Happy Monday, Razzball faithful!
A pre-emptive apology for this week, and as the resident Canadian here I assume the “Sorry” is a bit of a stereotypical expectation. I took the kiddos out west this week to visit an old friend for his 50th birthday, and after a few days of surfing and fishing in the North Pacific Ocean, I had to type this one up a bit early.
I wrote up our lede at 3 AM in an empty Winnipeg airport mid-week, then saw the final line from his game on Saturday against the Mariners. (More on that later in the notes).
The actual “Sorry” is for basing this week’s Top 100 Starting Pitchers on games completed as of Saturday, August 10. I won’t have enough information (or time) to include Sunday matchups, so please take this list with a tiny grain of sea salt. I promise to be back in full next Sunday when life returns to post-vacation mode and I’m likely back to being grumpy and sad to not see mountains outside the bedroom window.
Speaking of grumpy, the last few years of Sean Manaea have been one surly ride. When I rostered him in a few leagues in and around the dreaded “Covid years”, the post-game peek at the box score went something like this…
Are you a fan of old school numbers?
Well, then have a gander at the 10 GS, the 7-6 record, the 1 SV, and 3 HLDs from 2023.
Or maybe that 4.44 ERA? Woof.
Do you want to peek at the 2022 stats? That’s the year he started 28 games, posted an 8-9 record, and threw up (vomit pun fully intended) his worst career ERA of 4.96.
Oh, do you fancy the fancier fantasy metrics? How about the 4.53 FIP from his year with the Padres in 2022?
Are you wild about WAR? Well, Manaea has posted a WAR above 1.8 just once from 2018-2023.
BUT! Is it possible that the former (way back) Oakland ace has resurrected some sort of dormant promise from the days of yore? Are those surface stats somewhat misleading?
Listen, I get it. If you’re trying to figure out which end of the see-saw I’m standing on, it hasn’t been that simple to spot.
Last week I said in the Taillon notes that I’m getting tired of running out the seasoned veteran names over the exciting young prospects. Now I’m holding a magnifying glass over a 32-year-old Sean Manaea as our Week 20 lede?
We’re now well into the hazy August days and it’s becoming more about which pitchers can put together a string of reliable starts and which ones are riding a sustainable heater.
In each of the last three years, Manaea has put up a 9.74, 8.89, and 9.79 K/9.
Yes, his 3.45 BB/9 this year is the highest it’s ever been in his career, but he’s also managed to limit his HR allowed to a career best 0.90 in 2024.
Are there flashier names than Sean Manaea? Yes.
Do those young exciting recalled arms have a better upside in keeper leagues than the Maui Monster? Uh huh.
Is it a good idea to roll out a few of those flashier prospect names if you’re banking on solid starts? Will those rookie kids be solid providers of helpful innings for your fantasy rotation as you seek to add strikeouts and wins while chasing down that league championship?
I suppose, when the question of “Do you feel like adding Manaea Manaea over some more electrifying young names in your FAAB bids is a good idea?”
You can’t argue with 4 IP 8 H 0 ER 1 BB 21 Ks in his last two starts, that’s for sure.
Those pink aliens from The Muppets might say…
Manaea Manaea Do Do Do Do You?
But where does Manaea land in this week’s Top 100 Starting Pitcher list? Surely no higher than Top 75, right? (And don’t call me Shirley).
As always. before we get to the list, I need to plug a couple of things for y’all first. If you want to check the spot I usually have open when flipping through my information on Sunday afternoons, you’re looking for that Player Rater leaderboard. This is always a great resource to use if you’re doing research. A bit of this, and a splash of that goes into the prep work for our weekly Top 100 Starting Pitchers list.
Of course, if you’re one of those doubting-your-own-gut-instinct fantasy managers, or simply want to use a great resource that will point you in the right direction every week, The Streamonator is here to help you answer those burning questions.
