Not many of my suggested fantasy arms made much noise last week, but none cost you in a big way either. I will however pat myself on the back for seeking a trade for Yu Darvish after stymying the Brew Crew once again. Do whatever it takes to get these six pitchers on your roster by way of trade or picking them off the waiver wire.
SP Walker Buehler (Los Angeles Dodgers) – Last week I told you to add the Dodgers future staff ace to your fantasy watch list. This week, I’m telling you to add him. After limiting the Marlins and Giants to 10 hits and 2 ER with a K/BB ratio of 11:4, it’s safe to say his stuff will translate at the big league level. It’ll likely only get better once he gains more confidence. With Rich Hill back on the DL to nobody’s surprise, Dave Roberts will likely elect to give him more innings. Do yourself a favor and cash in if that turns out to be the case with the Dodgers set to square off against the Padres in Mexico for his next turn.
https://twitter.com/BallparkVids/status/990366617786822656
SP Tyler Skaggs (Los Angeles Angels) – Though he took the loss in his last outing against the Yankees, it was a hard fought defeat and one he competed in till the bitter end. The lefty bounced back nicely from the beating Boston administered upon him by racking up double-digit fantasy tallies against Houston and New York. Those are two of the best offenses in the league! Having allowed just 28 hits and racking up a 32:10 K/BB ratio in just under 33 total innings, Skaggs is an attractive piece to add to the back end of your rotation.
#TylerSkaggs pitches #Angels past Gerrit Cole, Astros https://t.co/DVNWWewXN1 pic.twitter.com/iuI5CQHQwo
— LA Angels Baseball News (@LAAngelsBB) April 24, 2018
SP Andrew Heaney (Los Angeles Angels) – While the 25-year old is yet to truly impress through his first three starts, I’m a believer in his arm. He’s the owner of a 34 percent K rate and only 6.3 percent BB rate, and will enter his fourth start of the season against Baltimore this week off tossing five innings of 1 ER ball with 9 Ks against the Yankees. It might get worse before it gets better with outings at Coors and at home against Houston on the horizon, but once he settles in, his underlying stats show he’s an arm worth taking a flier on right now.
#Angels LHP Andrew Heaney, who, as far as I know, has never been compared to Sandy Koufax, has struck out five of the first seven #Yankees he has faced through two innings.
— Mike DiGiovanna (@MikeDiGiovanna) April 28, 2018
SP Marco Gonzales (Seattle Mariners) – Owned in less than seven percent of fantasy leagues, this lefty has done deep league players a major solid by tossing back-to-back quality starts against the White Sox and Indians. On the road no less! All but one of his six starts has seen him register at least four strikeouts, and he’s gone for eight in two of the last three. A streamer more than anything, he gets the Angels at home where he’ll look to better his poor home stats.
https://twitter.com/BallparkVids/status/990708727538794496
RP Hunter Strickland (San Francisco Giants) – With Mark Melancon being placed on the 60-day DL, Strickland’s job security as the Giants closer only got stronger. He likely didn’t have much to worry about in the first place having ripped off saves in each of his last five opportunities. Hunter hasn’t given up a single hit or walked a batter each of the last four appearances and racked up 6 Ks. San Fran isn’t nearly as bad as it was a season ago, so you could do a lot worse than adding the righty to your arsenal if in need of saves.
What Hunter Strickland learned from John Smoltz — a different kind of slider https://t.co/FJbI5IL0lq
— Peter Gammons (@pgammo) April 30, 2018
SP Luke Weaver (St. Louis Cardinals) – Weaver helped lead me to a fantasy baseball title a short season ago by closing the month of August out on fire. He was a highly touted middle round add in most drafts. So far, the righty has failed to live up to expectations ranking out as the No. 79 ranked pitcher in ESPN leagues. He’s 2-2 with a bloated 5.17 ERA with the Redbirds dropping four of his last five starts. He’s much better than this, so try to snag him on the cheap if his current owner has grown tired of his antics. A rematch with the Cubs might put his former owner on tilt when the trade is said and done.
Luke Weaver allows four runs Sunday https://t.co/MBaJ5nKHDE via @Matt_Van_Winkle #fantasybaseball
— FantasyPros (@FantasyProsMLB) April 30, 2018
Add To Watch List: Trevor Cahill, A.J. Minter, Marcus Stroman, Drew Pomeranz, Tyler Anderson
