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Fantasy Baseball Two-Start Pitcher Rankings: 9/18 – 9/24

Fantasy Baseball Two-Start Pitcher Rankings: 9/18 – 9/24

There’s not much in the way of two-start pitchers this week, with most teams seemingly moving to six-man rotations or using players from the expanded roster for spot starts in an attempt to rest their rotation for the playoffs. However, there are still a few options to choose from, many of them with appealing matchups.

As always, remember that probable pitchers are subject to change, so double-check your two-start options before your lineup gets locked in.

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Too Big To Fail

Clayton Kershaw (9/18 @PHI, 9/24 vs. SF)
I don’t need to tell you that Kershaw is one of the best pitchers in this game. His 2.12 ERA and 0.92 WHIP do that on their own, as do his six scoreless appearances in his last nine starts. Now he gets a couple of matchups against the Phillies and Giants. You know what to do.

The Next Best Thing

Gio Gonzalez (9/19 @ATL, 9/24 @NYM)
There’s a significant drop-off between Kershaw and Gonzalez, which is why the former gets a section all to himself. Gonzalez isn’t a slouch though, as you could gather from his 2.68 ERA. While that number is deceptive (he has a 3.88 FIP), he should have little trouble facing the Braves and Mets this week.

Mike Clevinger (9/19 @LAA, 9/24 @SEA)
The Indians’ win streak may be over, but that doesn’t change anything from Clevinger’s perspective. He’s been a little lucky this season according to his FIP (3.98), but the matchups this week are extremely favorable-both teams are below-average against lefties, and the Angels are the worst by wRC+. He’s coming off four starts in which he’s allowed a total of one run, and I expect the good times to continue.

Jon Lester (9/19 @TB, 9/24 @MIL)
Lester’s 2017 isn’t quite up to his usual standards, with a 4.30 ERA that’s almost a point higher than his career mark. He’s been a little unlucky though and has traditionally been at his best in the final month of the regular season (2.93 ERA in 377 2/3 career September/October innings). Now he gets to face the Rays and Brewers, the two most strikeout-prone offenses against lefties.

Patrick Corbin (9/18 @SD, 9/24 vs. MIA)
The last time Corbin faced the Padres, he allowed eight runs and didn’t make it out of the fifth inning. Not exactly confidence-inspiring. In his other six most recent starts, he’s allowed a total of just three runs. Despite the blip, Corbin should be trusted this week with a couple of easy matchups.

Decent-ish Options

Marcus Stroman (9/19 vs. KC, 9/24 vs. NYY)
Stroman’s 3.08 ERA this year is excellent, but his other metrics tell a different story. He has a 3.81 FIP on the year, which is still good, but just not top-tier good. He’s been pretty solid as of late though, so there isn’t much to worry about here besides the dangerous Yankees offense.

Luiz Gohara (9/19 vs. WSH, 9/24 vs. PHI)
I’ll be honest, I hadn’t heard of Gohara before I started writing this. The newest pitcher in the Braves rotation, Gohara has had a rocky start to his career, posting a 6.30 ERA in his first two games. Both of those were against good offenses though (Texas and Washington), and he still managed to strike out 28.6 percent of the batters he faced to give him an FIP of 3.26. He faces Washington again, but he also gets an easy matchup against the Phillies.

Jose Berrios (9/19 @NYY, 9/24 @DET)
Having to face the Yankees is never ideal, especially when it’s in Yankee Stadium. But Berrios has shown himself to be a more-than-capable pitcher, and both the Yankees and Tigers do strike out. He’s a risky play, but he has plenty of upside.

Chase Anderson (9/18 @PIT, 9/23 vs. CHC)
Similar to Stroman, Anderson’s underlying numbers indicate he’s gotten a little lucky this year (2.88 ERA, 3.73 FIP). Still, he’s coming off two starts against these same two opponents in which he’s allowed just one run over 10+ innings. He probably won’t be able to repeat those performances, but he’s one of the safer options this week, even without a ton of strikeout upside.

German Marquez (9/19 @SF, 9/24 @SD)
Marquez’s numbers don’t jump off the page (4.41 ERA), but they’re more than good enough considering his matchups this week. The Giants and Padres are the worst and third-worst offenses against righties, respectively, by wRC+, and Marquez figures to take full advantage of that. It doesn’t hurt that he avoids playing in Coors and instead gets to play in two of the most pitcher-friendly parks.

Dylan Bundy (9/18 vs. BOS, 9/24 vs. TB)
Two divisional matchups should provide plenty of motivation for Bundy, especially as his team fights its way for a playoff spot. His best asset is his ability to strikeout batters, as he has at least eight strikeouts in five of his past six games. I wouldn’t be surprised to see double-digit strikeouts against the Rays, and the Red Sox offense just isn’t as scary this season as it used to be.

If You’re Desperate

Tyler Skaggs (9/19 vs. CLE, 9/24 @HOU)
Skaggs has the unfortunate luck to go up against both the Indians and Astros in a week. It doesn’t get much worse than that, but Skaggs’ numbers for the year-4.37 ERA and 8.36 K/9-suggest he may at least avoid getting lit up. You’re hoping for one good start here and a decent amount of strikeouts.

Dan Straily (9/18 vs. NYM, 9/24 @ARI)
After posting great numbers during the first half of the season, Straily has cooled off considerably. His second-half ERA of 5.74 may scare off owners from using him, but he’s allowed three or fewer runs in seven of his last nine starts and can provide some value.

Doug Fister (9/18 @BAL, 9/24 @CIN)
Fister is coming off a six-run outing against the A’s, but he was on a roll before that with four straight starts in which he allowed five total runs. He’ll get plenty of strikeouts, and he could also pull out two wins as well if he keeps his second-half momentum going.

Lucas Giolito (9/19 @HOU, 9/24 vs. KC)
There’s no doubt that Giolito’s 2.56 ERA is impressive, but it’s also a little misleading. His FIP is 5.30, as he’s gotten extremely lucky with his BABIP (.160) and strand rate (89.4 percent). Now he goes against the Astros, but a matchup against the Royals should be able to salvage his week.

Ervin Santana (9/18 @NYY, 9/23 @DET)
Santana is another player whose ERA (3.35) doesn’t quite match up with his FIP (4.53). He’s been getting strikeouts recently, and that should continue this week, but he’ll also likely give up more than a few runs going against the Yankees and Dodgers.

Blake Snell (9/19 vs. CHC, 9/24 @BAL)
Snell seems to have fixed his control problems that he had earlier in the year, and the results have been extremely positive. He’s still striking out over 20 percent of batters, helping him out on his way to allowing two or fewer runs in four of his last five starts. His matchups aren’t easy though, so you shouldn’t expect much.

Just Say No

Brian Reiff is a correspondent at FantasyPros. For more from Brian, check out his archive and follow him @briansreiff.

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