What’s up, everyone!
If you’re unfamiliar with this series, each week I take a look at some hitting matchups you should take advantage of and some hitting matchups you should avoid, based on who the hitters will likely be facing on the mound. I’ll also be focusing on catchers you can stream each week, since we all know that catchers can be an especially tricky position in fantasy.
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.
Also wanted to note that PL Pro member LarryV, who is a former meteorologist at the National Weather Service, has been kind enough to lend his expertise to provide insights on which teams are likely to have the best/worst weather this week, so I’ll be including that where it’s relevant (and thanks Larry!).
Now, let’s take a look at the hitters to start and avoid in Week 12 (6/16-6/22) 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.
START
Colorado Rockies hitters – It’s a good week for your Rockies hitters this week. They only get three games at home at Coors Field, but they’re slated for not only some good pitching matchups but also some good weather all week.
They start the week off with four games against the Nationals, who currently own the 10th-worst team FIP in baseball right now. In that series, they’re slated to face Jake Irvin, Michael Soroka, Mitchell Parker, and Trevor Williams, none of whom concern me all that much.
After that, they get three games at home against the Diamondbacks, who own the seventh-worst team FIP in the league. There, they’ll see Zac Gallen, Merrill Kelly, and Brandon Pfaadt, again, none of whom worry me right now.
Make sure you’ve got Hunter Goodman in your lineups this week, as he’s been slashing .391/.404/.848 over the past two weeks. Same with Ryan McMahon, who owns a solid .268/.375/.537 line over the past two weeks. And in deeper leagues, Tyler Freeman could have some value, as he owns a .412/.475/.647 line over the past two weeks.
Houston Astros hitters – The Astros have a full seven-game week this week with some good weather slated ahead, starting with four games against the Athletics, who currently own the worst team FIP in all of baseball. There, they’ll see J.T. Ginn, JP Sears, Luis Severino, and Jacob Lopez, none of whom worry me.
Then, they’ll get three games against the Angels, who have the third-worst team FIP in the league, where they’ll see Yusei Kikuchi, José Soriano, and Kyle Hendricks, who don’t concern me from a hitting perspective.
Jake Meyers could potentially have some value. He hasn’t had much power, but he owns a solid .316/.409/.395 line over the past two weeks with three stolen bases.
New York Yankees hitters – The Yankees also have a full seven-game week this week, starting with four games against the Angels, who, as I mentioned earlier, have the third-worst team FIP in baseball. There, they’ll see José Soriano, Kyle Hendricks, Jack Kochanowicz, and Tyler Anderson, none of whom concern me.
After that, they’ll get three games against the Orioles, who have the fifth-worst team FIP in the league, where they’ll see Cade Povich, Zach Eflin, and Dean Kremer. Eflin can cause some problems for hitters, but aside from him, I’m not too concerned about Povich and Kremer (and honestly, I wouldn’t be actively avoiding Eflin either).
Make sure you’ve got Anthony Volpe in your lineup as he’s been hitting .308/.357/.538 over the past two weeks. And in deeper leagues, DJ LeMahieu could have some value, as he’s slashing .382/.462/.529 over the past two weeks.
CATCHER TO STREAM: It’s going to depend on your league whether he’s available, but if you need some catcher help, Austin Wells owns a .303/.361/.576 line over the past two weeks and could have some value.
Arizona Diamondbacks hitters – While the D’Backs only have six games this week in a week where just about every team has seven, they’ve got some great matchups ahead.
They start the week off with three games against the Blue Jays, who currently own the ninth-worst team FIP in baseball. There, they’ll see Chris Bassitt, Eric Lauer, and Kevin Gausman, none of whom worry me all that much (Bassitt can certainly be a problem, but not enough that I’m actively avoiding him right now).
Then, they’ll close the week with the three-game series in Coors Field against the Rockies that I mentioned earlier, which is great for your D’Backs hitters (and doesn’t hurt the Rockies have the second-worst team FIP in the league either).
Make sure you’ve got Josh Naylor in your lineups this week, as he’s been hitting .308/.349/.513 over the past two weeks. And in deeper leagues, Alek Thomas could have some value, as he’s been hot lately, slashing .297/.333/.486 over the past two weeks.
AVOID
Boston Red Sox hitters – The Red Sox have six games this week, all slated to be in fairly chilly weather (which isn’t good for their hitters), starting with three against the Mariners, where they’ll see Logan Gilbert, Bryan Woo, and Luis Castillo.
After that, they’ll get three games against the Giants in pitcher-friendly Oracle Par,k where they’ll see Logan Webb, Landen Roupp, and Robbie Ray. And even better, the Giants own the best team FIP in all of baseball.
All in all, it’s a really tough week for your Red Sox hitters, and in most leagues, it’s not worth it to me to start my middle-of-the-road Red Sox hitters.
Pittsburgh Pirates hitters – The Pirates have just six games this week, with some fairly tough pitching matchups ahead.
They start the week off with three games against the Tigers, who own the seventh-best team FIP in the league. In that series, they’ll see Casey Mize, Tarik Skubal, and Keider Montero, and while Montero doesn’t concern me, Skubal certainly does, and Mize has proven to be a tough matchup as well.
After that, the Pirates get three games against the Rangers, who own the fourth-best team FIP in the league, where they’ll see Jacob deGrom, Tyler Mahle, and Jack Leiter. Overall, there are probably a couple of games you could take advantage of in a daily league this week with your Pirates hitters, but in a weekly league, I don’t think it’s worth it.
New York Mets hitters – The Mets have six games this week with some tough matchups ahead, starting off with three games against Atlanta, where they’ll see Grant Holmes, Spencer Schwellenbach, and Bryce Elder.
After that, the Mets will have three more games against the Phillies where they’ll see Zack Wheeler, Mick Abel, and Jesús Luzardo.
Again, there are a couple of games you could take advantage of in daily leagues (the Elder and Abel matchups, for example), but in total, I don’t think there’s enough here in weekly leagues to warrant the start of your middle-of-the-road hitters.
