Happy Sunday, Barflys! Welcome back to another edition of the Two-Start Dive Bar! This week’s tables look a lot different from last week’s tables, and there are many more very good reasons to run your double-dippers out there this week. Only two pitchers (Kyle Freeland and Jake Irvin) warranted the absolute lowest of my considerations, and The Well is chockablock with good, if not great, choices for your weekly rosters.
I’m adding a new feature that I haven’t figured out just how I want to present in the tables below, but I’m calling it The Point of Reference, and it represents where on this list the best one or two one-start pitcher(s) of the week would fall, dollar value-wise, among the two-starters.
This week those pitchers are Shane Bieber and Gerrit Cole, and they would slot in right around the Aaron Nola / Charlie Morton / Mitch Keller region at the top of The Well. Just goes to show the power of getting two starts in a week!
Now, why don’t you and I dive right in?
Pitchers’ projected starts for the next week are sourced from Rudy Gamble’s Streamonator as of the update at 11:20am 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.
The Top Shelf
| Pitcher | First Start | Second Start |
|---|---|---|
| Max Scherzer, NYM | @CIN(TU) | @WSH(SU) |
| Zac Gallen, ARI | MIA(MO) | SF(SA) |
| Freddy Peralta, MIL | LAD(MO) | KC(SU) |
| Shane McClanahan, TB | @BAL(MO) | @NYY(SA) |
| Logan Gilbert, SEA | TEX(MO) | @DET(SU) |
| Dylan Cease, CHW | @KC(MO) | HOU(SA) |
| Andrew Heaney, TEX | @SEA(TU) | @OAK(SU) |
| Lucas Giolito, CHW | @KC(TU) | HOU(SU) |
| Nestor Cortes, NYY | OAK(MO) | TB(SA) |
| Logan Webb, SF | WSH(TU) | @ARI(SU) |
| Tanner Bibee, CLE | DET(MO) | LAA(SU) |
| Jon Gray, TEX | @SEA(MO) | @OAK(SA) |
Notes
- I feel like Max Scherzer is showing up here a lot so far this season, just racking up weekend and Monday / Tuesday starts. Lucky for players with Mad Max in weekly change leagues!
- Logan Webb is someone who finds himself floating between The Top Shelf and The Well when he appears in this column, but with starts against Washington and Arizona this week, you should feel good about his prospects.
The Well
| Pitcher | First Start | Second Start |
|---|---|---|
| Aaron Nola, PHI | TOR(TU) | @COL(SU) |
| Charlie Morton, ATL | BOS(TU) | @TOR(SU) |
| Mitch Keller, PIT | COL(MO) | @BAL(SU) |
| Clarke Schmidt, NYY | OAK(TU) | TB(SU) |
| Anthony DeSclafani, SF | WSH(MO) | @ARI(SA) |
| Hunter Brown, HOU | @LAA(MO) | @CHW(SU) |
| Louie Varland, MIN | SD(TU) | CHC(SU) |
| Brandon Pfaadt, ARI | MIA(TU) | SF(SU) |
| Marcus Stroman, CHC | STL(MO) | @MIN (SU) |
| JP Sears, OAK | @NYY(MO) | TEX(SA) |
| Kyle Gibson, BAL | TB(MO) | PIT(SU) |
| Zach Eflin, TB | @BAL(TU) | @NYY(SU) |
Notes
- I’m always surprised when an A’s pitcher ends up even in The Well, but the Yankees have been struggling offensively (27th in MLB in team OPS) and any start in Oakland is a potentially good one, so there you go, JP Sears…
The Bar Mat
| Pitcher | First Start | Second Start |
|---|---|---|
| Tony Gonsolin, LAD | @MIL(MO) | SD(SU) |
| Luke Weaver, CIN | NYM(TU) | @MIA(SU) |
| Zack Greinke, KC | CHW(MO) | @MIL(SA) |
| Drew Rucinski, OAK | @NYY(TU) | TEX(SU) |
| Jordan Lyles, KC | CHW(TU) | @MIL(SU) |
| Joey Wentz, DET | @CLE(MO) | SEA(SU) |
| Michael Wacha, SD | @MIN (TU) | @LAD(SU) |
| Braxton Garrett, MIA | @ARI(MO) | CIN(SU) |
| Miles Mikolas, STL | @CHC(MO) | @BOS(SU) |
| Kyle Freeland, COL | @PIT(MO) | PHI(SU) |
| Jake Irvin, WSH | @SF(MO) | NYM(SU) |
Notes
- The fact that most of these players did not get “the bold treatment” means they aren’t projecting to net-negative dollar value on the week… but that doesn’t mean you should necessarily start them. And in the case of Freeland and Irvin, they will literally earn you more value sitting on your bench this week.
