Fantasy Baseball H2H Streamers – Week 7

Last week’s article had some mixed results, but we went with a risky bunch of streamers. That’s more likely to happen at this point of the season because the waiver wires have been picked bone dry. There always tend to be three major spots to thrive on the waiver wire. The opening two weeks are the most important time, while the trade deadline week is the second-best. It’s also imperative to feast in the final two months because there will inevitably be a few teams that drop out of your league and make the waiver wire thicker. We love that time of the season, but it’s time to grind away with some streamers and try to build a lead in our leagues!

Favorable Team Matchups

7 Games

Atlanta Braves (vs. WAS, at BOS)

Houston Astros (vs. KC, at TEX)

Texas Rangers (vs. COL, vs. HOU)

6 Games

Arizona Diamondbacks (at SF, vs. COL)

Baltimore Orioles (vs. MIN, vs. WAS)

Chicago Cubs (vs. MIA, vs. CWS)

Cincinnati Reds (vs. CWS, vs. CLE)

Los Angeles Dodgers (vs. ATH, vs. LAA)

Philadelphia Phillies (vs. STL, vs. PIT)

Pitching Streamers

Merrill Kelly, ARI (at SF, vs. COL)

Kelly has been a must-roster player in the past, but we’ll settle for him as one of our streamers in this amazing two-start week. Let’s start with Kelly’s form, with the righty allowing just one run in three of his last five starts. He’s allowed three runs or fewer in all but one outing, compiling a 2.45 ERA and 0.85 WHIP across those seven starts. The only stinker was a nine-run shelling in Yankee Stadium, but we’re willing to overlook that since it’s one of the best offenses in baseball.

These two teams are far from that, and we get Kelly in two pitcher-friendly parks. The first one is in San Fran’s spacious park, with the Giants ranked 19th in K rate and 22nd in xwOBA. That’s a solid matchup, but the home game against Colorado couldn’t be better. Not only do the Rockies struggle mightily on the road, but they also rank dead-last in runs scored, K rate, and xwOBA no matter where they play this season. He actually faced these teams four times last year, allowing two runs or fewer in all of them, en route to four quality starts!

Streamonator Valuation: $55 (WOW!)

Colin Rea, CHC (vs. MIA, vs. CWS)

I’m not even sure Rea is a good pitcher, but it’s impossible to overlook his early-season form and these two magical matchups. Let’s start with the opposition because I truly don’t believe there’s a better two-start week regarding matchups. Both of these teams are in the bottom three in runs scored, OBP, OPS, and xwOBA since the start of last season. In fact, there’s not even a fantasy-relevant batter on either of these offenses outside of Xavier Edwards, and he’s off to a rough start to the season.

Facing two offenses like this should make Rea a -250 home favorite in both of these matchups, and it’s easy to understand why when looking at his numbers. Rea had a rough outing against San Fran in his last start, but he still has a 2.43 ERA and 1.21 WHIP in an unbelievable opening to the season. The only real concern is a limited pitch count, but even if Rea is held to five innings in both of these, we should get at least one win and some solid peripherals across 10-12 innings.

Streamonator Valuation: $18.7

Dean Kremer, BAL (vs. MIN)

This is one of our riskiest streamers of the season, but something tells me Kremer will be a stud at home all season. Camden Yards has developed into one of the best pitcher’s parks in baseball over the last two years, with Kremer compiling a 0.73 ERA and 0.73 WHIP in two starts there this season. The road numbers have been beyond horrid, but we’re talking about a guy with a 3.85 ERA and 1.27 WHIP over the last three years. He should positively regress back to those numbers as the season progresses, and a home matchup with Minnesota could kick him in the right direction. The Twins rank 19th in OPS, 22nd in OBP, and 20th in xwOBA.

Streamonator Valuation: $2.8

AJ Smith-Shawver, ATL (vs. WAS)

ASS was far from ass in his most recent start, flirting with a no-hitter in the best performance of his career. The young righty allowed just one hit across eight scoreless innings in a home matchup with Cincy. That’s quietly one of the best offenses in baseball, bringing Smith-Shawver’s averages to a 3.00 ERA, 1.37 WHIP and 9.0 K/9 rate. ASS has also been much more comfortable at home, collecting a 2.78 ERA and 1.11 WHIP in ATL throughout his career. A home meeting with a lackluster Nationals lineup should help keep him headed in the right direction, because Smith-Shawver threw 5.1 scoreless innings in his last home matchups with Washington.

