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Whether it's the way the schedules played out or I'm just feeling generous this week, there is a plethora of two-start streaming options that I feel good about. That includes a young pitcher who is just now jumping into the fantasy realm of consciousness.
As a reminder, each week this fantasy baseball waiver wire pickups column will identify starting pitchers expected to make two starts in the upcoming fantasy baseball week, ahead of the Sunday night waiver wire runs for leagues with weekly transactions.
This list will be limited to players under 50% rostered in Yahoo leagues and divided into three sections based on recommendation levels: solid starters, risky streamers, and must-avoids.
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Solid Two-Start Pitcher Streamers
Kyle Gibson, Philadelphia Phillies - 47% rostered
Scheduled starts: @TEX, @SEA
Gibson is coming off his best outing of the season, lasting eight innings while giving up one run, walking none, and striking out six Marlins. With the exception of a couple of rough-ups, he's been solid, if not spectacular, all season. Gibson will continue to eat through innings and be an effective back-end rotation piece both for the Phillies and fantasy teams. His rostered rate has dropped recently because of the June 5th game that saw his ratios jump up to a 4.40 ERA and 1.27 WHIP but he's already gotten them back in check.
The Phillies will head west this coming week, which is familiar territory for Gibson. As a former Ranger, he's fared well against his former team with a career 3.07 ERA in seven starts against them. He's held the Mariners to a 3.77 ERA including a solid near-QS last season although this year's iteration of their lineup looks far different. The Rangers are finally heating up on offense but they're also striking out more frequently in the past several days. The fact that both of these games are on the road actually works into Gibson's favor because of park factors and his familiarity with them. He should be counted on in leagues where he happens to be available on waivers.
Brady Singer, Kansas City Royals - 24% rostered
Scheduled starts: @LAA, vs OAK
Singer's sudden issue with the longball where he coughed up five in two games came against the Astros and Blue Jays, who rank fourth and sixth in home runs on the season. The Angels are right up there, tied with Toronto at 80 HR. Oakland, on the other hand, is second-to-last with 46 HR on the year. It's clear that Oakland is a primo spot for any starting pitcher these days. The Angels have obviously been slumping as of late and a change of management hasn't sparked the offense; they've scored seven times in the past five games. Singer should be able to keep both teams in check and provide reliable numbers for fantasy teams.
Zach Davies, Arizona Diamondbacks - 10% rostered
Scheduled starts: @SD, vs DET
Davies has done a complete 180° from last year when he posted the worst numbers of his career. His hard-hit rate is down to 30.9% and his exit velocity is in the 91st percentile. He has once again become a reliable source of innings consumed with limited damage against. The best part is that he's going longer as the season progresses, having pitched at least six innings in each of his three June starts. The fact he faces Detroit alone makes him fantasy-relevant. He faced San Diego in his first appearance this season and held them to two runs on four hits. There should be no huge concerns with rolling out Davies this week.
Roansy Contreras, Pittsburgh Pirates - 5% rostered
Scheduled starts: vs CHC, @TB
The rookie gets two green lights from JA's Start/Sit recommendations this week even though his numbers have gone down recently. Like many rookie SPs, he started off strong in his first two outings but has started to falter since. He truthfully hasn't been that bad, he just hasn't lasted long enough to even out the damage taken early on. He's allowed three runs in each of his last two starts but didn't make it past the fifth inning. His control has remained intact, however, as he's walked a total of nine batters across five starts. His filthy swing-and-miss stuff is still present as well.
Roansy Contreras, White Castle Special. ???? pic.twitter.com/nWq9u2ksAB
— Rob Friedman (@PitchingNinja) June 10, 2022
This week, Contreras will face two offenses that aren't putting many runs on the board lately. He also benefits from facing the Cubs at home, where he has been markedly better. Contreras hasn't allowed a single earned run across 13 2/3 innings at PNC Park, both as a starter and reliever, yet has yielded 11 ER in 18 2/3 innings on the road. That makes his second start seem fairly risky but Tampa is missing a lot of thump from their lineup without Brandon Lowe, Wander Franco, and now Mike Zunino too. Fire up Contreras with confidence.
