Next of Quin

I wanted to break down Jose Quintana for everyone after he followed a brilliant 14 K game with 7.0 IP, 0 ER, 5 Hits, 0 BBs, 7 Ks against the Pirates last night, and you’ll have to bear with me as we have little true data for it (it was played in a LLWS park …). I feel weird ranting about a really cool event because I selfishly wanted to confirm that Quintana was going high with four-seamers once again with legit consistency and doing the full-on BSB with secondary stuff low, but I only have my own two eyes today. And for the most part, it looked like he was doing that, which is more than welcome. Rant aside, Quintana now has two highly impressive starts back to back, and we’re wondering if this will stick through the end. Let’s see one more. Let’s see the same approach against a tougher team like the Nationals before truly buying in, but this does look to be a different stretch than what we saw in the spring as it’s paired with a legit change in approach.

Let’s see how every other SP did Sunday:

Mike Clevinger – 5.0 IP, 0 ER, 3 Hits, 2 BBs, 10 Ks. Aces Gonna Ace. I wagered that Clev would be great in one of his tough starts against the Sawx and Yanks, and it looks like the Pinstripes got the wrath of Clevinger. How can you not like this guy? I want more than five frames. OK, decent point, but he went 37/104 CSW. It’s not like it was a ton of wild pitches that messed him up here.

Yusei Kikuchi – 9.0 IP, 0 ER, 2 Hits, 1 BBs, 8 Ks. Dude, what. Kikuchi wised up and went legit four-seamers up and sliders/curveballs for strikes and whiffs. I’m not kidding. It’s gorgeous. Now it was 92/93 from Kikuchi – not 94/95 – but it wasn’t a pure fluke that Kikuchi returned this line after executing like this. Do I believe he can be this precise constantly? Not at all. But at least we know he can and to keep that in mind next time out.

Matt Boyd – 7.0 IP, 1 ER, 2 Hits, 2 BBs, 9 Ks. Boyd, it’s almost like you read comments online about your home run problem and wanted to do something about it. No longballs here, just a cool 41/107 CSW as his slider dominated down with separation from his fastball as the heater elevated effectively at 92/93. Now the question becomes if he can do the same thing against the Twins. I’m starting him there, but I understand if people want to trade him away before their deadlines this week and be done with the whole thing. I’m riding this to the end as his slider is too good + his fastball velocity is still there + his HR/FB rates are destined to drop.

Griffin Canning – 7.0 IP, 1 ER, 5 Hits, 1 BBs, 8 Ks. After his not-so-great DLH start, I was a little worried about this one from Canning, wondering if his fastball and slider command would be good enough. Spoiler alert: it was good enough Streaming Record: 81-53. 35% CSW with 19 whiffs (Gallows Pole!) is a wonderful thing but what isn’t wonderful is his ROS schedule. Seriously – @HOU, BOS, @CHW, CLE, @NYY, OAK, HOU. That’s one outing out of seven that I’d start him for. It’s sad and stupid but we need let Canning loose to the wire again. Here’s to a late-round draft pick in 2020.

Jack Flaherty – 5.0 IP, 1 ER, 3 Hits, 3 BBs, 5 Ks. It’s not the overwhelming outings we’ve seen as of late with just four whiffs on 32 sliders and 10/83 CSW, but fine, we’ll take this across the board.

Wilmer Font – 2.0 IP, 1 ER, 3 Hits, 0 BBs, 3 Ks. Sure, whatever Font. Thomas Pannone came in after and no one noticed.

Tony Gonsolin – 4.0 IP, 1 ER, 5 Hits, 0 BBs, 2 Ks. It should be May, but with Julio Urias out for a good while on suspension, the Dodgers pushed May to the pen – of course they did – and Gonsolin may get another start or two. He was allowed to just 72 pitches here with only 14 CSW, and I wouldn’t play around with Dodgeritis. It’s just not a fun game of roulette.

Zack Greinke – 7.0 IP, 1 ER, 4 Hits, 3 BBs, 6 Ks. Aces Gonna Ace. See? He’s just fine in Houston. Juuuust fine.

