Welcome to the SP Roundup, my daily fantasy baseball article reviewing every starting pitcher’s performance from every Saturday game. I apologize for the jokes written in my delirium in advance. Have questions? Ask me during my office hours on Twitch.tv weekday mornings from 10 am-12 pm ET.
Andrew Painter (PHI) vs STL (W) – 7.0 IP, 1 ER, 5 Hits, 0 BBs, 8 Ks – 20 Whiffs, 34% CSW, 103 pitches.
The moment has come. I like Andrew Painter now. I saw his 2024 AFL numbers and was skeptical he had the absurd ace upside I was told about. His campaign gave us a hittable 96 mph cut-fastball without the breaking balls whiffs to justify it. With a rotation spot in April, Painter did little to change the tune, looking like a pitcher who needed to pitch backward to find his way, especially when elite precision wasn’t present.
Throw all of that out the window. We got a taste of the new Painter last time out via an improved fastball, but I was both skeptical it would stick around + his breakers failed to return whiffs despite fantastic execution. My colleague Eric Samulski pointed me to a Cole Weintraub tweet, stating that Painter believed his four-seamer was the “best it’s been since Tommy John surgery,” and I leaned forward in my seat. Painter followed that game with 7.0 IP, 1 ER, 5 Hits, 0 BBs, 8 Ks – 20 Whiffs, 34% CSW, 103 pitches (W) against St. Louis on Saturday and I’m typing this on the floor after falling out of my chair. It’s easier that way.
This start had everything. A harder heater with 18″ (+2 inches!) with his final fastball coming in at 99.6 mph in the seventh frame. The new changeup getting a velo bump to 91/92 mph and banking 80% strikes. Sweepers and sliders impeccably placed to RHB and getting strikeouts. Painter hath arrived.
Pick him up if you still can. The Angels and Sneks are next and if you’ve ever seen a young kid succeed after incessantly trying, you know he’s more amped than ever to keep this rolling with the same energy. He was a command guy before and now the stuff backs him up. Our plvStuff+ grades that heater at a fantastic 120 mark for the second straight outing. It’s time. (View Game Card)
Let’s see how every other SP did Saturday:
Ryan Johnson (LAA) @ TEX (W) – 7.0 IP, 0 ER, 1 Hits, 2 BBs, 3 Ks – 10 Whiffs, 32% CSW, 88 pitches.
Here I was, hoping we’d get a Sunday Klassen start against the Rangers instead of a tougher matchup against the Guardians (I question his LHB approach), and imagine my frustration seeing Johnson still get the pearl despite Kikuchi’s return. What a fool I was. Take your Gold Star dangit! That’s four starts of 4 ER combined, though his second of at least five frames in his last six. He’s like a more refined Robert Stock, with a very similar cutter that lives all day over the plate at 91/92 mph + a sweeper that is super close in movement but 10 mph slower. It’s kinda like his sweeper is his cutter’s changeup. I’m still not down for this, as y’all already know, but sure, I’ll at least recognize that the dude can sling enough strikes to at least put himself in a position to be successful. If he’s given the opportunity, which is still unclear with Kikuchi’s return. If it is a six-man moving forward, he’d get the Phillies. Still not interested. (View Game Card)
Blade Tidwell (SFG) @ BOS (ND) – 5.2 IP, 0 ER, 3 Hits, 2 BBs, 7 Ks – 6 Whiffs, 28% CSW, 93 pitches.
Hot dang, look at you! I expected struggles against the Red Sox, with 65% of his pitches coming against LHB, but instead of getting burned by all the sweepers over the plate, the Red Sox elected to let them float on in for some afternoon tea at a 39% called-strike clip. Earl Grey okay? He managed to return a fair number of called strikeouts and squeeze way more out of his arsenal than he should (48% four-seamers for strikes despite 31% usage is ghastly) and I’d be careful trusting this success on the back of a passive offense. That said, Tidwell should really explore using that 84/85 mph curveball more. It had some legit two-plane action at an elite velocity, but he went to it just seven times. I wonder… (View Game Card)
Shane McClanahan (TBR) @ BAL (ND) – 5.0 IP, 0 ER, 4 Hits, 1 BBs, 5 Ks – 10 Whiffs, 31% CSW, 74 pitches.
