Let’s get a little 2-fer here, how about it? Let’s talk quality starts AND strikeouts this week. These guys below can get it done and one of the starters below is probably my favorite player addition at the moment. Football is right around the corner, but don’t lose sight of your baseball squad, ladies and gentlemen. I can’t preach it enough.

Quality Starts AND Strikeouts

Blake Snell, SP TB – I’ll be honest with each of you reading this article. This guy is my favorite pitcher to add in this article. The southpaw has always been regarded for his above-average strikeout prowess, and it’s been showing of late. Despite his 2-6 record and 4.29 ERA this season, the strikeouts are starting to come in bunches for Snell. He has 15 strikeouts in his last 14 innings of work with a 1.29 ERA and 0.79 WHIP during that span. As a southpaw, he’s doing exactly what many would expect; get lefties out. Since the All-Star break, Snell has allowed an OBP of a measly .200 versus southpaws. Listen, he’s available in over three-quarters of fantasy baseball leagues over at ESPN and with a matchup later today against the White Sox, he should be owned just about everywhere. Trust me and go get this guy.

R.A. Dickey, SP ATL – Dickey’s ERA is near 4.00 and his WHIP is approaching 1.40, but he’s logging quality starts at a decent rate lately and the strikeouts are back for the knuckler. He’s recorded 24 strikeouts over his last three starts, although the 26 hits he’s given up during that span isn’t ideal. His last three starts have come against the Phillies, Mariners and Reds, and with his next start coming up against the Rangers, he should be able to strikeout a batter per inning. Sure, there is some risk going against a Texas offense, but the veteran knuckleballer has been much better at home than on the road. He’s served up more round trippers at his home park, but his home ERA of 3.67 is much lower than his 4.21 ERA on the road.

Luke Weaver, SP STL – Over his last 14.2 innings of work, he’s allowed just two earned runs while posting an impressive 21:4 K/BB ratio, not to mention his 2-0 record, 1.23 ERA, 1.09 WHIP and 12.89 K/9. The strikeouts are real right now and you don’t want to miss out on Mr. Weaver. Since the All-Star break, Weaver has thrown at least two strikes in his first three pitches to 81.2 percent of opposing batters. That’s the best in all of baseball, over 20 percentage points higher than the league average and almost seven percentage points higher than the next closest starter (James Paxton). The majority of his marks are right near his career marks, but take it with a grain of salt, considering he has just over 65 innings of work at the big league level. The young right-hander is available in nearly half of ESPN fantasy leagues, so again, don’t miss out on this profitable opportunity.

Andrew Heaney, SP LAA – Heaney’s 5.63 ERA on the year is far from attractive, but he has 19 strikeouts in 16 innings, compared to just three walks. He has just one quality start on the year thus far, but he will continue to build up his stamina as he further distances himself from Tommy John surgery. It’s an extremely small sample size, but strikeouts are up and walks are down, while the opposition’s BABIP of .231 is well below his career mark of .281. However, home runs have been a bugaboo through his first 16 innings of the 2017 campaign. Heaney has served up an astounding eight home runs in 16 innings of work. Yikes. Yes, that’s putrid. There is certainly some risk, considering he’s fresh off Tommy John and his ERA of 5.63 on a low .231 BABIP isn’t encouraging, but the strikeouts are there and he certainly can keep it up. Additionally, his FIP of 7.82 further indicates he’s been lucky, but again, buy into his strikeout potential the rest of the way.