Archive for Streamers

Ottoneu Starting Pitching Planner: July 31–August 6

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. 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.

July 31–August 6
Team Series 1 Matchup Series 2 Matchup Start Maybe Risky Sit
ARI @SFG (192) @MIN (72) Zac Gallen (x2) Ryne Nelson (@SFG), Merrill Kelly 켈리 Tommy Henry, Brandon Pfaadt, Ryne Nelson (@MIN)
ATL LAA (54) @CHC (68) Spencer Strider Max Fried (?), Bryce Elder, Charlie Morton Yonny Chirinos
BAL @TOR (56) NYM (135) Kyle Bradish (vNYM) Kyle Gibson (x2), Kyle Bradish (@TOR), Grayson Rodriguez, Tyler Wells, Dean Kremer
BOS @SEA (114) TOR (56) Brayan Bello (@SEA) James Paxton, Brayan Bello (vTOR) Chris Murphy, Kutter Crawford, Nick Pivetta
CHC CIN (121) ATL (30) Marcus Stroman (vCIN), Justin Steele (vCIN) Marcus Stroman (vATL), Justin Steele (vATL) Drew Smyly, Jameson Taillon, Kyle Hendricks
CHW @TEX (33) @CLE (100) Lance Lynn (x2), Dylan Cease Mike Clevinger, Michael Kopech Touki Toussaint
CIN @CHC (68) WSN (65) Andrew Abbott (x2) Ben Lively 라이블리 (x2), Graham Ashcraft Brandon Williamson, Luke Weaver
CLE @HOU (96) CHW (145) Logan Allen, Aaron Civale, Gavin Williams (vCHW) Gavin Williams (@HOU), Tanner Bibee Peyton Battenfield
COL SDP (63) @STL (75) Kyle Freeland Austin Gomber (x2), Peter Lambert, Chase Anderson, Chris Flexen 플렉센
DET @PIT (159) TBR (126) Eduardo Rodriguez, Michael Lorenzen, Tarik Skubal Reese Olson Matt Manning
HOU CLE (98) @NYY (117) Framber Valdez (x2) Cristian Javier, Hunter Brown J.P. France (x2), José Urquidy (?), Brandon Bielak
KCR NYM (149) @PHI (84) Zack Greinke (vNYM) Alec Marsh, Brady Singer, Zack Greinke (@PHI) Jordan Lyles, Ryan Yarbrough
LAA @ATL (72) SEA (82) Lucas Giolito, Reid Detmers Shohei Ohtani Griffin Canning (x2), Patrick Sandoval, Tyler Anderson
LAD OAK (112) @SDP (93) Julio Urías (vOAK), Tony Gonsolin, Bobby Miller Emmet Sheehan, Julio Urías (@SDP) Michael Grove
MIA PHI (133) @TEX (33) Edward Cabrera (vPHI), Sandy Alcantara (x2), Braxton Garrett, Johnny Cueto, Jesús Luzardo Edward Cabrera (@TEX)
MIL @WSN (84) PIT (121) Corbin Burnes (x2), Freddy Peralta (x2) Adrian Houser, Julio Teheran Colin Rea
MIN @STL (75) ARI (77) Pablo López (x2), Sonny Gray, Bailey Ober, Kenta Maeda Joe Ryan
NYM @KCR (170) @BAL (131) José Quintana (@KCR), Kodai Senga, Max Scherzer, Justin Verlander Carlos Carrasco, José Quintana (@BAL)
NYY TBR (86) HOU (68) Gerrit Cole Domingo Germán (x2), Carlos Rodón Clarke Schmidt, Luis Severino
OAK @LAD (33) SFG (163) Paul Blackburn Ken Waldichuk, Hogan Harris, JP Sears, Luis Medina
PHI @MIA (166) KCR (124) Taijuan Walker (x2), Ranger Suárez (x2), Zack Wheeler, Aaron Nola, Cristopher Sánchez
PIT DET (168) @MIL (103) Johan Oviedo (x2), Mitch Keller Rich Hill Quinn Priester, Osvaldo Bido
SDP @COL (56) LAD (61) Yu Darvish, Blake Snell Joe Musgrove Seth Lugo (x2), Ryan Weathers
SEA BOS (82) @LAA (35) George Kirby (x2), Bryce Miller (vBOS), Logan Gilbert, Luis Castillo Bryan Woo, Bryce Miller (@LAA)
SFG ARI (100) @OAK (173) Alex Cobb (x2), Logan Webb Alex Wood, Anthony DeSclafani, Ross Stripling
STL MIN (110) COL (93) Jordan Montgomery Jack Flaherty (x2), Miles Mikolas, Steven Matz Adam Wainwright
TBR @NYY (117) @DET (178) Shane McClanahan, Taj Bradley, Tyler Glasnow Zach Eflin
TEX CHW (145) MIA (138) Jon Gray (x2), Nathan Eovaldi Andrew Heaney, Dane Dunning Martín Pérez
TOR BAL (93) @BOS (42) Kevin Gausman Chris Bassitt (x2), Yusei Kikuchi, José Berríos Hyun Jin Ryu 류현진 (?), Alek Manoah
WSN MIL (121) @CIN (84) Josiah Gray, MacKenzie Gore Jake Irvin (x2), Patrick Corbin, Trevor Williams

A few general schedule notes first:

  • The trade deadline is on Tuesday next week which means some of these rotations might look very different by Wednesday. Keep an eye on the probable matchups early in the week while players get moved around; the recommendations I made above assume that everyone sticks with their original team which obviously won’t happen. When in doubt, use the matchup rating for the series to determine whether or not to start a pitcher on his new team if they’re traded midweek. The rotations for each team should be settled by the weekend which means next week’s recommendations should be a bit more straightforward.
  • The impending returns of Hyun Jin Ryu, Max Fried, Nestor Cortes, and José Urquidy will also shake up the rotations on their respective teams. Generally, I recommend waiting a start or two before inserting a starter back into your lineup after he returns from a major injury like these four are.
  • As far as the actual schedules go, it looks like the Rangers and Mets both get a pair of easier matchups next week. Texas plays at home against two weaker offenses while the Mets travel to two pitcher friendly ballparks.
  • The Braves, Padres, and Reds get a tough slate of opponents next week. Cincinnati and Atlanta both travel to Chicago to face the red hot Cubs and they’ve got tough home matchups in their other series next week too. San Diego travels to Colorado to start next week and then returns home to face the Dodgers over the weekend.

Notable two-start pitchers:

  • Zac Gallen
  • Framber Valdez
  • Pablo López
  • George Kirby
  • Corbin Burnes
  • Freddy Peralta
  • Alex Cobb
  • Jon Gray
  • Johan Oviedo
  • Brayan Bello
  • Taijuan Walker
  • Ranger Suárez
  • Marcus Stroman
  • José Quintana

Ottoneu Starting Pitching Planner: July 24–30

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. 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.

