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ANALYSIS: Kansas City Royals starting pitcher Jake Junis has allowed five home runs in his last two starts (11 innings), but his second half form has made him a waiver wire darling. A tough outing in his last start against the Twins aside, where he allowed four runs in three innings, Junis had allowed five earned runs in 24 innings in his three previous starts. Since the All-Star break, Junis is 3-2 with a 3.27 ERA in 11 starts, striking out 61 batters in 63 1/3 innings.
The most impressive part of Junis' game (which includes home runs as well as his decent strikeout rate) is that he has walked no batters in five of his last seven starts. With his strikeout rate rising, his walk rate plummeting, and ground ball rate sitting at a solid 45.9% in the second half, there are a lot of reasons to keep Junis for the stretch run.
Junis is an immediate addition for today, as he will face the Tigers in Detroit, but, if you cannot pick him up today, Junis is still a good addition for next week. While he will face the Indians at home next weekend, September 29, the Tribe will likely be resting players for the playoffs. When you combine Junis' form and the prospect of a watered down Indians' lineup, it is wise to fire up Junis in deeper leagues.
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