Fantasy Baseball Week 14 Two-Start Pitchers & Streaming Starters: Shane Bieber With Two Starts At Home

We have now hit the month of July, and this is no time to rest on our laurels. If laurels are not evident, there is still time to gather your forces and make a run for the league championship. To that end, here are some suggestions to consider when setting your fantasy rotations for this week’s action, the last full week of games prior to the MLB All-Star game. Lots of top tier arms to plug in, including some new to the upper group. Just a handful of middle tier options, and the bottom tier has plenty of hurlers you would do best to stay clear of when developing your starting rotations this scoring period. There are also a healthy set of streaming options for your consideration when perusing the waiver wire or free agent market in Week 14 in the second half of this article. Once you have reviewed the starting pitching advice, please take a look at the rest of the valuable fantasy advice contained on the Fantasy Alarm site to aid you in all your fantasy sports efforts. Dan Malin steps in for Adam Ronis in this week’s Fantasy Baseball Waiver Wire article. Our Fantasy Baseball Rankings have been updated for the month of July. Matt Selz always has you covered with the latest MLB Prospect Report. Colby Conway does a review of the fantasy baseball risers and fallers in the MLB Streaks & Trends article. And Justin Fensterman keeps you up to date with the latest MLB Injury Report. Without any further, here are this week’s two-start pitchers and streaming options for week 14.

A Baker’s dozen of aces to give thanks for if you are fortunate enough to own one or more of these SPs on your team’s rosters. There are some new names that have made the upper tier of two-start options heading through the middle part of the season. The final entry in the upper tier, Woo, has proven to be quite the rookie sensation, and his results are worthy of a top-tier pat on the back. Use these arms in both their scheduled times atop the hill no matter where they are pitching or against whom.

J.P. France extended his quality start (QS) streak to five with the last outing, 7.0 IP against the Cardinals where he held them scoreless while doling out just four hits and two walks. He does not offer much in terms of swings and misses (44 Ks over 60.1 IP for a sub-standard 6.6 K/9 rate), so his fantasy value is diminished a bit. Also, his peripherals hint that he has enjoyed some extra good luck in compiling his ratio numbers (3.13 ERA, 1.21 WHIP), so be wary of the potential for negative regression. He does have two home games against sub-.500 road teams on the slate.

Kyle Hendricks has accumulated three QS in his last four times climbing the hill, and flashes superb ratio numbers over his limited time in the rotation this season: 2.81 ERA, 0.96 WHIP. As with the Houston SP above, he is lacking in K production, with just 22 Ks over his seven starts and a woeful 4.8 K/9 to his credit, well below his career ratios. He has proven to be better when pitching on the road in recent times, and he gets to toe the rubber in foreign parks for both his Week 14 appearances.

Bryce Elder, the 24-year-old right-hander, has now strung together three QS, although the last outing was not pretty with the Brave SP hitting one batter and tossing a wild pitch. He does carry an attractive set of ratios into Week 14, with a 2.44 ERA and 1.13 WHIP over his 16 starts this season. He has been superb on the road this season, and that is where he finds his skills be deployed in the coming scoring period. 

The 23-year-old righty, Gavin Williams, only has two major league starts to his credit, but the latest was a beauty overall, a 7.0 IP effort where he yielded only a single hit and walk while striking out six Royal hitters on the road. He gets to pitch at home, the second outing against the Kansas City team he handled so successfully in his most recent start. The first game, against the dominant Braves offense, is not necessarily where you want to plug him into your fantasy rotation if you can avoid it. 

Kodai Senga is toiling away for an underwhelming team, but is racking up superior strikeout numbers, with a stellar 11.1 K/9 rate over his 81.2 IP this season, his first in the majors. The downside on his stat sheet is the abundance of free passes he hands out to opposing batters, to the tune of 46 walks, leading to an ugly 5.1 BB/9 rate, which has the effect of inflating his WHIP (1.33 so far in 2023). His ERA is still attractive at 3.53 through his 15 starts to date. He is on the road for a pair of contests this week, although the second game in San Diego profiles as good matchup given the Padres’ issues at home.

