I hate to toot my own horn, but I crushed last week’s article. Grant Holmes, Edward Cabrera and Eric Lauer all threw gems, while the hitters were nothing to complain about. What’s truly remarkable is that this is the final week before the All-Star break. It feels like the season just started two months ago, and to see these teams flirt with 100 games played is hard to believe. We’ll keep chugging along with streamers, though, and I’ll be back in two weeks to finish out the season strong! With that in mind, let’s look at the favorable matchups and then dive into those streamers!
Favorable Team Matchups
7 Games
Boston Red Sox (vs. COL, vs. TB)
Cincinnati Reds (vs. MIA, vs. COL)
Cleveland Guardians (at HOU, at CWS)
Miami Marlins (at CIN, at BAL)
Texas Rangers (at LAA, at HOU)
6 Games
Athletics (vs. ATL, vs. TOR)
Atlanta Braves (at ATH, at STL)
St. Louis Cardinals (vs. WAS, vs. ATL)
Toronto Blue Jays (at CWS, at ATH)
Pitching Streamers
Brady Singer/Nick Martinez, CIN (vs. MIA, vs. COL)
If you’ve been reading my articles, you probably expected to see some Cincy pitchers in here after seeing those matchups. There are simply not many better two-start weeks for any pitcher than facing the Rockies and Marlins. Miami ranks 18th in wOBA and 20th in runs scored while sitting bottom three in nearly every offensive category last year. Colorado is much worse than that, sitting 29th or 30th in OBP, K rate, and xwOBA.
Facing those two awful offenses puts both of these solid pitchers in line to be two of the best streamers of the week. Singer is the more reliable of the two streamers, allowing four runs or fewer in 16 of 17 starts. The only stinker was against a dangerous Houston offense, with Singer sporting a 3.75 ERA and 1.26 WHIP outside of that dud. Martinez is right there with Singer, maintaining a 3.56 ERA and 1.09 WHIP since signing with Cincy last year. He’s also allowed just two runs across 10.2 innings in two matchups with Miami in that span, while Singer has allowed just three runs across 13.1 innings in those same matchups. Don’t be surprised to see both of these steamers as -200 favorites in both of these games as well!
Streamonator Valuation: $38.1/$20
Noah Cameron, KC (vs. PIT)
Why is nobody talking about how special Cameron has been this season? This rookie has a 2.56 ERA and 1.01 WHIP across 10 starts, but has been even better than that would indicate. His only two duds were against the Yankees and Dodgers, with Cameron collecting a 0.96 ERA and 0.92 WHIP in the other eight outings. That equates to just five total runs across eight starts, and it’d be hard to imagine Cameron not keeping that going against Pittsburgh’s pitiful offense. The Pirates rank 25th in K rate, 26th in runs scored, 29th in OPS, and 28th in wOBA. The only concern is a matchup with Paul Skenes, but the Buccos haven’t been scoring when Skenes has been pitching anyway.
Streamonator Valuation: $-11.7
Mitch Keller, PIT (at KC)
Keller has quietly developed into an underrated pitcher. This veteran righty has a 3.64 ERA and 1.19 WHIP in another solid season. That’s not far behind the 4.10 ERA and 1.26 WHIP we’ve seen over the last three years, but his recent form is what really sparked my eye. Keller has allowed three runs or fewer in 10 of his last 11 starts, collecting a 3.21 ERA and 1.10 WHIP in that span. It’s also fascinating because he has better splits on the road this year, registering a 3.16 ERA and 1.03 WHIP outside of PNC Park. That should bode well with how bad the Royals have been, ranked 25th in OBP, 26th in OPS, 28th in wOBA and 29th in runs scored.
Streamonator Valuation: $-20.9
Eric Lauer, TOR (at CWS)
We had Lauer as one of our streamers last week, and we’re going right back to the well. This lefty just continues to mow down bats, maintaining a 2.65 ERA and 1.02 WHIP this year. Those are averages you usually see from relievers, with Lauer allowing three runs or fewer in every appearance this season. He’s also got a 2.34 ERA, 0.98 WHIP, and 9.1 K/9 rate across his last eight starts. It might look like a flukey month, but this lefty had a 3.47 ERA and 1.19 WHIP across 49 starts between 2021 and 2022. All of that makes it hard to believe Lauer isn’t rostered in every league, but that’ll likely be the case after his Angels matchup and then this White Sox game. Chicago sits bottom three in runs scored, OBP, OPS, and xwOBA since the start of last year!
