This week in fantasy baseball there is no shortage of two-start pitchers. A plethora of names that are interesting and an equal amount of names I want no parts of. My prediction of Marcus Stroman “The Rubberband Man” pitching a No-Hitter did not come to fruition, he only made one start, and it was his worst of the season.
The second coming of Carlos Rodon still seems to be on track even though he was a bit shaky with control in his last start. None the less he struck out 9 over 5 innings and it would be wise to ride the horse until it starts bucking. There is a lot of games this upcoming week so let’s get to the rankings.
THE MUST STARTS
1. Corbin Burnes MIL: (4/26 vs MIA), (5/1 @ LAD)
– How can I not rank him number 1. The first pitcher in MLB history to start a season with 40 K’s and ZERO walks. Sign me up. Buy this guy’s baseball card now folks because he looks like the second coming of uhm… Jacob deGrom. With the way this guy is pitching not even the Dodgers stand a chance.
2. Carlos Rodon CHW: (4/27 vs DET), (5/2 vs CLE)
– Call me crazy for ranking him this high, but I am really liking what he’s shown so far this year. He’s still only allowed 1 run this year. After throwing a No-Hitter against Cleveland he followed it up last week with 5 IP, 1 ER, 5 BB, and 9 K’s. I like both matchups this week at home and I am not expecting an implosion of any kind.
3. Max Scherzer WAS: (4/27 @ TOR), (5/2 vs MIA)
– The Road Warrior has been nothing short of impressive so far this year. Mad Max’s numbers so far stand as such. 25 IP, 5 ER, 4 BB, 33 K’s, and a 0.72 WHIP. Start him til’ his arm falls off.
4. Walker Buehler LAD: (4/27 vs CIN), (5/2 @ MIL)
– Walker Texas Ranger has started the season with 4 straight QS. His strikeouts were a concern for his first 3 starts of the season tallying just 4 in each of the starts. Last week he got back on track with 9 against the Padres so hopefully, he takes that outing and builds off of it. Any which way you look at it though, he has been a stud.
5. Jose Berrios MIN: (4/26 @ CLE), (5/1 vs KC)
– Normally a QS king. Berrios has only finished the 6th Inning once this year in 4 starts. The upside here is that he’s striking batters out at a higher clip than in the past. 30 K’s in 21 IP. Regardless of his inability to go deep into games so far, I love both of these matchups for him.
6. Zach Eflin PHI: (4/27 @ STL), (5/2 vs NYM)
– Eflin is quietly having a really good season. He’s Pitched 6 innings or more in every start this year and has 3 QS. He’s a control pitcher who loves to pitch in the zone and that’s led to 19:2 strikeout to walk ratio. He has a very strong floor and is really coming into his own this year.
7. Charlie Morton ATL: (4/26 vs CHC), (5/1 @ TOR)
– Father time still hasn’t caught up to old Uncle Chuck evidenced by his 27 K’s over 23 IP. You can trust Chuckie Morton.
8. Julio Urias LAD: (4/26 vs CIN), (5/1 @ MIL)
– The young talented lefty is coming off his best start of the season where he went 7 innings of shutout ball. Oh, and he also had 11 K’s in his last start. Riding high off that start I like the matchups here, especially against the Brewers.
9. Trevor Rodgers MIA: (4/26 @ MIL), (5/2 @ WAS)
– One of my sleeper candidates to start the year. Rodgers has done nothing to dissuade that feeling. He’s only 23 and has 31 K’s in 22 innings. His secondary arsenal continues to impress. Both these lineups are without their best player and I expect Rodgers to continue racking up the strikeouts.
10. Ian Anderson ATL: (4/27 vs CHC), (5/2 @ TOR)
– Anderson is 22 naturally there will be some downswings evidenced by his struggle with walks this year and his struggle to strike guys out so far. He’s got a ton of talent though and I for one believe in him. I’m not crazy about the matchups here but I don’t hate them either.
11. Zach Wheeler PHI: (4/26 @ STL), (5/1 vs NYM)
– He’s struggled with control in 2 of his last 3 outings gaining him earlier than usual exits. He however is a steady horse with a pretty decent floor that you can run out there on a weekly basis no questions asked.
