Here are today and tomorrow’s daily SP Streamer rankings for fantasy baseball.
Every day of the 2024 baseball season, I’ll be looking at today and tomorrow’s slate of scheduled starting pitchers and ranking their matchups for your fantasy baseball streams.
There’s a lot that goes into this and you can hang out with me on Playback.tv/pitcherlist to talk about the specific ranks as I make them every weekday morning from 10am – 12pm ET. If you have questions about these ranks, please ask during the morning Playback AMA. Those are my office hours as I generally don’t answer comments on the site.
There are four tiers to these rankings with 12-teamers in mind:
Auto-Start – Just do it. Don’t overthink this, start the man. This includes “if I have them rostered, I’m starting them” pitchers.
Probably Start – I’m likely starting these arms, though I recognize there is more risk than we’d like there to be. Either it’s a tough matchup for a good-not-elite pitcher or a weak lineup for a volatile arm. These pitchers have a 50% or greater chance of performing well in my view and I’m starting them in the majority of situations.
Questionable Start – Think of this tier as “I don’t want to start these pitchers in a vacuum, but you could do worse.” Streamers found in this tier are not pitchers I’m targeting and are only if you are in dire need of one. To play it safe with streaming, just start the Probably Start streamers.
Do Not Start – The reward is not worth the risk. Don’t do it. Seriously, these pitchers have a very slim chance of success or sometimes none at all.
Obviously, there will be circumstances where pitchers should move between teams for your situation specifically and these new tiers should act as a little more help than the straight table from last year.
Please keep in mind that streaming is far from a perfect play. In fact, if they work out over half the time, I’d consider it a success. These matchup rankings & streamer picks are going to be wildly different than the actual results throughout the year, so please, have sympathy before the scathing comments and tweets. I’m only trying to help!
Make sure to read the notes if you’re wondering why I’m favoring certain pitchers over others – I won’t get to everyone and hopefully I answer what questions you will have.
There is a second table for tomorrow’s starting pitcher matchups as well, helping everyone get a jump on their nightly pickups. Please note that these matchups are subject to change, though, and there will be times when I have the incorrect pitcher going. I thank you for your future understanding.
Finally, there are my streaming picks of the day, and please keep in mind that I am forced to pick a streamer every day. Those highlighted in Green are that day’s streaming pick in the second tier and I’d roll with them everywhere. Those in Yellow are in the third tier and should be okay if you’re searching for something on a given day, but I don’t recommend streaming unless you’re in need. Finally, those are Red are those I really don’t want to start (they are labeled as “Do Not Start”, after all) but have no other choice. Don’t stream these guys until you are truly desperate. A streaming pick is defined as “rostered in 20% or fewer leagues according to Fantasy Pros. This really emphasizes the point that I’d be happy if over 50% of these worked. I could do the whole sub 30/40% rostered, but there’s no fun in that. You can use the rankings to realize who those picks would be instead.
(Opener) – Outlines that a pitcher is being opened for that day & the pitcher listed will follow the opener.
As I do my rankings, I thought it would be helpful to showcase a table of how we’re ranking offenses (in alphabetical order by tier):
I’m sure it’ll change through the year + there are differences to be made about teams vs. LHP or RHP, but it works as a general table that y’all should keep in mind.
Alright, let’s get to it.
To spice up these streaming recommendations, I’ve included our new daily fantasy baseball projections powered by PLV, and I’ll be competing against PL Bot to pick the best streaming option each day.
These projections are different from your typical projections as they incorporate our pitch quantifier, assessing pitcher and hitter skills at a much more granular level than your standard box score.
To get access to PL Bot’s picks each day, sign up for PL Pro here.
The streaming record is determined by “Was this a productive game for 12-teamers if I started them?” Roughly a PQS with a Win and a strikeout per inning with a sub 1.20 WHIP, with a minimum of 5 IP. Close calls are decided by Playback chat.