Streamonator Valuation: $10.1

Nick Martinez, CIN (vs. CWS)

The Rockies and White Sox will battle all season, but in all the wrong categories. The Rockies rank last in all the major offensive statistics, but the White Sox hold that crown if you start from the beginning of last season. In fact, Chicago sits last in runs scored, OBP, OPS, wOBA and xwOBA since then. That makes them a worthy matchup for anyone, but Martinez has been a different player since becoming a starter. The Reds righty has a 3.33 ERA and 1.07 WHIP since signing with Cincy last season, posting a  2.66 ERA and 1.18 WHIP across his last four starts. We love that since Martinez struck out eight batters across five scoreless innings in his last meeting with the White Sox.

Streamonator Valuation: $14.3

Hitting Streamers

Josh Smith, TEX (vs. COL, vs. HOU)

Smith is a few good weeks away from developing from one of our streamers into a must-roster player. With Marcus Semien’s recent struggles, Smith has been inserted into the leadoff spot in the Rangers’ lineup. That’s obviously an ideal spot from a fantasy perspective, with Smith sporting a .320 AVG, .397 OBP and .871 OPS. He’s actually got a .422 OBP and .922 OPS since the opening week, and we certainly don’t want to fade him in a seven-game week against Houston and Colorado. The Rockies rank 28th in ERA and 29th in WHIP, while the Astros have one of their worst pitching staffs over the last decade.

Alex Verdugo, ATL (vs. WAS, at BOS)

Verdugo can be a tough player to trust from a fantasy perspective, but it’s difficult to overlook his current situation. This guy has become Atlanta’s leadoff hitter since his signing, making him one of the best hitting streamers through the opening month. Verdugo went 0-for-14 in the middle of this last week, but he had a .352 AVG and .898 OPS in the 13 games prior to that. That’s close to the must-roster fantasy player we saw in Boston, and we love that he faces five righties in this seven-game week against two subpar pitching staffs. The Nats rank 27th in ERA and WHIP, while Boston is sending out struggling arms like Lucas Giolito and Tanner Houck.

Jake Meyers, HOU (vs. KC, at TEX)

Houston’s offense has been playing below expectations this season, but it’s not Meyers’ fault. In fact, this outfielder has been one of their best bats this season. He’s been moved up to their six-hole recently, with Meyers maintaining a .542 OBP and 1.446 OPS across his last six outings. That pairs wonderfully with his speed, swiping seven steals before that power surge. That power-speed combo makes him an enticing option in a seven-game week, especially since he fades Seth Lugo and Cole Ragans in the Royals rotation.

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

Steals Specialists

David Bednar/Dennis Santana? (PIT)

It’s unclear who the Pirates’ closer will be because they can’t seem to win any games, but it might be a sneaky time to pick up Bednar after many fantasy managers dropped him. We’re talking about a guy who had 62 combined saves over the last two seasons, while recording a 2.25 ERA, 0.88 WHIP and 11.3 K/9 rate across his last eight appearances. There’s also a chance Dennis Santana has stolen this gig after picking up a save on Friday, so keep an eye on this situation.

Shelby Miller/Kevin Ginkel (ARI)

Here we are with another question mark. Justin Martinez and AJ Puk have both gotten injured, leaving this team’s closer gig up for grabs. Both of these guys have recorded a save since then, and we have to ride the closer for one of the best teams in baseball. We’ll bet on Miller because Ginkel was shelled in a save chance on Friday.

Saves Specialists

Dane Myers (MIA)

We talked about how poor Miami’s offense was earlier, and I’d be lying to you if I told you I knew anything about Myers. In any case, he’s recorded four steals over his last seven outings and is becoming an everyday player in this lineup.

Jose Caballero (TB)

Caballero broke out last season with 44 steals, but a bench role has kept him on waiver wires. The good news is he’s starting to recapture a starting role, starting in seven of the Rays’ last nine games. He’s also had four steals over his last 11 fixtures, making him an interesting steals specialist for the time being.

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