was a big fan of Eovaldi going into this season and if you drafted him anywhere near his ADP, you have to be thrilled with the return thus far. He's out to the best start of his career with a 2.51 ERA and a minuscule .96 WHIP. He's not walking anyone and has increased both his SwStr% and K%. His velocity has held steady and he's throwing his curveball and slider more often and seems to be ditching the cutter. He has one of the smallest increases on the list here, but jumping from 25% to 28% is a big deal and could result in an additional 25-30 strikeouts over the course of 180 innings. Hold firm on Eovaldi, I think there's plenty of reason to believe he can keep it up.

Josiah Gray - 28.7%

Gray is a little bit like Cortes in that we have only a small sample size of data to work with for him as an MLB starting pitcher, but I am even less confident in Gray's ability to keep up his hot start.

The SwStr% is fine at 11%, but you would expect it to be a few points higher for someone with that K%. My biggest issues are the walks and the loud contact he allows. He's getting plenty of swings and misses on his curveball and slider (both over 40% whiff rate), but his fastball is getting smashed. His velocity on the four-seamer is down 1.2 MPH from last year and that pitch is getting barreled up by opposing hitters at a 13.5% rate.

One look at his game log reminds you that this is a young pitcher who is still very inconsistent. He has some potential, but I don't think he's likely to keep this up. I think he's realistically a 24-25% strikeout rate guy and he needs to fix the walks if he's going to become a reliable fantasy asset.

Chris Bassitt - 28.1%

I really like Bassitt and I'm happy to see him thriving in New York. He's in the same boat as Eovaldi as he jumped from the 25% range to 28% so far this year. His 11.7% SwStr% is the best of his career and he's one of those guys who can throw five different pitches and locate all of them. His curveball is super slow and guys just can't sit back on it.

But as far as offspeed pitches go, his slider has been the best one with a 20% SwStr%. He continues to evolve as a pitcher and his stats each year of his career show that gradual improvement. I'm not sure he can sustain the 28% strikeout rate, but I think he's an excellent pitcher who is going to be a boon to your team's roster even if he does dip back into that 23-25% range.

 

Strikeout Rate Standouts - Are They For Real?

Shane McClanahan - 39.3%

Note: These stats do not count McClanahan's start against Seattle on 5/5.

It's a real joy to watch McClanahan pitch. The 25-year-old Tampa lefty is your 2022 leader in strikeout rate thus far. That's the type of rare territory usually only occupied by Corbin Burnes or Gerrit Cole. He's compiled an 18% SwStr% in the process so he's getting plenty of whiffs while keeping his walks relatively low.

Mac throws four pitches - a four-seamer that sits around 96-97 MPH but can touch 100 when he needs it to, a slider, curveball, and changeup.

One thing that I noticed in looking at his pitch data is that he's kept his fastball velocity up while lowering the velocity of each of his offspeed pitches. His slider averages 88 MPH, his changeup is about 87 MPH, and his curveball comes in around 82 MPH. All three pitches have SwStr% above 20%, which is a great sign for his ability to keep missing bats. He uses his changeup more against RHH as it moves down and away from them and his slider to lefties as it sweeps across the zone and away from them.

The 12% leap in K% is probably not entirely sustainable. But even if we assume that he regresses about halfway to where he was last year we are still looking at 33-34% and a huge year from Mac. He's got Cy Young talent and I'd be thrilled if he were on any of my teams. His stuff is electric and I don't see any reason why he can't continue to mow down hitters at an elite rate.

Eric Lauer - 36.6%

We have a series of three lefties at the top of the list with Mac, Lauer, and Luzardo. We are looking at a really small sample size with Lauer as he's made only four starts, but a 36.6% K rate certainly has fantasy managers' attention. Lauer started off the season in a fairly normal fashion with five strikeouts against Baltimore and Pittsburgh but then has since struck out 13 Phillies and 11 Cubs in his last two starts.

Lauer is a guy who has always hovered around a 20-23% strikeout rate, so what gives? Well, it looks like he has ditched his changeup entirely (which was his worst pitch last year), and is throwing fewer fastballs, and more breaking balls.

The velocity is up 1.2 MPH on his four-seamer, which has a ridiculous (and unsustainable) 43.5% whiff rate. We are not talking McClanahan heat here, Lauer is throwing 93-94 with his heater which is good, but something hitters are used to seeing quite often. He's walking fewer hitters, so the improved control suggests he has better command of his pitches.

