SP Streamers for today's, tomorrow's and the day after tomorrow's games for fantasy baseball.
Every day of the 2025 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 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!
There is a second table (and now third for PL Pro members) 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.
And of course, there are my streaming picks of the day. Please keep in mind that for my streaming record, I am forced to pick a streamer every day even if they are in the bottom tier. 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 Do Not Start pitchers unless 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 and it applies to a smaller audience.
As I do my rankings, I thought it would be helpful to showcase a table of how we're ranking offenses, granted by our PLV powered Projections (in alphabetical order by tier):
Remember, these offensive rankings are based on each offense's Process+ so far this year and how we project their lineups moving forward. It means you're going to see a little different offensive rankings than you may see elsewhere and there will always be some surprises. This is based on skills, not purely results! If you have questions about these offense rankings, reach out to Kyle Bland (@blandalytics).
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 PLV, 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.
Note: If no pitcher under 20% rostered would have qualified for a "Streaming Win," no loss is granted.
(Opener) - Outlines that a pitcher is being opened for that day & the pitcher listed will follow the opener.
Nick's 2025 Streamer Record: 90-48
My Pick yesterday: Loss - Zebby Matthews vs. DET
My Pick today: Ryan Bergert vs. CHW
My Pick tomorrow: Nestor Cortes vs. SFG
My Pick day after tomorrow: Unlock with PL Pro
My picks for the day after tomorrow are located at the bottom of this article for PL Pro members.
In addition, PL Pro Members have access to my 14-Day Sit/Start SP Grid, ranking all expected starters into the four tiers across the next fourteen days. You can find it on the PL Pro Hub Page.
PL Bot's 2025 Streamer Record: 92-46
PL Bot's Pick yesterday: Win - Justin Verlander vs. TBR
PL Bot's Pick today: Unlock with PL Pro
PL Bot's Pick tomorrow: Unlock with PL Pro
PL Bot's Pick day Sunday: Unlock with PL Pro
PL Bot's Picks are located at the bottom of this article for PL Pro members.
Sunday 8/17 Starting Pitcher Streamer Rankings
Auto-Starts
Garrett Crochet vs. MIA - Aces gonna ace.
Tyler Glasnow vs. SDP - Aces gonna ace.
George Kirby @ NYM - Aces gonna ace.
Nathan Eovaldi @ TOR - Aces gonna ace.
Andrew Abbott vs. MIL - No reason to stop starting him now.
Logan Webb vs. TBR - It's been rough as of late and yet, we know he's not a poor ratio arm the rest of the way.
Probably Starts
Will Warren @ STL - The strikeouts returned last time and the matchup is fantastic.
Ryan Pepiot @ SFG - He's a more "Cherry Bomb" than I like, but it's in San Francisco and should help with his HR problem.
Cristian Javier vs. BAL - Javier had far better command than expected in his return from the IL and even if the velocity comes down post-adrenaline (he carried 93/94 mph throughout the outing of 80+ pitches, FWIW), the heater, change, sinker, and sweeper still give him a shot.
Ryan Bergert vs. CHW - Bergert's four-seamer and breakers are coming together and the CrySox are not a scary crew. There's more risk than I like here, given the "Shag Rug", but I think it'll work out.
Chris Paddack @ MIN - There's less of a ceiling than Bergert with a touch better floor given Paddack's leash and track record...even if the history contains some major blowups.
Questionable Starts
Aaron Nola @ WSN - It's a "Still ILL" even if he just decimated Triple-A with his curveball.
Jose Quintana @ CIN - Quintana is in a good rhythm and we latch onto him during those stretches against mid opponents.
Yu Darvish @ LAD - Darvish sways this way and that and while I'm inclined to start him against the cold Dodgers, we're nearing "HIPSTER" territory.
José Soriano @ ATH - Speaking of "HIPSTER" arms...
José Berríos vs. TEX - It's almost like we said the words to beckon "The Great Undulator".
Davis Martin @ KCR - Martin's cutter is a fun development and Kauffman will help his odds. Still a poor Win chance without a good ceiling.
Jeffrey Springs vs. LAA - The Angels will send RHB up to the plate, granting a chance for sunshine and rainbows with Springs' changeup.
Javier Assad vs. PIT - I don't love what Assad does, but it's the Pirates and he's in a good situation.
Clay Holmes vs. SEA - We've seen "The Adobe" crumble by the torrent of the summer storms, though he's still going over 80 pitches.
