RADIO
On Monday we looked at Part 1 of our Rest of Season Starting Pitcher Rankings. Today we've got Part Two of our Rest of Season rankings. While it covers pitchers 51-100, there's a still a vast supply of quality pitchers to consider that can make valuable contributions to your fantasy roster.
Where does first-half wonder Lance McCullers land? What about Yovanni Gallardo, owner of a 2.65 ERA? And how about all those pitchers coming back from Tommy John? We've got all those answers plus more for you. Let's do this.
Editor's note: These rankings are always up for debate and discussion. Got any questions? Bring them by one our weekly chats!
More rankings: Starting Pitchers (Part 1), First Base (1B), Second Base (2B), Third Base (3B), Shortstop (SS), Outfield (Part 1), Outfield (Part 2), Catcher (C), Relief Pitcher (RP)
Starting Pitcher (SP) Rankings
Tier 6
51) Brett Anderson
52) Dan Haren
53) Yordano Ventura
54) Lance McCullers
55) Yovanni Gallardo
56) Eduardo Rodriguez
57) C.J. Wilson
58) Wei-Yin Chen
59) Hector Santiago
60) Chris Heston
61) Jaime Garcia
Brett Anderson had a phenomenal first half for the Dodgers, posting a 3.12 ERA over 101 innings. His career high is 175.1 innings due to his lengthy injury history, so owners have every right to be cautious. If someone wants to buy Anderson, go for it. But it's likely owners will be going down with the ship should he spend time on the DL in the second half.
Lance McCullers would have been higher on this list if he wasn't a likely candidate for an innings limit. His 2.16 ERA would be sixth in baseball if he qualified.
Wei-Yin Chen didn't get any respect preseason (one pundit gave him a negative value!). He's proved the doubters wrong to this point; he's sporting a 2.82 ERA, his line drive and hard contact rates are down, and he's pumping in more first-pitch strikes. I'm buying.
Tier 7
62) Ervin Santana
63) Mat Latos
64) Jesse Hahn
65) Doug Fister
66) Phil Hughes
67) Andrew Cashner
68) Mike Fiers
69) Aaron Nola
70) Carlos Rodon
71) Kendall Graveman
72) Erasmo Ramirez
73) Jesse Chavez
Mat Latos has been a different pitcher since returning from the DL in June, compiling a 3.31 ERA with a 31/8 K/BB ratio over 32.2 innings. He sat out with a foot injury to end the first half, so now may be a good time to check in with Lato's owner and see if he's selling.
I have a disease and the medical term is Doug Fister. He strikes no one out (4.36 K/9) but he limits the free passes (1.97 BB/9) and pitches for a contender who should help pad the win total. His ERA traditionally drops in the 2nd half as well (3.19 career ERA).
Aaron Nola is expected to get the call soon after the All-Star break. In any league of about 12 teams he should be owned now. His K and W potential are low but everyone loves a rookie. Hope he catches fire and sell.
Since Kendall Graveman rejoined the Oakland rotation on May 23rd, he's been the owner of a 2.17 ERA. He's a heavy groundball pitcher which actually hurts him in Oakland. They are last in team defense and Marcus Semien has been an atrocity. The sabremetrics indicate regression is due for Graveman, so I'd sell high if that's possible.
Tier 8
74) Hisashi Iwakuma
75) Collin McHugh
76) Drew Hutchison
77) Cody Anderson
78) Bartolo Colon
79) Patrick Corbin
80) Matt Moore
81) Kyle Hendricks
Collin McHugh hasn't shown the effectiveness that was on display in 2014; his 7.18 K/9 is down and 1.11 HR/9 is up. That said, the numbers indicate McHugh's ERA should be closer to 3.80 than 4.50. I anticipate a bounceback for McHugh in the second half.
Andrew Hutchinson has been Jekyl and Hyde this year. The good news: he owns a 2.12 ERA at home. The bad news: he also owns a 8.81 ERA on the road. If you plan to own Hutchison full-time, play the matchups accordingly.
Cody Anderson has been a revelation for Cleveland. He's the first pitcher to go six innings with one run or less in his first four starts. There's no way he keeps this up, and the advanced statistics imply regression, but he looks like a veteran on the mound. I'm sticking with Cody.
Kyle Hendricks has started to pitch like his numbers have shown all year long. He's working on a 20.1 scoreless inning streak, and he's also produced a career-low 1.55 BB/9 rate. Buy, buy, buy.
Tier 9
82) Kris Medlen
83) Edinson Volquez
84) Nathan Karns
85) Ian Kennedy
86) Mark Buehrle
87) Kyle Gibson
88) Mike Leake
89) Anthony DeSclafani
90) Jake Peavy
91) Manny Banuelos
Kris Medlen represents a large risk. The Royals are rehabbing Medlen with the intent of putting him in the rotation, and he hasn't alleviated any concerns with his poor rehab results. Still, he represents the highest ceiling of any pitcher this deep so he's worth a shot in deep leagues.
Ian Kennedy has seen his stock plummet in this first half, posting a 4.91 ERA over 16 starts. His fastball has regressed, the hard hit contact is up, and according to PITCHf/x data, only one pitch (his cutter) has produced a positive value (0.4). The last time Kennedy posted a negative fastball was 2013 when his ERA was, shocker, 4.91.
Kyle Gibson has been a key component to the Twin's race for the playoffs, compiling a 3.04 ERA over 17 starts. The only noticeable changes with Gibson are his first-pitch strike % is up and he's increased the use of his changeup. His 80.4% LOB is a career high (avg 66.4%) and his WHIP is 1.24 so he may have been getting lucky. I'm not ready to buy until he maintains his first half success.
Don't sleep on Jake Peavy. He has a 2.12 ERA since returning to the Giants rotation and has a career 3.34 ERA in the second half.
Tier 10
92) Mike Montgomery
93) Matt Cain
94) Jimmy Nelson
95) Ivan Nova
96) Brandon Beachy
97) Trevor May
98) Matt Shoemaker
99) Justin Verlander
100) Mike Bolsinger
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