Anthony DeSclafani (SP, CIN) - Week 4 Waiver Wire Pickups

BALLER MOVE: Add in All Leagues

ROSTERED IN: 35% of leagues

ANALYSIS: The Cincinnati Reds starting rotation has been off to a hot start in 2020, and in his two starts since returning from the IL, Anthony DeSclafani has contributed to that wave of momentum in a big way. In an encouraging volume of work (11.0 IP), "Disco" netted a 0.00 ERA, 0.55 WHIP, and has allowed just one walk and zero home runs.

While DeSclafani's K/9 of 6.5 is rather mediocre, his 2.6% walk rate and 41.4% ground ball rate more than make up for the deficiency by making him one of the most reliable pitchers on any given day of the field of widely available starters. The former Florida Gator deploys a fastball, slider, curveball, and changeup, and while the velocity of his slider and curveball have been slightly down (87.4 MPH and 82.8 MPH), his changeup is up a tick to 88.7 MPH, and most importantly, his fastball (deployed 52.6% of the time) is at a career-high 95.1 MPH. He may not grab too many strikeouts from night to night, but in lowering his outside contact rate from 62.1% to 53.8% and his overall contact rate from 78.9% to 76.4%, Anthony DeSclafani is a rock-solid option for minimal damage in any setting.