Before we get into the monthly SPaRP review, I want to take just a moment to shout out the guys doing things in the opposite direction. That’s right, the guys serving as closers who have SP eligibility. You don’t see that very often, but right now we do have three of them. Jacob Latz appears to have claimed the role in Texas, Caleb Kilian is supposedly the guy in San Francisco to whatever extent they have a closer, and Yoendrys Gomez has gotten saves in 3 of his last 6 appearances, and had been given the chance to do so in another before needing relief himself.
Now, are any of these guys actually worth using? In most cases, probably not. Not as a starter, anyway. (And in Gomez’s case, probably not anywhere.) The nature of points league scoring being what it is, they’re just not going to be worth using in an SP slot. That being said, I am in a 24-team league, which means finding 5 usable starters is a luxury not everyone has. As a result, Latz has found himself occupying a starting role fairly regularly lately, and it’s been a positive thing. You’re probably not in a similar situation, but I wanted to take the opportunity to give him and those in similar roles a shoutout in a place where there usually wouldn’t be a reason to do so. For your regular bullpen and SAGNOF purposes, I will entrust you to the wisdom of JKJ.
One other quick note, as we get into these rankings, you might notice that there are a few Yahoo-specific guys below who are not part of the list. I trust that you all plan to keep starting Chase Burns and Kyle Harrison each time out, no matter what, and Mike Soroka in most cases. For anyone else, consult the Streamonator when their turn is coming up, because it will be a start-to-start issue at best.
The Good
Braxton Ashcraft, PIT
- Ashcraft is behind his much more famous, decorated teammate in total points, but only by about one good start’s worth of points. His teammate was drafted in round 1 or 2. Braxton was *checks notes* not. Aren’t pitchers fun?
Payton Tolle, LAA
- Tolle has been slightly more volatile than is ideal, but he’s still a must-start.
Reid Detmers, LAA
- Ok, Reid. You’ve teased and disappointed for years, and I ranked you as someone I didn’t trust at all a month ago. The next day, 8 ER made it look like a good call. Since then, however, it’s been 4 straight good-to-great starts. So, I concede that I was wrong. Don’t make me look like a fool. Also, talk to your teammates about providing you some run support. 5 ER over 4 starts, but only 1 W to show for it isn’t what anyone wants.
The Good(ish)
Ben Brown, CHC
- Based on his surface-level numbers, Brown deserves to be in the tier above. I almost put him there, but I couldn’t quite fully get there. There are two reasons why. Firstly, his Average Exit Velo and Hard Hit% are not very good. They’re pretty bad, in fact. So far, he’s gotten away with it, but I want to see more before I completely trust that he can keep dancing through those raindrops. And secondly, for as good as he’s been, he has still only had 2 Quality Starts. In leagues that give points for those, that matters. It also puts a cap on his strikeout totals and lowers the margin of error for getting a Win. So, for now, he’s here.
Foster Griffin, WSH
- Based on pure starting pitcher standards, Griffin would not be ranked particularly high. As it relates to this crop of SPaRPs? He looks fairly good in comparison. Don’t be shocked if his ERA jumps up by a full run from where it currently sits, but I know I’ve started worse.
Justin Wrobleski, LAD
- His metrics do not reflect his actual numbers at all. That being said, he has managed a decent number of strikeouts over his last six starts. Still less than you’d really like to see, and his last outing in particular was pretty rough. But he’s got the Dodgers offense supporting him, and apparently, I’m feeling generous this month. If this were Roto, I would urge much more caution, as one ugly start can completely tank any positive that had been built up in the few starts you’d actually used him. Points leagues are much more forgiving in that sense, because while it may ruin your week, it won’t screw up your whole season.
Nick Martinez, TB
- No, I don’t understand how he’s doing what he’s doing. But it’s the Rays, and they just have guys do this sometimes. And Martinez was very good back in 2024. So, maybe he can keep it up.
Peter Lambert, HOU
- Another one who, in a roto league, probably maxes out as a streaming option. In points? Yeah, he’s fine. Still, probably not much more than a streaming option, but a decent enough option. Especially if he’s got 2 starts.
The Not So Good
Sean Manaea, NYM
- Maybe I’m selling him sort, if RotoSurgeon is to be believed. He is pretty smart.
Troy Melton, DET
- A 2.81 ERA and 1.01 WHIP look excellent. And they are very good. Unfortunately, his xERA sits at 4.33 and he only has 14 K in 25.2 IP. Is it impossible to succeed while striking out so few people? No. Do I feel safe betting on it long-term? Not particularly.
Griffin Jax, TB
- Jax has had one giant stinker since moving into the rotation, but otherwise has pitched pretty well. Unfortunately, he has yet to get even a single out in the 6th inning, and partly as a result, does not have a single win as a starter. He’s also sitting at just under a K-per-inning, which limits his utility even further. So he’s here because I’m generally optimistic about the actual skills, but I wouldn’t recommend actually using him apart from a great matchup or a two-start week. Even then, I’d be hesitant.
Shane Drohan, MIL
- He actually looks pretty good, and could well find himself in the tier above this in the future, should he remain in the rotation. The question is, will he remain in the rotation? That is far from certain, and as such, he goes here.
Ryne Nelson, ARI
- The problem with Nelson is that you don’t know what you’re going to get. Six of his last seven starts before his last one were good, sometimes even better than good. But he also has three starts with 6+ ER, and three more with 4 in 5IP or fewer. And when you look at his Statcast page, it’s a whole lot of blue where you don’t want to see blue. Do I think he’s good? Not at the moment, no. Do I think he’s a completely lost cause? Not based on some of the results he has managed despite it all, no. So, he goes here.
Kai-Wei Teng, HOU
The Bad
Eric Lauer, LAD
- I know the results have been pretty good since he got to LA. I’m still not buying it.
Jack Perkins, ATH
- His last start was terrible, but it came in Las Vegas, and it feels incredibly unfair to judge any pitcher off of their performance in that environment. So, let’s take a look at what he had done in his first start of the season and…oh. Maybe it ends up working out as he gets reacclimated to the role, but for now, I wouldn’t be touching him.
Joey Cantillo, CLE
Anthony Kay, CHW
- As a White Sox fan, I want him to be good. But, to plug RotoSurgeon again, I just can’t buy it. If you want to use him until the wheels go flying off, go for it. But it may be a real short ride.
Luinder Avila, KC
Kyle Leahy, STL
Ryan Gusto, MIA
