Hello everybody, and welcome to this next installment of the SP Waiver Wire guide where we’re hunting for those pitchers that will vault us over the competition. Perhaps you’re struggling through starts from Matt Harvey, Dallas Keuchel and Sonny Gray, well these guys can help alleviate the pain. Let's find some Ben & Jerry's ice cream pitchers for your ailing wounds.

We’re going to approach this a little differently, as it’s mid-May and some pitchers who have repeatedly been below 50% ownership levels are probably going to hold there until they turn it around. You’re probably sick of hearing about them and I’m a little sick of talking about them, so let’s have some fun. You don’t need me to tell you that Shelby Miller (46% owned) looks way off. You do need me to tell you how Jon Gray is the truth. Without further ado…

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Starting Pitcher Waiver Wire Targets

Tyler Glasnow (PIT, SP) – 40% Owned – Everyone’s favorite stash as of late, but it’ll be at least another month (and another certain PIT pitcher may be first in line for promotion). Glasnow still has a strong 2-1 record with a 2.13 ERA, 1.18 WHIP and 49 Ks in 38 Triple-A innings, but his last start was rough (5 IP – 3 ER, 6 H, 5 BB).

Jerad Eickhoff (PHI, SP) – 37% Owned – Eickhoff has made strides this season, bringing his hard-hit rate down from 36.2% to 30.7%, upping his groundball rate to 44% from 37.9%, and lowering his 2.29 BB/9 from last season to a very impressive 1.77 BB/9. He pitches for Philly, his record is going to be poor, and this is no secret. He’s still solid otherwise, with his 4.43 ERA shrouding a 3.64 SIERA that is useful.

Josh Tomlin (CLE, SP) – 37% Owned – Tomlin’s 4.17 SIERA feels about right, since he struggles to rack up significant strikeouts and has some gopher-ball woes. However, his elite command (1.02 BB/9) keeps him in the streamer and deep mixed league discussion.

Tyler Chatwood (COL, SP) – 36% Owned – Chatwood is performing very well on the road, posting a 0.33 ERA thus far through four impressive starts. Of course, he’s not that good and won’t be out there throwing shutout innings like a robot, but can absolutely still be worth starting away from Coors for those in deeper formats.

Adam Conley (MIA, SP) – 34% Owned – Conley may not have an overly-impressive record or ratios, but his 38 strikeouts in 36 1/3 innings means that he deserves attention. His 3.85 SIERA shows that he’s legitimate, and the 10.6% swinging strike rate backs up the whiffs.

Eduardo Rodriguez (BOS, SP) – 33% Owned – He should be returning shortly and makes for an intriguing asset in 12+ team mixed leagues thanks to his (mostly) dynamite debut season last year. Outside of a few blowups that were mostly attributed to tipping pitches (a fixable issue), he was very strong. Pitching in the AL East isn’t easy, but he’ll have a strong Red Sox team supporting him and has a chance to become a good trade piece if he comes out of the gate firing and becomes the next “shiny new toy” to trade.

Rubby De La Rosa (ARI, SP) – 24% Owned – RDLR holds a 4-4 record with a 3.93 ERA (3.35 SIERA) and 1.12 WHIP alongside 38 strikeouts in 36 2/3 innings. His early struggles (and the rest of the rotation’s struggles) bounced him into some bullpen duty where he appears to have refined his raw talent. Three of his last four starts have seen him allow one run or less, with a strong 10-strikeout game against the Cardinals mixed in. If his home-run bug has been quashed a bit, and his command remains sharp, then he makes for a great speculative buy in mixed leagues.

Zack Wheeler (NYM, SP) – 19% Owned – Wheeler is slated to come back around early July, and a spot in the Mets rotation against the NL East can pave the way for some golden opportunities. Command will be critical, as it wasn’t that great even before he had Tommy John surgery, but don’t forget that he struck out 187 in 185 1/3 innings back in 2014.

