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Top daily fantasy baseball streamers and waiver wire adds for 5/14/21. 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.
A third of today's starters are owned in 90% or more of leagues. It thins out quickly though with still half of the pitchers owned in less than half of leagues. That's the pond we're fishing from tonight. We have a slightly larger pond with 16 pitchers still available in more than half of leagues.
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Hitter Streamers for 5/14 - Shallow Leagues
Aaron Hicks (OF, SHB, NYY) - 39.4% Rostered
Matchup: at BAL RHP Dean Kremer
This is a dream matchup against a tomato can like Kremer, so any Yankees player you see on waivers is worth an add. Hicks is just one of the few that is available. I've been advocating for Hicks a lot of late, but he has had a nagging wrist injury that has kept him of the lineup a few times. When Hicks has been in there though, he still hits. The home runs will come at some point. For now I can live with the .333 average, three RBI and two runs over four games in the last week.
Andrew Vaughn (1B/OF, RHB, CWS) - 37.2% Rostered
Matchup: vs. KC RHP Brad Keller, vs. TBD
What's better than one game against a struggling guy like Brad Keller? How about another game in the same day against a terrible bullpen! Such is the state of the White Sox today. Vaughn is getting used to the majors a bit as he it hitting .313 with a homer, three RBI, and six runs scored in the past week. He was one of the better prospects on the White Sox farm in 2019, so this recent hot streak isn't unprecedented or unexpected. This is a great spot for Vaughn and all of his teammates. You know how much I like streaming in doubleheaders, especially against a team like the Royals.
Nick Senzel (OF, RHB, CIN) - 35.7% Rostered
Matchup: at COL RHP German Marquez
Marquez is often a serviceable pitcher at home, but he still gives up home runs there just like everyone else. Senzel led off for the Reds in the series opener last night and should be perched atop the order again tonight. There's a lot to like about the Reds in this series. Colorado's team ERA has ballooned to nearly 6 in May. Senzel is hitting .318 with three RBI and five runs scored in the last week. He has great speed, pitchers that double as a pitching machine on the mound, and one of the most spacious outfields in the majors to drive balls to in the gaps. I'm a huge fan of him all weekend, provided he's not seriously injured. Monitor his injury situation as he exited early from last night's game, but isn't expected to miss much time if any.
Avisail Garcia (OF, RHB, MIL) - 33.7% Rostered
Matchup: vs. ATL LHP Drew Smyly
Smyly has struggled this year, but the Braves skipped him last time through hoping to get him right. That may happen against a lefty-heavy Milwaukee lineup, but I still expect Avi to have his way tonight. Garcia is still on a tear, hitting .357 with two homers and four RBI in the last week. The issue is that his teammates aren't doing a whole lot to help. Garcia is even more valuable in leagues that count OBP. He is batting the middle of the Brewers lineup and hitting well. What more can you ask for against Smyly?
Hitter Streamers for 5/14 - Deep Leagues
Starlin Castro (2B/3B, RHB, WAS) - 12.5% Rostered
Matchup: at ARI LHP Riley Smith
Smith has an uninspiring 4.85 ERA on the season and just 12 strikeouts in 26 innings. He's not missing a lot of bats and this is a great hitters park. Enter Castro, who comes into this series on a bit of a heater. He is 11-22 over the last week, but those numbers ring hollow with just two RBI and two runs scored. Still, if you need average help, you can do a lot worse. What little power Castro once had is mostly gone, but he can drive in some runs if his teammates get on base.
David Dahl (OF, LHB, TEX) - 4.9% Rostered
Matchup: at HOU RHP Zack Greinke
Greinke isn't scaring anyone right now. He has a staggering 7.32 ERA in four home starts and is averaging less than a strikeout per inning. He has also allowed a homer in each of his last three starts. Dahl started the season slowly, but has a modest eight-game hitting streak going while in a platoon role. He has some power and can steal a few bags. I don't mind taking a shot at Greinke with a guy like Dahl. We know he can handle himself at the plate and he's heating up.
Seth Brown (OF/1B, LHB,OAK) - 3.7% Rostered
Matchup: at MIN RHP Matt Shoemaker
Brown only plays against righties, but that's still most of the time. He has two homers and five RBI over the last week and is facing a guy with a 6.43 ERA on the season. It would be much worse if it weren't for Detroit not being able to make contact against them. Shoemaker has two starts this year in which he has failed to strike out even one batter. One of those was against this Oakland team. There's a lot to like about Oakland tonight, and many of their pieces are readily available on waivers.
Mitch Moreland (1B, LHB, OAK) - 2.1% Rostered
Matchup: at MIN RHP Matt Shoemaker
Moreland, like the rest of his teammates, is mired in a funk right now. Shoemaker should cure what ails this offense. Leading the charge should be Moreland. He is 7-14 with five homers and 10 RBI in his career against Shoemaker. BvP stats can be fickle, but you can't ignore the fact that Shoemaker hasn't been able to get Moreland out. Stephen Piscotty, also similarly low-owned, has punished Shoemaker in the past as well. Both of them are a streamer's dream tonight.
Pitcher Streamer for 5/14 - Shallow Leagues
Nick Pivetta (RHP, BOS) - 47.2% rostered
Matchup: vs. Los Angeles Angels
You know, I'm guessing that many of you were burned by Pivetta during his tenure in Philadelphia. That's the only way to explain away the blatant lack of respect for a guy with five wins and a 3.19 ERA on the season. Pivetta is a bit of an enigma this year. The ERA is on track to be the best of his career not counting his two-start season last year. Home runs, which have historically been a big problem for Pivetta, haven't been this year. He has only allowed two all year, and they were to the Orioles of all teams. Now the bad news: Pivetta has issued at least two free passes in every start, which belie the solid 1.25 WHIP. Will this catch up to him? Maybe, if the FB/HR rate gets back up to his career mark near 12% instead of the 4% where it is now. The Angels have gone cold in May though, hitting just .237 this month. They have only scored five runs or more in a game four times in 12 tries in May. I'll ride Pivetta's newfound finesse (and fastball velocity) against a team struggling at the plate.
Jake Arrieta (RHP, CHC) - 36.6% rostered
Matchup: at Detroit
Yes, I know Detroit ruined our streaming party with KC pitchers. We have reason to believe this could be different. First off, Arrieta has a great chance at a win against Tarik Skubal. Aside from an unmitigated disaster in his last appearance on April 30 (seven runs in 3.1 innings), Arrieta has been solid this year. He only allowed two homers in five starts prior and hadn't surrendered more than three runs in a game. The strikeout rate is up to 22.4%. The walk rate is stationary. The main difference so far this year is the launch angle being much higher, but again, take out that Reds game, and Arrieta is pretty close to his career marks. I'll take the likelihood of a win and the elevated strikeouts against a free-swinging team. Arrieta is worth the gamble in this matchup.
Pitcher Streamer for 5/14 - Deep Leagues
Tyler Anderson (LHP, PIT) - 27.6% 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.
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