If you haven’t signed up for it, this should be your go-to reference for the entire season. It will save you a lot of time researching and often includes those “Oh, I never thought about that” solutions. The Razzball subscriptions are well worth the price of admission. If you’re serious about improving throughout the season, check the link, yo.
| RANK
(LAST WEEK) |
Name | TEAM | NOTES |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Tarik Skubal | Tigers | 13th win against Seattle on Thursday with 9 Ks in 7 innings. That’s good enough to hold the top spot this week. |
| 2 | Zack Wheeler | Phillies | I said last week that these guys are more of a 1(a) and 1(b). He didn’t get the win last week but struck out 8 in 6 innings with the same number of ER that Skubal had (2). |
| 3 | Chris Sale | Braves | 25 Ks in his last 17.2 innings. The only criticism is he hasn’t recorded a win in any of those three starts. |
| 4 (9) | Tyler Glasnow | Dodgers | QS against PHI with 9 Ks moves him back up into the Top 5. |
| 5 (6) | Paul Skenes | Pirates | The Allegheny Ace took his second loss of the year, this time against the River (Ryan). 6 IP, 6 H, 4 ER, 1 BB, 8 Ks isn’t even that bad of a line, but especially when you consider it was against LAD. |
| 6 (7) | Dylan Cease | Padres | A 3-hour rain delay washed his Tuesday start. Hold here. |
| 7 (5) | Corbin Burnes | Orioles | The 6 innings of 4-hit ball isn’t bad. The 3 ER is acceptable. The 5 Ks is ok. But this isn’t vintage Corbin Burnes. A no-decision Saturday but got a win last week when he pitched worse. Go figure. |
| 8 (4) | George Kirby | Mariners | 5 IP, 3 ER, 8 baserunners, 7 Ks, ERA at 3.13. He proved he was mortal against the Tigers. 2 HR allowed and his 8th loss of the year. But still…only one walk. |
| 9 (13) | Logan Gilbert | Mariners | He threw 7 innings of near perfect ball with just 3 hits and one walk on Saturday. 0 ER but still just 7 wins on the year to show for it. |
| 10 | Cole Ragans | Royals | 6 1/3 IP, 1 ER, 8 baserunners, 7 Ks, ERA at 3.27. He’s firmly entrenched in the Top 10. |
| 11 | Jack Flaherty | Dodgers | 5.2 IP, 9 hits, 4 ER, BB, 10 K, 9th win. It’s like the magic ratio for SPs. If a guy gives up 4+ ER but strikes out double digits it’s a balanced outing. |
| 12 (14) | Shoto Imanaga | Cubs | Shota through the heart with an arrow of lurve. 7 IP, 2 ER, 10 Ks! |
| 13 (8) | Grayson Rodriguez | Orioles | IL’ed with a lat injury. It’s never a good sign when your manager says he “hopes he’ll be back in September”. Keelin gave us a dynamite title and writeup on the loss of Baltimore’s anchor, too. Check it out. |
| 14 (15) | Luis Castillo | Mariners | More below. |
| 15 (12) | Aaron Nola | Phillies | Ticker Shock! Arizona scored 11 runs against the Phillies on Saturday but Nola only surrendered 3 of them (earned). He got tagged with the loss even though Yunior Marte gave up 7 in 0.2 IP. |
| 16 | Blake Snell | Giants | Mr. Second Half is heating up. |
| 17 (18) | Luis Gil | Yankees | 5 IP, 0 ER, 2 H,, 6 Ks, ERA at 3.06. Yes! What a stud…oh wait… 5 BBs. |
| 18 (19) | Tanner Houck | Red Sox | 6.0 IP, 4 hits, ER, 3 BB, K. Was all lined up for the W until Lucas Sims showed us a live SIMulation of a pile of crap giving up 4 ER. |
| 19 (21) | Gerrit Cole | Yankees | 5.1 IP 6 H, 1 ER, 2 BB, 10 Ks and we’re BACK! Unless you bring in Luke Weaver to relieve him… (5 ER, 0.1 IP). |