July 24–30
Team Series 1 Matchup Series 2 Matchup Start Maybe Risky Sit
ARI STL (88) SEA (147) Zac Gallen, Ryne Nelson (vSEA) Ryne Nelson (vSTL), Merrill Kelly 켈리 Tommy Henry, Tyler Gilbert
ATL @BOS (39) MIL (125) Spencer Strider, Bryce Elder Charlie Morton, Max Fried (?), Michael Soroka
BAL @PHI (77) NYY (157) Tyler Wells Dean Kremer (x2), Kyle Gibson, Kyle Bradish, Grayson Rodriguez
BOS ATL (70) @SFG (161) Brayan Bello, James Paxton Kutter Crawford, Nick Pivetta
CHC @CHW (129) @STL (18) Marcus Stroman, Justin Steele Kyle Hendricks (x2), Jameson Taillon Drew Smyly
CHW CHC (57) CLE (68) Dylan Cease, Lucas Giolito Michael Kopech, Lance Lynn Touki Toussaint (x2)
CIN @MIL (86) @LAD (18) Andrew Abbott Ben Lively 라이블리 Graham Ashcraft (x2) Brandon Williamson, Luke Weaver
CLE KCR (147) @CHW (129) Aaron Civale (x2), Gavin Williams, Tanner Bibee, Logan Allen Peyton Battenfield (x2)
COL @WSN (77) OAK (95) Austin Gomber Chris Flexen 플렉센 (?), Peter Lambert, Karl Kauffmann, Chase Anderson
DET LAA (73) @MIA (125) Eduardo Rodriguez (x2), Tarik Skubal, Michael Lorenzen (@MIA) Michael Lorenzen (vLAA), Reese Olson, Matt Manning
HOU TEX (54) TBR (84) Framber Valdez, Cristian Javier, Hunter Brown Brandon Bielak (x2), J.P. France
KCR @CLE (102) MIN (118) Ryan Yarbrough (x2), Zack Greinke, Alec Marsh, Brady Singer Jordan Lyles
LAA @DET (172) @TOR (66) Patrick Sandoval, Shohei Ohtani Griffin Canning, Chase Silseth, Reid Detmers Tyler Anderson
LAD TOR (59) CIN (86) Julio Urías, Tony Gonsolin, Bobby Miller, Emmet Sheehan Michael Grove (x2)
MIA @TBR (120) DET (175) Braxton Garrett, Eury Pérez (?), Jesús Luzardo Edward Cabrera, Sandy Alcantara
MIL CIN (95) @ATL (82) Corbin Burnes Freddy Peralta Colin Rea (x2), Adrian Houser, Julio Teheran
MIN SEA (136) @KCR (175) Kenta Maeda (x2), Pablo López, Joe Ryan, Sonny Gray, Bailey Ober
NYM @NYY (127) WSN (95) Justin Verlander (x2), Max Scherzer José Quintana, Kodai Senga, Carlos Carrasco
NYY NYM (79) @BAL (84) Gerrit Cole Domingo Germán, Carlos Rodón, Clarke Schmidt Luis Severino
OAK @SFG (161) @COL (70) Hogan Harris Ken Waldichuk, JP Sears, Paul Blackburn, Luis Medina
PHI BAL (18) @PIT (161) Zack Wheeler, Aaron Nola, Cristopher Sánchez (@PIT) Cristopher Sánchez (vBAL), Taijuan Walker, Ranger Suárez
PIT @SDP (88) PHI (116) Johan Oviedo, Mitch Keller Quinn Priester (x2), Rich Hill Osvaldo Bido
SDP PIT (156) TEX (70) Yu Darvish (vPIT), Blake Snell, Seth Lugo Joe Musgrove, Yu Darvish (vTEX)
SEA @MIN (86) @ARI (107) Luis Castillo (x2), George Kirby, Bryce Miller, Logan Gilbert Bryan Woo
SFG OAK (159) BOS (113) Alex Cobb, Alex Wood, Logan Webb Anthony DeSclafani Ross Stripling (x2)
STL @ARI (107) CHC (52) Jack Flaherty, Miles Mikolas, Jordan Montgomery Dakota Hudson (x2), Steven Matz (x2)
TBR MIA (122) @HOU (116) Tyler Glasnow, Zach Eflin, Shane McClanahan Taj Bradley
TEX @HOU (116) @SDP (88) Nathan Eovaldi (x2) Jon Gray, Andrew Heaney, Dane Dunning Martín Pérez
TOR @LAD (18) LAA (25) José Berríos (x2), Chris Bassitt, Kevin Gausman Yusei Kikuchi, Alek Manoah
WSN COL (129) @NYM (125) Patrick Corbin (x2), Josiah Gray, MacKenzie Gore Trevor Williams (x2), Jake Irvin

A few general schedule notes first:

  • There are a bunch of teams who have two off days next week and will only play five games as a result: the A’s, Braves, Marlins, Rays, Red Sox, Yankees. Since they won’t necessarily need a fifth starter, keep an eye on the probable pitchers listed on Sunday in case any of those teams decide to go with a four-man rotation and skip someone’s regular turn in the rotation.
  • The Tigers and Giants would have played only five games next week but they had a rainout rescheduled for Monday. That means San Francisco will play in Washington this weekend, in Detroit on Monday, and then fly home to start a series against the A’s on Tuesday.
  • The Twins easy schedule post-All-Star break continues next week with a pair of matchups against the Mariners (again) and the Royals. Every one of their starters have been pretty close to a must start all season long and you can just set them and forget them next week too.
  • The Blue Jays and White Sox get a pretty tough slate of games next week. Toronto gets the double Los Angeles experience with one series on the road (at the Dodgers) and one at home (versus the Angels). The Cubs and Guardians may not seem like tough opponents on paper, but both teams have been hitting particularly well recently and both series will be played in the home run friendly confines of Guaranteed Rate Field.

Notable two-start pitchers:

  • Justin Verlander
  • Luis Castillo
  • Eduardo Rodriguez
  • Nathan Eovaldi
  • Kenta Maeda
  • Aaron Civale

Ottoneu Starting Pitching Planner: July 14–23

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. 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.

July 14–23
Team Series 1 Matchup Series 2 Matchup Series 3 Matchup Start Maybe Risky Sit
ARI @TOR (98) @ATL (44) @CIN (28) Gallen (x2) Nelson (x2), Henry (x2), Davies (x2), Gilbert
ATL CHW (142) ARI (116) @MIL (77) Morton (x2), Strider (x2) Elder (x2) Allard (x2), Soroka
BAL MIA (100) LAD (63) @TBR (125) Kremer (vMIA), Gibson (x2), Bradish (x2), Wells (x2) Kremer (vLAD) Irvin (x2)
BOS @CHC (132) @OAK (195) NYM (72) Bello (x2), Paxton (x2) Pivetta (@OAK) Crawford (x2), Pivetta (vNYM)
CHC BOS (104) WSN (70) STL (35) Stroman (x2), Steele (x2) Hendricks (x2) Taillon (x2), Smyly (x2)
CHW @ATL (44) @NYM (107) @MIN (118) Cease (@MIN), Giolito (x2) Kopech (@NYM), Lynn (@MIN) Kopech (@ATL), Lynn (@ATL), Cease (@ATL), Toussaint
CIN MIL (70) SFG (72) ARI (77) Abbott (x2) Ashcraft (x2), Lively (x2) Williamson (x2), Weaver (x2)
CLE @TEX (33) @PIT (130) PHI (79) Civale (@PIT), Bieber (x2) Williams (vPHI), Bibee (vPHI), Allen Civale (@TEX), Williams (@TEX), Bibee (@TEX)
COL NYY (77) HOU (60) @MIA (102) Gomber (x2), Seabold (x2), Anderson (x2)
DET @SEA (104) @KCR (188) SDP (130) Rodriguez (x2), Skubal (x2) Lorenzen (x2) Olson (x2), Manning (x2)
HOU @LAA (70) @COL (72) @OAK (195) France (@OAK), Valdez (x2), Javier (@OAK), Brown (@OAK) Javier (@LAA) France (@LAA), Brown (@COL) Bielak
KCR TBR (128) DET (174) @NYY (109) Singer (x2) Marsh (x2), Lyles (x2), Lynch (x2), Yarbrough (x2)
LAA HOU (67) NYY (84) PIT (100) Ohtani (x2), Detmers (vPIT) Detmers (vHOU), Sandoval Canning, Barria Anderson (x2)
LAD @NYM (107) @BAL (111) @TEX (33) Urías (x2), Gonsolin (vNYM), Miller (vNYM) Sheehan (@BAL) Gonsolin (@TEX), Miller (@TEX), Sheehan (@TEX), Grove
MIA @BAL (111) @STL (74) COL (181) Garrett (x2), Luzardo (x2) Alcantara (x2) Hoeing, Cueto
MIL @CIN (28) @PHI (65) ATL (21) Burnes (x2), Peralta (x2) Houser (x2), Miley (x2), Teheran
MIN @OAK (195) @SEA (104) CHW (146) Maeda (x2), López (x2), Ryan (x2), Gray (x2), Ober (x2)
NYM LAD (56) CHW (144) @BOS (51) Verlander (vCHW) Verlander (vLAD), Senga (x2), Scherzer (x2), Quintana?, Carrasco
NYY @COL (72) @LAA (70) KCR (158) Schmidt (vKCR), Cole (vKCR), Germán (vKCR) Rodón (x2), Cole (@COL), Germán (@LAA) Schmidt (@COL), Severino
OAK MIN (174) BOS (130) HOU (123) Blackburn (x2), Sears (x2) Harris (x2), Medina (x2), Waldichuk (x2)
PHI SDP (79) MIL (81) @CLE (125) Walker (@CLE), Wheeler (x2), Nola (x2) Sánchez (x2), Walker (vSDP), Suárez (x2)
PIT SFG (121) CLE (142) @LAA (70) Oviedo (vSFG), Keller (vCLE) Oviedo (@LAA), Keller (@LAA) Hill (x2) Bido (x2)
SDP @PHI (65) @TOR (98) @DET (172) Snell (x2), Lugo (@DET), Musgrove (x2) Darvish (x2) Lugo (@PHI) Weathers
SEA DET (144) MIN (142) TOR (107) Castillo (x2), Kirby (x2), Gilbert (x2), Woo (x2), Miller (x2)
SFG @PIT (130) @CIN (28) @WSN (93) Cobb (@PIT), Webb (@WSN) Wood (x2), Webb (@CIN) Cobb (@CIN), DeSclafani (x2) Stripling (x2)
STL WSN (125) MIA (51) @CHC (93) Mikolas (x2), Montgomery (x2) Flaherty (x2) Matz (x2) Hudson (x2)
TBR @KCR (188) @TEX (33) BAL (91) Glasnow (@KCR), Eflin (x2), Bradley (x2) Glasnow (@TEX) Chirinos (x2)
TEX CLE (121) TBR (93) LAD (42) Gray (vCLE) Gray (vTBR), Heaney (vCLE), Eovaldi (x2) Heaney (vLAD), Dunning Pérez (x2)
TOR ARI (91) SDP (81) @SEA (104) Berríos (x2), Gausman (x2) Bassitt (x2) Kikuchi (x2), Manoah
WSN @STL (74) @CHC (132) SFG (88) Gore (x2) Gray (x2), Irvin Corbin (x2), Williams (x2)

