Starting Pitcher Waiver Wire Streamers for Week 26 (Part 1)

Pittsburgh GM Neal Huntington either really knows what he’s doing, or else maybe he's feeding newly acquired Pirates’ pitchers a sweet nectar oozing out of the Allegheny River.  For the second straight season, Huntington has struck gold by signing a seemingly over-the-hill veteran starting pitcher to a relatively cheap contract with amazing results.  Last season it was Francisco Liriano, who only finished 16-8 with a 3.02 ERA and a 15% K-BB rate, with a $1 million restructured deal.  In 2014, it’s Edinson Volquez and Vance Worley.  Volquez was signed to a one-year deal worth $5 million in the offseason, and he's been a huge part of the Buccos’ success in the second half: since July 27, he’s only given up 15 ER in 69 IP while recording a 4-0 record.  But it’s the Vanimal that has been the bigger surprise.  Traded in March for cash, Worley was called up in mid-June and has been a rock when the Pirates have needed him.  His adjusted park ERA is 11 runs below the league average while maintaining a mediocre .299 BABIP.  This all translates into Worley actually being better than Volquez and Jeff Locke in side-by-side comparisons.  Worley is arguably the third best pitcher on the staff.

Factoring in his park-adjusted numbers as well as his WAR while pitching in nearly half as many games, he just may be the most valuable starter to the vaunted Pirates rotation.  He's pitching to contact more than strikeouts, which is often a  pitcher's undoing, but it's clear he's using the large outfield at PNC Park to his advantage.  That's either really lucky or really smart, since Pittsburgh starts basically three athletic center fielders in all the outfield positions.  At any rate, it will be interesting to see how the Pirates playoff rotation will line up when they (knock on wood) inevitably clinch a postseason berth later this week.  As for Huntington, maybe it's time for him to start thinking about writing his own Moneyball. Below are some of my Week 26 picks for starting pitchers to consider streaming off the waiver wire. Some of these pitchers may be two-start pitchers, and all of these SP options can be considered sleepers for your team depending on the league format and depth including NL-Only, AL-Only and head-to-head formats. As always, I categorize each of the streaming options as either Desperate, Risky, Solid or Must-Stream.

Monday SP Streamers

Danny Duffy (KC at CLE)

Ownership: 41% Yahoo!, 15% Fleaflicker

Don’t be afraid of Duffy’s inflamed rotator cuff.  All reports show that he is back and ready to go against weak-hitting-LHP Indian squad.  Expect 5 or 6 IP for a quality start from Duff-Man.

MATCHUP RATING: Solid Stream

Kyle Lobstein (DET vs. CHW)

Ownership: 4% Yahoo!, 3% Fleaflicker

In the second act of what I’m dubbing “Left-Handed Monday,” Lobstein has a cushy assignment pinning down a White Sox offense that has been virtually non-existent since mid-August.

MATCHUP RATING: Solid Stream

Tuesday SP Streamers

Nick Martinez (TEX vs. HOU)

Ownership: 1% Yahoo!, 2% Fleaflicker

The hammer of Thor has been brought down leading to the improbable yet deserving selection of a Texas Ranger starting pitcher.  Surely with one week left in the regular season, a Ranger pitcher who has yet to record a win in Arlington will come through and deliver that W, right?  Martinez is 1-1 with a 2.70 ERA in four appearances against the Astros.

MATCHUP RATING: Risky Stream

Kyle Hendricks (CHC vs. STL)

Ownership: 31% Yahoo!, 16% Fleaflicker

It’s a good thing the season is ending soon for Chicago's Hendricks.  He may be starting to feel some fatigue as his numbers are beginning to decline a bit over his last few starts.  Still, he’s putting up acceptable enough splits at home to warrant a start.

MATCHUP RATING: Desperate Stream

Wednesday SP Streamers

Hector Santiago (LAA at OAK)

Ownership: 15% Yahoo!, 11% Fleaflicker

The Angels still need to wrap up home-field advantage, so there’s little chance they’ll take it easy on their divisional rivals.  Unfortunately for the Athletics, their offense has been absolutely atrocious since early August, and Santiago has been fairly decent post-ASB.  I like Santiago to go deep and pick up some high strikeout numbers.

MATCHUP RATING: Must Stream

Jake Odorizzi (TB at BOS)

Ownership: 34% Yahoo!, 17% Fleaflicker

Odorizzi has been a bright spot for the Rays in this otherwise forgettable season.  Although he’s been shaky on the road serving up a .287 BAA, a lot of that can be explained as just unlucky considering his .337 BABIP.  Don’t expect Boston’s weak offense against RHPs to somehow beat him up, but fantasy owners may want to beware the bases on balls.

MATCHUP RATING: Risky Stream