| 20 (30) | Bailey Ober | Twins | 6.0 IP, 2 hits, 0 ER, 2 BB, 9 K, 12th win. Looking at numbers like this, especially the win total, makes it easy to forget that he was demoted for his ineffectiveness this year. |
| 21 (22) | Michael King | Padres | Allowed more than 2 ER for the first time in 6 starts. Are you down with the King? Because DMC stands for devastating Mike control. (He’s walked 2+ just once in his last 14 starts). |
| 22 (26) | Sonny Gray | Cardinals | 7 IP, 2 ER, 5 baserunners, 6 Ks. And…we’re back! |
| 23 (17) | Pablo Lopez | Twins | 5 IP, 7 H, 4 ER, 1 BB, 2 Ks. Jeffrey Springs the sequel. What an ace! With jokes like this, he might as well be George Lopez. |
| 24 (25) | Zac Gallen | Diamondbacks | The Gallen see-saw continues to tip up and down. 7 IP, 5 ER, ERA at 3.75. Then 4.1 IP, 1 ER, 2 BBs, 3 Ks vs Nola and the Philles. |
| 25 (23) | Freddy Peralta | Brewers | Freddy KBB stands for Freddy Kickinthe Balls/Belly.Another 4 ER in 5 IP in his last outing. |
| 26 (27) | Hunter Greene | Reds | More below. |
| 27 (28) | Taj Bradley | Rays | 4 2/3 IP, 5 ER, ERA at 3.07. More like Taj BADLEY! Ha! (Yes, that one was bad). There’s nothing worse than profiling a young pitcher and seeing him fall on his face a couple of weeks later. Well, there is a lot worse, but this is still not great. |
| 28 (20) | Garrett Crochet | White Sox | More below. |
| 29 | Tanner Bibee | Guardians | Supposed to pitch yesterday at MIN after 12 days rest (shoulder). |
| 30 (38) | Zach Eflin | Rays | 7.0 IP, 4 hits, 0 ER, BB, 7 K, 8th win, ERA at 3.83 ERA. That single walk brings his total up to 15in 129.1 IP. |
| 31 | Ronel Blanco | Astros | Winless in 5 starts since July 9th. The Ks are still there, though. |
| 32 | Logan Webb | Giants | Threw 7 innings of 4-hit ball and gave up one earned run. 8 Ks is nice to see too. |
| 33 | Ranger Suarez | Phillies | Apparently he’s feeling much better according to Rob Thomson. Due back on August 20th and set for a rehab start this week. Monitor before activating. |
| 34 | Max Fried | Braves | 5 IP, 7 H, 4 ER, 3 BB, 9 Ks. Not bad for a start in Denver? Ya, that’s all I’ve got. |
| 35 (40) | Bryce Miller | Mariners | 6.0 IP, 3 hits, 0 ER, BB, 6 K, 9th win. Oh look! Another Seattle starter throws a QS with No ER or walks. |
| 36 (37) | Mitch Keller | Pirates | 4.0 IP, 7 hits, 7 ER, 2 BB, 5 K. I’d like to blame the Dodgers offense for this one, and the fact that he hadn’t allowed more than 2 ER in his last 5 starts points to that being a valid blame target. |
| 37 (39) | Framber Valdez | Astros | More below. |
| 38 (35) | Seth Lugo | Royals | 5.1 IP, 6 H, 6 R (4 ER), 4 BB, 4 Ks. how is his ERA still under 3? |
| 39 (41) | Reynaldo Lopez | Braves | Eligible to return from the IL on Saturday August 17th. |
| 40 (46) | Nick Lodolo | Reds | More below |
| 41 (43) | Robbie Ray | Giants | 6.0 IP, 5 hits, 2 ER, 3 BB, 7 K |
| 42 (36) | Kevin Gausman | Blue Jays | More below. |
| 43 (45) | Nick Pivetta | Red Sox | Lost velocity and had his turn skipped this week. Sit him and keep an eye on the news in case he’s headed to the IL to rest. |
| 44 | Clayton Kershaw | Dodgers | 4.2 IP, 5 H, 1 ER, 0 BB, 5 Ks. 81 pitches. That’s much more like the Clayton Kershaw we’ve seen before. Here’s hoping he can go at least 6 innings in his next one (today at MLW). |
| 45 (47) | Justin Verlander | Astros | Had a rehab start Saturday and will likely need one more. |
| 46 (42) | Shane Baz | Rays | 4 1/3 IP, 4 ER, ERA at 4.30. Uggggggh. So much for that streak of quality starts. |
