Starting Pitchers: September 20th

Rotation updates from around the league for those of you still battling it out in the playoffs…

Jair Jurrjens | Braves | 63% owned

Jurrjens will miss his scheduled start tonight against the Phillies because of a knee issue that will require at least an MRI, and will be replaced by rookie righthander Brandon Beachy. I plan on looking at Beachy a little more tomorrow, but grabbing him for the start tonight is probably a bad idea. A rookie in Philly in the middle of a pennant race against Cole Hamels? Eh, might be better to pass on that.

Andy Pettitte | Yankees | 76% owned

Out since mid-July due to a groin injury, Pettitte returned yesterday and didn’t miss a beat. He limited the Orioles to one run through six innings, exiting the game only because he was on an 80 pitch count. The Yankee bullpen blew his win, but that’s part of life. Pettitte should make two more starts this season before the playoffs, one at home against the Red Sox and one on the road against the Blue Jays. Considering how well he’s pitched this year (2.81 ERA, 3.90 FIP), start start start.

Joel Pineiro | Angels | 18%

Like Pettitte, Pineiro returned to his team’s rotation this weekend to perform admirably: two runs in six innings against the Rays. Out since late-June because of an oblique issue, Pineiro’s extreme strike-throwing and groundball approach limits his fantasy value because he is a bit hittable (and by extension, certain prone to allowing plenty of runs) and doesn’t strike anyone out. However, Pineiro’s a good play because his final two starts come against the White Sox and Athletics, hardly offensive powerhouses.

Chris Young | Padres | 10%

The 6-foot-10 righthander finally returned to San Diego’s rotation this weekend, more than five months after his first (and only other) start of the season. Young allowed one run in just four innings of work against the Cardinals on Saturday, and it appears that his days as a low-to-mid-3.00’s ERA guy are behind him. The fastball is closer to 85 than 90 and his walk rate continues to go up, and he’s always been an extreme flyball pitcher in part due to his height. Young is a complete unknown at this point, and his last two starts comes against the Reds and Cubs at Petco. Start him at your own risk.

Quick Notes: The Mariners have hinted at limiting Felix Hernandez’s workload the rest of the way, which could mean skipping his final start, scheduled for the last day of the season … Jaime Garcia will have his start skipped on Thursday, the second straight time the team will sit him in an effort to control his workload. Even if comes back to make another start at some point, there’s no guarantee that he’ll be effective given the layoff … Jason Hammel is battling a cold and what he calls a “dead arm,” but right now the team plans on having him make his next start on Saturday.