Joe Musgrove (SP, HOU) - Waiver Wire Pickups

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ANALYSIS: Joe Musgrove got knocked around a little bit by the Orioles in Baltimore on Thursday. He allowed eight runs on 11 hits and one walk with two strikeouts in 5.1 frames, serving up a homer to Mark Trumbo and two to J.J. Hardy. However, he yielded just three runs in 18.1 innings across the first three starts of his career. He has racked up 23 strikeouts to go with just three walks in 23.2 innings since being called up, and owns a 4.18 ERA. That kind of strikeout-to-walk ratio is far from unsustainable for the 23-year-old.

It’s rare that a pitching prospect receives a score of 70 for control, but that’s what Musgrove was given. In fact, of the 40 other pitchers in MLB Pipeline’s current Top 100, only Francis Martes, also with the Astros, earned even a 60 for control. Musgrove has such incredible command of the strike zone that he can get by with stuff that projects to be just slightly above average.

Fantasy owners shouldn’t get too hung up on Thursday’s outing. Musgrove has an unusually high floor for a young starter, and that makes him worth owning in mixed leagues for the remainder of the season. He’ll look to bounce back against the Pirates on Tuesday.