There aren’t a ton of great matchups this week, but most of these guys are pitching pretty well as of late so they deserve to be streamed next week. Even in ten-team leagues be sure to read up the first guy mentioned in the 12-team section because he’s in one of the best scenarios next week.

 

Ten-Team Leagues

Hyun-Jin Ryu (LAD) – Ryu made his return to the majors after a three-month stint on the DL and he performed really well over six innings of work against the Giants. He only allowed three hits and struck out six so all in all it was a pretty damn good day. He only induced nine swinging strikes on 89 pitches, but we’ll cut him some slack since it was his first start in nearly 100 days. Next week he’ll face the Cardinals who have been hot as of late, especially Matt Carpenter . Since the All-Star break Carpenter is slashing .305/.439/.752 with 14 home runs, 25 runs scored, and 25 RBI. That’s just over the last month. However, with Ryu pitching in Dodger Stadium, which has suppressed runs this season, he’s worth taking a chance on as a streamer. He’s slated to go against Luke Weaver in this matchup so there’s potential for a win if the Dodgers can put runs on the board.

Kyle Gibson (MIN) – Gibson has seen his strikeouts regress a bit, but he’s got a good road matchup next week against the White Sox. Over his last 17 innings he’s only collected a dozen strikeouts so he’s not averaging a strikeout per inning like earlier this year. But against the White Sox he can be streamed. Guaranteed Rate Field is one of the best ballparks for pitchers so I’m expecting Gibson to be in position for a win here, pending offensive support. The White Sox have also lost eight of their last 12 games and average about four runs per game at home while touting a measly .707 OPS as a team in their own ballpark. Gibson could be a great play next week for those fighting to make the playoffs.

Nick Pivetta (PHI) – The Nick Pivetta hate has got to stop. Seriously, just 48% owned on Yahoo? That’s ridiculous. He averages nearly 11 strikeouts per nine innings, and his 4.37 ERA looks better next to a 3.49 FIP. I’m still willing to stream Pivetta based on the upside alone. The downside is that he’s pitching on the road where opponents are slashing .274/.350/.446 with a .345 wOBA against the young righty. Next Saturday he’ll face the Blue Jays on the road. Prior to that he’ll face the Mets this coming Sunday. His performance will be worth monitoring because he has three straight quality starts with at least six strikeouts in each of those three starts. It’s a risky road matchup next week, but he’s pitching very well right now generating a 13.0% swinging strike rate since July 12th.

 

12-Team Leagues

Tyler Glasnow (TB) – This is actually one of my favorite plays for next week. The good news for Glasnow (and anyone who potentially streams him) is that he faces off against the Royals at home next week in the Tropicana Cave. The bad news for Glasnow is that the Rays organization has been hesitant to let him pitch deep into games. In theory it makes sense. Prior to being dealt by Pittsburgh, Glasnow was working out of the bullpen. So they have to get him up to speed. But his workload with the Rays has increased by an inning with each outing. He started with three innings of work, then it went to four, and then to five in his last start. All in all over his 12 innings of work he’s given up just three earned runs, three walks, six hits, and recorded a whopping 20 strikeouts. With the Rays he’s amassed a very impressive 16.5% swinging strike rate. If the Rays feel comfortable extending his workload maybe he can go six innings against the Royals and possibly get your team a win.

Trevor Cahill (OAK) – Cahill’s coming off a pretty bad outing against the Angels this past Sunday and he gets a shot at redemption against Houston later tonight. The Astros are finding themselves in a bit of trouble contending in their division as the Athletics have made up a ton of ground to make some noise in the AL West. Next week, for Cahill, he goes up against the Twins on the road. Target Field has been a middle-of-the-road ballpark in terms of whether it caters to hitters or pitchers. Additionally the Twins offense has been very inconsistent this year and they no longer have Brian Dozier ’s bat in the lineup. So this is a spot most fantasy owners should consider streaming Cahill, but his home/road splits might be the worst we’ve ever seen from a recommended streamer:

 

ERA

Earned Runs

Strikeouts

AVG

OBP

SLG

wOBA

Home

0.99

5

50

.171

.231

.274

.225

Away

6.62

25

28

.276

.361

.458

.355

Not a good look. But as mentioned above the matchups are far from perfect this coming week, but there are some reasons to be optimistic about each matchup. If you don't feel great about the splits then please refer to one of the guys below.

German Marquez (COL) – The matchup doesn’t get better for Marquez in comparison to Cahill because he’ll be tossing pitches to the Cardinals at home in Coors Field. However, over his last eight outings (52.2 innings of work), Marquez has 62 strikeouts and he’s allowed just 12 walks and six home runs. He’s 5-1 over that span with seven of his eight outings being quality starts. Now the Cardinals are hot, but if you need to chase strikeouts then Marquez should be considered. High-powered offenses tend to take more hacks and Marquez generates a healthy amount of swinging strikes.

 

Deeper League Options

Jake Junis (KC) – Junis will toe the rubber against the Rays next week in the Trop, which is a decent park upgrade. Over his last three starts (16.1 innings) Junis has given up four earned runs, five walks, and collected 21 strikeouts. And this is against teams like the Cardinals, Cubs, and White Sox. Two of those three lineups are noteworthy at the very least. Despite the nice run the Rays have been on this is a nice little spot for Junis. He may not even get through six innings of work, but if he can at least five innings then he could get you five or six strikeouts and be in position for a win.

Wade Miley (MIL) – Perhaps there’s not a bigger regression candidate in the league than Wade Miley . He has a 2.23 ERA on the year with a 4.20 FIP. Slowly the regression seems to be showing up because he’s given up a home run in each of his last two starts after not allowing any in his first six appearances this year. Miley also has nearly as many walks (19) as he does strikeouts (22) in 40.1 innings of work. The silver lining for Miley is that he faces off against Pittsburgh at home next week. After going on a nice run to make a push for the playoffs, the Bucs have dropped five straight and haven’t scored a run in 23 innings.

James Shields (CHW) – This actually worked out for streamers last week so lets see if we can find some magic again, shall we? Shields gets a home start against Minnesota this coming week and in three of his last four starts he’s lasted seven innings, while going six innings in the other start. He’s prone to getting blown up, but he’s limited damage as of late. He still isn’t striking many batters out, he’s giving up almost three walks per nine innings, and he gets beat by the long ball. But he has three straight quality starts so don’t expect anything magical from him if you opt to dumpster dive with Shields again next week.