Thank goodness for weekend baseball! While many of us are celebrating, perhaps more than a few fantasy managers are searching for starters to get them into position to win. No question, most quality pitchers are already on rosters. Where could one turn at a time like this? The answer is to find available pitchers going to the mound that day that are in favorable situations. That is where this fantasy baseball weekend streamers comes into play. Let’s not waste another second and take a look at the starting pitchers that will lead their teams to victory. Just remember that rotations are subject to change, and all starters should be verified before any moves are made.
Friday’s Best Streaming Pitcher Options
Marco Gonzales, Seattle Mariners, 38% Owned
Granted, there are not a lot of good streaming options for starting pitching Friday night. Many of the pitchers are either their team’s top starters or named at the last minute. Marco Gonzales himself may not be available in a lot of leagues and he certainly faces a quality opponent in the Mets. However, as is often the case, one must look underneath the obvious to find a potential gem.
As successful as the Mets have been this season, they struggle against left-handed pitching. As of this writing, New York only ranks 24th in the Majors against southpaws with a .622 OPS, while posting a slim .215 batting average and a .304 OBP. An even bigger indication of how New York has scuffled against lefties as that they only have five homers on season against them. Only five teams in baseball have fewer.
As for Gonzales, he comes into the game having lost three straight decisions. That is more on the team than him, however, as Gonzales hasn’t allowed more than three runs in a start. Further, he has pitched into the sixth inning in his last two efforts and has a respectable 3.91 ERA on the year. Obviously, there is risk here going up against the first place Mets. Even so, without a lot of other options, Gonzales is the best streaming option for Friday night’s games, if available.
Zach Davies, Arizona Diamondbacks, 1.8% Owned
Perhaps Gonzales isn’t available or doesn’t light a manager’s fire. If that is the case, there is a pitcher who is quite available that hasn’t allowed an earned run in his last 11.1 innings. That pitcher would be Zach Davies. He was especially smooth in his last start against Colorado, pitching 6.1 innings, allowing just three hits while striking out six and walking two. Davies also induced 14 swinging strikes. Once upon a time, Davies’ ERA was unsightly at 5.40.
However, he has lowered that to an extremely user friendly 3.34. He has also registered outstanding WHIPs of 0.79 and 0.80 his last two times out. Additionally, his opponent Friday, the Cubs, are in the bottom half of the league against righties with their .644 OPS. Even further, only five teams have a worse slugging percentage than the Cubs’ .344. Add it all together and Davies has earned his place on this fantasy baseball weekend streamers edition.
Saturday’s Best Streaming Pitcher Options
Bruce Zimmermann, Baltimore Orioles, 18.6% Owned
There are few pitchers that are going to the mound Saturday that could find themselves in a better situation than Bruce Zimmermann. He comes into the game pitching well in 2022 with a 2-1 record along with a 2.67 ERA and a 1.19 WHIP. Even better, Zimmermann has put up 81 fantasy points for his managers. He is coming off his best start, as he gave up two runs on five hits with five strikeouts and no walks in six innings against Kansas City. Zimmermann has been a strikeout machine thus far, with exactly 30 in 30.1 innings pitched.
Of course, all of that sounds great. Even better is the opponent Zimmermann. In this case, that opponent is Detroit. Despite their namesake, Tigers has been largely toothless in 2022, especially lately. This past week alone, Detroit endured 24 innings without scoring a single run. Fortunately for them, they broke that streak, but Detroit’s bats are nearly invisible at this point. They are also in the bottom of the league versus left-handers with a .655 OPS. If a manager is searching for a streamable pitcher this day, Zimmermann goes to the top of the list.
Michael Pineda, Detroit Tigers, 4.6% Owned
Truthfully, it has to be rare to recommend two pitchers from the same game. Perhaps this is the first time it has been done. However, all the stars point to Michael Pineda pitching extremely well this weekend. Pineda is coming off his best 2022 start against Oakland. Pineda pitched 6.2 innings, his longest start of the year. In addition, Pineda only allowed two runs on six hits with four strikeouts and two walks. Unfortunately, he lost the decision, as Detroit’s hitters got shut down (see above).
Best of all, aside from allowing four runs to his former Minnesota team, Pineda has pitched efficiently this season. Coming into Saturday, he has a 3.43 ERA and a 1.14 WHIP. He has pitched at least five innings in all but one start. Additionally, the Orioles are middle of the road against right handers with a .686 OPS. Clearly, Zimmermann is the priority add of the two, but if only Pineda is available, that will work for his managers. Pineda gets a high recommendation on this fantasy baseball weekend streamers edition.
Other Saturday Streamer Choices
If another manager gets to the above choices before you, don’t despair. Check out the Angels’ Michael Lorenzen (19.9% owned) against Oakland or Texas’ Glenn Otto (1.8% owned) against Boston. The A’s rank dead last in the league in OPS versus right handers with a .552 OPS and Boston ranks 25th at .638. No doubt, there are plenty of streaming options available for Saturday’s action.
Sunday’s Best Streaming Pitcher Options
Tyler Wells, Baltimore Orioles, 8.1% Owned
When it comes to Major League starting pitching, there are several much more well-known options than Tyler Wells. Based on the stats he has built up this season, that needs to change and fast. Over his last three starts covering 16 innings, Wells has only allowed four earned on 12 hits. He has also struck out 11 without issuing a free pass. In his last start, Well went six innings against the Royals, winning his first decision of the year.
Best of all, he brought 24 fantasy points home to his manager’s teams. So far in 2022, Wells has a very respectable 3.75 ERA and an excellent 1.13 WHIP. The Tigers are even worse when facing right-handed pitching than left. Only Oakland has a worse OPS against righties than Detroit’s .565. They have also only hit 10 homers against them, last in all of baseball. In other words, if pressed for a win Sunday, get Wells into your fantasy lineup. Clearly, he gets a high recommendation on this fantasy baseball weekend streamers edition.
Humberto Castellanos, Arizona Diamondbacks, 0.8% Owned
Last but not least, Humberto Castellanos brings home this edition as the final recommendation. The above description of the Cubs’ issues with righties on the mound certainly apply here as well. As to Castellanos himself, except for one start against the Cardinals, he has pitched very well this season. St Louis pummeled him for five runs in just two innings.
However, three runs are all that Castellanos has allowed in his last 11 innings. He has only waked one batter while striking out eight in that same period. Even better, Castellanos has delivered 34 fantasy points in his last two efforts. Obviously, that sets him up well against Chicago Sunday. If there is a need, go ahead and grab Castellanos off the waiver wire. He is set up to deliver a big reward.
The Last Word
Thank you for joining me for this fantasy baseball weekend streamers edition! As always, I welcome any and all suggestions, comments and input from my readers. Agree or disagree with any of the selections? Have players to add? Let’s discuss! Follow me on twitter @kevin62wilsea. Please feel free to share this article. Be sure to turn to Belly Up Sports and Belly Up Fantasy Sports & Picks for the MLB, NBA, NFL, NHL happenings and all the latest sports news!