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In this piece, RotoBaller will highlight a selection of starting pitchers owned in less than 75% of both CBS and Yahoo leagues that have favorable matchups in the upcoming week. Whether you’re suffering from injuries, poor performance, or your league’s fantasy baseball waiver wire is barren, these undervalued pitchers could prove useful in the days ahead.
8/19: Dillon Gee (NYM) @ Minnesota Twins (Kyle Gibson)
CBS Ownership: 54%, Yahoo Ownership: 22%
We recommended Gee last week against the white-hot Dodgers, but made sure to attach a caveat about New York’s inability to produce much in the victory department. As things turned out, Gee allowed just two earned runs over six innings and left the game in line for a win, but the Mets’ bullpen blew the lead and the hard luck righty was left with a no-decision despite his fifth quality start in his past six appearances. Regardless of his supporting cast, Gee squares off against the weak-hitting Twins on Monday afternoon and should be started in most formats.
8/20: Rick Porcello (DET) vs. Minnesota Twins (Mike Pelfrey)
CBS Ownership: 62%, Yahoo Ownership: 21%
A perennial disappointment, Porcello has overcome a shaky start to the season by posting quality starts in seven of his past eight appearances dating back to late June. For some reason his consistency hasn’t moved the fantasy ownership needle too much, so take advantage: Porcello versus the Twins is as good an option as you could hope to find on the waiver wire at this critical point in the season.
8/20: Sonny Gray (OAK) vs. Seattle Mariners (Joe Saunders)
CBS Ownership: 34%, Yahoo Ownership: 18%
The recently called up Gray has been outstanding since joining the Oakland rotation, allowing just two earned runs over 14 IP with a 14:4 K:BB ratio in starts versus Toronto and Houston. A 2011 first-round pick, the slightly-built Vanderbilt product primarily relies upon an explosive four-seam fastball with movement in addition to a sharp breaking ball. Combined with good mechanics and an advanced pitching IQ, the young righty has been compared to Tim Hudson and Roy Oswalt. With Bartolo Colon headed to the DL, Gray will have a rotation spot for the foreseeable future and has a real chance to be a factor in the fantasy playoffs.
8/21: Jake Arrieta (CHC) vs. Washington Nationals (Ross Ohlendorf)
CBS Ownership: 7%, Yahoo Ownership: 1%
Arrieta has always possessed terrific stuff, but his inability to fully harness it is what ultimately led to the Orioles trading him to the Cubs back in early July. Sent to the minors to continue refining his game, Arrieta was terrific in a spot start versus Milwaukee on July 30th before totally dominating the Cardinals over seven shutout innings in another spot appearance on Friday. Arrieta has now all but sown up a chance to audition for a 2014 rotation spot, and that journey continues with a start against the Nationals on Wednesday night. The idea that Arrieta could hold deep league fantasy value down the stretch isn’t as far-fetched as you might think.
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