But this big K% feels pretty fluky to me. His breaking pitches have been good, but not great and he's not going to keep blowing a 93 MPH fastball past hitters. He's definitely due for some major regression and I think he probably drops the most of these top three. However, if he can level off around 25% and maintain the solid control you're still looking at a really productive pitcher assuming he can stay healthy. The Brewers rotation is absolutely loaded right now and it just might be Adrian Houser who ends up the sixth starter/long man as Aaron Ashby has been dynamic, too.

Jesus Luzardo - 34.1%

Note: These stats do not count Luzardo's start against San Diego on 5/5.

He's back! After several seasons of looking lost and getting shelled, the talented young lefty looks like he has rediscovered his strikeout prowess and could be one of the steals of the draft if he keeps it up.

Luzardo has been piling up strikeouts early on by going to the curveball as his primary pitch. I'm not sure that's entirely sustainable, but he's throwing it 42% of the time and pairing it primarily with a 97 MPH fastball that seems to jump out of his hand. He also throws a two-seamer and changeup, with the change being a nice compliment to his arsenal and having a 24% SwStr% thus far.

The high SwStr% isn't a new development for Luzardo. Even in 2020 and 2021, he was hovering around 13-14%. There are some red flags here in Luzardo's data. He's walking 11% of hitters and getting by with a relatively low BABIP of .236. The heavy curveball usage worries me a bit too in terms of his arm holding up for the whole season. I don't think he's going to be this good for too long, but it's also not like we haven't seen him pitch really well before either. My best guess is some regression to the high 20's for his strikeout rate as he settles in this year, but the early returns are certainly good.

Kyle Wright - 30.6%

Now we finally get to someone who has created great optimism and skepticism at the same time! Mr. Kyle Wright has seen the biggest increase of anyone on our list for this piece and firmly belongs in the category of "we've never seen him do this before, hold on just one second."

So why is Wright striking out hitters like he's an ace and not a guy who had hovered around 17-20% for his first few big league seasons. It really has to do with his revamped breaking ball, check it out.

He's basically ditched his slider and is throwing this curveball or "slurve" or whatever you want to call it. It's been effective with an 18% SwStr% and a remarkable 41.3% CSW%. He's throwing it a ton, too, nearly 33% of the time, and using his sinker, four-seamer, and changeup to complement it.

Wright has already slowed down in the K department after that torrid start to the year. He only whiffed three Mets over seven innings and allowed nine hits in that game. While the new pitch mix is certainly going to help his effectiveness and probably makes him a legit option for your rosters this season, the heavy curveball usage feels a bit gimmicky and as I mentioned with Luzardo you have to worry about how long he can get by doing that. I think we see him settle into the 24-26% range where you would expect to see a guy who throws in the mid-90s with a plus breaking ball.

Paul Blackburn - 25%

Am I allowed to admit that I had really no idea who this guy was before the season? I mean, how many of you did? Blackburn had made only 17 career starts before 2022 and had an ERA over six! This is a pretty cool feel-good story as he's been really good for the Athletics thus far and is only one of a few bright spots for their franchise this season.

My buddy Eric does an amazing job with these videos, so be sure to follow him on Twitter. I've had some success with betting his strikeout prop so far this year since it's been coming in really low, but let's not kid ourselves here - Paul Blackburn is not a strikeout pitcher. He's a sinkerball pitcher who throws 91-92 and his improved curve is leading to more whiffs. He hasn't pitched into the sixth inning yet in five starts yet.

He may or may not be someone who is useable in fantasy leagues this year, but I'm going to predict he ends up regressing a bit further and we see him settle into a 20-22% strikeout rate. If he keeps the ball on the ground, he could certainly still be viable for fantasy, but my expectations are pretty low.

Bruce Zimmermann 24.5%

Zimmermann brings up the rear here and probably would have been left off this list if not for him making a 5% increase in his K rate, going from below to average to above average in the process.

The key to Zimmermann's early success has been an increase in changeup usage. He's throwing it more than ever (32%) and getting plenty of whiffs (31% whiff rate). His fastball velocity is down a tick and he's sitting around 90-91 MPH on his four-seamer.

His slider is very effective against lefties, but the changeup is his primary offspeed pitch against righties and he usually sees 7-8 RHH every time out. He's still getting hit hard when batters make contact, making him a fairly risky starter to use in fantasy, especially against good lineups.

