There’s a ton of quality fantasy baseball pitchers to start this week, as well as some really great waiver wire pickups you may want to consider, as we all make our way down the final stretch of fantasy baseball.
Can’t believe it almost over, can you? There’s less than a month left!
This week, rather than do our normal player highlight at the end, we decided to give you five more options in three categories: Quality Starts, Risky Starts, and Don’t Even Think About Starts.
So let's see what's on tap for this week.
The Top Five Starting Pitchers for Week 15 (8/9 to 8/15) |
| 1. Mike Minor – ATL: Minor takes the place of Kris Medlin, and the Braves are just as high him as they were on Medlin. He’s available in just about every league. |
| 2. Edwin Jackson – CHW: Jackson has changed his delivery and it seems to be working well. He is 4-1 lifetime against the O’s. |
| 3. Kyle Kendrick – PHI: Kendrick has been shining for the Phils, and his last three starts were all quality outings. He faces Torre and the Dodgers on Tuesday. |
| 4. Kevin Slowey – MIN: Slowey is 2-0 in his last four starts and is averaging 7.0 K/9 in that time. He’ll be looking to continue his success on Sunday against Oakland. It's a while a way, but a great way to end your fantasy week. |
| 5. Jeanmar Gomez – CLE: One of the biggest surprises out of Cleveland this year. He’s 2-0 in three starts with 9 strikeouts in 17 IP. He’ll face the O’s Thurs. |
The Top Five Pitchers to Sit for Week 15 (8/9 to 8/15) |
| 1. Chris Volstad – FLA: Since returning from Triple-A New Orleans, Volstad has given up 7 earned runs in 16+ innings and his WHIP is hovering around the 2.00 mark. Volstad is obviously still struggling and is not an option this week. |
| 2. Jon Niese – NYM: After a pretty hot start in June, Niese has stumbled going 2-3 with a 3.27 ERA in the last month. Facing the Rockies will prove to be most difficult. |
| 3. Max Scherzer – DET: There’s not a lot of run support in Detroit right now, and the Rays are up next for Scherzer. This is a situation to avoid. |
| 4. Ryan Dempster – CHC: The Giants are red hot and looking to take first place in the West, and the Cubs can’t give any of their pitchers any sort of offense what-so-ever. Dempster’s ability to strike batters out isn’t worth the start. |
| 5. Armando Galarraga – DET: Jim Leyland says that Galarraga needs to trust his stuff more, and until he does, you shouldn’t trust him. |
Top Three Waiver Wire Pickups for Week 15 (8/9 to 8/15) |
| 1. Tommy Hunter – TEX: He’s 9-1 with a 3.02 ERA and has an average 50% ownership in all leagues, making for a fine waiver wire gem. |
| 2. James McDonald – PIT: What a surprise this guy’s been huh? McDonald fanned 8 Rockies’ batters in his first game as a Pirate, and has sleeping giant written all over him. McDonald is virtually un-owned and also qualifies as a reliever. |
| 3. Barry Enright – ARI: Another quality waiver gem, Enright has yet to allow more than three runs in a game; is 3-2 with a 2.81 ERA, and is owned less than 5% in any given league. |
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High Quality Starts |
Risky Starts |
Don’t Even Think About It! |
| Vin Mazzaro vs. Mariners: Mon | Jon Lester vs. Yanks: Mon | Carlos Zambrano vs. Giants: Mon |
| Cliff Lee vs. Yanks: Wend | Johnny Cueto vs. Cardinals: Tues | Rick Romero vs. Red Sox: Tues |
| Brett Myers vs. Pirates: Fri | Zach Greinke vs. Angels: Wend | Tom Gorzelanny vs. Giants: Wend |
| David Price vs. Tigers and Os: Mon and Sun | Daniel Hudson vs. Brewers: Wend | Kevin Milwood vs. Indians: Thurs |
| Ubaldo Jimenez vs. Mets and Brewers: Tues and Sun | Scott Kazmir vs. Blue Jays: Fri | Ross Ohlendorf vs. Astros: Fri |
Got a question? Leave it below and I’ll be sure to answer all of them.
All starts are projected starts listed on MLB.com, and are subject to change throughout the week.
