Fantasy Baseball H2H Streamers – Week 17

My first article back from the break did a great job with the pitchers, but a disappointing performance from the hitters. That’s naturally the more likely outcome when examining streamers because it’s much easier to predict the arms than the bats. What makes it even easier is that we have some of the worst lineups I’ve ever seen right now. There are a handful of teams we want to exploit every week, and many of those teams appear here. With that in mind, let’s look at the favorable matchups and then dive into those streamers!

Favorable Team Matchups

7 Games

Atlanta Braves (at KC, at CIN)

Cincinnati Reds (vs. LAD, vs. ATL)

Seattle Mariners (at ATH, vs. TEX)

Toronto Blue Jays (at BAL, vs. KC)

6 Games

Athletics (vs. SEA, vs. ARI)

Cleveland Guardians (vs. COL, vs. MIN)

Los Angeles Dodgers (at CIN, vs. TB)

Pitching Streamers

Slade Cecconi/Gavin Williams, CLE (vs. COL)

Anytime the Rockies are on the road, we have to use pitchers against them. This offense always falls off a cliff outside of Coors Field, but they were already well off the cliff before the horrific splits. Let’s start there because the Rockies rank in the bottom three in runs scored, OBP, wOBA and K rate. That’s bad news in a place like Cleveland because this is one of the hottest teams in baseball right now.

Cecconi is the more widely available option as one of our streamers, collecting a 3.33 ERA and 1.17 WHIP across his last six starts. That even includes a six-run shelling, but Steven Vogt left him out there to fry in the ninth inning to kill a quality start. As for Williams, he has a 2.83 ERA, 1.20 WHIP and 8.3 K/9 rate across his last six starts. He’s still available in about half the leagues on Yahoo and needs to be rostered with some of his recent adjustments with pitch selection. Don’t be surprised if both of these guys are -300 favorites as well!

Streamonator Valuation: $42.2/$10.8

Eric Lauer, TOR (at BAL)

Why is Lauer still available in so many leagues? This guy has been the best pitcher for a surprising Toronto team and one of the best arms in the AL. This lefty has allowed three runs or fewer in all 10 starts this season, tallying a 2.61 ERA and 0.93 WHIP. Lauer also has a 2.63 ERA, 0.67 WHIP and 9.8 K/9 rate over his last four fixtures. Any sample size makes this southpaw look like a stud, especially since he had a 3.47 ERA and 1.19 WHIP between 2021 and 2022. It’s nearly impossible to find all of that from one of your streamers, but facing the O’s in Baltimore is the icing on the cake. Camden has been a pitcher’s park since moving in the fences, with the Orioles ranked 21st in wOBA, 22nd in OPS, 24th in OBP, 23rd in runs scored and 26th in K rate.

Streamonator Valuation: $-4.0

Luis Gil, NYY (at MIA)

This is one of our riskiest streamers of the week, but it looks like Gil will be ready to return to this rotation. We usually like to wait at least one start before recommending one of these guys coming off the IL, but we can’t overlook this matchup with Miami. The Marlins have been better this year, but they still rank bottom five in runs scored, OPS and wOBA since the start of last season. That alone makes Gil an easy sell because this was one of the best pitchers in baseball before an injury last year. The Rookie of the Year had a 3.14 ERA, 1.18 WHIP and 10.3 K/9 rate through his first 27 starts last season. He also has 13 strikeouts across 6.2 innings through his minor league rehab assignment, making him an easy sell against a Triple-A lineup.

Streamonator Valuation: $NA

I had Brandon Walter and Landedn Roupp ready as two of my streamers but both guys landed on the IL this weekend!

Hitting Streamers

Drake Baldwin, ATL (at KC, at CIN)

Most fantasy teams seem to be set at the catcher position, but we shouldn’t overlook how special Baldwin has been. The only issue has been his playing time, but Atlanta has chosen to bench Marcell Ozuna and play this catcher as much as possible. That’s led to Baldwin hitting third or fourth in eight straight games. Seeing any catcher start eight straight is a godsend, but Baldwin has earned it with his bat. The backstop has a .284 AVG., 353 OBP, .479 SLG and .832 OPS in a candidacy for Rookie of the Year. He also had a .405 OBP and .892 OPS at Triple-A, so this is far from a fluke. Getting seven games in Cincy and versus KC couldn’t be much better either, because both of these teams are missing their ace.

Angel Martinez, CLE (vs. COL, vs. MIN)

Angels in the Outfield was one of my favorite movies as a kid, showcasing Adrien Brody and Matthew McConaughey’s outfield skills. That’s why part of me loves Angel Martinez because he’s been one of Cleveland’s best hitters this year. Stephen Vogt has noticed that and stuck Martinez in as his everyday two-hole hitter. Angel earned that promotion behind a .328 AVG, .672 SLG and 1.038 OPS across his last 15 fixtures. You really couldn’t be in a better lineup spot ahead of Jose Ramirez and behind Steven Kwan, leading to the best stretch of Martinez’s career. He’s also got much higher splits at home and gets some of the best matchups against a Rockies team that ranks last in ERA, WHIP and xwOBA.

Jorge Polanco, SEA (at ATH, vs. TEX)

Polanco has been fooling us all season. He started off as one of the hottest hitters in the league and then found himself on every waiver wire with a two-month slump. The good news is that he’s recaptured that early-season form lately, registering a .281 AVG, .632 SLG and .981 OPS since July 2. That’s more in line with the 1.250 OPS Polanco posted through the opening month, making him one of the sexiest streamers for this new-look Seattle lineup. The best part about this is that he gets seven games against weak pitching staffs. The A’s rank 29th or 30th in wOBA, ERA and WHIP while facing the backend of the Rangers rotation.

SAGNOF (Saves/Steals Ain’t Got No Face)

Steals Specialists

Colton Cowser (BAL)

Cowser has been feeling his base stealing recently, recording four steals across his last 10 outings.

Victor Scott (STL)

Despite batting at the back of this lineup, Scott is still showcasing his elite speed. He has 26 steals this season, picking up four of those across his last 11 outings.

Saves Specialists

Robert Garcia (TEX)

After numerous blow-ups in the ninth inning by a plethora of pitchers, Garcia has grabbed this gig. The lefty has two saves over his last four outings, providing a 1.72 ERA and 12.1 K/9 rate since July 5.

Matt Strahm (PHI)

The Phillies don’t have a designated closer, but Strahm has been pitching the ninth inning more than anyone. He has four saves over his last 14 fixtures, posting a 1.93 ERA, 0.93 WHIP and 10.3 K/9 rate in that span.

Feel free to comment here or reach me on Twitter @Bartilottajoel if you have any questions!