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It is never easy to piece together a pitching staff after the season starts. We have recommended quite a lot of pitchers in this weekly article throughout the year and have only uncovered a handful of gems so far.
This week we will be looking at a mixed bag of veterans and young guns, and my confidence level is a bit higher this week than in the past. I don't believe any of the names are going to be receiving Cy Young votes this year or anything, but they can all help your fantasy team in one way or another.
Open up your league's free agency page and take a look at my weekly starting pitching waiver acquisitions recommendations for Week 7 (May 10 - May 16).
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Pickups for Shallow Leagues
Madison Bumgarner, Arizona Diamondbacks (53.8% Rostered)
It took a while for people to get on the train, and I'm not exactly riding first class here but it's probably time to at least buy a ticket. Over his last four starts, Bumgarner has thrown 23 innings and given up just three earned runs. Possibly the most encouraging sign is that he has also struck out 25 hitters in those innings. Even at his worst, he's never had trouble with walks, and that remains the same in 2021 (just two walks in his last four starts and 10 for the year). The velocity has been up all season, and recently the fruits of that are beginning to show.
The glass-half-empty look at this would be to point out that his last three starts have been a seven-inning game against the Braves that was the second game of a doubleheader, and then two starts against the light-hitting Rockies and Marlins. You should not be surprised if Bumgarner goes back to his gas can ways, but for now, it seems more likely than not that he deserves a roster spot in most leagues of depth.
Dylan Cease, Chicago White Sox (44.4% Rostered)
The young White Sox righty has racked up 20 strikeouts in 13 innings over his last two starts, walking three and allowing no runs on four hits. One of those starts was against the Tigers, which made it easy to brush off, but his most recent dominant start came against a Reds team with a strong offense.
His CSW% in those starts has also climbed way up to 34.1% and 34.7%, respectively, and he's also posted massive swinging-strike rates while not giving up a single barrel. Cease has looked like a bonafide ace in his last two outings. One thing that may keep a lot of people skeptical about this sudden improvement is that no change in pitch mix or velocity has come with it. His "stuff" has looked the same. The reason to believe in Cease is the pedigree. He has always been a high-upside arm and a lot of smart people thought this could be the year he really improves. That was not manifesting as truth before these last two outings, but maybe this is the time he turns the corner for good. He's worth an add to find out.
JT Brubaker, Pittsburgh Pirates (44.1% Rostered)
If Brubaker were on a competitive team, I would imagine this percentage would be close to twice as high as it is right now. Brubaker showed a lot of encouraging signs last year and has just been awesome every time out this year. He has 37 strikeouts in 32.1 innings with just eight walks. He adds to that a 57% ground-ball rate, so he's really been checking all of the boxes. The thing he has not been able to overcome yet is going deep into games. He's thrown six or more innings just twice this year (in six outings).
The wins may not be there with this weak Pirates offense backing him, but Brubaker looks legit and he should be universally rostered.
Pickups for Deeper Leagues
Robbie Ray, Toronto Blue Jays (34.2% Rostered)
Here are Robbie Ray's career walk rates since 2015, in order from oldest to newest: 9.0%, 9.1%, 10.7%, 13.3%, 11.2%, 17.9%, 7.8%.
All Ray has ever needed to do was not walk hitters at a super high rate, and that is what he has done this year. In five starts, he has nine walks. That's not a great number, but when you see that six of them came in one start, it eases your concerns a bit. For the first time in his career, he has made three straight starts without allowing a walk. Add on to that the 23 strikeouts in 18.2 innings and you have a guy that is trending steeply upwards.
The increased strike-throwing has resulted in five homers given up in these last three starts, but he's still managed three quality starts despite that. The Blue Jays offense is getting healthy and they have really been crushing the ball of late, so the wins should be coming for Ray as long as he can continue to keep the walks down.
Shane McClanahan, Tampa Bay Rays (18.5% Rostered)
In his first start with the Rays, McClanahan racked up a ridiculous 23.7% swinging-strike rate. That number came back to earth in his second start, but the decline stopped at a still really strong rate of 14.3%. His 38.5% CSW% for the year (only eight innings) is a great sign, and he passes the eye test as well with a really nasty-looking delivery and great pitch movement.
McClanahan's strikeout stuff is firmly convincing. I don't think there are many questions about that. The problem is that he is young and on the Rays, which means he is rarely going to throw five full innings, which takes away win and quality start potential. I'm sure the Rays don't care about that, but fantasy managers (in the vast majority of league types) do. Despite the potential elite ratios and strikeouts, McClanahan doesn't move the needle in standard fantasy leagues because of the lack of innings.
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