Tom Koehler’s hot start makes him hard to walk away from in a two-start week
Another week in the books and we now have week 7 upon us. In our week 6 guide we brought you Rotoworld’s article that recommended Jordan Lyles, Robbie Ray, and Roenis Elias. Between the three, four wins were produced and it very easily could have been five if the Tigers bullpen didn’t blow the game for Ray.
We’ve got articles again for you this week that will help you decide on who to start, sit, pickup and all things week 7 related.
SI: Weekly Planner: Dan Haren picking up the slack for the Dodgers
Dan Haren has been very consistent this year for the Dodgers and while most think of Kershaw and Greinke when Dodgers’ pitchers are discussed, Haren has quietly kept the Dodgers on pace with the other teams in the NL West. Out of his seven starts this season, six have been counted as quality starts and the one that didn’t qualify still earned Haren a win. He has two starts this week and should be in the lineup in all league formats. As for matchups, below are one of Michael Beller’s (Sports Illustrated) favorable and unfavorable matchups this week.
Favorable Matchups:
Chicago White Sox
@OAK, @HOU
The White Sox won’t see Sonny Gray or Scott Kazmir when they visit Oakland and the Astros pitching staff have the 2nd worst ERA in MLB. White Sox batters will have a good shot at a solid week.
Unfavorable Matchups:
Los Angeles Angels
@TOR, @PHI, TB –
The Angels will face Mark Buehrle, Cliff Lee, A.J. Burnett, Chris Archer and David Price during their seven games this week. It wouldn’t be a surprise for the Angels to struggle at the plate a bit this week.
Rotoworld: Week Ahead: Zack Attack
Nick Nelson (Rotoworld) gave some very productive picks last week as two-start options (see top). This week, Zack Wheeler heads up his list. Wheeler has had impressive strikeout rates all season and if you take away his poor outing against the Rockies in May, his ERA drops to 3.31. He’ll face the Yankees and Nationals, but neither team has been that imposing thus far toward opposing pitchers. Here are two more pitchers worth considering this week as two-start options.
Tyler Lyons (SP) Cardinals
It looks like he’ll continue filing in for Joe Kelly until June now. Lyons will face the Braves and Cubs at home and this will be his second go-around with the Braves after he threw six innings of one-run ball against them in his last start.
Tommy Koehler (SP) Marlins
He now has a 1.99 ERA on the season and while that stat will likely come back down to earth, it’s hard to walk away from him and the first-place Marlins.
CBS Sports: Start and sit hitters for Week 7
Scott White (CBS Sports) each week names the non-must start players that you should consider starting. We all know which player are the obvious plays each week, but sometimes we need help with the not so obvious. Last week Howie Kendrick and Nick Castellanos both were recommended starts and sure enough, they had fairly good numbers that would have helped contribute to various stat categories in your league. That being said, let’s look at who White things should be your start/sits for shortstops and outfielders in week 7.
Shortstop:
Start: Jonathan Villar (SS) Astros
Villar ranks 13th at SS in H2H and 4th in Roto leagues. What’s important to recognize is he’s ranked at those spots without having an inflated batting average. He’s been playing incredibly well at home and will play all six games this week in Houston. Start Villar over guys such as Andrelton Simmons, Everth Cabrera and J.J. Hardy
Sit: Jimmy Rollins (SS) Phillies
Rollins and the Phillies only play five games this week and he hasn’t be very good as of late going 2 for 10 over his last four games. Add those factors in with his current groin injury and Rollins becomes a less attractive play. Look at Brad Miller or Alcides Escobar instead of Rollins.
Outfield:
Start: George Springer (OF) Astros
Springer is showing a pulse and is batting .313 during an eight-game hitting streak. He’ll have some soft pitching matchups this week so consider Springer a start option over the likes of Emilio Bonifacio, Nick Markakis and Dayan Viciedo
Sit: Colby Rasmus (OF) Blue Jays
Rasmus has been hot, but his tendency to strikeout (every third at-bat) are warning signs that he’s a streaky guy. He’ll go up against three lefties this week and it may be time to hop off the gravy train or not board at all. Consider Brandon Moss, Shane Victorino or Angel Pagan over Rasmus.
ESPN: Fantasy Forecaster: Week 7
Tristan Cockcroft (ESPN) covers so much in his weekly fantasy forecaster that it is unfair to try and replicate it here. What can be taken away from his week 7 article is that this week brings the quarter way point of the baseball season. Now is the time to reassess your teams play up to this point. Week 7 also brings back a few big names in fantasy baseball including Ryan Braun, Aroldis Chapman and Chase Headley. With a busy week 7, here are Cockroft’s “volume plays” this week, meaning teams that play the most home games or games against right- or left-handed starters. Look at the bullet points below to see who your volume play home games are this week.
- St. Louis Cardinals (7)
- San Francisco Giants (7)
- Houston Astros (6)
- Kansas City Royals (6)
- Minnesota Twins (6)
- Arizona Diamondbacks (6)