THE QUESTIONABLE
12. Tyler Mahle CIN: (4/26 @ LAD), (5/2 vs CHC)
– He’s off to a RED hot start this year. 4 starts, 20.2 IP, 4 ER, 9 BB, 31 K’s, and a 0.87 WHIP. On the surface these numbers look pretty good, but he only has one QS in the current stretch and he is having trouble going deep into games which is a concern for me. It also helps that he’s pitched against the Cardinals, the D’Backs twice, and the Giants. If he keeps it up against the Dodgers Monday it will go a long way in becoming a believer.
13. Cristian Javier HOU: (4/27 vs SEA), (5/2 @ TB)
– After a brief hiatus down at the alternate training site due to the Astros not needing a 5th starter, Javier came back last week and didn’t miss a step. He threw 5 innings with 0 ER, 1 BB, and 9 K’s. He’s really looked good all year minus 1 inning in his first start. Confidently start him in both of these matchups.
14. Sean Manaea OAK: (4/26 @ TB), (5/1 vs BAL)
– He’s been a catalyst for this team during their winning streak. In his last 3 starts his stat line is as follows. 3 QS, 19 IP, 3 ER, 2 BB, and 18 K’s. He’s arguably in one of the best stretches of his career right now and with 2 pretty good matchups coming up it would be wise to ride the hot hand while the coals are still burning.
15. Jose Urquidy HOU: (4/26 vs SEA), (5/1 @ TB)
– He’s been inconsistent, to say the least. In his last start, he only chalked up 1 strikeout which is no bueno. His best start of the season came against the Mariners so we’ll see if he can channel that version of himself this go round’.
16. Frankie Montas OAK: (4/27 @ TB), (5/2 vs BAL)
– Unlike his counterpart in this section, Montas has been the exact opposite. He’s had 2 good starts and 2 starts where he got utterly destroyed. He’s not walking anyone so that’s a good sign. But he still has a 1.55 WHIP and mostly all of that is hits. The matchups are good enough to take a flier here but be wary of being burned mightily.
17. Adam Wainwright STL: (4/26 vs PHI), (5/1 @ PIT)
– The veteran is coming off of his best start of the season against Washington. It was vintage Wainwright he went 7 IP, 1 ER, 1 BB, and 10 K’s. Anytime you see the Pirates on the schedule the heart fills with elation.
18. Zach Plesac CLE: (4/26 vs MIN), (5/2 @ CHW)
– The epitome of questionable right now. Plesac has got rocked by the White Sox 2 starts in a row. 5.2 IP, 14 H, 12 ER and only 4 K’s in those 2 starts. He draws the Sox again Sunday and the laws of averages tell you that this type of output can’t happen again. For his sake, let’s hope that holds true.
19. Justus Sheffield SEA: (4/26 @ HOU), (5/1 vs LAA)
– He’s been solid so far this year. He doesn’t do anything special but he has a decent floor. I don’t particularly care for either of these matchups but he faired well in his last start versus the Dodgers. I trust him not to get shelled that’s about it.
POINTS ONLY
Anthony DeSclafani SF: (4/26 vs COL), (5/2 @ SD)
Austin Gomber COL: (4/26 @ SF), (5/1 @ ARI)
LET IT BE, LET IT BE
Brad Keller KC: (4/26 @ DET)(5/2 @ MIN), Spencer Turnbull DET: (4/26 vs KC)(5/1 @ NYY), Carlos Martinez STL: (4/27 vs PHI)(5/2 @ PIT), Zach Davies CHC: (4/26 @ ATL)(5/1 @ CIN), Michael Wacha TB: (4/26 vs OAK)(5/1 vs HOU), Matt Harvey BAL: (4/26 vs NYY)(5/1 @ OAK), Jose Urena DET: (4/27 @ CHW)(5/2 @ NYY), Trevor Williams CHC: (4/27 @ ATL)(5/2 @ CIN), Mike Foltynewicz TEX: (4/27 vs LAA)(5/2 vs BOS), Bruce Zimmerman BAL: (4/27 vs NYY)(5/2 @ OAK), Jordan Lyles TEX: (4/26 vs LAA)(5/1 vs BOS), Chi-Chi Gonzalez COL: (4/27 @ SF)(5/2 @ ARI), Garrett Richards BOS: (4/27 @ NYM)(5/2 @ TEX), Adrian Houser MIL: (4/27 vs MIA)(5/2 vs LAD), Rich Hill TB: (4/26 vs OAK)(5/1 vs HOU)
