Rookie Check In: Left-Handed Starters With Small Samples

We’re back with another rookie check-in, covering several rookies that have been making an impact in fantasy baseball leagues. The theme of today’s article is the examination of several left-handed starting pitchers. Two of these rookies have been performing well. The third pitcher has been struggling, but was a highly ranked prospect. 

We’re examining their strengths and weaknesses, notable parts of their arsenal, stuff, and command, intending to provide a recommendation for whether we should be buying, selling, or holding in keeper or dynasty leagues.

Noah Schultz, SP, White Sox

Schultz was the number 1o starting pitcher on the FanGraphs Top 100 Prospects List before the season, and made his debut earlier this year. He then missed June due to right patellar tendinitis. There was a note about Schultz dealing with patellar tendinitis last season. So, health is a concern, but for now, let’s look at his performance.

Control has been an issue for Schultz, with a 37.3% ball rate in the minors in 2025, slightly worse than his ball rate (35.6%) in 2024. That’s similar to Schultz’s 39.4% ball rate this season at the major league level. Those control concerns are further seen in Schultz’s K-BB%, which has gone from 25.4% in 2024, to 9.5% in 2025 and now just 6.7% in the majors. If Schultz qualified, he would have the worst K-BB% among qualified pitchers, below Zac Gallen’s 6.8%. It’s hard to thrive with below-average control and a lowly 8.8% swinging-strike rate this season. For context, Schultz had an 11.8% swinging-strike rate (2024) and a 12.4% swinging-strike rate (2025) in the minors. In Schultz’s 23 innings sample in the minors this season, he had 13.6% swinging-strike rate.

Schultz’s cutter (104) and slider (115) grade well in the Stuff+ models. Coming from a lower arm slot (21 degrees), Schultz’s arsenal moves mainly horizontally. All five of his pitches have above-average glove- or arm-side horizontal movement profiles. As a lefty, Schultz has faced RH bats in 79.5% of plate appearances this year. 

He tries to throw his cutter higher and toward the outside corner to lefties, though they can end up in the heart of the plate. It’s a small sample against lefties, but the cutter performs well with .210 wOBA (.267 xwOBA) across 38 pitches thrown.

Meanwhile, Schultz seems to bury his sweeper low and inside to right-handed hitters. That’s somewhat evident in Schultz’s sweeper zone rate at 35.9% against righties, compared to an overall 44.2% zone rate. 

Both Schultz’s sweeper (.445 wOBA, .411 xwOBA) and cutter (.296 wOBA, .365 xwOBA) have been hit hard by right-handed hitters. Pitch command seems to be an issue in the early sample, with a 98 Location+ for the cutter and a 93 Location+ via the slider. 

Besides Schultz’s sweeper and cutter, let’s touch on the fastballs. He is throwing five pitches over 11% of the time to right-handed hitters, including the four-seamer (26.1%) and sinker (22.4%), leading his arsenal. Schultz’s sinker has been blasted, with a .452 wOBA (.449 xwOBA) against righties. However, Schultz’s four-seam performs the best against right-handed hitters (.274 wOBA, .311 xwOBA). 

Schultz’s four-seamer and sinker heatmaps show some overlap. It might suggest that hitters expect the four-seam or sinker in those parts of the zone. Though it’s easier said than done, we would like to see more pitch separation from the four-seam and sinker, even if it’s one higher in the zone than the other. High sinkers seem trendy, so maybe that’s something to try out. 

Sometimes, arsenals that mainly move side-to-side lend themselves to platoon splits, and that has been part of the story so far for Schultz. At 6-foot-10, he somewhat surprisingly lacks extension (6.3 feet, 30th percentile). If Schultz can generate more extension with his height, there could be pitch-level adjustments. 

In keeper or dynasty leagues, Schultz is a low-value buying opportunity, because of the pedigree and potential. However, be patient with Schultz until he improves his stuff and command, especially with the recurring knee issues. 

Jake Bennett, SP, Red Sox

Bennett wasn’t on the FanGraphs Top 100 list, but has the makings of a strong starting pitcher. Bennett has strong control, with a 32.8% ball rate while generating an above-average 11.8% swinging-strike rate. He is a command artist, with an overall 116 Location+, including five of his six pitches at 110 or higher. 