Nick’s 2024 Streamer Record: 60-42
My pick yesterday: Drew Thorpe vs. MIN – W
PL Bot’s 2024 Streamer Record: 59-43
PL Bot’s Pick yesterday: JP Sears @ BOS – W
Want PL Bot’s pick today? Sign up for PL Pro here.
My streaming pick of the day is Underlined and Italicized.
Today’s Starting Pitcher Rankings
Auto Starts
Paul Skenes @ MIL – Aces gonna ace.
Max Fried @ ARI – Aces gonna ace.
Luis Castillo @ LAA – Aces gonna ace.
Tanner Houck vs. OAK – Aces gonna ace.
Aaron Nola vs. LAD – Aces gonna ace. Yes, against the Dodgers. He just took down Atlanta, you know.
Jack Flaherty vs. CLE – Is he actually returning now? We want to believe he’s fine with his back and I can grasp benching him, but he’s been so dang productive.
Probably Starts
Justin Steele @ BAL – This is his final test for AGA status.
Kevin Gausman @ SFG – He just fanned a ton of Mariners batters…with few splitter whiffs.
UPDATE: Hunter Greene vs. COL – The strikeouts are too tantalizing to pass up against Rockie Road.
Tyler Anderson vs. SEA – Anderson has been cruising and it’s Seattle.
Nestor Cortes @ TBR – He’s solid and despite the losing streak, still a good Win chance.
MacKenzie Gore @ NYM – Gore is looking more and more like a Cherry Bomb and it’s all kinds of frustrating. That said, his whole package should be better than the results.
Shane Baz vs. NYY – Baz impressed in his first outing – not to 2021 levels, but a better heater than we saw in the minors. It could be a stumble with less adrenaline + he didn’t earn a ton of slider whiffs in his first outing, featuring a dramatic drop in spin rate on the breaker (none on his heater).
Questionable Starts
Jordan Hicks vs. TOR – He’s a Cherry Bomb rooted in his inconsistent secondaries and less effective sinker.
Aaron Civale vs. PIT – It’s the Pirates, though we can only hope for Civale to have his full arsenal working again.
Albert Suárez vs. CHC – It’s a tough call for the streaming pick of the day, but the Win chance is better here than the others.
Carson Spiers vs. COL – He’s a decent streamer facing Rockie Road, though it is Cin City.
David Peterson vs. WSN – Peterson is difficult to grasp and I tend to generally avoid guys like him who haven’t outlined clear upside. That said, he’s had moments with changeups and sliders working, while his fastballs haven’t been outright bad. Throw in the Nationals, and fine, I can see it working.
Jake Bloss vs. MIA – I’m not sure what we get from Bloss in his second MLB start, here returning from the IL. It’s the Marlins, though, making it a decent dart throw.
Brandon Pfaadt vs. ATL – The curveball disappeared after just one game and it’s Atlanta. Super risky.
Do Not Starts
Landon Knack @ PHI – Knack is starting to get extended, but the Phillies are at full strength now.
Luis Medina @ BOS – He’s far too volatile + Fenway.
Roddery Muñoz @ HOU – He’s boring and gets the Astros. At least there’s a chance for six frames.
Austin Gomber @ CIN – COL story, bro.
UPDATE: Jack Kochanowicz vs. SEA – He’s fanned 73 batters in 91 IP and is coming straight from Double-A. This doesn’t seem like the guy you want. I wish I had Double-A Statcast data…
Spencer Howard @ DET – How long will he actually go? Does it matter?
Enjoy these rankings? Support my work and Pitcher List by getting PL+ or PL Pro! You’ll get an Ad-Free website, access to our incredible non-toxic baseball Discord community, my weekly PL Pro exclusive SP FAAB Forecast podcast, a full suite of fantasy baseball tools, and much more. Get 10% off yearly with code SPSTREAMERS here.
