Archive for Starting Pitchers

Ottoneu Starting Pitching Planner: July 27–August 2

Kyle Ross-Imagn Images

Welcome back to the Ottoneu Starting Pitching Planner. Based on the Roster Resource Probables Grid, I’ve organized every starter slated to start next week into four categories: start, maybe, risky, and sit for Ottoneu points leagues. The first and last category are pretty self-explanatory. Starters who fall into the “maybe” category are guys you could start if you need to keep up with the innings pitched pace in points leagues or need to hit your games started cap in head-to-head leagues; they’re good bets to turn in a decent start, but you shouldn’t automatically insert them into your lineup. If you’ve fallen behind on the innings pitched pace or you’re really starving for starts in a head-to-head matchup, you could turn to a “risky” starter or two.

I’ve also calculated a “Matchup Score” for each series using a straight combination of opponent’s home/away wOBA, opponent wOBA over the last 14 days, and the park factor for the ballpark the teams are playing in. It’s indexed so that 100 is average and anything above that is a favorable matchup and anything below is unfavorable. That matchup rating informs some of the sit/start recommendations I’m making, though the quality of the pitcher definitely takes precedence.

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Schedule Tracker: Best and Worst Matchups Through August

Credit: D. Ross Cameron-Imagn Images
Moving into the post-All-Star break, the clock really seems to begin to tick as the trade deadline approaches, and it feels like the season begins to really speed up on us. Time is running out for both MLB teams and keeper and dynasty managers deliberating whether to buy or sell. Whatever the situation may be, now, more than any other part of the season, we look to which teams can be aggressive in attacking the schedule in front of them. For this, I introduce the fixture ticker. Built for now until the end of August so you can look to identify targetable matchups in the upcoming weeks.

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Roto Riteup: July 24, 2026

He may not be Heather’s nephew, but perhaps it’s the beginning of a new dynasty…

On the Agenda: 

  1. Quick Hits
  2. Various News and Notes
  3. Streaming Pitchers

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Starting Pitcher Pitch Mix Change in June and July: Fewer Fastballs

Mandatory Credit: Charles LeClaire-Imagn Images

One way to find starting pitchers who have been making pitch mix changes is to see who is throwing fewer or more fastballs (four-seamers and sinkers). The table below shows the starting pitchers who have thrown fewer four-seamers and sinkers in June and July. I used a 3-percentage point dip as a cutoff.

Starting Pitchers Throwing Fewer Fastballs (Four-Seam and Sinker) in June and July
Player Fastball Pitch% (July) wOBA Fastball Pitch% (June) wOBA Fastball Pitch% (May) wOBA AVG 4SEAM + SINKER PITCH% 4SEAM + SINKER DIFF
Abbott, Andrew 43.8 0.303 43.7 0.382 48.5 0.346 45.9 -4.8
Arrighetti, Spencer 40.9 0.374 37.8 0.520 45.8 0.242 39.1 -6.5
Burke, Sean 51.2 0.286 28.7 0.403 52.6 0.273 42.4 -12.7
Canning, Griffin 22.1 0.313 21 0.525 38.8 0.368 27.3 -17.3
Cantillo, Joey 25 0.391 27.4 0.469 39.1 0.501 34.3 -12.9
Cecconi, Slade 53.9 0.530 39.2 0.304 55.7 0.37 48.8 -9.2
Chandler, Bubba 48.6 0.478 42.2 0.313 59 0.323 51.4 -13.6
Cole, Gerrit 51.7 0.213 46.9 0.430 54.3 0.241 51.0 -5.0
Elder, Bryce 47.3 0.444 50.5 0.364 54.7 0.319 49.8 -5.8
Gallen, Zac 40.8 0.542 38.6 0.457 44.3 0.444 41.7 -4.6
Gausman, Kevin 45.7 0.329 49.2 0.341 53.5 0.346 50.4 -6.1
Ginn, J.T. 44.6 0.282 40.2 0.297 48.6 0.386 42.4 -6.2
Griffin, Foster 17.6 0.178 25.8 0.227 30.1 0.379 25.2 -8.4
Imai, Tatsuya 48.2 0.618 44.8 0.418 54.6 0.273 48.8 -8.1
Imanaga, Shota 35.5 0.374 49.9 0.350 50.4 0.438 46.0 -7.7
Jax, Griffin 41.7 0.347 32.7 0.414 43 0.345 30.8 -5.8
Kay, Anthony 35.9 0.324 35.8 0.393 43.1 0.322 36.7 -7.3
Melton, Troy 48 0.199 44.9 0.365 50 0.25 47.6 -3.6
Meyer, Max 28.9 0.550 33.9 0.317 35 0.285 33.0 -3.6
Nola, Aaron 35.3 0.508 42.5 0.454 42.4 0.479 42.2 -3.5
Peralta, Freddy 54.5 0.526 50.2 0.333 56 0.316 53.2 -3.7
Ray, Robbie 39.6 0.393 39.3 0.337 45.6 0.47 43.2 -6.2
Rea, Colin 46.8 0.600 44 0.310 52.1 0.424 42.0 -6.7
Rocker, Kumar 34.7 0.523 32.2 0.477 36.4 0.391 37.9 -3.0
Rogers, Trevor 56.2 0.323 55.2 0.236 60.1 0.425 55.8 -4.4
Sasaki, Roki 41.9 0.470 42.8 0.397 46 0.324 43.1 -3.7
Scott, Christian 45 0.306 50 0.344 52.8 0.367 49.3 -5.3
Sproat, Brandon 52 0.306 44.8 0.262 54.8 0.31 44.1 -6.4
Wacha, Michael 42.6 0.395 37.4 0.259 45.4 0.252 41.9 -5.4
Warren, Will 55.7 0.437 65.7 0.365 67.4 0.324 64.3 -6.7
Weathers, Ryan 29.1 0.386 44.6 0.389 47.2 0.369 42.4 -10.4
Webb, Logan 34 0.374 39.8 0.158 48.6 0.412 42.6 -11.7
Wheeler, Zack 48 0.368 49.9 0.208 53.5 0.279 50.5 -4.6
Yamamoto, Yoshinobu 36.8 0.283 43 0.226 45 0.179 39.5 -5.1

