Hey everybody!
If you’re unfamiliar with this series, each week I highlight hitting matchups you should take advantage of in your fantasy baseball league and ones that you should try to avoid based on the pitching matchups those hitters are slated to face that week. I also try to highlight a catcher to two to stream (if there are catchers worth streaming) because that position can be a real pain.
If you’d like to learn more about when it becomes less risky to stream hitters (and pitchers) and when certain team stats start to stabilize during the year, check out this article.
So let’s take a look at the hitters you should start and avoid for Week 14 (6/29-7/5) of the fantasy baseball season.
Notes: All pitching matchups mentioned here are based on projections as of this post’s publication. It is entirely possible that the actual matchups could change for any number of reasons. Keep in mind, this article is geared toward middle-of-the-road players, meaning you should be starting top-of-the-line bats regardless of the matchup. Always start your studs.
Additional note: Thanks once again to Ben Solow for covering for me last week while I was out of town at yet another wedding.
START
Colorado Rockies hitters – Guess what, folks? It’s that beautiful time of year, the time when the Rockies get to play a full seven-game week all at Coors Field. It only happens occasionally (and this is the first time it’s happened this year), but when it does, I can’t help but recommend you start your Rockies hitters; the potential is just too good.
The Rockies will have four games against the Marlins and three games against the Giants in that series. The Marlins own the 10th-best team FIP in baseball while the Giants own the 14th-worst, and normally against a pitching staff like the Marlins’, I’d probably be wary of starting my hitters, but again, this is seven games in Coors Field we’re talking about.
Yes, the Rockies will see both Sandy Alcantara and Max Meyer, as well as Logan Webb in the Giants series, but I think the effects of Coors will help even out those matchups.
Jake McCarthy owns a .386/.413/.636 line over the past two weeks and is definitely worth a look this week, as is Willi Castro, who owns a .349/.417/.605 line over the same timespan. And if you haven’t hopped on the TJ Rumfield train yet, you’re running out of time, as he’s hitting .341/.396/.705 over the past two weeks and is likely to have a solid week again this week. Also, Cole Carrigg owns a .273/.419/.424 line over the past two weeks and could have some value this week.
Miami Marlins hitters – With a full week of Coors Field games, you know you’ve got to start the Rockies’ opponents too, and if you wanted to make the argument that the Marlins have the most hitter-favorable week this week out of the whole league, you’d have a pretty strong case.
The Marlins kick off the week with that four-game series in Coors against the Rockies, who, it should be noted, own the third-worst team FIP in all of baseball. Then, they’ll close out with three games against the Athletics, who own the fourth-worst team FIP in the league.
So seven games, all against bottom-five pitching staffs, and four of them in the most hitter-friendly ballpark in baseball (followed by three games in the second-most hitter-friendly ballpark in baseball in Sutter Health Park).
Kyle Stowers owns a .263/.349/.632 line over the past two weeks and is definitely worth a start this week, especially since he’s hitting in the middle of the Marlins’ lineup. And Otto Lopez owns a solid .268/.340/.415 line with three steals over the past two weeks and could have some value.
Basically, though, if you have a Marlins hitter, he’s worth a shot this week.
CATCHER TO STREAM: Joe Mack is likely available in your league, owns a .308/.419/.692 line over the past two weeks, and gets arguably the most hitter-friendly week of any catcher in the league this week, so if you need some help at catcher, you’d be hard-pressed to find a better guy to stream.
San Francisco Giants hitters – While not as favorable a week as the Marlins, the Giants have sort of a similar week to the Marlins—they get to take advantage of a series in Coors Field and also have another series against a bottom-tier pitching staff.
Aside from the three games in Coors against the Rockies, the Giants have a three-game series against the Diamondbacks to start off the week, a team that owns the eighth-worst team FIP in baseball. So again, two bottom-tier pitching staffs plus three games in Coors means you want your Giants hitters out there this week.
Casey Schmitt owns a .410/.425/.564 line over the past two weeks and is definitely worth a start this week, same with Jung Hoo Lee, who’s hitting .324/.350/.649 over the past two weeks.
Boston Red Sox hitters – The Red Sox get a six-game week this week with some favorable hitting matchups ahead.
They kick things off with three games at home in Fenway against the Nationals, who own the second-worst team FIP in all of baseball. There, they’ll see Miles Mikolas, Cade Cavalli, and Jake Irvin, none of whom worry me.
After that, the Sox will head to L.A. for three games against the Angels, who own the ninth-worst team FIP in the league, where they’ll face off against Walbert Ureña, Reid Detmers, and Sam Aldegheri.
All in all, that’s a pretty solid week for your Red Sox hitters, so make sure you’ve got them out there in your lineups.
Wilyer Abreu owns a .275 ISO over the past two weeks and could have some value this week. Also, Caleb Durbin has been on a hot streak lately, slashing .395/.439/.737 over the past two weeks, so make sure he’s not available in your league and get him in your lineups.
Milwaukee Brewers hitters – It’s not often I’m including five teams in the start column, but there are a lot of hitter-friendly weeks out there, and the Brewers should be mentioned.
Why? Because they get seven games this week, with four games against the Reds, who own the worst team FIP in all of baseball, and three against the Diamondbacks, who, as I mentioned earlier, own the eighth-worst team FIP in the league.
Seven games against two bottom-tier pitching staffs, including the worst in baseball right now, means you should definitely get your Brewers hitters out there this week, especially William Contreras, who owns a .405/.500/.676 line over the past two weeks.
AVOID
Kansas City Royals hitters – The Royals have a tough week this week, largely because they’ve only got five games scheduled and a handful of those are slated to be tough matchups.
They start the week off with three games against the Rays, where they’ll see Griffin Jax, Ian Seymour, and Nick Martinez. I’m not worried about Seymour, but Jax has looked solid, as has Martinez. After that, they get two games against the Phillies, who own the fourth-best team FIP in the league, where they’ll see Jesús Luzardo and Aaron Nola.
Given the five-game week with some iffy matchups, I think it’s best to look elsewhere than your Royals hitters in weekly leagues.
Cincinnati Reds hitters – The Reds get seven games this week, which would normally be exciting, but they’re slated for some tough hitting matchups.
They start off the week with four games against the Brewers, who own the best team FIP in all of baseball. There, they’ll see Brandon Sproat, Shane Drohan, Jacob Misiorowski, and Kyle Harrison.
After that, they’ll get three games against the Orioles, and while the Orioles’ staff has been middle-of-the-road, the Reds will see Brandon Young, potentially Dean Kremer (assuming he gets called up), and Kyle Bradish. I’m not worried about Kremer, but Bradish has looked good, and Young has been surprisingly effective in his starts.
All in all, given the matchups, I’d be looking elsewhere than my Reds hitters this week.
Los Angeles Angels hitters – The Angels get six games this week with some tough pitching matchups ahead.
They kick things off with three games against the Mariners, who own the second-best team FIP in baseball, where they’ll see Bryan Woo, Bryce Miller, and Emerson Hancock. After that, they’ll get three games against the Red Sox, where they’ll see Jake Bennett, Sonny Gray, and Ranger Suarez.
There are a couple of matchups here where you could use your Angels hitters in daily leagues, but in weekly leagues, there’s just not enough value here, so I’d be avoiding my mid-tier Angels hitters where I can this week.
