2015 Fantasy Baseball: Chase’n Wins this Weekend
The weekend is approaching, and if you like streaming like I do, now’s the time to start adding those pitchers with favorable matchups. Don’t wait till the night before, because that puts you on the same level as your league mates.
Adding these guys now will almost assuredly earn you this classic text from your friend: “What the hell, man. I went to add Player X and you already had him. Dick.” And isn’t rubbing victory in your buddy’s face what counts most? Winning lots of cash and stuff is always lower on the list of priorities.
For today’s piece I’m focusing on a few pitchers who I like based on their win potential. For those of you who follow me on Twitter (if you don’t, get on it!), you know how much I hate wins as a category in fantasy baseball, and really in baseball in general. But as we know, many leagues still have this as a stat, so owners need to account for them. (Note: get your commish to switch to quality starts next year.)
If you’re in need of a win, here are a few starters to consider for this weekend’s slate of games, and as always, all players are under 10-percent owned in ESPN fantasy baseball leagues.
(All stats and ownership percentages are through Monday’s games)
Chase Anderson, Diamondbacks (7.1% owned)
Anderson’s had an up-and-down season. He began the 2015 campaign pitching excellent baseball, amassing a 2.54 ERA and .217 BA against over his first eight starts. But as it often happens with pitchers, Anderson hit a wall — a real thick wall — posting a 6.02 ERA in his next 10 outings. After allowing 7 ER and 10 hits to the Giants on July 18, the D-Backs righty was sent down to the minors to work on his craft.
Anderson didn’t stay on the farm long though, and he’s made four starts since being recalled. Those four games have been a mixed bag, with two shutout performances sandwiching two terrible ones. If this were an SAT exam, and this was one of those “which number would be next in the sequence?” questions, Anderson would be looking at a bad outing here, but it’s not, and I like him in his matchup against the A’s.
The A’s are bottom 10 in wOBA in August and have hit just 17 HR all month, good for 29th in baseball. The Diamondbacks have played pretty respectable baseball of late, moving their record to an even .500, and their 119 runs scored are fourth-most in baseball in August, which if anything, gives Mr. Anderson a great chance to pull out The One…I mean WIN.
Adam Morgan, Phillies (3.3% owned); Colin Rea, Padres (5.0% owned)
The Phillies/Padres series will feature two of the hottest teams in baseball. Put that in your pipe and smoke it! But seriously, don’t do that; here at The Fantasy Fix, we say NO to drugs, unless of course it’s mushrooms. I mean, it’s a vegetable, so that’s gotta be okay, right?
In a rare, and maybe cruel twist of fate, I’m recommended BOTH pitchers in the same game! Unheard of, right? Well, hear me out.
The Phillies’ resurgence wouldn’t be possible without Adam Morgan, and I like his chances to win this Saturday. Though the lefty may not be a popular choice here after allowing five runs in just 3.2 IP to the Mets on Monday, he represents a great matchup play versus the Padres. I’m also gonna give Morgan a pass for Monday’s performance. After all, the Mets set all kinds of records by hitting EIGHT home runs in the game, so chances are they would’ve been locked in no matter who was opposing them.
Excluding Monday’s outing, Morgan has a 3.76 ERA in sevens starts since the All-Star break, helping to lead his team to an incredible 21-13 record in that span. And while the Phillies are surging right now, the Padres are also on a nice run of their own, winning seven of their last 10 games, so it’s not the EASIEST of matchups, but Morgan has a lot of things going for him, including the Friars’ 27th-ranked wOBA against lefties on the season.
The Padres have upped their run production since the break (4.5 runs/gm compared to 3.9 before), and have increased that to 4.95 runs per game in August. which is sixth-best in the majors this month. Everyone seems to be getting hot at the right time as the team tries to salvage what’s left of a very disappointing season.
With both teams riding hot streaks and both teams providing run support, there’s a good chance either Morgan or Rea walks away with a win in this game. This is one of those streams where you you throw everything else out the window and pray for a victory.