Hello all! Fantasy Baseball can be hard, especially with all of the pitching injuries that occur every year. With that in mind, streaming pitchers can be a viable strategy, even with the risk involved. That’s why I look at splits to minimize the risk and determine the best two starters in any given day that are owned in less than half of fantasy baseball leagues. Here is the Streaming Pitchers report for August 1.
Kyle Gibson – MIN (vs. SEA)
Gibson is not what I was expecting. In 179.1 innings last year, he had a 5.37 K/9. In 124 innings this year, he’s upped that number, but only to 6.39 K/9. His lack of strikeout punch was concerning to me, especially since he’s a 6-foot-6 first round pick. He has, however, shown excellent control (2.83 BB/9) and a penchant for inducing ground balls (53.6% GB rate). His ERA currently sits at 3.48, and that may not be totally lucky, as his xFIP is at 3.76, though his SIERA looks a little worse at 3.98. There’s a fascinating article by David Laurila on FanGraphs.com (http://www.fangraphs.com/blogs/kyle-gibson-on-pitching-to-contact/), mostly describing how Gibson’s focus since coming into the majors has been pitching to contact. He’s figured out how to make it all work, and I think he’ll keep it up against Seattle. The Mariners have an 85 wRC+ on the road and a 94 wRC+ against righties. Gibson’s worm-burning ways should be able to stifle the Mariners’ bats once again.
Nathan Eovaldi – NYY (@ CHW)
Remember my fascination with Eovaldi? Remember how he wasn’t quite yet a good pitcher? Well, if you remember when I picked him anyway, he bombed, and I’ve been ignoring his turn when he comes up ever since. Of course, since then, he’s been exceptional. He still strikes out an okay but not great number of hitters (6.53 K/9), and he still has good control (2.40 BB/9). The exceptional thing he has done since that June 16 start is not allow a HR. It’s not just the HR/FB fairy blessing him with good luck, though that’s definitely helped. His ground ball rate up to June 16 was 48.8%, which is above average but not amazing. His starts after June 16 have seen his ground ball rate at 57.6%. So even though the HR/FB rate is unsustainable, if he can keep a 50%+ ground ball rate, he should be at least a solid matchup pitcher for the rest of the season. Matchups don’t get much better than the White Sox, as they have an 89 wRC+ against righties and a 76 wRC+ at home. I’d say stream away here.
Good luck and happy streaming!
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