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 Playback.tv weekday mornings from 10 am-12 pm ET.
J.T. Ginn (ATH) @ LAA (W) – 5.0 IP, 1 ER, 5 Hits, 0 BBs, 5 Ks – 12 Whiffs, 31% CSW, 91 pitches.
It may be time to pick up J.T. Ginn. The Athletics‘ right-hander spun a lovely web against the Angels on Saturday – 5.0 IP, 1 ER, 5 Hits, 0 BBs, 5 Ks – 12 Whiffs, 31% CSW, 91 pitches (W) – fueled by sinkers in + sliders away to RHB. The 3″ vert on his sinker is a wormkiller, while the slider…has some room to improve, but is located well enough to keep them at bay.
The cutter + sinker + changeup was decent to LHB, even if he badly missed a few more than he’d like. The trick to the whole approach: Ginn doesn’t provide a platter of meatballs. He lives around the edges, showcases different movement profiles, relies on grounders, and even has some room for whiffs with the slider and changeup.
It’s a mix that can work when he locates well and with his above-average command + groundball tendency, a date in Cincinnati next time out can be circled as a stream in deeper leagues. I’m not ultra confident for 12-teamers given the lower ceiling (strikeouts and general variability in groundballs for hits), but he should be an arm to consider from the menu.
Let’s see how every other SP did Saturday:
Tarik Skubal (DET) vs CHW (W) – 7.0 IP, 0 ER, 2 Hits, 1 BBs, 6 Ks – 10 Whiffs, 28% CSW, 90 pitches.
Aces gonna ace. Yep, he’s still elite.
Justin Verlander (SFG) @ STL (ND) – 6.0 IP, 0 ER, 3 Hits, 0 BBs, 6 Ks – 9 Whiffs, 34% CSW, 88 pitches.
And here I was, nervous Verlander would have a hangover from a 121-pitch outing. This had a bit of Blame it on the Cardinals and lacked the precision we normally see in goose egg outings, which makes me out against the Dodgers next.
Brandon Woodruff (MIL) @ PIT (W) – 6.0 IP, 0 ER, 2 Hits, 0 BBs, 8 Ks – 7 Whiffs, 24% CSW, 85 pitches.
Aces gonna ace. Let’s be real, even though Woody hasn’t come through against the elites yet, you’re still going to chance it given how well he’s performed otherwise. It’s great to see the cutter come alive and nail the outside edge against RHB, too.
Hunter Brown (HOU) @ TEX (W) – 6.0 IP, 0 ER, 4 Hits, 3 BBs, 8 Ks – 15 Whiffs, 35% CSW, 107 pitches.
Aces gonna ace. Another game of fastballs doing all the work, especially the four-seamer to LHB…at 95.5 mph. He may be hitting a bit of a wall this late in the season (remember when it was 97/98 mph?), but it’s not enough to do anything about it now.
Chris Bassitt (TOR) @ NYY (L) – 5.0 IP, 0 ER, 3 Hits, 3 BBs, 3 Ks – 9 Whiffs, 28% CSW, 80 pitches.
Ayyy, another solid outing from Bassitt. He’s on a roll and gets the Orioles next. Maybe that’s worth the shot, but then again, the curveball was horrendous and the Yankees didn’t take advantage of a lot of hittable cutters and sinkers. It’s still a bit risky.
Yoshinobu Yamamoto (LAD) @ BAL (ND) – 8.2 IP, 1 ER, 1 Hits, 2 BBs, 10 Ks – 23 Whiffs, 31% CSW, 112 pitches.
Aces gonna…wow. If you didn’t know, The Inquistor had a no-hitter with one out to go in a 3-0 ballgame and lost it with a solo shot. The Orioles then won the game in the ninth. For those needing a Win, I feel for you. For Yamamoto himself, dude. I hope you get a no-hitter at some point just to put this moment to rest. At least you got a Gallows Pole to put on your mantle, right?
Brady Singer (CIN) vs NYM (W) – 6.0 IP, 1 ER, 4 Hits, 4 BBs, 5 Ks – 8 Whiffs, 32% CSW, 99 pitches.
Those front-hip sinkers were dope. This was a bit of a grind for Singer as he struggled with his sweeper, but we’re thrilled with a dub here. I hate that he has to go into Sacré Verde next and I may sit that out, but the schedule eases up after for clear starts.
Luis Gil (NYY) vs TOR (W) – 6.0 IP, 1 ER, 3 Hits, 4 BBs, 1 Ks – 7 Whiffs, 23% CSW, 90 pitches.
Jeeeez, four walks without any of his three pitches returning sub 60% strikes?! Ohhh, the slider had a 27% NC Rate, which led to all of us shouting HAISTBMBWT?!, opening our jaws for another bite of this Dusty Donut. You can really taste the mustiness of my grandmother’s attic. He has another tough matchup via an evening in Fenway ahead, which can still go well considering how hard Gil is to square up. Consider it for your Win leagues.
Brandon Pfaadt (ARI) vs BOS (W) – 6.0 IP, 1 ER, 6 Hits, 0 BBs, 7 Ks – 13 Whiffs, 35% CSW, 96 pitches.