A few general schedule notes first:

  • With the All-Star break taking up the first half of this week, head-to-head matchups in most leagues will span July 14–23. In Ottoneu head-to-head leagues with a Games Started cap, players will need to wisely plan their matchups since the number of starts they have to cover is the same, only with three extra days in the matchup window.
  • There are just a few teams who will start off the second half of the season with a string of easier matchups. Both the Twins and the Mariners are probably your best bet to set it and forget it with their entire rotations. Seattle has ten games at home following their All-Star hosting duties and two of their three opponents are particularly weak.
  • On the other hand, there are a bunch of teams with a stretch of tough opponents following the midseason break. The Brewers, Cubs, Diamondbacks, and Reds all have particularly challenging matchups over the next ten days which makes it a bit of a risk to rely on any of their pitchers. Not only do Cincinnati’s opponents hit well, they’re also playing all three series at home in the most home run friendly ballpark in the majors.
  • Keep an eye on how teams line up the back half of their starting rotations after this weekend. Most teams haven’t announced starters for games early next week, and the order they lineup their fourth and fifth starters could have an effect on their matchups next weekend.

Ottoneu Starting Pitching Planner: July 3–9

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. 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.

July 3–9
Team Series 1 Matchup Series 2 Matchup Start Maybe Risky Sit
ARI NYM (120) PIT (158) Zac Gallen Ryne Nelson Zach Davies (x2), Brandon Pfaadt, Tommy Henry
ATL @CLE (102) @TBR (93) Spencer Strider Bryce Elder (x2), Charlie Morton Kolby Allard, Michael Soroka
BAL @NYY (138) @MIN (126) Tyler Wells (x2), Kyle Bradish Kyle Gibson (x2), Dean Kremer Cole Irvin
BOS TEX (54) OAK (142) Brayan Bello (vOAK), Garrett Whitlock James Paxton Brayan Bello (vTEX) Kutter Crawford
CHC @MIL (138) @NYY (115) Justin Steele, Marcus Stroman Drew Smyly (x2), Kyle Hendricks (x2), Jameson Taillon
CHW TOR (54) STL (47) Lucas Giolito (x2), Lance Lynn, Dylan Cease, Michael Kopech Tanner Banks
CIN @WSN (95) @MIL (138) Andrew Abbott Graham Ashcraft, Brandon Williamson Luke Weaver (x2), Alec Mills (x2)
CLE ATL (27) KCR (147) Gavin Williams (vKCR), Shane Bieber (vKCR), Tanner Bibee, Aaron Civale Shane Bieber (vATL) Gavin Williams (vATL) Cal Quantrill
COL @HOU (86) @SFG (151) Austin Gomber Kyle Freeland, Connor Seabold Chase Anderson, Peter Lambert
DET OAK (174) TOR (111) Tarik Skubal (vOAK), Reese Olson, Michael Lorenzen Matt Manning, Tarik Skubal (vTOR) Tyler Alexander
HOU COL (108) SEA (115) Hunter Brown, Framber Valdez, Cristian Javier (vSEA) Cristian Javier (@TEX), J.P. France (x2) Ronel Blanco
KCR @MIN (126) @CLE (102) Austin Cox (x2), Zack Greinke (x2), Brady Singer Jordan Lyles, Daniel Lynch
LAA @SDP (88) @LAD (70) Shohei Ohtani, Patrick Sandoval Jaime Barría Griffin Canning, Tyler Anderson
LAD PIT (113) LAA (16) Clayton Kershaw (vPIT), Bobby Miller, Julio Urías Emmet Sheehan, Tony Gonsolin, Clayton Kershaw (vLAA)
MIA STL (104) PHI (120) Braxton Garrett (x2), Jesús Luzardo, Eury Pérez Sandy Alcantara Johnny Cueto (?)
MIL CHC (63) CIN (43) Freddy Peralta, Corbin Burnes Julio Teheran (x2), Wade Miley, Adrian Houser Colin Rea
MIN KCR (163) BAL (97) Joe Ryan (x2), Kenta Maeda, Pablo López, Sonny Gray Bailey Ober
NYM @ARI (86) @SDP (88) Max Scherzer, Justin Verlander Kodai Senga (x2) Carlos Carrasco, José Quintana (?)
NYY BAL (77) CHC (68) Gerrit Cole Domingo Germán (x2), Clarke Schmidt (x2), Luis Severino, Carlos Rodón (?)
OAK @DET (167) @BOS (54) JP Sears (@DET) Hogan Harris, Paul Blackburn, JP Sears (@BOS) Luis Medina, James Kaprielian
PHI @TBR (93) @MIA (115) Zack Wheeler, Ranger Suárez, Aaron Nola (@MIA) Aaron Nola (@TBR), Taijuan Walker Cristopher Sánchez
PIT @LAD (70) @ARI (86) Mitch Keller (x2) Johan Oviedo, Rich Hill Luis L. Ortiz (x2), Osvaldo Bido
SDP LAA (45) NYM (104) Yu Darvish, Blake Snell (vNYM) Blake Snell (vLAA), Joe Musgrove, Michael Wacha Seth Lugo
SEA @SFG (151) @HOU (86) Bryan Woo (@SFG), Logan Gilbert (x2), Bryce Miller, George Kirby, Luis Castillo Bryan Woo (@HOU)
SFG SEA (158) COL (151) Logan Webb (x2), Alex Cobb, Anthony DeSclafani, Alex Wood Keaton Winn
STL @MIA (115) @CHW (88) Miles Mikolas (x2), Jordan Montgomery Jack Flaherty Adam Wainwright (x2), Matthew Liberatore
TBR PHI (113) ATL (54) Zach Eflin (vPHI), Shane McClanahan Tyler Glasnow, Taj Bradley, Zach Eflin (vATL) Yonny Chirinos
TEX @BOS (54) @WSN (95) Andrew Heaney, Dane Dunning (@WSN) Jon Gray, Nathan Eovaldi Dane Dunning (vHOU), Martín Pérez (@WSN) Martín Pérez (vHOU)
TOR @CHW (93) @DET (167) Chris Bassitt, José Berríos, Kevin Gausman Yusei Kikuchi Trevor Richards (x2)
WSN CIN (41) TEX (41) MacKenzie Gore Jake Irvin (x2), Patrick Corbin (x2), Josiah Gray, Trevor Williams

A few general schedule notes first:

  • Not many teams get a double helping of cake matchups next week. The Giants will head into the All-Star break with a homestand against two weaker offenses in the Mariners and Rockies. The Orioles also have a couple of easier matchups on paper next week, but they’re on the road and face a tough divisional matchup in the Yankees.
  • The Brewers, Nationals, and White Sox have rough matchups in both their series next week. Lucas Giolito has a two-start week but I’d be pretty hesitant to start him against the Blue Jays and Cardinals at home. Depending on how you feel about Corbin Burnes this year, he looks like a pretty risky start against the on-fire Reds.
  • A couple teams have wonky schedules next week. The Astros and Rangers wrap up a four-game series on Monday; Houston will host Colorado for two and the Mariners for four while Texas travels to Boston and Washington for a pair of three-game series. On the other end of the week, the Dodgers and Angels play a two-game series the weekend before the All-Star break with both teams taking Sunday off.
  • It looks like there are a handful of starters slated to come off the Injured List next week, including Carlos Rodón, Tarik Skubal, Johnny Cueto, and José Quintana. I’d recommend waiting to see how they fair after their injuries, though Skubal’s start at home against the A’s looks really enticing.

