Here are today’s daily SP Streamer rankings.
Every day of the 2023 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.
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,” which 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 would be those picks, 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):
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.
This year, with our new daily fantasy baseball projections powered by PLV, I’ll be competing against PL Bot to pick the best streaming option each day.
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. Close calls are decided by Playback chat.
Nick’s 2023 Streamer Record: 70-53
My pick yesterday: Luis Medina vs. SFG
PL Bot’s 2023 Streamer Record: 63-60
PL Bot’s Pick yesterday: José Quintana @ BAL
Want PL Bot’s pick today? Sign Up for PL Pro here.
With the new formatting for the notes, I’ve made the streaming pick of the day Underlined and Italicized.
Today’s Starting Pitcher Rankings
Auto-Starts
Spencer Strider @ PIT – Aces gonna ace.
Gerrit Cole @ CHW – Aces gonna ace.
Pablo López @ DET – He’s so close to that AGA label…
Freddy Peralta vs. COL – The results weren’t ideal last time and this is the best matchup you could ask for.
UPDATE: Logan Webb @ LAA – With Cobb going yesterday, Webb goes today and he’s an obvious start here.
Probably Starts
Kodai Senga vs. CHC – I originally had Senga in Auto, but the Cubs offense should be treated with some respect right now.
Brayan Bello vs. KCR – Bello’s sinker and changeup are doing all the work and while I want more from his arsenal, that should be enough against the Royals.
Dylan Cease vs. NYY – Cease is all kinds of frustrating, but surely he’s worthwhile against the Yankees, right?
Dane Dunning @ OAK – I really hope the slider usage stays up and a great Win chance here against Oakland is too good to pass up.
Questionable Starts
Alex Cobb @ LAA – The splitter didn’t get whiffs last time and we’ve only seen it appear once across the last month. Please come back.
Seth Lugo vs. LAD – Lugo has been sturdy, but the Dodgers are one of the toughest offenses out there.
Eury Pérez @ CIN – I’m stoked to see Pérez return, but you may want to wait this out for one game to see how much they stretch him out + Cincy is not a great place to pitch. That said, he may have some extra adrenaline to make this a special game.
Tony Gonsolin @ SDP – I don’t think Gonsolin is anything more than a Toby and the Padres have their moments.
Patrick Sandoval vs. SFG – The Giants are a team you want to pitch against, but The Irish Panda has been unable to have a start where both his changeup and slider dominate.
UPDATE: Cole Ragans @ BOS – I adore Ragans right now, but the velocity wasn’t 97+ mph as I hoped for and pitching in Fenway is terrible. I think we get legit amped after this start, but I’m updating this to push him into the bottom of the third tier, giving him the streaming pick of the day duties. I’m going with my gut and trusting my roundup blurb after his last start.
Do Not Starts
Gavin Williams vs. TOR – I’m worried about Williams’ command and the Jays are a fantastic lineup. I heavily suggest benching this one.
Josiah Gray @ PHI – I don’t think Josiah has an approach that routinely works.
Hyun Jin Ryu @ CLE – It wasn’t the worst return from the IL, but I’m not seeing enough of a ceiling to go after this.
Ranger Suárez vs. WSN – He’s not the arm you want him to be right now. We hold off until he finds his rhythm once again.
Brandon Williamson vs. MIA – The velocity is better, the #3 pitch is not. He’s too reliant on BABIP and pristine command.
Joey Wentz vs. MIN – We’ve seen moments of bliss with Wentz and sadly, it’s too difficult to determine when those will happen.
Drew Smyly @ NYM – I really do miss April Smyly…
Peter Lambert @ MIL – Absolutely not.
Ken Waldichuk vs. TEX – It’s Texas and Ken is a Young Gun.
Osvaldo Bido vs. ATL – It’s Atlanta and the Pirates don’t let Bido go long and he hasn’t been fantasy relevant in a while.
Tomorrow’s Starting Pitcher Rankings
Auto-Starts
Max Scherzer @ OAK – Aces gonna ace. And it’s Oakland?!
Zack Wheeler vs. WSN – Aces gonna ace. No reason to expect a regression now.
