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.
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 23 (9/8-9/14) 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
Washington Nationals hitters – The Nats are one of the teams this week who get seven games, and on top of that they’re slated to have some solid pitching matchups and good hitting weather.
They start the week off with four games against the Marlins, who own the eighth-worst team FIP in baseball, where they’ll see Janson Junk, Eury Perez, Ryan Weathers, and Sandy Alcantara.
I know Weathers was looking very good pre-injury, but this will be his first start coming back from a lat strain, so I’m not too worried about him, nor am I overly concerned about Alcantara, who’s definitely been better lately, but is still a pretty hit-or-miss guy.
After that series, the Nats will have three games against the Pirates where they’ll see Mitch Keller, Carmen Mlodzinski, and Braxton Ashcraft. Keller can definitely be a problem sometimes but I’m not actively avoiding him, and I’m not concerned about Mlodzinski or Ashcraft.
In deeper leagues, it’s worth noting that Daylen Lile is slashing .387/.406/.710 over the past two weeks, meaning he might have some value.
Minnesota Twins hitters – The Twins get six games this week, starting off with three games against the Angels, who own the second-worst team FIP in baseball. There, they’ll see Caden Dana, Kyle Hendricks, and José Soriano, none of whom concern me.
After that, the Twins will get three games against the Diamondbacks, who own the ninth-worst team FIP in the league. There, they’ll see Brandon Pfaadt, Ryne Nelson, and Nabil Crismatt, and again, none of those guys really worry me all that much.
Trevor Larnach has been sporting a very solid .390/.432/.439 line over the past two weeks and could have some value this week as well. Same with Luke Keaschall, who owns a .295/.380/.500 line over the same timespan. And in deep leagues, Austin Martin has a .355/.500/.419 line over the past two weeks and could have some value.
CATCHER TO STREAM: Ryan Jeffers owns a .281/.368/.344 line over the past two weeks, and while that’s virtually no power at all, that can still be helpful for average and OBP if you’re desperate at the catcher position this week.
Pittsburgh Pirates hitters – The Pirates get six games this week in their tour of the DMV, starting off with three games against the Orioles, who own the fifth-worst team FIP in the league. There, they’ll see Kyle Bradish, Tyler Wells, and Cade Povich, and while Bradish has looked fairly good since coming back from Tommy John surgery, he’s not been the most consistent, so I’m not actively avoiding him just yet.
After that, the Pirates get three games against the Nationals, who own the third-worst team FIP in the league. There, they’ll see Andrew Alvarez, Cade Cavalli, and Mitchell Parker, none of whom worry me.
Jared Triolo has a .326/.415/.478 slashline over the past two weeks and should be pretty widely available. Given he’s generally been leading off for the Pirates and has a ton of positional eligibility, he could definitely have some value this week.
AVOID
Colorado Rockies hitters – It’s a real tough week for your Rockies hitters this week. While they’ve got seven games, all seven will be on the road and against some tough pitching.
They start the week off with three games against the Dodgers where they’ll see Tyler Glasnow, Emmet Sheehan, and Blake Snell, all three of whom should be challenging matchups.
After that, the Rockies get four games against the Padres, who own the ninth-best team FIP in baseball, in pitcher-friendly Petco Park. There, they’ll see Randy Vasquez, Dylan Cease, Yu Darvish, and Michael King. The Vasquez matchup might not be too bad in daily leagues, but in weekly leagues, I’m avoiding my Rockies hitters for sure.
New York Mets hitters – The Mets also get seven games this week but again, with some tough pitching matchups.
They start the week off with four games against the Phillies, who own the best team FIP in all of baseball. There, they’ll see Aaron Nola, Ranger Suárez, Cristopher Sánchez, and Jesús Luzardo, which is a pretty tough stretch.
After that, they’ll get three games against the Rangers, who own the fifth-best team FIP in the league, where they’ll see Jacob deGrom, Patrick Corbin, and Jacob Latz.
All in all, that’s maybe two games I’d feel comfortable starting my Mets hitters in? To me, that’s not worth it in weekly leagues.
Arizona Diamondbacks hitters – The D’Backs have six games this week, kicking off with three games against the Giants, who own the second-best team FIP in the league, in pitcher-friendly Oracle Park, in some of the coldest games of the week. In that series, they’ll face Logan Webb, Robbie Ray, and Carson Seymour, and aside from Seymour, that’s a tough slate.
After that, the D’Backs get three games against the Twins where they’ll see Joe Ryan, Bailey Ober, and Simeon Woods Richardson.
Given the slate this week, I’m not seeing enough value to make it worth it to start my Twins hitters in weekly leagues.
