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Welcome back RotoBallers to our starting pitcher fantasy baseball waiver wire pickups for Week 6 (April 29 - May 5). 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 that were lower rostered 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: the Chicago White Sox, the Miami Marlins, and the Colorado Rockies.
Another caveat here: you are not likely going 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 do no harm and hope for the best. Let's get after it.
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Waiver Wire Pickups for Shallow Leagues
Recommendations for leagues of any size rostered between 30-50% on Yahoo!
Mitchell Parker, Washington Nationals (rostered in 47% of leagues)
Parker has largely pitched well for the Nationals over three starts this season. In his last outing, he was less efficient and only went four innings against the Miami Marlins. The inefficiency cost him the win, as he needed 82 pitches to get through those four innings.
Parker gets the Texas Rangers this coming week, and while that might scare you off, know that the Rangers are hitting only .240 against left-handed pitching this season. Parker is worth an add and a matchup play in most leagues. Parker has two wins, a 1.69 ERA, a 0.94 WHIP, and 14 strikeouts in 16 innings. Limiting hard contact will help, and keeping walks to a minimum is key.
Bryce Elder, Atlanta Braves (rostered in 39% of leagues)
Elder is kind of the forgotten man in Atlanta. Called up to face the Miami Marlins last week, Elder pitched into the seventh inning, securing his first win of 2024. In the process, he struck out four. Elder is not going to wow you with high strikeout totals.
With the season-ending injury to Spencer Strider and the ineffectiveness of the replacement starter Darius Vines, Elder should be able to find a home in the Atlanta rotation. Let's not forget that he threw 175 innings for the team last year, with a 3.81 ERA and 1.28 WHIP. These are usable stats for most fantasy teams. Just know what you are getting here.
Casey Mize, Detroit Tigers (rostered in 30% of leagues)
Mize is going to start being added in many leagues. This is the second consecutive week that I am recommending him. On Saturday night he went five innings against the Kansas City Royals, striking out two and surrendering two earned runs on six hits. Mize has pitched at least five innings in four consecutive starts and has a 3.08 ERA, 1.22 WHIP, and 18 strikeouts in 26 innings.
His next two starts will be against the New York Yankees and the Cleveland Guardians. He's a great addition if you are looking for innings. Do not expect lots of strikeouts but Mize has been pitching well and can help your precious ratios.
Waiver Wire Pickups for Deeper Leagues
Recommendations for deeper leagues rostered between 30% or less on Yahoo
Michael Lorenzen, Texas Rangers (rostered in 24% of leagues)
Lorenzen did not pitch well on Saturday night, giving up five runs over six-plus innings against the Cincinnati Reds. He had been good through six innings, but manager Bruce Bochy had Lorenzen start the seventh, with bad results: he hit a batter before surrendering a home run to Jonathan India. If he had been removed after six, he would have only had three runs surrendered and a good start.
Lorenzen is a veteran who can give quality outings and should be able to get wins pitching for the world-champion Texas Rangers. Even after the tough end to yesterday's outing, Lorenzen has a 4.24 ERA, 1.24 WHIP, and 14 strikeouts in 17 innings. He gets the Kansas City Royals next weekend before a tilt with the Colorado Rockies the following week (although in Colorado).
Jose Soriano, Los Angeles Angels (rostered in 14% of leagues)
As seen below, Soriano's pure stuff registers above the average in MLB. It's a matter of getting him stretched out to give quality innings in the rotation.
That being said, Soriano was bad on Saturday night, surrendering four runs in less than two innings, with three walks and two hit batters. Look, this is to be expected with a guy just learning his way into the rotation. His pure stuff is excellent and the strikeout potential is high; of course, you will get outings like last night. Soriano gets the Cleveland Guardians and the Pittsburgh Pirates in his next two starts.
Erick Fedde, Chicago White Sox (rostered in 12% of leagues)
Fedde continues to pitch well for the moribund White Sox, providing quality innings thus far. The key seems to be the pitch mix changes he made in Korea last year. Look at the chart below and notice the uptick in K% and the saving down of the BB%.
The one concern: he has surrendered five home runs in five starts thus far. In his last start, Fedde notched 11 strikeouts in six quality innings against the Minnesota Twins. Fedde is worth an addition to your roster at this point; he gets the Tampa Bay Rays Sunday followed by the St. Louis Cardinals next week.
Other Waiver Wire Options
- Bailey Falter, Pittsburgh Pirates (rostered in 7% of leagues)
- Emerson Hancock, Seattle Mariners (rostered in 6% of leagues)
- Slade Cecconi, Arizona Diamondbacks (rostered in 2% of leagues)
Happy hunting for starting pitchers this weekend! If you have questions you can always message me @mdrc0508. You can even tell me you hate these picks. Remember fantasy baseball is supposed to be FUN above everything. Enjoy it!
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