Huh, look at that. This was Pfaadt with the kitchen sink against the Sawx, throwing his sweeper least of six pitches, four-seamers for strikeout counts, and sinkers + curves + changeups living in the zone. Can’t say I love this as it felt a bit too random and without fantastic precision, but maybe the wider approach makes it all work better. That could be enough for the Twins…?
Brad Lord (WSN) @ CHC (W) – 5.2 IP, 1 ER, 2 Hits, 4 BBs, 7 Ks – 12 Whiffs, 28% CSW, 90 pitches.
Hot dang, look at you! An obvious Gold Star for Brad despite failing constantly to land his slider and four-seamer against a legit offense. This line looks tempting with the Marlins next and sure, I’ll put him in the Questionable Start tier for that, but this really shouldn’t have gone this well. He’s not a breakout arm.
Stephen Kolek (KCR) vs MIN (W) – 7.0 IP, 2 ER, 6 Hits, 1 BBs, 4 Ks – 9 Whiffs, 25% CSW, 95 pitches.
I sure didn’t expect this one either as Kolek, the strikethrower, was able to have Koufax on his side to go a full seven frames. His most interesting offering is a changeup with fantastic drop and while it did earn a trio of strikeouts, it was terribly inconsistent at 5/14 strikes. The rest is an average slider with below-average heaters and that’s not for me, even against the Guardians.
Matthew Boyd (CHC) vs WSN (L) – 7.0 IP, 2 ER, 7 Hits, 0 BBs, 3 Ks – 15 Whiffs, 31% CSW, 87 pitches.
Sure, that works. A dub would have been nice, but you can’t blame Boyd for that. All normal Boyd here.
Tanner Bibee (CLE) @ TBR (ND) – 6.2 IP, 2 ER, 5 Hits, 1 BBs, 3 Ks – 11 Whiffs, 29% CSW, 92 pitches.
Well, what’s this? A productive start from Bibee?! The changeup was much better than usual and the cutter was an all-around producer… This can’t actually be Bibee turning it around five months into the season. But maybe it is… Fine. He gets the SlySox next. Wanna give it a shot there?
Mitch Keller (PIT) vs MIL (L) – 6.1 IP, 2 ER, 5 Hits, 0 BBs, 4 Ks – 10 Whiffs, 28% CSW, 92 pitches.
That’s some solid work from Keller, even if the strikeouts came down as expected. He’s still leaning more into the sweeper (35% usage overall!), essentially going heater/sweeper for both sides of the plate. It makes sense, but the heaters aren’t good enough for me to generally break the Huascar Rule for him. In an exceptional matchup against the Nationals next time out? Maybe that’s okay.
Andre Pallante (STL) vs SFG (ND) – 6.0 IP, 2 ER, 5 Hits, 1 BBs, 3 Ks – 7 Whiffs, 27% CSW, 89 pitches.
That’s cool, Andre, you know we can’t trust you next time out against the Brewers.
Jesús Luzardo (PHI) @ MIA (W) – 6.0 IP, 2 ER, 5 Hits, 4 BBs, 8 Ks – 14 Whiffs, 37% CSW, 100 pitches.
I’m a little disappointed to see a 1.50 WHIP against the Marlins, but fine, we’ll take a King Cole propelling six otherwise strong innings. Now comes the hard part: The Mets & Dodgers. His sweeper and changeup are looking great and he’s playing it safe with heaters to avoid the heart of the plate, but who knows if that sticks. Your call for this Cherry Bomb.
Randy Vásquez (SDP) @ COL (W) – 6.0 IP, 2 ER, 8 Hits, 0 BBs, 3 Ks – 7 Whiffs, 27% CSW, 77 pitches.
This was a day for cheap Wins, eh? Well, not everyone… We’ll get to them soon. Vásquez is better suited to face RHB and survived eight hits to seal his Win. I’m not sure what Koufax likes about him, but it’s not the worst idea to try it a second time, this time away from Coors.
Bryce Miller (SEA) @ ATL (ND) – 5.1 IP, 2 ER, 5 Hits, 2 BBs, 3 Ks – 8 Whiffs, 23% CSW, 92 pitches.
He didn’t have his four-seamer command and he found a way to get through it. Hosting the Angels @TEA should be far easier.
Trevor Rogers (BAL) vs LAD (ND) – 5.1 IP, 2 ER, 8 Hits, 1 BBs, 6 Ks – 16 Whiffs, 27% CSW, 96 pitches.
He. Can’t. Be. Stopped. Sure, the WHIP is rough and he didn’t go seven frames once again, but two ER and six strikeouts and a whole bunch of whiffs with legit four-seamer command? Yeah, that’s hot. I’m rolling with him again.
Shane Baz (TBR) vs CLE (ND) – 5.0 IP, 2 ER, 5 Hits, 1 BBs, 8 Ks – 17 Whiffs, 35% CSW, 82 pitches.