| 47 (56) | Justin Steele | Cubs | 6 IP, 6 H, 0 ER, 2 BB, 8 Ks. Of course he rebounds this week…Justin case you thought he was cooked. |
| 48 | Jose Berrios | Blue Jays | 7.0 IP, 6 hits, ER, BB, 8 K, 10th win, ERA at 3.97. 10 wins for the guy with the second highest HR against in the league? And it’s still the Blue Jays offense behind him? What kind of Twilight Zone stuff is this? |
| 49 | Max Scherzer | Rangers | “Could” return on the 15th. Monitor for now. |
| 50 | Gavin Stone | Dodgers | 4.2 IP, 6 H, 3 ER, 1 BB, 2 Ks should be enough to move him down, but with Riv Ryan’s injury he’s now in no danger of getting extra rest. He can stay up here for now. |
| 51 | Nathan Eovaldi | Rangers | More below. |
| 52 (53) | Bryan Woo | Mariners | More below. |
| 53 (56) | Erick Fedde | Cardinals | I’ll defer to Grey for this one – “ 5 IP, 1 ER, 6 baserunners, 6 Ks, ERA at 3.28. The demented thing. The really nutty thing. If we were redrafting right now, I’d take Kutter Crawford over Fedde, and watch Fedde blow him away again.” It’s like he’s reading my brainwaves. |
| 54 (52) | Matt Waldron | Padres | 4.1 IP, 5 ER, 5 strikeouts, 5 spots down…almost. |
| 55 (24) | Joe Ryan | Twins | A similar report to Grayson Rodriguez in that the injury with take “several weeks to months” to heal. Ugh. He’ll likely slip off the list if anything new (and negative) surfaces, |
| 56 (54) | Jeffrey Springs | Rays | 5 IP, 4 ER, 2 HR, 3 BB, 3 Ks. 87 pitches. we’re not going to see him throw more than 7 innings in a start are we? |
| 57 (64) | Christopher Sanchez | Phillies | 6 IP, 5 H, 1 ER, 1 BB, 2 Ks. Just when it looks like the wheels are going to blow right off and send a lightning bolt sized crack through the Liberty Bell, this guy pulls off one of these. The strikeouts aren’t great but there are a lot worse arms you could be running out every 5 days. |
| 58 | Jared Jones | Pirates | Please just come back when you’re eligible (August 21st). My mixed league team needs you! |
| 59 (60) | Carlos Rodon | Yankees | 5.2 IP, 3 H, 0 ER, 6 Ks, and his 13th win?! Let’s go, bay-beeeee…and 5 walks…oh. |
| 60 (61) | Gavin Williams | Guardians | 73 pitches to get through 6 innings. Williams picked up his second (consecutive) win and gave up one earned run. 3 H, 0 BB, 4 Ks? Yep we’ll take it. |
| 61 (62) | Brady Singer | Royals | 5 2/3 IP, 4 ER, 11 baserunners, 6 Ks, ERA at 3.03. Another Ratio surprise? See Heaney, Andrew |
| 62 (63) | Brayan Bello | Red Sox | 4.2 IP, 5 H, 3 ER, 3 BB, 6Ks. He threw 89 pitches, so he wasn’t exactly cruising. He’s supposed to start today after a paternity list break, but double check before starting in daily leagues. |
| 63 (73) | Spencer Schwellenbach | Braves | I wrote this up before his start yesterday in Colorado, so it could look really bad…but he does have 29 Ks in his last 20 IP. |
| 64 (57) | Kutter Crawford | Red Sox | 3 2/3 IP, 6 ER, ERA at 4.11. 411? Ya, I’ve got the 411 on Kutter…and it’s not good. If you haven’t “Kut” the league leader in HR allowed yet, you should probably consider it. |
| 65 (71) | Yusei Kikuchi | Blue Jays | 5 1/3 IP, 2 ER, 7 baserunners, 8 Ks, ERA at 4.62. |
| 66 | Brandon Pfaadt | Diamondbacks | Aug. 7th – 6 1/3 IP, 2 ER, 5 baserunners, 6 Ks, ERA at 3.93. |
| 67 (70) | Chris Bassitt | Blue Jays | Almost identical start to Imanaga (one strikeout short). Like they say, every once in a while the sun shines on a Bassitt hound’s nuts every once in a while…wait, maybe they don’t say that. |
