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Quality over quantity. Every fantasy owner knows this. But when looking at the starting pitcher free agent waiver wire for the coming week, ideally you’d like to have a guy that is going to be on the mound more than once.
Most teams are going to have a couple of starters pitching twice in a week, which in turn raises their value as streaming options and weekly sleepers. In this weekly column, I’ll be looking at my top five two-start pitchers that you should consider streaming for your fantasy teams for the approaching Week 9.
These pitchers are projected to pitch twice in the coming week and are owned in less than 50% of Fleaflicker and Yahoo leagues.
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Ryan Vogelsong, SP, Giants
6/1 vs PIT, 6/7 @PHI
Looking for streamers, Ryan Vogelsong’s 4.24 ERA might scare aware some potential owners. However, he has been much improved the past month, and his stock has rose because of it. Over his last five starts, Vogelsong has a 3-0 record with a 1.14 ERA, 0.95 WHIP, and a 21/9 K/BB rate. He is only owned in 10% of Yahoo leagues, and is definitely the steal of the week.
Vogelsong begins at home, facing the Pirates in San Francisco. The Pirates have begun to turn around their early season struggles, but still have struggled on the road. Their OPS of .677 is 21st worst in the league, and their batting average, runs scored and RBI are all below average. In one of my favorite streamer starts this week, Vogelsong spends the weekend in Philadelphia, opposed by Severino Gonzalez. Instead of telling you where the Phillies have struggled offensively at home, I’ll save you the time and say they are living at the bottom of EVERY offensive category. Vogelsong is a must start at the end of the week.
Mike Pelfrey, SP, MIN
6/1 @BOS, 6/6 vs MIL
At only 6% owned in Yahoo leagues, Mike Pelfrey is a good streamer for leagues of all sizes. In his lone start last week against Boston, Pelfrey gave up just one run in seven innings, allowing five hits and one walk while striking out four. This brought his season ERA to 2.77, with his WHIP being lowered to 1.25. Even though his 26/16 K/BB rate isn’t dazzling anybody, his 4-1 record with five quality starts is a big reason why the Twins are a surprise contender early this season.
Starting the week off, Pelfrey has another matchup against the Red Sox, followed by a home start against the Brewers. Boston’s offensive woes have been well documented this season, and Pelfrey should be in line for another quality start here. As for Milwaukee, their .226 batting average is the worst in MLB, along with a .674 OPS vs right handed pitching that is the 24th best in the league.
Kyle Hendricks, SP, CHC
6/1 @MIA, 6/7 @COL
Kyle Hendricks has been inconsistent this season, but has been great his last two starts. Starting at San Diego, Hendricks threw a complete game shutout, giving up only five hits and striking out seven. He followed this up his last time out against the Nationals, throwing seven innings of one run ball, allowing four hits and striking out four. His lone blemish was a home run to Bryce Harper. On the year, Hendricks has a 1-1 record with a 3.76 ERA, 1.14 WHIP, and a 41/11 K/BB rate.
Hendricks will begin the week against the Marlins, whose struggles have been one of the biggest surprises of the year. On the year, their .675 OPS makes them a bottom five team. Hendricks will also be opposed by Jose Urena, who gave up five runs on 10 hits in 4 2/3 innings during his Major League debut on Tuesday. This gives Hendricks a high probability of getting a win. This is followed by another start against the Nationals, this time in our nation’s capital. Hendricks showed in his previous start he can be dominant when facing Washington. The Nationals splits show a big drop in production when they are home, scoring 87 runs in 21 home games, 22nd best in MLB, while plating 129 men in 25 games on the road, good for second in the league.
Brett Oberholtzer, SP, HOU
6/1 vs BAL, 6/6 @TOR
Scott Feldman has landed on the disabled list, and Brett Oberholtzer will be taking his place in the rotation. Despite the shakeup, along with Oberholtzer along having pitched three innings so far, there is some sleeper value with him taking over for Feldman. Last season, he had a 4.39 ERA, 1.38 WHIP and a 94/28 K/BB rate in 143.2 innings. I am a fan of Oberholtzer’s pitching style, especially how he hides his slider as a curveball to go with his signature changeup.
Oberholtzer goes up against the AL East, facing Baltimore at home before ending the week in Toronto. The Orioles have a .235 batting average in May, 2nd worst in the AL. They also have the worst OBP in the league at .289, and their .644 OPS is the worst in the AL in the month. Despite Toronto’s high scoring offense, they have only hit .227 against Houston’s pitching, and Oberholtzer could ride that to a quality start
Archie Bradley, SP, ARI
6/1 vs ATL, 6/6 vs NYM
Since being hit in the face back at the end of April, Archie Bradley has not been able to hold onto his early season success. Before the injury, Bradley was 2-0 with a 1.45 ERA, 0.96 WHIP, and 12 Ks in 18 2/3 IP. Since then, he has gone 0-2 with an 11.81 ERA, 2.41 WHIP, and 8 Ks and walks each. Since this drop in production, Bradley has fallen to only 24% owned in Yahoo leagues. I have confidence that Bradley, who just last season was the number one pitching prospect in baseball, can get back to how he was before his injury.
Bradley benefits by facing two below average offensives during the week, the Braves and Mets in Arizona. Atlanta and New York are both in the bottom 20% in road batting average. The Mets also have the worst away OPS in the league, while Atlanta is not far behind at 26th. Bradley is not a guarantee to bounce back, and he might be worth cutting ties with soon. However, I am willing to give him two more starts of leeway. If he is going to return to form, my money is on this week.
Those are my top five streaming options for the upcoming week. I would add that if you have a chance to add a pitcher such as Phil Hughes, he is also a quality streaming option, but he didn’t quite meet the ownership requirements for this column.
As always, feel free to follow me on Twitter @JustBerglund.
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