I have to rank him similarly to Blackburn in that I would definitely snag them in leagues and use them while they are running good, but with fairly low expectations going forward as I don't think either of them are likely to be this good or prolific at striking out hitters all season long.



Download Our Free News & Alerts Mobile App

Like what you see? Download our updated fantasy baseball app for iPhone and Android with 24x7 player news, injury alerts, sleepers, prospects & more. All free!



More Fantasy Baseball Advice




POPULAR FANTASY TOOLS

Expert Advice
Articles & Tools
Import Your Leagues
Daily Stats & Leaders
All Pitcher Matchups
Compare Any Players
Player Comparisons
Rookies & Call-Ups
24x7 News and Alerts

REAL-TIME FANTASY NEWS

Tony Pollard19 mins ago

Returns To Practice
Dakota Joshua31 mins ago

Makes Season Debut After Cancer Recovery
Alec Martinez39 mins ago

A Game-Time Call On Thursday
Viktor Arvidsson45 mins ago

Sits Out Meeting With Predators
Sean Couturier55 mins ago

Out On Thursday
Samuel Ersson1 hour ago

Misses Thursday's Action
Sam Bennett1 hour ago

A Game-Time Call Thursday
Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen1 hour ago

Unavailable Thursday
Tage Thompson1 hour ago

Ruled Out For Thursday
Harrison Butker2 hours ago

Chiefs Place Harrison Butker On Injured Reserve
Darnell Mooney2 hours ago

Added To Week 11 Injury Report
Najee Harris2 hours ago

Back To Full Practice On Thursday
Amari Cooper2 hours ago

Says He Feels Like He'll Play In Week 11
Tyreek Hill3 hours ago

Returns To Practice
Nico Collins4 hours ago

Takes Part In Thursday's Practice
Tank Bigsby4 hours ago

Sitting Out Another Practice
Tampa Bay Rays4 hours ago

Rays To Play Home Games In 2025 At Steinbrenner Field
Dalton Kincaid5 hours ago

Not Present On Thursday
Davante Adams5 hours ago

Not Seen At Thursday's Practice
Sam LaPorta5 hours ago

Sidelined Again At Practice
Caleb Williams7 hours ago

Bears Reiterate That Caleb Williams Will Start In Week 11
Mikko Rantanen7 hours ago

Grabs Four Points Against Kings
Aliaksei Protas7 hours ago

Enjoys Multi-Point Outing Versus Maple Leafs
Patrick Kane8 hours ago

Notches Two Points In Overtime Win
Blake Lizotte8 hours ago

Suffers Another Injury
Pyotr Kochetkov8 hours ago

Suffers Injury Versus Utah
Caleb Jones8 hours ago

Hurt On Wednesday
Darcy Kuemper8 hours ago

Exits With Injury Wednesday
LeBron James8 hours ago

Makes History With Third Consecutive Triple-Double
Jaxson Hayes8 hours ago

To Be Re-Evaluated In 1-2 Weeks
Walker Kessler9 hours ago

Remains Sidelined On Thursday
P.J. Washington9 hours ago

Considered Doubtful For Thursday
Luka Doncic9 hours ago

Expected To Remain In The Lineup Thursday
DeMar DeRozan9 hours ago

Exits Win With Back Problem
Aaron Rodgers9 hours ago

Leaning Toward Return In 2025
Grayson Allen21 hours ago

Ruled Out Versus Kings
D'Angelo Russell21 hours ago

Suiting Up On Wednesday
Bradley Beal21 hours ago

Unavailable Wednesday
DK Metcalf23 hours ago

Puts In Full Practice On Wednesday
Henrik Norlander23 hours ago

Needs Strong Showing At Butterfield Bermuda Championship
Michael Kim23 hours ago

Playing Well Down The Stretch
Nick Taylor23 hours ago

Returns To Butterfield Bermuda Championship
Jhonattan Vegas23 hours ago

Playing Well Heading To Butterfield Bermuda Championship
Matthias Schmid23 hours ago

Looks To Bounce Back At Butterfield Bermuda Championship
Patrick Rodgers23 hours ago

