Jeff Samardzija (SP/ SFG) - Week 17 Waiver Wire Pickups

BALLER MOVE: Add in 12+ Team Leagues

OWNED IN: 30% of Yahoo! leagues

ANALYSIS: 

The San Francisco Giants have won 13 of their last 15 games and are looking a lot better at the plate. They’re surely not one of the top teams in the league, but it’s fair to say they’ve turned a corner along with the summer heat. The ball is moving a bit more across the country and the run support has increased for Samardzija (4.6 runs over the last five). He’s been strong against both sides of the plate with a .298 combined wOBA and he’s striking out eight batters while walking less than two.

Oracle Park is the league's best park for pitchers and ranked 30th in 2018 for power. The summer heat helps, but you’ll consistently see the lowest O/U on the slate in SF. He’s been extended over 100 pitches in half of his last 10 starts and got up to 114. He has a ton of upside every time he takes the mound and has built in safety with the spacious home ballpark. Samardzija is still available in the majority of 12+ team leagues and well worth an add as a back-end starter. He rarely gets blown up and takes up a lot of quality innings. Exactly what you need in the second half out of the waiver wire.