Starting Pitcher Chart – April 7th
In past seasons I’ve done this Daily SP Chart down the stretch and invariably there are comments asking why I don’t do it all season. I’ve never really had a great answer for that so now I’m doing it!
Once the season gets going, the chart will include their performance over the last five starts, their opponent’s wOBA versus the pitcher’s handedness, my start/sit recommendation for 10-team, 12-team, and 15-team (or more) leagues, and then a note about them. At the outset, I will put their 2022 stats along with the note. The opponent wOBA will remain blank for a while until we get some data and because there is so much lineup turnover year-to-year, I’m not going to include last year’s mark.
These are general recommendations, and your league situation will carry more weight whether you are protecting ratios or chasing counting numbers. This is for standard 5×5 roto leagues. The thresholds for H2H starts are generally lower, especially in points leagues so I thought there would be more value focusing on roto.
| PITCHER | TM | OPP | THR | 10 | 12 | 15+ | LAST YR STATS | NOTE |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Clayton Kershaw | LAD | at ARI | L | x | x | x | 2.28 ERA, 0.94 WHIP, 23% K-BB | The ol’ lefty is only likely to get 120-130 IP, but they’ll be excellent |
| Brandon Woodruff | MIL | STL | R | x | x | x | 3.05 ERA, 1.07 WHIP, 24% K-BB | 1st start of the yr against one of their biggest rivals |
| Zack Wheeler | PHI | CIN | R | x | x | x | 2.82 ERA, 1.04 WHIP, 21% K-BB | Looking for a rebound after a poor season opener |
| Patrick Sandoval | LAA | TOR | L | x | x | x | 2.91 ERA, 1.34 WHIP, 14% K-BB | If he cuts down the baserunners, there’s a premium season in his arm |
| Logan Gilbert | SEA | at CLE | R | x | x | x | 3.20 ERA, 1.18 WHIP, 16% K-BB | Biggest key to development will be developing a true swing-and-miss pitch |
| Lucas Giolito | CHW | at PIT | R | x | x | x | 4.90 ERA, 1.44 WHIP, 17% K-BB | Looked sharp in his opener after a really tough 2022 |
| Zach Eflin | TBR | OAK | R | x | x | x | 4.04 ERA, 1.12 WHIP, 16% K-BB | That sparkling WHIP goes unnoticed with an ERA north of 4.00 |
| Hunter Greene | CIN | at PHI | R | x | x | x | 4.44 ERA, 1.21 WHIP, 22% K-BB | Can you stomach the volatility? If not, it could be a long season |
| Nathan Eovaldi | TEX | at CHC | R | x | x | x | 3.87 ERA, 1.23 WHIP, 18% K-BB | I’ll regularly start him while healthy |
| Sonny Gray | MIN | HOU | R | x | x | x | 3.08 ERA, 1.13 WHIP, 17% K-BB | HOU isn’t the scariest matchup w/their current injuries |
| Edward Cabrera | MIA | at NYM | R | x | x | x | 3.01 ERA, 1.07 WHIP, 14% K-BB | Kind of a Diet Greene complete w/the extreme volatility |
| Aaron Civale | CLE | SEA | R | x | x | x | 4.92 ERA, 1.19 WHIP, 19% K-BB | His solid WHIP is even more hidden w/a near-5.00 ERA |
| Tylor Megill | NYM | MIA | R | x | x | x | 5.13 ERA, 1.25 WHIP, 19% K-BB | Essentially auditioning v. Peterson to hold a role as JV works his way back |
| Alex Cobb | SFG | KCR | R | x | x | x | 3.73 ERA, 1.30 WHIP, 17% K-BB | Playing WHIP roulette with that hideous defense behind him |
| Marcus Stroman | CHC | TEX | R | x | x | x | 3.50 ERA, 1.15 WHIP, 15% K-BB | Huge K effort in opener was great… just one off or sign of things to come? |
| Chris Bassitt | TOR | at LAA | R | x | x | x | 3.42 ERA, 1.14 WHIP, 16% K-BB | BRUTAL debut, but can’t just sit every early/mid rounder right after a dud |
| José Urquidy | HOU | at MIN | R | x | x | x | 3.94 ERA, 1.17 WHIP, 14% K-BB | Solid bet to stabilize your WHIP and get W opportunities w/HOU |
| Clarke Schmidt | NYY | at BAL | R | x | x | x | 3.12 ERA, 1.20 WHIP, 14% K-BB | Eager to see if he can breakout this year |
| Dean Kremer | BAL | NYY | R | x | x | 3.23 ERA, 1.25 WHIP, 10% K-BB | Could be a home gem again this yr (2.84 ERA, 1.12 WHIP) | |
| Nick Martinez | SDP | at ATL | R | x | 3.47 ERA, 1.29 WHIP, 12% K-BB | I’m a fan, just not really in this matchup… holding for better matchups | ||
| Jack Flaherty | STL | at MIL | R | x | 4.25 ERA, 1.61 WHIP, 7% K-BB | Weird debut with 7 BB and 0 ER… Velo was down big, too. Be careful | ||
| Rich Hill | PIT | CHW | L | x | 4.27 ERA, 1.30 WHIP, 14% K-BB | Always a scary start even when he’s rolling as he pushes into his mid-40s | ||
| Ken Waldichuk | OAK | at TBR | L | x | 4.93 ERA, 1.21 WHIP, 16% K-BB | TB not the spot to get right after getting smoked in his opener | ||
| Brad Keller | KCR | at SFG | R | x | 5.09 ERA, 1.50 WHIP, 7% K-BB | Just can’t miss enough bats to be fantasy viable | ||
| Jared Shuster | ATL | SDP | L | DNP in MLB | Rough MLB debut makes him a tough start in another hard matchup | |||
| MacKenzie Gore | WSN | at COL | L | 4.50 ERA, 1.47 WHIP, 11% K-BB | There’s intrigue here, just not in Coors | |||
| José Ureña | COL | WAS | R | 5.01 ERA, 1.57 WHIP, 5% K-BB | Maybe he can pop off like Freeland did on Thursday? Yeah, no | |||
| Madison Bumgarner | ARI | LAD | L | 4.88 ERA, 1.44 WHIP, 9% K-BB | Yes, I’d rather start the guys in Coors over him… OK, maybe not Ureña |
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