Week 1 is almost in the books and the fantasy baseball thirst is finally getting satiated, but that only leads to the next thirst for waiver wire gold.

Starting pitchers have the most rollover during the season and the incredible depth of pitchers that are going across the league mean there are almost always candidates to look at with dreams of striking it rich. I’m here to put together some starting pitchers for your waiver considerations.

Protocol dictates sticking to players who are owned in <50% of Fleaflicker leagues, but rest assured there are some <10% guys here too for you deeper folks.

Editor’s Note: RotoBaller’s fantasy baseball waiver wire pickups list is updated every single day. Our awesome writers bring you analysis on hot or emerging starting pitchers, and also all other fantasy positions. You can also download our waiver wire iPhone app for free, and easily stay updated.

Starting Pitcher Waiver Wire Targets:

Lance McCullers (HOU, SP) – 45% - He’s on the Disabled List but will get to pitch for a very strong Houston Astros team. McCullers does carry some risk thanks to this current shoulder woes, but his upside is way too great with the ability to strikeout over a batter per inning on top of plus ratios. His first rehab start is slated for Monday, so snag and stash him before the buzz starts building.

Michael Pineda (NYY, SP) – 39% - His first start was rather ugly (though he got the win) but his 2015 pointed to much greater things on the horizon with an insane 2.95 xFIP and 3.09 SIERA. He can K up a batter per nine and only walked 3.1% of batters faced last season! If he can get the home run ball under control then he will make the leap.

Kenta Maeda (LAD, SP) – 37% - I know, this is about starting pitchers and here I am recommending a slugger. Oh, yeah the guy can pitch too. He rides strong command and looks to generate weak contact in order to be successful. His debut was very nice, though it was against a struggling Padres offense. All the same, Maeda is definitely worth a look especially if you prefer an NL option over those first two AL pitchers.

Carlos Rodon (CWS, SP) – 36% - Rodon took a hard-luck loss in his 2016 debut against the Athletics where he only allowed two runs over seven innings. Rodon’s x factor is his command, and he looked sharp in his first start where he only walked one and struck out six. Rodon is capable of winning 13 games with a strikeout per inning and a 3.50 ERA and 1.30 WHIP depending on how consistently he can hold onto that command.

Aaron Nola (PHI, SP) – 36% - Nola pitched very well in his 2016 debut against the Cincinnati Reds even though his bullpen couldn’t pick him up. Nola should be able to provide a 3.50 ERA/1.23 WHIP with about 160 Ks if he can log 180 innings. Wins will be scarce, especially if the bullpen continues to falter, but Nola should be owned in more leagues than this.

Raisel Iglesias (CIN, SP) – 35% - Iglesias was arguably the buzziest “sleeper” heading into this season and thus far he has done little to disappoint. His first start saw him pitch six innings of two run ball with seven Ks and he followed that up on Saturday with 5.2 innings of one run ball and five Ks against a strong Pirates team. After striking out 104 in 95.1 innings last season along with a 3.55 FIP, 3.28 xFIP, and 3.26 SIERA that point to the true skill behind that 4.15 ERA, he is a very promising young talent.

Aaron Sanchez (TOR, SP) – 31% - Sanchez won the fifth rotation spot for Toronto after a very impressive spring and rewarded management for their faith with seven innings of one run ball where he struck out eight. Sanchez will draw his fair share of tough assignments in the AL East and has to pitch at the Rogers Centre, but the talent is real.

Anthony DeSclafani (CIN, SP) – 17% - This is one of my favorite short-term DL stashes. He showed major improvements in the second half last season as he started to rack up more Ks alongside significantly less walks as his secondary offerings really stepped up. He should be solid in four of five categories (I won’t pretend that the Reds are going to give him wins).

Jerad Eickhoff (PHI, SP) – 16% - His 2016 debut saw him rack up 50 pitches in the first two innings, but to his credit he danced around major damage and only allowed three runs (two earned) in his five innings of work against the Mets. He’ll need to do better than throwing only 48 of 87 pitches for strikes, but he showed good control last season in his 51 innings and does have strikeout stuff. He should face the Padres next and be able to flex his muscle.

