Just Amir Mortal

There were a trio of interesting starts last night that are sure to make owners wonder what they are supposed to do. It’s actually pretty simple for each and we’ll start with Amir Garrett who is getting a ton of love after going 6.0 IP, 0 ER, 2 Hits, 2 BBs, 4 Ks. This often cracks me up. When a pitcher making his MLB debut isn’t touted highly at all before his first start and then does well, the first knee-jerk reaction is referencing one person who was on his side in the depths of the internet and everyone says How were we so blind? But then we write off James Shields throwing three great starts later on in July. I watched this outing from Garrett and I wasn’t all too impressed. I think the Cardinals hit themselves into outs often, while Garrett’s heater was all over the place. His mechanics don’t look too repeatable, making me believe that his consistently high BB/9 marks (4.12 BB/9 across 67.2 innings in AA) are going to stick around, while that K rate is going be roughly around 7.00 per nine given that he does have a decent Slider that induced some pretty bad swings from St. Louis. But that’s really it, this guy isn’t your breakout candidate of 2017 that you need to get now, so don’t do anything rash where you’re dropping legitimate players for him. I don’t want him in 12 teamers unless I’m truly desperate and would consider Garrett for 14 teamers and beyond.

Let’s see how every other SP did yesterday:

Zack Wheeler – 4.0 IP, 5 ER, 6 Hits, 1 BBs, 4 Ks. I was super excited to watch this Wheeler start since we simply haven’t seen him on the hill since 2014 – for reference, this site was still called Pitcher GIFs the last time he pitched. Crazy. What I saw was a kid with an electric Fastball (and movement!) who showed flashes of dominance while lacking the polish on his secondary pitches to make it all come together. I started him in one league simply because I love the excitement of running with an upside arm when we don’t really know what to expect and I got burned for it, it’s not like I didn’t know the risk was there. What matters more is what to do moving forward and…I dropped him. Yep, I think Wheeler has the tools to be a great pitcher this season, but it will take some time to get there. Last night was a stepping stone and so will his starts be in April and May, and he’ll just waste a bench spot until he gets enough experience to be consistent with his pitches. This is all forgetting the fact that he won’t go over 180 innings and obvious injury concerns are apparent. I know I was excited and I most likely ranked him a little too high, but that’s the price of upside. He’ll be down to the 80s or so on Monday.

Kyle Freeland – 6.0 IP, 1 ER, 4 Hits, 2 BBs, 6 Ks. I’m going to make this one pretty quick. Freeland is not a strikeout pitcher. Freeland is a somewaht groundball pitcher. Freeland doesn’t walk too many batters. Freeland plays for the Rockies. Freeland is better than Motherland…sorry got a little off topic there. I don’t expect more starts like this one – I think it was benefited by his adrenal gland – and he’s not the prospect pitcher you’re looking for. I think he can be somewhat productive for the Rockies, but in Fantasyland he is…bland.

Michael Fulmer – 6.0 IP, 0 ER, 4 Hits, 2 BBs, 4 Ks. Mmmmm that’s some good Fulmer silencing the Red Sox bats. That makes two of my favorite preseason pitching targets heading up against the fearsome Boston offense and escaping without an ER to their name. Sure, I’d like the K’s to be a little higher, but I think those will come a bit. Even an 8.00-8.50 K/9 from Fulmer will suit my fancy.

Jimmy Nelson – 6.0 IP, 1 ER, 4 Hits, 2 BBs, 8 Ks. Okay this is getting kinda nutty now. That’s three straight baller performances from Brewers starters consisting of Peralta + Anderson and now Nelson. WHAT IS GOING ON. Should I be picking any of these guys up? NO. But not even Peralta? He had a 2.92 in his final ten starts last year too! Okay I’d be lying if I didn’t say that Peralta isn’t somewhat intriguing but definitely not at the point where I’d actually make a move on my team. And Nelson? HA HA.

Mike Leake – 8.0 IP, 1 ER, 6 Hits, 1 BBs, 6 Ks. The best start of the night goes to Mike freakin’ Leake. He’ll do this at times where he’ll have three great outings and then three absolutely horrific performances where you rock back and forth muttering “I trusted you…I trusted you…” Oh and he faced the Reds and whatnot.

Max Scherzer – 6.2 IP, 2 ER, 4 Hits, 2 BBs, 7 Ks. Aces gonna ace. I totally should have docked him points in the preseason because of that knuckle injury. What was I thinking.

Jesse Chavez – 5.2 IP, 1 ER, 4 Hits, 1 BBs, 6 Ks. Chavez is trying hard to replicate that 2014 season and this is great and all but not something that will stick. Don’t be hasty.

Ivan Nova – 6.0 IP, 0 ER, 6 Hits, 0 BBs, 4 Ks. I haven’t been a major fan of Nova in the preseason, though I watch this outing and think he pitched decently well. Not too many mistakes and stuck to his gameplan of hitting arm-side all day. Does that mean that I’d consider him heavily in 12-teamers even though this was against the Braves? Yeah, no. He should be owned, but I’d rather have better upside plays at the end of my staff.

Phil Hughes – 6.0 IP, 1 ER, 5 Hits, 0 BBs, 3 Ks. Oh snap, look at the K/BB!

Mike Foltynewicz – 3.2 IP, 2 ER, 6 Hits, 3 BBs, 1 Ks. So I guess this counts as another point docked against me even though he was originally slated to go tomorrow…2-2 now on streamer calls. Keep in mind, this was in the snow which makes things all kinds of stupid for certain pitchers while others don’t mind it because they are magical creatures. Folty is not a magical creature :(

Jason Vargas – 6.0 IP, 1 ER, 6 Hits, 1 BBs, 6 Ks. Ahhhh, this is where Folty’s Ks went.