Heads To Butterfield Bermuda Championship
Mackenzie Hughes23 hours ago

Debuts At Butterfield Bermuda Championship
Maverick McNealy23 hours ago

Seeking Back-To-Back Top-10 Finishes In Bermuda
Lucas Glover23 hours ago

In A Groove Ahead Of Bermuda Championship
Andrew Putnam23 hours ago

A Player To Watch In Bermuda
PGA23 hours ago

Nico Echavarria In Top Form Heading To Bermuda
Jusuf Nurkic24 hours ago

Back On Wednesday Night
Anfernee Simons1 day ago

Won't Suit Up Against The Timberwolves
Robert Williams III1 day ago

Resting In Rematch With Minnesota
Deandre Ayton1 day ago

Out Again On Wednesday
Andre Drummond1 day ago

Out Sick On Wednesday
Paul George1 day ago

Won't Play Versus Cleveland
Joel Embiid1 day ago

Sitting On Wednesday
Tage Thompson1 day ago

Labeled As Day-To-Day
Mattias Samuelsson1 day ago

Out Indefinitely
Gabriel Landeskog1 day ago

Remains Without A Timeline
Jonas Brodin1 day ago

Considered Questionable For Thursday
Tank Bigsby1 day ago

Listed As DNP On Wednesday
Andre Drummond1 day ago

Listed As Questionable On Wednesday
Tyreek Hill1 day ago

Misses Wednesday's Practice
Hampus Lindholm1 day ago

Expected To Miss "Weeks"
Jani Hakanpaa1 day ago

Available On Wednesday
Tee Higgins1 day ago

Officially Limited On Wednesday
Marcus Smart1 day ago

Set To Play Wednesday
Michael Pittman Jr.1 day ago

Practicing In Full
Brian Thomas Jr.1 day ago

Limited On Wednesday
Josh Jacobs1 day ago

Limited During Wednesday's Practice
Mike Conley1 day ago

Resting Wednesday Versus Portland
Kirk Cousins1 day ago

Limited On Wednesday
Nick Hardy1 day ago

Looks To Find Consistency On The Greens In Bermuda
Carson Young1 day ago

Hopes To Carry Recent Form To Bermuda
Brandon Clarke1 day ago

Questionable For Wednesday's Action
Kevin Yu1 day ago

A Name To Watch At Butterfield Bermuda Championship
Marcus Smart1 day ago

Picks Up Questionable Tag Ahead Of Wednesday
Shohei Ohtani2 days ago

Among NL Silver Slugger Winners
Aaron Judge2 days ago

Headlines AL Silver Slugger Winners
Wander Franco2 days ago

Now Facing Weapons Charges
Travis d'Arnaud2 days ago

Agrees On Two-Year Deal With Angels
Brendon Todd2 days ago

A Hard Sell At Butterfield Bermuda Championship
Greyson Sigg2 days ago

May Surprise In Bermuda
Jacob Bridgeman2 days ago

In For Adventure At Port Royal Golf Course
Mark Hubbard2 days ago

Plays Solid In Bermuda
Andrew Novak2 days ago

Tries To Build Off ZOZO Championship
Daniel Berger2 days ago

Looks To Continue His Consistent Run At Port Royal Golf Course
Justin Lower2 days ago

Looks To Continue His Hot Play At Butterfield Bermuda Championship
2 days ago

Blue Jays, Red Sox To Meet With Juan Soto
Jasson Domínguez3 days ago

Yankees Expect Jasson Dominguez To Have A Big Role In 2025
Carlos Correa3 days ago

Progressing
Carlos Prates3 days ago

Gets Higlight-Reel Knockout Win At UFC Vegas 100
Neil Magny3 days ago

Gets Knocked Out At UFC Vegas 100
Cortavious Romious3 days ago

Drops Decision At UFC Vegas 100
Gaston Bolaños3 days ago

Gaston Bolanos Wins Back-To-Back Fights
Joey Logano3 days ago

Holds On At Phoenix To Win His Third Cup Series Championship
Los Angeles Dodgers3 days ago

Dodgers Considered Favorites For Roki Sasaki
Ryan Blaney3 days ago

Falls Short Of The 2024 Cup Series Title At Phoenix
Dusko Todorovic3 days ago

Gets TKO'd At UFC Vegas 100
Wander Franco3 days ago

Arrested On Monday After Altercation
Tyler Reddick4 days ago

Lacks Speed Of Other Championship 4 Contenders But Drives Well
William Byron4 days ago

