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ADP Values for Fantasy Baseball: NL Starting Pitchers

What's up RotoBallers. Welcome back to another article in our series of early ADP value analysis for fantasy baseball.

Today, we'll cover some undervalued and overvalued NL starting pitchers, to try and help identify draft targets and avoids based on ADP.

Opening Day is still over two months away, but it's never too soon for draft prep. ADP data from early NFBC rankings can give us a glimpse into what other owners are thinking heading into a new campaign.

Be sure to check all of our fantasy baseball lineup tools and resources:

 

Undervalued NL Starting Pitchers

Zack Greinke, Arizona Diamondbacks (ADP: 98)

Look, there's no getting around this: Greinke's ERA went up by nearly three runs last year compared to his transcendent 2015. Some of that increase was fait accompli, of course. Greinke had enjoyed a friendly home park, excellent defense, and crazy good fortune in Los Angeles, and none of that was likely to be waiting for him in Arizona. But you'd have won a lot of money if you'd wagered that Greinke's ERA would begin with a four. All the aforementioned factors swung in the other direction for him, and he also got hurt. Before the injury, though, Greinke was having a year that was more or less standard issue:

ERA

WHIP

HR/9

K%

BB%

2016 Pre-Injury

3.62 1.16 0.99 20.3

4.7

Career

3.42 1.19 0.87 21.8

5.9

 
Have reservations about a 33 year old coming off shoulder issues? Fair enough. But Greinke's been a reliable fantasy arm for most of the last decade, and 2016 was a perfect storm of bad breaks. There's profit potential at the current price.

Gerrit Cole, Pittsburgh Pirates (ADP: 117)

As a sequel to his breakout in 2015, Cole's performance last year was less The Empires Strikes Back and more The Matrix Reloaded. His ratios rose sharply and his strikeout percentage took a dive. How much of that was due to the elbow problems he experienced is tough to say definitively, It seems like a logical assumption that it played a significant role. Then again, Cole's velocity and most of his peripherals stayed constant from the prior year, so maybe the 40-point jump in BABIP and some rotten sequencing were culprits as well. Regardless, he's on his normal offseason routine with no issues so far, which is excellent news. Cole is just 26, has a favorable team and park context, and we've seen him reach his potential already. This is a overly generous injury discount.

Rich Hill, Los Angeles Dodgers (ADP: 135)

Speaking of injury discounts, the market is naturally pricing in Hill's high risk. Thanks to multiple blisters (the price you pay for those beautiful and multitudinous curveballs, because life is nothing if not cruel and unyielding), Hill logged just 110 innings last season. Now, those innings were of superior quality, but they also represented his high water mark for the last decade. You simply can't reasonably expect 180 innings from the man. 150 might be a stretch. But a repeat of last year plus some smart streaming could easily add up to a full-season ace at a bargain price.

Aaron Nola, Philadelphia Phillies (ADP: 220)

In his first full big-league season, Nola maintained his solid walk rate while adding several percentage points to his K% and cutting down on home runs. Under normal circumstances, he'd be somebody for whom we were all paying an expectant price. Unfortunately, an elbow injury and a co(s)mically horrible strand rate conspired to wreck his ERA and ultimately, ended his season. Recent reports indicate that he'll enter spring training with no restrictions. Nola was in the midst of a breakout before the injury. The risk at this price is minimal, and the profit potential immense.

 

Overvalued NL Starting Pitchers

Kyle Hendricks, Chicago Cubs (ADP: 67)

Here's what I wrote about Hendricks back in November. The current price tag certainly isn't surprising, but it is one I'm not likely to pay in any of my drafts this year. Tough not to feel like he could be this year's Dallas Keuchel.

Carlos Martinez, St. Louis Cardinals (ADP: 73)

Martinez turned in his second consecutive season with an ERA just above 3.00 and shaved a few points off his WHIP, but he really didn't show much improvement over the previous season. His walk rate remained middling, his batted ball data didn't budge much, and his K% actually fell by three points. Most importantly, he continued to have problems with left-handed hitters. Make no mistake - the current model is a good pitcher. This just feels a couple rounds early for him. You're paying for a breakout that may not be coming.

Jameson Taillon, Pittsburgh Pirates (ADP: 150)

Taillon returned from the dead  the hinterlands of Siberia two injury-wiped seasons to post impressive results, first at Triple-A and then the majors. Thanks largely to an exceptional walk rate, the former top prospect gave owners who rolled the dice some solid ratios (3.38 ERA, 1.12 WHIP) in just over 100 MLB innings. It's always nice to see someone persevere against injury, especially early in their career. There are some lingering concerns with Taillon from a fantasy perspective, however. He's never thrown more than 165 innings he did last season, and after a two-year layoff, it's fair to wonder how many frames he can be counted on for in 2017. Taillon also didn't pile up many strikeouts despite his success, which limits his ceiling. There are several pitchers going a few rounds later whose upside is more worthy of a gamble.

 

More Undervalued & Overvalued Picks


Check out RotoBaller's entire fantasy baseball waiver wire pickups and sleepers list, updated daily!




