After a big week full of aces last week and a bunch of streamable two-start pitchers, this week is a little less exciting. There are a few aces and a handful of streamable pitchers, but for players rostered in less than 50% of leagues, it's not looking too good.
For those new to this recurring column, each week this fantasy baseball waiver wire pickups column will identify starting pitchers expected to make two starts in the upcoming week and can be considered as fantasy baseball streamers ahead of the Sunday night waiver wire runs for leagues with weekly transactions.
There are 36 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 other two-start pitchers available, but they should be avoided.
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Two-Start Pitchers - Over 50% Rostered
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- Shohei Ohtani - Los Angeles Angels: @ BOS, vs. KC
- Corbin Burnes - Milwaukee Brewers: @ SEA, vs. BOS
- Kevin Gausman - Toronto Blue Jays: @ HOU, @ NYY
- Zack Wheeler - Philadelphia Phillies: @ CHW, vs. COL
- Jacob deGrom - Texas Rangers: @ KC, vs. OAK
- Clayton Kershaw - Los Angeles Dodgers, vs. NYM, @ CHC
- Christian Javier - Houston Astros: vs. TOR, @ ATL
- Nick Lodolo - Cincinnati Reds: vs. TB, @ PIT
- Dustin May - Los Angeles Dodgers: vs. NYM, @ CHC
- Jesus Luzardo - Miami Marlins: vs. SF, @ CLE
- Marcus Stroman - Chicago Cubs: @ OAK, vs. LAD
- Hunter Greene - Cincinnati Red: vs. TB, @ PIT
- Sonny Gray - Minnesota Twins: @ BOS, vs. WSH
- Lance Lynn - Chicago White Sox: vs. PHI, @ TB
- Jack Flaherty - St. Louis Cardinals: vs. ARI, @ SEA
- Alex Cobb - San Francisco Giants: @ MIA, vs. NYM
- Merrill Kelly- Arizona Diamondbacks: @ STL, vs. SD
- Kyle Freeland - Colorado Rockies: vs. PIT, @ PHI
Best Available Two-Start Pitcher Streamers
Brayan Bello, Boston Red Sox - 14% Rostered
Scheduled Starts: vs. LAA, @ MIL
To show how few good options we have compared to last week, Bello is one of the tops of the list. It's not because he's a bad pitcher, but because he has yet to pitch in an MLB game this year after just one rehab start at Triple-A. Bello was delayed from starting the year because of a forearm issue. He did pitch to a 2.94 FIP during 13 games, 11 starts, last season, however. He had a 89th-percentile fastball velocity last season and was league-average in most statistical categories.
Bailey Falter, Philadelphia Phillies - 14% Rostered
Scheduled Starts: @ CHW, vs. COL
Falter has made three starts and carries a 4.13 FIP. He does one thing great and that's limit walks. He's in the top 8% of the league in base on balls this season. Through 20 games, 16 starts, last season he had a 4.13 xFIP, so he's been consistent enough over more than half a season to know what to expect from him. Going against two middle-of-the-road teams in scoring runs so far this season, he's at least worth a look for streaming purposes.
Griffin Canning, Los Angeles Angels - 3% Rostered
Scheduled Starts:@ NYY, vs. KC
The Yankees currently have the 25th-best on-base percentage in the league and the Royals are even worse at 29th. The Yankees matchup on the road is still admittedly scary, but Canning didn't give up a walk in his first outing. He may not go deep in either game, however, after missing all of last season with back issues. He's been a solid pitcher in the past and during his career has struck out just over a batter per inning.
Hunter Gaddis, Cleveland Guardians - 2% Rostered
Scheduled Starts: @ DET, vs. MIA
Gaddis doesn't strike out many or get a lot of misses at all, but he does everything else pretty well. His Baseball Savant page has a bunch of red for his rankings this season, but one of the most important ones is his tendency to miss barrels. He has the best matchups of the bunch this week and his 3.29 xERA says he's much better than his actual ERA of 8.53.
Ryan Weathers, San Diego Padres - 2% Rostered
Scheduled Starts: vs. ATL, @ ARI
Weathers is mostly in the same boat as Gaddis, except with better velocity and better results thus far. Atlanta and Arizona have both been good at scoring runs this season, so he doesn't have easy matchups, but his ability to induce soft contact will always give him a shot.
Risky Two-Start Streamer Picks
Tylor Megill 42% Rostered
Hayden Wesneski, 33% Rostered
Drey Jameson, 32% Rostered
Clarke Schmidt, 20% Rostered
Eduardo Rodriguez, 14% Rostered
Ken Waldichuk, 1% Rostered
This week leaves a lot to be desired when it comes to two-start streaming options, but there are still some decent options available. We've looked at some of the 36 pitchers who will start two games this week. There are others not listed, and you should try to avoid them as much as you can. Hopefully, this helps you better understand what moves to make for the upcoming week. Good luck fantasy baseball friends.
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