Fantasy baseball pitcher rankings, lineup advice for Thursday’s MLB games

Look for our fantasy baseball starting pitcher rankings, hitter upgrades and downgrades daily to help you make smart fantasy baseball lineup decisions and for MLB betting tips. MLB game odds are provided by Caesars Sportsbook, and fantasy advice is geared toward ESPN 10-team leagues with standard scoring.

For an in-depth look at what to expect in this daily article and for how to best use the information contained within, check out our handy primer here.

Note: This file will be updated with any overnight pitching changes or weather-related game postponements, along with the addition of the latest MLB game odds as of the indicated time of publication.

By Mike Sheets

• Closer Chart: Latest bullpen intel
• MLB Depth Charts for every team
• Player news wire with fantasy spin

Somehow, the fantasy baseball community hasn’t yet discovered Braxton Garrett (25% rostered in ESPN leagues). Through 14 appearances (13 starts), the Miami Marlins lefty owns a 3.88 ERA with a 1.22 WHIP, and his 5.5 K/BB ratio is top five in baseball (min. 60 IP). He has been even better over his last seven turns, registering a 2.13 ERA and 0.87 WHIP with an 11.3 K/9 rate. And Garrett has been a top 25 fantasy starter over the last month, according to the ESPN Player Rater. Against a Pittsburgh Pirates offense that has been well below average in June (91 wRC+), Garrett is Thursday’s top streaming option.

Thursday’s bout between the Oakland Athletics and the Cleveland Guardians features a pair of worthy pitching streamers. For Oakland, JP Sears (7% rostered) looks to build off his recent success, as he has delivered a 3.00 ERA and 0.95 WHIP across his last seven starts. During that stretch, he has surrendered more than two earned runs only one time. Wins have been extremely hard to come by for A’s pitchers this season, but Sears still matches up well against a Guardians offense that ranks bottom five against left-handed pitching with an 88 wRC+ and a .283 wOBA.

On Cleveland’s side, southpaw Logan Allen (12%) finds himself in an even more appealing spot, toeing the rubber against an Oakland lineup that ranks last in MLB over the last month with a wRC+ of 75, plus a 25.4% strikeout rate that’s fifth-worst baseball. Allen has been roughed up a bit in his last couple of outings, but he posted a strong 2.76 ERA in his first eight big league starts, making this a prime opportunity for him to get back on track.

Many fantasy managers wrote off the Seattle Mariners’ Bryan Woo (3%) after he got lit up in his major league debut a couple of weeks ago (6 ER in 2 IP). He has looked much better in his subsequent two starts, allowing four earned runs over 10 innings with 16 K’s and just one walk. Overall, Woo boasts a 14.6 K/9 and 1.5 BB/9 over 12 1/3 frames, and his 2.61 xERA looks a lot better than his 7.30 ERA. So don’t dismiss him just yet. A matchup against the New York Yankees at Yankee Stadium might sound like a tough matchup for the 23-year-old, but the Yanks’ offense actually sports an MLB-worst 69 wRC+ in June. Those in deeper formats should be giving Woo a serious look.

Lane Thomas has been a top 15 fantasy outfielder this season, batting .290 with 11 homers, 49 runs, 35 RBIs and seven steals in 71 games for the Washington Nationals. That puts him on pace to pop 25 home runs, steal 16 bases and score over 100 runs. Yet he’s still available in roughly 70% of ESPN leagues. With a matchup against Arizona Diamondbacks left-hander Tommy Henry on Thursday, Thomas should enjoy having the platoon edge, as he’s slashing .356/.408/.656 versus southpaws this season. If you have an open roster spot or are getting lackluster production from one of your outfielders, Thomas should be on your radar.

It’s not too late to start a free fantasy baseball league. Draft now and start fresh with a 0-0 record beginning the next scoring period. Come and join the fun of ESPN’s brand new standard scoring format!

Pitchers are ranked in order of their Forecaster/Daily Notes projected fantasy points (FPTS), using ESPN’s standard scoring system (2 points per win, minus-2 per loss, 3 per inning, 1 per K, minus-1 apiece per hit or walk allowed, minus-2 per earned run allowed).

T: The pitcher’s handedness. OPP: Opposing team. RST%: The pitcher’s roster percentage in ESPN leagues. ML: Caesars Money Line. O/U: Caesars Over/Under for runs scored. For the projected stat line, W% is the team’s win probability using ESPN projections, IP is innings pitched, ER is earned runs allowed and K is strikeouts.

If a team is planning on using an “opener” to start their game, but will rely on a “bulk pitcher” to follow him on the mound after 1-2 innings, the bulk pitcher is listed and indicated with an asterisk.

Best and worst hitters from the day are generated by THE BAT X, a projection system created by Derek Carty using advanced methods like those used in MLB front offices, accounting for a variety of factors including player talent, ballparks, bullpens, weather, umpires, defense, catcher pitch-framing and lots more.

Amed Rosario (CLE, SS — 45%) vs. Sears

Harold Ramirez (TB, 1B — 31%) vs. Jonathan Heasley

Max Kepler (MIN, RF — 2%) vs. Corey Kluber

Andrew McCutchen (PIT, LF — 25%) at Garrett

Luke Raley (TB, RF — 11%) vs. Heasley

Alex Kirilloff (MIN, LF — 5%) vs. Kluber

Luis Garcia (WSH, SS — 12%) vs. Henry

Luis Matos (SF, CF — 9%) vs. Blake Snell

Joey Meneses (WSH, 1B — 25%) vs. Henry

DJ LeMahieu (NYY, 3B — 51%) vs. Woo

MJ Melendez (KC, C — 55%) at Shane McClanahan

Jake Cronenworth (SD, 2B — 69%) at Alex Wood