Dan Straily (SP, MIA) - Waiver Wire Pickups

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ANALYSIS: The 2016 season was a huge revival season for Dan Straily. In 2015, he pitched mostly in the minors with the Astros, and knew a change needed to be made. In his first and only season with the Reds he threw 191 1/3 innings over 34 appearances (31 starts), with a 3.92 ERA and 1.06 WHIP. He won 14 games, and notched 20 quality starts which placed him in the top-20 among all starters.

He picked up right where he left off this season, with a 4.15 ERA after five starts and a 10.45 K/9 rate, including nn impressive seven-inning, 14 strikeout performance.

Straily credits his career revival to Driveline Baseball, a data-driven baseball performance startup that has worked with him the past two offseasons. He worked on building up his shoulder strength by using weighted baseballs, which has not only helped his velocity but also has shortened the recovery period in between starts. You may be skeptical, but looking at how Straily has pitched the program seems to be doing wonders for his career. While his .230 BABIP may suggest he has gotten a bit lucky this season, his FIP/xFIP of 3.77/4.19 support his current ERA. His swinging strike rate (SwStr%) is at a very strong 11.2% right now, and his contact rate is at its lowest point since 2014.

His career average for K/9 is 7.68, so while you can be skeptical in his big K/9 jump, he will be an effective fantasy pitcher this season. Even if you are not buying his rising strikeout rate, you will still get a pitcher who can rack up quality starts as a solid back-end pitcher.