I was crossing my fingers for five frames and I’m stoked we got it from McShane. This start was everything you could have hoped for in the box score, but I’m still disappointed with his changeup feel. It’s nothing like it needs to be and he needed 96 mph (sweet!) and 11/12 slider strikes to mask it. That won’t always be there. (View Game Card)
Michael Wacha (KCR) vs DET (W) – 7.0 IP, 1 ER, 3 Hits, 1 BBs, 6 Ks – 9 Whiffs, 25% CSW, 96 pitches.
It’s a Brand New Day for Spider-Man and he’s still very clearly having success with his wide arsenal that he can throw all for strikes. And yes, the changeup is still good. Of course. (View Game Card)
Dylan Cease (TOR) @ NYY (W) – 6.2 IP, 1 ER, 2 Hits, 5 BBs, 8 Ks – 15 Whiffs, 28% CSW, 111 pitches.
Aces gonna ace. He was tossing a no-hitter until two outs into the seventh, when a few singles after a leadoff walk ended his night. It’s his seventh straight start sitting below 97 mph, and fifth of those seven below 96 mph – he had been averaging 97.7 mph through July 8th (which also happens to be the exact fastball velocity he held that start, too) – and this number may be following a little more in September, too. Are you saying it’s going to get worse for Cease? WHAT ELSE IS NEW?! This shirt, but I digress. Don’t big-brain this, as he’s still pitching effectively even at the lower velocity. (View Game Card)
Jacob Lopez (ATH) @ HOU (ND) – 6.0 IP, 1 ER, 3 Hits, 1 BBs, 9 Ks – 15 Whiffs, 33% CSW, 91 pitches.
Will somebody please think of the JLo?! That’s a 2.33 ERA, 1.03 WHIP, and 30% strikeout rate across his last seven games when we caught that he was able to finally replicate his summer 2025 approach. He’s returned 12+ whiffs in each of those games, while maxing at 12 whiffs twice in his first 12 games. IT’S REAL. (View Game Card)
Logan Henderson (MIL) vs ATL (W) – 6.0 IP, 1 ER, 5 Hits, 2 BBs, 4 Ks – 8 Whiffs, 20% CSW, 100 pitches.
Aces gonna ace. I told you it would be Coronation Day if he succeeded against the Dodgers + Atlanta and HERE WE ARE. But this was kinda meh with eight whiffs and four strikeouts. He also went 100 pitches and had an abysmal 27% game level putaway rate, which should normally be double that = eight strikeouts. He’s been so dang consistent, y’all. His cutter is now 89/90 mph with less movement, turning him into a modern Brandon Woodruff with his four-seamer and cutter playing off each other super closely. It’s lovely. (View Game Card)
Hunter Brown (HOU) vs ATH (ND) – 5.2 IP, 1 ER, 7 Hits, 3 BBs, 4 Ks – 6 Whiffs, 23% CSW, 101 pitches.
Sooooo, this is still weird. I mean, 6/101 whiffs is obvious enough, but how about sinkers down-and-in over the plate all day against RHB? That sounds like a bad plan. Yep, I’m honestly shocked just one hit came from it. Meanwhile the four-seamer is still not dominating (1/28 whiffs), but at least he found 68% strikes this time? Oh, and the curveball was rough. THIS IS STILL WEIRD. (View Game Card)
Eury Pérez (MIA) vs WSN (W) – 5.0 IP, 1 ER, 3 Hits, 3 BBs, 4 Ks – 13 Whiffs, 24% CSW, 100 pitches.