JT Brubaker, Pittsburgh Pirates - 5% rostered
Scheduled starts: vs CHC, @TB
Well, if we love Contreras this week due to a strong schedule then it stands to reason that Brubaker should follow suit. If you can get past the 0-7 record or happen to play in a QS or points league, then you can recognize his value. Brubaker had a rough outing the other day when the D-Backs took him deep three times but otherwise has been really solid since the start of May. In the four starts that sandwiched that Arizona game, Brubaker allowed a total of five ER across 23 innings. He's whiffing a batter per inning and has shown everything you could want from a streaming starter. OK, not winning games, but everything else.
Beau Brieske, Detroit Tigers - 5% rostered
Scheduled starts: @BOS, @ARI
Has Brieske finally settled into the majors and figured out how to stymie hitters at the highest level? After pitching to a 5.25 ERA through May, he has suddenly become a different pitcher. In three June starts, he holds an 0.96 ERA and 0.86 WHIP with a 15-3 K-BB. Those starts came against the Yankees, Blue Jays, and Rangers too.
The key has been an increase in slider usage while scaling back on the fastball.
As a flyball pitcher, he's been killed by the home run ball, allowing 12 in 10 starts this season. In the past two starts, he hasn't given one up.
Boston ranks 19th in home runs this season and 17th over the past two weeks. Arizona ranks ninth in homers this season but amazingly of their 76 HR only 27 have come at home. That's a big reason why Chase Park has the second-lowest HR Factor.
Bottom line: with the adjustments and improvements Brieske has made recently along with the relatively low risk of giving up multiple bombs to either Boston or Arizona, this seems like a great time to take a chance on Brieske.
Risky Two-Start Pitcher Streamer Picks
Anthony DeSclafani, San Francisco Giants - 42% rostered
Scheduled starts: @ATL, vs CIN
Coming off the best season of his MLB career, DeSclafani made three starts before hitting the IL in April due to ankle inflammation. It's nothing that should affect his delivery although it is worth monitoring his velocity anyway. He was already down a tick from last year to start the season. That could be chalked up to a short spring training but he's due to be rusty after missing so much time. He should be avoided against Atlanta but could be a solid one-off streamer against his former club when facing the Reds at Oracle Park.
Marco Gonzales, Seattle Seahawks - 22% rostered
Scheduled starts: @OAK, @LAA
It's hard to get excited about a guy with a 13.7% K%. He's a crafty veteran who mostly avoids hard contact and doesn't get himself into trouble too often. He's clearly looked at the Statcast numbers because his best pitch last year was his changeup with a .191 xBA and he is throwing it far more this season. Score one for analytics!
A trip to Oakland would usually inspire more confidence but the time he faced them earlier in May was his worst outing of the season. He allowed five runs and eight hits in five and 1/3 innings, the only time this year he's allowed more than three ER in a start. He catches both offenses at a good time but his expected stats scream that regression is coming soon and I wouldn't want to be on the wrong side of it.
David Peterson, New York Mets - 13% rostered
Scheduled starts: vs MIA, @MIA
On the surface, a 3.60 ERA, 1.33 WHIP, and 3-1 record in seven starts seems promising. A pair of matchups with the Marlins looks even better. There is limited appeal with Peterson based on how he's been used, though. He averages fewer than five IP per start and holds an 8.8% K-BB%.
Reid Detmers, Los Angeles Angels - 13% rostered
Scheduled starts: vs KC, vs SEA
How long ago was that no-hitter? It seems like forever ago and stands as a clear outlier on his stat line. Detmers has actually kept a clean sheet in two of his past three starts but those lasted four 1/3 innings each and he didn't even last make it four innings in his last outing. Detmers has pitched like what he is - a 22-year-old rookie. That means ups and downs throughout the year. He gets a favorable draw with KC and Seattle but he is too unpredictable to fully trust and his 17.7% K% keeps him as a backup plan rather than a high-priority streamer.