Finishes Third In Phoenix Race And Championship
Miami Marlins4 days ago

Marlins Hire Clayton McCullough As New Skipper
Mansur Abdul-Malik4 days ago

Gets First-Round Finish At UFC Vegas 100
Luana Pinheiro4 days ago

Falls Short At UFC Vegas 100
Gillian Robertson4 days ago

Extends Win Streak At UFC Vegas 100
Gerald Meerschaert4 days ago

Gets Finished At UFC Vegas 100
MMA4 days ago

Reinier de Ridder Gets Submission Win In UFC Debut
4 days ago

Rays Have Interest In Juan Soto
NASCAR4 days ago

Bubba Wallace Is A Top DFS Recommendation With Upside For Phoenix
Tyler Reddick4 days ago

Is Expected To Compete For The Title At Phoenix
Joey Logano4 days ago

Is One Of The Favorites To Win At Phoenix
Kyle Larson4 days ago

Could Be A Favorable DFS Option For Phoenix Lineups
Corey Lajoie4 days ago

Corey LaJoie Will Start 20th At Phoenix
Brad Keselowski4 days ago

Is A Solid Recommendation For Phoenix DFS Lineups
Erik Jones4 days ago

Will Start 19th At Phoenix This Week
Carson Hocevar4 days ago

Will Compete For A Top-10 Finish At Phoenix
Ty Gibbs4 days ago

Should DFS Players Fade Ty Gibbs At Phoenix?
Chase Elliott4 days ago

Is Chase Elliott A Solid DFS Pick For Phoenix Lineups?
Ryan Blaney4 days ago

The Championship Favorite Despite Qualifying Blunder
William Byron4 days ago

Will Be Strong In Fight For Championship
Austin Cindric4 days ago

Is Austin Cindric Worth Rostering For Phoenix DFS Lineups?
Ross Chastain4 days ago

Is Great At Phoenix
Christopher Bell4 days ago

Looking To Go Back-To-Back At Phoenix After Championship Snub
Chase Briscoe4 days ago

Can Be Worth Rostering In Tournaments At Phoenix
Denny Hamlin5 days ago

Could Contend At Phoenix
5 days ago

Nick Martinez Expected To Accept Qualifying Offer
MLB5 days ago

Roki Sasaki Will Be Posted, Opens Door For 2025 MLB Debut
Nolan Arenado6 days ago

Could Be On The Trade Block
Zach Neto6 days ago

Undergoes Shoulder Surgery, Could Miss Start Of 2025

RANKINGS

QB
RB
WR
TE
K
DEF
RANKINGS
C
1B
2B
3B
SS
OF
SP
RP

MORE RECENT ARTICLES

 

Video: Week 11 Must-Start Running Backs - 2024 Fantasy Football Streamers, Start 'Em, Sit 'Em Analysis

Week 11 is on tap! There are some interesting decisions at the RB position on this slate. Don't miss our notable fantasy football running back starts and sits for Week 11! RotoBaller's Matt Donnelly discusses his top "Must Start" running backs that will have a fantasy football impact in Week 11, as well as some […]


Terry McLaurin - Fantasy Football Rankings, Draft Sleepers, NFL Injury News

NFL Week 11 Predictions: Picks and Analysis for Every Game Including Thursday Night Football

Welcome to Week 11, football fans! We kicked off Week 10 with a Thursday night banger and the same can be said for the Week 11 matchup between the Eagles and Commanders, as serious divisional ramifications are at play tonight. The fun doesn't stop after Thursday night, either. Some of the must-watch matchups on the […]


A.J. Brown - Fantasy Football Rankings, NFL Injury News, DFS and Betting Picks

Commanders vs. Eagles TNF Start 'Em, Sit 'Em: Jayden Daniels, Terry McLaurin, Brian Robinson, A.J. Brown, Jalen Hurts, Saquon Barkley, DeVonta Smith

After last week's 35-34 edge-of-your-seat matchup between Baltimore and Cincinnati, what can the Washington Commanders and Philadelphia Eagles do in Week 11 for some kind of encore for fantasy football managers? This game promises a lot of top-end talent with immense upside, but very little in terms of borderline plays. Will we get an exciting […]


Houston Texans Defense D/ST Streamers, Rankings, Waiver Wire - Derek Stingley Fantasy Football IDP

D/ST Strength of Schedule Analysis - Fantasy Football Defense/Special Teams Matchups (2024)

Ahh, the good old Defense/Special Teams (DST) position in fantasy football. It is a controversial inclusion in fantasy lineups for some fantasy players, but strategizing around DSTs is one of my favorite aspects of the in-season fantasy football experience. In the article below, I will present the strength of schedule (SOS) for the fantasy Defense/Special […]