I included the average wOBA for their four-seamers and sinkers to show whether it’s a pitch that has been hit hard or not. When a pitcher throws fewer fastballs, there’s probably a reason why. While we would love to examine all these starting pitchers on the list, it provides a starting point.

Let’s examine four starting pitchers who have been throwing fewer fastballs and whether that’s helpful in their arsenal. We covered a fifth name on this list, Joey Cantillo, in a recent swing timing and miss distance article

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There’s an Innings Limit Right Behind Me Isn’t There…

Credit: Vincent Carchietta-Imagn Images

Buying low and selling high. That’s the classic value proposition we all shoot for in trades. We’re trying to win after all!

It’s hard to win if you aren’t extracting value from your opponents, or at least adding value to your own team via the wire. 

And at this point in the year, with less than 40% of the fantasy baseball season remaining, it’s time to get serious. It’s time to really consider what holding onto struggling stars means for your playoff chances. It’s time for top seeds to load up on upside and injured players that the bubble teams can no longer afford to hold onto. It’s time to sell the young aces that got you here, for shelf stable veterans, or at least for pitchers we trust to pitch into September. 

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First-Half ERA vs OOPSY’s Rest-of-Season Projections

Credit: Charles LeClaire-Imagn Images

Following on from the hitters chart, we now look at how pitchers have performed so far this year against their OOPSY rest-of-season (RoS) projections.

Continuing with the framework of the hitters’ piece, this will first look at those with projected ERA rises, then at those with projected ERA drops. Just as we identified BABIP and ISO as the major determining factors in the hitters’ RoS outlooks, we will identify a similar through line here: for pitchers, it is largely strand rate.

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OOPSY 2026 Midseason Top 100 Prospects

Credit: © William Bretzger-Delaware News Journal / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

With over half of the 2026 season in the books, it’s a good a time to update OOPSY’s Top 100 prospects list, this time with a fantasy spin.

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Ottoneu Starting Pitching Planner: July 16–26

Jonathan Dyer-Imagn Images

Welcome back to the Ottoneu Starting Pitching Planner. Based on the Roster Resource Probables Grid, I’ve organized every starter slated to start next week into four categories: start, maybe, risky, and sit for Ottoneu points leagues. The first and last category are pretty self-explanatory. Starters who fall into the “maybe” category are guys you could start if you need to keep up with the innings pitched pace in points leagues or need to hit your games started cap in head-to-head leagues; they’re good bets to turn in a decent start, but you shouldn’t automatically insert them into your lineup. If you’ve fallen behind on the innings pitched pace or you’re really starving for starts in a head-to-head matchup, you could turn to a “risky” starter or two.

I’ve also calculated a “Matchup Score” for each series using a straight combination of opponent’s home/away wOBA, opponent wOBA over the last 14 days, and the park factor for the ballpark the teams are playing in. It’s indexed so that 100 is average and anything above that is a favorable matchup and anything below is unfavorable. That matchup rating informs some of the sit/start recommendations I’m making, though the quality of the pitcher definitely takes precedence.

Note: In Ottoneu head-to-head leagues, this week’s matchup runs from July 16–26. Keep that in mind when deciding on your starters, since your games started cap doesn’t adjust for the longer schedule.

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Starting Pitchers Drafted in the Later Rounds: Can They Sustain Their Success?

Mandatory Credit: Sam Navarro-Imagn Images

We covered some of the best starting pitchers earlier in the week. Now, we’re covering the best starting pitchers with an average draft position (ADP) outside the top 150 picks in 12-team leagues. These pitchers have been performing better than the draft community expected.

The visual below shows the starting pitchers who have been drafted outside the top 150 picks in 12-team leagues, sorted by their earned value in the first half. If a player has a blank ADP, that means they were undrafted. 

Though Foster Griffin tops the list, I’ve already examined him in a rookie check-in article in mid-June. Kyle Harrison has been helping to win leagues, though he is on the injured list with a forearm injury. We would love to examine more of these starting pitchers (and maybe we will), but today we’ll highlight five.

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Post All-Star Break Starting Pitchers to Target

D. Ross Cameron-Imagn Images

Some call it the second half because it’s easier that way, but there is only 40% of the Major League season remaining. Assuming starting pitchers remain healthy and in the rotation, most will start anywhere from 11 to 14 games between now and the end of the season. There is more than enough time to make up some of our pitching category deficiencies in Rotisserie leagues. Let’s dive into some of the starting pitchers who should be helpful in all fantasy formats and help us finish the season strong.

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