Roto Riteup: April 29, 2015

Sure there are playoffs going on in some sports here, but across the pond the football season is in peak form. Chelsea hasn’t officially locked up the Premier League just yet and the UEFA Champions League semi-finals are happening next week. It’s a glorious time.

On today’s agenda:
1. Masahiro Tanaka to miss at least a month
2. Hurry up and grab Dexter Fowler
3. Keep an eye on Yangervis Solarte
4. Streaming Pitching Options

Masahiro Tanaka to miss at least a month
According to New York Yankees GM Brian Cashman, Tanaka will be on the disabled list a minimum of one month with a forearm strain and wrist tendinitis. An MRI revealed no additional damage to Tanaka’s partially torn elbow ligament, so that is something. Here’s to hoping he can make a comeback this season.

As mentioned in yesterday’s Roto Riteup, there are solid starting pitching options in A.J. Burnett, Dan Haren, Alex Colome and A.J. Cole available. In addition to those four, take a look at Jesse Hahn, Brandon Morrow and Travis Wood as they are all capable stream options in most leagues.

Hurry up and grab Dexter Fowler
My fondness of Fowler’s game is pretty well known — I’m a sucker for high OBP players with some speed — and Fowler is making me look almost smart. He owns a .288/.366/.438 line on the season with six steals and has strictly appeared as the leadoff hitter of the Chicago Cubs. The Northsiders offense ranks in the top 6 in the NL in terms of runs, wRC+ and SLG, all to the benefit of Fowler and his fantasy owners. With a powerful lineup behind him, expect Fowler to score runs in bunches as long as he stays healthy. Despite the strong triple slash and good offense around him, he is still widely available. Fowler’s ownership rate isn’t above 55% in CBS, Yahoo! or ESPN leagues. As deep as the outfield is, Fowler is putting up numbers better than his owned% shows.

Keep an eye on Yangervis Solarte
The second base situation in San Diego is getting interesting as Jedd Gyorko was sat again yesterday in favor of Solarte. The Venezuelan is off to a torrid start, hitting .346/.414/.538 with six walks against four strikeouts. While it is still very early in the season, his line looks even better compared to Gyorko’s .146/.226/.188 performance to date. Gyorko’s main calling card was his power but right now Solarte has two home runs to zero plus the edge in doubles, four to Gyorko’s two. The BABIP luck dragons have blessed Solarte early while cursing Gyorko, however a lower strikeout rate and a much better contact rate are in Solarte’s favor.

Even if Gyorko is given the time to sort out his numbers, Solarte could still be worth an add in deeper leagues. He is able to be plugged in at second as well as third and already has two games started at first base. Solarte has been seeing action at the number two spot in the lineup lately and is capable of posting a .270 AVG with a little pop. Another possibility rather than being a super-sub is a platoon of sorts. Gyorko owns a career 81 wRC+ against right-handers against a 121 mark versus southpaws. Solarte, a switch-hitter who owns a .294/.339/.411 minor league line against righties, could be plugged in at second when the Padres face a righty and be subbed in elsewhere other days. He can be picked up in 70% of CBS leagues and over 90% of Yahoo! and ESPN formats.

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Streaming Pitching Options
If you enjoy streaming pitchers, tune into the Roto Riteup for recommendations each and every day.

A pitcher for today: Michael Lorenzen vs MIL (Matt Garza)
Lorenzen will be making his major league debut today against a Brewers lineup without Carlos Gomez, Jonathan Lucroy and Scooter Gennett. For a pitcher who utilizes three pitches — sinker, slider and change — and who is widely free to pick up, Lorenzen is a solid pick for streaming and a bargain in DFS.

A pitcher for tomorrow: Tim Cooney vs PHI (David Buchanan)
Sticking with the theme of MLB debuts, the southpaw will bring his fastball, cutter/slider, change and curve against a Phillies squad with six left-handed batters in their everyday lineup.