Fantasy baseball daily notes: Pitcher and hitter rankings for Sunday
Here are the players in great spots to finish the week on a strong note. As always, everyone listed is available in a majority of ESPN leagues.
Tanner Houck (R), rostered in 19% of ESPN leagues, Boston Red Sox at Cleveland Indians: Houck has yet to be trusted to work more than five frames, and he’s reached that mark only twice in eight starts. However, he’s been effective and with the state of the Red Sox bullpen, Alex Cora must take off the kid gloves sooner than later. In 39 1/3 innings, Houck has fanned 52 with just eight walks and two homers allowed. However, a .382 BABIP has hurt Houck, but if he can incur even normal batted ball luck, his first six-inning outing is plausible.
Kwang Hyun Kim (L), 17%, St. Louis Cardinals at Pittsburgh Pirates: With the Cardinals trading for J.A. Happ and Jon Lester, plus the return of Miles Mikolas, Kim was slated to spend the second half of the season in the bullpen. However, after Jack Flaherty was placed on the IL, Kim is back in the rotation. He last pitched on Tuesday, spinning an effective 2 2/3 stanzas, so he’s on regular rest and should be stretched out enough for a normal start. Kim drew the right foe, as the Pirates are the senior circuit’s least-productive lineup facing lefties.
Tylor Megill (R), 21%, New York Mets vs. Washington Nationals: August hasn’t been kind to Megill, as he’s posted a 7.03 ERA and 1.52 WHIP. However, a 9.6 K/9 and 1.5 BB/9 for the month indicate he hasn’t pitched that poorly. His downfall has been a .361 BABIP and 19.4% HR/FB mark for the month. While this may be interpreted as bad luck, it’s never that cut and dried, as some bad pitching contributed as well. However, a 4.27 August xFIP is more palatable and puts Megill in play against a Nationals lineup focusing on auditioning players for 2022 and beyond.
Chris Archer (R), 10%, Tampa Bay Rays at Baltimore Orioles: A hip issue truncated Archer’s long-awaited return from the IL last Sunday, but after a successful bullpen, he’s been deemed ready to go and will take the hill in Camden Yards. Archer will likely be limited to 75 or so pitches, but that’s enough to navigate five frames if he’s effective. Archer fanned four White Sox in two innings in his return, so his stuff is in good shape after the long layoff.
Bullpen: Following up on a note earlier this week concerning the Boston Red Sox bullpen, Adam Ottavino got the nod for the first save since Matt Barnes was temporarily demoted. Ottavino is available in 80% of ESPN leagues and already has nine saves. He could be in line for a couple more.
For the latest team-by-team closer situations, please consult our Closer Chart.
Calculating Bill James game scores: A pitcher starts with 50 points, gets a point for each out, two points for each inning completed after the fourth, and one point for each strikeout. He is docked two points for each hit, four points for each earned run allowed, two points for each unearned run allowed, and one point for each walk.
Note: In 2019 and 2020, the average game score was 50.
Catcher — Carson Kelly (R), 26%, Arizona Diamondbacks at Philadelphia Phillies (LHP Ranger Suarez): Despite missing time with assorted injuries, Kelly is pacing toward a career best wRC+. He’s been particularly productive against left-handers with a 1.149 OPS on the campaign.
First Base — Nate Lowe (L), 32%, Texas Rangers vs. Houston Astros (RHP Zack Greinke): Not surprisingly, Lowe has been more dangerous with a righty on the hill, clubbing 11 of his 13 long balls with the platoon edge. Greinke is having yet another solid season, but he’s administered 24 homers, tied for 12th most in the league.
Second Base — Abraham Toro (S), 24%, Seattle Mariners vs. Kansas City Royals (RHP Brady Singer): Toro continues to exceed all expectations since donning a Mariners uniform at the trade deadline, as he took a nine-game hitting streak into Saturday’s action, slashing .342/.390/.368 in that span.
Third Base — Josh Harrison (R), 46%, Oakland Athletics vs. New York Yankees (LHP Jordan Montgomery): The Athletics knew what they were doing when they acquired Harrison at the trade deadline. The veteran has playoff experience and is considered a great clubhouse presence. While those traits aren’t scored in fantasy, it’s helped him stay in the lineup, where he slashed .296/.321/.519 the past week, even stealing a bag.
Shortstop — Edmundo Sosa (R), 1%, St. Louis Cardinals at Pittsburgh Pirates (RHP Wil Crowe): In part because Paul DeJong has been unable to get in a groove, but also due to his own success, Sosa has been a regular for the past two weeks. Recording a .385/.515/.577 line in that span will do that.
Corner Infield — Michael Chavis (R), 2%, Pittsburgh Pirates vs. St. Louis Cardinals (LHP Kwang Hyun Kim): Chavis was acquired by the Pirates from the Red Sox in an under-the-radar deadline deal. He was assigned to Triple-A Indianapolis, where he slugged .536 in 17 games, prompting a promotion. After going hitless in his first game for Pittsburgh, Chavis has hit safely in the next four (8-for-17) with a homer. He’s always been a power threat with a lefty toeing the rubber.
Middle Infield — Luis Garcia (L), 1%, Washington Nationals at New York Mets (RHP Tylor Megill): Garcia is one of the youngsters getting an audition in the nation’s capital. Just 21 years old, he’s holding his own, fanning just 18% of the time. Lately, he’s been driving the ball more, setting himself up for a strong September.
Outfield — Jake Meyers (R), 12%, Houston Astros at Texas Rangers (LHP Taylor Hearn): Meyers has been a big surprise filling in for Kyle Tucker, as his .328/.355/.552 hasn’t missed a beat. Tucker is back from COVID-19, but it’s going to be hard getting Meyers’ bat out of the lineup, especially against southpaws, where he’s posted an 1.100 OPS.
Outfield — Edward Olivares (R), 2%, Kansas City Royals at Seattle Mariners (LHP Marco Gonzales): Subject to change? Olivares was just called up for the sixth time this season. After his heroics on Friday night, tying the game with a sacrifice fly before walking it off in extras with a two-run blast, Olivares should at least last the weekend. Kidding aside, Olivares should be up to stay and deserves a month to show what he can do, which is provide a bit of pop and speed.
Outfield — Bradley Zimmer (L), 2%, Cleveland Indians vs. Boston Red Sox (RHP Tanner Houck): Speaking of providing some pop and speed, Zimmer is also getting an extended look and is responding with a productive .274/.323/.469 plus six steals since the break.
Hitter ratings account for the opposing starting pitcher’s past history (three years’ worth as well as past 21 days) as well as ballpark factors. “LH” and “RH” ratings account only for left- and right-handed batters, respectively. Weighted on-base average (wOBA) is the primary statistic used in the calculation. Ratings range from 1-10, with 10 representing the best possible matchup, statistically speaking, and 1 representing the worst. So, for example, a 10 is a must-start rating, while a 1 should be avoided (if possible); a 1-2 is poor, 3-4 is fair, 5-6 is average, 7-8 is very good and 9-10 is excellent.