Notable two-start pitchers:

  • Joe Ryan
  • Logan Webb
  • Braxton Garrett
  • Tyler Wells
  • Cristian Javier
  • Logan Gilbert
  • Clayton Kershaw
  • Blake Snell
  • Shane Bieber
  • Zach Eflin
  • Miles Mikolas
  • Bryan Woo

Ottoneu Starting Pitching Planner: June 26–July 2

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. 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.

June 26–July 2
Team Series 1 Matchup Series 2 Matchup Start Maybe Risky Sit
ARI TBR (93) @LAA (50) Zac Gallen (x2) Merrill Kelly 켈리 Tommy Henry, Zach Davies, Ryne Nelson
ATL MIN (131) MIA (122) Spencer Strider (x2), Charlie Morton Bryce Elder, AJ Smith-Shawver, Jared Shuster
BAL CIN (86) MIN (140) Tyler Wells (x2), Kyle Bradish Kyle Gibson, Dean Kremer Cole Irvin
BOS MIA (113) @TOR (93) Garrett Whitlock (vMIA), Brayan Bello, James Paxton Garrett Whitlock (@TOR) Kutter Crawford, Nick Pivetta
CHC PHI (93) CLE (61) Justin Steele, Marcus Stroman Jameson Taillon (x2), Drew Smyly, Kyle Hendricks
CHW @LAA (50) @OAK (193) Dylan Cease, Michael Kopech (@OAK) Michael Kopech (@LAA), Lucas Giolito, Lance Lynn Touki Toussaint (x2)
CIN @BAL (72) SDP (59) Andrew Abbott Brandon Williamson (x2), Luke Weaver, Graham Ashcraft, Ben Lively 라이블리
CLE @KCR (156) @CHC (102) Logan Allen, Shane Bieber, Tanner Bibee, Aaron Civale Gavin Williams (x2)
COL LAD (70) DET (91) Connor Seabold (x2), Kyle Freeland, Chase Anderson, Austin Gomber, Peter Lambert
DET @TEX (48) @COL (52) Matthew Boyd (x2), Matt Manning (?), Joey Wentz, Reese Olson, Michael Lorenzen
HOU @STL (88) @TEX (48) Framber Valdez (x2), Cristian Javier Hunter Brown J.P. France Ronel Blanco
KCR CLE (122) LAD (129) Brady Singer (x2), Zack Greinke Jordan Lyles, Daniel Lynch
LAA CHW (127) ARI (27) Reid Detmers, Shohei Ohtani, Patrick Sandoval Jaime Barría (vCHW) Griffin Canning, Tyler Anderson, Jaime Barría (vARI)
LAD @COL (52) @KCR (156) Tony Gonsolin, Julio Urías (?), Clayton Kershaw (@KCR) Clayton Kershaw (@COL), Bobby Miller Emmet Sheehan
MIA @BOS (34) @ATL (45) Braxton Garrett, Jesús Luzardo, Eury Pérez Sandy Alcantara (x2) Johnny Cueto (?)
MIL @NYM (118) @PIT (165) Corbin Burnes Freddy Peralta Colin Rea (x2), Julio Teheran (x2), Wade Miley
MIN @ATL (45) @BAL (72) Joe Ryan, Pablo López Sonny Gray (x2), Bailey Ober Kenta Maeda
NYM MIL (163) SFG (54) Justin Verlander (x2), Kodai Senga, Max Scherzer Carlos Carrasco Tylor Megill (x2)
NYY @OAK (193) @STL (88) Domingo Germán, Luis Severino, Gerrit Cole Jhony Brito (@OAK), Clarke Schmidt Jhony Brito (@STL)
OAK NYY (170) CHW (181) Paul Blackburn (x2) JP Sears, Hogan Harris James Kaprielian, Luis Medina
PHI @CHC (102) WSN (100) Ranger Suárez (x2), Aaron Nola, Zack Wheeler Taijuan Walker Cristopher Sánchez
PIT SDP (106) MIL (170) Mitch Keller, Johan Oviedo Rich Hill (x2) Luis L. Ortiz, Osvaldo Bido
SDP @PIT (165) @CIN (41) Yu Darvish (x2), Blake Snell, Joe Musgrove Michael Wacha, Seth Lugo
SEA WSN (120) TBR (70) Luis Castillo (x2), Bryan Woo, Logan Gilbert Bryce Miller, George Kirby
SFG @TOR (93) @NYM (118) Logan Webb Alex Cobb (?), Anthony DeSclafani Alex Wood (x2), Sean Manaea
STL HOU (127) NYY (106) Jordan Montgomery Miles Mikolas, Jack Flaherty Matthew Liberatore (x2), Adam Wainwright
TBR @ARI (79) @SEA (134) Taj Bradley (x2), Shane McClanahan, Zach Eflin, Tyler Glasnow Yonny Chirinos
TEX DET (116) HOU (100) Nathan Eovaldi (x2), Dane Dunning, Jon Gray Martín Pérez (vDET), Andrew Heaney Martín Pérez (vHOU)
TOR SFG (27) BOS (59) Kevin Gausman (x2), Chris Bassitt, José Berríos Yusei Kikuchi, Trevor Richards
WSN @SEA (134) @PHI (79) MacKenzie Gore Jake Irvin, Patrick Corbin, Josiah Gray Trevor Williams (x2)

A few general schedule notes:

  • The A’s are lined up to face the Yankees and White Sox next week at home. Both of those opponents have been struggling offensively recently and the Coliseum is a fantastic pitcher’s park. This is a pretty good opportunity to start whichever Oakland starters you’re rostering.
  • The Blue Jays, Marlins, and Tigers have some pretty rough matchups next week. Both Toronto and Miami face the tough Red Sox offense; the former gets the red hot Giants in their first series of the week and the latter gets the Braves in a huge divisional showdown next weekend. Detroit will travel to Texas to face the potent Rangers offense and then travel to Colorado over the weekend. If you’re rostering any of the Tigers starting rotation, keep them on your bench next week.
  • The Dodgers are the other team to visit Coors Field next week, making Clayton Kershaw and Bobby Miller pretty risky starts. Thankfully, they head to Kansas City afterwards, giving the other half of their rotation some really nice matchups over the weekend. It’s also possible Julio Urías will end up making his return from the IL in that series against the Royals.

Notable two-start pitchers:

  • Luis Castillo
  • Spencer Strider
  • Framber Valdez
  • Nathan Eovaldi
  • Ranger Suárez
  • Taj Bradley
  • Yu Darvish
  • Zac Gallen
  • Tyler Wells
  • Garrett Whitlock
  • Kevin Gausman
  • Sonny Gray
  • Michael Kopech
  • Paul Blackburn
  • Gavin Williams

Ottoneu Starting Pitching Planner: June 19–25

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. 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.