Hmmmm. Eury struggled to find strikes in this one, with sweepers and sliders returning roughly 50% strikes each + the sinker frequently running armside and taken for wasted pitches. Thing is, the four-seamer is the only pitch that allowed hits, but that can make sense if other pitches aren’t being competitive enough to force batters to look elsewhere. Anyway, I’m not worried and I think he was generally in the right area with his breakers, helping him earn a fair number of whiffs down-and-away. (View Game Card)
Martín Pérez (ATL) @ MIL (L) – 4.0 IP, 1 ER, 4 Hits, 3 BBs, 2 Ks – 9 Whiffs, 24% CSW, 97 pitches.
Nothing like seeing an error to kick off the third, followed by two outs and a whole lot of pitches wasted on a single, HR, walk, and groundout to officially end the inning. That’s why we only see four frames from Pérez and with Rockie Road next, you may want to snag him. It’s not the best version of Pérez without absurd veteran auras around the corners, but it’s good enough. (View Game Card)
David Peterson (CHC) @ SEA (ND) – 6.0 IP, 2 ER, 4 Hits, 2 BBs, 8 Ks – 17 Whiffs, 35% CSW, 98 pitches.
Yooooo, you still have strikeouts in that arm?! And 93 mph?! I’m shocked to say this, but Peterson looked like a proper SWATCH in this one, leaning on the changeup and four-seamer to RHB, and sinkers + sliders to LHB. The former wasn’t as successful as I’d hoped, but the sinker/slider duo obliterated LHB, then were even better as the supporting cast for the worse four-seamer and changeup pair. This can work in a bait-and-switch attack, and I’m kinda interested to see if Peterson can replicate both the approach and velocity hosting the Reds on Friday. (View Game Card)
Tanner Bibee (CLE) @ COL (W) – 6.0 IP, 2 ER, 5 Hits, 1 BBs, 6 Ks – 14 Whiffs, 24% CSW, 96 pitches.
I was thrown for a loop seeing Bibee apparently going the whole cut-fastball route…until I realized it was Coors. You know, I think that cut four-seamer with 2″ cut and 11″ iVB ain’t so terrible for Bibee. If he could locate it. Oh, right. Just 47% strikes. This was actual cutters and curveballs working overtime to make up for Bibee being Bibee and I’m happy it worked for him. You never really know what he’ll bring to the table. (View Game Card)
Brandon Young (BAL) vs TBR (ND) – 5.2 IP, 2 ER, 6 Hits, 3 BBs, 3 Ks – 5 Whiffs, 19% CSW, 84 pitches.
Ehhhhhh, the four-seamer wasn’t dominating per usual and his secondaries were horrific. He’s kinda lucky to escape with just two runs to his name, which included a Careful, Icarus via back-to-back singles for a run to end his night in the sixth. It’s awfully discouraging before he heads off to travel the “Green Mile”, and I wouldn’t hold for that. (View Game Card)
Patrick Sandoval (BOS) vs SFG (ND) – 5.2 IP, 2 ER, 5 Hits, 2 BBs, 6 Ks – 14 Whiffs, 30% CSW, 93 pitches.
The Irish Panda had a lovely matchup and he was get his sweeper to cover for his inconsistent slider, while the changeup and fastballs each played their roles for a successful time in Fenway. Sure, a Philly isn’t ideal, but you got something and something is cool. Just make sure you Blame it on the Giants and don’t push this. (View Game Card)
Dean Kremer (MIN) @ SDP (ND) – 5.1 IP, 2 ER, 3 Hits, 3 BBs, 5 Ks – 10 Whiffs, 29% CSW, 101 pitches.
Sure, I’ll take that. It wasn’t a good splitter day. Or a good sinker day. And only meh for his four-seamer. But the cutter still cooks and that’s a decent line for the price of free. CHW x2 + CLE are next and sure, that could be fine, too. (View Game Card)
Cody Bradford (TEX) vs LAA (L) – 5.1 IP, 2 ER, 7 Hits, 0 BBs, 3 Ks – 11 Whiffs, 29% CSW, 80 pitches.