The velocity is still up (97.8 mph!) and he’s COOKING. This is the Baz we’ve always wanted. That curveball went 16/17 strikes, y’all. And three hits with nine whiffs. Yes, traditional Baz fashion of being either super dope or super bad. Outs in play to cruise through games? What’s that?
Hurston Waldrep (ATL) vs SEA (ND) – 5.0 IP, 2 ER, 2 Hits, 5 BBs, 5 Ks – 10 Whiffs, 26% CSW, 91 pitches.
Wow, Waldrep escaped once again. The splitter was volatile (Gasp!) with a terrible 44% strike rate and the rest of his arsenal wasn’t sparkling, but found enough outs to get through five. It wasn’t pretty. It’s all about the splitter, though, which makes it possible for him to come through against the Astros next, though you can see the risk involved.
Lucas Giolito (BOS) @ ARI (L) – 5.0 IP, 2 ER, 7 Hits, 3 BBs, 2 Ks – 5 Whiffs, 22% CSW, 94 pitches.
This wasn’t fun at all. The four-seamer is under 93 mph with mid extension and his changeup + slider were not on their game. It’s likely time to move on from Giolito with NYY, ATH, @TOR to finish the season. Maybe the Athletics start is decent, but the rest isn’t worth it. We had a great ride, you and I.
Jacob deGrom (TEX) vs HOU (L) – 5.1 IP, 3 ER, 5 Hits, 2 BBs, 8 Ks – 19 Whiffs, 34% CSW, 97 pitches.
Aces gonna earn sixteen whiffs on his slider, but allow too many solo shots and got dinged for an inherited run. It is strange to see his heater fail to overwhelm batters like it used to, but yeah, he’s obviously still dope. He’s what Strider wishes he were.
Jonah Tong (NYM) @ CIN (L) – 6.0 IP, 4 ER, 3 Hits, 4 BBs, 6 Ks – 13 Whiffs, 30% CSW, 96 pitches.
Welcome to the bigs, Tong. Three HRs ruined this one, all off his fastball. Two were legit high heaters that the Reds somehow got on top of, but if Tong had the changeup working better (sub 50% strikes!), then batters wouldn’t have been able to sell out on the heater nearly as much. It’ll come and I’m holding with TEX, WSN, @MIA to end the year.
Sandy Alcantara (MIA) vs PHI (L) – 6.0 IP, 4 ER, 7 Hits, 1 BBs, 4 Ks – 10 Whiffs, 27% CSW, 102 pitches.
It’s not what you wanted as this line gives you pretty much nothing. That said, it wasn’t a terrible performance and a few hits here and there could have changed things dramatically (stupid two-run shot from Bryce in the first on a 1-2 heater that leaked a bit over the plate). I’m not discouraged enough to stop starting him, especially with the Nationals up next.
Joe Ryan (MIN) @ KCR (L) – 2.0 IP, 5 ER, 4 Hits, 4 BBs, 2 Ks – 4 Whiffs, 24% CSW, 62 pitches.
Oh wow. Ryan could not spot his four-seamer at all. That’s a rare sighting and you have to brush it off and start him next time unless something comes out about an injury or whatever. I doubt that, so let’s move on. Whatareyagonnado.
Martín Pérez (CHW) @ DET (L) – 4.0 IP, 6 ER, 5 Hits, 3 BBs, 0 Ks – 1 Whiffs, 18% CSW, 89 pitches.
Bleeeeegh. I was into this one and despite Pérez locating the changeup in the right spot, the Tigers refused to chase it down-and-away for a low 17% chase rate, leading to a paltry 42% strike rate. That led to walks and easier pitches to hit, with a big ole goose egg in the strikeout department. HAISTBMBWT?! That doesn’t mean he’s down for the count, though. He’ll get the Guardians next – they hate LHP – and I can see that one being far better. He wasn’t as far off as the line would suggest.
Cade Brown” data-player-gamedate=”2025-09-06″ data-player-opponent=”SDP” data-player-park=”HOME” data-player-tags=””>McCade Brown (COL) vs SDP (L) – 1.2 IP, 6 ER, 5 Hits, 1 BBs, 1 Ks – 5 Whiffs, 25% CSW, 44 pitches.
McCade 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.
Yusei Kikuchi (LAA) vs ATH (L) – 2.0 IP, 7 ER, 6 Hits, 3 BBs, 1 Ks – 5 Whiffs, 16% CSW, 61 pitches.
Yikes. He had zero feel for his curve, leading to just fastballs and sliders, with the former returning a 51% strike rate. No wonder we saw just one strikeout – HAISTBMBWT?! – as Kikuchi solidifies his label of HIPSTER. I’d avoid him unless you’re desperately chasing strikeouts, and even then, make sure you’ve exhausted all your options.
Game of the Day
Brayan Bello vs. Ryne Nelson – I’d love to watch both go six frames with ease.
But Nick?! Where are the streaming picks? – I’ve moved them to the daily SP Matchups & Streamer Rankings article.
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Photo by Larry Radloff/Icon Sportswire | Adapted by Justin Paradis (@JustParaDesigns on Twitter/X; @justinparadis.bsky.social on BlueSky)