Ian Kennedy (KC, SP) – 16% - Kennedy is a strong candidate to improve on his poor 2015 where his 4.28 ERA and 1.30 WHIP tanked his already poor value thanks to being on the Padres. Kennedy went 6.2 shutout innings against the Twins on Saturday night and scattered five hits and a walk against seven strikeouts. He now gets a much better pitch receiver in Salvador Perez, a fantastic defense behind him, and an amazing bullpen to back his starts. Kennedy is primed to be a sneaky bounceback candidate for 2016.

Joe Ross (WAS, SP) – 15% - Perhaps this number dipped due to his “starting out” in the bullpen and owners losing faith or not being able to sit on Ross getting to his turn in the rotation the second time around. Regardless, Ross a good talent who relies on plus command and his secondary pitches to beat hitters. He gets to pitch for a Nationals team that should provide plenty of wins along with Ross getting to feast on opponents such as the Marlins, Braves, and Phillies.

J.A. Happ (TOR, SP) – 15% - Happ is trying to retain the Ray Searage magic that he was blessed with during his stint with the Pittsburgh Pirates last season. His first start in 2016 saw him give up two runs in six innings while he struck out four. He didn’t look particularly sharp but he got the job done, and again pitching for Toronto means you’re facing some serious offenses. I prefer others lower than this ownership percentage, but it’d be disingenuous not to include him.

Vince Velasquez (PHI, SP) – 9% - He is one of the preseason darlings thanks to his plus strikeout stuff, but the truth is that he’ll be held back by the Phillies’ offense and bullpen. The ratios may not be stellar, but if he can strike out around 165 in 150 innings with a 3.80 ERA and 1.27 WHIP then owners should be happy to have gotten that for nothing. He got off to a good start on Saturday by throwing six shutout innings against the Mets where he scattered three hits and three walks around with nine strikeouts. Buy in.

Shane Greene (DET, SP) – 5% - Daniel Norris is on the DL and Shane Greene is slated to be the fifth starter for the Tigers and if he starts out hot then it’ll be difficult to bump him from the rotation considering the strong spring he had (19.1 IP, four earned, four walks and 23 strikeouts). 2015 was derailed after elbow issues and numbness in his pitching hand ruined his hot start, but he has a clean bill of health now and is worth a look thanks to his capability to post a 50% groundball rate and strike out nearly a batter per inning.

Kendall Graveman (OAK, SP) – 4% - Graveman is a groundball specialist who can also not be a total zero in the strikeouts category (77 in 115.2 IP last season) that also happens to pitch in Oakland’s spacious park. He allowed an odd (read: large) amount of homers last season given his groundball-inducing ways, though he also was tagged for a homer in his season debut. Outside of that he pitched a strong 5.1 innings against the White Sox and should be a nice deep league option to stream against weak opponents.

Jon Gray (COL, SP) – 3% - Gray may not have opened the year on the active roster thanks to an abdominal strain suffered towards the end of March, but he has already thrown some successful bullpens where he ironed out some mechanical issues and reportedly rediscovered his curveball. Gray can mix that in with a mid-90s fastball and slider to log about a strikeout per inning. His command isn’t the best but he still posted a nice 3.63 FIP last season (against a brutal 5.53 ERA that may drive potential owners away) and you can strictly pitch him away from Coors if you’d like, at least to start.

Nick Tropeano (LAA, SP) – 2% - Tropeano only pitched 37.2 major league innings last season, but in those he struck out 38 with a 3.82 ERA that was backed by a very good 2.60 FIP and 3.64 xFIP (so they clearly expect some regression with homers). Tropeano’s secondary offerings are legitimate though he won’t blow his fastball by anyone. With Andrew Heaney going on the DL, the Angels are turning to Tropeano for his spot in the rotation. This means he becomes an intriguing option for as long as he gets the opportunity.

MLB & Fantasy Baseball Chat Room

[iflychat_embed id="c-12" hide_user_list="yes" hide_popup_chat="no" height="400px"]