Welcome to the SP Roundup, my daily fantasy baseball article reviewing every starting pitcher’s performance from every Monday game. I apologize for the jokes written in my delirium in advance. Have questions? Ask me during my office hours on Playback.tv weekday mornings from 10 am-12 pm ET.
Grant Holmes (ATL) @ MIL (ND) – 5.0 IP, 1 ER, 3 Hits, 0 BBs, 8 Ks – 11 Whiffs, 39% CSW, 70 pitches.
Uhhh, Grant Holmes is kinda dope. He looks to be Atlanta’s replacement for Max Fried in the rotation and took full advantage of his first chance in the rotation after acting as long relief for Atlanta for ten games – 5.0 IP, 1 ER, 3 Hits, 0 BBs, 8 Ks – 11 Whiffs, 39% CSW, 70 pitches. Yes that’s a King Cole. Yes he’s worth a pickup.
Holmes’ heater comes in around 94 mph with average shape, but Holmes uses it well around the edges and rarely gives in over the plate. The true heroes are his secondaries – cutter, slider, curve – that he confidently throws in the zone for strikes and works the edges properly during the count. The man is pitching, not throwing and with four proper pitches with legit whiffability on a winning team, I’m very much in.
He gets the Marlins next (if Atlanta doesn’t make a move for another SP and Atlanta is comfortable letting Reynaldo López make his next start). It’s a lovely gift to ease the cost of entry. Take it for a spin and watch for yourself. If the precision is still there as he mixes all four pitches, you better believe we’re holding on.
Let’s see how every other SP did Monday:
Carson Spiers (CIN) vs CHC (W) – 5.0 IP, 0 ER, 1 Hits, 2 BBs, 4 Ks – 6 Whiffs, 21% CSW, 68 pitches.
Ayyyy he’s back! And just as boring as before while still commanding well enough to make you consider streaming him moving forward. It’s the Giants next. Well hot dang, that could work.
Tayler Scott (HOU) vs PIT (ND) – 3.0 IP, 0 ER, 0 Hits, 0 BBs, 4 Ks – 7 Whiffs, 37% CSW, 35 pitches.
The Astros dealt Bloss away for Kikuchi, turning this into a bullpen game. Yes, I like Kikuchi on the Astros and I’m excited to see what he does.
Jose Quintana (NYM) vs MIN (W) – 6.0 IP, 1 ER, 5 Hits, 1 BBs, 5 Ks – 10 Whiffs, 24% CSW, 97 pitches.
Oh wow, Quintana chucked curveball after curveball at 50% usage with his changeup, sinker, and four-seamer finding the edges appropriately to help tie the bow. I’ll take it and the Angels up next make for a nice Quintana stream.
Paul Skenes (PIT) @ HOU (ND) – 6.0 IP, 1 ER, 5 Hits, 3 BBs, 6 Ks – 16 Whiffs, 31% CSW, 101 pitches.
Aces gonna ace and earn another Gallows Pole. You really didn’t need to walk them, Skenes. Just a heads up.
Chris Flexen (CHW) vs KCR (ND) – 6.0 IP, 2 ER, 9 Hits, 0 BBs, 2 Ks – 8 Whiffs, 21% CSW, 97 pitches.
FLEXEN. AT. THE. BEACH. Well, at least dipping his toes in for a little and realizing he forgot to put on sunscreen and calling it a day at a 3.00 ERA. Maybe I should take a peek in the mirror…
Tanner Bibee (CLE) @ DET (W) – 6.0 IP, 2 ER, 7 Hits, 0 BBs, 2 Ks – 10 Whiffs, 23% CSW, 95 pitches.
Oh. So we’re back to just six curveballs despite 5/6 strikes. Cool cool cool. I’ll take the Win and ratios, but two strikeouts against the Tigers are…weird. Why must you be so weird?
Colin Rea (MIL) vs ATL (ND) – 5.1 IP, 2 ER, 3 Hits, 2 BBs, 6 Ks – 9 Whiffs, 29% CSW, 82 pitches.
