What Is Dallas (Fort) Worth?

For the past couple of weeks, many have asked where I expected to place Dallas Keuchel on The List once he returned to the majors. Last night’s 5.0 IP, 3 ER, 8 Hits, 0 BBs, 3 Ks is kinda what we expected. Sure, he’ll ramp up a bit as he gets more into a groove this season, but he’s a Toby as Toby gets. At the very least, I was happy to see him stick to his classic ways, featuring pitches and the bottom and below the zone plenty, with his next step coming from lowering those cutters as well. I’ll have him around the late 50s, early 60s on Monday, which makes him worth your time in 12-teamers, but not the arm that is going to push the needle a whole lot through the year.

Let’s see how every other SP did Friday:

Andrew Kittredge – 2.0 IP, 0 ER, 2 Hits, 1 BBs, 3 Ks. Oddly enough, this was the same amount of innings as False Starter Jalen Beeks who tossed fifty pitches to earn six outs. Don’t carry Beeks in your lineups, it just isn’t worth it. What about Austin Pruitt who went 3.0 IP and 1 ER after? Definitely not that either.

Sandy Alcantara – 7.2 IP, 1 ER, 8 Hits, 4 BBs, 6 Ks. Nick, you have to be a believer now! That’s 3 ER total in four of his last five games! I know, I know. I’m just not loving everything I see from Alcantara. Slider? 3/24 CSW. Curveball? 2/7 CSW. His success is ultra reliant on his four-seamer – 15/44 CSW here – and I don’t buy that it will last at this level. He’s not a man of consistency. Take your chances with him if you need to, but I think this magic is going to fade soon.

Eric Lauer – 7.0 IP, 1 ER, 5 Hits, 1 BBs, 4 Ks. I can see the papers falling on the street now as the trans-Atlantic narrator begins. ERIC LAUER DOES IT AGAIN! Recording his fifth 1 ER game in seven starts, Lauer is bringing much-needed help to the Padres rotation. But can it last? Who am I to say? Luck could fade as his 5% HR/FB rate rises like a flower blossoming in spring while his strikeouts will disappoint. can we trust him? Should we trust him? We will hold our breath next week against the weak Cardinals next week. Hopefully he can take down the birds and succeed one more time.

German Marquez – 8.0 IP, 1 ER, 5 Hits, 0 BBs, 8 Ks. Marquez had himself an evening against the Dodgers, failing to earn a dub as he matched up against the wonderful Buehler. Much better slider here – 6/20 whiffs – and he’s still a solid arm outside of Coors. Still have my concerns through the year, but hey, we’re at the time he started getting hot last year…

Joe Musgrove – 7.0 IP, 1 ER, 5 Hits, 0 BBs, 8 Ks. YES JOE. YES. 93+ on his four-seamer with – get this – THIRTY-NINE SLIDERS THROWN…but just 28/105 CSW overall. Huh. Still, love the heavy four-seamer and slider combination here as he did a great job of dancing the breaker off the corner while sprinkling in the high heat as well. This is a step in the right direction, y’all. I’M BACK IN, BABY.

Aaron Nola – 8.0 IP, 1 ER, 6 Hits, 1 BBs, 10 Ks. First thing’s first, the Marlins are bad. With that out of the way, LET’S LIVE LIFE LIKE IT’S NOLA DAY AGAIN. 41/107 CSW, fantastic fastball command, 22/46 CSW on curveballs, 12/16 strikes on changeups, and I’m a super happy man. The real test is if he can do it again as he faces the Mets next time out. Let’s do this Nola. LET’S DO THIS.

James Paxton – 5.0 IP, 1 ER, 5 Hits, 3 BBs, 7 Ks. Aces gonna ace. Kinda. WHIP is bad and forced him to leave after five frames, but I’ll take it and anticipate better through the summer.

Michael Wacha – 6.0 IP, 1 ER, 5 Hits, 1 BBs, 4 Ks. This is one of the best starts we’ve seen from Wacha all season and I really wish I could buy in, but man, just 8/95 whiffs and 24% CSW just isn’t cutting it for me. The floor is too low to chase it.

