2018 Fantasy Baseball SP Streamers: Week 16 Part 2

After last week’s brief streamers article make sure you still look to some of those guys if you’re looking to stream this weekend. That article specifically targeted the potential arms going on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday. Nathan Eovaldi , Kyle Gibson , and Lance Lynn may not appear in this article but remember last week’s article and this week’s piece are for the same extended scoring period.

Ten-Team Leagues

Danny Duffy (KC) – Since June 22^nd Duffy has been pretty good save for one disastrous start against Cleveland. In five of his last six outings he’s gone at least six innings and given up just one home run, which was a mere solo shot. Now the Cleveland start where he gave up six earned runs in six innings inflates the numbers over the past month. But he’s been great for all but one start since June 22^nd. The walks are still something to monitor. As great as he’s been he’s still walked 16 batters over his last 38 innings of work. Next week Duffy will face the Tigers who do hit lefties pretty well. But given how well he’s done lately, and the fact the Tigers went 5-21 leading up to the All Star Break and that they lost again on Friday night, this is a good spot to stream the Kansas City southpaw.

Rich Hill (LAD) – Hill’s ownership has dropped about two-percent in the last couple days, but he’s still on track to make his start next week against Philadelphia. Hill wasn’t available to make his start last Saturday, yet still somehow appeared in relief. Don’t worry, I’m just as confused as you are. The oft-injured Hill gets a start against the Phillies next week on the road. Now Philadelphia is still a good team that was in the running for Manny Machado , who coincidentally enough now wears the same uniform as Hill. The good news for those that stream Hill is that Philadelphia slashes just .229/.318/.356 against lefties. When Hill is healthy, and at his best, he’s a strikeout per inning pitcher. But he’s also susceptible to home runs as he carries a 1.61 HR/9 on the year.

CC Sabathia (NYY) – Big CC gets two starts next week: on the road in Tampa and then at home against Kansas City. The road start is nice because while the Rays are scrappy and have given New York fits this year, the start is in Tropicana Field which presents a nice park upgrade for Sabathia. The second start against the Royals is a good option because the Royals are awful and Sabathia is actually really good at home. On the season he owns a 2.59 ERA and opponents are slashing just .252/.312/.387 off him at Yankee Stadium. Additionally the Royals are averaging just 3.57 runs per game. Sabathia’s a good two-start streaming option next week.

Shane Bieber (CLE) – Bieber stumbled into the All Star break with some bad outings before going seven innings, giving up three earned runs, and striking out six against the Yankees. Prior to that he had a pair of rough outings against the Royals and Athletics, but alas, he’s a decent option against Pittsburgh next week. The Pirates offense isn’t nearly as potent on the road as they are at home. Bieber has also only given up two home runs over his last 37.1 innings of work and he doesn’t walk many batters. He’s a good option if you need a quality start or a win next week and he’ll be a two-start pitcher the week after so you may want to hang on to him for just a little bit longer.

12-Team Leagues

Nick Pivetta (PHI) – Assuming your scoring period for this week goes until the 29^th, then Pivetta should be started at least with his coming matchup on Sunday at home against San Diego. Pivetta’s 4.58 ERA doesn’t look too bad compared to his 3.75 FIP. He does have a propensity to get blown up occasionally, but then again he could also go out and get you seven strikeouts at minimum. He should be very good this coming week against the Padres who struggle to generate offense on the road. They slash .230/.284/.356 away from Petco Park and they’re tied with Baltimore for having scored the fewest runs on the road (162 in 48 games). Projecting his matchups post-San Diego you may find yourself inclined to hang on to Pivetta. He gets a road start against Cincinnati on July 27^th and then a home matchup with Miami August 2^nd.

Domingo Germán (NYY) – German gets a park upgrade next week going from Yankee Stadium to pitching in Tropicana Field that is about as cozy as a cave. German’s swinging strike rate (14.8%) cannot be ignored. He has a 5.68 ERA, but a 4.53 FIP and a 3.97 xFIP so regression could be coming and this is a good matchup to target. He still has a 10.38 K/9, but oddly enough he’s allowed 11 walks in his last 18 innings of work, which weren’t that big of an issue beforehand. Regardless, the matchup and ballpark are decent and he can log a quality start with six or seven strikeouts in this matchup.

Jake Odorizzi (KC) – Odorizzi is in play for Sunday’s matchup against the Royals in Kaufmann Stadium, but it would be wise to not stream him against the Boston Red Sox. Boston is great. Kansas City is not. It’s that simple. Odorizzi, like his fellow rotation mates Kyle Gibson and Lance Lynn (mentioned earlier), he has a great opportunity to take advantage of a weak Royals lineup. What makes me feel better about Odorizzi is that while his peripherals are pretty bad, his home/road splits are pretty telling.

While the splits aren’t much better, I feel better because he’s taking on a weak lineup in a pitcher-friendly environment. I probably should’ve just recommended all Twins pitchers against the Royals in last week’s preview piece. Oh well, just use ‘em all.

Deeper League Options

The deeper league options are minimal this week unfortunately, but check Domingo Germán ’s ownership in your league because at last glance he was hovering around 20-25% so he just might be available in your league, especially after a weak showing Friday night against the Mets.

Dereck Rodriguez (SF) – Rodriguez is the exact opposite of Odorizzi. His splits definitely benefit him at home:

Now the sample size is relatively small because he’s only pitched 53 innings this year, but he does appear to be more comfortable at AT&T Park. Next week he’ll face the Brewers at home. While Milwaukee is a dangerous offense, they limped into the All Star break losing their last six games and scoring just 19 runs in that span. Rodriguez won’t record many strikeouts, but he could get you a win next week.

Felix Pena (LAA) – You have to imagine Felix Pena gets a start against the White Sox early next week with potential for a second start against Seattle. While he’s not confirmed for either, he should at least get a start against the Chicago. The issue with starting Pena is that he hasn’t thrown more than 83 pitches in a start this season. Mike Scioscia hasn’t been too trustworthy in letting him pitch deep into games despite Pena’s decent performances. In 23.2 innings as a starter he has 30 strikeouts, nine walks, and he’s yielded just seven earned runs and two home runs. As a starter, his 2.66 ERA looks pretty solid compared to his 2.98 FIP and 2.91 xFIP. Unfortunately he’s only viable as a streamer in deep leagues until Scioscia lets him go deeper into games.