Roto RIteup: July 3, 2016

Today’s Roto Riteup focuses on the joy of pitching.

On the agenda:
1. Various News and Notes
2. Streaming Pitcher Options

Various News and Notes
Marco Estrada spoke of gutting through injury yesterday the way the rest of us speak about our jobs: “I don’t know if I can do this again.” Estrada is suffering from back pain, and owners should expect a DL stint at this point. Drew Hutchison would be the likely candidate to take Estrada’s place, having pitched to a sub-3 ERA in AAA this year.

There’s a possibility Aaron Nola doesn’t pitch against until after the All-Star break, as the team wants to give him some extended rest after watching him struggle in his last few outings. Nola is currently scheduled to pitch Thursday, but if you’re an owner in a weekly league, you’d be best advised to keep him out of the lineup.

It’s almost time for Tyler Skaggs to return to the bigs. Skaggs took the hill for a rehab outing last night, and will likely be back soon after the All-Star break. Skaggs was a solid starter for the Angels last year, and he’s not quite 25 years old, so there’s still time for him to live up to the potential he showed in the minors as both a member of the Angels and Diamondbacks’ systems.

Lucas Harrell is back, baby! The right-hander, a quality MLB starter back in 2012, pitched for the Braves last night and picked up a win. Harrell hadn’t been doing well in the minors, but he struck out five Marlins in six innings of work, walking just one. It sounds as if Harrell will stick with the big league club for at least the next week, and he’s scheduled to take on the Cubs’ offense on Thursday. `

What the hell happened to Chi Chi Gonzalez? Once a top rated prospect, the starter walked more batters than he struck out across 67 innings last season, and yesterday he couldn’t make it out of the first inning against the lowly Minnesota Twins. Chi Chi projected to have a balanced arsenal, and while his fastball sits in the low-90s and he does feel comfortable will all three of his other offerings, nothing really works. Some of yesterday’s failure comes from the defense behind him, but man, it’s sad to see a former 60 grade starter be so mediocre.

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

A pitcher for today: Chad Green at SDP (Andrew Cashner)
Green struggled in his big league debut as a starter, but the Padres are the worst in the league against righties and Green was successful in the minors.

A pitcher for tomorrow: Tyler Anderson at SFG (Jake Peavy)
If your leaguemates haven’t caught on to Anderson yet, shame on them. He’s got somewhat of a weird arsenal, and while he can succeed in Colorado, he’s still better off on the road.