For many of you, this is your last week of the regular season. Almost every one of my posts have been lumber-heavy, but at this point of the season, your lineups are pretty much set. So today I’m focusing on the pitchers I like to finish the year strong. Some of you are probably hesitant to drop your players, and that’s not a bad thing. In general, streaming can be a risky proposition in the playoffs. But for those of you ranked 3rd-6th, with a top-2 matchup looming in the second round, taking stock of your team is more important than ever. If you decide to ride out your starters against a team that’s ranked in the top of the league in every pitching category, chances are you’re going down. Deciding which match-ups require all of your starters, and which ones might be better suited to a modest, reliever heavy, ERA centric approach is crucial to winning your leagues. People don’t seem to understand that you can win the majority of pitching categories with non-closing relievers. I’d much rather “go to bat” with*Kevin Siegrist*than*Andrew Albers*when it matters. Here’s what you need to know in Fantasy Baseball right now. Players in each category appear in the order I care about them. All ownership percentages are from Yahoo!
New Faces:
Nick Castellanos*(4%):* It took all goddamn year but he’s here. His value is similar to that of*Xander Bogaerts*in non-keeper leagues.
Starting Pitchers:
Sonny Gray*(28%):* 31 Ks in his last 31 innings with a 2.90 ERA. He’s settling in and gets the Astros on Thursday.
Taijuan Walker*(25%): He was as good as advertised in his first start and gets the Royals on Wednesday.
Charlie Morton*(15%): Truth be told, he’s been the best Pirates’ pitcher over the last month and gets the Brewers on Monday with the Cardinals on Sunday. I’d probably just roll with him for the first game but he’s really been pitching well.
Joe Kelly*(28%):*In the last month he’s 5-0, recently holding the Pirates to 1-run over 6 innings. He has to face them again on Friday.
Tyson Ross*(29%): He sucked against the Diamondbacks but looked really strong against the Dodgers. What does that tell you? That he’s inconsistent, most young pitchers are. He has 45 Ks in his last 37.1 innings and gets the Rockies at home on Saturday.
Relievers:
Drew Smyly*(25%): He had one bad outing which raised his ERA but has been pretty unhittable all year. His SP eligibility makes him a great add for those of you loading up on relievers.
Trevor Rosenthal*(23%): Reports of*Edward Mujica‘s injury were a little overblown but Rosenthal is good for about 3 Ks every time out. It doesn’t hurt that he’s next in line if Mujica really does have a problem.
Kevin Siegrist*(4%): He has 40 Ks in his last 29 innings. That’s stupid good. Oh and his ERA is 0.62 during that time.
Tanner Roark*(2%): I don’t know what*Drew Storen‘s problem is but with Roark shutting teams down, I really don’t care. He’s basically been the best Nationals pitcher in the last month. Not that hard to accomplish but still.
Kelvin Herrera*(6%): He’s showing why he’s the best reliever the Royals have and will probably be the closer next year. He has 23 Ks in his last 17.2 innings with a 0.51 ERA.
Paco Rodriguez*(8%): His stats the last month: 15 Ks in 11 innings with a 0.00 ERA. Wouldn’t it feel good going into the playoffs knowing you had ERA covered pairing at least 3 of these guys together and only keeping the best starters? Makes sense to me. See you Wednesday.
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New Faces:
Nick Castellanos*(4%):* It took all goddamn year but he’s here. His value is similar to that of*Xander Bogaerts*in non-keeper leagues.
Starting Pitchers:
Sonny Gray*(28%):* 31 Ks in his last 31 innings with a 2.90 ERA. He’s settling in and gets the Astros on Thursday.
Taijuan Walker*(25%): He was as good as advertised in his first start and gets the Royals on Wednesday.
Charlie Morton*(15%): Truth be told, he’s been the best Pirates’ pitcher over the last month and gets the Brewers on Monday with the Cardinals on Sunday. I’d probably just roll with him for the first game but he’s really been pitching well.
Joe Kelly*(28%):*In the last month he’s 5-0, recently holding the Pirates to 1-run over 6 innings. He has to face them again on Friday.
Tyson Ross*(29%): He sucked against the Diamondbacks but looked really strong against the Dodgers. What does that tell you? That he’s inconsistent, most young pitchers are. He has 45 Ks in his last 37.1 innings and gets the Rockies at home on Saturday.
Relievers:
Drew Smyly*(25%): He had one bad outing which raised his ERA but has been pretty unhittable all year. His SP eligibility makes him a great add for those of you loading up on relievers.
Trevor Rosenthal*(23%): Reports of*Edward Mujica‘s injury were a little overblown but Rosenthal is good for about 3 Ks every time out. It doesn’t hurt that he’s next in line if Mujica really does have a problem.
Kevin Siegrist*(4%): He has 40 Ks in his last 29 innings. That’s stupid good. Oh and his ERA is 0.62 during that time.
Tanner Roark*(2%): I don’t know what*Drew Storen‘s problem is but with Roark shutting teams down, I really don’t care. He’s basically been the best Nationals pitcher in the last month. Not that hard to accomplish but still.
Kelvin Herrera*(6%): He’s showing why he’s the best reliever the Royals have and will probably be the closer next year. He has 23 Ks in his last 17.2 innings with a 0.51 ERA.
Paco Rodriguez*(8%): His stats the last month: 15 Ks in 11 innings with a 0.00 ERA. Wouldn’t it feel good going into the playoffs knowing you had ERA covered pairing at least 3 of these guys together and only keeping the best starters? Makes sense to me. See you Wednesday.
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