Logan Allen vs. ATL - Allen is fine. The Atlanta just saw the return of Acuña, which makes this even harder to trust. He'll have a long leash, though.
Dean Kremer @ HOU - Kremer is Dean "Werewolf" and it's up to you if that's your jam. Not a bad desperate stream on a Sunday.
Do Not Starts
Janson Junk @ BOS - We haven't seen the JunkBaller peak for a while and it's Fenway.
Miles Mikolas vs. NYY - At least the defense is great behind him...?
Erick Fedde @ CLE - Don't Trust The Feddes.
Carmen Mlodzinski @ CHC - Heaney is to the pen (maybe some bulk here?) and Carmen isn't electric.
Mitchell Parker vs. PHI - One day it'll come together. One day...
Thomas Hatch vs. DET - This is likely a bullpen game, and he may get some of the bulk. Potential vulture Win I guess...?
Nabil Crismat @ COL - It's in Coors and he's not a great arm.
Antonio Senzatela vs. ARI - He's a Colorado SP.
Monday 8/18 Starting Pitcher Streamer Rankings
Auto-Starts
Paul Skenes vs. TOR - Aces gonna ace.
Logan Gilbert @ PHI - Aces gonna ace.
Yoshinobu Yamamoto @ COL - Aces gonna ace.
Robbie Ray @ SDP - Aces gonna ace.
Eury Pérez vs. STL - The changeup is coming along...
Ranger Suárez vs. SEA - He's surely going to bounce back, right?
Probably Starts
Freddy Peralta @ CHC - He'd be in the first tier if not for the Cubs.
Trevor Rogers @ BOS - It's the Red Sox and yet Rogers has done nothing to stop us from trusting him.
Spencer Strider vs. CHW - He's on thin ice, but it's the CrySox.
Kevin Gausman @ PIT - It's the Pirates.
Cade Horton vs. MIL - Horton's scoreless streak isn't long for this world, but a run or two is still cool with us.
Gavin Williams @ ARI - Williams had a hangover from his flirtation with history and should be far better here.
Jack Flaherty vs. HOU - The breakers are still legit and if you didn't watch his stupid unlucky fifth inning last time, you really need to. It'll change your entire view of Flaherty.
Michael Wacha vs. TEX - No need to bench this "Toby" against the Rangers.
Questionable Starts
Nestor Cortes vs. SFG - I wish the velocity were a little better, but Cortes looks to be in a decent enough spot to come through against the Giants.
Spencer Arrighetti @ DET - I'm more encouraged by "The Pasta Pirate" than I am Cortes, but the tougher matchup has him ranked lower.
Brady Singer @ LAA - Singer just had some of the best command he's had all year, but his feel has oscillated from start-to-start. At least the RHB lineup will work well with his sinker/slider approach.
Matthew Liberatore @ MIA - We've seen the decline of Liberatore in the second half, but the defense is still elite and it's the Marlins.
Dustin May vs. BAL - May displayed plenty of gains after hitting the showers early often in previous outings. I wonder if that continues here.
Do Not Starts
Jack Leiter @ KCR - He's still not polished, leading to a limited volume ceiling and terrible floor.
Zac Gallen vs. CLE - We just can't trust him. Sigh.
Jameson Taillon vs. MIL - He's back from the IL! And complained to me that Assad got all the good luck on Sunday with the wind blowing in. Don't expect him to go long here in a "Still ILL".
Yoendrys Gómez @ ATL - I wonder if I'm underrating the breakers too much with this ranking. Deeper leagues, take note. This is a sneaky upside play. It's too much of an unknown with a terrible set of fastballs to rank higher for now.
Chad Patrick @ CHC - He's returning to the rotation and sadly has to deal with the Cubs.
Victor Mederos vs. CIN - Mederos gets the gift of the "Reds Carpet" and he does too little to trust.
Kyle Freeland vs. LAD - He's a Rockies SP.
Tuesday 8/19 Starting Pitcher Streamer Rankings
New for PL Pro members - I am making the streaming table for an extra day out (no write-ups as these pitchers change often). I wanted to add a bonus for those who support us without taking anything away from everyone else, and I thought this was a good compromise.
In addition, PL Pro Members have access to my Sit/Start SP Grid, ranking all expected starters into the four tiers across the next fourteen days. You can find it on the PL Pro Hub Page.
