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!).
This will be my last column of the year, and I just wanted to thank everyone who reads this each week (or even if you’ve just popped in every now and then) for a great season! I’m looking forward to next year!
Now, let’s take a look at the hitters to start and avoid in Week 25 (9/22-9/28) 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
Kansas City Royals hitters – The Royals get six games this week, all on the road, including three in some warm weather in Sacramento, and all against some pretty weak pitching.
They start the week off with three games against the Angels, who own the second-worst team FIP in the league, where they’ll see Sam Aldegheri, Yusei Kikuchi, and Mitch Farris, none of whom worry me even a little bit.
After that, the Royals get the three games in Sacramento I mentioned against the A’s, who own the fourth-worst team FIP in baseball, where they’ll see Luis Morales, Jeffrey Springs, and Mason Barnett. Again, not worried about any of those guys.
Vinnie Pasquantino is slashing .373/.400/.608 over the past two weeks, so make sure he’s in your lineups this week, where you’ve got him. And in deeper leagues, Michael Massey owns a .318/.423/.500 line over the same timespan and could have some value.
CATCHER TO STREAM: If you need some help at catcher, Carter Jensen has been slashing .345/.441/.690 over the past two weeks and could have some value in some pretty favorable matchups.
Houston Astros hitters – The Astros get the reverse version of the schedule the Royals have this week, getting to face two terrible pitching staffs in a six-game road trip.
They start off with three games against the A’s where they’ll see Mason Barnett, J.T. Ginn, and Luis Severino, and they’ll close with three games against the Angels, where they’ll see Kyle Hendricks, Caden Dana, and Sam Aldegheri.
Like I said earlier, the A’s and Angels have two of the worst pitching staffs in the league by team FIP, so you should be all set to start your Astros hitters this week.
Carlos Correa owns a very solid .271/.340/.458 line over the past two weeks and should have some decent value this week. And in deeper leagues, Zach Cole has a .261/.346/.522 line (that’s a .261 ISO) over the past two weeks and could have some value.
Atlanta hitters – Atlanta gets some pretty solid matchups this week and some pretty decent weather, with a few of their games projected to be in the 80s temperature-wise, and if you can get that as a hitter in late-September baseball, you’ll take it.
They kick their week off with three games against the Nationals, who own the third-worst team FIP in baseball, where they’ll see MacKenzie Gore, Brad Lord, and Andrew Alvarez, none of whom worry me.
After that, Atlanta will get three games against the Pirates, where they’ll see Mitch Keller, Bubba Chandler, and Mike Burrows. Certainly, Chandler can be a problem (his past two starts against the A’s and Nats were pretty impressive), but he’s also shown some shakiness in the past, so I’m not actively avoiding him, and Keller and Burrows don’t worry me.
Ha-Seong Kim owns a .304/.385/.391 line (not much power, but it’s something) over the past two weeks and could have some value where needed.
CATCHER TO STREAM: If he happens to be available (and it’ll depend on your league), Drake Baldwin owns a .255 ISO over the past two weeks and could have some value if you need some help at the catcher position.
AVOID
Colorado Rockies hitters – The Rockies have a rough week this week, with six games all on the road and against some tough pitching.
They start the week off with three games against the Mariners, who own the eighth-best team FIP in the league, where they’ll see Bryce Miller, Luis Castillo, and Bryan Woo. Then, they’ll close the week with three games in pitcher-friendly Oracle Park against the Giants, who own the second-best team FIP in the league, where they’ll see Kai-Wei Teng, Carson Whisenhunt, and Justin Verlander.
There might be a couple matchups you could exploit in a daily league, but in a weekly league, I’m not seeing enough value here, especially with your Rockies hitters outside of Coors Field.
Miami Marlins hitters – The Marlins also have six games this week, starting off with three games against the Phillies, who own the best team FIP in baseball, where they’ll see Cristopher Sánchez, Jesús Luzardo, and Taijuan Walker.
Then, they’ll close out the week with three games against the Mets, who own the sixth-best team FIP in the league, where they’ll see Nolan McLean, Clay Holmes, and David Peterson.
Against, there are a couple matchups here you could utilize your Marlins hitters in (e.g. Taijuan Walker doesn’t worry me all that much), but in weekly leagues, there’s not enough value here to make it worth it to me.
Arizona Diamondbacks hitters – The D’Backs have a six-game week this week with three games against the Dodgers and three games against the Padres, two of the better pitching staffs in baseball.
Here’s who the D’Backs are slated to see this week: Shohei Ohtani, Blake Snell, Yoshinobu Yamamoto, Yu Darvish, Michael King, and Nick Pivetta.
That’s gonna be a hard pass from me.