He’s a weird one. I’ve called him a Werewolf, but is he performing well more often than that? When he’s able to flip sweepers into the zone and not get bashed around by his heaters, starts like these can happen, but I’d hate to bank on one of them showing up when I’d need it.
Mitchell Parker (WSN) @ ARI (ND) – 5.0 IP, 2 ER, 4 Hits, 2 BBs, 3 Ks – 6 Whiffs, 26% CSW, 74 pitches.
Ehhh, that’s fine. Nothing harmful, just awfully boring. Almost like he’s a Toby. He really didn’t have any of his secondaries cooking in this one.
Alec Marsh (KCR) @ CHW (ND) – 4.2 IP, 2 ER, 6 Hits, 1 BBs, 3 Ks – 2 Whiffs, 19% CSW, 69 pitches.
Bleeeegh. You couldn’t go one more out? If you can’t trust Marsh against the White Sox, you can’t trust him against anyone. But I don’t need to trust him, I need to take a shot on one game. Fine. If you must, you can stream him against the Tigers, but A) How long will he go? B) Is he even making that start with Lorenzen in town? C) There is no C (shoutout Grey Albright). D) Look at yourself in the mirror. Identify that human and their essence. Do you want to cause harm to them? What emotions are you willing to put them through? I deserve happiness. YES. YOU. DO. And Als—WHOA, Flexen! You scared me man, aren’t you at the beach today?
Nick Pivetta (BOS) vs SEA (W) – 6.2 IP, 3 ER, 6 Hits, 1 BBs, 10 Ks – 15 Whiffs, 34% CSW, 109 pitches.
Pivetta racked up the strikeouts against the Mariners as expected, with plenty of curves and sweepers for strikes, and a heater that lived in the zone well. I just wish I saw the cutter…
Nathan Eovaldi (TEX) @ STL (W) – 6.0 IP, 3 ER, 6 Hits, 0 BBs, 2 Ks – 11 Whiffs, 27% CSW, 82 pitches.
The heater is at 96 mph, the splitter is still good, and we’re cool. Just two strikeouts is a little annoying, but like Gloria, we’ll survive.
Zach Eflin (BAL) vs TOR (W) – 6.0 IP, 3 ER, 10 Hits, 0 BBs, 7 Ks – 12 Whiffs, 35% CSW, 98 pitches.
A VVPQS with a Win is fine. I think. We liked the Eflin deal because of an increased Win chance and it’s nice to see it pay off already. He’s still a Toby unless he can prove he’s a 20-25% strikeout guy again.
Bowden Francis (TOR) @ BAL (W) – 5.2 IP, 3 ER, 6 Hits, 1 BBs, 2 Ks – 4 Whiffs, 20% CSW, 76 pitches.
This was a decent version of Francis, believe it or not. Good four-seamer shape in the upper third with curveballs for strikes – not much more you can ask for. Still not enough to roster him, but the glint of promise we saw in the spring is still there.
Luis Gil (NYY) @ PHI (W) – 5.1 IP, 3 ER, 5 Hits, 3 BBs, 8 Ks – 14 Whiffs, 33% CSW, 92 pitches.
I can’t say I expected Gil to go Dancing With The Disco, but here we are. A longball off a poor 0-2 pitch middle-up was a decent representation of its inability to sneak past batters in this one, while the slider did all the work returning outs (and a trio of hits). I’ll take this against a tough Phillies offense, though there is a clear layer of polish needed to elevate Gil into proper AGA territory. Be happy moving forward.
Andre Pallante (STL) vs TEX (L) – 5.0 IP, 3 ER, 7 Hits, 2 BBs, 5 Ks – 10 Whiffs, 25% CSW, 92 pitches.
This wasn’t a matchup to chase against the strong Rangers crew and now Pallante is likely displaced by Fedde in the rotation. I’m sure we’ll see you again, Andre, go kick up your feet and watch The Bear or something. The Bear?! No, not JorMont, yeesh. He’s so rough right now.
