Straight Cheese Streaming Starting Pitchers Week 24

This is my weekly column where I suggest streaming low owned starting pitchers that have a matchup in their favor next week to help your fantasy baseball team. Most of these hurlers are to be used and tossed back to the waiver wire. Some of them will graduate from the wire and find a permanent space on someone’s roster, hopefully yours.

Streaming Starting Pitchers Week 24

My process is to look at wOBA, ISO and K% because they tend to identify weak lineups and conversely for pitchers I look at wOBA, ISO against and their K%.

All statistics, ownership and projected starting dates are as of Friday, August 30.

RHP Aaron Civale, CLE
Owned Y49%|E33% · vs. Chicago White Sox – Monday, September 2

Since making his MLB debut on June 22, Civale has a 1.96 ERA, 0.90 WHIP, 7.4 K/9 and has struck out 21.4% of the batters he’s faced through 6 starts. He’s made it through 6 innings in all but one start and in that one he pitched 5.2 innings. Also, he’s yet to allow more than 2 earned runs in any start.

He’s good and he has a great match up. Here’s how the White Sox stack up on the road versus right-handed pitchers:

• 0.298 wOBA (5^th worst in MLB), 0.140 ISO (2^nd worst) and a 25.9 K% (4^th worst)
• Opposing SP have put up a 3.62 ERA, 1.17 WHIP and 9.0 K/9 in 45 games

Stop reading and go pickup Civale if he is available in your league. I’ll wait for you.

RHP Dinelson Lamet, SD
Owned Y33%|E15% · vs. Colorado Rockies – Friday, September 6

I suggested streaming Lamet last week and I’m saying it again. He has a 4.30 ERA, 1.30 WHIP, 11.7 K/9 and struck out 30.2% of the batters he faced through his 9 starts this season.

Next week he is aligned to get a home start against the Rockies who struggle away from Coors Field. Here are their numbers versus RHP on the road:

• 0.282 wOBA (2^nd worst in MLB), 0.143 ISO (3^rd worst) and a 25.3 K% (6^th worst)
• Opposing SP have put up a 4.02 ERA, 1.16 WHIP and 9.0 K/9 in 45 games

Lamet strikes people out. That much is true. The Rockies have proven to be susceptible to getting struck out. The low WOBA and ISO on the road should keep Lamet’s ERA and WHIP in check for this particular match up. Let’s do this.

RHP Homer Bailey, OAK
Owned Y23%|E12% · vs. Detroit Tigers – Saturday, September 7

Bailey has a 5.04 ERA, 1.39 WHIP, 8.0 K/9 and has struck out 20.5% of batters he has faced in 26 starts with both Kansas City and Oakland. What I don’t particularly like are his numbers in the 8 starts since being traded to Oakland: 5.52 ERA, 1.34 WHIP, 7.8 K/9 and only striking out 19.7% of batters faced.

What i do like is the fact that he has a 2.96 ERA, 1.23 WHIP, 9.6 K/9 and has struck out 25.2% of the batters in his 4 home starts with Oakland.

Enter the Tigers and their stats versus RHP on the road:

• 0.288 wOBA (3^rd worst in MLB), 0.164 (6^th worst) and a 27.7 K% (MLB worst)
• Opposing SP have put up a 3.27 ERA, 1.12 WHIP and 10.0 K/9 in 51 games

This is one of those dig deep to find a reason to stream match ups. Homer is a “homer” and gets the lowly Tigers next week. You know what to do.

Extra Cheese

Here is where I recommend a two-start pitcher for you to stream. Please bear in mind that things can change after this article is posted. Injuries, rain delays, managerial moves, etc. can happen.

RHP Mitch Keller, PIT
Owned Y11%|E4% – vs. Marlins (Tue Sep 3) & @ Cardinals (Sun Sep 8)

Keller has not been good. The 8.62 ERA and 1.98 WHIP are not for the squeamish but the 11.8 K/9 and striking out 26.8% of batters faced is why we’re even looking at Keller.

Like a punch to the gut is better than a punch to the nuts, his home numbers are better: 5.28 ERA, 1.43 WHIP, 11.7 K/9 and struck out 30.3% of batters.

Listen, the only sane reason to consider streaming an effectively wild pitcher like Keller is if he has a good match up. Well, he has one good match up and one great one.

• Marlins numbers against RHP on the road
  • 0.277 wOBA (Worst in MLB), 0.131 (MLB Worst) and a 25.1 K% (8^th worst)
    Opposing SP have put up a 2.22 ERA, 0.99 WHIP and 8.8 K/9 in 46 games
• Cardinals numbers against RHP on the road
  • 0.305 wOBA (10^th worst in MLB), 0.176 (14^th worst) and a 24.9 K% (10^th worst)
    Opposing SP have put up a 3.59 ERA, 1.22 WHIP and 9.0 K/9 in 55 games

While the game against St. Louis isn’t as tasty as the Marlins match up, both should prove to be palatable… and more importantly, usable to us!

Evaluating Streaming Starting Pitchers Suggested in Week 22

Let’s look back at my previous recommendations for starting pitchers to stream back in Week 22. Note we have to look back two weeks since last week’s Straight Cheese is for the current week. Got it? Good.

Reid-Foley’s start never materialized and it was a mixed bag on results of the two that did.

Here’s a look back at the two-start pitcher I recommended back in Week 22.

Another clunker from McKay. Those back-to-back suggestions for rolling him out there for two starts were awful.

Here’s a monthly breakdown of all the pitchers i have recommended this season (both one start & two starts).

Here’s to September… where I work on getting that overall ERA down below the 4.52 MLB average ERA.