Cut Candidates: Pitchers On The Hot Seat

Frank's potential fantasy baseball cuts, drops and bust candidates for 2025. These struggling fantasy baseball pitchers are on the hot seat heading into Week 4.

We're still early in the fantasy baseball season, but it's always a good idea to consider when to let go of a struggling pitcher. The worst thing you can do for your fantasy baseball squad is hold on hope for too long to players off to slow starts. This is especially the case for starting pitchers, where struggling players can do major damage to your ERA and WHIP.

On this page, we'll focus on five starters who are on the hot seat. If they have one more poor outing, it's time to pull the plug and look elsewhere. Remember, you can always pick them back up if they start to show signs of life, so don't worry about missing out on a turnaround. It's more damaging to hold onto a struggling pitcher for too long than it is to drop a player too early.

The pitchers featured include Jose Berrios, Jeffrey Springs, Justin Verlander, Jordan Hicks, and Reese Olson. Each of them is a fringe player or back-end starter in most leagues. I'll analyze their current performance and recommend whether they're worth holding or dropping.

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Jose Berrios, SP, Toronto Blue Jays

76% rostered

José Berríos, Dirty 84mph Slurve...and Sword. ⚔️ pic.twitter.com/NE3CTPpMx6

— Rob Friedman (@PitchingNinja) April 13, 2025

Jose Berrios put up a 3.60 ERA and 1.15 WHIP in 192.1 innings last season. While this was a dependable innings-eater, the profile is underwhelming due to a 19.5 percent strikeout rate. This production was not backed by peripherals, either, as highlighted by a 4.33 SIERA. In other words, this was a boring veteran who fell in drafts. Even with a strong track record, Berrios was not considered an irreplaceable asset.

That's why he's on the hot seat early in 2025 after putting up a 5.16 ERA and 1.46 WHIP in four starts. This includes a 4.04 SIERA and a 13.8 percent barrel rate. Berrios is an option with limited upside who is better treated as a streamer. There's simply not enough swing-and-miss in this profile for him to stick on your roster all year unless you're in a 15-team league.

The best way to deploy Berrios is to look at his schedule and play the matchups. The veteran righty lines up to face the Mariners at home, then he's at the Yankees, followed by home vs. the Guardians, and away vs. the Angels. I suggest you hold Berrios to stream vs. the Mariners but cut him loose when the Blue Jays travel to Yankee Stadium.

Jeffrey Springs, SP, Athletics

57% rostered

Jeffrey Springs, Dirty 80mph Changeup. 👌

6Ks thru 4. pic.twitter.com/6KNbCQeCU3

— Rob Friedman (@PitchingNinja) March 29, 2025

Jeffrey Springs looked decent in returning from Tommy John last year, posting a 3.27 ERA and 1.36 WHIP with a 26.1 percent strikeout rate in 33 innings. But the trade to the Athletics made the lefty look like a question mark heading into this season, as he moves to a hitter-friendly bandbox that is Sutter Health Park in Sacramento. So far, the park is playing as a hitter's haven, which makes Springs a risky play whenever the A's are at home.

We saw the former Ray struggle in his lone home start so far, where he gave up five earned runs in only three innings vs. the Cubs. While there's a strikeout upside here, it's probably best to treat Springs as a streamer that you use when the A's are on the road, especially when it's a favorable matchup. The 32-year-old no longer has the benefit of playing in a pitcher-friendly environment like Tropicana Field.

The A's take on the Brewers on the road, the White Sox at home, the Rangers on the road, and the Mariners at home in Springs' next four starts. Even though it's a hitter's park at home, you can fire him up vs. the White Sox and Mariners, as these are exploitable matchups. You can hold Springs for the time being, but he's definitely on the hot seat. If you're in a shallower league, he can be treated as a streamer.

