Let’s talk for a moment about Corey Kluber because I know there are going to be a good amount of people who are super freaked out after he went 6.0 IP, 6 ER, 9 Hits, 1 BBs, 8 Ks today and he hasn’t allowed fewer than 3 ER yet. Well, I’m going to tell you to hold Kluber and buy where you can, which seems pretty obvious, but hey you never know. Remember y’all, his Marchs/Aprils are notoriously bad – he hasn’t held a sub 4.00 ERA in the months since 2013. He’ll pick it up shortly and you’ll be a fast track to playing In Your Eyes through a boombox as you apologize profusely.
Let’s see what every other SP did yesterday:
Steven Matz – 7.0 IP, 0 ER, 3 Hits, 2 BBs, 9 Ks. In one league, someone tried to offer me Alex Gordon for Matz straight up. Seriously? One frame goes horribly after the kid doesn’t pitch for 10 days and now he’s the equivalent of your bench OF. Yeah, okay bud. Matz is golden and you’re going to be feeling like a rockstar as he carves up the NL Easy like a carver with a carving knife.
Tyler Chatwood – 7.0 IP, 0 ER, 2 Hits, 1 BBs, 7 Ks. How did Colorado starters just allow one run to Cubs pitchers this weekend? Well it could be that—Just playing with you guys. Gotta have a little fun, you know? Chatwood has limited upside, pitches his home games at Coors Field, and doesn’t deserve a spot on your team. This should be the blurb for every Colorado starter.
Jon Lester – 7.1 IP, 1 ER, 4 Hits, 2 BBs, 10 Ks. Aces gonna ace.
Aaron Sanchez – 7.0 IP, 1 ER, 2 Hits, 4 BBs, 7 Ks. Please try to tell me that you’re not scared of Sanchez’s increasing walk rate in each game. I know this line is actually super good, and yes you should hold him until it implodes, but it’s coming y’all. If you think this has a happy ending, you haven’t been paying attention.
Gio Gonzalez – 7.0 IP, 1 ER, 4 Hits, 2 BBs, 8 Ks. Gio took care of the Phillies without an issue, which he should do. I don’t mind Gio in the NL Easy, but I mind him pitching against pretty much anyone else.
Kenta Maeda – 7.0 IP, 1 ER, 4 Hits, 3 BBs, 7 Ks. Maeda is a solid floor guy that can have some Ks creep in now and then. I’d love to have him in QS leagues.
Matt Moore – 6.1 IP, 2 ER, 5 Hits, 0 BBs, 10 Ks. Whoaaaaa baby. Okay, okay, I need to respect upside when I see upside. Sure, the Chi Sox aren’t popping like the pieces when Stephen Hawking plays Perfection, but I’ve been waiting to see a start where Moore really shines. It doesn’t tell me that he should be picked up in 10 team roto leagues, but yeah if he’s still around in a 12 team H2H, I’d consider throwing him out there against the Yankees. Definitely not the Jays that follow, though. No way bub.
Charlie Morton – 6.0 IP, 1 ER, 4 Hits, 2 BBs, 6 Ks. Oh come on Morton, I know that’s two straight Excellent starts from you but you’re not fooling me.
Kyle Gibson – 7.0 IP, 2 ER, 4 Hits, 2 BBs, 4 Ks. I haven’t seen a Gibson killing it this much since Jimmy Page. But yeah, it doesn’t get better this from Kyle, sadly.
Kris Medlen – 6.1 IP, 1 ER, 2 Hits, 4 BBs, 4 Ks. You’re such a Toby Medlen.
Michael Wacha – 6.0 IP, 1 ER, 7 Hits, 1 BBs, 5 Ks. Wacha is one step above a said Toby. He has those moments that you think “Hey! This guy is actually kinda cool.” Then you ask him to join you and the rest of the gang for a drink afterwards and you think “oh yeah…”
Chris Bassitt – 7.0 IP, 2 ER, 5 Hits, 2 BBs, 5 Ks. Hey Nick! What. Mind if my buddy Bassitt swings by and we share a few beers? Ugh, you know I don’t like having him around for too long. He gets cozy too quickly and before you know it you’re cleaning up after his giant mess. But he’s bringing over some laaay-dies. You mean actual Lays potato chips, don’t you. …Maybe.
