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Top daily fantasy baseball streamers and waiver wire adds for 5/15/21. Mike Marteny identifies MLB hitters and starting pitchers to stream based on matchups.
Welcome to the another edition of our daily fantasy baseball streamers! Are you playing in leagues with daily moves and looking to beef up those rosters? We here at RotoBaller are there for you and all of your streaming needs. Whether you are just trying to get that elusive category win or you are trying to give your pitching staff a lift because you streamed Royals against the Tigers, we can help. Each day RotoBaller will provide you with some of the best streaming options to consider in both shallow and deep fantasy baseball daily leagues. Streaming hitters and pitchers to exploit matchups are important to help you win your league.
It is important to know your league if you're going to stream. I'm not just talking about which teams your leaguemates root for. I'm talking about whether strikeouts count against you for hitters or if fielding stats are included. Most importantly, you need to know how many transactions you have per week. You don't want to blow your allotment within a couple of days. You can also use these recommendations to help build your DFS lineups. This article will use rostered percentages and position eligibility from ESPN leagues.
Only five starters are owned in 90% or more of leagues. There's a lot of junk out there today with 22 of the 30 starting pitchers owned in less than half of ESPN leagues. That's what we like to see! Are any of these options actually good? We'll get back to you on that.
Hitter Streamers for 5/15 - Shallow Leagues
Joc Pederson (OF, LHB, CHC) - 42.7% Rostered
Matchup: at DET RHP Jose Urena
Urena has had a solid year, but he has still allowed his share of homers. Pederson doesn't start every day, but he has been raking against righties of late. Pederson is 12-27 since coming off the IL with three runs scored and five RBI. The power hasn't resurfaced yet, but just seeing Pederson comfortable at the plate again after an absolutely awful 2020 season is a win for the Cubs. He hit 36 homers in 2019, so there's reason to think the power will return once he gets comfortable again. He looks comfortable, so maybe he gets one today.
Andrew Vaughn (1B/OF, RHB, CWS) - 41.8% Rostered
Matchup: vs. KC LHP Mike Minor
Minor has been solid this year, but Vaughn is hitting a blistering .368 against lefties in his young career. Vaughn is starting to get comfortable at the plate a little bit. He's hitting .333 with two homers, seven RBI, and seven runs in the last week. Yesterday's doubleheader was good to Vaughn because of the Royals bankrupt bullpen. Today will be no different. Even if he doesn't get to Minor, he should get at least one at bat against that bullpen.
Avisail Garcia (OF, RHB, MIL) - 35.9% Rostered
Matchup: vs. ATL RHP Ian Anderson
Anderson isn't a pitcher I normally choose to pick on, but righties hit him better and Garcia is a much better hitter at home than on the road. Garcia has had a strong month of May and has regained some of that power that he lost. Garcia has only drawn the collar twice all month aside from two pinch-hitting appearances. He's not a great bet for a homer against Anderson, but chances are Avi will at least get on base.
Robbie Grossman (OF, SHB, DET) - 31.5% Rostered
Matchup: vs. CHC RHP Trevor Williams
Grossman is on a tear right now and he's facing the struggling Trevor Williams. Grossman has two homers and eight RBI (not to mention the .450 average) over the last week. He's leading off for a bad team, but he's also facing a bad pitcher. The four runs scored and lack of steals is a little unusual for Grossman, but the power is a welcome addition. Ride this streak for as long as it lasts.
Hitter Streamers for 5/15 - Deep Leagues
Starlin Castro (2B/3B, RHB, WAS) - 16.1% Rostered
Matchup: at ARI RHP Seth Frankoff
Castro went hitless last night for the first time in May, but he still scored a run. He only has one homer on the season, but don't try and tell me the .309 average doesn't help your team. Castro has been even better in May, hitting .370. That includes his 0-6 showing last night. We'll give him a pass considering he had a 12-game hit streak coming in. I'm thinking a new streak starts tonight.
Hunter Renfroe (OF, RHB, BOS) - 12.1% Rostered
Matchup: vs. LAA RHP Dylan Bundy
Renfroe is a streaky guy. You want to get him while he's hot. After a homerless April, Renfroe has smacked four in May and driven in 11 of his 14 runs on the season. Bundy hasn't given up less than two runs in a start all season and has a 4.34 career ERA at Fenway with five homers allowed in 37.1 innings. With the tear Renfroe is on, he's worth adding.
Bobby Dalbec (1B, RHB, BOS) - 10.3% Rostered
Matchup: vs. LAA RHP Dylan Bundy
Dalbec has homered in back-to-back games. Like many of his teammates, Dalbec got off to a slow start. He is hitting .316 with three homers and nine RBI over the last week. There is some cheap power out there on waivers if you're behind in homers late in the week. Teeing off on Bundy at Fenway isn't the worst idea I've ever heard.
Josh Fuentes (1B/3B, RHB, COL) - 1.7% Rostered
Matchup: vs. CIN RHP Tyler Mahle
Fuentes is 7-13 with two homers, four runs scored, and nine RBI in just the last three games! Mahle has given up four homers in the last two games and now he's heading to Coors. That's a really bad combination even if the lineup didn't contain someone on a streak like Fuentes. The regression monster is catching up to Mahle. A trip to Coors is only going to exacerbate that.
Pitcher Streamer for 5/15 - Shallow Leagues
Domingo German (RHP, NYY) - 42.8% rostered
Matchup: at Baltimore
German had a bit of a rough start to the season, but who can blame him? A 60-game suspension turned into a 16-month hiatus thanks to the truncated 2020 season. German has since turned it around with seven total runs allowed and 24 strikeouts in his last four starts. One of those was in Camden Yards when he held the Orioles scoreless over seven innings. German has given up a few homers this year, but the walks and hits are way down, so they aren't hurting him much. We have a legit shot at seven scoreless again and it's available on waivers! This is exactly what we're looking for.
Tyler Anderson (LHP, PIT) - 32.6% Rostered
Matchup: vs. San Francisco
If you're keeping track at home, that's five consecutive starts that Anderson has given up either one or two runs after allowing three in each of his first two starts of the season. The ERA is sparkling, and the 3.83 xERA suggests that it's not all a fluke. The strikeouts are up. The home runs are down. So why isn't Anderson more highly owned? Call it Pivetta syndrome. Anderson spent the first few years of his career in a massive hitter's park and gained a reputation as a guy that doesn't miss a lot of bats and allows a ton of homers. Honestly, nothing about Anderson sticks out as out of the ordinary from his career marks. He's just pitching in a pitcher's park now. Anderson should help your ratios with a slight boost to strikeouts, but wins have been hard to come by on this team. The 3-3 record belies how well Anderson has actually pitched this year.
Pitcher Streamer for 5/15 - Deep Leagues
Jose Urena (RHP, DET) - 10.5% Rostered
Matchup: vs. Cubs
Urena has quietly had a strong year for the Tigers. Since his first start against the Twins, he has allowed two runs or fewer in the six starts since. Urena has turned in four quality starts this year, but only has one win to show for it. That's what happens when you play for the Tigers. However, I would argue that Urena has at least a puncher's chance at a win against Trevor Williams without hurting your ERA. Urena is even better if your league counts quality starts instead of, or in addition to, wins. We should get another solid outing from Urena today.
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