Cade Povich (BAL) vs TOR (L) – 4.1 IP, 3 ER, 7 Hits, 5 BBs, 1 Ks – 6 Whiffs, 20% CSW, 94 pitches.
Yikes. He wasn’t as chaotic as the five walks suggest, but he certainly failed to find a rhythm. I’d wait another start or two before considering Povich, assuming he finds a rotation spot post-deadline.
Beau Brieske (DET) vs CLE (L) – 0.2 IP, 3 ER, 5 Hits, 0 BBs, 1 Ks – 0 Whiffs, 17% CSW, 30 pitches.
The real story is Bryan Sammons making his MLB debut for the Tigers who finished the day with a shocking line of 7.1 IP, 5 ER, 4 Hits, 1 BBs, 5 Ks – 12 Whiffs, 29% CSW, 96 pitches. All baserunners scored as he was incredibly efficient across nearly eight frames. He’s a low 90s southpaw with a decent cutter and sweeper and I wish I had a better review for y’all. He’s a Toby at best and I wouldn’t circle him as an exciting arm to watch if he gets more opportunities.
Yariel Rodríguez (TOR) @ BAL (L) – 0.2 IP, 3 ER, 1 Hits, 4 BBs, 1 Ks – 4 Whiffs, 21% CSW, 43 pitches.
Ouch. He was far from his best self and got bamboozled by the Orioles. He was also optioned prior to Game 2 so that Bowden Francis could be activated. Yeaaaaaah…
Jameson Taillon (CHC) @ CIN (L) – 4.1 IP, 6 ER, 6 Hits, 1 BBs, 4 Ks – 10 Whiffs, 23% CSW, 81 pitches.
Cin City isn’t a fun place to pitch and if Taillon sticks with the Cubs through the deadline, a start against the Cardinals is reserved more for those in deeper leagues.
Jordan Montgomery (ARI) vs WSN (ND) – 4.0 IP, 6 ER, 9 Hits, 3 BBs, 1 Ks – 9 Whiffs, 29% CSW, 78 pitches.
Ah, so that’s how it’s gonna be. A HAISTBMBWT?! with horrific ratios. No doubt no doubt. Welp, see ya later, our trust hath been severed like Mark S.
Simeon Woods Richardson (MIN) @ NYM (L) – 3.1 IP, 6 ER, 7 Hits, 3 BBs, 2 Ks – 9 Whiffs, 23% CSW, 81 pitches.
The one time I trust him at all…Sigh. I deserve this? Maybe? Whatever, I’m still starting him against the White Sox, YOU CAN’T STOP ME.
Zack Wheeler (PHI) vs NYY (L) – 5.0 IP, 7 ER, 7 Hits, 3 BBs, 6 Ks – 14 Whiffs, 29% CSW, 103 pitches.
I labeled Wheeler as the SP #1 on The List before this outing saying “He’s so dang consistent.” Whoops. Just one of those days with a hot Yankee offense that took advantage of a few mistake pitches from Wheeler. Whatareyagonnado.
Logan Gilbert (SEA) @ BOS (L) – 2.2 IP, 7 ER, 7 Hits, 0 BBs, 4 Ks – 14 Whiffs, 33% CSW, 69 pitches.
If you didn’t catch it, Gilbert threw the perfect two-strike fastball to end the inning…that wasn’t called a strike. Then the floodgates opened up and That’s Baseball, Suzyn. Just one of those days at the park. Meanwhile, our fastball app graded Gilbert’s heater as The best of the night. So at least he has that going for him.
Game of the Day
Gerrit Cole vs. Aaron Nola – I know it’s Springs’ return from TJS and watching Robbie again is so exciting, but hot dang, what a fun game.
But Nick?! Where are the streaming picks? – I’ve moved them to the daily SP Matchups & Streamer Rankings article.
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Featured image by Justin Paradis (@JustParaDesigns on Twitter)