I have been criticized for my love of prospect pitchers quite a bit this year, and why not? Jose Berrios was horrendous, Sean Manaea has disappointed immensely, and only Michael Fulmer has had fantasy relevant success for an extended period of time. So when I put Jameson Taillon at #41 on Monday’s edition of The List, there were a good amount of people with words to say. I get it. But the reason I put him so high is because he can go 8.0 IP, 0 ER, 2 Hits, 1 BBs, 5 Ks like it ain’t no thang. Yes, this was against a terrible Mets offense, but the kid earned 66.7% first pitch strikes, and cruised so easily that he only 91 pitches come the end of the 8th. He’s projected to be shutdown in early September, which could mean a trip to the pen, a skipped start or two, who knows at this point. What I do know is that you want Taillon and you want him yesterday. If he’s still hanging around, do yourself a favor and pick up the kiddo before deeply regretting as you kick rocks in September.
Let’s see what every other SP did yesterday:
David Price – 8.0 IP, 3 ER, 5 Hits, 0 BBs, 11 Ks. Aces gonna ace. I wouldn’t mind like one fewer ER, but I’ll take that WHIP and K rate errrrr day.
Chris Tillman – 7.0 IP, 1 ER, 5 Hits, 2 BBs, 7 Ks. So my Balitmore buddies are having a great time telling me Tillman is now 9-1, preventing me from quoting their least favorite phrase ever. They’re even calling him “Tillite”. That’s cute. I still like the way Tillman is pitching these days with a bigger reliance on his Slider, though his walk rate is still a bit high and his 3.89/3.97 FIP/xFIP are a bit worrisome that tougher times are ahead. Whatever, ride him out if you’ve got him and I doubt you’ll get a price worth more than the value you’ll get for holding him.
Julio Teheran – 7.0 IP, 3 ER, 3 Hits, 1 BBs, 8 Ks. Keep it up Teheran, you’re working yourself into many people’s Top 30 SP for 2017 and it’s kinda nuts.
Doug Fister – 7.1 IP, 2 ER, 5 Hits, 1 BBs, 6 Ks. Fister has actually been surprisingly decent this season, allowing more than 3 ER just once all year. Too bad it comes with a sub 6.00 K/9 and a FIP/xFIP that makes you run to the hills faster than forest animals sensing evil in every bad horror film ever.
Josh Tomlin – 7.0 IP, 1 ER, 7 Hits, 0 BBs, 5 Ks. Tomlin may be one of the more underappreciated starters out there as he’s now allowed 2 ER or fewer in all but three of his 12 games this year. That’s a 75% ES (excellent start) rate, which is as good as you’ll find. The problem is that his SIERA/xFIP/FIP are all hating on him, expecting a major drop to 4.00+ soon, despite his absurdly low 0.85 BB/9 rate. Just keep trusting Tomlin unless he’s faced with a difficult opponent.
Marcus Stroman – 7.0 IP, 2 ER, 6 Hits, 1 BBs, 6 Ks. Well la-dee-freakin’-da. I’m at least happy that Stroman didn’t falter when finally facing a legit weak team in the Phils. I’m just scared that this confidence boost won’t be enough for his next test against the Orioles.
Brandon Finnegan – 6.0 IP, 1 ER, 4 Hits, 3 BBs, 5 Ks. Will you stop with the walks Finnegan? Jeez man, they really stink up the room.
John Lackey – 6.0 IP, 2 ER, 4 Hits, 2 BBs, 7 Ks. I don’t see any reason why Lackey shouldn’t remain in the Top 25 for quite a while. Crazy.
Madison Bumgarner – 8.0 IP, 2 ER, 4 Hits, 1 BBs, 8 Ks. Aces gonna ace.
Jacob DeGrom – 6.0 IP, 2 ER, 6 Hits, 1 BBs, 9 Ks. The only blemish on deGrom’s outing was a 2-run blast from Kang. Whatever, deGrom holds a 12.11 K/9 in his four starts, including a 1.00 WHIP and 2.42 ERA. I’m starting to feel a lot better about my #6 preseason rank of deGrom. Phew.
Jorge De La Rosa – 5.0 IP, 0 ER, 3 Hits, 2 BBs, 1 Ks. Whenever I see Jorge, I get nostalgic for the Battle of the Roses when he faced Rubby last year. But enough of that, De La Rosa has limited upside, pitches his home games at Coors Field, and doesn’t deserve a spot on your team. This should be the blurb for every Colorado starter not named Gray and maybe even Gray.
Tom Koehler – 6.0 IP, 2 ER, 6 Hits, 1 BBs, 8 Ks. Our super backup Call Boy was actually solid against the Padres. Just goes to show that the Friars know how to tuck and get rolled. Blame it on the Padres.
Gio Gonzalez – 6.1 IP, 3 ER, 5 Hits, 4 BBs, 9 Ks. Ehhhhhhhhhh. I want to like it but ehhhhhhhh.
Kenta Maeda – 5.1 IP, 2 ER, 6 Hits, 1 BBs, 6 Ks. Solid outing from Maeda, too bad he had to take a comebacker to the leg that pulled him out early. The X-rays were negative so at worst he misses his next start after taking some extra rest. Not saying that’s what will happen, but I’d be shocked if this were a DL stint.
Archie Bradley – 5.2 IP, 5 ER, 4 Hits, 3 BBs, 9 Ks. That K upside is showing up, but when it’s delivered in a package like this, I don’t want to sign for it. Honestly, it’s not mine!
