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Mike looks at five sneaky fantasy baseball waiver wire pickups for starting pitchers in Week 22 (2024) who are on hot streaks and sees if they can sustain their success.
As the calendar approaches September, fantasy managers continue to see star pitchers land on the injured list. Recently, both Tyler Glasnow (elbow) and Hunter Greene (elbow) went down with injuries.
For those who need starting pitching reinforcements, streaming the right players could be key. Are JP Sears, Bowden Francis, Osvaldo Bido, Hayden Birdsong, and David Festa just viable streaming options, or could any of them be worth rostering for the remainder of the season?
Let’s dig into the stats for these five starters and discuss if they can sustain their current level of success. All roster percentages are via Yahoo.
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JP Sears, Oakland Athletics (48% rostered)
Sears has logged at least seven innings and allowed three or fewer runs in each of his last four starts. In three of those outings, he gave up one or no runs. He even had at least nine strikeouts in two of them, which is rare for him. For the season, he only has an 18.8% strikeout rate. Even with his recent string of success, Sears has a modest 4.15 ERA and 4.42 FIP this year.
It’s important to note the teams Sears faced recently. Both of his nine-strikeout performances came against the Giants, who have struck out the 10th-most times in baseball. His other two starts came against bad lineups in the White Sox and Blue Jays. Sears can exploit favorable matchups, but his lack of strikeouts limits him to being just a viable streamer.
Bowden Francis, Toronto Blue Jays (28% rostered)
Francis is making the most of his latest opportunity to be a member of the Blue Jays rotation. Over his last three starts, he has allowed three runs, posted a 0.42 WHIP, and racked up 22 strikeouts across 19 innings. One of those starts came against the Orioles, who have scored the third-most runs in baseball.
Bowden Francis: 14 IP, 15 K, 0.64 ERA
Trea Turner: 10-for-21, 4 XBH, 1.262 OPSYour @Chevrolet AL and NL Players of the Week! pic.twitter.com/aXLxPQi8Mp
— MLB (@MLB) August 19, 2024
Francis has now logged 63.2 career innings in the majors. The good news is that he has just a 1.15 WHIP. However, he has also given up 12 home runs. In 2022, he gave up 23 home runs over 100.1 innings at Triple-A, so this is not a new trend for him. There is an upside here, but be cautious about deploying him against teams that have a lot of power.
Osvaldo Bido, Oakland Athletics (19% rostered)
The Athletics have turned to Bido to give them some innings down the stretch. In each of his last three outings, he has logged at least six innings and allowed two or fewer earned runs. He has lowered his WHIP to 1.16 over his 45 innings this season, while his 3.40 ERA is backed by his 3.61 FIP.
Bido has been a bit lucky to generate such a low WHIP despite having an 11.2% walk rate. However, his .259 BABIP allowed has certainly been aided by his 26.3% hard-hit rate allowed. If he can continue to induce weak contact, he can be a viable streamer in 15-team leagues. It also helps his cause that he will have his home starts at the Athletics’ pitcher-friendly park.
Hayden Birdsong, San Francisco Giants (15% rostered)
Birdsong isn’t on this list because he has a good ERA. He has given up 13 runs over his last three outings. However, he has a 27.5% strikeout rate with the Giants this season. That comes on the heels of him recording a 30.7% strikeout rate over 11 starts at Double-A. He only made two starts at Triple-A, recording 14 strikeouts over nine innings.
Hayden Birdsong, Elevated 97mph ⛽️ pic.twitter.com/LAMbcuVMCw
— Rob Friedman (@PitchingNinja) August 18, 2024
Birdsong isn’t a must-roster player, but strikeouts aren’t always easy to find on waivers. He’s worth streaming in 12-team leagues and stands out as someone to add for his next projected start against the Mariners. They have struck out the most times in baseball, which is a weakness that Birdsong can exploit.
David Festa, Minnesota Twins (13% rostered)
Festa’s first two starts with the Twins resulted in him allowing 12 runs over 10 innings. He has looked better since then, giving up six runs over 22.2 innings across his last five outings. Even more impressive is that he registered 31 strikeouts during that span. He also missed a ton of bats in the minors, recording a 34.9% strikeout rate at Triple-A this year.
What stands out about Festa’s recent run of success has been his difficult opponents. Four of those outings came against the Phillies, Mets, Guardians, and Rangers. Joe Ryan (shoulder) and Chris Paddack (forearm) are not close to returning, so Festa has a clear path to remain in the Twins rotation.
He’s a viable streaming option in 12-team leagues and is worth rostering in 15-team or deeper leagues because of his ability to accumulate strikeouts.
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