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Fantasy Baseball 2-Start Pitcher Rankings: Deep group this week, but have to choose wisely

fred zinkie
Yahoo Fantasy Contributor
·5 min read
Braxton Garrett #29 of the Miami Marlins
Look under the hood to see Braxton Garrett's fantasy baseball potential this week. (Photo by Elsa/Getty Images)

This week’s two-start streamers list can best be described as a deep but mediocre group. There are warts with every hurler on this list, either in terms of overall performance, recent performance or upcoming matchups.

Those who need a hitter for the coming days are in a better spot, as a few men listed at the bottom of this article have played well of late and have terrific upcoming matchups.

Irvin has been excellent this year (3.00 ERA, 1.04 WHIP), which makes him easily the best streaming target in shallow leagues. The righty with excellent control skills has difficult matchups this week, highlighted by a trip to Coors Field, but it’s worth noting that the Rockies do not possess a great lineup and have thus far produced an OPS (.750) at their hitter-friendly home venue that is solid but not noteworthy.

The wheels are coming off for Olson, who owned a 1.92 ERA at the end of May but has allowed 17 earned runs in three June starts. His walk and home run rates in those outings have not been alarming, but he has allowed nearly two hits per inning while enduring a .472 BABIP. His matchups are favorable this week, as the Braves rank 26th in runs scored since May 1 and the White Sox rank last in runs over the full season. But given the severity of his recent struggles, Olson is a fine boom-or-bust option this week.

After allowing 17 runs over 23 innings in four starts from May 21 to June 8, Marsh turned things around by throwing seven shutout innings against the Yankees last time out. His swing-and-miss abilities have been better than his run prevention, as the right-hander has collected at least seven whiffs in five of his past seven starts. Factoring in all aspects of his recent inconsistency makes Marsh an option for 12-team leagues during a week with a great matchup (A’s) and an average one (Rangers).

Many managers are moving away from Garrett, who has logged a 6.10 ERA in six starts since returning from a season-opening stint on the IL. But a deeper look shows plenty of reason for optimism, as the left-hander has produced a 28:4 K:BB ratio while dealing with the misfortune of a .323 BABIP and a 54.7% strand rate. Wise managers will look past the ERA and realize that Garrett remains an option in 12-team leagues for two starts at his pitcher-friendly home park against two bottom-10 offenses in runs scored.

Harris has posted strong ratios (2.49 ERA, 1.11 WHIP) while benefiting from excellent batted-ball luck (.234 BABIP, 4.48 FIP). Still, he has struck out 23 batters in 25.1 innings and can be considered in head-to-head leagues for two home starts against offenses that have been slightly better than average in OPS this year.

Civale missed the memo on home runs being down across baseball, as his 14 homers allowed are tied for the major league lead. The right-hander continues to get his share of whiffs (9.2 K/9 rate) but has not earned a win or finished the sixth inning in the past two months. Managers may be surprised to see Civale this low on the list, but he is nothing better than a mediocre head-to-head streamer at this point.

Spiers is set to make his first start for the Reds this season after producing a 2.33 ERA and a 1.19 WHIP across 19.1 relief innings. He has thrived as a Triple-A starter this year (2.51 ERA, 1.06 WHIP). The Clemson product opens the week with a favorable road matchup in Pittsburgh before returning home to his hitter-friendly home venue to take on a productive Red Sox offense. Spiers is a risky option but no less desirable than some of the more rostered names that precede him on this list.

Myers has allowed just one run across 14 innings in his past two outings, albeit with a mediocre 9:4 K:BB ratio. As is the situation with Harris, managers should be wary to put too much stock in Myers’ solid ratios (3.76 ERA, 1.16 WHIP), as he has enjoyed a .238 BABIP and owns a 5.12 FIP. The Angels have a middle-of-the-pack lineup and the Padres boast a top-10 group, which is enough reason to relegate Myers to solely head-to-head leagues for his two-start week.

In order, here are the best streamers for the week, with their start date and Yahoo! roster rate in parentheses:

Dodgers @ Rockies: The good news is that the Dodgers will bring an offense that leads the National League in OPS and runs scored into a four-game series at offense-inducing Coors Field. The bad news is that this team platoons heavily and the Rockies are set to use two right-handed starters and a pair of southpaws in this series. The matchups make Andy Pages (31%) the player to stream, as he could start all four contests.

Cardinals @ Marlins, vs. Giants: St. Louis will play four games over the next four days, with each contest coming against a starter with an ERA over 4.50. Masyn Winn (37%) and Alec Burleson (48%) occupy the top two spots in the lineup and therefore are terrific streamers to consider. Brendan Donovan (31%) is eligible at three positions and is also an option.

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