The Sunday Streamer: Matchup Plays for End of the Week

Starting Pitcher Streamers for April 6th 2014

Some veterans of the fantasy baseball world frown on the very idea of “streaming” starting pitchers. However, for those of us who regularly take part in leagues of the daily head-to-head variety, the need to often take part in the process is in no way a foreign concept. It is an exercise that largely takes place heading into the weekend, especially in preparation for your make-or-break Sunday slate of games. In order to utilize it effectively, a risk evaluation is needed. Adding arms at the end of your week can certainly aid in strikeouts and possibly wins or quality starts, but it is vital to understand the havoc that can be wreaked on your ratios. If you find the need for streaming candidates, be sure to check out my following suggestions for April 6th, 2014 in both the N.L. and A.L.

Nathan Eovaldi, MIA

Eovaldi really found his way at the big level last summer. The hard-throwing righty recorded just a 4-6 win-loss mark for the Fish, but that does not tell the story. Across his 18 outings, encompassing 106.1 innings, Eovaldi posted a strong 3.39 ERA while totaling 14 quality starts and allowing only seven longballs. Needless to say, he had plenty to build on heading into 2014 and certainly did just that in his first start of the campaign this past Tuesday versus the Rockies. In front of the home crowd in South Florida, Eovaldi held the Colorado lineup to just two runs on six hits over a half-dozen frames of work. His line included six strikeouts and just one base-on-balls as the 24-year-old hurler threw 62-of-95 pitches for strikes. The Marlins will once again be at home on Sunday afternoon when the Padres come to town. Eovaldi comes into the matchup with the Friars sporting a career 3.45 ERA at Marlins Park. Owned in just 12 percent of Yahoo! Leagues, he makes for a solid addition, if only for just a single performance.

Drew Hutchison, TOR

Hutchison returned to a Major League mound this past Tuesday for the first time since June 15, 2012. After putting together a line versus the Rays that showed 5.1 shutout innings, including four strikeouts and only three hits allowed, the long recovery from Tommy John surgery that limited him to just 10 minor league outings last summer is now just a memory. Hutchison has just a dozen career starts in the bigs, but has fashioned a 2.80 ERA, 1.09 WHIP and an impressive 9.6 K/9 across 270 innings at various levels of the Blue Jays’ farm system since 2010. The Yankees will visit Toronto’s Rogers Centre on Sunday afternoon. Though the Pinstripers feature a stout lineup, they are likely to be without the services of power-hitting first baseman Mark Teixeira. Hutchison is currently owned in just 20 percent of Yahoo! Leagues. That should probably be corrected as he certainly has the talent and potential to turn in a nice 2014 campaign.

Nate Miller is a RotoBaller regular as well as MLB Contributor & Tampa Bay Rays Beat Writer for RotoWire.com. Feel free to stay up to date with him on Twitter @Miller_RotoDad.