Streamonator Valuation: $-8.9
Lucas Giolito, BOS (vs. COL)
Giolito is a risky option as one of your streamers, but we shouldn’t overlook the talent. Injuries have slowed down this former ace over recent years, but we’re still talking about a guy who had a 3.47 ERA, 1.08 WHIP, and 33 percent K rate between 2019 and 2021. This righty appears to be recapturing some of that form, allowing two runs or fewer in seven of his last eight starts. A seven-run shelling is the only thing that kept Giolito on the waiver wire because he has a 2.15 ERA and 1.17 WHIP in that span. That’s nearly two months of pristine pitching, and we’re definitely not concerned about a home matchup with Colorado. We already discussed how the Rockies rank near the bottom of every offense category, and those statistics get much worse outside of Coors Field.
Streamonator Valuation: $37.5
Jose Soriano, LAA (vs. TEX)
Soriano is amid one of the most bizarre seven-start stretches that I’ve ever seen. He’s allowed one run or fewer in five of those while getting skunked for 15 total runs in two matchups with the Red Sox and Nationals. We’ll trust the five-start sample size over the two-start one because the strikeout stuff has been incredible in that span. Despite allowing eight runs just two starts ago, Soriano has a 2.84 ERA, 1.04 WHIP and 11.1 K/9 rate across his last five starts. That shows how special Soriano has been outside of the stinker, and it’s unlikely one of those happens against Texas. The Rangers rank 28th in OBP, 27th in OPS, 26th in wOBA, and 25th in runs scored.
Streamonator Valuation: $7.6
Hitting Streamers
Austin Hays, CIN (vs. MIA, vs. COL)
If it weren’t for three separate IL stints this season, Hays would be rostered in every league already. This outfielder has been hitting cleanup for Cincinnati this season, tallying a .284 AVG, .539 SLG, and .861 OPS. That’s nearly 40 games of dominance, and we can’t overlook the fact that Cincy has seven games at home. Great American Ballpark is one of the most hitter-friendly environments in baseball, and having seven games there this week will have the Reds ranked as the highest-projected offense of the week. It’s not like they’re facing scary pitching staffs either, with the Rockies ranked dead-last in ERA, WHIP, wOB,A and xwOBA while Miami sits 24th in wOBA, 25th in xwOBA, and 26th in ERA. If players like Spencer Steer and TJ Friedl are available on your wire, pick them up as well!
Jurickson Profar, ATL (at ATH, at STL)
This isn’t as much about the matchups. Profar was a must-roster player before his PED suspension, and he should be added in his return to action. This guy is hitting in the heart of Atlanta’s lineup every day, providing a .814 OPS through his first six outings. That’s on par with what we saw last season, with Profar posting a .380 OBP and .839 OPS. That was paired with 24 homers and 10 steals, and you better believe this former top prospect is out to prove those PEDs weren’t the reason for his success. The matchups are pretty special, too, because the Athletics rank 29th in ERA and WHIP while posting even worse numbers in Sacramento. St. Louis isn’t scary either, sending out Erick Fedde, Andre Pallante, and Matthew Liberatore in their three-game set.
Other hitting streamers to consider: Trevor Story, Josh Smith, Alec Burleson, and any Reds bat sitting on the wire!
SAGNOF (Saves/Steals Ain’t Got No Face)
Steals Specialists
Tyler Freeman (COL)
Freeman has been hitting leadoff for the Rockies recently, recording six steals over his last 10 outings.
Dane Myers (MIA)
Myers has developed into an everyday player in Miami, picking up five steals across his last five fixtures.
Saves Specialists
Ronny Henriquez (MIA)
We haven’t had clarity on this Miami bullpen all season, but it’s looking like Henriquez is the guy. The righty has three saves over his last three appearances, accruing a 0.93 ERA, 0.93 WHIP and 13.0 K/9 rate across his last 10 outings.
Matt Strahm (PHI)
Jordan Romano has blown his opportunity, which has led to Strahm picking up three saves over his last seven outings. Almost all of those have been in the ninth inning as well, so this could be a sneaky pickup if Strahm runs away with this gig.
Feel free to comment here or reach me on Twitter @Bartilottajoel if you have any questions!
Feel like being bold and starting Thairo @ Fenway and @ GAB over Mookie @ Milw @ SF?
I wouldn’t do that but its your team