Starting Pitcher Streamer Rankings – 5/6 & 5/7

Every day of the 2022 baseball season, I’ll be looking at today and tomorrow’s slate of scheduled starting pitchers and ranking their matchups for your fantasy baseball streams.

There’s a lot that goes into this and you can hang out with me on Twitch.tv/pitcherlist to talk about the specific ranks as I make them every weekday morning from 9am – 12am ET. If you have questions to these ranks, please ask during the morning Twitch AMA. Those are my office hours as I generally don’t answer comments on the site.

There are four tiers to these rankings with 12-teamers in mind:

 

Auto-Start – Just do it. Don’t overthink this, start the man.

Probably Start – I’m likely starting these arms, though I recognize there is more risk than we’d like there to be. Either it’s a tough matchup for a good pitcher or a weak lineup for a volatile arm.

Questionable Start – There are situations where I’d take the chance, either with strong enough upside on the ability side, or a poor offense that a pitcher could take advantage of.

Do Not Start – The reward is not worth the risk. Don’t do it.

 

Obviously, there will be circumstances where pitchers should move between teams for your situation specifically and these new tiers should act as a little more help than the straight table from last year.

Please keep in mind that streaming is far from a perfect play. In fact, if they work out over half the time, I’d consider it a success. These matchup rankings & streamer picks are going to be wildly different than the actual results throughout the year, so please, have sympathy before the scathing comments and tweets. I’m only trying to help!

Make sure to read the notes if you’re wondering why I’m favoring certain pitchers over others – I won’t get to everyone and hopefully I answer what questions you will have.

There is a second table for tomorrow’s starting pitcher matchups as well, helping everyone get a jump on their nightly pickups. Please note that these matchups are subject to change, though, and there will be times when I have the incorrect pitcher going. I thank you for your future understanding.

Finally, there are my streaming picks of the day, and please keep in mind that I am forced to pick a streamer every day. Those highlighted in Green are in the second tier and I’d roll with them everywhere. The most common are those in Yellow in the third tier and should be decent if you’re searching for something on a given day. Finally, those are Red are those I really don’t want to start (they are labeled as “Do Not Start”, after all) but have no other choice. Don’t stream these guys until you are truly desperate. A streaming pick is defined as “rostered in 20% or fewer leagues,” which really emphasizes the point that I’d be happy if over 50% of these worked. I could do the whole sub 30/40% rostered, but there’s no fun in that. You can use the rankings to realize who would be those picks, instead.

(Opener) – Outlines that a pitcher is being opened for that day & the pitcher listed will follow the opener.

 

As I do my rankings, I thought it would be helpful to showcase a table of how we’re ranking offenses. Dave Swan does an incredible job of showcasing future SP matchups every 2-3 weeks in this article, and I’ve elected to use his offense ranks to share with all of you here:

 

 

I’m sure it’ll change through the year + there are differences to be made about teams vs. LHP or RHP, but it’s a great general table that y’all should keep in mind.

Alright, let’s get to it.

 

2022 Streamer Record: 20-9

 

Today’s Starting Pitcher Rankings

 

• So many fun pitchers are going on Friday – make sure to tune into Kevin Gausman vs. Shane Bieber as it’s destined to be a fantastic game.
• You may be shocked at Yu Darvish’s lowish ranking given a date with the Marlins. Opponent rarely matters for Darvish, which means you slot him in your lineup and don’t think twice.

 

• Some may want Eric Lauer in the second tier as he faces the tough Atlanta lineup, but after two straight double-digit strikeout games, you have no choice.
• Speaking of the second tier, it’s a small one with Merrill Kelly and Luis Garcia as its sole residents. Kelly is on a roll and gets a lovely date with Rockie Road while Garcia is flirting with his 2021 self and should be fine to start against the Tigers.

 

• The third tier also has a few names that could be considered for the second tier. Chad Kuhl’s slider has been filthy as of late and after a strong outing inside Coors last week, he’s now not just on the road, but in Arizona. I can’t help but keep anxiety over his middling 93 mph heater and the fact it’s Chad Kuhl, though don’t let that stop you if you have him rostered.
• The streaming pick of the day Tyler Anderson may be someone consistently started by his managers. He’s proven himself as a Toby for a winning club and a date with the Cubs seems lovely. Still, don’t forget he has a capped ceiling, making for a worse floor than we normally involve ourselves with. Update: This game was postponed.

 

• With Sonny Gray needing another rehab start, it looks like we will, in fact, get another start from Josh Winder against the Athletics. He’s a backup streaming option for the weekend ahead and you could do plenty worse, though there’s a decent chance at a stumble from a young arm.
• Alex Cobb had a tough return from the IL last weekend, making this a touch more fragile than ideal against the Cardinals. He still had his velocity, though, and it seems like he should be good to go.

