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Social media was abuzz on Wednesday afternoon with baseball. A little after two in the afternoon, the Orioles and White Sox played a game in which no fans from the public were allowed in the stadium due to rioting in the area. It was rather odd to see two professional teams playing while the TV audience heard no fans screaming in the background. It was even odder to see Orioles catcher Caleb Joseph sign autographs for and high-five imaginary fans near the dugout. We at RotoBaller are hoping that he was joking and did not actually see fans.
The Orioles jumped on the White Sox early and often en route to an 8-2 victory. The game finished a little after 4 PM on a beautiful sunny afternoon. You read the ending time correctly. Checking the box scores, the official time of the game was a mere two hours and three minutes. Let the baseball haters of the length of the game begin the assault on allowing fans into the stadium.
Below are some of my starting pitcher streamer sleepers for the second half of Week 4 to consider adding off your league’s waiver wire. Some of these SP options can be considered sleepers for your team depending on the league format and depth, including NL-Only, AL-Only and head-to-head formats.
Thursday Starting Pitcher Streamers
Jesse Chavez (OAK v. LAA)
Ownership: 20% Yahoo!, 11% Fleaflicker
In 12.2 IP this season, Chavez has gotten rather lucky. Sure his 0.71 ERA and 0.79 WHIP are great numbers and make him seem like a great option off the waiver wire. His 93.8% LOB rate and .161 BABIP scream otherwise. Those numbers are simply not sustainable. Eventually these figures will catch up to Chavez and his streaming owners will rue the day when the luck runs out.
Matchup Rating: Risky Stream
Scott Feldman (HOU v. SEA)
Ownership: 4% Yahoo!, 7% Fleaflicker
Feldman hasn’t exactly been lighting it up on the mound. Despite being somewhat average (he owns a 0.0 WAR) Feldman should get plenty of run support to record a win. Anything else in the stats categories he earns is just gravy.
Matchup Rating: Solid Stream
Friday Starting Pitcher Streamers
Colby Lewis (TEX v. OAK)
Ownership: 3% Yahoo!, 9% Fleaflicker
Another rather ordinary pitcher, Lewis has delivered a bit better than his actual potential is. Watch out this weekend. The A’s will show a hard-hitting platoon against soft-tossing rightie.
Matchup Rating: Desperate Stream
Eddie Butler (COL at SD)
Ownership: 2% Yahoo!, 4% Fleaflicker
Judging by his insane walk rate, Colorado’s rookie would probably have trouble finding the strike zone if Andre the Giant were at the plate. To Butler’s credit he has been getting guys to hit into double plays and find defenders quite frequently when there are runners on base. Still, that 13.3% BB rate is scarier than, well, Andre the Giant.
Matchup Rating: Risky Stream
Chris Heston (SF v. LAA)
Ownership: 25% Yahoo!, 28% Fleaflicker
The early season surprise has so far been Heston. Through four starts, Heston has shown a great ability to force ground balls on hitters while drastically reducing his BB rate. The Angels should be a top offense this season, but so far they have struggled against right-handed pitchers.
Matchup Rating: Solid Stream
Saturday Starting Pitcher Streamers
Dan Haren (MIA v. PHI)
Ownership: 20% Yahoo!, 20% Fleaflicker
By no means should anyone be pro-Dan Haren. Consider his stream selection as an indictment against the anemic Philadelphia offense. The Phillies are in the bottom third or last five in nearly every offensive category. Not even Haren can screw this up.
Matchup Rating: Solid Stream
Nick Martinez (TEX v. OAK)
Ownership: 36% Yahoo!, 24% Fleaflicker
The Martinez watch is under high scrutiny. He has not yet given up a homerun this season. Crazy since he yielded 18 last year and pitches in an extreme hitter’s park. Oakland will roll out some power left-handed bats this weekend to face him in Arlington.
Matchup Rating: Risky Stream
Brandon Morrow (SD v. COL)
Ownership: 25% Yahoo!, 17% Fleaflicker
Is Morrow completely healthy and transformed? It would appear so. Most of his 2015 peripherals look rather similar to the rest of his career numbers, except he has reduced the one thing he needed to- walks. Morrow has taken advantage of the friendly dimensions in San Diego and should continue to do so even against a solid Colorado offense.
Matchup Rating: Solid Stream
Sunday Starting Pitcher Streamers
Jarred Cosart (MIA v. PHI)
Ownership: 11% Yahoo!, 11% Fleaflicker
Despite Philadelphia’s awesome terribleness at the plate, Cosart will probably not rack up a lot of strikeouts. That’s simply not his game. Instead, he will give his owners solid numbers in IP, WHIP, ERA and notch a good ole win in the W column.
Matchup Rating: Must Stream
Tim Lincecum (SF v. LAA)
Ownership: 20% Yahoo!, 21% Fleaflicker
You could pretty much get one of two things with Lincecum when pitching in San Francisco. He will either deliver a no-hitter and get run out after two innings. Judging by his 10.9% BB rate, .338 BABIP, and 1.50 WHIP against his 3.27 ERA and 76% LOB rate, something does not add up. At least it solidifies the previously mentioned notion of the two options he gives his fantasy owners on Sunday.
