In case you weren’t aware, I’m a software engineer by trade. I only do this on the weekend because of the incredibly high* salary offered here at Razzball. So, I bring that mentality to my fantasy sports. I write programs to help me in my research, and those programs have rules that define certain categories of players — like, and this should not be a surprise at this point, the levels of pitchers in this column — and I don’t bend or break those rules.
The whole point of rules like this and doing research this way is that I take my individual bias out of any given piece of research. I still have to be a human making a decision when I actually draft a player or set a lineup, but at least I know the research behind those decisions is cold, calculated, unfeeling, and robotic. The best kind of research.
All that is to explain why there are no bold pitchers in The Well this week.
Because no pitcher fell into a well-defined, specific threshold of projected value.
Pitchers’ projected starts for the next week are sourced from Rudy Gamble’s Streamonator as of the update at 10:20am Eastern.
The bold pitchers below are the most extreme version of each section. The best of the Top Shelf, the safest of the Well, the worst of the Bar Mat.
* zero
The Top Shelf
| Pitcher | First Start | Second Start |
|---|---|---|
| Max Scherzer, NYM | @NYY(MO) | COL(SU) |
| Robbie Ray, SEA | WSH(TU) | CLE(SU) |
| Lucas Giolito, CHW | @BAL(TU) | ARI(SU) |
| Noah Syndergaard, PHI | CIN(MO) | PIT(SA) |
| Ranger Suarez, PHI | CIN(TU) | PIT(SU) |
| Nick Lodolo, CIN | @PHI(TU) | @WSH(SU) |
Notes
- BREAKING: Max Scherzer and Robbie Ray, two unheralded sleepers, are good and you should start them.
The Well
| Pitcher | First Start | Second Start |
|---|---|---|
| Sonny Gray, MIN | TEX(MO) | SF(SA) |
| Michael Kopech, CHW | @KC(MO) | ARI(SA) |
| Domingo German, NYY | NYM(MO) | @OAK(SU) |
| Jordan Montgomery, STL | @CHC(MO) | ATL(SA) |
| Nathan Eovaldi, BOS | TOR(TU) | TB(SU) |
| Adam Wainwright, STL | @CHC(TU) | ATL(SU) |
| Jake Odorizzi, ATL | @PIT(MO) | @STL(SU) |
| Jeffrey Springs, TB | LAA(MO) | @BOS(SA) |
| Edward Cabrera, MIA | @OAK(MO) | LAD(SU) |
| Eric Lauer, MIL | @LAD(MO) | CHC(SU) |
Notes
- Yes, I’m recommending Edward Cabrera who has to take on the Dodgers at home next weekend. It’s just too juicy getting to pitch against the Dave MacKinnon-led A’s in the cavernous Coliseum.
The Bar Mat
| Pitcher | First Start | Second Start |
|---|---|---|
| Corey Kluber, TB | LAA(TU) | @BOS(SU) |
| Cole Ragans, TEX | @MIN(MO) | DET(SU) |
| German Marquez, COL | TEX(TU) | @NYM(SU) |
| Zach Plesac, CLE | @SD(TU) | @SEA(SU) |
| Daniel Lynch, KC | CHW(MO) | SD(SU) |
| Zach Logue, OAK | MIA(TU) | NYY(SU) |
| Adam Oller, OAK | MIA(MO) | NYY(SA) |
| Drew Smyly, CHC | STL(MO) | @MIL(SA) |
| Ross Stripling, TOR | @BOS(TU) | LAA(SU) |
| Austin Voth, BAL | CHW(TU) | @HOU(SU) |
| Tucker Davidson, LAA | @TB(MO) | @TOR(SU) |
| Cole Sands, MIN | @HOU(TU) | SF(SU) |
| Adrian Sampson, CHC | STL(TU) | @MIL(SU) |
| Luis Cessa, CIN | @PHI(MO) | @WSH(SA) |
Notes
- Poor Zach Logue and Adam Oller. No one should have to pitch for the current A’s lineup, least of all twice in one week. Yikes.