June 19–25
Team Series 1 Matchup Series 2 Matchup Start Maybe Risky Sit
ARI @MIL (121) @SFG (124) Merrill Kelly 켈리 (x2), Zac Gallen Ryne Nelson (x2) Tommy Henry, Zach Davies
ATL @PHI (50) @CIN (64) Spencer Strider (x2), Bryce Elder, Charlie Morton AJ Smith-Shawver, Jared Shuster
BAL @TBR (103) SEA (130) Kyle Gibson, Dean Kremer Kyle Bradish, Tyler Wells, Cole Irvin
BOS @MIN (110) @CHW (126) Garrett Whitlock (x2), James Paxton Tanner Houck, Brayan Bello Kutter Crawford (x2)
CHC @PIT (98) @STL (110) Marcus Stroman Drew Smyly, Kyle Hendricks, Justin Steele Jameson Taillon
CHW TEX (30) BOS (96) Lucas Giolito Dylan Cease, Michael Kopech, Lance Lynn
CIN COL (110) ATL (0) Ben Lively 라이블리, Andrew Abbott, Hunter Greene Brandon Williamson (x2), Luke Weaver
CLE OAK (101) MIL (133) Aaron Civale (x2), Logan Allen, Triston McKenzie, Shane Bieber, Tanner Bibee
COL @CIN (64) LAA (39) Austin Gomber (x2), Kyle Freeland, Dinelson Lamet, Connor Seabold, Chase Anderson
DET KCR (183) MIN (160) Michael Lorenzen (x2), Reese Olson, Matthew Boyd Joey Wentz
HOU NYM (103) @LAD (39) Framber Valdez (x2), Cristian Javier Hunter Brown J.P. France Brandon Bielak
KCR @DET (160) @TBR (103) Brady Singer Jordan Lyles (x2), Daniel Lynch (x2), Mike Mayers, Zack Greinke
LAA LAD (48) @COL (62) Shohei Ohtani Reid Detmers, Patrick Sandoval Griffin Canning, Tyler Anderson
LAD @LAA (41) HOU (69) Clayton Kershaw (x2), Bobby Miller, Tony Gonsolin Michael Grove
MIA TOR (85) PIT (92) Braxton Garrett, Jesús Luzardo, Edward Cabrera (vPIT), Eury Pérez (vPIT) Edward Cabrera (vTOR), Eury Pérez (vTOR), Sandy Alcantara
MIL ARI (41) @CLE (117) Corbin Burnes (x2) Freddy Peralta Adrian Houser, Julio Teheran, Wade Miley
MIN BOS (135) @DET (160) Pablo López (x2), Bailey Ober (x2), Sonny Gray, Joe Ryan, Louie Varland
NYM @HOU (85) @PHI (50) Max Scherzer (x2), Justin Verlander Kodai Senga Tylor Megill, Carlos Carrasco
NYY SEA (105) TEX (48) Gerrit Cole (x2) Domingo Germán, Clarke Schmidt Luis Severino Randy Vásquez
OAK @CLE (117) @TOR (55) Paul Blackburn, JP Sears Luis Medina (x2), James Kaprielian, Hogan Harris
PHI ATL (11) NYM (92) Zack Wheeler, Ranger Suárez (vNYM) Ranger Suárez (vATL), Aaron Nola Taijuan Walker Cristopher Sánchez
PIT CHC (140) @MIA (147) Johan Oviedo (x2), Mitch Keller Rich Hill Luis L. Ortiz Osvaldo Bido (x2)
SDP @SFG (124) WSN (133) Michael Wacha (x2), Yu Darvish, Blake Snell, Joe Musgrove Ryan Weathers (x2)
SEA @NYY (140) @BAL (98) George Kirby (x2), Luis Castillo, Logan Gilbert, Bryce Miller Bryan Woo
SFG SDP (124) ARI (89) Alex Cobb (x2), Logan Webb Anthony DeSclafani (x2), Sean Manaea, Alex Wood
STL @WSN (137) CHC (147) Jack Flaherty, Jordan Montgomery, Miles Mikolas Adam Wainwright, Matthew Liberatore
TBR BAL (105) KCR (176) Tyler Glasnow (x2), Taj Bradley, Shane McClanahan, Zach Eflin Yonny Chirinos
TEX @CHW (126) @NYY (140) Nathan Eovaldi, Jon Gray Andrew Heaney (x2), Dane Dunning Martín Pérez
TOR @MIA (147) OAK (87) José Berríos (x2), Kevin Gausman, Chris Bassitt Yusei Kikuchi, Trevor Richards
WSN STL (92) @SDP (78) MacKenzie Gore (x2) Josiah Gray (x2) Trevor Williams, Jake Irvin, Patrick Corbin

A few general schedule notes first:

  • The Cubs and Cardinals play in the MLB London Series next weekend which means they’re both off on Friday for travel. The last time teams played in England, the Yankees and Red Sox combined for 50 total runs across two games. The dimensions of London Stadium are particularly small — it would be the shortest center field fence in the majors — so avoiding the four pitchers scheduled to start this series would be prudent.
  • They aren’t the only team with a weird travel schedule next week. The Nationals and Diamondbacks are scheduled to play a make-up game on Thursday. That means Arizona will play in Milwaukee to start the week, head to Washington for a single game, and then fly all the way across the country to San Francisco for their weekend series.
  • Teams with more traditionally tough schedules include the Angels, Braves, and Dodgers. Shohei Ohtani manages to avoid pitching in Coors Field but he still has to face the Dodgers offense in his start next week. Based on his struggles recently, you’re probably better off sitting Spencer Strider in both of his starts next week. Atlanta plays in a couple of hitter friendly venues against teams who are playing particularly well recently.
  • I’ve only been calculating these matchup scores for a few weeks now, but the Reds somehow managed to pull a zero in their series against the Braves. That’s pretty incredible. Just for reference, that means they’re facing the best road offense and the best offense over the last two weeks in the worst venue for home runs in the majors.
  • Teams with easier schedules include the Pirates, Tigers, and Twins. All of Minnesota’s rotation has been a must-start for practically the entire season, but they’ve all got pretty cushy matchups next week. Detroit’s and Pittsburgh’s rotations are a little hit-or-miss, but there are some key contributors who should be easy starts next week.

Notable two-start pitchers:

  • Tyler Glasnow
  • Gerrit Cole
  • Pablo López
  • George Kirby
  • José Berríos
  • Garrett Whitlock
  • Merrill Kelly
  • Michael Wacha
  • Alex Cobb
  • Framber Valdez
  • Max Scherzer
  • Corbin Burnes
  • Clayton Kershaw
  • Bailey Ober
  • Johan Oviedo
  • Ranger Suárez
  • Aaron Civale
  • Michael Lorenzen

Ottoneu Starting Pitching Planner: June 12–18

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. 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.

June 12–18
Team Series 1 Matchup Series 2 Matchup Start Maybe Risky Sit
BAL TOR (72) @CHC (138) Kyle Gibson Dean Kremer (x2), Kyle Bradish, Tyler Wells Cole Irvin
BOS COL (109) NYY (118) James Paxton (x2), Garrett Whitlock Brayan Bello Kutter Crawford, Tanner Houck
NYY @NYM (127) @BOS (63) Gerrit Cole Luis Severino Domingo Germán, Clarke Schmidt
TBR @OAK (168) @SDP (103) Zach Eflin (x2), Tyler Glasnow, Taj Bradley, Shane McClanahan Yonny Chirinos (@OAK) Yonny Chirinos (@SDP)
TOR @BAL (142) @TEX (26) Chris Bassitt (@BAL), José Berríos Chris Bassitt (@TEX), Kevin Gausman Yusei Kikuchi Bowden Francis
CHW @LAD (17) @SEA (142) Michael Kopech, Lucas Giolito Lance Lynn (@SEA) Lance Lynn (@LAD), Dylan Cease Mike Clevinger
CLE @SDP (103) @ARI (96) Tanner Bibee (x2), Logan Allen, Triston McKenzie, Shane Bieber Aaron Civale
DET ATL (66) @MIN (103) Reese Olson (x2), Michael Lorenzen, Matthew Boyd Tyler Holton (x2), Joey Wentz
KCR CIN (92) LAA (92) Zack Greinke (x2) Jordan Lyles, Daniel Lynch, Brady Singer, Mike Mayers
MIN MIL (144) DET (164) Pablo López (x2), Bailey Ober, Sonny Gray, Joe Ryan, Louie Varland
HOU WSN (63) CIN (55) Hunter Brown (x2), Framber Valdez, Cristian Javier J.P. France, Brandon Bielak
LAA @TEX (26) @KCR (151) Patrick Sandoval Shohei Ohtani Reid Detmers, Griffin Canning, Tyler Anderson (vKCR) Tyler Anderson (@TEX), Jaime Barría
OAK TBR (103) PHI (118) JP Sears James Kaprielian (x2), Hogan Harris (x2), Luis Medina, Paul Blackburn
SEA MIA (74) CHW (138) Logan Gilbert (x2), George Kirby, Luis Castillo, Bryce Miller Bryan Woo
TEX LAA (59) TOR (52) Jon Gray (x2), Nathan Eovaldi Dane Dunning (x2), Andrew Heaney Martín Pérez
ATL @DET (177) COL (118) Charlie Morton (x2), Spencer Strider (x2), Bryce Elder AJ Smith-Shawver, Jared Shuster
MIA @SEA (142) @WSN (92) Jesús Luzardo (x2), Edward Cabrera, Eury Pérez, Sandy Alcantara Trevor Rogers
NYM NYY (129) STL (138) Max Scherzer, Justin Verlander Kodai Senga Tylor Megill, Carlos Carrasco
PHI @ARI (96) @OAK (168) Zack Wheeler (x2), Aaron Nola, Taijuan Walker Ranger Suárez Dylan Covey (x2)
WSN @HOU (85) MIA (59) MacKenzie Gore Jake Irvin (x2), Patrick Corbin, Josiah Gray, Trevor Williams
CHC PIT (63) BAL (125) Marcus Stroman Jameson Taillon (x2), Justin Steele Drew Smyly, Kyle Hendricks
CIN @KCR (151) @HOU (85) Andrew Abbott, Hunter Greene Brandon Williamson, Graham Ashcraft, Ben Lively 라이블리 Luke Weaver
MIL @MIN (103) PIT (44) Corbin Burnes Freddy Peralta Colin Rea, Adrian Houser Julio Teheran
PIT @CHC (138) @MIL (107) Mitch Keller Rich Hill, Johan Oviedo Roansy Contreras (x2), Luis L. Ortiz
STL SFG (66) @NYM (127) Miles Mikolas Jack Flaherty, Jordan Montgomery, Adam Wainwright Matthew Liberatore (x2)
ARI PHI (109) CLE (142) Merrill Kelly 켈리, Zac Gallen Ryne Nelson Tommy Henry (x2), Zach Davies (x2)
COL @BOS (63) @ATL (59) Connor Seabold (x2), Chase Anderson (x2), Austin Gomber, Kyle Freeland, Dinelson Lamet
LAD CHW (116) SFG (22) Tony Gonsolin (vCHW), Clayton Kershaw, Bobby Miller Julio Urías, Tony Gonsolin (vSFG) Michael Grove
SDP CLE (127) TBR (79) Joe Musgrove (vCLE), Michael Wacha, Yu Darvish Blake Snell, Joe Musgrove (vTBR) Ryan Weathers
SFG @STL (127) @LAD (17) Logan Webb (@STL), Alex Cobb Anthony DeSclafani, Logan Webb (@LAD) Jakob Junis, Sean Manaea

