Low-Ownership Starters for Thursday (9/28)

Miguel Gonzalez (CBS 26% Owned) vs OAK (Sean Manaea)

There was a time in late August when Gonzalez was being added in leagues and I wondered why. Oh, of course, it was because he had allowed just four earned runs over four starts for a sparkling 1.29 ERA. Nevermind the fact was a typical for him 4.64, suggesting his skills were as terrible as always. Naturally, he proceeded to allow 14 runs over his next three starts, including a seven run implosion. Anyhow, it’s a good matchup, but he owns one of the worst career skill sets around and strikes out no one. I would never allow him to come near my team, let alone my active roster.

Bud Norris (23%) at CHW (Dylan Covey)

Making just his second “start” of the season, Norris pitched just 3.1 innings last Saturday. It’s doubtful he’d last long enough to make much of a difference or qualify for a win and that’s assuming he actually pitches well enough to be in line for one. No need to stream him.

Brent Suter (23%) vs CIN (Sal Romano)

One of the big pitching surprises this year, Suter has been very solid as a starter, hitting a three start rough patch in early August, but recovering well. Of course, this is all from an ERA standpoint. His SIERA is a full run higher than his ERA, as he has somehow managed to keep his fly balls in the park more often than the average bear, despite pitching for a team that calls a very homer friendly environment home. That’s helped inflate his LOB%. None of Suter’s pitches stand out, though it’s pretty amazing he’s been as decent as he has considering his fastball comes in at just 85.8 mph. The Reds are middle of the pack in wOBA against lefties, though perform a bit better in ISO. Since it’s a home start, I’d start him if truly desperate.

Dillon Peters (20%) vs ATL (Julio Teheran)

Though he never had control issues in the minors, Peters is finding the jump from Double-A quite difficult — he has already walked 15 batters in just 25.2 innings. The Braves actually sport the 11th best wOBA against lefties in baseball and sixth best in the National League. What they are best at though is making contact — they own the fourth lowest strikeout rate against southpaws in baseball. Because Peters has made the leap straight from Double-A and has failed thus far, we haven’t yet been convinced that he’s ready for this level of competition. So to the bench he goes, or free agency he stays.

Daniel Norris (13%) at KC (Danny Duffy)

Man, what happened to Norris?! He was a nice little sleeper heading into the season, but his control has regressed and whiff rate declined. Of course, he’s also getting no help from his defense as evidenced by an absurd .353 BABIP. The Royals aren’t very good against lefties and rank third worst in walk rate against them. Sounds like the perfect matchup for Norris! It’s an away game against a solid pitcher and Norris’ run support could be problematic given the state of the Tigers lineup. But with a weak slate of lowly owned pitchers, I’m going to recommend streaming him. Gulp.

Sal Romano (11%) at MIL (Brent Suter)

For a guy who throws 95+ with his fastball, Romano hasn’t been punching out guys like you might expect. Surprising because his slider has been fantastic, generating an 18.9% SwStk%. He also owns an above average ground ball rate, so it appears that they are some seeds here for serious intrigue. The Brewers have the highest strikeout rate in baseball against righties and overall have been a mediocre offense. I’d gamble here on Romano.

Dylan Covey (0%) vs LAA (Bud Norris)

Nope.