It’s virtually impossible to see some things coming, but by preplanning for each and every week of the Fantasy Baseball season, you can often get a jump on the trends that are brewing around the league. Let’s take a look at how Week 16 of the MLB campaign is shaping up.
TEAM | # GAMES | HOME | AWAY | OPPONENTS |
Braves | 7 | 3 | 4 | vs.CHC (3), at LAD (4) |
Marlins | 6 | 3 | 3 | vs.PHI (3), at CIN (3) |
Mets | 7 | 7 | 0 | vs.STL (4), vs.OAK (3) |
Phillies | 6 | 3 | 3 | at MIA (3), vs.MIL (3) |
Nationals | 6 | 0 | 6 | at CIN (1), at LAA (2), at ARI (3) |
Cubs | 6 | 3 | 3 | at ATL (3), vs.STL (3) |
Reds | 7 | 7 | 0 | vs.WSH (1), vs.ARI (3), vs.MIA (3) |
Brewers | 7 | 0 | 7 | at PIT (4), at PHI (3) |
Pirates | 7 | 4 | 3 | vs.MIL (4), at COL (3) |
Cardinals | 7 | 0 | 7 | at NYM (4), at CHC (3) |
Diamondbacks | 6 | 3 | 3 | at CIN (3), vs.WSH (3) |
Rockies | 6 | 6 | 0 | vs.SD (3), vs.PIT (3) |
Dodgers | 6 | 4 | 2 | at CWS (2), vs.ATL (4) |
Padres | 7 | 0 | 7 | at COL (3), at SF (4) |
Giants | 7 | 7 | 0 | vs.CLE (3), vs.SD (4) |
Orioles | 7 | 7 | 0 | vs.TEX (4), vs.HOU (3) |
Red Sox | 7 | 4 | 3 | vs.TOR (4), at LAA (3) |
Yankees | 7 | 0 | 7 | at MIN (3), at SEA (4) |
Rays | 6 | 3 | 3 | at OAK (3), vs.TEX (3) |
Blue Jays | 7 | 0 | 7 | at BOS (4), at CLE (3) |
White Sox | 5 | 2 | 3 | vs.LAD (2), at KC (3) |
Indians | 6 | 3 | 3 | at SF (3), vs.TOR (3) |
Tigers | 7 | 0 | 7 | at KC (4), at MIN (3) |
Royals | 7 | 7 | 0 | vs.DET (4), vs.CWS (3) |
Twins | 6 | 6 | 0 | vs.NYY (3), vs.DET (3) |
Astros | 6 | 3 | 3 | vs.SEA (3), at BAL (3) |
Angels | 5 | 5 | 0 | vs.WSH (2), vs.BOS (3) |
A's | 6 | 3 | 3 | vs.TB (3), at NYM (3) |
Mariners | 7 | 4 | 3 | at HOU (3), vs.NYY (4) |
Rangers | 7 | 0 | 7 | at BAL (4), at TB (3) |
- First off this week, there a couple of five-game slates to be aware of, as the Angels and White Sox will both be off Monday and Thursday. On the flip side, 16 teams will take the field seven times over the next seven days.
- The Reds are one of those clubs that will play every day of the upcoming week, and they will do so exclusively at Great American Ball Park. Joey Votto and company have taken advantage of the hitter-friendly dimensions of their home park this season, averaging better than 5.2 runs per game while producing a solid .792 OPS. Votto in particular has been incredibly impressive swinging the bat at home, as he boasts a .351/.476/.703 slash line across 189 plate appearances in Cincinnati this year.
News From the Mound
- Over the first couple of months of the season, it appeared that we might be seeing the breakout of young Boston lefty Eduardo Rodriguez, as he posted a 2.77 ERA and 9.6 K/9 across 55.1 innings between April and May. Unfortunately, Rodriguez was diagnosed with a right-knee subluxation after being tagged for seven runs during a June 1 start in Baltimore and has been out of the Red Sox’ rotation since. He is expected to return to the mound at Fenway on Monday evening for a matchup with the Blue Jays, and that is definitely one to pay close attention to. If he looks strong Monday, Rodriguez should be in line to follow up with an outing in L.A. against the Angels over the weekend.
- It certainly looks as if Michael Pineda will be forced to the DL for the remainder of the 2017 season, as he was diagnosed with a partially torn UCL this past Friday. It appears 25-year-old righty Luis Cessa, who has posted a 4.18 ERA and 17-to-7 K/BB ratio across 23.2 innings for the Yankees this season, will get the initial call to action in Pineda’s place and could see two starts during the upcoming week.
- Madison Bumgarner returned to the mound for the Giants this past Saturday following a near three-month stint on the DL. The four-time All Star was a bit shy of his top form, but his performance was mostly encouraging, as he found the zone with 66-of-102 pitches while giving up three runs on four hits and two walks with five strikeouts across 7.0 innings in San Diego. Bumgarner will face the Padres once again on Thursday night, but this time from his home mound in San Francisco where he owns a career 2.76 ERA.
- One of the few positive signs around the diamond in Philadelphia recently has been the performance of Aaron Nola. Since the beginning of June, the 24-year-old hurler has put up a nice 2.65 ERA, 1.07 WHIP and 9.8 K/9 across 54.1 innings. Nola certainly seems to be emerging as a mixed-league mainstay.
- Speaking of promising young righties, Reds’ rookie Luis Castillo has indeed walked a few too many batters over his first 29.0 big-league innings, but other than that, he has been flashing the electric arm that has so many around Cincinnati excited about his future on the mound. Through five starts for the Reds here in 2017, Castillo sports a 3.41 ERA, 1.34 WHIP and 11.2 K/9.
Nate Miller is a member of the Fantasy Sports Writers Association and has been an analyst in the industry since 2013. You can follow him on Twitter @Miller_RotoDad, where he is always up for fielding any Fantasy Baseball, Fantasy Football or DFS questions.