Masahiro Tanaka – 7.0 IP, 2 ER, 6 Hits, 0 BBs, 6 Ks. He looked pretty dang good today and did his part to silence the Mariners. Let’s be real here – Tanaka isn’t going to bring the upside of his 2014 campaign, but he’s going to be super solid through the year and I’m not as worried about his injury history as most people. Just have fun with his decent ceiling and good floor.
Steven Wright – 6.0 IP, 2 ER, 6 Hits, 0 BBs, 6 Ks. Steven told me his great-great grandfather was a pioneer in the environmental science field. Don’t trust a knuckleballer.
Patrick Corbin – 6.2 IP, 1 ER, 6 Hits, 3 BBs, 7 Ks. So the WHIP is iffy, but the ERA is great and 7 Ks are awesome…oh wait. He played the struggling Padres. I was expecting a little more from Corbin here and while I still like him quite a bit I’m a little displeased that he didn’t come out like a champ.
Nick Tropeano – 5.2 IP, 1 ER, 5 Hits, 2 BBs, 3 Ks. And thus ends the solid two-start week of Tropeano. What does he have ahead of him? Chi Sox, Mariners, Rangers, Brewers. I’m not as excited as before, but I’d keep holding him until it stops.
Juan Nicasio – 6.0 IP, 3 ER, 5 Hits, 2 BBs, 6 Ks. He really only had one bad inning where his command looked a bit off. Otherwise, this was right in line with what we’re expecting from Nicasio these days. Play the matchups and you should keep riding the wave.
Jhoulys Chacin – 5.1 IP, 3 ER, 4 Hits, 0 BBs, 6 Ks. A) I promise Chacin’s GIFs will be up on the site tomorrow B) He may be the Braves’ best pitcher right now C) That’s sad. D) Really sad.
Jose Quintana – 6.0 IP, 2 ER, 7 Hits, 0 BBs, 6 Ks. Looks like a solid Quintana start to me. What’s that you say? Another Quality Start? Damn straight it is.
Zach Davies – 2.1 IP, 5 ER, 8 Hits, 3 BBs, 0 Ks. Yeah…no.
Jeff Samardzija – 6.0 IP, 3 ER, 6 Hits, 3 BBs, 3 Ks. Loose Lips is sinking some ships. And people thought they were safe after he pitched a gem against Colorado! Ha ha ha ha…
Hisashi Iwakuma – 7.0 IP, 4 ER, 8 Hits, 2 BBs, 3 Ks. I gotta say, the Yankees have looked pretty good offensively against right-handers, so be a little easy on Hisashi, okay? Iwakuma is a solid buy-low right now if you want some stability in your staff.
Jon Moscot – 5.2 IP, 3 ER, 6 Hits, 1 BBs, 2 Ks. Moscot? Mos definitely not.
Mike Fiers – 5.2 IP, 4 ER, 7 Hits, 0 BBs, 5 Ks. There are better ways to hunt for strikeouts that don’t include hot garbage.
Jarred Cosart – 5.2 IP, 4 ER, 4 Hits, 6 BBs, 4 Ks. Speaking of garbage…
Anibal Sanchez – 5.0 IP, 4 ER, 8 Hits, 2 BBs, 8 Ks. Yeah, I’m tempted to knock Anibal completely off The List tomorrow, but I know he’s very capable of actually producing for your team, so he’ll probably stick in the deepest of spots.
Robbie Erlin – 6.0 IP, 6 ER, 8 Hits, 1 BBs, 4 Ks. Erlin is actually better than this and you could do worse in an NL-Only league. Standard mixed leagues need not apply.
Today’s Streamer
Jerad Eickhoff vs. New York Mets – How he’s owned in just 15.1% of ESPN leagues is beyond me. He gets the struggling Mets and you’ll be very happy.
Phil Hughes vs. Milwaukee Brewers – Eickhoff may fail to get the win with Thor opposing him, and it’s possible Hughes can capitalize on a really bad Brewers team as his miniscule walk rate keeps his WHIP from blowing up.
Tomorrow’s Streamer
Ervin Santana vs. Milwaukee Brewers – Ervin isn’t as bad as you think and his K upside can finally be true to itself against a the Brew Crew.
Game of the Day
Noah Syndergaard vs. Philadelphia Phillies – I absolutely adore watching Syndergaard pitch against anyone, but the Phillies? Oh baby. JOLENE! Yes? CANCEL ALL OF MY APPOINTMENTS FOR TODAY.