 

• At the bottom of the tier, JT Brubaker and Dane Dunning each have held strong sliders as of late. With Coffee Cakes getting the lowly Reds, he could earn himself a victory with a fair amount of strikeouts along the way. Update: It’s Glenn Otto today instead of Dunning. Otto is the top of the final tier as we’re not sure if he’s consistent enough to bring out his strikeout upside damaging your ratios.
• As for Dunning, his slider & overall command were spectacular over the weekend. The Yankees are a tough team to endure, but if the same ability returns, he could come out on top.

 

• In the bottom tier, Huascar Ynoa may be getting the call back to the majors with an open spot for Atlanta on Friday. I anticipated a better spring for Ynoa over the winter and there’s a chance he’s looking like his best self after a stint in the minors. Far too dangerous to trust right away, of course. Update: Looks like it’s Jesse Chavez going for Atlanta instead, who knows who follows.
• Lastly, Jordan Lyles is far from your worst option as he’s earned success when he has his breakers working on a given day. It’s a toss-up if that’ll happen against Kansas City, though, so only roll the dice if you don’t have a whole lot to lose.

 

• With Cole Irvin hitting the IL, Zach Logue is getting the start for the Athletics. He tosses around 90 mph with a good changeup and decent breaker. He’s not the young arm you’re looking for.
• Update: The Cubs & Dodgers game was postponed for a doubleheader on Saturday. This means Josh Winder has become the streaming pick of the day…good luck. We’re all counting on you.

 

Tomorrow’s Starting Pitcher Rankings

 

• I often find it hard to talk about the top tier – they’re all great pitchers and you’re gonna start em. It’s fun to not think about these decisions.
• Twitch chat was discussing possible weather impacts to some starts like Clayton Kershaw – I personally don’t get too deep in the weeds with weather during these rankings and if you want to shift him around because of the expected blegh days ahead in Chicago, by all Johns means do so.

 

• The second tier begins with Framber Valdez, who hasn’t done a whole lot to make us feel wonderful drafting him in leagues. That said, the Tigers aren’t a team to fear and Valdez will be slotted into many of your lineups without much thought.
• Luis Severino has certainly displayed the stuff to make us consider him as a legit starter this year, but he hasn’t quite put it all together lately. The Rangers are a hot/cold crew and shouldn’t pose a massive threat, but I understand if some want to proceed with a touch of caution.

 

• There are two streaming options for shallower leagues inside this tier as both Michael Lorenzen and Chris Paddack are rostered in fewer than 30% of leagues. Lorenzen has showcased himself as a Toby with a hint of strikeout upside thus far and the Nationals are a welcome team for a Saturday start.
• As for Chris Paddack, his fastball has been plenty better this season, while incorporating his curveball around 20% of the time has helped keep batters at bay. The Athletics should make for a despite outing in favor of Paddack.

 

• In the third tier, it’s difficult to decide what we should do with Eduardo Rodriguez. I personally see him as someone you keep starting despite the rough matchups (and his respite is nigh! The Athletics are next!) though I understand if many want to give him a single start break.
• With the postponement of Friday’s games, I’m assuming Tyler Anderson’s start gets pushed to Saturday, making him the streaming pick of the day. He’s a Toby through and through and the Cubs are a decent team to stream against.

 

• It looks like Nick Lodolo will return from the IL (what it gift it was, missing a start on Coors without sacrificing a roster spot!) and I’m a touch concerned about his pitch count given the time off. Here’s to hoping the quality of inning will make the game worthwhile and h*ck, maybe he goes five frames with ease.
• The bottom five of the third tier are a bit of a mini-tier for me. I’m treating this full tier as “if they are a coin flip, they’re here” and all of the below are just that. Kyle Freeland gets the best matchup he can hope for and could display his strikeout upside, Mitch Keller gets nearly the same treatment, Dane Dunning may have the same command he had last weekend, Zach Eflin could go six frames, and Josiah Gray earns oh so many whiffs.

 

• The bottom tier has some fun options if you’re still searching. Daniel Lynch could thrive against the Orioles, but I’m still waiting for an overwhelming start to instill the faith on a given day. His floor is so dang low.
• There’s also Ross Stripling and Zach Davies to consider if you’re chasing a Win. The Jays could propel Stripling over the Guardians while Davies gets Rockie Road and could reveal his vintage changeup.

 

• Lastly, Roansy Contreras may get the call for the Pirates and have as soft of an introduction to the majors as you could hope for with a start against the Reds. The real issue here is his expected low pitch count – he failed to go four frames in the minors in his two starts this year. It makes for too low of a ceiling for me to start him with confidence.
• And sure, why not. You need some strikeouts? Nick Pivetta could do something against the White Sox – Chicago isn’t the strongest team against right-handers, after all.

 

Featured Image by Drew Wheeler (@drewisokay on Twitter)