A few general schedule notes first:

  • After working through a tough schedule this week, the Twins have a couple of easier matchups next week at home; the Brewers are much weaker on the road and have been really struggling recently and the Tigers have one of the worst offenses in the league no matter where they’re playing. The Braves also have a pretty nice schedule next week, with three in Detroit and then four games at home against the Rockies.
  • The Astros and Rangers both have a pretty tough pair of home series next week. Houston will host the Nationals and Reds, both of which might seem like easy matchups, but both teams have been hitting pretty well recently. Texas hosts the high powered Angels and Blue Jays offenses and trying to avoid matchups against those two teams seems more justifiable. Still, with the way they’ve been pitching recently, you’re probably not going to sit Nathan Eovaldi or Jon Gray right now.
  • The Rockies head out on the road next week but they’ve got two really bad matchups lined up which means you’re probably sitting their starters if you happen to be rostering any of them.
  • Good luck trying to figure out which starters to start in that Dodgers-Giants series next weekend. Both teams have extremely low matchup ratings, a confluence of the home run friendly ballpark, the strength of San Francisco’s lineup on the road, and the always dangerous Los Angeles offense.

Notable two-start pitchers:

  • Pablo López
  • Zack Wheeler
  • Zach Eflin
  • Logan Gilbert
  • Charlie Morton
  • Jesús Luzardo
  • James Paxton
  • Tanner Bibee
  • Jon Gray
  • Hunter Brown
  • Chris Bassitt
  • Joe Musgrove
  • Tony Gonsolin
  • Logan Webb

Ottoneu Starting Pitching Planner: June 5–11

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. 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.

June 5–11
Team Series 1 Matchup Series 2 Matchup Start Maybe Risky Sit
BAL @MIL (142) KCR (177) Kyle Gibson (x2), Tyler Wells Dean Kremer, Kyle Bradish Austin Voth
BOS @CLE (151) @NYY (83) James Paxton (@CLE), Chris Sale, Garrett Whitlock Tanner Houck, Brayan Bello, James Paxton (@NYY)
NYY CHW (154) BOS (130) Nestor Cortes (x2), Luis Severino, Gerrit Cole Clarke Schmidt Domingo Germán
TBR MIN (142) TEX (80) Shane McClanahan (x2), Zach Eflin, Tyler Glasnow Taj Bradley Josh Fleming
TOR HOU (76) MIN (99) Kevin Gausman (x2) Chris Bassitt, José Berríos Alek Manoah (x2) Yusei Kikuchi
CHW @NYY (83) MIA (52) Lucas Giolito (x2), Dylan Cease, Michael Kopech Lance Lynn Mike Clevinger
CLE BOS (135) HOU (90) Shane Bieber (x2), Tanner Bibee Triston McKenzie, Logan Allen Aaron Civale
DET @PHI (90) ARI (140) Michael Lorenzen, Matthew Boyd Alex Faedo (x2) Joey Wentz, Reese Olson
KCR @MIA (132) @BAL (130) Zack Greinke Mike Mayers (x2), Brady Singer, Daniel Lynch Jordan Lyles
MIN @TBR (97) @TOR (57) Louie Varland (x2), Pablo López, Bailey Ober, Sonny Gray, Joe Ryan
HOU @TOR (57) @CLE (151) Framber Valdez (x2), Cristian Javier, Hunter Brown (@CLE) Hunter Brown (@TOR), Brandon Bielak J.P. France
LAA CHC (76) SEA (99) Shohei Ohtani, Patrick Sandoval Reid Detmers Tyler Anderson, Griffin Canning Jaime Barría
OAK @PIT (125) @MIL (142) JP Sears (x2), Paul Blackburn Luis Medina James Kaprielian, Hogan Harris
SEA @SDP (121) @LAA (35) Logan Gilbert, George Kirby Luis Castillo, Bryce Miller Marco Gonzales
TEX STL (111) @TBR (97) Dane Dunning Jon Gray, Nathan Eovaldi Andrew Heaney Martín Pérez (x2)
ATL NYM (85) WSN (66) Spencer Strider Bryce Elder (x2), Charlie Morton Jared Shuster, Michael Soroka
MIA KCR (192) @CHW (106) Braxton Garrett (x2), Jesús Luzardo, Edward Cabrera, Sandy Alcantara Eury Pérez
NYM @ATL (102) @PIT (125) Max Scherzer, Justin Verlander, Kodai Senga Carlos Carrasco (@PIT) Carlos Carrasco (@ATL), Tylor Megill
PHI DET (111) LAD (26) Aaron Nola (vDET), Zack Wheeler Taijuan Walker, Aaron Nola (vLAD) Ranger Suárez Dylan Covey
WSN ARI (92) @ATL (102) Josiah Gray Patrick Corbin, MacKenzie Gore Jake Irvin (x2), Trevor Williams
CHC @LAA (35) @SFG (144) Marcus Stroman Kyle Hendricks (x2), Hayden Wesneski (@SFG) Hayden Wesneski (@LAA), Jameson Taillon, Drew Smyly
CIN LAD (14) @STL (116) Hunter Greene (@STL) Hunter Greene (vLAD), Ben Lively 라이블리 Luke Weaver (x2), Brandon Williamson, Graham Ashcraft
MIL BAL (66) OAK (135) Corbin Burnes, Freddy Peralta (vOAK) Adrian Houser Freddy Peralta (vBAL) Julio Teheran (x2), Colin Rea
PIT OAK (166) NYM (95) Johan Oviedo (vOAK), Mitch Keller Roansy Contreras, Johan Oviedo (vNYM) Luis L. Ortiz, Rich Hill
STL @TEX (33) CIN (90) Jordan Montgomery, Miles Mikolas (vCIN) Adam Wainwright Miles Mikolas (@TEX) Matthew Liberatore, Jack Flaherty
ARI @WSN (71) @DET (161) Merrill Kelly 켈리, Zac Gallen Ryne Nelson Tommy Henry (x2), Zach Davies
COL SFG (45) SDP (111) Dinelson Lamet (x2), Connor Seabold, Chase Anderson, Austin Gomber, Kyle Freeland
LAD @CIN (40) @PHI (90) Tony Gonsolin (x2), Clayton Kershaw, Bobby Miller Michael Grove Noah Syndergaard
SDP SEA (130) @COL (31) Blake Snell (vCHC), Joe Musgrove Michael Wacha Yu Darvish, Blake Snell (@COL) Ryan Weathers
SFG @COL (31) CHC (135) Anthony DeSclafani Sean Manaea, Alex Wood (vCHC) Logan Webb, Alex Cobb Alex Wood (@COL)

A few general schedule notes first:

  • The Twins head out on a tough road trip next week with two tough AL East stops. Tropicana Field is pretty pitcher friendly which is why the matchup rating is so high against the best offense in the majors. Rogers Field is definitely not pitcher friendly and it’s only gotten more dangerous after the fences were moved this year. Start your Twins pitchers if you really need to but they’re all at risk of a blowup next week.
  • The Orioles and Yankees get pretty easy schedules next week. Kyle Gibson has a two-start week that you should probably take advantage of and the rest of their rotation is a pretty good bet to produce against the Brewers and Royals. The Yankees host the White Sox and Red Sox next week and both of those opponents are hitting far worse on the road than in their hitter friendly home parks.
  • The Rockies return home next week to host the Giants and Padres. That makes it pretty risky to start half the rotations from those two teams, though they do have nice matchups in their non-Coors series.
  • The Cubs-Padres and Brewers-Reds series over the weekend will wrap around into Monday. They’re not reflected in the table above but the starters for those teams are listed in their proper categories.