Russell Wilson - Fantasy Football Rankings, Draft Sleepers, NFL Injury News

Sneaky Starts, Pivot Plays, and Post-Waiver Pickups for Week 11 - Russell Wilson, Audric Estime, Dawson Knox, and more

There are just four weeks left of the fantasy football regular season. Enjoy it while it lasts because before you know it, it’ll be gone. It also means you have four weeks to get your team into the playoffs. In many of my leagues, the last playoff spot is around .500. In some, a team […]


Tyreek Hill - Fantasy Football Rankings, NFL Injury News, DFS Picks

2024 Fantasy Football Rankings (Weekly Rankings)

Check out all of RotoBaller's fantasy football rankings. Staff rankings are updated regularly for all positions and include standard formats, PPR scoring, tiered rankings and dynasty leagues.


dawson knox fantasy football rankings NFL DFS lineup picks

Tight Ends Fantasy Football Start 'Em and Sit 'Em For Week 11

The tight-end position has never been easy to navigate. This year was supposed to be where tight ends returned to glory, with a deep group of players ready to take the position to new heights. Unfortunately, that didn't come to pass, and fantasy managers have been left with one of the more depressing groups in […]


Ja'Marr Chase - Fantasy Football Rankings, NFL Injury News, DFS and Betting Picks

Wide Receiver Sleepers, Risers, Breakouts for Fantasy Football - Targets, Air Yards, Snaps Trends for Week 11 (2024)

Wide Receiver Sleepers, Risers, Fantasy Football Breakouts - Targets, Air Yards, Snaps Trends Analysis For Week 11 by Kevin Tompkins Targets are paramount when it comes to evaluating pass-catchers for fantasy football. There are no air yards, receiving yards, receptions, or touchdowns without first earning a target. There’s a reason the biggest and most consistent […]


Jordan Love - Fantasy Football Rankings, Draft Targets, NFL Injury News

High-Powered Offenses: Players to Target in Week 11 Lineups Including Jordan Love, Demarcus Robinson, Patrick Mahomes, Tucker Kraft, DeAndre Hopkins, More

Hello, RotoBallers, and welcome to our column High-Powered Offenses for Week 11 of the 2024 fantasy football season. Below, you’ll find a recap of the last week's offenses to target, a sneak peek of the offenses to target, a breakdown of the methodology, a snapshot of each metric in a data table, a few key […]


Amon-Ra St. Brown - Fantasy Football Rankings, Draft Sleepers, NFL Injury News

NFL Survivor Pool Picks: Week 11 Targets and Avoids (2024)

Welcome to our NFL Survivor Pool Picks for Week 11 of the 2024 NFL season! There are so many different pools, fantasy leagues, weekly bets, and futures bets that it's hard to decide what to do with these choices. But survivor pools are the oldest and simplest leagues out there. All you have to do is […]


David Montgomery - Fantasy Football Rankings, Draft Sleepers, NFL Injury News

NFL Pick'em Pool Picks (Week 11) - Targets, Avoids, Predictions for Pick'em Contests (2024)

The Cardinals, Buccaneers, Panthers, and Giants will all be on a bye during Week 11. There are still some great matchups on the board, including when the Steelers host the Ravens. Each week of the NFL season, I’ll share my picks for each game and rank their selections for those who play in a format […]


George Pickens - Fantasy Football Rankings, Draft Sleepers, NFL injury News

Fantasy Football Matchups We Love - Start 'Em, Sit 'Em Picks for Week 11 Include Drake London, Justin Herbert, Joe Mixon, George Pickens, Chase Brown

Joe Burrow and Lamar Jackson lit the world on fire on Thursday Night Football to send fantasy managers into a love/hate frenzy heading into the weekend. Unfortunately, the weekend did not deliver the same level of goodness that fantasy managers were hoping for. There were several duds from players fantasy managers have come to expect […]


Russell Wilson - Fantasy Football Rankings, Draft Sleepers, NFL Injury News

Week 11 Fantasy Football Sleepers - Alexander Mattison, Russell Wilson, Elijah Moore, Jonnu Smith

Zeroing in on the right sleepers each week can be the secret to fantasy football success. Some players come out of nowhere, ready to save your lineup when you least expect it. It could be a quarterback with a soft matchup, a running back stepping in, or a receiver getting extra looks. The challenge? Deciding […]