Welcome to this week’s edition of the 2023 two-start pitcher rankings!
My rankings have four tiers: Set and Forget, Probably Start, Questionable, and Avoid. Set and Forget starters are simply that; get them in your lineup and don’t think twice. The Most Likely Start tier includes players with the mix of skill and matchups that make them almost certainly two-start plays, but not without some elevated risk compared to the top tier. Questionable starters are those best suited for daily lineup leagues where you can bench them against the tougher of their two opponents. Finally, we have the Avoid tier, which includes two-start SPs who should remain on your bench or the wire.
Each week, I’ll be selecting my Two-Start Streamer of the Week. The criteria for a streamer will be a rostership rate under 50% in Yahoo leagues. The Streamer of the Week will be highlighted in the tables in green. Reach out to me in the PL+ Discord or on Twitter @AnthonyTucker81 and let me know if you’d grade the weekly streamer as a win or loss.
As a friendly reminder, the projected starters are just that, projections and subject to change.
Set and Forget
- Freddy Peralta didn’t have his secondaries in his last start against the Nationals… and still gave you seven strikeouts and a win. Expect the Brewer to rack up the strikeouts and turn in a better WHIP against two of the bottom five offenses in baseball.
Most Likely
- Kodai Senga has settled in to the majors nicely over the last two months. After initially handing out free passes left and right, Senga has held his walk rate below 8% since the start of July. He has more upside than those above him, but unfortunately he’ll face the red-hot Cubs and Atlanta next week. It’s enough to give you some second thoughts, but his strikeout totals are typically enough to make the risk worth it in weekly leagues.
- Grayson Rodriguez looks much improved upon his return to the bigs. He’s largely survived recent matchups against the Blue Jays, Rays, and Dodgers, giving you enough confidence to start in weekly leagues in a home start against the Astros.
Questionable
- Dylan Cease and Mitch Keller come with far too much volatility to trust. Cease is the better option of the two next week given the opponents. Keller has provided a ton of value for your team this season, but he’s an easy choice to bench against Atlanta. Depending on how he looks in his first start, he could be an option against the Reds in daily leagues.
- With matchups against the Royals and Tigers, Kutter Crawford has ample opportunity to build upon a strong last few weeks. As such, he’s an obvious choice for Two Start Streamer of the Week. It’s highly unlikely a 2.92 ERA and 1.05 WHIP over the last month is anything more than a hot stretch, but it’s equally unlikely the Royals and Tigers will pose much of a threat.
- The Nats duo of Josiah Gray and MacKenzie Gore make for interesting one-start streamers against the A’s.
Avoid
- It was encouraging to see Brandon Pfaadt turn in a successful outing against the Giants, albeit in a tough-luck loss, after a turbulent start to his big league career. It’s not, however, enough to roll him out against much stiffer competition in the Dodgers and Padres.
- The Mets may have been sellers at the deadline, but they still have a few bats in their lineup that can do damage. As a result, it’s likely best to look elsewhere in standard 12-teamers rather than rely on Jameson Taillon.
Two-Start Streamer of the Week Record: 4-5.
Featured Image by Michael Packard (@CollectingPack on Twitter) / Photo by Cliff Welch & Leslie Plaza Johnson /con Sportswire