| 68 (59) | Nestor Cortes | Yankees | More below. |
| 69 (65) | Hunter Brown | Astros | What’s going down? My blood pressure every time he posts a start like this 6 IP, 1 ER, 5 baserunners, 4 Ks, ERA at 3.98. But then he implodes for 7 ER and it goes right back up. |
| 70 (67) | Ryan Pepiot | Rays | Threw a rehab start Saturday. |
| 71 (74) | River Ryan | Dodgers | 4.1 IP (56 pitches), 4 H, 0 ER, 4 Ks. Building up to 6 innings should be next on the “goals list”. Well, that was the initial note…until I realized he was removed with forearm tightness. “Worse than originally thought” is the scary part here., Waiting for MRI results from yesterday. Hold here for now, but it doesn’t sound too promising. |
| 72 (81) | Sean Manaea | Mets | Huge game v MIN 7 IP 2 H 0 ER 1 BB 11 K, then needed 85 pitches to get through 3 innings in Seattle. The 3 ER and 3 Ks wasn’t all that bad. But those 5 BBs give those that are saying “NO” in response to the question in our title here a solid leg to stand on. |
| 73 (80) | Colin Rea | Brewers | 7 IP, 0 ER, 6 baserunners, 9 Ks. The Archduke of Anagrams’ ERA is good too (3.38). |
| 74 (72) | Michael Wacha | Royals | Steady as she goes. 7 IP, 5 H, 2 ER, 2 BB, 6 Ks. |
| 75 (82) | Ryne Nelson | Arizona | 7.0 IP, 3 hits, 2 ER, BB, 9 K. Keeps on chugging along. |
| 76 (NR) | Spencer Arrighetti | Astros | I could’ve sworn he was already back on the list, but another huge strikeout game makes it official. This time he mowed down the Red Sox in Boston. I guess one way to not have to worry about opponents blasting bombs over the Green Minster is to just strike guys out. He did that 13 times on Saturday. |
| 77 | Yariel Rodriguez | Blue Jays | More below. |
| 78 (69) | MacKenzie Gore | Nationals | 5 IP 4 ER 8 H 2 BB 6 Ks. It’s not great. And maybe it feels like a letdown because he was touted to break-out into so much more. |
| 79 (75) | Ben Lively | Guardians | 5 IP, 4 ER, 8 baserunners, 2 Ks, ERA at 3.59.
Don’t pull the plug just yet but it’s ok to massage that twitchy mouse finger a little bit. |
| 80 (68) | Jake Irvin | Nationals | 5 IP, 5 ER, ERA at 3.76. We’re not still thinking this guy is good…are we? |
| 81 (76) | Jose Soriano | Angels | The strikeout upside is still huge. I traded him in my mixed league on Saturday for Joey Loperfido and Andrew Heaney. |
| 82 (79) | Edward Cabrera | Marlins | 7.0 IP, 4 H, 0 ER, 3 BB, 4 K. |
| 83 (NR) | Eduardo Rodriguez | Diamondbacks | 5 2/3 IP, 3 ER, 6 baserunners, 1 K, as he was activated. I guess he doesn’t need a rehab start? |
| 84 (83) | Luis Severino | Mets | It’s not like we didn’t know he was going to get booted around in that thin Colorado air. He is still throwing 97 MPH bullets though, so… |
| 85 | Andrew Abbott | Reds | 6 IP, 6 ER, ERA at 3.70. More like A BUTT! (Yes, that one was for my 8-year old). |
| 86 (94) | Tobias Myers | Brewers | 7 IP, 0 ER, 0 BB, 9 Ks. Quietly building on momentum. He’s allowed two or fewer earned runs in each of his last 5 GS. |
| 87 (84) | Charlie Morton | Braves | 2 2/3 IP, 8 ER, ERA at 4.47. Magic Morton pulled a dead rabbit out of his hat in this one. |
| 88 (87) | Tyler Phillips | Phillies | 5 IP, 4 ER, 7 baserunners, 3 Ks, ERA at 4.83. Not quite as nice as his previous 3 outings. |
| 89 (96) | Andrew Heaney | Rangers | More below. |
| 90 (NR) | David Festa | Twins | 22 Ks in his last 3 games (14.1 IP) with just 3 total ER over that span. An easy replacement for Javier Assad this week. |