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REAL-TIME FANTASY NEWS

Jaylin Williams

Out Again Tuesday
Aaron Wiggins

Questionable for Tuesday
Goga Bitadze

Is Uncertain for Tuesday's game in Portland
Alex Caruso

off Injury Report For Tuesday
Jonathan Isaac

Listed As Questionable for Tuesday
Isaiah Hartenstein

Available Tuesday
Tristan da Silva

Could Return Tuesday
Ajay Mitchell

Out Tuesday
Jalen Suggs

Ruled Out Tuesday
Chet Holmgren

Available for Tuesday's Matchup With Spurs
NBA

Autin Reaves Is Available Against the Suns
Lonzo Ball

Out Tuesday Against New Orleans
Malik Monk

Available on the Trade Market
Victor Wembanyama

Participates in Morning Shootaround
Zion Williamson

Set to Suit Up Tuesday
TreVeyon Henderson

in Concussion Protocol, Week 17 Status Unclear
George Kittle

Week 17 Availability in Question?
CFB

Jeff Brohm, Eli Drinkwitz "Names of Interest" for Michigan Head Coach
Dyson Daniels

Misses First Game of the Season
Timothy Liljegren

to Miss Second Straight Game Tuesday
Will Smith

Out Week-to-Week
Jaccob Slavin

Placed on Injured Reserve, Out Week-to-Week
Seth Jarvis

Considered Week-to-Week
Darren Raddysh

Totals Three Points in Monday's Win
Mason Marchment

Scores Twice Monday
Vince Dunn

Injured in Monday's Win
Grayson Allen

Likely to Miss Third Straight Game
Rui Hachimura

Misses Second Consecutive Game Tuesday
Jaden McDaniels

Iffy for Tuesday
Jakob Poeltl

Out Against Heat
Khris Middleton

Available Versus Hornets
Rashee Rice

Still in Concussion Protocol, Estimated as Non-Participant on Monday
J.J. McCarthy

Listed as DNP on Monday Ahead of Week 17
Ilya Sorokin

to Miss Tuesday's Game
DK Metcalf

Suspended for Two Games Following Confrontation with Fan
Christian Dvorak

Returns to Flyers Lineup
Elias Pettersson

Still Out Monday
Brandon Montour

to Miss Four Weeks After Hand Surgery
Miles Wood

Available Against Kings
Zach Werenski

Ruled Out Monday
Leo Carlsson

Won't Play Monday
CFB

Byrum Brown Entering Transfer Portal
CFB

Bobby Petrino Joining Bill Belichick as North Carolina's Offensive Coordinator
TreVeyon Henderson

Exits Week 16 Victory with Head Injury
Mikhail Sergachev

Sets Up Two Goals
Fabian Zetterlund

Extends Scoring Streak With Three-Point Effort
Cale Makar

Has Three-Point Performance Against Wild
Tomas Hertl

Notches Three Points Sunday
Connor McDavid

Continues Scoring Tear Against Vegas
Sidney Crosby

Becomes Pittsburgh's All-Time Leading Scorer
Tristan Jarry

to Miss Couple of Weeks
Lamar Jackson

Questionable to Return in Week 16 with Back Injury
Willson Contreras

Shipped to the Red Sox
Quinshon Judkins

Done for the Season with Broken Leg
Nick Chubb

Officially Active Against Raiders in Week 16
Gardner Minshew

Won't Return in Week 16
Woody Marks

Officially Inactive for Week 16
Quinshon Judkins

Carted Off in Week 16, Ruled Out with Apparent Leg Injury
Tua Tagovailoa

Dolphins Hope to Trade Tua Tagovailoa in the Offseason
Woody Marks

Not Expected to Play in Week 16
Washington Commanders

Commanders to Retain Dan Quinn, Fire Joe Whitt?
New York Giants

Marcus Freeman is a Top Candidate in Giants' Head Coaching Search
Cincinnati Bengals

Zac Taylor Expected to Return as Bengals' Head Coach in 2026
Las Vegas Raiders

Pete Carroll's Future with Las Vegas Raiders in Doubt
Tee Higgins

Active for Week 16 Against Dolphins
Woody Marks

Plans to Play Against Raiders in Week 16
Tee Higgins

Likely to Play at Miami on Sunday
Brandon Lowe

Pirates Acquire Brandon Lowe in Three-Team Trade
Shane Baz

Orioles Acquire Shane Baz From the Rays
CFB

Darian Mensah Returning to Duke Next Season
CFB

Josh Hoover Linked to Indiana in Transfer Portal
CFB

Arch Manning Agrees to Reduced Compensation for 2026 Season
Michael King

Padres Bring Michael King Back on Three-Year Deal
Logan Webb

Will Pitch for Team USA in World Baseball Classic
Tarik Skubal

Joins Team USA for World Baseball Classic
CFB

Will Muschamp Becoming Next Texas Defensive Coordinator
CFB

Beau Pribula Set to Enter Transfer Portal
Bo Bichette

Willing to Make the Move to Second Base

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