Merrill Kelly – 5.2 IP, 1 ER, 6 Hits, 2 BBs, 5 Ks. Good to see Kelly take advantage of a start against the Giants, featuring 45% cutters and curveballs. I didn’t see anything here that really spoke to success outside of the Giants, and I’d be careful.

Joey Lucchesi – 6.0 IP, 2 ER, 3 Hits, 2 BBs, 4 Ks. We’ll take that Lucchesi, even if it’s super boring. That’s why you have a Toby label, isn’t it? Too bad he gets the Sawx next, that’s a clear sit.

Martin Perez – 5.0 IP, 2 ER, 5 Hits, 4 BBs, 2 Ks. Solid changeups and cutters here as Perez sat 95 mph, and he wasn’t nearly as wild as the four walks would suggest. He really is a Toby in the sense that he’s not killing it but doing just good enough to keep on the hook. Be happy if it sticks like that the rest of the way.

Trevor Richards – 3.1 IP, 2 ER, 8 Hits, 1 BBs, 6 Ks. Richards made his first start for the Rays and surprisingly to none, his changeups got him through the game. Kinda. This really isn’t a good start – that WHIP kills and the ERA is blegh – but at least the strikeouts are flowing and maybe he’ll get past 80 pitches next time with five frames. Not something I’d go after in most leagues.

Jason Vargas – 5.2 IP, 2 ER, 6 Hits, 2 BBs, 4 Ks. Hey, it’s a Philly on the Phillies! I guess you’re OK with this if you started Vargas …? The WHIP isn’t good but the whole line speaks Toby like whoa and that’s cool if you’re in a deep league where you needed to start Vargas.

Jordan Yamamoto – 5.2 IP, 2 ER, 4 Hits, 1 BBs, 9 Ks. I’m amazed Yamamoto did this inside Coors, holding 32/103 CSW (nice) with all of his pitches chipping in, per usual. It’s always a little risky with Yamamoto with none of his pitches carrying him on its own, but I think you’re safe next time against the Phils.

Max Fried – 5.0 IP, 3 ER, 8 Hits, 3 BBs, 8 Ks. Fried got the Dodgers and did a much better job getting curveballs down in the zone than before. Problem was that his fastball was trying to hit edges but missed way too often out of the zone + its velocity was down to 92.5 mph that did him little favors. Slider wasn’t impressive either and there’s your 2.20 WHIP. He’s in a much better place than in the early summer with his curveball, though, and I’m still in for his next start against the Mets.

Peter Lambert – 6.0 IP, 3 ER, 6 Hits, 1 BBs, 2 Ks. Lambert gave you a PQS with a 1.17 WHIP in Coors. That’s a good thing, Marlins aside. Still not someone to consider save for safe streams outside Colorado, but good on ya kiddo.

Lance Lynn – 5.0 IP, 3 ER, 4 Hits, 5 BBs, 3 Ks. Lynn, no. NO. This is the old Lynn, but I want the new Lynn. The cool Lynn. The DOPE LYNN. We have no choice but to just hope that it was one of those days and hope he capitalizes against the White Sox on Friday.

Glenn Sparkman – 6.0 IP, 3 ER, 5 Hits, 2 BBs, 3 Ks. Yes, we’ll take a PQS from Sparkman all day. Because it doesn’t happen every day. Zero shock. Not even every five days. Mild Shock. NOT EVEN EVERY 30 DAYS. OK kinda shocked. Maybe that last one is a stretch, but you get the idea.

Zack Wheeler – 5.0 IP, 3 ER, 4 Hits, 1 BBs, 2 Ks. What is this Wheeler. A 1.00 WHIP but just two strikeouts and a poor ERA? A lot of heaters down the pipe, just 15/92 CSW – YUCK – and we’re still in this stupid purgatory where we don’t have a secondary pitch to truly help. I’m worried about that Atlanta start, but at the same time, we’ve seen Wheeler have a few games like this, then wake up in a big way. It may be a risk you need to take.

Brett Anderson – 5.0 IP, 4 ER, 7 Hits, 4 BBs, 3 Ks. There’s the Anderson we all know and hate. Are you happy with those three strikeouts? Why?