Nathan Eovaldi (NYY, SP) – 19% Owned – Eovaldi has nearly a strikeout per inning, he’s only walking around two batters per nine, and his groundball rate is over 50% (at 51.9%). That means you pay attention. His 4.85 ERA is mostly due to a 1.48 HR/9 that is nearly triple his 0.58 rate from last season, which is hiding a very strong 3.43 SIERA and career-high swinging strike and strikeout rates. Buy.

Lucas Giolito (WAS, SP) – 16% Owned – I goofed last week and said Giolito was in Triple-A, but his struggles are actually coming in Double-A. His 4.74 ERA and 1.74 WHIP are no bueno, and he’ll need to prove himself worthy beyond the “top prospect” moniker for a call-up, especially with the entire Nats rotation performing well.

Julio Urias (LAD, SP) – 14% Owned – Still in discussions for a call into the bullpen for the Dodgers as the 19-year-old has a 3-1 record, 1.50 ERA, 0.80 WHIP and 33 strikeouts in 30 Triple-A innings thus far. That’s, well, that’s very good.

Blake Snell (TB, SP) – 14% Owned – Snell is still a wait-and-see, but his stuff is ready for the bigs whenever they do tab him for a regular spot in the rotation.

Jameson Taillon (PIT, SP) – 12% Owned – Here’s that other Pirates pitcher that may leapfrog Glasnow into the majors. He currently has a 2-1 record with a 1.69 ERA and 0.78 WHIP to go with 32 strikeouts in 37 1/3 Triple-A innings in his first season back after missing two years with injuries. His innings will be managed, but he looks very ready.

Hyun-Jin Ryu (LAD, SP) – 10% Owned – He’s set to begin a rehab assignment next weekend, so it might be wise to stash him now before the buzz builds around that.

Jon Gray (COL, SP) – 9% Owned – His ownership level is criminal. I know he pitches in Coors. I know he was hurt to open the season. I know his first start saw him give up five runs. I don’t care. Buy him. Gray has 36 strikeouts and only seven walks in 28 2/3 innings, he has a 50.7% groundball rate, and his 4.71 ERA is nearly double his outstanding 2.54 SIERA. All of those reasons why Eovaldi should be considered go double for Gray, even if you simply start him on the road.

John Lamb (CIN, SP) – 2% Owned – Lamb posted a 3.56 SIERA with 58 strikeouts in 49 2/3 innings last season, putting him on deep-league radars heading into 2016. This season he has allowed two runs in 10 innings, looking decent in a small sample size, but he probably won’t be much more than an NL-only streamer on a weak Cincinnati team.

Ivan Nova (NYY, SP) – 2% Owned – AL-only owners can check Nova out, as he pitched 5 2/3 innings of one-run ball against a strong White Sox lineup on Saturday. His strikeouts are down, but his command is way up as he’s riding a pristine 1.11 BB/9 rate and 68.2% groundball rate to success.

Eddie Butler (COL, SP) – 1% Owned – He’s only thrown 14 big league innings this season, but he shown some additional life on his offerings thus far with a 9.9% swinging strike rate (way above his 6.9% mark from last season). Perhaps this is the guy the Rockies saw in his first two professional seasons down in the minors, and on the off-chance it is then NL-only owners will want to take note.

Mike Foltynewicz (ATL, SP) – 1% Owned – A deep NL-only play, as he showed strong strikeout stuff last season and now has an opportunity in the rotation once again. His latest start saw him go seven strong innings, striking out eight while allowing two runs on only five hits.

Miguel Gonzalez (CWS, SP) – 1% Owned – Look, if you tolerated Mat Latos then there’s no reason not to look at Gonzalez. He benefits from the same strong White Sox defense and bullpen, and now has a chance to run with that fifth rotation spot. He’s two seasons removed from a 3.23 ERA and has a very strong 14.6% swinging strike rate through two starts this season, while a .353 BABIP and usual high homer rate is hamstringing him. He won’t save your team, but in deep AL-only leagues he should be glanced at.

 

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