Welcome to week six of Fantasy Baseball. This is a fun time of year as we are starting to believe the starts players have gotten off to, both good and bad. We’re buying low and selling high, and we are hesitant to drop some of the starters we have spotted over the past couple weeks who look like they might be keepers. But right now there are a lot of good pitchers with good match-ups out there for the second week in a row. This won’t last long so don’t be lulled into thinking this is a “piece of cake”. Wait until one of your DL pitchers gets activated. Who are you going to drop?

Speaking of a “Piece of cake” I finally finished off the plumbing project that has consumed my back yard for a while now. We couldn’t get a snake through my main drain to near the road where the clog was, so my plumbing system got a bit irritable if you know what I mean. The plumber said we have to dig and slapped me with an estimate of about $2 grand. No thanks, I needed the exercise anyway. So myself and a friend of my daughter dug our way to China and look what we found. That is not the remains of a newly discovered Triassic Reptile laying in my grass. That is the pipe I was trying to snake. We amputated it with a sawzall and wove in some smooth PVC piping to finish it off. Then added a clean-out for next time so there will be no need to dig. Now I know more about plumbing than I will hopefully ever have to use.

When I write about six to ten SP on any given Sunday, I feel good if I get quality starts (QS) or better on 65-70 % of them. Same with my own leagues, if I can score a QS or better on 65-70 percent of my own spot starts over the course of a season, I think my pitching will be in good shape. Sometimes though, I hit a really good pick and nail a spot start worth talking about. Last week I recommended Trevor Cahill, RHSP, OAK (8.1% owned in ESPN) Vs BAL FRI, and he did not disappoint. I had picked him up for his start the prior week and decided to go one more round for the Baltimore start. I said, “He gets the Orioles at home where they are playing to a .301 wOBA and .238 BA away vs righties. They also are one of the most prolific strikeout offenses in the MLB which makes this a must-start as well.”. What did Cahill do? He went six shutout innings, giving up 4 hits and 1 walk, also striking out 12 batters in the process. He didn’t get the W because Oakland could not score for him either, but just think of how pleased I was to see that stat line from a spotter. I didn’t include him in this week’s spots because he draws the scorching hot offense of the NY Yanks next week. I would not wish that on anyone, but Cahill is still only 12.5% owned in ESPN. so why not go and get him for the following week or weeks. He has generated 22 swinging strikes on just 98 pitches. Through four starts, he has a 31:6 K/BB and his peripherals suggest his 2.25 ERA and .96 WHIP have been earned through skill rather than luck. There may be a small correction coming, but it’s hard not to notice what Cahill has accomplished in the early portions of the season.

***Two Start Pitcher***Sean Newcomb, LHSP, ATL (29.5% owned in ESPN, up 10 points since last week) @ TB TUE & @ MIA SUN: Newcomb (2-1) picked up the win over the Mets on Wednesday, scattering two hits and a walk over seven scoreless innings while striking out eight. This was his 4th Quality Start in his past five starts, and left him

with a 3.28 ERA and 1.27 WHIP with 42 K’s in 34.2 IP. His 15 walks are the only wart and the cause of the higher than ideal WHIP rate. His ownership jumped another 10% over last week but at barely 30% owned he is vastly under rated by owners. I’m trying not to drop him back anywhere I own him. He has two decent starts coming next week, and the 2nd is a Fantasy Must-Start. First he gets the Rays in Tampa where they are hitting to a .332 wOBA and .272 BA against lefties at home, but are also near the bottom of the AL in HR and Walks. Over the past week they are only hitting .235 and have scored an average of three runs per game. On Sunday he goes to Miami to face the punch-less Marlins where they are hitting to a .285 wOBA and .226 avg against lefties. I’m going with him in both starts, but again the Miami game is a must.

Brandon McCarthy, RHSP, ATL (28.3% owned in ESPN, up ten points from last week) @ MIA FRI: As I was saying with Newcomb above this is a Fantasy Must-Start as the Marlins have only a .283 wOBA and .237 BA vs righties at home. A usually reliable spot starter who is borderline ownable (I own him) finally had the wheels come off yesterday in his start against the Giants where he gave up 12 hits and 8 runs in only 3 innings. He seldom gets hit like that so I’m instead focusing on the six starts before that where he gave up between 1 and 3 runs in each of those starts. I’m not even thinking about dropping him, or Mrs McCarthy either for that matter. She just happens to be a swimsuit model.

Mike Soroka, RHSP, ATL (29.4% owned in ESPN) @ MIA SAT: Soroka’s debut Tuesday was originally intended to be a spot start, but he impressed enough to earn at least one more shot, which comes today against the Giants. If he aces this one like his first start he will be tough to send back to the minors as his fantasy ownership is already up to nearly 30%. The 20-year-old went six innings and allowed just one run on six hits and no walks, striking out five. He’s one of the more promising pitching prospects in the game, so if he’s really up in the big leagues for good he has the potential to be one of the more valuable waiver adds of the year in redraft leagues. In keeper leagues he is likely already owned, but take a peak anyway. They must have had trouble telling him and Newcomb apart in the minors.

Junior Guerra, RHSP, MIL (42.1% owned in ESPN) Vs CLE WED: A lot of owners forgot about Guerra on draft day after his nondescript 2017. I know I did, but here he is again, and he seems to be back in the saddle like he was in 2016. He is still a free agent in more leagues than not, so take a look, he may still be there in yours. Guerra started the season with four starts where he gave up a total of two runs and struck out 21 batters in 21 innings. In his most recent start against the Pirates he did give up four walks and four runs, but the other four starts tell a better story. Guerra is the lucky beneficiary next week of another fantasy must-start. The Indians are hitting at a .288 wOBA and .208 BA against RHSP on the road.