Madison Bumgarner – 6.0 IP, 4 ER, 6 Hits, 2 BBs, 9 Ks. It’s interesting seeing Bumgarner throw his curveball more than any other pitch in this one, but he felt the pitch earning 9/36 whiffs with the hook. The four earned runs sting a little, but we’re easily riding Bummy through the end.

Erick Fedde – 5.0 IP, 4 ER, 10 Hits, 2 BBs, 2 Ks. Remember kids, Don’t Trust The Feddes.

CC Sabathia – 3.0 IP, 4 ER, 4 Hits, 3 BBs, 5 Ks. Blegh. It’s not that we expected CC to do well against the new-and-improved-now-with-laser-swords-and-power-wheels Indians, but just 5 IP of 2 ER would be cool, you know? He’s a slight step below a Toby right now.

Alex Wood – 5.0 IP, 4 ER, 8 Hits, 1 BBs, 6 Ks. Wood’s changeup was so close to being solid in this one, nibbling just too far off the plate a bit too often, returning only 2/25 CSW and making it hard to truly pair with his heater. There’s more talent in here, but for now let’s just treat him as a Toby. Maybe as a decent last-rounder next year.

Ty Blach – 5.1 IP, 5 ER, 5 Hits, 3 BBs, 6 Ks. I’m surprised about the six strikeouts and absolutely nothing else. Nothing.

Dylan Cease – 5.0 IP, 5 ER, 7 Hits, 1 BBs, 6 Ks. So he’s still pumping gas, but the secondary stuff isn’t quite coming along enough to be excited for Cease yet. 25/95 CSW isn’t enough and he’s just a little too raw with his stuff. The 6/1 K per BB is nice, but the overall package wasn’t great against the Angels and it’s time to chase upside elsewhere.

Nathan Eovaldi – 2.0 IP, 5 ER, 3 Hits, 3 BBs, 1 Ks. Welcome back to the rotation Eovaldi, where you needed 43 pitches to get through two frames against the Orioles. I wouldn’t give up on Eovaldi here as he was 1) on a pitch count and 2) kinda treated like a DLH given his reintroduction to starting. Command was way off and there’s plenty that needs adjusting, but the velocity is still there and the was cutter heavy. It might take til the second week of September, but this could still work.

Mitch Keller – 4.1 IP, 6 ER, 7 Hits, 2 BBs, 5 Ks. Ouch. I still like the raw stuff of Keller, but he really didn’t have it consistently here against the Cubs. 20/93 CSW is not what we want … but he gets the Reds next. It’s a risk and I’m 50/50 on it. I think there’s a lot of value for those in deeper leagues if you have little else to chase, but in shallow leagues, I’d look to see what options are there first.

Chase Anderson – 2.1 IP, 10 ER, 9 Hits, 2 BBs, 1 Ks. Yeaaaaaah, this is the floor of Chase that has been lingering through the year, and while it feels bad to see it all fall on him at once, it should serve as a proper deterrent for those that were considering him prior. Don’t go after Anderson.

 

Today’s Streamer

 

For those unaware, I’m forced to make my streamer picks under the condition of sub-20% owned in Fantasy Pros’ consolidated ownership rates.

 

Joe Ross vs. Pittsburgh Pirates – Guess we’re doing this. Not too many options so let’s hope his sinker/slider combination is enough to earn a dub against the Pirates.

 

Tomorrow’s Streamer

 

Elieser Hernandez vs Atlanta Braves – All the interesting sub 20% arms have horrid matchups, so I’ll go with Elieser, who could survive the Braves after back-to-back 7 K games.

 

Day After Tomorrow’s Streamer

 

Mike Montgomery vs. Baltimore Orioles – The man is feeling his secondary stuff right now. You want him against the O’s. I’d also go with Adrian Houser as he faces the Cardinals. These two are clearly attached at the hip right now.

 

Game of the Day

 

Zac Gallen vs. Colorado Rockies – I want to see a full-on Gallen rebound after Coors + this will be right after when Brendan McKay finishes and what a wonderful night this will be.

(Photo by Dustin Bradford/Icon Sportswire)