Triston McKenzie and Aaron Civale are both on track to be activated from the IL over the weekend. Cal Quantrill was sent to the IL with a shoulder injury, though he probably would have been pushed out of a rotation spot anyway with both Tanner Bibee and Logan Allen thriving in the majors. Monitor McKenzie’s and Civale’s starts over the weekend to see how their stuff is holding up after their injuries. Both should be solid options going forward, though neither has a particularly easy matchup next week.

Notable two-start pitchers:

  • Shane McClanahan
  • Nestor Cortes
  • Shane Bieber
  • Framber Valdez
  • Kyle Gibson
  • Braxton Garrett
  • Tony Gonsolin</li
  • Lucas Giolito
  • JP Sears

Ottoneu Starting Pitching Planner: May 29–June 4

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. 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.

May 29–June 4
Team Series 1 Matchup Series 2 Matchup Start Maybe Risky Sit
BAL CLE (154) @SFG (169) Tyler Wells (x2), Kyle Gibson Grayson Rodriguez, Dean Kremer, Kyle Bradish
BOS CIN (98) TBR (30) Chris Sale Brayan Bello (vCIN), James Paxton Garrett Whitlock Corey Kluber, Tanner Houck, Brayan Bello (vTBR)
NYY @SEA (115) @LAD (37) Gerrit Cole Domingo Germán (@SEA), Nestor Cortes, Luis Severino Clarke Schmidt, Domingo Germán (@LAD)
TBR @CHC (85) @BOS (71) Shane McClanahan (x2), Tyler Glasnow Zach Eflin (x2), Taj Bradley Josh Fleming
TOR MIL (95) @NYM (111) Kevin Gausman, Chris Bassitt Alek Manoah, José Berríos Yusei Kikuchi (x2)
CHW LAA (65) DET (117) Dylan Cease, Michael Kopech (vDET), Lucas Giolito (vDET) Michael Kopech (vLAA), Lucas Giolito (vLAA), Lance Lynn
CLE @BAL (106) @MIN (63) Logan Allen (x2), Shane Bieber Triston McKenzie, Tanner Bibee Cal Quantrill, Aaron Civale
DET TEX (85) @CHW (106) Eduardo Rodriguez Matthew Boyd (x2), Michael Lorenzen Alex Faedo, Joey Wentz
KCR @STL (59) COL (158) Brady Singer Jordan Lyles, Daniel Lynch Mike Mayers, Zack Greinke
MIN @HOU (91) CLE (150) Sonny Gray (x2), Joe Ryan (x2), Pablo López, Bailey Ober Louie Varland
HOU MIN (80) LAA (82) Hunter Brown, Framber Valdez, Cristian Javier J.P. France (x2) Brandon Bielak (x2)
LAA @CHW (106) @HOU (91) Shohei Ohtani Reid Detmers, Patrick Sandoval Tyler Anderson Jaime Barría (x2), Griffin Canning
OAK ATL (98) @MIA (130) JP Sears, Luis Medina Paul Blackburn (x2), Ken Waldichuk, James Kaprielian
SEA NYY (76) @TEX (30) Bryce Miller (x2), Logan Gilbert, George Kirby, Luis Castillo Marco Gonzales
TEX @DET (169) SEA (100) Nathan Eovaldi (x2), Martín Pérez, Jon Gray Dane Dunning Andrew Heaney
ATL @OAK (184) @ARI (89) Bryce Elder (@OAK), Spencer Strider Jared Shuster, Charlie Morton, Bryce Elder (@ARI) Dylan Dodd
MIA SDP (163) OAK (163) Sandy Alcantara (x2), Jesús Luzardo, Eury Pérez Braxton Garrett, Edward Cabrera
NYM PHI (100) TOR (61) Max Scherzer, Justin Verlander Kodai Senga (x2) Carlos Carrasco Tylor Megill
PHI @NYM (111) @WSN (72) Aaron Nola, Zack Wheeler, Ranger Suárez (@WSN) Ranger Suárez (@NYM) Taijuan Walker Dylan Covey
WSN @LAD (37) PHI (76) Josiah Gray, MacKenzie Gore Trevor Williams (x2), Jake Irvin, Patrick Corbin
CHC TBR (39) @SDP (128) Marcus Stroman (@SDP) Jameson Taillon, Drew Smyly Marcus Stroman (vTBR), Justin Steele Kyle Hendricks
CIN @BOS (71) MIL (82) Hunter Greene Ben Lively 라이블리 (x2), Brandon Williamson, Graham Ashcraft Luke Weaver
MIL @TOR (63) @CIN (54) Freddy Peralta, Corbin Burnes Adrian Houser (x2), Julio Teheran, Colin Rea
PIT @SFG (169) STL (63) Mitch Keller Rich Hill (@SFG), Johan Oviedo Roansy Contreras, Vince Velasquez Rich Hill (vSTL)
STL KCR (176) @PIT (150) Adam Wainwright, Miles Mikolas, Jordan Montgomery Steven Matz, Jack Flaherty
ARI COL (152) ATL (89) Zac Gallen (x2), Merrill Kelly 켈리 Ryne Nelson (vCOL), Brandon Pfaadt Tommy Henry, Ryne Nelson (vATL)
COL @ARI (89) @KCR (165) Kyle Freeland, Austin Gomber Dinelson Lamet Karl Kauffmann (x2), Connor Seabold, Chase Anderson
LAD WSN (43) NYY (54) Tony Gonsolin Clayton Kershaw Bobby Miller (x2), Noah Syndergaard, Gavin Stone
SDP @MIA (130) CHC (69) Blake Snell, Joe Musgrove, Yu Darvish Michael Wacha Ryan Weathers (@MIA) Ryan Weathers (vCHC)
SFG PIT (139) BAL (93) Anthony DeSclafani (x2), Logan Webb, Alex Cobb Sean Manaea, Alex Wood

A few general schedule notes first:

  • The Brewers embark on a pretty tough road trip next week with stops in Toronto and Cincinnati. Both of those ballparks are incredibly conducive to home runs and both opponents play extremely well at home. Half of their rotation wouldn’t be recommended even if the matchup was good, but it’s probably a week where you’re more likely to sit Corbin Burnes and Freddy Peralta.
  • After a tough pair of matchups on the road this week, the Marlins return home next week to host a couple of pretty weak lineups in their cavernous ballpark. The Orioles also have two easier matchups on the schedule which should help with some of your decision-making if you’re rostering any of their starters.
  • The Royals and Cardinals have a weird two-game series next week followed by two off days in a row. It’s a scheduling quirk that’s a result of the holiday on Monday. St. Louis will get a chance for some extra rest during a week where they’re facing two weak teams.
  • The Rockies are on the road next week and have a particularly enticing matchup in Kansas City next weekend giving you an opportunity to start Kyle Freeland or Austin Gomber — if you’re rostering them, you’ve been waiting for exactly this situation!

The Nationals offense has been hitting really well over the last two weeks and they’ve been pretty productive on the road this year making that matchup in Los Angeles particularly tough for the Dodgers. It doesn’t help that Dodger Stadium is pretty home run friendly either. After the Nats, the Yankees come to town which looks like an equally challenging series. Due to all the injuries sustained in their starting rotation, rookies Bobby Miller and Gavin Stone are lined up to take the ball in three games next week; all three look like pretty risky propositions even if the matchup against Washington seems enticing on paper.

The Mariners head to Texas to face the red hot Rangers next weekend which opens up some tough choices for a couple of their starters. Marco Gonzales is an easy sit, but Bryce Miller and Luis Castillo are scheduled to take the mound in the other two games and they’ll face a really strong offense. I’ve listed them both as starts since Miller has been simply dominant across his first five starts in the majors and Castillo looked much better in his last start against the A’s. I’d understand if you chose to avoid that matchup though since it looks really poor on paper.

