Fantasy Baseball Forecast: Week 23's Two-Start Pitchers & Sit 'Em Start 'Em
Jonny Gomes | Cincinnati Reds | 36.1 percent
He hasn’t been as hot as he was before the All-Star break, but Gomes might be able to find a spark this week against some weak pitching and playing in hitter-friendly parks. His lifetime stats at Coors field include a .409 average and three home runs in 22 at-bats. Against the four starters for Colorado, Gomes is hitting .474 with five home runs in 19 at-bats for his career. He’s also hitting .310 with two home runs through 29 career at-bats against the Pittsburgh starters.
Colby Rasmus | St. Louis Cardinals | 78.7 percent
Look for the newly disgruntled Cardinal to have a great week. Against Atlanta this year Colby is hitting .600 in ten at-bats with one home run. His bigger strength though, is hitting against the Brewers. This year against the Brewers Colby is hitting .393 with a .514 OBP and three home runs in 28 at-bats. Also, all of Colby’s games are away games this week, in which he’s hitting .305 (79 points higher than at home).
Luke Scott | Baltimore Orioles | 96.7 percent
One of the streakier players in baseball, Scott is headed for a cold-snap this week. All six of his games are away from Camden Yards. On the road Scott is hitting .222 with a .294 OBP (128 points lower than his home split!). You’d think that Scott was playing for Colorado with those splits. In 137 career at-bats against the Yankees, Scott has a .204 average and slugs a weak .365.
Jayson Werth | Philadelphia Phillies | 100 percent
This is the “do you or don’t you have the stones” call of the week. The Phillies start their week off against the Marlins in which Werth is hitting .189 in 37 at-bats against them. Against the three Marlins starters that Werth will face, he has a career line of 1-23 (.043). While their second opponent, the Mets, Jayson has great numbers against overall. However, when you isolate his Citi Field stats they lose all value. At Citi Field this year, Worth is hitting .190 in 21 at-bats. You should also keep in mind Werth’s stats with runners in scoring position (.150 113 at-bats this year)
Madison Bumgarner | San Francisco Giants | 16.5 percent
Bumgarner's season has been nothing impressive so far, unless you look at his away game stats (2.62 ERA, 5-2 record), where both of his starts will take place. Against both Arizona and San Diego, Bumgarner has a 2.57 ERA and two wins this year. Pitching away at PETCO Park should give him a boost too.
Kevin Slowey | Minnesota Twins | 39.2 percent
You may hesitate starting him this week because of his recent stint on the DL, but Slowey has posted great stats against the Royals and Indians. Against Cleveland he is 2-0 with a 3.38 ERA. Against the Royals he is 1-1 with a 2.92 ERA. Also in Slowey's favor is his one start at home this week, in the best park for keeping the long-ball contained, Target Field.
Mike Pelfrey | New York Mets | 48.5 percent
This week poses a tough challenge for the Mets' Mike Pelfrey. He might not be facing the most formidable lineup in the Nationals, but they have proven a difficult challenge for him this season (4.63 ERA in 12 innings). Historically against the Phillies, Pelfrey has allowed a horrendous ten home runs in only 70 innings pitched. That doesn't exactly make for winning ball games. His numbers against the heart of the Phillies order is horrible too (.330 BAA in 88 at-bats).
Tommy Hunter | Texas Rangers | 47.8 percent
This week Hunter faces a murderer’s row of offensive opponents against the Blue Jays and Yankees. Combined against the two teams during his career, Hunter has given up 15 runs in 16.1 innings of work. During this week he’ll be pitching in the fourth and seventh best ballparks for home runs. Since the All-Star break Hunter has been crushed by giving up home runs. Before the break he gave up three in 42 innings. Since the break he’s given up 14 in 56 innings. That’s a jump from 0.64HR/9 innings to 2.25HR/9 innings, almost a 400% increase in HR/9.
All Statistical Information was obtained through ESPN.com
Written exclusively for TheFantasyFix.com by James Bryce. James is a Grad student at UCSD and is currently in his 13th year of fantasy sports. Follow James on Twitter @BoltLife4Me
Tags: The Fantasy Fix, Fantasy Baseball Advice, Fantasy Sports Blog, Two-Start Pitchers, MLB, James Bryce, Jonny Gomes, Colby Rasmus, Luke Scott, Jayson Werth, Madison Bumgarner, Kevin Slowey, Mike Pelfrey, Tommy Hunter, Cincinnati Reds, St. Louis Cardinals, Baltimore Orioles, Philadelphia Phillies, San Francisco Giants, Minnesota Twins, Atlanta Braves, New York Mets
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