Brandon McCarthy (NYY, SP) - Waiver Wire Pickups

BALLER MOVE: Add in AL-Only Leagues / Continue Scouting in Shallower Leagues

ANALYSIS: Brandon McCarthy is now officially on the Yankees, and made his first start for them yesterday. With his 4.80 ERA on the MLB season, I can see why many fantasy owners don't see much to get excited about. I mean, he's heading to the fearsome AL East right? That can't possibly help his case.

Except, maybe it can. First of all, the 4.80 ERA is deceiving because while it appears ugly on the surface the underlying numbers actually make it look much better. McCarthy's FIP is 3.73 and xFIP is 2.94. His strikeout rate is up from last years 5.07 to 7.43 and he is walking less batters. So far, most of the underlying metrics have suggested that McCarthy has been an example of an incredibly unlucky pitcher. Secondly, while it is scary for any pitcher to go to the AL East in a usual year, let's be honest and call a spade a spade: The AL East isn't as good as normal this year and McCarthy should at least get some more run support from the Yankees than he did the Diamondbacks.

I love this deal for the Yankees because they only gave up Vidal Nuno and also got some money back. McCarthy should help the Yankees rotation this season, and if you're in a deep league such as the AL-Only format I believe he can be added to your list of waiver wire sleepers and potentially help your fantasy teams as well. If you believe at all in sabermetrics, now may be the time to make your move.