| 91 (NR) | Tyler Mahle | Rangers | Mehhhh. I wouldn’t be streaming him at Fenway next time but you could probably do worse especially if it’s an AL only league. |
| 92 (91) | James Paxton | Red Sox | Big Maple with a solid start at Kauffman – 6 IP, 2 ER, 6 baserunners, 4 Ks, ERA at 4.42. Hold here for now. |
| 93 (100) | JP Sears | Athletics | 7 IP, 1 ER, 4 baserunners, 5 Ks, ERA at 4.35. Validation for his inclusion in our list last week, if not a wee bit low. Maybe he should be in the Top 50. JP…I mean, JK. |
| 94 (78) | Jameson Taillon | Cubs | 5.0 IP, 9 hits, 5 ER, 4 K, 8th win, ERA at 3.50. Blech. 11 ER in his last 2 starts. |
| 95 (93) | Zack Littell | Rays | Littell wins the “Battle of the Bunk” among himself, Stroman, and Quintana for the last open spot this week. |
| 96 (86) | Tyler Anderson | Angels | Running out of room! |
| 97 (88) | Hayden Birdsong | Giants | This birdsong was so sweet … until the Washington freakin’ Nationals shot a pellet gun right through its throat for 7 ER in 2 IP. Only one lousy strikeout too. Ugh. |
| 98 (NR) | Albert Suarez | Orioles | “Maybe if Grayson goes to the IL. 5 scoreless innings. 6 Ks.” That’s what I wrote for my note early this week, and lo and behold…More below. |
| 99 (NR) | Nick Martinez | Reds | Back-to-back scoreless starts with zero walks since being inserted in the rotation. 12 Ks in 12 IP over those GS. |
| 100 (99) | DJ Herz | Nationals | 2 2/3 IP, 2 ER, ERA at 4.41. Short outing due to a rain delay and not ineffectiveness. Hold here for now. |
BIGGEST DUMPERS: With apologies to Cal Raleigh, these are some of the biggest dumpers (in value, not pants size).
Garrett Crochet – I mean…this is probably too low of a ranking based on ability and the excellent success he’s had this season. But there are far too many red flags here to keep him in the Top 20. Fighting with the team about inning management? Publicly stating he would not pitch for a contender in October without an extension? Failing to throw more than 4 innings in any of his last 6 starts? Getting lit up for 7 ER in 2.1 IP against the CHC last week? It’s all the definition of “not good”.
Kevin Gausman – 8 IP, 2 ER, 6 baserunners, 2Ks, ERA at 4.42. The strikeouts, or lack thereof, are enough to…make a…I can’t even type it…my eyes are getting too misty.
Nestor Cortes – 4 2/3 IP, 6 ER, ERA at 4.42. As Neil Young would say…”Cortez the (ratio) Killer”. Get this jinx away from my fantasy teams yesterday, please.
Nathan Eovaldi – Big Nate needed 81 pitches to complete just 3 innings against NYY on Saturday. 6 H, 3 ER, 2 BB, 4 Ks isn’t a bad line, but he has to give us 6+ innings in each start to be worth running out there against any team. I’ve got the greasy monocle on him for now and would be worried if you’re carrying him as one of your rotation anchors.
Yariel Rodriguez – Not really a dumper this week in the true sense of the term, but this is more about the Jays ability to score runs being in the dumps. 5.2 IP, 5 H, 1 ER, 1 BB, 5 Ks. A tough luck loser in a 1-0 game against Oakland. Because why would the Jays want to start providing their guys with offense now? (Yes, they’ve scored 481 runs in 2024, which is good for 7th worst in all of MLB). I’d be honest if I said I assumed the Blue Jays team ERA was much better than their anemic run scoring abilities…but that 4.58 team ERA is better than only two other teams (Chicago White Sox and Colorado). Sad emoji.