Martin Perez has put together a three consecutive QS stretch, since getting roughed up in Tampa on June 11^th, giving up seven earned runs in that forgettable outing. He has his tougher outing at home when the Astros come for a visit, but the game in DC against the host Nationals has potential as a time to use his skills. As with most of the middle tier arms profiled so far, do not expect to see a boatload of Ks from the veteran southpaw.

Mitch Keller picked up his ninth victory on the year, firing his third QS out of the past four trips to climb the hill for the Pirates. He is striking out better than a hitter per frame, and further offers some useful ratios, with a 3.34 ERA and 1.10 WHIP over his 105.0 IP. Week 14 sees him on the road for both his scheduled appearances, and that is of concern as he has been far better when at PNC Park than traveling about the baseball world. 

You may be tempted to insert one or more of these starting pitchers into your lineup for streaming purposes. Certainly, there are well-known names in this group, but realize that a name is no guarantee of current excellence…or even decent pitching performance. If you must use one of these SP's for a streaming start, choose wisely by evaluating where they are toeing the rubber and against which offense they are tossing the pill. Realize that perfection one game does not promise an overcoming of relentless so-so performance on the bump.

Potential Streaming Options for Week 14

There is no promise that each game day will provide a streaming option. First of all, the pitcher must be available in at least 50% of leagues to be a viable candidate to snag off the wire. Then, the pitchers discussed above are not included as they have a different sort of value, even though some might be available as free agents in your league. Plus, some days the matchups and/or venues just do not figure as positive enough factors to favor plugging the arm into your rotation, even for one start. That all being said, here are this week’s best streaming candidates:

Wade Miley, Milwaukee Brewers vs Chicago Cubs

Beware of the Brewers’ recent tendency to limit the pitch count for the veteran southpaw. Pitching with the reins on will limit his ability to provide victories and QS, and he has below average K production so the counting stats are not there either. The 3.02 ERA and 1.06 WHIP numbers are helpful, even if his limited workload in games he starts diminishes their impact on your fantasy results.

Reese Olson, Detroit Tigers vs Oakland Athletics

The rookie righty left his most recent start after taking a come backer to the knee, so this start is not anything near guaranteed. The prior to starts he made saw an intriguing 17:2 K/BB ratio from the youngster, and this start would be against a struggling visitor, the last place Oakland A’s.

Adrian Houser, Milwaukee Brewers vs Chicago Cubs

Houser made his return to the Milwaukee rotation after a couple of bullpen appearances. He picked up a victory in New York against the host Mets, and now gets to toe the rubber at home against an opponent that is sub-.500 away from Wrigley Field.

Johan Oviedo, Pittsburgh Pirates @ Los Angeles Dodgers

The Pittsburgh right-hander 25-year-old SP has gone 0-5 over his last seven starts, despite pitching effectively overall during that stretch. His ERA sits at 3.32 over those 40.2 IP, and he has a 37:12 K/BB ratio, as well. Obviously, he has suffered through some tough luck in amassing all those losses, but heading to LA to take on the Dodgers may not be the tonic to reverse that trend. Still, his counting stats are useful as are the ratios.

Tommy Henry, Arizona Diamondbacks vs New York Mets

This is a good matchup for the second-year left-hander, taking on the Mets who have struggled mightily when playing away from Citi Field in 2023. On the downside, he has proven to be hittable and thus it is the matchup that recommends him for streaming duty.

Austin Gomber, Colorado Rockies @ San Francisco Giants

Gomber gets to seek to continue his recent string of useful pitching performances (two QS in his last four starts, with just one poor outing among those appearances). Pitching away from Coors Field is a plus for this streaming opportunity, although the opponent is not optimal. 

Paul Blackburn, Oakland Athletics @ Boston Red Sox

There are decided pluses and minuses contained on the veteran right-handers ledger, with a useful 3.77 ERA to his credit and an unwieldy 1.39 WHIP in the negative column, due in large part to the better than hit per inning he is dealing out to opposing hitters. His strikeout rate of 10.2 K/9 over his limited 31.0 IP tossed this season is another positive aspect to his production, although heading to Boston carries some worrisome baggage for a pitcher that prefers home cooking thus far in the season.

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