Walker Buehler – 9.0 IP, 2 ER, 3 Hits, 0 BBs, 16 Ks. Aces gonna GO HAM WILD AND GET US AMPED. 23 whiffs (Gallows Pole), 46/111 CSW and fastball DOMINATION. He’s on a roll that is boosting him into the Top 10 on Monday. 

Griffin Canning – 5.1 IP, 2 ER, 4 Hits, 3 BBs, 3 Ks. Canning didn’t have his curveball or slider really working last night (6/36 CSW between them) forcing him to go lower in the zone with his heater. This doesn’t kill you, but it doesn’t make you stronger either. Still love him moving forward.

Jake Junis – 6.0 IP, 2 ER, 6 Hits, 2 BBs, 8 Ks. I know it’s three straight games of 2 ER each – twice against the Twins! – but his last game was just 3.2 frames, turning that into a 4.50+ ERA for the game. Just saying. Anyway, he hasn’t had 8 Ks since April 4th and I’m not taking the chance with Junis.

Brad Peacock – 6.0 IP, 2 ER, 5 Hits, 0 BBs, 11 Ks. Hey, this is all kinds of awesome. 37% CSW as Peacock hammered the outside corner to the right-handed laced Yankee lineup. Still just two-pitch, but when his slider is on like this and his fastball is dotting the corner, that’s completely fine. I have my reservations about its consistency, but yeah, I was a bit off on my view off Peacock and I have to recalibrate as he rebounded from his small spell. He’ll be jumping close to Top 50 on Monday.

Trent Thornton – 6.1 IP, 2 ER, 8 Hits, 1 BBs, 7 Ks. Really nice to see the strikeout upside showcase itself for Thornton as that’s why you own him. Just 2 ER is just icing on the cake. It won’t likely be there next time against the Yanks.

Jason Vargas – 4.2 IP, 2 ER, 4 Hits, 2 BBs, 3 Ks. Is this the wall that ends the Vargas Rule of Vargas? Maybe, he tossed over 100 pitches and didn’t survive the fifth here. The Phils are next and let’s go one more.

Tanner Anderson – 4.0 IP, 3 ER, 7 Hits, 1 BBs, 4 Ks. Tanner has yet to earn a Win this season. This has been Tan And Wins News. That one’s for all you radio people in NYC.

Reynaldo Lopez – 5.1 IP, 3 ER, 6 Hits, 1 BBs, 4 Ks. It was a rough first inning and then Lopez did settle down a bit in Texas. Pretty middling and I’m waiting for a legit game or two before considering him again in 12-teamers.

Chris Sale – 5.0 IP, 3 ER, 7 Hits, 2 BBs, 8 Ks. Ehhhhhhh those ratios hurt but the strikeouts are there. Aces do that, they always give you something to salvage.

Stephen Strasburg – 6.0 IP, 3 ER, 5 Hits, 3 BBs, 5 Ks. You hear that Strasburg? I need more than five strikeouts when you give me a PQS and 1.33 WHIP.

Yu Darvish – 6.0 IP, 4 ER, 4 Hits, 2 BBs, 6 Ks. Talk about frustrating as it’s a 1.00 WHIP and six strikeouts…with two homers doing Darvish in. 34% CSW is solid, though, and it was good to see Darvish rely less on his cutter and moreso on heaters…though I’m not sold that he’s found the feel for his heat quite yet. And I’m still petrified at his low slider count with just seven in this game. Whatever, we keep rolling him out there as we’re stuck in purgatory, waiting for it to finally click into place.

Sonny Gray – 4.1 IP, 4 ER, 6 Hits, 4 BBs, 6 Ks. Just one whiff on 31 curveballs has me a bit worried, but the Brewer crew are tough and it’s not a case where I’d drop Gray. I think he’s in the midst of a tough spell but it’s not a free-fall like last season. Stick with this begrudgingly.

