After going off in the first two weeks, Week 3 was extremely annoying. The weather just obliterated all of the rotations, and it didn’t even seem like most of my streamers faced their projected matchups. We discussed how Mother Nature could do cruel things, and she was downright evil to us last week. In any case, we still got a few solid performances, but I expect better from myself. That has me motivated to have a huge week here, and I can’t wait to get these streamers out there. With that in mind, let’s get into our streamers of the week!
Two-Start Streamers
Jose Urquidy / Christian Javier, HOU (vs. SEA, at TB)
These guys have been dropped in a lot of leagues for some bizarre reasons. Let’s start by talking about Urquidy, who was given the boot by many fantasy managers after a poor Coors Field start. Many guys have become victim to that nightmare ballpark, and we’re going to pretend like that never happened. Between 2019-20, Urquidy pitched to a 3.44 ERA and 1.06 WHIP. He started this year with a 1.25 WHIP and 10.7 K/9 rates through his first three starts before that Coors game and looked like the guy we saw in previous years. That makes it hard to believe people gave up on him, but that’s the nature of fantasy baseball.
Javier was dropped in many leagues because the Astros demoted him. The only reason they did that was to get some bats in the lineup because of the COVID breakout, and it’s silly to be that impatient with such a talented pitcher. This guy had a 2.23 ERA and 1.04 WHIP at the minors and backed it up with a 3.04 ERA and 0.97 WHIP in 68 Major League innings. Those are some ridiculous averages, and it makes it hard to believe he even qualifies as one of our streamers.
These matchups are simply the icing on the cake for these two guys. A home game against Seattle is an absolute gem, with the Mariners ranked 24th in K rate and 25th in OPS. Tampa Bay’s offense isn’t much scarier, ranked 18th in xwOBA and 23rd in K rate. That looks lovely with all of these starts being in pitchers parks which is why the Streamonator adores these guys. In fact, it has Urquidy projected to provide $10.5 worth of value and Javier to generate $14.7 worth of value.
Domingo German, NYY (at BAL, vs. DET)
German was terrible in his first two appearances of the season, but a bounceback in his most recent outing makes him one of our favorite streamers of the week. He threw a quality start against the Cleveland Indians on Wednesday, pitching five scoreless innings after a poor opening frame. That tells us that he found something in his delivery, and that’s big news for a guy that went off two years back. The talented righty pitched to a 4.03 ERA, 1.15 WHIP, and 9.6 K/9 rates in 2019 before missing the 2020 season.
That’s fantastic from one of our streamers, and we expect similar rates in matchups like these. The Orioles matchup might be the best in baseball right now, with Baltimore ranked dead-last in wOBA, xwOBA, and 26th in K rate. German has actually faced them four times over the last two years and hasn’t allowed more than two runs in any of them. The Tigers matchup is equally as intriguing, with the Motor City Kitties sitting 28th in K rate and 29th in wOBA. All of that has Domingo projected to provide $32.4 worth of value, according to the Streamonator, the highest of any of our streamers in this article.
One-Start Streamers
Aaron Sanchez/Alex Wood, SF (vs. COL)
Not to toot my own horn, but I did say Aaron Sanchez would become a must-own pitcher in our preseason prediction article last month! He’s done just that, pitching to a 1.83 ERA and 1.02 WHIP in his first four starts. He’s actually allowed two runs or fewer in all of them, and it’s a testament to how good this guy’s stuff can be. Alex Wood has been equally impressive, providing a 0.75 ERA and 0.42 WHIP in his first two starts. That’s really no surprise when you see his 3.41 ERA and 1.22 WHIP for his career, making it hard to believe he’s available in so many leagues.
Getting to face the Rockies is the jelly in the donut, with Colorado owning the worst road OPS and wOBA since the beginning of last season. That actually has Wood as the best one-start streamer of the week, according to the Streamonator, projected to provide $27.6 worth of value. Sanchez has a solid value himself, sitting at $7.4.
Luke Weaver ARZ, (vs. COL)
I’d be lying to you if I told you that I was excited about using Weaver, but the Streamonator absolutely loves this guy. It has him projected to provide $25 worth of value, one of the highest total of any of our streamers all year! A big reason for that is the Rockies matchup, owning the ugly road numbers we mentioned before. They’ve actually played most of their games at home and still have those ugly numbers we mentioned before. As an avid Rockies fan, I fully expect them to score about 10 runs for the entirety of the week.
That shows just how bad this lineup is, with Colorado ranked 28th in OBP and 29th in xwOBA this season. That’s truly terrifying, and I really don’t see it getting better anytime soon. It’s not like Weaver is some bum either, accruing a 4.20 xFIP and 1.11 WHIP so far this year. A 2.94 ERA and 1.07 WHIP in 2018 is the thing that really gets people excited, and we have to believe he can recapture that form in a start like this.
Jakob Junis, KC (at PIT)
Junis was bombarded for five runs in his most recent start, but his form before that was downright impressive. The Royals righty pitched to a 1.50 ERA, 0.92 WHIP, and 11.3 K/9 rate before that, and it’s hard to overlook such an impressive start to the year. It’s tough to know which guy we’re going to get but facing Pittsburgh makes the latter look like the more likely outcome. We say that because the Pirates rank 23rd in xwOBACON, 27th in barrel rate, 29th in hard-hit rate, and 26th in OPS. That’s scary considering they’re missing their best hitter right now, and we expect Junis to roll right through them.
Patrick Corbin, WAS (vs. MIA)
We’re going to keep this one simple. Corbin had a nightmarish 2020 season and got his 2021 season off to a horrific start. That forced many fantasy managers into clicking the big red line next to his name, but that’s going to treat many of us to a Top-150 pick. We’re still talking about a guy who pitched to a 3.20 ERA and 1.12 WHIP between 2018-19, and we’re going to believe a 402-inning sample size over a minuscule 78-inning one for the last two years. What we really like is that he threw six scoreless innings in his most recent start, an indicator that he’s returning to that 2018-19 player we saw before. Facing Miami is a good way to keep him rolling, with the Marlins ranked 21st in K rate and 27th in xwOBACON.
Streamers to Consider:
Huascar Ynoa, ATL (vs. CHC)
Dylan Cease, CWS (vs. DET)
Rich Hill/Michael Wacha, TB (vs. OAK, vs. HOU)
Feel free to comment me here or reach me on Twitter @Bartilottajoel if you have any questions!