Chris Archer

Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice, well, look at all those strikeouts. Fool me three times … but what about his FIP? Archer looked poised to finally reverse his fortune before ceding six runs to the Dodgers, ballooning his ERA back to familiar heights at 4.33. He then went on the IL with right thumb inflammation. He has gotten shelled since returning and now has a 5.19 ERA with a 5.02 FIP. While Archer continues to strike out over a batter per frame (10.75 K/9), his command has waned (4.14 BB/9) while trading ground balls for fly balls. The 30-year-old's mixed-league viability is officially in the danger zone, especially after going on the IL once more due to shoulder soreness. He could come back in September, but the reward probably isn't strong enough to stash him in standard mixed leagues.

Archer's ERA is still well above 5.00 with a lousy WHIP as well. He is getting K's but has just 3 wins as a result of the ratios. With that said, he continues to flash big games here and there so it can't hurt much to keep him on your bench for now and use him in spot starts while you wait for the bounceback..

Archer has proven to be a pitcher who consistently posts a higher ERA than his advanced metrics suggest he deserves. At this point, we should no longer be expecting that to suddenly change. Until we see otherwise, expect Archer to post an ERA around 4.00, a WHIP in the 1.20s, and a fairly strong strikeout rate.