Ariel Jurado – 6.0 IP, 4 ER, 6 Hits, 1 BBs, 3 Ks. Yeah, I don’t want to be part of this world.

Martin Perez – 5.0 IP, 4 ER, 5 Hits, 3 BBs, 2 Ks. Changeups were hung, cutters were atrocious and his fastball was well under 93 mph. This is bad. Like really bad. I wouldn’t be shocked if there was an injury involved here as this was a laboring man on the mound – remember, Perez was pumping 94/95 this year with his cutter being the best cutter in the majors. Something’s wrong.

Trevor Bauer – 4.0 IP, 5 ER, 10 Hits, 1 BBs, 5 Ks. UGGGGGH. Man, what can’t we have nice things? This was shocking in so many ways. Just five whiffs total. Only four frames despite only one walk. Poor hung curveballs and sliders and cutters. His changeup was his most efficient pitch. I don’t have a choice but to lower him again and I hate it. It just doesn’t seem right that Bauer is struggling this hard suddenly as he’s lost the feel for his breakers but I have to believe they will return. When? I’m not sure and I really wish I had a better answer for everyone. Y’all believed me in Bauer no one is hurting more disappointed by this than me. Thing is, he gets the Royals next and I’m not holding Bauer back. We have to keep the faith.

Matt Boyd – 6.0 IP, 5 ER, 7 Hits, 2 BBs, 6 Ks. Boyd, please, no. That’s four straight starts of 3+ ER with 9 ER in your last two starts combined. Serving up three dingers in a game will do that, and now I’m sure you’re hearing whispers. He’s not an ace. The league is figuring him out. He couldn’t last as a two-pitch pitcher. WHY WAS I A BEEGEE?! Because Boyd is still throwing ~92 mph this year and while his slider has been hung up in the zone a little more lately, I really don’t see anything that suggests that he can’t figure this one out. Stick with him, buy low if someone is freaking out, Boyd is still legit.

Sean Gilmartin – 2.1 IP, 5 ER, 7 Hits, 2 BBs, 1 Ks. The Orioles are just throwing out there what they can these days, with Gilmartin getting the shot yesterday and serving us a HAISTFMWT?! I know what you’re thinking. Good ole Gil is going to get his himself on the right track. No he’s not. No he’s not…

Jeff Samardzija – 6.0 IP, 5 ER, 9 Hits, 1 BBs, 5 Ks. Yeaaaah, at least it’s so clear to steer away from Loose Lips that he won’t sink your ships.

Chase Anderson – 5.0 IP, 6 ER, 5 Hits, 2 BBs, 6 Ks. Nice to see over a strikeout per inning, but it’s not enough for me to deal with his low floor each game + I don’t expect those strikeouts to stick around. Womp womp.

Taylor Clarke – 3.0 IP, 6 ER, 7 Hits, 2 BBs, 3 Ks. There’s a reason we don’t add Kent to the end of his name. 

Mike Leake – 5.1 IP, 7 ER, 11 Hits, 0 BBs, 2 Ks. This really worked out well. Like so well. Man I feel so smart right now. Streaming Record: 51-30. At least I said I hated this? Yeah, that doesn’t matter. But against the Orioles…yeesh Leake. Yeesh.

 

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.

 

Tommy Milone vs. Baltimore Orioles – He’s had at least six strikeouts in all but one of his games thus far and now gets the O’s. It’s the best we’ve got under 20% owned.

 

Tomorrow’s Streamer

 

Michael Pineda vs. Kansas City Royals – It’s Pineda or Kelly vs. the Giants and I didn’t like what I saw last time from the latter.

 

Day After Tomorrow’s Streamer

 

Adam Plutko vs. Kansas City Royals – I really have maybe three choices here. Not a fan of this one.

 

Game of the Day 

 

Chris Paddack vs. Chris Archer – Hey, Paddack is back in what I’m calling The Chrisening.

 

(Photo by Mark Goldman/Icon Sportswire)