Framber Valdez @ BAL – He’s off the no-hitter, which sometimes has a bit of a hangover effect, but Valdez didn’t over-extend his pitch count last time with a Maddux. All good here.
Julio Urías @ ARI – He’s in a good place, though the Dodgers may still take it slow with him – he was limited to a five-inning cap last time out.
Lucas Giolito vs. SFG – It’s San Francisco and those of you who are afraid should remember he faced Atlanta in the morning. Okay, that last bit was tongue-in-cheek, but his command was far better than the line suggested.
Zach Eflin vs. STL – Eflin is all good after his injury scare and is a clear start.
Sonny Gray @ DET – Gray is in a good place and the Tigers aren’t scary. You’re starting him.
Probably Starts
Yusei Kikuchi @ CLE – I dig what Kikuchi is doing with his breakers and the Guardians aren’t the scariest of offenses, even if they don’t strikeout a ton.
Logan Gilbert vs. SDP – I debated Gilbert vs. Erod a lot on stream on Monday and landed on Gilbert after a 6.00+ PLV game with his slider. Yes, that’s absurd and I hope the whiffs return for the slide piece next time out.
Eduardo Rodriguez vs. MIN – Erod should be a solid play here against the Twins as his command has been solid as of late.
Clarke Schmidt @ CHW – He’s a Toby against a rough offense. That’s a streaming option, alright.
Kutter Crawford vs. KCR – Kutter is doing better with his kutter and this makes for a solid Win chance against a mediocre Royals lineup.
Brady Singer @ BOS – Singer is as good as I’ve ever seen him with his slider precision and the Red Sox are slowing down offensively. I worry his Cherry Bomb nature with rear its ugly head, but I think we take the chance here.
Questionable Starts
Wade Miley vs. COL – I imagine some want Miley higher, but he was limited to roughly 60 pitches last time out and banking on 80 pitches here doesn’t seem wise. Could be a five and dive for a Win, but six frames seems greedy.
Grayson Rodriguez vs. HOU – I like where Grayson is these days, but it’s the Astros. If he gets the changeup and breaker down, he’ll still come through, but we’ll see.
Tanner Bibee vs. TOR – Bibee is back-and-forth with his command and while I generally dig him, this is a bit scary with the Jays. I trust Grayson a touch more with his recent advancements.
JP Sears vs. TEX – Sears has been so fun to watch, but the sweeper wasn’t as good last time and this is the Rangers. There’s a chance he has what you want, but it’s likely a bench.
Jameson Taillon @ NYM – Do you want to Vargas Rule Taillon? He’s squeezing everything out of his repertoire right now.
Yonny Chirinos @ PIT – I really don’t like starting Chirinos, but he had his best splitter last time, the Pirates are weak, and there’s a solid Win chance here. Let’s hope he goes at least five.
Do Not Starts
Nick Martinez @ SEA – OH SNAP IT MIGHT BE HAPPENING. He’s not properly stretched out, sadly, but hot dang if he goes over 70 pitches, I’ll be stoked. He deserves to start again.
Josiah Gray @ PHI – I don’t trust what Gray is doing with his cutter/sinker.
Mitch Keller vs. ATL – It’s Atlanta and Keller is not at his best.
Braxton Garrett @ CIN – Maybe Garrett has his slider working again, but the cutter and sinker still need work. And it’s Cincy.
Miles Mikolas @ TBR – He’s back from the suspension and it’s the Rays. No thanks.
Touki Toussaint vs. NYY – Touki has an outside shot to make this work and I hate it.
Brandon Pfaadt vs. LAD – Pfaadt could come through here, but it’s the Dodgers and the floor is so low. Maybe the sweeper works again. Maybe.
Luke Weaver vs. MIA – I dig that Weaver is trying something new, but it hasn’t come through for him yet.
Kyle Freeland @ MIL – At least it’s outside Coors?
Alex Wood @ LAA – Wood hasn’t come through with any consistency, nor for six frames in ages.
Carlos Carrasco vs. CHC – Carrasco is in a terrible place and the Cubs are killing it offensively.
Featured Image by Kurt Wasemiller (@KUWasemiller on Twitter / @kurt_player02 on Instagram)