Roto Riteup: July 1, 2015

Wooo! With a 2-0 win, the USWNT sent Germany home to the third place game in the World Cup yesterday! On to the finals!

On today’s agenda:
1. Rusney Castillo is back, sort of
2. Joey Gallo sent down
3. The return of Matt Cain
4. Streaming Pitching Options

Rusney Castillo is back, sort of
Via Brian MacPherson, Castillo is with the Red Sox in Toronto, however he is yet to be activated. As the tweet notes, it’s unclear whether or note he’ll be joining the team, but presumably would if Hanley Ramirez is to be placed on the disabled list. Given that Hanley hasn’t played in over a week, a retroactive move could happen. Since being sent down to Triple-a back on June 24, Castillo has gone 7-for-21 with two walks, two steals and a home run. Obvious small sample size issues aside, the 27-year-old has shown an ability to punish minor league pitching. He’s still worth a speculative add (or worth hanging on to) in leagues deeper than standard 12-teamers as not even the Red Sox seem sure what to do with him. Castillo can be picked up in more than 50 percent of CBS settings, 70 percent of Yahoo! leagues and over 85 percent of ESPN formats.

Joey Gallo sent down
The Rangers activated Josh Hamilton yesterday — and correctly did not start him in center field — but to make room for him, Gallo was sent to Triple-A. There wasn’t really a surprise with what Gallo accomplished in his stint in the show as he hit for power, walked some, and struck out a ton. Posting 43 strikeouts, 11 walks (and three IBB), and five home runs in 98 plate appearances makes for him fulfilling his ultimate three-true-outcomes destiny and incredible 63.2 percent of the time. He’s still just 21 and seven months old, over a year younger than the average age of the Rangers Single-A affiliate in the California League. Keeping in mind age relative to league is always important when evaluating any prospect. Gallo clearly has the power to punish major league pitchers and the patience to draw walks, but as expected, his contact rate will be the deciding factor. A quick search of players who have accumulated at least 90 plate appearances in a season has Gallo’s 43.9 percent strikeout rate being the 3rd highest since 2000. Only Roy Halladay‘s 44.2 percent in 2010 and Rick Ankiel’s 44.1 percent in 2013. In other words, Gallo was sat down on strikes more often than all but one position player and one pitcher out of the past 15 and counting seasons. Yikes.

The return of Matt Cain
I whiffed on my Cain in my quick blurbs on rehabbing pitchers yesterday. The Giants have moved up his scheduled start from Friday to tomorrow after Tim Lincecum hit the 15-day disabled list. Cain posted a 17:4 strikeout to walk rate in his three Triple-A rehab starts spanning 15.2 innings. His velocity sat 90-94 according to Amy Gutierrez as of two weeks ago. He’ll be making his first start on the road against the Marlins, a team that has struggled against right-handed pitchers this year. One can pick up Cain as a stream option in almost 40 percent of CBS leagues and over 50 percent 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: Nathan Eovaldi at LAA (Matt Shoemaker)
I like Eovaldi against an Angels lineup that has been spotty at best against right-handed pitchers. He’s free to pick up in half of the CBS settings and more than 80 percent of ESPN and Yahoo! leagues.

A pitcher for tomorrow: Matt Cain at MIA (Jose Fernandez)
He may not out pitch Fernandez, but I still expect Cain to post a strong outing.