#2xSP (8.7-8.13)

The season numbers aren’t great but we’ve picked up some steam over the last few weeks and hopefully will finish strong. As always, if you have any suggestions or tips, please feel free to mention them in the comments section, and thank you for reading.

Here’s how we’re doing so far this season (through half of Week 16)

27-29 record
4.81 ERA
7.6 K/9
2.3 K/BB
1.46 WHIP
31 quality starts

Here are this week’s recs (with team wRC+ for this season in parentheses):

RHP JC Ramirez – 19.5% ESPN – v. BAL (95), @SEA (101)

I just can’t quit a guy who throws this hard and at least seems to have pretty great stuff. Ramirez routinely sits in the mid- to upper-90s with his fastball (technically a sinker), and is heavily reliant on his slider (32.9 percent) with a curve (16.8 percent) as well. The slider comes in at 88 mph on average, which is pretty stellar velo for a secondary pitch. He gets plenty of grounders, but I’d really like to see more strikeouts from a guy with this raw stuff. The slider has potential (16 percent whiff rate), but the curve doesn’t do much for me (8.2 percent this year, mirroring his career rate). As far as matchups go….meh. It’s not like he’s facing the Phillies or Padres, but as long as we can stay away from the Yankees, Astros or Dodgers it’s not too worrisome, either.

RHP Parker Bridwell – 43.5% ESPN – v. BAL (95), @SEA (101)

Bridwell has quietly been money for the Angels. In July, Bridwell completed six innings in all four of his starts — all quality starts — with a 1.69 (nice) ERA and 20-6 K/BB ratio in 26.2 innings. With that said, he shut down the Twins, Rays, Red Sox and Blue Jays, so it wasn’t exactly a murderer’s row of offenses — the Red Sox have the lowest team wRC+ in the last 30 days — but it was encouraging nonetheless. He doesn’t necessarily have the stuff that screams “future ace!” but for a guy who came over on a minor trade, the Angels have done a terrific job. As Pedro Moura of the LA Times told me recently, “He looks like a major league pitcher to me.” Well said, Pete.

LHP Matt Boyd – 4.3% ESPN – @PIT (89), v. MIN (93)

Boyd has been pretty good since returning to the Tigers rotation, as he’s tossed three straight quality starts with three earned runs in each. That’s a 4.19 ERA in three starts with 16 strikeouts, four walks and 19 hits allowed in 19.1 innings. That’s certainly not studly, but for a guy with sub-5.0% ownership, that’s pretty good. Don’t sleep on the fact that the Twins have been absolutely dreadful (85 wRC+) against lefties this year, too. The Pirates have been so-so (96 wRC+), for what it’s worth.

Last men out: J.A. Happ (v. NYY, v. PIT), Jhoulys Chacin (@CIN, @LAD), Brent Suter (@MIN, v. CIN)