Welcome back readers after the one-week absence. Hopefully your rotation's didn't hit the fan in that time span but if so, I'll take responsibility for your team's downfall. This week I'll try and boost you back up, although the pickings are getting slimmer and slimmer as we wait for roster expansions in September.

If you've been following along with this series all season, you know the drill. If not, this article is to help you uncover starting pitcher options that may have been overlooked in your league or dropped after a poor start. As always, included are options for both shallow and deeper leagues. I also add my list of pitchers discussed previously at the end of the article with ownership levels to boot. Make sure to check them out, and grab any that are still out there.

To read about even more 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. And don’t forget to check out our Starting Pitcher Matchups & Streaming Tool for expert guidance during the week too, including what pitchers to start/sit for seasonal and DFS leagues. Let’s get to it.

 

Starting Pitchers Waiver Wire - Shallow Leagues

Carlos Rodon (CHW, SP)

OWNED IN: 25% of Fleaflicker Leagues

BALLER MOVE: Add in 12 + leagues / Stream Worthy

Carlos Rodon is a good illustration of the hyped pitching prospect in his rookie season. He had tons of expectations preseason, with his ownership above 50% when he wasn't even on the 25-man roster to break camp. When he finally got a chance in the rotation he showed flashes of brilliance mixed with bouts of inconsistency.

Take a look at Rodon's streaks below.

Here's May 9th-June 9th:

And here's June 15th - July 21st:

And lastly here's July 26th - Present:

We're basically looking at completely different pitchers each time. It should be noted the latest run of performances has resulted in a 5.06 ERA even with 62% of the innings being shutout baseball. That helps explain the low FIP/xFIP but does not give us an answer for Rodon's inconsistencies.

The 3.09 ERA in August is a positive, along with the improved BB/9 rates, but it's hard to trust Rodon in shallow formats week in and week out. Hence the preferred play is to stream. He just shut down the Angels (7 IP, 0 R, 4 H, BB, 11 K) and gets them on Monday in Anaheim as part of a two-start week (@ LAA, @ SEA). Considering his recent success vs the Angels combined with Seattle's 21.8 K% vs LHP (3rd worst in AL), I'm willing to scoop Rodon up for the upcoming week.

 

Matt Garza (MIL, SP)

OWNED IN: 29% of Fleaflicker Leagues

BALLER MOVE: Add in 12 + leagues

Here's a name I was quite sure I would not be discussing in this series but the pickings are slim and he's gaining traction in ownership, so here we are. Matt Garza recorded a 5.55 ERA in the first half (4th worst) but has rewarded owners who stuck with him (likely idle owners) with his latest string of success.

In five starts since the All-Star Break, Garza owns a shiny 2.56 ERA and 1.11 WHIP over 31.2 innings. He's faced respectable lineups in that span (vs CLE, @ ARI, vs CHC, vs SD, @ CHC), so let's take a closer look into his recent success.

Here's his Pre-ASB stats:

And Post-ASB:

Off the bat we can see a significant decline in his HR/9 rate and BABIP along with a huge rise at his LOB%. The BABIP and LOB% are due for regression, but perhaps not back to pre-ASB levels. He's limited his slider usage and replaced it with more of sinkers and change ups, which helps explain the decline in HR.

Is that a recommendation to roster Garza until further notice? Heck no. Just too much risk involved. But he's got a juicy matchup vs Miami on Monday, a team that is last in MLB in AVG, OBP, OPS, HR%, and BB% vs RHP. He's got my stamp of approval for this streaming opportunity. Next weekend at Washington, you're on your own.

 

Starting Pitchers Waiver Wire - Deeper Leagues

Jeremy Hellickson (ARI, SP)

OWNED IN: 4% of Fleaflicker Leagues

BALLER MOVE: Add in NL-Only / Stream Worthy at Home

HellBoy just refuses to leave the fantasy landscape. He had an excellent run in July (1.88 ERA) that saw his ownership climb into the double digits. Enter two terrible outings at Houston and Washington (8 IP, 10 ER, 5/6 K/BB) and the party train reached an abrupt halt.

Smart owners rode the rocky waves and were rewarded with a dominant outing vs Philadelphia (8 IP, 0 ER, 6/0 K/BB). So what's the next move?

For starters, utilizing Hellickson in a home/away platoon is the preferred route. Check out his home/away splits.

It's surprising how much better he's performed at Chase Field, which is 6th in NL in R/game. The last time Hellickson failed to record a quality start at home was May 13th (7 GS).

He's got a two-start week ahead of him, but both are away from Chase Field (@ PIT, @ CIN). I cannot endorse either matchup for streaming purposes, but he should see STL and OAK at home afterwards should the rotation stay in line. Keep an eye on HellBoy.

 

Martin Perez (TEX, SP)

OWNED IN: 3% of Fleaflicker Leagues

BALLER MOVE: Add in AL-Only / Stream Worthy

Many fantasy owners may have forgotten about Martin Perez after his Tommy-John Surgery in 2014, but with pickings so slim it's worth putting him back on your radars.

Only 24, Perez has bounced back nicely after a horrendous outing vs NYY (1 IP, 8 ER) by compiling a 2.21 ERA over 20.1 innings (3 GS). Those matchups don't look intimidating on paper (TB, @ SEA, SF) but Tampa has actually been one of the best teams vs LHP according to RotoGrinders. Safe to say his 5.29 ERA on the season is very misleading. One peek at his 2.99 FIP and 3.81 SIERA imply he's getting a little unlucky, along with the .345 BABIP.

His fastball is back to around 92 mph while his sinker has been his best pitch in 2015. His sinker has limited hitters to a .133 AVG in 6 GS. He's not missing many bats (6.1 SwStk%) and he's yet to surrender a HR in 2015. Easy to say some regression is coming in the form of the longball.

He's got a matchup at home vs Seattle, a team who is last in the AL in AVG, OBP, and OPS vs LHP. He's got my stamp of approval for streamers. As for his next outing vs Toronto, tread at your own risk. The HRs should be aplenty.

 

Other Pitchers Previously Highlighted to Consider

The noticeable names with questionable ownership levels include Luis Severino, Taylor Jungmann, Erasmo Ramirez, Kyle Hendricks, and Brett Anderson. It's likely at least one of these pitchers is still available in your league and worth a FA add.

In Order of Ownership %

Noah Syndergaard (NYM, SP / 85% ; up 1%)
Jaime Garcia (STL, SP / 69% ; up 9%)
Taijuan Walker (SEA, SP / 61% ; up 4%)
Wei-Yin Chen (BAL, SP / 58% ; up 4%)
R.A. Dickey (TOR, SP / 57% ; up 12%)
Mike Leake (DL) (CIN, SP / 55% ; down 12%)
Luis Severino (NYY, SP / 51% ; up 6%)
Taylor Jungmann (MIL, SP / 51% ; up 6%)
Yovani Gallardo (TEX, SP / 48% ; up 1%)
Chris Tillman (BAL, SP / 47% ; down 3%)
Erasmo Ramirez (TB, SP / 29% ; up 1%)
Jonathan Niese (NYM, SP / 28% ; up 12%)
Kyle Hendricks (CHC, SP / 25% ; up 2%)
Eduardo Rodriguez (BOS, SP / 24% ; down 5%)
Brett Anderson (LAD, SP / 22% ; down 1%)
Aaron Nola (PHI, SP / 22% ; down 7%)
Mike Montgomery (SEA, SP / 18% ; down 8%)
Jake Peavy (SF, SP / 14% ; up 3%)
Tom Koehler (MIA, SP / 12% ; down 3%)

 

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