Where would the Dodgers be without Ross Stripling?
The 28-year-old right-hander has a 1.99 ERA and 1.04 WHIP in 10 starts and 11 relief appearances this season over 72.1 innings. As a starter, he’s been Clayton Kershaw-esque with a 6-2 record, 2.37 ERA, 1.00 WHIP, and unbelievable 68/5 K/BB in 57 innings. Despite some home run issues (seven homers allowed), the impeccable command should convince the remaining skeptics.
While Stripling was an effective swingman before this season, we certainly couldn’t have expected this type of performance. He had a career 3.87 ERA in 174.1 major league innings before 2018, and his ERA was above 3.00 at both Double- and Triple-A.
Stripling’s improved curveball is part of the difference, but the control has also simply been amazing. Recently we talked about how good Mike Leake’s control has been, but Stripling has avoided walking a batter in eight of his 10 starts since joining the rotation permanently on May 6.
As expected, the ERA has started to tick up over his last three starts, allowing a total of seven earned runs in 19 innings, but the ERA metrics (2.45 FIP, 2.71 xFIP, 2.71 SIERA) show a true ace. Fantasy owners who were lucky to scoop up Stripling when he was available on the waiver wire earlier this season very well might have found the pickup of 2018.
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-David Price is pitching like his old self. The lefty’s ERA stands at 3.81 through 15 starts, but over his last eight starts he’s 6-1 with a 2.86 ERA and 50/15 K/BB in 50.1 innings. His average velocity hasn’t been great this season and he’s overcome some injury scares, but the recent work has been stellar. He has a tough two-start week ahead against the Angels and Yankees, but there’s no reason to bench him given his recent performance.
-Lance Lynn still has a mediocre 4.64 ERA, but his recent performance has been almost as good as Price. Over his last six outings, Lynn hasn’t allowed more than three runs in a start and is 4-1 with a 1.73 ERA over that time. Of course, his 32/17 K/BB in 36.1 innings is far from impressive, and the .245 BABIP in that timeframe shows that Lynn has been the beneficiary of some luck. Still, he’s rewarded fantasy owners who remained patient early in the year or took a chance after Lynn was dropped.
-Freddy Peralta is back in the majors and couldn’t have a much more favorable week ahead with matchups against the Reds and Royals. We’ve seen some inconsistency from the right-hander in three starts, but the good has outweighed the bad, resulting in a 2.30 ERA and 25/8 K/BB in 15.2 innings. Peralta’s ability to hide the ball has helped him miss bats at an extremely high rate as a pro (10.8 K/9 in the minors), though there are reasons to be concerned given that he’s thrown his low-90’s fastball more than 80 percent of the time and has carried a BB/9 above 4.0 in the upper minors and Milwaukee. Though, he’s certainly a worthwhile play over his next two starts.
-Tyler Chatwood walked five more batters in his last start vs. the Dodgers. Somehow, his ERA has remained below 4.00, but he has an astronomical 8.3 BB/9 and league-worst 63 walks this season. He’s pitched well enough that the Cubs keep running him out every fifth day, but his xFIP and SIERA above 5.00 show he’s a ticking time bomb. The current BB/9 is the worst ever for a full-time starter with at least 10 starts in a season, beating out Bobby Witt (8.2), Oliver Perez (7.9), Rick Jones (7.9), and Marvin Freeman (7.5).
Going Twice…
Note: Probable pitchers as of Friday, June 25, and are subject to change.
