Each week, we’ll look at a handful of players who fantasy managers should consider picking up in deeper fantasy baseball leagues. Many of these players will have the most value in larger leagues where waiver wire options aren’t as plentiful. Still, they could also occasionally be useful additions in other, more standard-sized leagues, depending on your options at each position.
All roster percentages mentioned in this column are via FantasyPros as of Friday afternoon.
Michael Lorenzen – 15%
In his first full season with the Kansas City Royals, Lorenzen is off to a solid start so far, pitching to a 3.76 ERA in nine starts and 52.2 innings. Along the way, the veteran has accumulated three pitcher wins while striking out 7.69 strikeouts per nine innings. He’s also scattered 2.56 walks and 1.54 homers per nine frames.
Lorenzen has, in part, been able to find early success by limiting free passes. If the season were to end today, the right-hander’s 6.8% walk rate would be the second lowest of his career and the lowest in a season in which he’s worked primarily as a starter. Overall, the 6.8% walk rate sits in the 68th percentile league-wide.
All that being said, there’s a chance Lorenzen’s ERA regresses a bit moving forward, what with a 4.52 FIP and a 4.04 xERA, but the 33-year-old has found success in the right matchups, allowing one earned run or fewer in four of his nine starts so far. Three of those starts, against the Boston Red Sox (May 9), Colorado Rockies (April 24), and Minnesota Twins (April 7).
Considering the FIP, he might not be a long-term addition for fantasy managers for the rest of the season, but he is worth a look as a streaming option, provided the matchup is right.
Assuming the Royals’ rotation remains unchanged and without interruptions, Lorenzen’s next two starts are potentially fantasy-friendly outings. The first of the two will come at San Francisco at a ballpark with the league’s second-lowest overall park factor (per Statcast) in the last three seasons.
The second start? That would be at home against the Cincinnati Reds. And while the Reds have been reasonably successful away from home this year, with a collective 105 wRC+, Lorenzen has a 0.95 ERA and has limited batters to a .240 wOBA in 19 innings at home this season.
Andre Pallante – 5%
If the St. Louis Cardinals‘ rotation continues as is without any interruptions, Andre Pallante’s next three starts will come at home against the Detroit Tigers, on the road against the Baltimore Orioles, and at home versus the Kansas City Royals.
Pallante, like Lorenzen, might be due for some statistical regression. He’s pitched to a 4.36 ERA and a 5.01 FIP so far in eight starts and 43.1 innings of work as of the beginning of play on Friday.
In those eight starts, he’s collected three pitcher wins while striking out 5.82 batters per nine frames. His walks and home runs allowed per nine innings sit at 3.32 and 1.45, respectively.
And while Pallante’s FIP could certainly be better, he’s allowed three earned runs or fewer in five of his eight starts this year and could be a solid streaming option in the coming weeks. Clearly against a thriving Detroit Tigers lineup, he’s someone to keep out of fantasy lineups, but starts against the Orioles and Royals could result in quality fantasy production.
As of the start of play on Friday, the Orioles had outscored just five other major league teams. One of those teams was the Royals, who had outscored just the Chicago White Sox, Colorado Rockies, and Pittsburgh Pirates this season.
Jameson Taillon – 27%
Speaking of pitchers with fantasy-friendly upcoming schedules, Jameson Taillon certainly has one.
After the Cubs wrap up a series with the White Sox this weekend, the Cubs will play five straight series against the Miami Marlins (road), Cincinnati Reds (road), Colorado Rockies (home), the Reds again (at home) and the Washington Nationals (on the road).
If the Cubs’ rotation continues as is without any changes, Taillon should line up to start in Miami, miss the series in Cincinnati, and start at home against Colorado and the Reds.
That’s a pretty ideal stretch, even considering Taillon has struggled a bit this season, with a 4.53 ERA and a 5.35 FIP in nine starts spanning 49.2 innings. Home runs have been an issue for the veteran so far, particularly as of late, as he’s given up 2.36 per nine innings. Of the 13 home runs he’s surrendered this season, seven have come in his last two games, one of which (incidentally) was against the Marlins.
Still, with the Cubs’ lineup backing up Taillon, he should be in a good spot to claim at least two pitcher wins in the next few weeks.
Chicago entered play Friday tied with the Tigers for the most runs scored in the sport. They’ve also scored the most road runs (130) in the league.
The Rockies and Marlins both rank in the bottom third of the league in runs scored. And while the Reds, as mentioned with Lorenzen, have actually been one of the more successful teams from a run-scoring standpoint (ranking behind just six teams in runs scored and posting a cumulative 104 wRC+), Chicago has arguably been a bit better at home. The Cubs have scored the fifth-most runs at home in 2025 and have a collective wRC+ at Wrigley Field.
Furthermore, the Reds have struggled a bit at the plate as of late, scoring more than three runs just five times in their last 12 games.
Graphic by Carlos Leano.