Justin Verlander, SP, San Francisco Giants

31% rostered

Stats from the last 7 regular season games started by Justin Verlander:

31.2 IP | 43 H | 29 ER | 10 BB | 27 K | 5 HR | 8.24 ERA | 1.69 WHIPpic.twitter.com/9dFHLoOMZV

— Phillies Tailgate (@PhilsTailgate) April 15, 2025

Justin Verlander came into Tuesday's action with a 6.92 ERA and 1.69 WHIP, with six walks and 16 strikeouts in 13 innings. The future Hall of Famer turned in another mediocre outing, allowing four runs on eight hits with three walks and one strikeout in 5.2 innings vs. the Phillies. But it's a good idea to give Verlander another chance, as he came into Tuesday's outing with a 3.68 SIERA, which is much lower than his ERA.

Perhaps the veteran needs some time to get into a rhythm. The upside here is that you have a viable streamer at home, especially in the pitcher-friendly environment that is Oracle Park. The Giants are exceeding expectations so far, so there should be plenty of opportunities for Verlander to rack up wins. Just think about those potential home starts vs. the Rockies' strikeout-prone lineup.

Up next for Verlander is the Angels on the road, followed by the Rangers at home, the Rockies at home, and the Cubs on the road. You're going to want him in your lineup in that Rockies start, as there's a great chance that it'll be a quality start with plenty of strikeouts. If Verlander was dropped in your league, I'd recommend picking him up. Just play matchups with him. The good news is that three of the next four starts are usable.

Jordan Hicks, SP, San Francisco Giants

23% rostered

Jordan Hicks, K'ing the Side. pic.twitter.com/miUKEOcJDB

— Rob Friedman (@PitchingNinja) April 1, 2025

Jordan Hicks is coming off a poor outing at Yankee Stadium, where he allowed seven runs on eight hits with three walks and three strikeouts in four innings. We can give him a pass for this outing in such a tough matchup vs. one of the best lineups in baseball, but this is a pitcher on the hot seat. If Hicks continues to struggle, there's a chance that he could be replaced by Hayden Birdsong, who looks terrific in the bullpen so far (0.0 ER in 9.0 IP).

Hicks has a tough matchup at the Phillies in his next outing, but after that, there are three consecutive home starts vs. the Brewers, Rangers, and Rockies. We could see quality starts in each of those matchups, as Hicks will be helped by the pitcher-friendly environment at Oracle Park. If Hicks ends up performing poorly vs. the Phillies, there's a chance that your league mate will drop him. If that's the case, pick him up for the upcoming schedule.

The bad news is that Hicks has an 8.2 percent swinging strike rate so far, which is down 2.2 percent from last season. This makes Hicks strictly a matchup-based play going forward. If you're in a roster crunch and need a spot, you can drop Hicks before the start vs. the Phillies. Just make sure that you pick him back up for the favorable matchups that come after that.

Reese Olson, SP, Detroit Tigers

24% rostered

Reese Olson, Filthy 97mph Sinker. 😷 pic.twitter.com/foopQZiQyf

— Rob Friedman (@PitchingNinja) March 30, 2025

Reese Olson was a popular target due to a promising 2024 that included a 3.53 ERA and 1.18 WHIP with a 21.7 percent K% and 7.1 percent BB% in 112.1 innings. But this year has gotten off to a slow start, including 10 earned runs in 15 innings. The good news is that his 4.41 SIERA is lower than his 6.00 ERA. The bad news is that we haven't seen much swing-and-miss so far, as highlighted by his 9.4 percent SwStr%.

It's worth noting that we're still seeing Olson's changeup put up a 45.8 percent whiff rate, so there's a good chance that the strikeouts will come soon. The upcoming schedule isn't too encouraging. After two exploitable matchups at home vs. the Royals and Padres, Olson gets the Astros and Angels on the road. The best move here would be to see how Olson does against the Royals and make a decision from there.

Kansas City has struggled at the plate so far this season, putting up a 69 wRC+, which ranks 26th in MLB. We saw Olson do well vs. the Royals at home last year, including a seven-inning start with one earned run. It wouldn't surprise me to see the Tigers' righty get the job done in that spot.

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