Is it glorious? Nope. It is the line of a 15-teamer Toby? Yuuuup. We even got a little extra extension here and some lovely fastball/changeup command. Just not enough outside the zone to get the punchout as often as we’d like. (View Game Card)
Jared Jones (PIT) @ LAD (ND) – 4.0 IP, 2 ER, 3 Hits, 5 BBs, 5 Ks – 12 Whiffs, 25% CSW, 87 pitches.
For a start against the Dodgers, this sure could have been worse. He really didn’t have his slider feel and he tried to compensate with more changeups, which had a few moments, but ultimately failed him at a poor 41% strike clip. But don’t fret! @STL, SFG, CHW await. He threw 87 pitches here and it could mean multiple games of six frames await. I’m holding. (View Game Card)
Ryan Weathers (NYY) vs TOR (L) – 3.1 IP, 2 ER, 8 Hits, 0 BBs, 3 Ks – 8 Whiffs, 39% CSW, 72 pitches.
Weathers left this one with a forearm strain, as the haters will shout SEE?! I KNEW HE’D GET HURT! Except it took until late August, when he had already accrued 143 strikeouts. He’s already on the IL and should be considered out for the season for your fantasy teams, as they don’t expect a short stint + there’s no time to ramp back up. I appreciate your service, Weathers. (View Game Card)
Tarik Skubal (LAD) vs PIT (W) – 7.0 IP, 3 ER, 5 Hits, 1 BBs, 11 Ks – 23 Whiffs, 37% CSW, 106 pitches.
Aces gonna allow 3 ER in the first, then buckle down for a Golden Goal with 3 baserunners and 11 strikeouts in the following six shutout frames. Yes, that’s hit first Win as a Dodger. Yay. (View Game Card)
Rhett Lowder (CIN) @ ARI (W) – 6.0 IP, 3 ER, 6 Hits, 1 BBs, 1 Ks – 1 Whiffs, 26% CSW, 92 pitches.
A PQS with one strikeout is kinda hilarious, but it’s a Dusty Donut with the dub and 1.17 WHIP. Still, HAISTBMBWT?! Lowder should do better than a 4% putaway rate on his pitches (a called strikeout via a sinker is pretty hilarious given his slider and changeup are the better pitches). (View Game Card)
Kade Anderson (SEA) vs CHC (ND) – 5.2 IP, 3 ER, 5 Hits, 2 BBs, 5 Ks – 11 Whiffs, 27% CSW, 81 pitches.
He finally arrived! And those ratios kinda hurt, justifying the PILOT Rule even with all his hype. What I saw was command as advertised across his arsenal, with a great approach and a better slider than expected. I saw a 90 mph bender back-foot to a RHB + a slower 82/83 mph curve in the mix (there was some pitch mix classification issues happening live that I sorted out on my own), and I love the hard breaker. He avoided the heart of the plate with ease, too, boasting stellar marks with a 33% zone rate and 43% O-Swing. For a rookie in his debut?! That’s awesome. We’d expect those rates for a craft vet, not a 93/94 mph southpaw in his first big league game. So yes, we hold and start the fella as he should likely help down the stretch, even if the Shag Rug appears once or twice. I don’t see a STUD unless he squeezes everything out of his arsenal, and even then I imagine the four-seamer will allow too many hits to be more than a legit Holly. (View Game Card)
Drew Anderson (DET) @ KCR (L) – 5.0 IP, 3 ER, 5 Hits, 1 BBs, 4 Ks – 11 Whiffs, 29% CSW, 75 pitches.
Meh. The split-changeup was a little more effective this time, but the four-seamer and curveball leave a lot to be desired. It’s the Dodgers next and I wonder if the Tigers will replace him with Anthony Sears. (View Game Card)
Gabriel Hughes (COL) vs CLE (L) – 5.0 IP, 3 ER, 4 Hits, 2 BBs, 2 Ks – 3 Whiffs, 26% CSW, 86 pitches.
You know, this is on the better side for Hughes. Cool. (View Game Card)
Jake Irvin (WSN) @ MIA (L) – 6.0 IP, 4 ER, 6 Hits, 2 BBs, 4 Ks – 8 Whiffs, 25% CSW, 104 pitches.
