Fantasy Baseball Two-Start Pitchers: Rankings & Pickups (Week 23)

You should be grinding fantasy baseball two-start pitchers to give you an advantage over your competition.

Each week, I will be giving you a breakdown of the two-start options for your fantasy leagues, broken up into the following tiers:

Must Start: Pitchers you have to start because of their talent and/or matchups.
Should Start: Pitchers that are rostered in most formats and probably should be in your lineup.
Here We Go: Pitchers that you are probably starting in most formats, but have some level of risk to them.
Feeling Lucky: Pitchers that are risky, but viable in deeper formats.
Desperate Measures: Pitchers you shouldn’t use unless you have no other choice.

Make sure you are aware that when making fantasy baseball start or sit decisions, these projected two-start pitchers are subject to change.

Fantasy Baseball Two-Start Pitchers: Week 23

Let’s explore this week’s fantasy baseball two-start pitchers, ranging from must-start options to those you should probably avoid.

Must Start

Trevor Rogers (SP – BAL) CLE, at TOR
Cam Schlittler (SP – NYY) vs COL, vs NYM
Eury Perez (SP – MIA) vs NYM, vs LAD
Jesus Luzardo (SP – PHI) vs ATL, at ATL
Andrew Painter (SP – PHI) vs HOU, at ATL
Yoshinobu Yamamoto (SP – LAD) vs CIN, at MIA

Should Start

Troy Melton (SP – DET) vs. MIN, vs. COL

Troy Melton has been great since coming up from the minors, throwing 102.1 innings with a 2.20 ERA and 84 strikeouts. He has struggled a bit more as of late, but with a Rockies start at home at the end of the week, you should be playing him in all formats.

Noah Cameron (SP – KCR) vs. ARI, at BOS

Noah Cameron has been fantastic since the All-Star break, throwing 58.2 innings with a 2.76 ERA and 47 strikeouts. He has two tough matchups here, but considering how well he has pitched recently, you should be using him in all formats.

Jacob Lopez (SP – ATH) vs. TOR, vs. SEA

Jacob Lopez has been on an unbelievable hot stretch, throwing 49.2 innings since the All-Star break, allowing a 2.36 ERA and striking out 60 hitters. He has two great matchups this week, but they are both in Sacramento, which is a difficult place to pitch, so there is a little risk.

Chase Burns (SP – CIN) at LAD, at MIL

Chase Burns has been fantastic this season, throwing 145.1 innings with a 2.79 ERA and 171 strikeouts. However, the Reds have said they will begin to limit him as the season winds down, and these are two very tough matchups. He is probably still worth starting, but the chances you get wins may be even lower than they have been.

Here We Go

Landen Roupp (SP – SFG) vs. STL, vs. SDP

Landen Roupp has been up and down much of the season, throwing 144.2 innings with a 4.17 ERA and 137 strikeouts. A lot of it comes down to control with Roupp. When he limits the walks, he looks like an ace, but he can struggle to find the zone at times. He has decent matchups this week, so he is worth the risk if you have a stable WHIP already.

Bubba Chandler (SP – PIT) at CWS, at CHC

Bubba Chandler has quietly been much better as of late, throwing 41.2 innings with a 3.24 ERA and 36 strikeouts in the second half. He has tougher matchups, and both are away from home, but this is an improving arm that should be considered in deeper formats.

Feeling Lucky

Patrick Sandoval (SP – BOS) vs. LAA, vs. KCR

Patrick Sandoval has been up and down since his return from Tommy John surgery. He has struggled with control, which has led to walks, and he has been more hittable as well. He has two great matchups, which is why you should consider him, but if he can’t find the zone, it could get ugly.

Jonah Tong (SP – NYM) at MIA, at NYY

Jonah Tong is a top prospect who pitched well in limited appearances last season, but has spent most of the year in Triple-A this season. He is expected to be recalled on Monday and has decent matchups, but he is a risky bet with a lot of upside because of his strikeout potential.

Grant Holmes (SP – ATL) at PHI, vs. PHI

Grant Holmes has quietly been pretty good since the All-Star break, throwing 44.1 innings with a 3.65 ERA and 28 strikeouts. The strikeouts have disappeared quite a bit, which is concerning.

While he faces a Philadelphia team twice that has struggled offensively, they are much better than they have shown this season. This one feels risky, but the Braves should give him a lot of win upside.

Desperate Measures

Cody Bradford (SP – TEX) at SEA, at ARI
Will Dion (SP, RP – WSH) at SDP, vs. LAA
Gabriel Hughes (SP – COL) at NYY, at DET
Davis Martin (SP – CWS) vs. PIT, at STL
David Peterson (SP, RP – CHC) at MIL, vs. PIT
Joey Cantillo (SP, RP – CLE) at BAL, at MIN
Grayson Rodriguez (SP – LAA) at BOS, at WSH
Hayden Wesneski (SP – HOU) at PHI, at TBR

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About Author

Justin Mason

@JustinMasonFWFB

Justin Mason is the lead fantasy writer and analyst for Friendswithfantasybenefits.com. He is a writer at Fangraphs and Fantasy Pros. You can hear him on the Radio on the FWFB, TGFBI and the Sleeper and the Bust Podcasts. He also runs The Great Fantasy Baseball Invitational and the Bay Area Roto Fantasy (BARF) league.