Ian Kennedy, RHSP, KCR (17.5% owned in ESPN) @ BAL THU: I just can’t quit this guy. This is what I said last week, “after two games in a row of giving up 4 ER, I am not ready to drop him yet, so he is still a hold on my teams.” Prior to those games, however, he had given up 4 runs in 14 innings total, giving up 2 runs or less in 3 of his starts so far in 2018. Since that day he has pitched two Quality Starts, including a start Friday where he shut out the Tigers on six hits for six innings striking out seven and not giving up a walk. His next start is at Baltimore on Thursday. The O’s are playing at a .270 wOBA against righties at home which is 27th in baseball, with a .205 BA. You guys can feel free to keep letting me pull Kennedy up off the wire for most of his starts. The guy is good enough to own in anything bigger than a 12 team league.

From the Abyss. Players owned in less than 10% of ESPN Leagues. Lots to pick from this week:

***Two Start Pitcher***Derek Holland, LHSP, SFG (1.1% owned in ESPN) @ PHI, TUE & @ PIT, SUN: I’m not a Holland fan. I tend to ignore him in fantasy. But, now and then a perfect storm appears on the horizon and Derek Holland suddenly becomes a must start like he did last week. He’s so forgotten he is likely waiting on your wire right now, so go ahead and pick him up if it is a deep league and you need a two start starter. Last week he got the San Diego Padres in San Fran and while he was an inning shy of a quality start he still pitched well enough for a Win, with 4 K’s, 4 Hits and a Walk. I recommended him in last week’s article, and while the goal when spotting is always a QS, I’ll take the win any day of the week instead. The Phils are not a patsy, hitting a .328 wOBA against lefties at home, but are also one of the more strikeout prone lineups in baseball. He also goes to Pittsburgh on Sunday where the Pirates are hitting a wOBA of .317 with a .267 BA against Lefties at home. Be prepared to drop him after the PIT start. If you have a deep league and the wire is sparse, here is your gem for the week.

Miles Mikolas, RHSP, STL @ SD THU: Its a tough job but someone has to face the Padres at home in Petco Park, and Miles gets the call next week where he should shine. The Padres are playing to a .280 wOBA and .207 BA against RHSP at home. That makes this a Fantasy Must-Start for the rookie hurler. It was another strong start for the 29-year-old, who has now thrown seven innings in four straight outings, allowing just four earned runs to go along with 21 strikeouts over that time. He boasts a great 2.70 ERA and a 0.98 WHIP through his 40 innings of work so far this year and also has demonstrated nearly impeccable control with a ridiculous 31:2 K:BB. None of this is in line with the numbers he posted in his previous stints at the big-league level from 2012-2014, but he’s coming off a three-season run in Japan where he went 33-13 with a 2.18 ERA, a 0.99 WHIP and 378 strikeouts. Time will tell if he can keep this up over the course of a full MLB season but for now, he’s acting as an unexpectedly effective fantasy force in the early season.

Tyler Mahle, RHSP, CIN (16.9% owned in ESPN up 10% from last week): @ LAD THU: Don’t look now but the Phil Hughes clone has tossed three QS in a row and has four of them in his first six starts this season after giving up three runs but no walks and four K’s against the Marlins this past week. The Dodgers are in the middle of the pack hitting to a .314 wOBA and .242 Batting average against righties at home in LA, and Mahle is on a roll of late, pitching three consecutive quality starts in which he struck out 22 batters in 18 innings. I’m riding him.

The continuing Met’s Saga:

Last week I said, it could be worse Matt when Harvey was dragged to the bullpen kicking and screaming. Well, it got worse Matt. The Met’s DFA’ed Harvey the other day, thus ending the Mets career for the Dark Knight. Gotham will never be the same. Tom Seaver can rest easy now as the next Tom Seaver is gone. That does not solve the Metropolitan’s problems though with the rotation. deGrom got a scare last week when he hyper-extended his throwing elbow on a swing and miss (Why do pitchers still bat in the NL?) He should be OK for his next start they say, and the Mets Medical staff always knows what they are doing, right? After he and Noah Syndergaard that staff is a mess. Vargas is still in a coma and Matz has not woken up yet either although he seems healthy. Zack Wheeler so far may have pitched the best of the three while calls for trades and Lugo/Gsellman have been circulating every day. Stay tuned. I dropped Harvey and Vargas, but I’m not sure what to do with Matz yet.

There are definitely a lot of good match ups to pick from this week and I could have added quite a few more. We also have plenty of current year data now to use so I won’t reference 2017 any longer unless there is something relevant. Till then, I’ll be on the Reddit fantasybaseball Sub all day Sunday talking spot starts and all things fantasy. If you want to reach me directly email at joseph.iannone021@gmail.com or Tweet me @joeiannone2

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Major League Fantasy Baseball Radio Show: Join host Brian Roach, Jr, and Cole Freel live on Sunday May 6th, 2018 from 8-9:30pm EST for episode #119 of Major League Fantasy Baseball Radio. We are a live broadcast that will take callers at 323-870-4395. Press 1 to speak with the host. We will discuss the latest information in the world of fantasy baseball.

Our guest this week is Kyle Klinker. Kyle has been an owner in MLFS baseball, and basketball leagues for over 5 years. He also has a couple of championships under his belt over that span in some tough leagues. We loving refer to him as “The Red Rocket.”

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