Wow, he’s still leaning into the changeup over the curve and cutter. I don’t really understand it, but then again, even if he goes ham on those two, he still needs more. (View Game Card)
Christian Scott (NYM) @ CHW (ND) – 4.2 IP, 4 ER, 5 Hits, 4 BBs, 6 Ks – 14 Whiffs, 28% CSW, 94 pitches.
Sigh. No sign of the 90.7 mph “sinker”, but the real story of this game was a pair of HRs, then three walks + a HBP in the fifth. That was brutal. Overall, the cutter and sweeper weren’t as reliable as we’ve seen, but it came crashing down in the fifth and oooof. His first pitch of the frame was a sweeper that hit the LHB, then all three walks came in full counts. That’s baseball, Suzyn. I’m sad to see this floor still exist, and it’s a little unnerving to start him against the Astros up next, where he’ll have to bear down and find his RHB approach. I still kinda like it, but it’s a clear Questionable Start. (View Game Card)
Luis Castillo (CHW) vs NYM (L) – 2.2 IP, 4 ER, 8 Hits, 1 BBs, 3 Ks – 9 Whiffs, 21% CSW, 80 pitches.
You’re still holding onto Castillo? Let me be Z’s neighbor if it were a Pokémon for a second. WHY?! (View Game Card)
Casey Mize (SDP) vs MIN (ND) – 2.2 IP, 4 ER, 4 Hits, 1 BBs, 0 Ks – 2 Whiffs, 21% CSW, 47 pitches.
Oh, so we are hurt, but it’s an ankle sprain. Wait, what. He was sitting 92/93 mph in the first two innings (not ideal, but still not horrific), then slipped while walking down the dugout steps, came back out for the third, and ranged from 88-91 mph. Oh no. Sooooo yeah. Let’s not? Let’s not. (View Game Card)
Michael Soroka (ARI) vs CIN (L) – 3.1 IP, 6 ER, 6 Hits, 3 BBs, 3 Ks – 9 Whiffs, 23% CSW, 84 pitches.
I was scared about Soroka after he failed to replicate stellar pitch separation in his first two starts back from the IL, and while his attack to RHB was a little better, it wasn’t quite at the level we want to see. And to LHB? Oh that was horrendous. Now we get the Giants in Oracle Park next and…hmmm. He was almost there and that’s such a good park to pitch in. Your call. I’m leaning move on. (View Game Card)
Quinn Mathews (STL) @ PHI (L) – 5.0 IP, 7 ER, 10 Hits, 1 BBs, 3 Ks – 11 Whiffs, 26% CSW, 99 pitches.
Wow, Quinn, I know you just got your new apartment as a member of the major league club, but did you have to show off your Shag Rug so soon? The man was Singled Out and Koufax could be yelled at for this, but he also threw some poor pitches to get there, while his four-seamer and changeup did a horrible job closing the door to RHB. He’ll get the Pirates on Friday and even with this poor start, that’s still of consideration. Yes, this was bad, but the slider to LHB was great, and I wouldn’t expect 7/15 outs on balls in play off fastballs + changeups again (slider earned three Ks and 3/3 outs, of course. MUST I DO EVERYTHING AROUND HERE?!). Maybe he’ll get a lesson from Mr. Feeny in the pen beforehand, too. (View Game Card)
Game of the Day
Andrews Sears @ KCR – It’s the MLB debut for the 95 mph hurling southpaw, and I’m super curious how he performs in a limited-bulk reliever role.
But Nick?! Where are the streaming picks? – I’ve moved them to the daily SP Matchups & Streamer Rankings article.
Have Questions? – Join my morning Twitch.tv livestream! I answer all questions there for free: 10:00 am – 12:00 pm ET Monday through Friday.
Adapted by Kurt Wasemiller (@kurt_player02 on Instagram & Threads @kuwasemiller.bksy.social on BlueSky)
