Next week, there’s a wide span of games for teams. At the low end, four teams have five games on the docket. At the high end, three teams will play eight games. And in the middle, 17 teams have a six-game schedule, and six will play seven games.
Notable Matchups
Arizona Diamondbacks vs. SD (2), at COL (3)
Unfortunately, the Diamondbacks are one of the four teams with a week-low five games. However, they have the rosiest outlook with three games at Coors Field. Gamers will have to weigh the volume against the hitting conditions in Colorado when making weekly lineup decisions. Though, in leagues with daily lineup changes, the Diamondbacks are an excellent streaming source for the trip to Colorado.
Detroit Tigers at SF (2), vs. KC (3)
Detroit’s basically a fantasy wasteland. Nonetheless, the five-game week sounds the death knell.
New York Mets vs. HOU (2), vs. TEX (3)
A short week with challenging pitching matchups against Luis Garcia, Framber Valdez and Martin Perez sap fantasy value from Mets’ hitters in the upcoming scoring period.
San Francisco Giants vs. DET (2), vs. CWS (3)
The Giants are a bad resource for offensive fantasy options next week. The short week is less than ideal. In addition, despite inconsistency from the quartet this season, Tarik Skubal, Lance Lynn, Dylan Cease and Lucas Giolito all have the potential to tie them up.
Colorado Rockies vs. LAD (3), vs. ARI (3)
Six games on the schedule aren’t often a reason for excitement, especially on a week when nine teams play more than six games. However, when all six games are at Coors Field, that’s an exception. The pitching matchups aren’t ideal, but that doesn’t matter. The park factors at Coors Field rule the roost. So, gamers are advised to fire up their Rockies.
Los Angeles Dodgers at COL (3), vs. SD (4)
The Dodgers have a good mix of volume, stellar pitching matchups and desirable park factors working in their favor next week. The Dodgers’ hitters will get an early-week pick-me-up with three games at Coors Field before concluding the week with four more games. As a result, the stock is up for LA’s offense.
Cleveland Guardians vs. MIN (5), vs. NYY (3)
The Guardians are one of the three teams with a week-high eight games next week. Additionally, many of their hitters are widely available. As a result, Josh Naylor, Steven Kwan and Oscar Gonzalez are intriguing streamers available in more than 60% of Yahoo! leagues.
Minnesota Twins at CLE (5), vs. BAL (3)
The Twins are another great streaming source with their bloated schedule, favorable pitching matchups and a handful of widely available players. For instance, Gio Urshela, Alex Kirilloff, Max Kepler and Jose Miranda are available in more than 65% of Yahoo! leagues. Kirilloff is the most intriguing of the group.
Toronto Blue Jays vs. BOS (3), vs. TB (5)
The Blue Jays are the last of the three teams with eight games on the horizon. Sadly, they don’t have many cupcake pitching matchups. Regardless, their offense is talented and can punish even the best hurlers. In addition, the potential for counting stats in an eight-game week assuages matchup concerns. They don’t have many players kicking around in the free-agent pool, but Santiago Espinal, Gabriel Moreno and Cavan Biggio are available in more than 50% of Yahoo! leagues.
Hitter Notes
Buxton missed games on Wednesday and Thursday with significant knee pain in his injured right knee. The club has managed the injury with rest. Still, gamers need to ensure he’s back in the lineup for the Twins before locking him into starting lineups in weekly leagues for the next scoring period.
Springer was removed from Tuesday’s game with right elbow discomfort, underwent testing on it and missed Wednesday’s game. Unfortunately, the team hasn’t released MRI results, but they’re expected to provide an update today.
Blue Jays are still waiting on results from an MRI on George Springer’s elbow. Expect club to provide an update Friday.
Yimi Garcia also wasn’t available today due to left side discomfort. He’ll be reevaluated ahead of the weekend.
– Arden Zwelling (@ArdenZwelling) June 22, 2022
Pena began fielding ground balls and swinging the bat earlier this week and is first eligible to be activated from the 10-day Injured List on Friday. It’s not a shoo-in that he’ll be activated when first eligible, but he can be activated anytime.
Pitcher Notes
Scherzer might rejoin New York’s rotation on Sunday. He threw 65 pitches in his recent rehab start. So, Scherzer will probably face a pitch restriction, but it might be around 80. It’s usually wise to exercise caution with a pitcher returning from the IL, but gamers should assess their situation when determining the best course of action.
Hendriks played catch from 60 feet earlier this week and remains on the same timeline to return from his forearm strain in early July.
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Josh Shepardson is a featured writer at FantasyPros. For more from Josh, check out his archive and follow him @BChad50.
