Max Scherzer Washington NationalsPlenty of middle tier options to choose from this week, as we roll into June. Week 9 of course has its share of pitchers you will want to avoid, despite the allure of tossing two games in the scoring period. Stay away from the bottom tier or be prepared for some stat regression. You really owe it to yourself to stick with the options that have a realistic possibility to produce some useful numbers for your team.

To help you prepare your rotations, I present the Two Start Pitchers as scheduled for the next week in MLB action. One caveat is that these charts assume that your fantasy week begins on Monday. I made that decision because I have no leagues that do not provide for a Monday start, and it seems to be the standard scoring system. Of course, if you have questions about starting pitchers who are going on Sunday and thus will presumably have another start during the week being profiled, do not be hesitant to drop me an e-mail (see my address at the bottom of the article) and I will attempt to get back with you in a timely fashion. Of course, you could also look to my Streaming Pitcher articles for additional SP suggestions.

The pitchers below are tiered, the first being no-brainers (in my opinion), the second tier being those I would consider adding to my roster and the final tier comprised of pitchers I do not trust at all. Of course, opinions differ and you can let us know if you disagree in the comments.

Let us move on to see who can provide those helpful two starts in next week's fantasy contests.

Start 'em If You Own 'em

Starting Pitcher

First Start/Opponent/Date

Second Start/Opponent/Date

Max Scherzer WAS

vs. TOR Marco Estrada

vs. CHC Jon Lester

 

Tue 6/2 7:05 PM ET

Sun 6/7 4:05 PM ET

Felix Hernandez SEA

vs. NYY Michael Pineda

vs. TB Alex Colome

 

Mon 6/1 10:10 PM ET

Sat 6/6 10:10 PM ET

Zack Greinke LAD

@ COL Kyle Kendrick

vs. STL Lance Lynn

 

Tue 6/2 3:10 PM ET

Sun 6/7 8:05 PM ET

Gerrit Cole PIT

@ SF Ryan Vogelsong

@ ATL Alex Wood

 

Mon 6/1 10:15 PM ET

Sun 6/7 1:35 PM ET

Clayton Kershaw LAD

@ COL Eddie Butler

vs. STL Jaime Garcia

 

Mon 6/1 8:40 PM ET

Sat 6/6 10:10 PM ET

Jacob deGrom NYM

@ SD Andrew Cashner

@ ARI Josh Collmenter

 

Mon 6/1 10:10 PM ET

Sun 6/7 4:10 PM ET

Jon Lester CHC

@ MIA TBA

@ WAS Max Scherzer

 

Tue 6/2 7:10 PM ET

Sun 6/7 4:05 PM ET

Chris Archer TB

@ LAA C.J. Wilson

@ SEA TBA

 

Tue 6/2 10:05 PM ET

Sun 6/7 4:10 PM ET

Jordan Zimmermann WAS

vs. TOR R.A. Dickey

vs. CHC Kyle Hendricks

 

Mon 6/1 7:05 PM ET

Sat 6/6 12:05 PM ET

Carlos Carrasco CLE

@ KC Jason Vargas

vs. BAL Mike Wright

 

Tue 6/2 8:10 PM ET

Sun 6/7 1:10 PM ET

Michael Pineda NYY

@ SEA Felix Hernandez

vs. LAA Garrett Richards

 

Mon 6/1 10:10 PM ET

Sun 6/7 1:05 PM ET

Mad Max Scherzer keeps pitching like a true ace, which is a good thing for the Nationals with the struggles Stephen Strasburg has been going through this season. The rest of these pitchers are nothing to sneeze at, though, either. If you are fortunate enough to own any of one ofZack Greinke Los Angeles Dodgers these SPs, make certain to plug them into your starting rotation and leave them be. If you have more than one of these guys in your rotation twice this week, congratulations on a great week of pitching stats.

Maybe Yes, Maybe No

Starting Pitcher

First Start/Opponent/Date

Second Start/Opponent/Date

Jaime Garcia STL

vs. MIL Mike Fiers

@ LAD Clayton Kershaw

 

Mon 6/1 8:10 PM ET

Sat 6/6 10:10 PM ET

Andrew Cashner SD

vs. NYM Jacob deGrom

@ CIN TBA

 

Mon 6/1 10:10 PM ET

Sun 6/7 1:10 PM ET

Lance Lynn STL

vs. MIL TBA

@ LAD Zack Greinke

 

Tue 6/2 8:15 PM ET

Sun 6/7 8:05 PM ET

Jeff Samardzija CHW

@ TEX Colby Lewis

vs. DET Alfredo Simon

 

Tue 6/2 8:05 PM ET

Sun 6/7 2:10 PM ET

Alfredo Simon DET

vs. OAK Scott Kazmir

@ CHW Jeff Samardzija

 

Tue 6/2 7:08 PM ET

Sun 6/7 2:10 PM ET

Garrett Richards LAA

vs. TB Alex Colome

@ NYY Michael Pineda

 

Mon 6/1 10:05 PM ET

Sun 6/7 1:05 PM ET

Mike Fiers MIL

@ STL Jaime Garcia

@ MIN Phil Hughes

 