Matt Garza – 4.0 IP, 1 ER, 8 Hits, 1 BBs, 5 Ks. Fortunately, Garza didn’t do his old thing where he makes owners feel like this. He will shortly, though. Very shortly.
Chris Young – 4.1 IP, 2 ER, 5 Hits, 4 BBs, 4 Ks. Does anyone else feel like watching Young pitch is like watching a pitcher throw out of molasses? He’s such a big guy that it takes forever for him to finally release the ball and it comes out much slower than you’d expect. Anyway, stay far away, especially you Mets fans who are heavily biased after what he did in the World Series.
Martin Perez – 7.0 IP, 4 ER, 9 Hits, 0 BBs, 2 Ks. Our reluctant Call Boy didn’t do anything to help your team this week. Seriously, none of this is helpful. Bu-but he got the Win. Fine, at least you could feast on Surkamp being so lame that he forces people to say “Sir” when pronouncing his name.
Jaime Garcia – 6.1 IP, 3 ER, 8 Hits, 0 BBs, 2 Ks. I need more Garcia. MORE. This is just lame and doesn’t help your cause.
Jordan Zimmermann – 7.0 IP, 4 ER, 8 Hits, 1 BBs, 3 Ks. And the Regression Angels just won’t stop beating JZ with their halos. THAT’S NOT WHAT THEY ARE THERE FOR. Well then, what are our Halos there for? Umm…well…good point.
Taijuan Walker – 3.1 IP, 3 ER, 3 Hits, 1 BBs, 4 Ks. Sure this is an annoying outing, but the bigger news is that Walker was pulled after getting a sore Achilles. That’s his big issue, as they say. Ahhh I see what you did there. They are going to monitor it over the next few days, so hold on to yer Betts.
Jhoulys Chacin – 5.0 IP, 4 ER, 7 Hits, 1 BBs, 2 Ks. I’m not wasted. Why are you telling me this? Because it means I’m not endorsing Chacin. Makes sense. Does it? DOES IT? Okay, yeah I guess it does.
Drew Pomeranz – 5.0 IP, 5 ER, 5 Hits, 5 BBs, 6 Ks. While I won’t sit here and tell you that I expected Pomeranz to allow a grand-slam en route to a crooked 5-ER first inning (because that would be a silly thing to claim when I obviously didn’t), I will mention that he got into the mess with a pair of walks and a stroke of bad luck did the rest. Mix that with an inevitable move back to the bullpen around the end of August and you have someone that it’s getting harder and harder to sell. If you can stomach an evening with the Nats, he does get the Reds/Yanks/Dodgers next which could be pretty helpful.
Jake Odorizzi – 5.2 IP, 5 ER, 8 Hits, 4 BBs, 9 Ks. Odorizzi had a tough matchup against the Mariners – a Top 5 MLB offense if you can believe it – and it didn’t go so well. It’s too bad he gets the Giants/O’s/Red Sox next :-/
Ervin Santana – 5.0 IP, 5 ER, 10 Hits, 0 BBs, 1 Ks. Even if you’re in it to hang out with his K upside, those guys left weeks ago. Now you’re just hanging out with yourself and it’s super lonely. Really lonely.
Nathan Eovaldi – 4.0 IP, 6 ER, 8 Hits, 2 BBs, 2 Ks. Remember when we went over Eovaldi and it looked to be just “noise” ? Eovaldi has since allowed 16 ER in just three starts. Sure, this one was in Coors and he also faced the O’s, but that’s pretty dang noisy.
Miguel Gonzalez – 3.1 IP, 7 ER, 8 Hits, 4 BBs, 3 Ks. Miguel…No.
Eric Surkamp – 2.1 IP, 7 ER, 7 Hits, 2 BBs, 1 Ks. Even Kamp Krusty was better than Eric. Worst. Kamp. Ever.
Zach Eflin – 2.2 IP, 8 ER, 9 Hits, 3 BBs, 2 Ks. Poor kiddo finally gets the chance to pitch on MLB soil and is treated to the worst date of his life against the mighty Jays. It went about as well as you’d imagine and you have to feel sorry for him. Just don’t associate Eflin with these kinds of starts right off the bat. He may see some more time, and he may actually bring you some value as he starts facing NL Easy teams.
Today’s Streamers
Anthony DeSclafani vs. Atlanta Braves – If he’s still around in your league, go grab him for this start. Few options today (Nate Karns against the Rays works, but he’s most likely taken), and Tony Disco is your best shot.
Tomorrow’s Streamer
J.A. Happ vs. Philadelphia Phillies – There are a decent amount of options – Scott Kazmir vs. Milwaukee, Hisashi Iwakuma vs. Tampa (UPDATE: Nope, it’s James Paxton now who is an obvious start), and even Colby Lewis against Oakland for the deep stream (still hate him, though) – but Happ is the one that’s probably unowned at the moment.
Day After Tomorrow’s Streamer
Julio Urias vs. Milwaukee Brewers – I’m willing to bet Urias got dropped in a bunch of leagues after his first two starts and a matchup against the Brew Crew is pretty dang solid. Also, if Matt Shoemaker is somehow still out there, you best grab him for his game against Oakland, 10 teamers be damned.
Game of the Day
Stephen Strasburg vs. Jason Hammel – One of the better games in general as the Nationals host the Cubs.