Don’t sleep on Jake Odorizzi as a two-start pitcher this week.
Today wraps up another week of fantasy baseball and we are going to get your prepped for week 15 with all the fantasy links you will need to finish off your 4th of July weekend the right way.
Week 15 brings a lot of options as 22 of the 30 teams play at least seven games. There will be some juicy pitching matchups including the Athletics, whose rotation will get to throw in two of the most pitcher friendly parks in baseball. Let’s not glance over the interleague matchups that take place this week either, where Justin Verlander and Max Scherzer, will be matched up against Hyun-Jin Ryu and Zack Greinke. From pitching matchups to start/sit hitters, we have what you need to be ready for the upcoming week.
CBS SPORTS: START AND SIT HITTERS FOR WEEK 15
A position-by-position rundown, Scott White (CBS Sports) suggests who to start and sit based on a variety of short-term factors. Also listed, are candidates that you would never consider sitting and those are the players that fall under the “too obvious” category. On top of that, White’s article will provide you week 15 sleeper candidates, best hitting schedules and worst hitting schedules.
Catcher
Too Obvious: Jonathan Lucroy, Buster Posey, Yadier Molina, Carlos Santana, Miguel Montero, Salvador Perez, Devin Mesoraco, Brian McCann, Wilin Rosario
Start: Yan Gomes, Indians
Gomes will have a chance to take advantage of his .305 batting average when playing at home this week where he’ll play all seven games in Cleveland. Pitchers by the names of Vidal Nuno, Chase Whitley, David Phelps, Hector Noesi and Scott Carroll don’t pose serious threats and with seven RBI in recent days, he will have plenty more RBI chances in week 15. Consider Gomes instead of Jarrod Saltalamacchia, Mike Zunino, or Jason Castro
Norris doesn’t have the ideal pitching matchups as he’ll go up against Ryan Vogelsong, Madison Bumgarner, Matt Cain, Tim Hudson, Taijuan Walker, Hisashi Iwakuma and Chris Young. Only a few days removed from the DL, the Athletics may use the two games they have without a DH to rest Norris. You combine that with the fact that he only faces one lefty all week and it’s reason to consider other options at catcher such as Yan Gomes, Kurt Suzuki or Wilson Ramos.
Top 5 Sleeper Candidates for Week 15
- Kole Calhoun, OF, Angels
- Corey Dickerson, OF, Rockies
- Lonnie Chisenhall, 1B/3B, Indians
- Nolan Arenado, 3B, Rockies
- Mike Napoli, 1B, Red Sox
ROTOWORLD: THE WEEK AHEAD: STARS AND STRIPES
Two-start pitchers are a plenty this week and you won’t want to miss having Yu Darvish, Masahiro Tanaka, Stephen Strasburg and Johnny Cueto in your lineup to name a few. It is much more likely however, that you don’t have all the top pitchers in the league that are going twice this week and in that case, Nick Nelson (Rotoworld) has spotlighted a few names that may very well be available for you to pick up. For Nelson’s full list of two-start pitchers, lefty/righty breakdowns, and streamers for the week, head on over to Rotoworld.
Upside Two-Start Pitchers
Chris Young, Mariners (vs. MIN, vs. OAK)
Available in about 85% of Yahoo! leagues, Young has strung together a 3-0 record with a 1.44 ERA in his past four outings. He will take the mound twice this week at home where he holds a 5-1 record and a 2.19 ERA. Young is one of the best options this week, not just among players on the waivers, but across all fantasy starters.
Jake Odorizzi, Rays (vs. KC, vs. TOR)
Pitching at home, Odorizzi has compiled 101 strikeouts in 88 innings and he will be taking the mound twice this week at Tropicana Field. If strikeouts are what you’re looking for, Odorizzi can be a sneaky good play in week 15 and heads up the list of “Decent Plays” in Nelson’s article.
Volume Left-Handed Pitching Matchups (games against left-handed pitchers in week 15)
- Padres – 5 games
- Twins – 4 games
- Red Sox – 3 games
- Tigers – 3 games
- Rays – 3 games
- Blue Jays – 3 games
- Cubs – 3 games
- Giants – 3 games
FANTASY ASSEMBLY: WEEK 15 STREAM TEAM AND TWO START PITCHERS
Streaming can be broken down into a mathematical formula and that’s exactly what Rob Adams (Fantasy Assembly) does with their matchup scores. Better yet, they put together a weekly stream team based on those scores to help simplify the process of deciding who to plug in on what day. How good the recommendations? In the month of June, 27 of 30 recommendations made their scheduled start and of those starts, the Stream Team finished with a 16-3 record with a 2.33 ERA, 1.15 WHIP, and 6.2 K/9. Here’s a peak at who made the week 15 Stream Team.
Stream Team – (Matchup Score and Ownership %)
- Monday – Chase Anderson vs. Marlins (6.7 MS, Yahoo! 10%, ESPN 4%)
- Wednesday – Josh Tomlin vs. Yankees (6.9 MS, Yahoo! 6%, ESPN 2%)
- Friday – Andrew Heaney at Mets (7.6MS, Yahoo! 27%, ESPN 20%)
Jake Odorizzi (6.1 MS, Yahoo! 18%, ESPN 9%) becomes a more intriguing option for Monday due to the Royals having the sixth highest chase rate on pitches outside the strike zone. Given some of the concerns over his control issues, the Royals effectively mitigate that risk.
ROTOPROFESSOR: TWO-START PITCHERS: IS THIS THE WEEK TO TAKE A FEW GAMBLES?
The All-Star Break kicks off after week 15 and that may mean it’s time your team either makes the leap to challenge the top teams or falls out of contention. If you are in the that position, it may be just the right weak to take a chance on a two-start gamble. Bringing you analysis of two-start options in week 15, Eric Stashin (Rotoprofessor) discusses his thoughts on a few players that have upside who may be able to help push your team into contention.
Minor’s numbers can raise eyebrows and not in a good way, but part of his issue stems from home runs where he’s giving up 2.27 HR/9 when pitching at home. Week 15 puts Minor on the road for both of his starts and he will pitch against two questionable offenses (@NYM, @CHC) and his upside may just make him worth the risk.
Unlike Minor, two home starts changes Bauer’s status in a positive way where he is 2-1 with a 3.48 ERA and 32 strikeouts compared to 0-3 with a 5.46 ERA and 22 strikeouts on the road. Bauer may not be the best play, but he’s worth rolling the dice on against the Yankees and White Sox within the confines of Progressive Field.