Alex Faedo, Detroit Tigers - 8% rostered
Scheduled starts: @BOS, @ARI
Regression did indeed hit as Faedo got hit hard by the White Sox last time out. His ERA jumped from 2.92 to 4.28 and he suddenly looks like a risky pick with two road starts on tap. The White Sox jumped all over his four-seamer and neither Boston nor Arizona have trouble hitting fastballs.
Tyler Wells, Baltimore Orioles - 6% rostered
Scheduled starts: vs WAS, @CHW
Wells is no stranger to this column so we should already know what to expect - few walks, few strikeouts, and a low chance of your ratios getting hurt. If we pretend his very first start of the season didn't happen, Wells has 12 straight starts without allowing more than three earned runs in any of them. You should like his chances to be effective versus the Nats but be wary when he faces a suddenly-hot White Sox team.
Austin Gomber, Colorado Rockies - 4% rostered
Scheduled starts: @MIA, @MIN
Through his first eight starts, Gomber had pitched to an adequate 4.11 ERA and posted five QS. Then, everything started to implode and he has given up 24 ER in the past 17 IP. When Gomber is on, he is a reliable innings-eater who can go fairly deep into a game. When he's off, he's really off and can hurt your team badly.
He's always risky when it comes down to it but this week might be a good time to catch him. The Marlins just placed both Jesus Aguilar and Jesus Sanchez on the injured list to join Brian Anderson and Joey Wendle. Meanwhile, the Twins have been ice cold at the plate, scoring 16 runs in the past week. I can't go so far as to recommend Gomber as a preferred streamer but if pickings are slim, I would take him over some of the rookies in Chicago or Detroit.
Daniel Castano, Miami Marlins - 0% rostered
Scheduled starts: vs COL, vs NYM
Castano has played the role of spot starter the past couple of seasons and he's doing it again with Edward Cabrera on the IL. He looked sharp over six 2/3 scoreless innings versus Philly the other day. He'll be tested against two formidable foes when he gets the Rockies and Mets next week. On the plus side, both are home games in spacious Marlins Park.
Castano could deliver quality innings but one thing he won't bring to the table is strikeouts. He's only struck out 30 batters in 60 2/3 IP at the Major League level, good (bad) for an 11.5% K%. His introduction of a cutter as his primary pitch this season is an interesting development to monitor. It's generating a 77% GB% but only inducing a 6.5% swinging-strike rate. Think of Castano as the next coming of Marco Gonzales.
Stay Away from these Two-Start Pitchers
Aaron Civale, Cleveland Guardians - 20% rostered
Scheduled starts: @MIN, vs BOS
Civale is still on the IL but has already completed a successful rehab start and is expected to rejoin the rotation this coming week. ESPN projects him to start twice, beginning with a road contest on Tuesday in Minnesota. Remember that before he was injured, Civale sported a 7.84 ERA and 1.52 WHIP. The injury risk, likelihood of a pitch count, and bad matchups make him someone to leave off the radar.
Caleb Kilian, Chicago Cubs - 5% rostered
Scheduled starts: @PIT, @STL
This young pitcher will have to show something far better than he has so far in order to be worth adding even in NL-only leagues. He walked five batters while striking out none in his last start and has allowed eight runs in nine innings. There's long-term potential here but hold off for now.
Matt Swarmer, Chicago Cubs - 4% rostered
Scheduled starts: @PIT, @STL
Swarmer looked really good in his first two Major League appearances, tossing a quality start each time. He took a pounding the next two times out, however, giving up a whopping six HR in one game against those damn Yankees. It wasn't just that game - he's given up at least one homer in every start. Much like Kilian, the control is an issue and there is no reason to buy in right now.
James Kaprielian, Oakland A's - 3% rostered
Scheduled starts: vs SEA, @KC
It's been tough sledding for Kaprielian this year, as his Statcast line can attest to.
The schedule isn't bad, but he has been. His latest outing was possibly his worst, as he walked six batters and gave up seven hits while letting six runs cross the plate in just three 2/3 IP. He should be left alone.
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