Notable two-start pitchers:

  • Joe Ryan
  • Shane McClanahan
  • Sandy Alcantara
  • Zac Gallen
  • Nathan Eovaldi
  • Sonny Gray
  • Anthony DeSclafani
  • Bryce Miller
  • Tyler Wells
  • Logan Allen

Ottoneu Starting Pitching Planner: May 22–28

Welcome back to the SP Drip— *record scratch* Wait, that headline doesn’t say “Drip.” After gathering feedback from across the Ottoneu universe, I’ve heard loud and clear that streaming recommendations — even in their adjusted form I presented in this biweekly column — just weren’t providing enough value for owners. Instead, they’re looking for sit/start recommendations further up the SP chain. Personally, I found that the same handful of pitchers ended up being recommended over and over again in the Drip — it turns out that the deep rosters of the format mean there are very few viable starters who are owned in less than half the leagues across Ottoneu. I’m still not sure what Tuesday’s article will look like moving forward, but on Fridays, you’ll get the full picture of the week ahead. Introducing the Ottoneu Starting Pitching Planner!

What I’ve done below is organize every starter on all 30 teams based on the Roster Resource Probables Grid and sorted them into four categories: start, maybe, risky, and sit. 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. As this is the first run of this new format, please let me know if there’s any feedback or questions.

May 22–28
Team Series 1 Series 2 Start Maybe Risky Sit
BAL @NYY (57) TEX (89) Grayson Rodriguez Kyle Bradish (x2), Tyler Wells, Kyle Gibson Dean Kremer
BOS @LAA (59) @ARI (68) Chris Sale James Paxton Tanner Houck, Brayan Bello, Garrett Whitlock, Corey Kluber
NYY BAL (68) SDP (148) Gerrit Cole (x2), Luis Severino Nestor Cortes Clarke Schmidt, Jhony Brito
TBR TOR (94) LAD (144) Shane McClanahan Zach Eflin Taj Bradley (x2), Tyler Glasnow Josh Fleming (x2)
TOR @TBR (64) @MIN (100) Kevin Gausman Alek Manoah, Chris Bassitt (@MIN), José Berríos (@MIN) Chris Bassitt (@TBR), José Berríos (@TBR) Yusei Kikuchi
CHW @CLE (158) @DET (183) Dylan Cease (x2), Lucas Giolito, Lance Lynn Mike Clevinger (x2), Michael Kopech
CLE CHW (100) STL (55) Logan Allen Cal Quantrill, Tanner Bibee, Shane Bieber Peyton Battenfield (vCHW) Peyton Battenfield (vSTL)
DET @KCR (123) CHW (135) Eduardo Rodriguez (x2) Michael Lorenzen (x2) Matthew Boyd Alex Faedo, Joey Wentz
KCR DET (187) WSN (110) Brady Singer (x2) Zack Greinke Daniel Lynch Jordan Lyles, Brad Keller
MIN SFG (96) TOR (82) Sonny Gray, Joe Ryan Bailey Ober (vSFG), Louie Varland, Pablo López Bailey Ober (vTOR)
HOU @MIL (96) @OAK (155) Cristian Javier (x2), Hunter Brown, Framber Valdez J.P. France Brandon Bielak
LAA BOS (50) MIA (114) Reid Detmers, Patrick Sandoval, Shohei Ohtani Chase Silseth, Griffin Canning, Tyler Anderson
OAK @SEA (128) HOU (155) JP Sears Drew Rucinski 루친스키 (x2), Luis Medina (x2), Ken Waldichuk, Kyle Muller
SEA OAK (71) PIT (116) Luis Castillo (x2), Bryce Miller, Logan Gilbert, George Kirby Marco Gonzales (x2)
TEX @PIT (164) @BAL (130) Dane Dunning (x2), Nathan Eovaldi Martín Pérez, Jon Gray, Andrew Heaney
ATL LAD (128) PHI (110) Spencer Strider (x2) Charlie Morton Bryce Elder Dylan Dodd (x2), Jared Shuster
MIA @COL (52) @LAA (59) Sandy Alcantara, Jesús Luzardo Edward Cabrera (x2), Eury Pérez (x2), Braxton Garrett
NYM @CHC (94) @COL (52) Kodai Senga (@CHC) Tylor Megill, Carlos Carrasco, Max Scherzer, Justin Verlander Kodai Senga (@COL)
PHI ARI (36) @ATL (71) Matt Strahm (x2), Aaron Nola, Zack Wheeler Taijuan Walker (x2), Ranger Suárez
WSN SDP (141) @KCR (123) MacKenzie Gore (x2) Patrick Corbin, Josiah Gray Trevor Williams, Jake Irvin
CHC NYM (132) CIN (100) Marcus Stroman, Justin Steele Drew Smyly (x2) Jameson Taillon, Kyle Hendricks
CIN STL (27) @CHC (94) Hunter Greene Graham Ashcraft (@CHC) Graham Ashcraft (vSTL) Brandon Williamson (x2), Ben Lively 라이블리, Luke Weaver
MIL HOU (110) SFG (71) Corbin Burnes (x2), Freddy Peralta Colin Rea (x2), Adrian Houser, Eric Lauer
PIT TEX (89) @SEA (128) Mitch Keller Roansy Contreras Johan Oviedo, Luis L. Ortiz (@SEA) Luis L. Ortiz (vTEX), Rich Hill
STL @CIN (52) @CLE (158) Miles Mikolas, Jack Flaherty, Jordan Montgomery (@CLE) Jordan Montgomery (@CIN) Matthew Liberatore, Adam Wainwright, Steven Matz
ARI @PHI (89) BOS (96) Zac Gallen Merrill Kelly 켈리 Tommy Henry (x2), Ryne Nelson, Brandon Pfaadt
COL MIA (107) NYM (96) Chase Anderson (x2), Austin Gomber (x2), Karl Kauffmann, Kyle Freeland, Connor Seabold
LAD @ATL (71) @TBR (64) Julio Urías, Tony Gonsolin, Clayton Kershaw Gavin Stone (x2), Noah Syndergaard
SDP @WSN (96) @NYY (57) Yu Darvish (@WSN), Blake Snell, Joe Musgrove Yu Darvish (@NYY) Michael Wacha, Ryan Weathers
SFG @MIN (100) @MIL (96) Alex Cobb (x2), Anthony DeSclafani, Logan Webb Alex Wood Ross Stripling (x2)

A few general schedule notes first:

  • The Red Sox have a couple of tough matchups on the West Coast in Los Angeles and Arizona. Angel Stadium is a home run heaven and the Angels are always dangerous with Mike Trout and Shohei Ohtani swinging big sticks, and the Diamondbacks have been one of the hottest teams in baseball recently.
  • The Marlins also get to visit Angel Stadium but they have a date in Coors Field first. That means there are a bunch of solid Miami starters who have really poor recommendations this week and it’s a rough stretch for the rookie Eury Pérez.
  • The White Sox will face the two worst offenses in baseball next week which means guys like Mike Clevinger and Michael Kopech are viable starters.
  • The Rangers also have a pair of favorable matchups next week in Pittsburgh and Baltimore. Dane Dunning has been brilliant since joining the rotation and he gets a pair of starts in some cavernous ballparks.

Despite their fantastic record recently, the Dodgers offense has been particularly bad on the road this year and hasn’t been hitting all that well over the last two weeks either. That makes the matchup against the Rays next weekend particularly enticing for Tampa Bay starters. Tyler Glasnow is scheduled to come off the Injured List during that series and I want to rank him higher with the nice matchup to cushion his activation, but it’s so hard to predict what we’ll see from him after his spring injury.

The Mets travel to Coors Field next weekend and Max Scherzer and Justin Verlander are lined up to start two of those games. Neither one has been an automatic start this year anyway — both have dealt with injuries and Scherzer has been inconsistent when he’s been healthy. It’s tough to sit the pitchers you’ve invested a ton of your salary cap into, but I wouldn’t trust either of them in the thin air in Denver.

Notable two-start pitchers:

  • Eduardo Rodriguez (@KCR, vCHW)
  • Gerrit Cole (vBAL, vSDP)
  • Dylan Cease (@CLE, @DET)
  • Spencer Strider (vLAD, vPHI)
  • Cristian Javier (@MIL, @OAK)
  • Alex Cobb (@MIN, @MIL)
  • Corbin Burnes (vHOU, vSFG)
  • Luis Castillo (vOAK, vPIT)
  • Dane Dunning (@PIT, @BAL)
  • MacKenzie Gore (vSDP, @KCR)
  • Brady Singer (vDET, vWSN)