Mon 6/1 8:10 PM ET

Sun 6/7 2:10 PM ET

Collin McHugh HOU

vs. BAL Mike Wright

@ TOR R.A. Dickey

 

Tue 6/2 8:10 PM ET

Sun 6/7 1:07 PM ET

Ryan Vogelsong SF

vs. PIT Gerrit Cole

@ PHI Severino Gonzalez

 

Mon 6/1 10:15 PM ET

Sun 6/7 1:35 PM ET

Clay Buchholz BOS

vs. MIN Mike Pelfrey

vs. OAK Jesse Chavez

 

Mon 6/1 7:10 PM ET

Sat 6/6 4:05 PM ET

Phil Hughes MIN

@ BOS Rick Porcello

vs. MIL Mike Fiers

 

Tue 6/2 7:10 PM ET

Sun 6/7 2:10 PM ET

Kyle Hendricks CHC

@ MIA TBA

@ WAS Jordan Zimmermann

 

Mon 6/1 7:10 PM ET

Sat 6/6 12:05 PM ET

Alex Wood ATL

@ ARI Archie Bradley

vs. PIT Gerrit Cole

 

Mon 6/1 9:40 PM ET

Sun 6/7 1:35 PM ET

Ubaldo Jimenez BAL

@ HOU TBA

@ CLE Danny Salazar

 

Mon 6/1 8:10 PM ET

Sat 6/6 12:00 PM ET

Jason Vargas KC

vs. CLE Carlos Carrasco

vs. TEX Colby Lewis

 

Tue 6/2 8:10 PM ET

Sun 6/7 2:10 PM ET

Mike Pelfrey MIN

@ BOS Clay Buchholz

vs. MIL Matt Garza

 

Mon 6/1 7:10 PM ET

Sat 6/6 2:10 PM ET

Mike Wright BAL

@ HOU Collin McHugh

@ CLE Carlos Carrasco

 

Tue 6/2 8:10 PM ET

Sun 6/7 1:10 PM ET

The middle tier is filled with pitching goodness this week. I look at the second tier as being composed, as it is most weeks, with three sub-tiers. Our first sub-tier starts out with Garcia and runs down through Fiers. Garcia has stepped in as the Cardinal's fifth starter with AdamJaime Garcia St. Louis Cardinals Wainwright out for the season, and while he was not as sharp in his second start, he still managed to grab a win and a second QS on the season. He also exhibited improved control and better dominance. Cashner has certainly pitched better than his 2-7 record indicates: 3.00 ERA, 4.0 K/BB ratio, 8.57 K/9. He has pitched into the sixth inning or later in his last nine starts (he has 10 starts on the season), and has been the victim of limited offensive support. He may not be a great source of wins, but the peripherals are nice. Plus, he gets to pitch at home for his first start of the week, and then gets the reeling Reds for start number two. You cannot argue with Lynn's command and dominance this season, with a 9.94 K/9 and 3.19 K/BB ratio set this season. His BABIP shows that he has been a bit unlucky, sitting at an inflated 3.50 through 10 starts this season. He is also keeping the ball inside the park with a 0.7 HR/9 ratio over 60.2 innings. The start at LA against Greinke is not great in terms of match up, but then again, St. Louis plays the Dodgers tough. Samardzija has been getting things back on track, turning in three consecutive QS. His strikeouts are down from 2014 (7.15 this season as opposed to 8.28 in 2014), but he is still exhibiting excellent control. His starts this week are against potentially tough offenses to shut down, but I like how he is trending currently. Simon just keeps exceeding expectations. "Big Pasta" is coming off a bereavement list placement, and gets to face a couple of teams that are not exceedingly scary. His BABIP and strand rate (.284 and 80% respectively) hint at regression, but not drastically so. If you want to use him, make certain he is back from the bereavement list to open the week. Richards is rounding into shape, getting his control back and starting to strike out hitters like his owners expect. He has six QS and four wins in his last seven starts. Fiers has been saddled with an underperforming team, resulting in an awful looking 1-5 record. Yes, his 4.53 ERA and 1.55 WHIP are ugly, but he has been slowly and steadily pushing those down, having allowed two earned runs in each of his past four starts. You want him for his superb K rate, currently at 10.97, and the hope that he can keep limiting the runs scored against him. Just do not count on a victory or QS, as he has only gone over six innings once this year.

