A look at Monday's probable pitchers who are widely available in fantasy leagues and have good matchups.
Most teams sit in the middle of the league. Most players are also in the middle: It’s the bell curve distribution that drives us. That meaty part in the middle is where streamers live, those players who are better than replacement level but don’t stand out among the elite.
Streamers are easier to identify in the NFL, where each player only has one opponent per week, and we can analyze (and over-analyze) everything to exhaustion. Baseball is tougher because of both the short turnaround between games and the number of matchups between batter and pitcher in each game.
Let’s do our best, though, and look at Monday’s probable starters (according to MLB.com) who are widely available in fantasy leagues and have good matchups, creating streaming value. Most stats and rankings are fromMLB. The full streamer rankings are listed at the bottom.
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Erick Fedde, Chicago White Sox @ Toronto Blue Jays
Though Toronto batters haven’t hit the ball well, they do help themselves out by striking out the second least in the league and sitting in the middle in walks taken. That allows them to carry a league-average on-base percentage, but the Blue Jays come up short in most other offensive areas.
Before Fedde’s start last Tuesday, I listed him as a streamer and said he was close to deserving a spot on your roster. He then went out and threw seven scoreless innings with six strikeouts and no walks against the Nationals.
Well, Fedde is a good streamer against the Blue Jays, and he’s VERY close to deserving a spot on someone’s roster. With continued strikeout success, Fedde is a high-level streamer at Toronto.
Dean Kremer, Baltimore Orioles @ St. Louis Cardinals
Kremer is another guy buoyed by his strikeouts (47 in 46 innings and higher than a 25% strikeout rate). Strikeout pitchers are kind of like running quarterbacks in fantasy football: As long as he lasts at least five innings, the strikeout pitcher is likely to end up between five and 10 Ks per start with a decent floor, the same way QBs who pick up rushing yards set a baseline of value.
The Cardinals don’t strike out a ton, sitting right around league average (401). They aren’t exceptional at making contact, though, and present a chance for Kremer to have another good day: he has at least five strikeouts in five of his eight starts, hitting 10 twice.
Kremer is a mid- to high-level streamer. He can get wild at times but has found his control more often than not this season. With St. Louis failing to find both power and consistency, Kremer has a good chance at a quality start.
Joe Ross, Milwaukee Brewers @ Miami Marlins
Miami is a star in the world of starting pitcher streamers. No, not because of their stable of pitchers, but because the lineup is one of the worst in baseball and offers opponents increased opportunities for fantasy value.
The Marlins are in the bottom 10 in many major offensive categories, and their slash stats paint the worst picture. Though the team is 22nd in batting average, they rank 29th, 28th and 29th in on-base percentage, slugging percentage and OPS, above only the lowly White Sox (and Nationals in slugging).
Ross essentially had three of the last four seasons wiped away by injury and COVID (as he chose not to play the 2020 season). His 2024 action is his first in the big leagues since 2021; Ross has mostly performed to his career standard, striking out a below-average number of batters and holding an ERA over 4.00.
Ross is a mid-level streamer with a good matchup but not a ton of upside.
Michael Wacha, Kansas City Royals vs. Detroit Tigers
Wacha is a very average pitcher, with his career strikeout rate (21%), walk rate (8%) and ERA (4.00) all right near league average. That might not sound exciting, but every team would love to have three Wacha’s in their rotation.
Detroit’s .500 record is driven more by the pitching staff than the offense. While the box score stats point to the Tigers as having something like the 20th-best offense, the pitching side pegs Detroit as a top-10 staff. That’s great for both their record and opposing pitchers in fantasy.
Wacha is a mid-level streamer likely to produce another OK outing.
Monday’s Streamer Rankings
- Erick Fedde, CWS
- Dean Kremer, BAL
- Michael Wacha, KC
- Joe Ross, MIL
#waivers #2024-fantasy-baseball