Tomorrow’s Starting Pitcher Rankings
Auto Starts
Garrett Crochet vs. PIT – Aces gonna ace.
Tarik Skubal vs. LAD – Aces gonna ace.
Cole Ragans @ BOS – Aces gonna ace. Pew pew pew.
Joe Ryan @ SFG – Aces gonna ace.
Sonny Gray vs. CHC – Aces gonna ace
Gerrit Cole @ BAL – Aces gonna ace…in a bit of a test matchup. We want you to look like you, Cole.
Freddy Peralta vs. WSN – He has Cherry Bomb tendencies and all we can do is hope he goes on another second half run.
Probably Starts
Ranger Suárez vs. OAK – His last three haven’t gone his way, but this is Oakland.
Taj Bradley vs. CLE – Bradley has found an approach that works with four-seamers and splitters, believe it or not.
Tyler Anderson vs. SEA – He just went eight dominant frames and now gets the Mariners.
Sean Manaea vs. COL – Manaea’s new slider focus could work well, while hosting Rockie Road is a gift.
Questionable Starts
Hunter Brown vs. TEX – I’m questioning Brown’s two-month run heavily, especially after his destruction last time out. The breakers are not reliable and it worries me against a Rangers offense that has begun to show its fangs.
Bryan Woo @ LAA – Woo is returning from the IL (we’ve heard that one before) and I’d expect 4-5 frames.
Luis L. Ortiz @ CHW – Ortiz has been great with his cutter/slider/sinker combo, earning far more strikes than previously. Now against the CrySox, he looks primed to produce.
Carson Spiers vs. MIA – He’s command-focused and the Marlins could roll over.
Spencer Schwellenbach @ SDP – We saw a better approach from Schwellenbach, reducing four-seamer usage and favoring the sinker. It’s a solid Win chance against the Padres, too.
Andrew Heaney @ HOU – Heaney has his old slider from the Dodgers days recently, but the Astros aren’t a fun matchup.
Justin Wrobleski @ DET – He’s getting a second shot for the Dodgers and his four-seamer (outside of its horrible extension) can perform well against the Tigers. I’m curious if he secondaries can keep up.
Yariel Rodríguez @ ARI – It’s been six frames in each of his last two games, though he’s likely still at 80 pitches + I’m not in adoration of his fastball/slider mix.
Do Not Starts
Carlos Carrasco @ TBR – He has a long enough leash against a poor team.
Cooper Criswell vs. KCR – Hey he’s back! And could go five decent frames.
Kyle Harrison vs. MIN – I don’t think he’s all that great…?
Ryne Nelson vs. TOR – Nelson has been on a decent run as he’s gotten away with his heater without the cutter that would push him into legitimacy.
Cade Povich vs. NYY – Povich just had a horrific day at the park and should be better against the Yankees. That said, the Yankees can wake up at any moment.
Randy Vásquez vs. ATL – He’s made it work and I don’t buy it, especially against Atlanta.
Hogan Harris @ PHI – Harris has had some success, but this is a strong Phillies squad.
Kyle Hendricks @ STL – The curveball is back and yet it didn’t do a whole lot to change the outcomes lately.
Yonny Chirinos @ CIN – He’ll likely be Dancing With The Disco across five frames in Cin City. That’s not a lot to chase at the risk of a terrible floor.
Tanner Gordon @ NYM – I dig his command focus and he’s out of Coors. Too bad the stuff is mediocre.
Jackson Rutledge @ MIL – Absolutely not.
Enjoy these rankings? Support my work and Pitcher List by getting PL+ or PL Pro! You’ll get an Ad-Free website, access to our incredible non-toxic baseball Discord community, my weekly PL Pro exclusive SP FAAB Forecast podcast, a full suite of fantasy baseball tools, and much more. Get 10% off yearly with code SPSTREAMERS here.
Photos Courtesy of IconSportswire | Adapted by Aaron Asbury (@aarongifs on Instagram)