Can we just turn off injuries for the rest of my life? It’s been out of control recently, and it’s sad to see some of the best players in baseball miss so much time. That’s why this article is more important than ever because picking the right streamers can help make up for some of those absences. I love the risk of picking streamers every week, even though the results can be hit-or-miss. We’ve had a good run recently with the streamers, so we’ll look to keep that going here. With that in mind, let’s start by looking at the favorable matchups for this week.
Favorable Team Matchups
7 Games
Seattle Mariners (at BAL, at WAS)
6 Games
Arizona Diamondbacks (at MIA, at CIN)
Athletics (vs. MIA, vs. COL)
Atlanta Braves (at CWS, at NYM)
Chicago Cubs (at COL, at SF)
Colorado Rockies (vs. CHC, at ATH)
Houston Astros (at LAA, at KC)
Kansas City Royals (vs. TEX, vs. HOU)
Los Angeles Dodgers (at PIT, at CWS)
Milwaukee Brewers (at ATH, vs. PHI)
San Diego Padres (vs. CIN, at BAL)
Tampa Bay Rays (vs. BOS, at LAA)
Texas Rangers (at KC, at BOS)
Pitching Streamers
Grant Holmes, ATL (at CWS, at NYM)
It’s always nice to see a Kenny Powers-like player as one of our streamers. Holmes certainly is that when looking at his headshot, but he’s earned the right to rock that mullet with some solid pitching. This righty has never had an ERA below 4.00 in his three seasons since his call-up, compiling a 3.84 career ERA and 1.29 WHIP. That sort of consistency is evident in his game log, with Holmes allowing three runs or fewer in 11 of 12 starts this season. He should be able to make that 13 of 14 after this week because Holmes has two good matchups. The White Sox are missing their best bat right now, while ranked 28th in K rate. The Mets play in the most pitcher-friendly park in baseball, while ranked 29th in OPS and wOBA. In his last two starts against NY, Holmes struck out 13 batters across nine innings while allowing just two runs.
Streamonator Valuation: $-20.3
Jack Flaherty, DET (vs. MIN, at CLE)
This is a risky recommendation for one of our streamers, but I truly believe that Flaherty is a good pitcher. The numbers wouldn’t say that this season, but any glimmer of hope is enough for me, given the belief I have in Flaherty. This righty threw five scoreless innings in his most recent outing and now has a 14.1 K/9 rate across his last three starts. That’s more on par with what we saw in the past because Flaherty had a 3.80 ERA, 1.20 WHIP and 10.3 K/9 throughout his career coming into this season. We expect him to regress back to those averages since he has a 4.40 FIP, and this two-start week could keep him headed in the right direction. The Twins rank 20th in K rate and 28th in xwOBA, while the Guardians rank 19th in runs scored and wOBA. Flaherty had a 3.94 ERA, 1.13 WHIP and 10.1 K.9 rate in three starts against Cleveland last season and held Minnesota to one run in their only matchup this year!
Streamonator Valuation: $3.4
UPDATE: Flaherty is pitching Sunday, so his only start will be against Cleveland. He’s still a good option as one of our streamers in that game.
Spencer Kolek, KC (vs. TEX)
Kolek was not a player I expected to recommend as one of our streamers at the beginning of the season, but he looks like a different guy in KC. This righty has three of the best starts of his career over the last few weeks, registering a 1.98 ERA and 0.91 WHIP across his last four starts. That brings his season averages to a 3.32 ERA and 0.97 WHIP while posting a 1.80 ERA and 0.60 WHIP at home. Having a 0.60 WHIP at home is truly absurd, and there’s no chance that Texas torches him when looking at their numbers. The Rangers rank 23rd in wOBA, 24th in runs scored and 25th in OPS so far this season.