Bennett commands his four-seamer (118), sinker (118), and cutter (123) well from a Location+ standpoint. However, we’ll emphasize the four-seamer and sinker since he has thrown only 21 cutters this season. Although Bennett’s four-seamer lacks induced vertical break (12 inches), he throws it from a 32-degree arm angle and 7.2 feet of extension (95th percentile). Furthermore, Bennett peppers the top edge of the zone with his four-seamers. 

Bennett’s four-seamer performs decently, with a .290 wOBA (.299 xwOBA) as his primary offering to right-handed hitters (37.5%). He commands the four-seamer well, and it elicits a 14.5% swinging-strike rate as he peppers the top of the zone. Opposing hitters tend to chase Bennett’s four-seam 40.9% of the time, aligning with the good command. 

Meanwhile, Bennett’s sinker is a pitch-to-contact offering, which allows a 93.3% contact rate and induces a 71.4% groundball rate. He tends to locate the sinker sometimes on the outer third of the plate, but they can come into the heart of the zone. That’s evident by Bennett’s sinker allowing .443 wOBA (.403 xwOBA) to right-handed hitters. Thankfully, when hitters hit the sinker hard, it’s usually into the ground.

Bennett’s changeup was his best pitch as a prospect, but the stuff models (87 Stuff+) don’t like it. Like Bennett’s other pitches, he commands the changeup well (115 Location+). The heatmaps show that Bennett throws his changeup low and away to right-handed hitters, leading to a 19% swinging-strike rate. Specifically, Bennett’s changeup allows a .114 wOBA (.162 xwOBA) against right-handed hitters.

I hope I’m not falling for the trap, but I’ve been sucked into small samples of pitchers like Bennett, where the skills look solid, and the expected ERA metrics point toward some regression, with his xERA (2.94) and FIP (3.04) looking most favorable. Meanwhile, Bennett’s 3.65 xFIP and 3.89 SIERA support the early success with concerns about home run regression and a decent, not mind-blowing, 14.8% K-BB%. 

I would be buying in keeper or dynasty if any managers were selling high, though I’m worried it could be a trap if Bennett turns into Noah Cameron or Andrew Abbott. 

Shane Drohan, SP, Brewers

The Brewers have done it again. They’ve taken an under-the-radar pitcher like Drohan, who spent five seasons in the minors before 2026, and turned him into an intriguing starter. Since May 27, the Brewers have deployed Drohan as a starting pitcher. He has a 3.05 ERA, 13.7% K-BB%, and a 1.30 WHIP since joining the starting rotation in late May. Drohan has been relying on his command. He has a 103 Location+ since May 27, with league-average stuff (99). 

He commands four pitches well with an above-average Location+, including his four-seam (107), cutter (107), slider (107), and curveball (110). Against right-handed hitters, Drohan throws all those pitches 10% or more. If we use June as a monthly cutoff, Drohan has been throwing more four-seamers, changeups, and cutters, with fewer sinkers. However, Drohan’s cutter usage dropped from 21.1% in April and 18.7% in May to 3.6% in June and 8% in July. So, Drohan’s cutter usage has been fluctuating.

Drohan’s four-seam has been his best pitch against right-handed hitters, allowing a .153 wOBA (.172 xwOBA) and eliciting a 17.5% swinging-strike rate. He throws the four-seam 31% of the time against right-handed hitters, leading his arsenal as a pitch he peppers across the top of the zone. Besides the four-seam, Drohan’s slider is the only pitch with a wOBA under .300, given his .164 wOBA (.230 xwOBA) against righties. Drohan’s slider has a gyro-like shape that drops 37 inches. 

The slider and cutter heatmaps tend to confuse hitters, though he locates both pitches well. Drohan’s slider performs well, but lacks whiffs (13.8% swinging-strike rate) against right-handed hitters. He tends to throw his slider low and below the zone, given his 38.2% zone rate against righties, which is over five points below his overall zone rate. Meanwhile, Drohan’s cutter tends to be thrown higher in the zone, mainly high and inside to righties. He uses the cutter as a pitch-to-contact offering, given his overall 86.4% contact rate, so right-handed hitters continue to do damage.

Drohan profiles as a pitcher who relies more on his command than stuff. However, his cutter, slider, and four-seamer have above-average movement profiles, so there could be better stuff grades as he evolves. The Brewers have been an organization to trust in developing pitchers, so we’ll want to invest in Drohan in deeper keeper and dynasty formats.