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While Taijuan Walker kept things rolling with another strong start, the tragedy of Tyson Ross continued unabated and Carlos Carrasco was let down by his defense yet again. On the sell side, Tanner Roark pitched his best game of the season and had a baby, and Alfredo Simon and Wei Yin Chen both turned in quality work as well. But then Chen got demoted to the minors!
Vindication is mine. Yes, I know it was just some roster gamesmanship on Baltimore’s part. I’m still counting it as a win. Those have been hard to come by lately.
Editor’s Note: to read about waiver wire options for starting pitchers, be sure to check out our famous waiver wire pickups list which is a running list that is updated daily.
Starting Pitcher Buys for Week 12
Chris Heston, San Francisco Giants
Heston has been one of the season’s biggest surprises, a lightly regarded rookie whose minor league track record didn’t move the needle much. 14 mostly good MLB starts (including a no-hitter) later, it sure seems like it’s time to start taking him seriously. There are no real red flags in his performance thus far – in fact, his ERA is actually a half run or so higher than his FIP and SIERA. He’s striking out around eight batters per nine and more than three for every walk, and his groundball rate currently sits at 56%. With a good team and favorable home park, the formerly fringy righthander looks like a solid bet for continued success moving forward.
Matt Shoemaker, Los Angeles Angels
I was extremely bearish on Shoemaker coming into the year, and his awful performance out of the gate appeared to vindicate that skepticism. As anyone with even a passing familiarity with sabermetrics knows, pitchers have the most control over strikeouts, walks, and home runs. Shoemaker’s had no trouble duplicating his success from last season in the first two areas, but he was plagued by the long ball early and often this year, surrendering 13 in his first eight starts. He'd gone nearly a month without allowing another until giving up two on Friday. If he can limit the big flies, Shoemaker may yet cobble together a worthy follow up to his rookie year.
Lance McCullers, Houston Astros
Despite a relative lack of fanfare surrounding his promotion, McCullers has been nothing short of dazzling. He’s striking out more than a batter per inning, limiting walks, and keeping the ball in the yard and on the ground. Some regression should be expected as hitters adjust, but the 21-year-old has acclimated quite well to the majors. McCullers fell to the 41st pick in the 2012 draft for a variety of reasons. Watching him toss high-90’s heat, a wicked spike curve and his newly developed power change, you have to think 29 other teams are kicking themselves now.
Starting Pitcher Sells for Week 12
Scott Kazmir, Oakland Athletics
After a lousy May undercut a spectacular opening month, Kazmir has acquitted himself well in his past two starts. His owners might want to take advantage of that and start shopping him. Wins will continue to be tough to come by in Oakland this year, particularly if Kazmir’s seemingly dormant control issues resurface. There’s some evidence to suggest they may have – his walk rates and Zone % are at their worst since his disastrous stint with the Angels. Kazmir also experienced some tightness in his throwing shoulder recently. Maybe not a big deal, but tough to ignore when you consider the guy’s injury history.
Carlos Martinez, St. Louis Cardinals
Since giving up seven runs in each of his first two starts in May, Martinez has allowed six runs total in his last seven appearances. He’s striking out over a batter per inning and sits at 7-3 with a 2.80 ERA. The young righty has all the talent in the world, and those who own him in keeper or dynasty leagues can just skip to the next entry on this list. In a redraft, though? The best move might be to sell high. Martinez is likely to see his innings limited. His walk rate is hovering just below 4.00 per nine, which is likely to bite him if and when his high strand rate regresses a bit. And though he’s closed the gap recently, his platoon split is still a concern.
Haren has been one of the few bright spots in another lost season in Miami. Exhibiting his typical pinpoint control, the veteran is 6-3 with a solid 3.22 ERA. That would be his best mark since 2011 if it holds up. Unfortunately for him, it won’t. Haren’s .226 BABIP is lowest of all qualified starters, and his strand rate is fifth-highest. As those numbers normalize, his middling strikeout rate and vulnerability to the long ball will return him to the ranks of the fantasy irrelevant.
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