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Starting Pitcher Streamer Rankings Fantasy Baseball: 8/12 & 8/13

Nick Pollack ranks the starting pitcher streamers for today & tomorrow

Here are today’s and tomorrow’s daily SP Streamer rankings for fantasy baseball.

Every day of the 2024 baseball season, I’ll be looking at today’s 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 StartI’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):

Nick’s Loose Team Offense Rankings (Updated 8/12)

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.

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: 71-62

My pick yesterday: Albert Suárez @ TBR – W

PL Bot’s 2024 Streamer Record: 76-57

PL Bot’s Pick yesterday: DL Hall vs. CIN – L

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

 

Chris Sale @ SFG – Aces gonna ace.

Blake Snell vs. ATL – Aces gonna ace.

Luis Gil @ CHW – This looks so dang juicy.

Shota Imanaga @ CLE – Aces gonna ace.

Sonny Gray @ CIN – Gray looked far better last time out.

Framber Valdez @ TBR – Framber is in his GROOVE.

Taj Bradley vs. HOU – He hasn’t been as sharp in his last two, but I’m not ready to give up yet.

Pablo López vs. KCR – His mechanics were off in his last start. I’m banking he made the adjustments.

Freddy Peralta vs. LAD – Not a great matchup, the ceiling is too high for Peralta. He’s a little less matchup dependent than others, too.

 

Probably Starts

 

Brandon Pfaadt vs. COL – I like his command rhythm + it’s Rockie Road.

Brayan Bello vs. TEX – Bello has his full arsenal working, I wish this weren’t the Rangers.

Clayton Kershaw @ MIL – Kershaw was better last time out and the Brewers are the most fearsome.

Ben Lively vs. CHC – Is this the end of Lively’s incredible run? I doubt it.

Andrew Abbott vs. STL – He’s a premium Cherry Bomb, who actually executed well last time out and was burned for it.

 

 

Questionable Starts

 

Brady Singer @ MIN – Singer has been far better than expected this year, though he’s showing cracks in the armor.

Bowden Francis @ LAA – I didn’t love what I saw last time across his arsenal, but it is the Angels.

Joe Musgrove vs. PIT – OH SNAP HE’S FINALLY BACK. Treat this like a Still ILL and take it from there.

Tyler Mahle @ BOS – He wasn’t striking in his first outing and I’d consider this after a defiant outing, especially not in Fenway.

 

Do Not Starts

 

Davis Daniel vs. TOR – There’s a chance he pulls it off against the Jays, but this isn’t worth the risk at all.

Cal Quantrill @ ARI – If you could just convince the splitter to show up, that would be greaaaaaat. Thanks.

Marco Gonzales @ SDP – He isn’t ready for this one.

Colin Rea vs. LAD – It’s the Dodgers, y’all. He could also be starting on Sunday instead of DL Hall.

Ky Bush vs. NYY – Not. A. Chance.

UPDATE: Bradley Blalock @ ARI – Quantrill is dealing with forearm soreness and Blalock is the only fella on the 40-man that could start. Nooope.

 

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.

Today’s Starting Pitcher Rankings

 

Tomorrow’s Starting Pitcher Rankings

 

Auto Starts

 

Tarik Skubal vs. SEA – Aces gonna ace.

George Kirby @ DET – Aces gonna ace.

Michael King vs. PIT – Aces gonna ace.

Hunter Greene vs. STL – Aces gonna ace.

Seth Lugo @ MIN – He’s locked in.

Yusei Kikuchi @ TBR – I’m loving Kikuchi on the Astros and in this matchup. Nail down that changeup though, thanks.

Kevin Gausman @ LAA – I’m not loving his lack of splitter whiffs these days, but you’re starting him here against the Angels.

 

Probably Starts

 

Nestor Cortes @ CHW – I know how rough it’s been (7 of last 8 games have been 3+ ER…) but it’s the White Sox. Amazing Win chance.

Eduardo Rodriguez vs. COL – His second start back and he’s been given a gift.

Jake Irvin @ BAL – Waltimore could help out Irvin here. I don’t think he’s pitching as poorly as the last month outlines.

Shane Baz vs. HOU – As long as one of his slider/curve are there, he should be fine.

Paul Blackburn vs. OAK – It’s a Revenge game for a Toby against a meh offense.

 

 

Questionable Starts

 

Kutter Crawford vs. TEX – He’s allowed so many dang longballs and it’s Fenway and it’s the Rangers and I’M SCARED.

Erick Fedde @ CIN – He’s a Toby heading into Cin City. At least it’s not the White Sox offense behind him.

Gavin Stone @ MIL – Stone is a Toby and hasn’t done enough to make me excited here.

Carson Fulmer vs. TOR – Fulmer has decent secondaries and the Jays lineup is very top heavy.

Zebby Matthews vs. KCR – It’s an MLB debut! Check out my quick breakdown of him here. Grab him now as a spec add and likely bench for this one.

Trevor Rogers vs. WSN – I’m hoping this is a sneaky Win for Rogers as he gets more comfortable with the Orioles crew.

Charlie Morton @ SFG – He’s a Cherry Bomb.

Luis L. Ortiz @ SDP – Ortiz is throwing more strikes and generally avoiding hard contact. It’s the Padres, though.

Kyle Harrison vs. ATL – A Cherry Bomb. Be careful.

 

Do Not Starts

 

Matthew Boyd vs. CHC – It’s a Still ILL and I’m SO EXCITED FOR HIM.

Taijuan Walker vs. MIA – Another Still ILL for an arm who wasn’t good when healthy, even against the Marlins.

Colin Rea vs. LAD – He’s been on a Vargas Rule of sorts, but it’s the Dodgers. Not a fun one.

Jonathan Cannon vs. NYY – There’s upside in here if Cannon can avoid the heart of the plate. Suuuuuuper low floor.

Ross Stripling @ NYM – Stripling doesn’t carry the ceiling you want.

Valente Bellozo @ PHI – It’s the Phillies with a Shag Rug.

Javier Assad @ CLE – Assad ain’t it.

Austin Gomber @ ARI – Absolutely not.

José Ureña @ BOS – 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.

Tomorrow’s Starting Pitcher Rankings

Photos Courtesy of IconSportswire | Adapted by Aaron Asbury (@aarongifs on Instagram)

Nick Pollack

Founder of Pitcher List. Creator of CSW, The List, and SP Roundup. Worked with MSG, FanGraphs, CBS Sports, and Washington Post. Former college pitcher, travel coach, pitching coach, and Brandeis alum. Wants every pitcher to be dope.

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