The middle sub-tier opens with McHugh and ends with Vargas. Using McHugh the past few weeks has been occasionally rocky for his owners. His ERA has ballooned to 4.24, and while his control is still great, the K numbers are just average. He faces a couple of tough offensive teams this week, so do not get your hopes up too high if you use him against the Orioles at home or the Jays in Toronto. Note though that his home/road splits indicate that his road start may be the time to plug him in. Vogelsong was not supposed to be in the Giant rotation, but there he is, coming off a stellar May where he allowed a total of four earned runs in 31.2 innings over his five starts. He gets the up and coming Pirates at home, and then the Phillies on the road, a couple of decent match ups. A .274 BABIP worries me, but it is difficult to discount his recent success. Just be ready to bail if regression rears its head. Buchholz has won me over, at least for  the time being. He has tossed four consecutive QS, pushing his inflated ERA from 5.73 to a much more palatable 4.33. He is suffering from lack of offensive production, so the victories are not there despite his improved mound presence. He has not been great at Fenway, so that is a concern this week, and perhaps he will drop again to the bottom tier the next time he gets two starts in a scoring period, but right now, he is worth a shot. Hughes is certainly not repeating last season's surprise heroics, but has not been terrible. His former tendency to allow long balls has resurfaced, with a terrible 1.79 HR/9 this season over 64.2 innings. Recall that he was able to drastically limit the number of balls leaving the field, with a 0.69 HR/9 rate over 209.2 innings in 2014. Both starts this week are favorable, though, so he is a middling option with his two starts. Hendricks does not seem to mind whether he is pitching at Wrigley or on the road, so I am not Alex Wood Atlanta Bravesconcerned about his two starts away from home this week. Coming off two excellent starts, he has potential, although I prefer the match up against Miami as opposed to his second start in Washington if I were to employ his services. Wood is coming off back-to-back wins, where he limited the opposition to just one earned run per game. He has improved his GB rate this season dramatically (2.36 in 2015 compared to 1.39 last season) which helps offset his reduced K rate (down over 2.5 Ks per 9, dropping from 8.91 to 6.33). Jimenez is another SP I did not expect to pitch this well, especially after what we saw in 2014. Of course, he has looked vulnerable his last two starts, giving up seven earned runs in 11 innings, ballooning his ERA and WHIP at the same time. His ERA now sits at 3.14 and the WHIP has risen to 1.18. Granted, both are still acceptable for a SP in a fantasy rotation, but his road results have not been pretty this season, so exercise some caution if you decide to roll him out in Week 9. Vargas ties up the middle sub-tier, and he is coming off a DL stint, and is apparently on a pitch count, as he lasted only four innings in his last start. He is able to pitch at home in both his starts this upcoming week, although that does not necessarily mean great things as he has been mediocre both at home and on the road. If you believe his earlier troubles were due to his flexor strain that landed him on the DL, then go ahead and take a chance on him, but beware of his earlier troubles this season.

Winding up the middle tier, the final sub-tier begins with Pelfrey, who has been solid if unspectacular for Minnesota this season. Part of his lack of sexiness has to do with a terrible 4.50 K/9 rate over his 52 IP, which coupled with a 2.77 BB/9 rate results in a weak 1.63 K/BB. With the Twins clicking, you may be rewarded with a win or even two this week, but the peripheral help is lacking with Pelfrey. Wright finally let some opponents cross home plate in his third start, but still managed to pick up his second win and not walk anyone, a feat he has performed in two of his three starts. Of course, there will be adjustments from regression, so do not be surprised if he is not lights out on the road against a couple of good offenses in Week 9.

Not On My Roster

Starting Pitcher

First Start/Opponent/Date

Second Start/Opponent/Date

Severino Gonzalez PHI

vs. CIN TBA

vs. SF Ryan Vogelsong

 

Tue 6/2 7:05 PM ET

Sun 6/7 1:35 PM ET

Eddie Butler COL

vs. LAD Clayton Kershaw

vs. MIA TBA

 

Mon 6/1 8:40 PM ET

Sun 6/7 4:10 PM ET

Scott Kazmir OAK

@ DET Alfredo Simon

@ BOS Rick Porcello

 

Tue 6/2 7:08 PM ET

Sun 6/7 1:35 PM ET

Rick Porcello BOS

vs. MIN Phil Hughes

vs. OAK Scott Kazmir

 

Tue 6/2 7:10 PM ET

Sun 6/7 1:35 PM ET

Colby Lewis TEX

vs. CHW Jeff Samardzija

@ KC Jason Vargas

 

Tue 6/2 8:05 PM ET

Sun 6/7 2:10 PM ET

R.A. Dickey TOR

@ WAS Jordan Zimmermann

vs. HOU Collin McHugh

 

Mon 6/1 7:05 PM ET

Sun 6/7 1:07 PM ET

Josh Collmenter ARI

vs. ATL Shelby Miller

vs. NYM Jacob deGrom

 

Tue 6/2 9:40 PM ET

Sun 6/7 4:10 PM ET

Archie Bradley ARI

vs. ATL Alex Wood

vs. NYM Bartolo Colon

 

Mon 6/1 9:40 PM ET

Sat 6/6 10:10 PM ET

Alex Colome TB

@ LAA Garrett Richards

@ SEA Felix Hernandez

 

Mon 6/1 10:05 PM ET

Sat 6/6 10:10 PM ET

The final tier consists of starting options that are not really options in a true sense of the word, at least if we are talking about trying to succeed at fantasy baseball. Kazmir is here because of the concern raised during his last start with his shoulder. Porcello, Lewis and especially Dickey do not look comfortable on the mound, and I would avoid them until they can string together something consistent. Bradley may at some point this season become a useful SP, but it is not taking place right now. Just stay away from any of these nine bottom tier pitchers this week.

Should you have questions regarding fantasy baseball, especially starting pitching, you can reach me at ia@fantasyalarm.com to continue the discussion.