American League
Strong Plays
Corey Kluber: @STL, @OAK
Gerrit Cole: TOR, @TB
Decent Plays
James Paxton: @BAL, KC
David Price: LAA, @NYY
Cole Hamels: SD, CHW
J.A. Happ: @HOU, DET
Charlie Morton: TOR, @TB
Tyler Skaggs: @BOS, @BAL
Lance Lynn: @CHW, @CHC
Kevin Gausman: SEA, LAA
Nathan Eovaldi: WAS, HOU
Reynaldo Lopez: MIN, @TEX
Frankie Montas: @DET, CLE
Jake Junis: LAA, @SEA
Felix Hernandez: @BAL, KC
At Your Own Risk
Jonathan Loaisiga: @PHI, BOS
Jordan Zimmermann: OAK, @TOR
Andrew Cashner: SEA, LAA
National League
Strong Plays
Ross Stripling: CHC, COL
Jon Lester: @LAD, MIN
Decent Plays
Kenta Maeda: CHC, COL
Jameson Taillon: @NYM, @SD
Freddy Peralta: KC, @CIN
Gio Gonzalez: @TB, @PHI
Mike Soroka: CIN, @STL
Seth Lugo: PIT, @MIA
Zack Godley: @MIA, SF
Jake Arrieta: NYY, WAS
Tyler Mahle: @ATL, MIL
At Your Own Risk
Vince Velasquez: NYY, WAS
Joey Lucchesi: @TEX, PIT
Tyler Chatwood: @LAD, MIN
Derek Holland: COL, @ARI
Matt Harvey: @ATL, MIL
Chad Bettis: @SF, @LAD
Shelby Miller: @MIA, SF
Dan Straily: ARI, NYM
Streamer City
The following pitchers are generally available in over 50 percent of fantasy leagues and have favorable match-ups this week:
American League
Wednesday, June 27: Mike Minor vs. SD
Minor has pitched better in his last two outings and faces a Padres lineup that has the eighth worst OPS in MLB vs. lefties.
Wednesday, June 27: Blaine Hardy vs. OAK
Hardy is the definition of streamer and is set to face an A’s lineup that is the 11th worst in baseball against lefties (.688 OPS).
Saturday, June 30: Felix Hernandez vs. KC
King Felix has been dethroned, but he has an enticing matchup vs. the Royals on Saturday. KC has the worst OPS in the AL vs. right-handed pitching (.667).
National League
Friday, June 29: Chris Stratton @ ARI
Stratton has been quite mediocre after a quick start to his season, though he’s been consistent recently, allowing three or fewer earned runs in six straight outings. Arizona has the fifth worst OPS in baseball vs. right-handers with the help of the humidor at Chase Field.
Saturday, June 30: Jason Vargas @ MIA
Do you like playing with fire? Vargas has been atrocious this season (8.60 ERA), though he was good in three straight outings until getting clobbered at Coors Field in his last start. Miami has the second worst OPS against lefties this season, only better than the Mets.
Saturday, June 30: Trevor Williams @ SD
Williams struggled until his last start, and he has another favorable matchup ahead at San Diego. The Padres are the worst hitting team in baseball against right-handed pitching.
Total Games
American League
6: BOS, CHW, CLE, KC, MIN, NYY, TB, TEX, TOR
7: BAL, DET, HOU, LAA, OAK, SEA
National League
6: ATL, COL, MIL, NYM, PIT, SD, SF
7: ARI, CHC, CIN, LAD, MIA, PHI, STL, WAS
The Infirmary
Here’s some injuries to prominent players from the last week, and other players to watch for in the coming week. You can get a full listing of injured players at Rotoworld’s Injury Page.
Matt Adams: Out indefinitely (finger)
Christian Arroyo: Placed on DL (oblique)
Ryan Braun: Day-to-day (thumb)
Jay Bruce: Placed on DL (hip)
Lorenzo Cain: Day-to-day (hamstring)
Carlos Carrasco: Placed on DL (elbow)
Zack Cozart: Placed on DL (shoulder)
J.P. Crawford: Out 4-6 weeks (hand)
Eduardo Escobar: Day-to-day (elbow)
Doug Fister: Out indefinitely (knee)
Mike Foltynewicz: Could return this weekend (triceps)
Brett Gardner: Day-to-day (knee)
Evan Longoria: Out 6-8 weeks (hand)
Trey Mancini: Could return Friday (neck)
Brandon Morrow: Placed on DL (back)
Garrett Richards: Placed on DL (hamstring)
Aaron Sanchez: Status unknown (finger)
Jean Segura: Day-to-day (arm)
Tyler Skaggs: Day-to-day (hamstring)
Jorge Soler: Out indefinitely (toe)
Scott Strickland: Out 6-8 weeks (hand)
Chris Taylor: Day-to-day (hamstring)
Nick Tropeano: Placed on DL (shoulder)
Michael Wacha: Out indefinitely (oblique)
Chris Young: Day-to-day (hamstring)