Derek Holland – 6.0 IP, 2 ER, 4 Hits, 1 BBs, 5 Ks. Derek has avoided the Dutch Invasion thus far, but it’s a tough investment to make considering that floor and the fact that Wins will be tough to get in Chicago.

Brett Anderson – 5.2 IP, 1 ER, 5 Hits, 1 BBs, 4 Ks. Yeah, this can totally happen from Anderson as he takes advantage of the solid defense behind him. The question is if he can stay healthy enough for the season, but I don’t have much of an issue rostering him in a 12-teamer for now. Just have a short leash.

Wei-Yin Chen – 6.0 IP, 1 ER, 7 Hits, 1 BBs, 5 Ks. As Wheeler imploded, Chen took his time and relaxed through the Mets offense. This is totally possible now and then from Chen, but I think he’s lost the consistency that he once had making me concerned to trust him in a 12 teamer.

Mike Fiers – 6.0 IP, 1 ER, 5 Hits, 3 BBs, 3 Ks. This stat line reads like a pitcher who left the game saying “Phew!”

Shelby Miller – 5.1 IP, 3 ER, 5 Hits, 3 BBs, 7 Ks. Whoa, 7 Ks Shelby! Seven! Also three walks, a poor WHIP and harmful ERA, but seven! I’m not buying this long term even if this was against the Indians.

Hyun-Jin Ryu – 4.2 IP, 2 ER, 6 Hits, 1 BBs, 5 Ks. I had expected Ryu to make one pitch, shake his head, and walk off the mound to the dugout. Under five innings doesn’t inspire confidence here and I’d hate to make this investment long term. For now? I guess I’m cool streaming him if he gets weak opponents, but the Cubs are next and that’s not good.

Steven Wright – 6.2 IP, 4 ER, 7 Hits, 3 BBs, 4 Ks. Wright once told me he could lick his elbow. Pssssh no one can do that. Don’t trust a knuckleballer.

Luis Severino – 5.0 IP, 4 ER, 6 Hits, 1 BBs, 6 Ks. This could have been a lot worse for Severino and I’m looking at the positives here that he went five innings with six strikeouts and just one walk. Sure, 4 ER, but that’s kinda what I expected going up against the O’s.

Vince Velasquez – 4.0 IP, 4 ER, 5 Hits, 3 BBs, 10 Ks. This is the story of Velasquez. He’s not going to go deep in games unless he’s facing the Padres, but he’ll rack up strikeouts with that heater a ton. Too bad his breaking pitches aren’t all that great, making it possible for batters to sit dead-red heat and get into one or two.

Yovani Gallardo – 5.0 IP, 3 ER, 8 Hits, 2 BBs, 4 Ks. YoGa poses to be bad for any teams associated with him.

A.J. Griffin – 3.1 IP, 4 ER, 4 Hits, 2 BBs, 4 Ks. Griffin’s pitches float like a feather. That’s not a good thing.

Luis Perdomo – 5.1 IP, 5 ER, 7 Hits, 1 BBs, 3 Ks. Since Ervin Santana has essentially locked down the famous MFRTSPA (Most Fantasy Relevant Twins Starting Pitcher Award), I’ve elected to shift it to San Diego with the MFRSDPSPA. Perdomo was a pre-season favorite, though Clayton Richard has taken an early lead. PLACE BETS NOW.

Matt Cain – 4.1 IP, 4 ER, 6 Hits, 3 BBs, 3 Ks. I wonder as Matt gets older if his walking stick will be etched with its name “Cain’s cane”. Cause that’s what I would do.

Ubaldo Jimenez – 4.1 IP, 5 ER, 7 Hits, 1 BBs, 5 Ks. Yep, that’s Ubaldo alright.

Matt Andriese – 4.0 IP, 4 ER, 7 Hits, 1 BBs, 4 Ks. I had some high hopes for Andriese entering this year given the good K/BB numbers and upside for better with his Changeup. The Jays are a solid offense though and this one just didn’t go his way. 12-teamers I would generally avoid Andriese, though deeper leagues I would still consider him for the long haul of 2017.

Josh Tomlin – 4.2 IP, 6 ER, 7 Hits, 1 BBs, 6 Ks. Yeeeep, Tomlin against the Diamondbacks just isn’t a recipe for fun.

Francisco Liriano – 0.1 IP, 5 ER, 3 Hits, 4 BBs, 1 Ks. Oh lord. Do I really have to take another streaming loss for this one? For some unknown reason Russell Martin wasn’t Liriano’s catcher today and everything was terrible. I guess it was only a matter of time before we had our first Felix of the year, right? Great, now I’m 2-3 for the year…yay.

Raul Alcantara – 2.0 IP, 8 ER, 4 Hits, 2 BBs, 1 Ks. Don’t be a fool, bench Raul.

Today’s Streamer

Adam Conley vs. New York Mets – Don’t love this one a ton but there really isn’t much in terms of streaming options. Half point please.

Tomorrow’s Streamer

Martin Perez vs. Oakland Athletics – Ohhh I hate this one but it’s hard to deny that Perez might have the best shot at stealing a win as he players for the Rangers and faces the A’s. I’m doing this whole Streaming Record thing, and I’m only going to bet .5 a point on this one.

Day After Tomorrow’s Streamer

Tyler Glasnow vs. Cincinnati Reds – Yeah, there’s risk here too, though the Reds don’t put up much of a fight and you could escape with 7+ Ks.

Game of the Day

Aaron Nola vs. Jeremy Guthrie – I really can’t wait to see what this guy does today. Pitching at 38 years old? Guthrie could be amazing. I keeeeed, I don’t know what to expect from Nola but I really want him to look like mid-season form, since that form is easily a Top 25 arm.