Fantasy Baseball H2H Streamers – Week 6

Last week’s article wasn’t my best of the season, but we were still satisfied with the results. We actually have two of the same streamers from last week in this week’s piece, and it’s becoming evident that some of these guys need to be pried off waiver wires. One thing we never discuss is who to drop in these situations, but we need to clarify that. You should have one designated spot specifically for streamers because dropping a must-roster player for any of these guys is silly. I get questions every week that surprise me in terms of who to drop, but these streamers are risky by nature. With that in mind, let’s start by looking at the schedule!

Favorable Team Matchups

7 Games

Arizona Diamondbacks (vs. NYM, vs. LAD)

Atlanta Braves (vs. CIN, at PIT)

Cincinnati Reds (at ATL, at HOU)

Kansas City Royals (vs. CWS, vs. BOS)

6 Games

Colorado Rockies (vs. DET, vs. SD)

Detroit Tigers (at COL, vs. TEX)

Minnesota Twins (vs. BAL, vs. SF)

San Diego Padres (at NYY, at COL)

Pitching Streamers

Tony Gonsolin, LAD (at MIA)

We had Gonsolin in last week’s article, but he’s still available in nearly half of the leagues out there. That’s why we’re going to include him as one of our streamers once again, because we truly believe he won’t be available anywhere after this outing. This righty was impressive in his first start after Tommy John surgery, striking out nine batters en route to a quality start as one of our streamers last week. That’s no surprise since Miami is 28th or 29th in runs scored, OBP, OPS, and xwOBA since the start of last year. That’s exactly who he matches up against this week, but Marlins Park is an even more pitcher-friendly environment! We’re talking about a guy with a 3.21 career ERA and 1.05 WHIP, which is why he will probably be rostered in every league after another quality start this week.

Streamonator Valuation: $-11.7

Luis Ortiz, CLE (at WAS)

I usually agree with the Streamonator’s assessment, but I have to disagree here. It’s projecting Ortiz to struggle this week against the Nats, but that’s hard to believe when evaluating that matchup. Washington was bottom 10 in nearly every statistic last season and is currently 23rd in OBP and 18th in OPS this year. What’s most important is how Ortiz is mowing down batters right now. The righty closed last year with a 2.60 ERA and 1.04 WHIP across his final six starts and enters this matchup with a 3.29 ERA, 1.17 WHIP and 11.2 K/9 rate across his last five starts. A stinker in the opener is the only thing keeping him from being a must-roster player, and we’ve seen numerous Cleveland starters take that step over the last decade.

Streamonator Valuation: $-25.6

Grant Holmes, ATL (vs. CIN)

The Braves have struggled this season, but it appears they’ve stumbled into something with Holmes. This righty has been one of the best streamers through the opening month, maintaining a 4.24 ERA, 1.21 WHIP and 9.3 K/9 rate. One dud against Arizona is the only thing that’s kept him on waiver wires, with Holmes posting a 2.79 ERA, 0.93 WHIP and 9.3 K/9 rate across his last four starts outside of that stinker. We’re willing to trust that because Arizona’s offense is better than Cincinnati’s. The Reds have improved this season, but Holmes had a 4.15 ERA and 10.4 K/9 rate in three appearances against them last year.

Streamonator Valuation: $-2.1

Michael Wacha, KC (vs. CWS)

Wacha was actually my favorite pitcher in baseball when he was coming up with the Cardinals a decade ago, but it’s been a roller coaster since then. The good news is that Wacha has recaptured some of that form over the last four seasons, sporting a 3.32 ERA and 1.17 WHIP since 2022. That’s right on par with what we’ve seen so far this season, and he should be able to lower those averages in a matchup with the worst offense in baseball. That’s the White Sox, who rank last in runs scored, OBP, OPS, wOBA, and xwOBA since the start of last year. Not to mention, Wacha has a 2.78 ERA at home over the last three years while posting a 1.33 ERA and 0.78 WHIP in four starts against the ChiSox last season.

Streamonator Valuation: $19.8

Brayan Bello/Lucas Giolito, BOS (at KC)

I’ll be honest with you, I don’t trust either of these guys as far as I can throw them, but I must acknowledge that these two streamers can have value. They’re both immensely talented pitchers, and both guys are finally healthy for the first time in years. Bello was projected to be this team’s ace when he came up, tallying a 2.55 ERA and 1.19 WHIP through three starts this year. That’s the potential fans were waiting to see, and it wouldn’t be surprising to see this 25-year-old finally put things together.

As for Giolito, he was actually one of my preseason busts years ago in his time with Chicago, and many of you were calling me out for it. I feel vindicated since he’s struggled since then, but we’re still talking about a former Cy Young candidate. That alone is intriguing from one of our streamers, especially since Giolito struck out seven batters en route to a quality start in his season debut just a few days ago. Doing that against a talented Toronto lineup is enticing because KC has been terrible. The Royals rank 27th in OBP, 28th in runs scored and 29th in wOBA.

Streamonator Valuation: $7.4/-23.9

Hitting Streamers

Jordan Beck/Hunter Goodman, COL (vs. DET, vs. SD)

Picking the Rockies as our streamers is scary, but this is one of those full weeks at home. That’s always the best time to ride these bats because Coors Field has been the most hitter-friendly park in baseball throughout its existence. That always has Colorado as one of the highest-projected lineups on every slate, regularly forecasted to score 5-6 runs in every game. We do acknowledge that these are tough rotations, but the Rockies are fortunate to fade Dylan Cease and Jack Flaherty. That should leave them plenty of bad pitchers to oppose, and we’ll ride these two youngsters against them.

Let’s kickstart these Rockies streamers with Beck. He’s been their best bat this season, collecting five homers and four steals en route to a .342 OBP and .920 OPS. That’s awesome since he hasn’t even been at home much, with most Rockies bats posting much better splits in Coors Field. That’s certainly been the case for Goodman, generating a .495 SLG and .786 OPS at home throughout his career. He’s also got a .386 OBP and .870 OPS across his last 17 games, which is really difficult to find from any waiver wire catcher!

Pavin Smith, ARI (vs. NYM, vs. LAD)

Why are people sleeping on Pavin? We’re talking about the three-hole hitter for the highest-scoring lineup from last season! Smith has earned that spot with his absurd splits, sporting a .466 OBP and 1.100 OPS against righties this year. That’s nearly 100 plate appearances of mashing, backed by a .480 OBP and 1.124 OPS across his last 21 outings. Facing the Mets and Dodgers would have sounded tough a few years ago, but these rotations are a shell of themselves with so many players on the IL. That’s a huge benefit since at least five of these starters are right-handers, making Smith one of the best hitting streamers of the week!

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

Steals Specialists

TJ Friedl (CIN)

We’ve had Friedl as one of our streamers numerous times this season, so let’s squeeze him into the steals section! He’s the everyday leadoff hitter in Cincy, recording a steal in five of his last 14 fixtures!

Chandler Simpson (TB)

Simpson is still sitting on some waiver wires, and there’s no better bet for speed out there. He’s leading off in Tampa and has three steals over his last 11 games. The speedster also had 206 steals across 242 minor league games since 2023!

Saves Specialists

Shelby Miller (ARI)

With AJ Puk and Justin Martinez both getting injured, there are saves up for grabs in Arizona. We will bet on Miller because he got the first opportunity and hasn’t allowed a run across 13.2 innings this season.

Tommy Kahnle (DET)

People are still sleeping on Kahnle. He’s got five saves over his last 11 appearances while posting an ERA and WHIP below 1.00.

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