Fantasy Baseball 2-Start Pitcher Rankings: Not a great week for streaming, but there's help to be found

The quality of the two-start pitcher list has been perfectly alternating between good and bad weeks, and unfortunately we are on a downward trend this week. This isn’t the worst week to this point of the season, but once we get past the top two options, the remaining hurlers have more bust potential than most managers will be comfortable with. On the hitting side, this is a great time to grab available players on the Tigers and Twins.

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Two-Start Pitchers (listed in order of preference)

Dustin May, Mets, 55% (vs. NYM, @STL)

May has been a mediocre pitcher in virtually every area this year, including ERA (4.20), WHIP (1.24), strikeout rate (24.8%) and walk rate (8.5%). His biggest struggle has been to limit hard contact, as his 90.3 mph average exit velocity is in the 31st percentile. His matchups are slightly harder than average this week, which is offset by pitching for one of baseball’s best teams. Overall, May, who went over 50% rostered this morning, is someone to stream but not someone to be excited about.

Cade Horton, Cubs, 26% (@WSH, @DET)

Horton has been relatively consistent in his initial four starts en route to logging a 3.98 ERA and a 1.23 WHIP. There is nothing in the rookie’s underlying numbers to indicate that he’s ready to break out (7.1 K/9 rate, 1.8 HR/9 rate), but he’s holding his own and is backed by one of baseball’s best offenses. With matchups that are slightly harder than average, Horton is similar to May in that he should be streamed but not coveted.

Luis Severino, Athletics, 35% (vs. MIN, vs. BAL)

On the surface, Severino seems like a viable streaming option. After all, he has respectable ratios (3.89 ERA, 1.23 WHIP) and two upcoming home starts against mediocre offenses. But the location of the starts could be a big problem, as Severino has been a completely different pitcher at home (6.20 ERA) and on the road (0.87 ERA) this year. Optimistic managers should know that his last home start was a good one (6 IP, 2 ER) and that Severino has struggled with base hits rather than long balls at his home venue. This is a risk that could pay off.

Tomoyuki Sugano, Orioles, 30% (@SEA, @ATH)

A low strikeout rate and trouble keeping the ball in the yard are starting to catch up with Sugano, who has allowed nine earned runs in his past three starts. And he could have additional struggles, as most of his ERA estimators are in the mid-4.00’s and his 4.9 K/9 rate is the lowest of any qualified pitcher. His low ceiling and potential for disaster makes Sugano a fringe option at best in 12-team leagues.

Shane Smith, White Sox, 21% (vs. DET, vs. KC)

There are some signs that the wheels are coming off from Smith’s surprising start to the season. The 25-year-old’s stat line was saved by five unearned runs on May 16, before he had a barely respectable start on May 21 (5 IP, 3 ER) and struggled on May 28 (3.2 IP, 3 ER, 5 BB). He allowed a homer in all three starts and had a combination of nine walks and hit batters in his past two outings. Smith still has excellent season-long numbers (2.68 ERA, 1.16 WHIP), but he riskier this week than he initially appears.

Tyler Anderson, Angels, 20% (@BOS, vs. SEA)

Anderson rebounded from a pair of poor starts when he held the Yankees to two runs (one earned) over six innings last time out. He continues to be prone to homers (1.6 HR/9 rate) and rarely dominates opposing hitters (46:24 K:BB ratio). Some of his ERA estimators are north of 5.00, and his start at Fenway Park is a risky one, as that venue tends to play poorly for left-handed starters. In most cases, I would pass on streaming him.

Bowden Francis, Blue Jays, 28% (vs. PHI, @MIN)

After a strong start to the season, the wheels came off for Francis, who logged a 7.57 ERA and a 1.72 WHIP across a one-month stretch that began on April 23. He finally got back on track by throwing five scoreless innings against a slumping Rangers offense last time out, but the right-hander remains too much of a risk to be streamed in most mixed leagues.

One-Start Streamers

In order, here are the best streamers for the week, with their start date and Yahoo roster rate in brackets.

Ryan Weathers @TB (Saturday, 38)
Zack Littell vs. MIA (Friday, 27)
Chris Paddack vs. TOR (Friday, 22)
Clarke Schmidt vs. CLE (Wednesday, 50)
Hayden Birdsong vs. ATL (Saturday, 39)
Gavin Williams vs. HOU (Saturday, 47)
Chad Patrick vs. SD (Friday, 13)
Andrew Heaney vs. PIT (Saturday, 25)
Tony Gonsolin vs. NYM (Thursday, 26)
Landon Knack @STL (Friday, 5)
Cal Quantrill vs. COL (Wednesday, 2)
José Soriano @BOS (Wednesday, 22)
Ryan Gusto @PIT (Wednesday, 4)

Favorable Monday-Thursday hitting matchups

Tigers at White Sox: Chicago has been slightly better than expected in the pitching department (4.09 ERA), but this remains a staff without established hurlers in the rotation or bullpen. With the White Sox using right-handed starters in all four games of this series, left-handed hitting Tigers such as Colt Keith (12%) and Zach McKinstry (36%) are the top-streaming targets. Trey Sweeney (3%) is a deep-league option, as is switch-hitter Wenceel Pérez (1%).

Twins @ Athletics: After getting off to a decent start, the Athletics pitching staff has fallen apart. The team now sits last in baseball with a 5.71 ERA after logging a 6.88 ERA in the month of May. There are several Twins who can be streamed for this four-game series, led by Carlos Correa (30%). Other options include Willi Castro (26%) and Ty France (5%). Trevor Larnach (11%) and Matt Wallner (13%) will be great options against right-handed starters on Monday and Thursday.

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