Albert Suarez – Another bit of a cheat here, but this dumper is more about Grayson Rodriguez being dumped into the unhealthy bin. This Mike C quote from his FAAB article on Saturday summed it up nicely. “Suarez has been a dependable arm, pitching to a 3.66 ERA, 3.76 FIP, and 7.2 K/9 over 83.2 innings this season, and should garner plenty of opportunities at wins with the Orioles”. Now that Grayson is out, he should have solidified his spot in the rotation.
BIGGEST JUMPERS: Who’s got hops? These are some of the biggest jumpers in value this week.
Luis Castillo – 6 IP, 5 H, 3 ER, 0 BB, 9 Ks. 99 pitches. This is what we’re looking for (and would’ve been perfect if he’d given up 1-2 fewer runs). I said a couple weeks ago that I had faith he would step it up for the second half as a go-to arm for a Seattle stretch run. It’s not like they need to rely on him, though, with that rotation looking like throwback to the early 90s Braves’ stable of SPs.
Hunter Greene – 6 IP, 3 ER, 8 baserunners, 5 Ks, ERA at 2.90. I traded Greene to Grey for Chad Green in the Perts league last week because I’m ahead of projected innings, at the top of strikeouts/wins, and needed to make up some ground in saves. I told Truss we can call this the “Cheech and Chong trade” AKA The Exchanging Greene for Green.
Framber Valdez – He may not be slotted into the Top 5 like he was in the War Room this spring, but Framber took a big step back towards his preseason top-ranking status in his last start,. The Houston SP was thisclose to throwing a no hitter! 8.2 IP, 2 ER, 1 H, 3 BB, 5 Ks. That’s 25 Ks in his last 20 IP and 2 or fewer ER in four of his last five starts. It’s likely time to ride the hot hand and hope for the best.
Nick Lodolo – YEAHHHH BOYYYYY! MA BOO IS BACK! 6 IP, 2 H, 2 ER, 3 BB, 7 Ks is pretty impressive…until you see it was against the Meh-lins. Side note : Lodolo is absolutely a word that Flavor Flav would have used in the lyrics sheet on Fear of a Black Planet. I mean, he does throw Harder Than You Think. There are still some fantasy managers out there that Don’t Believe The Hype, but if you’re one of them, I Can’t Do Nuttin’ For Ya Man because, trust me, He Got Game.
Bryan Woo – 6 2/3 IP, 3 ER, 6 baserunners, 7 Ks, ERA at 2.27. 88 pitches. Woo throwing close to 90 pitches is like a seasoned veteran going 135. All kidding aside this is encouraging news. I said that I’d heard a few weeks back (on the Mariners’ broadcast), that they’d be managing Woo’s workload and likely limiting him to 75-80 pitches per start the rest of the way.
Andrew Heaney – 6 IP, 1 ER, 1 hit, 1 walk, 4 Ks, ERA at 3.99. If anyone had guessed that Heaney would be sitting at 115 IP, 109 H, 111 Ks and just 32 BBs with a sub-4.00 ERA in early August, they would probably be able to give you his exact time of birth…because that one person would likely be his grandmother.
OOF – Which players slipped out of our Top 100 this week?
Clarke Schmidt (injury finally pushes him out for a healthy body)
Javier Assad
Marcus Stroman
Jose Quintana
Bailey Falter (rain delay last game didn’t help his case this week)
WHEE! Which Players vaulted into our Top 100 this week?
Spencer Arrighetti
David Festa
Tyler Mahle
Nick Martinez
Albert Suarez
That’s all for this week! We’re off for one last surf in the North Pacific Ocean before we head out camping for a few days.
I hope you enjoyed it! Next week, I’ll post the Top 100 Starting Pitchers with some write-ups on some of the arms that I think need a bit more attention than others
Drop some comments in the chat if you’re feeling extra fired up about some of the names I do (or don’t) have here. Have a great week!
Follow me @marmosdad on Twitter/X and Bluesky @marmosdad.bsky.social
