What’s up, everyone!
If you’re unfamiliar with this article 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.
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 to start and avoid in Week 14 (7/3-7/9) 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
Detroit Tigers hitters – The Tigers have six games this week, starting with three games against the A’s, the team with the worst FIP in the league, and ending with three games against the Blue Jays, who own the 11th-worst team FIP in baseball. They will face Kevin Gausman in that Blue Jays series but otherwise, this week is a favorable one for your Tigers hitters. In deeper leagues if you’re looking for a hitter to stream this week, Kerry Carpenter has been hitting well, slashing .290/.353/.613 over the past two weeks and is worth a look. Same with Andy Ibáñez, who’s hitting .311/.326/.511 over the past two weeks.
Cincinnati Reds hitters – The Reds have a full seven-game week this week, starting with four games against the Nationals, who own the third-worst team FIP in the league, and closing with three games against the Brewers, who own the sixth-worst team FIP in baseball. TJ Friedl has been hitting well lately, slashing .333/.429/.548 over the past two weeks and is worth a look. Same with Matt McLain, who’s sporting a .355 ISO over the past two weeks.
Texas Rangers hitters – The Rangers have seven games this week, starting with one game against the Astros that’ll finish up a four-game series over the weekend. In that game, they’ll face Cristian Javier and in daily leagues, I’d avoid that matchup. But after that, you’re set with your Rangers hitters, as they’ll have three games against the Red Sox, who own the ninth-worst team FIP in the league, and they’ll close with three games against the Nationals, who as I mentioned earlier, have the third-worst team FIP in baseball. Ezequiel Duran has been tearing it up lately, slashing .408/.420/.776 over the past two weeks and should definitely be in your lineups this week.
Toronto Blue Jays hitters – The Blue Jays have six games this week, starting with three against the White Sox, who own the seventh-worst team FIP in the league and closing with the three-game series I mentioned earlier against the Tigers, a team with the 10th-worst team FIP in baseball, so make sure you’ve got your Blue Jays in your lineups this week.
AVOID
Colorado Rockies hitters – The Rockies only have five games this week and all of those games are on the road. And if that’s not bad enough, they’ll have two games against the Astros, who own the seventh-best team FIP in baseball and they’ll have three games against the Giants, who own the fifth-best team FIP in the league.
Kansas City Royals hitters – The Royals have seven games this week, starting with three against the Twins, who own the best team FIP in all of baseball, and closing with four against the Guardians, who own the 11th-best team FIP in the league. The Royals are slated to face Joe Ryan, Kenta Maeda, Pablo López, Tanner Bibee, Aaron Civale, Gavin Williams, and Shane Bieber. Civale is the only matchup I’m not worried about (and potentially Maeda), but all the others range from not great to really rough, so I’d avoid my Royals hitters this week.
Los Angeles Angels hitters – The Angels have just five games this week and here’s who they’re slated to face: Blake Snell, Joe Musgrove, Seth Lugo, Tony Gonsolin, and Clayton Kershaw. Lugo doesn’t worry all that much but that’s about it. Having just five games already puts them at a disadvantage in weekly leagues, and having five games against pretty tough pitchers makes it even worse.
Baltimore Orioles hitters – The Orioles have seven games this week, which normally would put them at an advantage, but they’re slated to have some tough matchups. They’ll start the week with four games against the Yankees where they’ll see Mr. Perfect Game himself, Domingo Germán, as well as Luis Severino and Gerrit Cole. Then, they’ll have three games against the Twins, who as I mentioned earlier, have the best team FIP in all of baseball, making this a tough week for your Orioles hitters.