RADIO
Welcome to RotoBaller's weekly article of two-start pitcher streamers for 2020! This is our last installment for the year! It has been a crazy year with so many moving parts making streaming extremely hard. For those who have read this article last year, we really appreciate your support! Successfully streaming pitchers can literally be a game-changer when it comes to fantasy baseball. When it comes to daily leagues, two-start streams aren't that important, since you can stream every day. But when it comes to weekly leagues, two-start streams become exponentially more important.
With that said, what do we look for when it comes to streaming pitchers? Well, there are a lot of aspects. When looking at the actual pitcher, how have they performed lately? Have they made a pitch-mix change? Have they had a recent velocity bump? Reviewing pitchers every day on your own time will be very useful.
You also want to play matchups by looking at recent trends of the pitcher's opponent. How does their lineup perform when at home versus away? What has their wRC+ been in the last week or two? Have they been striking out a lot? Matchups are key when it comes to streaming. With all of that said, let's take a look at our picks, which we are going to rank in order with corresponding tiers. Also, note that all options below are under 30% rostered.
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Stream With Confidence
Keegan Akin, BAL (3% rostered)
@BOS, @TOR
Analysis: Yes Keegan Akin is a stream with confidence for the final week of baseball. Through four starts and two relief appearances Akin has been an amazing pitcher and has produced a 3.38 ERA, 2.81 FIP, and 31.3 K%. He throws a four-seam, slider, and changeup with the changeup being his best pitch. He has an 11 mph difference between his fastball and changeup which is exactly what you want to see. With that his changeup currently holds a 34.3 O-Swing%, 45.6 Zone%, and 20.3 SwStr%. Now the matchups aren't easy but he has faced some tough offenses this season in his four starts. Against the Braves, Yankees (twice), and Blue Jays he has come away with a 2.35 ERA and 1.62 FIP making him a must-start.
Brady Singer, KCR (27% rostered)
vs STL, vs DET
Analysis: Brady Singer has been straight fire with his fastball/slider combo. In his last two starts, he has pitched 14 innings with a 0.00 ERA, 1.55 FIP, and 33.3 K%. He has allowed a hitter to reach second base just once in his last two starts. That is mind-blowing. The problem with Singer all year was his extremely tough schedule and now he is finally getting some easy matchups. Singer just looks like he is zeroed in and becomes a must-start for the week of the year.
Tarik Skubal, DET (10% rostered)
@MIN, @KCR
Analysis: Mr. Skubal has been hard to figure out this year. There have been games where he dominated and games where he looks completely lost. Skubal came into the league with people expecting him to produce a lot of strikeouts but so far he hasn't really done so. The key might be his fastball. In his last start he dropped his fastball usage to 55% and threw the curveball and changeup more. The result was six innings of work with two earned runs and eight strikeouts. That was against the Royals who he will be facing in his second matchup of the week. As for the Twins he has faced them twice and produced a 2.45 ERA and 3.46 FIP.
Stream With Some Risk
Drew Smyly, SFG (5% rostered)
vs COL, vs SDP
Analysis: Smyly made his way back from an injury and has finally made it to the rotation. The Padres matchup you will have to get lucky but the Rockies on the road are a bottom of the barrel offense. Plus if you need strikeouts for your league Smyly is the guy to own. In his last three appearances, his strikeout totals are eight, eight, and seven.
JT Brubaker, PIT (2% rostered)
vs CHC, @CLE
Analysis: As a starter Brubaker has been pretty good especially if you take away his one blow up against the White Sox. Brubaker has a stellar slider that he has been using more and more. His slider boasts a 16.4 SwStr%, 2.9 pVAL, and 72 wRC+ against. The Cubs start is risky but not as risky as one would think. They started the year off hot and in the past month their wRC+ is bottom eight in the league. As for the Indians, they have been horrible for the entire season as they are bottom ten in ISO, OBP, and wOBA.
Do Not Stream
Kyle Gibson, TEX (7% rostered)
@LAA, vs HOU
Analysis: I know Gibson just pitched a complete game shutout in Houston but don't gain confidence in him now. Even with that start he still holds a 5.18 ERA. Gibson has been a let down all season because he is known for his really good slider and changeup but they have been sub-par this entire year.
Austin Voth, WSN (2% rostered)
vs PHI, vs NYM
Analysis: Austin Voth has looked lost on the mound this entire year. He doesn't have the upped velocity we saw last year and seems to be a lost cause. Drawing a good offense in the Phillies and a top-three offense in the league in the Mets is anything but appealing.
Tanner Roark, TOR (5% rostered)
vs NYY, vs BAL
Analysis: Roark is averaging four innings per start with a 6.41 ERA and 7.71 FIP. I never thought a pitcher could have a worse FIP when his ERA is at 6.41. Now he gets the Yankees and orioles? No thanks.
Michael Lorenzen, CIN (3% rostered)
vs MIL, @MIN
Analysis: Lorenzen looked good in his first start pitching five innings of one-run ball. I think that is his upside though as all of his secondary pitches get hit hard. His cutter has a 206 wRC+ and .490 wOBA against and that's his second most thrown pitch.
Josh Fleming, TBR (16% rostered)
@NYM, vs PHI
Analysis: Fleming has performed well and while regression is likely coming I am intrigued with his stuff. That being said much like Voth he faces two very tough offenses and you don't want any part of it.
Reynaldo Lopez, CHW (16% rostered)
@CLE, vs CHC
Analysis: We were hoping this would finally be Reynaldo Lopez's year but getting hit with the injury bug put an end to that. That high velocity we saw at times in 2019 is long gone and it seems like he is heading to the bullpen for 2021.
Chase Anderson, TOR (4% rostered)
vs NYY, vs BAL
Analysis: Chase Anderson has given up ten runs in his last two outings against formidable offenses and I expect that trend to continue.
Steven Brault, PIT (1% rostered)
vs CHC, @CLE
Analysis: Since becoming a starter Brault hasn't been terrible. He has a 4.57 ERA and 4.71 FIP in his last six starts. The problem with Brault is he only goes four innings and will kill you in the WHIP category. The Cubs will probably hit him around rather easily.
Jose Urena, MIA (2% rostered)
@ATL, @NYY
Analysis: Run away from Urena. He has been terrible in his two starts sporting a 8.01 FIP. Now he faces two of the best offenses in the league. No thanks.
Jordan Lyles, TEX (2% rostered)
@ARI, vs HOU
Analysis: The Rangers have been using Lyles as a bulk reliever lately and even that isn't working for him. Expect a disaster if you start Jordan Lyles.
