The Week Ahead: Week Ahead: On the Mark
The Blue Jays have been jockeying with the Yankees for the top spot in the American League East, and the impact of deadline acquisition David Price has been a central storyline in Toronto’s ascent. However, another lefty is proving to be a big factor for the Jays, and his contributions are being somewhat overlooked. Maybe because it’s nothing new.
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Since becoming a full-time big-league starter in 2001, Mark Buehrle has been one of the most consistent and durable pitchers in all of baseball. He’s not a dominator, but he has reliably made 30-plus starts and exceeded 200 innings every single year, with an ERA that is always within shouting distance of his 3.78 career mark.
Here in his 16th MLB campaign, it appeared that the 36-year-old might finally be reaching the end of the road. In April he spoke openly about retiring at season’s end, and after two months he had a 4.97 ERA.
Since the start of June, however, Buehrle has been as good as ever, rattling off 12 quality starts in 14 turns and going 7-2 with a 2.45 ERA with a 1.03 WHIP. The veteran southpaw has completed seven or more innings in 14 of his last 17 starts and with the exception of his latest game in Philadelphia he has basically been immune to bad outings.
He’s among our two-start pitchers listed for The Week Ahead, and while he doesn’t offer huge upside with tough match-ups (Rangers and Tigers) and a lack of strikeout capability, he’s nearly a lock to deliver two solid outings.
It’s all he does.
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* I’m loving Nate Karns this week, with home starts lined up against the Twins and Royals. He’s averaging almost a strikeout per inning this year and is holding opponents to a .231 batting average.
* Mike Montgomery hasn’t been pitching very well lately but I’d be inclined to give him a look this week with a pair of favorable match-ups on tap against Oakland and Chicago.
* Jose Quintana over his last five starts: 2.91 ERA, 26-to-5 K/BB, two homers allowed.. He goes twice at home.
* The Phillies have a couple pitchers set to start twice — Adam Morgan and Jerome Williams — and both are worthy of consideration with the Mets and Padres coming to Philadelphia.
* John Lamb, one of the top prizes in the Johnny Cueto trade and owner of some dominant numbers in Triple-A, showed good signs in his MLB debut in spite of the crummy results. He’ll get the Dodgers at home and the Brewers on the road, offering some intriguing upside.
* Julio Teheran, 2-0 with a 2.75 ERA in August, starts twice at home.
* Patrick Corbin has been excellent in his return from Tommy John surgery, putting up a 3.43 ERA and 1.19 WHIP in eight starts for Arizona. With two outings scheduled at home, he might be best sleeper option in the NL. Available in 70 percent of Yahoo leagues.
Going Twice…
American League
Strong Plays
Nathan Karns: MIN, KC
Hisashi Iwakuma: OAK, @CWS
Dallas Keuchel: @NYY, @MIN
Jose Quintana: BOS, SEA
Corey Kluber: @CHC, LAA
Mark Buehrle: @TEX, DET
Decent Plays
Nathan Eovaldi: HOU, @ATL
Mike Montgomery: OAK, @CWS
Felix Doubront: @SEA, @ARI
Danny Duffy: BAL, @TB
Ubaldo Jimenez: @KC, @TEX
Derek Holland: TOR, BAL
At Your Own Risk
Phil Hughes: @TB, HOU
Jered Weaver: @DET, @CLE
Jeremy Guthrie: BAL, @TB
Alfredo Simon: LAA, @TOR
Jeff Samardzija: BOS, SEA
Joe Kelly: @CWS, @NYM
Miguel Gonzalez: @KC, @TEX
National League
Strong Plays
Stephen Strasburg: SD, MIA
Lance Lynn: @ARI, @SF
Jaime Garcia: @ARI, @SF
Jacob deGrom: @PHI, BOS
Noah Syndergaard: @PHI, BOS
Jon Lester: CLE, @LAD
Jake Arrieta: @SF, @LAD
Decent Plays
James Shields: @WAS, @PHI
Charlie Morton: @MIA, COL
Jerome Williams: NYM, SD
Adam Morgan: NYM, SD
Tom Koehler: PIT, @WAS
Jorge De La Rosa: @ATL, @PIT
John Lamb: LAD, @MIL
Keyvius Sampson: DET, @MIL
Julio Teheran: COL, NYY
Robbie Ray: STL, OAK
Patrick Corbin: STL, OAK
Alex Wood: @CIN, CHC
At Your Own Risk
Matt Cain: CHC, STL
J.A. Happ: @MIA, COL
Brad Hand: PIT, @WAS
Streamer City
The following pitchers are generally available in over 50 percent of fantasy leagues and have favorable match-ups this week:
American League
Tuesday, August 25: Jesse Chavez @ SEA
Chavez has been pretty good for the A’s this year, with a 3.84 ERA and 113-to-37 K/BB ratio in 131 innings. The Mariners are averaging just 3.8 runs per game.
Wednesday, August 26: Henry Owens @ CWS
The top prospect has struck out 17 hitters in 16 innings since being called up to join the Red Sox. He is owned in only 10 percent of Yahoo leagues.
Thursday, August 27: Carlos Rodon vs. SEA
In his last two starts, Rodon has allowed just two runs on eight hits over 15 innings, piling up 16 strikeouts along the way.
National League
Wednesday, August 26: Jon Gray @ ATL
The rookie has been very sharp since hopping into the Rockies rotation and is a good bet against one of baseball’s worst offenses.
Thursday, August 27: Jon Niese @ PHI
Niese has delivered four straight quality starts, and has a 22-to-4 K/BB ratio in 26 innings during that span.
Friday, August 28: Raisel Iglesias @ MIL
Iglesias has been pitching extremely well lately, with 2.10 ERA in four August starts. He figures to make quick work of the last-place Brewers.
Total Games
American League
6: BOS, CLE, HOU, LAA, MIN, NYY,OAK, TB, TEX, TOR
7: BAL, CWS, DET, KC, SEA
National League
5: MIL
6: ATL, COL, LAD, SF, SD, WAS
7: ARI, CHC, CIN, MIA, NYM, PHI, PIT, STL
The Infirmary
You can get a full listing of injured players at Rotoworld’s Injury Page but here’s the latest on a few prominent players who have been out of action:
Billy Hamilton: Out indefinitely (shoulder)
Chris Johnson: Out until late August (hand)
Daniel Norris: Out until early September (ribs)
Cory Rasmus: Out until September (arm)
David Phelps: Out for the season (arm)
Christian Yelich: Out until late August (knee)
Aaron Hicks: Out until early September (hamstring)
Tyler Cravy: Out until mid-September (elbow)
Ike Davis: Out indefinitely (hip)
Maikel Franco: Out until late September (wrist)
Hunter Pence: Out until early September (ribs)
Randal Grichuk: Out until mid-September (knee)
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