Streamonator Valuation: $-16.3
Lucas Giolito, SD (vs. CIN)
Giolito had an ugly showing against Washington last week, but that’s the only blip on the radar since his return from the IL. He’s allowed just five runs and 11 hits across his other three starts en route to a 3.21 ERA. That’s in line with what we saw last season, with Giolito generating a 3.41 ERA and 1.29 WHIP with the Red Sox. This is also a former Cy Young candidate who had a 3.46 ERA and 1.08 WHIP between 2019 and 2021. That’s a long time ago, but pitching in a spacious park like the one San Diego possesses could be what Gio needs for a bounce-back season, and we expect to see some stellar splits there all season. He threw five scoreless innings in his only home start this year and shouldn’t struggle with Cincy. They rank 29th in K rate and just lost their MVP candidate for a few weeks.
Streamonator Valuation: $-2.3
Bubba Chandler, PIT (vs. MIA)
There was some hope that Chandler would become an ace pairing next to Skenes, but those expectations have simmered since his slow start. The good news is that this talented righty is starting to turn things around, tallying a 4.20 ERA and 11.4 K/9 rate across his last three starts. The walks and WHIP have been an issue, but he’s allowed four runs or fewer in 11 of 12 starts this season. The potential is what has us really intrigued as one of our streamers because Chandler compiled a 3.42 ERA and 11.1 K/9 rate at Triple-A. That’s good news since Miami has a lineup that looks like a Triple-A team, with the Marlins ranked 28th in xwOBA. It’s also a roster that’s never seen Chandler, so he should thrive in a pitcher’s park like PNC.
Streamonator Valuation: $-9.0
Hitting Streamers
Luke Raley/JP Crawford, SEA (at BAL, at WAS)
There are only two teams with seven games this week, and Seattle has the best matchups of any team in MLB. That makes them the best lineup by a mile, so both of these guys are worthy options as streamers this week. Let’s kickstart things with Raley because he’s been one of Seattle’s best sluggers this season. Raley has a .261 AVG, .547 SLG and .871 OPS in what’s developing into a career year. That’s why he’s been hitting fourth or fifth every day in this Mariners lineup. Crawford’s lineup spot is even better because he’s the everyday leadoff hitter. JP has a .357 OBP and .786 OPS across his last 49 fixtures. Being one of the only teams with seven games is one thing, but these matchups couldn’t be better. Baltimore ranks 24th in ERA, 26th in WHIP and 27th in wOBA, while Washington ranks 25th in ERA, 23rd in WHIP and 28th in xwOBA.
Joc Pederson, TEX (at KC, at BOS)
Baseball is always better when Pederson is playing well. This former top prospect is an overweight veteran at this point, but he’s still raking. That’s why the Rangers have been hitting him leadoff recently, providing a .429 OBP and 1.082 OPS over the last month. Joc also has a 1.257 OPS across his last nine outings and has massively improved his splits against southpaws. He has a 1.444 OPS against left-handers this year and faces three righties and three lefties this week. His .846 career OPS against right-handers is also impressive, and we’re not worried about these matchups. KC ranks 22nd in ERA and 25th in wOBA, while Boston is 19th in xwOBA.
SAGNOF (Saves/Steals Ain’t Got No Face)
Steals Specialists
Sam Antonacci (CWS)
Antonacci’s .383 OBP makes him an intriguing option as one of our steals streamers, especially since he had 60 steals across 153 minor league games.
Nasim Nunez (WAS)
Nunez does nothing for fantasy baseball purposes aside from stealing bases. That’s all we care about, though, with Nunez recording 22 steals so far this season.
Saves Specialists
Rico Garcia (BAL)
Ryan Helsley is expected to return later this month, but Garcia is the guy for now. He has a 0.68 ERA and 0.61 WHIP while picking up three saves over the last month.
Yoendrys Gomes (MIN)
We haven’t figured out who the Twins’ closer is all season, but Gomez might be the guy. He has two saves over his last six appearances while posting a 0.59 ERA and 0.85 WHIP since April 22.
Feel free to comment here or reach me on Twitter @Bartilottajoel if you have any questions! Also, feel free to check out my Waiver Wire article from yesterday!
