Fantasy baseball daily notes: Pitcher and hitter rankings for Sunday
Before delving into the final set of players in favorable spots for your Sunday lineups, on behalf of my colleagues Mike Sheets and Derek Carty, we’d like to thank you for your patronage this season. It’s been a pleasure for all of us.
OK, there is still work to do. Unfortunately, the last day of the season is the trickiest to identify players assured to play. Those on clubs still vying for a postseason berth or seeding are obvious. After that, it gets murky.
Keep in mind MLB has borrowed a page from soccer’s playbook by scheduling all 15 games in the 3:00 PM ET hour. This way, everyone with something to play for must use their best players, making it easier for us to find potential streamers.
Another issue with the last day of the season is many teams are slow to announce the starter for Game 162 (or 161 for Atlanta and Colorado since there is no reason to make up their postponement from earlier in the month). Hopefully, we’ll know more come Sunday morning and update accordingly.
With so much in play with hitting, the focus is on batters with a specialty (power, speed, runs) for those in category or rotisserie leagues. Don’t worry, the same guy works for points leagues too.
Good luck friends. Here are the final set of players to fortify your Sunday lineup, all available in at least half of all ESPN leagues.
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Reiver Sanmartin (L), rostered in 7% of ESPN leagues, Cincinnati Reds at Pittsburgh Pirates: Admittedly, trusting a 25-year-old rookie making his second career start with a fantasy championship in the balance is risky. However, Sanmartin fanned 89 in 82 1/3 innings for Triple-A Louisville before being called up for his major league debut where he fanned five Pirates in 5 1/3 frames. It’s fair to hope for something similar in the rematch as Pittsburgh has been the fifth least productive lineup with a lefty on the hill.
Tyler Alexander (L), 4%, Detroit Tigers at Chicago White Sox: There’s nothing on the line for this AL Central affair, but there is also no reason for Alexander to be taken out early. In fact, it’s more likely the White Sox regulars get an at bat or two to keep sharp, then hit the bench in advance of their ALDS date with the Houston Astros. Alexander has pitched well in September, posting a 3.24 ERA and 1.32 WHIP in his last three starts.
Jake Woodford (R), 9%, St. Louis Cardinals vs. Chicago Cubs: With the Cardinals amazing run, this game doesn’t mean anything as they’re locked into the second wild card and a trip to either Dodgers Stadium or Oracle Park. However, there is no reason Woodford shouldn’t work five innings as that still allows the St. Louis bullpen a few innings to stay sharp. The Cubs have hit righthanders well this month, but they’ve also fanned at a 27% clip with a righty on the hill, so this is a risk for those in tight ratio battles.
Tyler Anderson (L), 19%, Seattle Mariners vs. Los Angeles Angels: Anderson earns a spot by virtue of playing in a meaningful game despite struggling a bit down the stretch. In fact, the Angels tagged him for nine runs in just two innings earlier two starts ago. That said, Anderson stifled the Athletics, yielding just one run with seven strikeouts in seven frames in the outing before the Angels debacle. Expect a better effort from Anderson this time as even with their last matchup, the Angels sport the seventh wOBA facing southpaws in September.
Bullpen: In the Red Sox Friday night against the Nationals, Adam Ottavino worked the eighth with Hansel Robles securing the save. Robles is rostered in only 5% of ESPN leagues. He’s working on a 12 2/3 innings scoreless streak, punching out 16 along the way.
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 innings completed after the fourth inning, and one point for a 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 — Luis Torrens (R), 3%, Seattle Mariners vs. Los Angeles Angels (LHP Reid Detmers): Torrens continues to be a catalyst as the Mariners stay in the wild card chase to the end. He’s recorded a .357/.345/.571 line over the past week while faring better with the platoon edge all season.
First Base — Pavin Smith (L), 17%, Arizona Diamondbacks vs. Colorado Rockies (RHP German Marquez): Smith heads a list of lefty swingers in play with Marquez toeing the rubber. The Diamondbacks have faced a slew of lefthanders lately, so don’t sweat the limited recent playing time of Smith, along with outfielders David Peralta, Kole Calhoun and Daulton Varsho, who also qualifies behind the plate.
Second Base — Luis Arraez (L), 20%, Minnesota Twins at Kansas City Royals (RHP Jackson Kowar): Arraez is the first specialty player as he’s in a good spot to tally a run or two, batting leadoff against one of the weakest arms on the slate. It doesn’t hurt Arraez has posted a 324/.378/.412 line over his last nine starts, with five runs scored.
Third Base — Kelvin Gutierrez (R), under 1%, Baltimore Orioles at Toronto Blue Jays (LHP Hyun Jin Ryu): Gutierrez carried a nine-game hitting streak into Saturday’s action. Over that span, he’s recorded a .414/.469/.690 line. Historically, Gutierrez excels with the platoon bump.
Shortstop — Nicky Lopez (L), 50%, Kansas City Royals vs. Minnesota Twins (Undecided): As has been the case most of the second half, if you need steals, check to see if Lopez is available. He’s yet to be caught in 22 attempts with his latest pilfer coming Friday night against the Twins.
Corner Infield — Nate Lowe (L), 32%, Texas Rangers vs. Cleveland Indians (RHP Aaron Civale): Power is Lowe’s specialty as he’s left the yard three times in the past week. For the season, 14 of his 18 homers have come with a righty on the hill.
Middle Infield — Sergio Alcantara (S), under 1%, Chicago Cubs at St. Louis Cardinals (RHP Jake Woodford): Earlier, it was noted the Cardinals are likely going to use a few relievers in advance of their wild card affair. As a switch hitter, Alcantara will maintain the platoon edge regardless of who has the ball. While his season long numbers aren’t impressive, he’s been productive lately with a .500 slugging percentage over the last week.
Outfield — Myles Straw (R), 44%, Cleveland Indians at Texas Rangers (RHP Dane Dunning): Straw is another stolen base specialist. With 29 on the season, he may reach the 30 SB milestone on Saturday, but if he doesn’t, players often strive to achieve the round number. And even if he already has 30, why stop there?
Outfield — Akil Baddoo (L), 23%, Detroit Tigers at Chicago White Sox (RHP Dylan Cease): Early in the season, Baddoo showed off his power more than speed. With three bags in his last three games, he’s flipped the script. Even though Badoo hasn’t left the yard since September 17, he’s a dual threat whenever a righty is on the bump.
Outfield — Anthony Alford (R), 1%, Pittsburgh Pirates vs. Cincinnati Reds (LHP Reiver Sanmartin): Alford’s allure is in deep leagues as many of the players featured are likely rostered in leagues with more than 12 teams. Alford has been playing a lot down the stretch as Pittsburgh is auditioning players for 2022. He’s taken advantage with a .292/.362/.528 line, including four homers and three steals.
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.