August 17 Fantasy Baseball Starting Pitcher Streamers: Luis Severino, Cristopher Sanchez, Bailey Falter and Hayden Birdsong
Saturday's probable starters who are widely available in fantasy leagues and have good matchups.
It’s a light day for streamers today despite a full slate of games. It’s just the way it works sometimes, but that doesn’t help those of us looking to stream starting pitchers.
Six weekends from now will be the last series of the regular season. Three weeks from tomorrow is the opening Sunday of NFL football. We are about to get a tidal wave of sports content that has been building for months. Start preparing now.
Let’s look at Saturday’s probable starters (according to MLB.com) who are widely available in fantasy leagues and have good matchups, creating streaming value. Most stats and rankings are from MLB. The full streamer rankings are listed at the bottom.
Hayden Birdsong, San Francisco Giants @ Oakland Athletics
Birdsong has had a rough August: In two starts, he has combined for 6.1 innings, 12 runs allowed, six strikeouts and four walks. In just 36.2 innings, he has a great strikeout rate (44 Ks) but has walked way too many guys (19 BBs). There are positives, but Birdsong has been inconsistent.
Oakland hits the ball out of the ballpark, ranking fifth in home runs. They are 25th in doubles, though, another important power measure, and it brings them down to the middle of the league in slugging percentage and OPS. The A’s lineup isn’t doing anything other than hitting those home runs.
Birdsong is a low-level streamer. He has struggled recently, but the matchup is right for a possible good outing.
Bailey Falter, Pittsburgh Pirates vs. Seattle Mariners
Falter has the profile of many streamers: He does well limiting walks, but he also is well below average striking batters out. His ERA is right around 4.00, and part of that success is limiting home runs. After giving up 17 homers in 80.2 innings last season, he has allowed just 13 in 101.2 innings this year.
Seattle doesn’t do much well on offense, seeing bottom numbers in runs scored and batting average, among other things. Like Oakland, they hit home runs and not much else. Their most appealing feature is their strikeout rate: Mariner batters have struck out over 50 more times than any other team.
Falter is a low-level streamer. He’s fine, and the matchup is good; that sounds like a streamer to me.
Cristopher Sanchez, Philadelphia Phillies vs. Washington Nationals
Sanchez is owned in more leagues than our other streamers here today, but he’s available in enough that it’s worth looking to see if he’s a free agent in your league. His walk rate is better than average, but his strikeout rate is also lower than average. Sanchez has started against Washington twice this season with mixed results:
- April 7: 4.1 innings, 3 runs allowed, 3 walks, 1 strikeout
- May 18: 7 innings, 2 runs allowed, 0 walks, 8 strikeouts
The most likely outcome is something in between those two outings. Washington isn’t a terrible offense, and they have a few young stars who will likely contribute to winning for a long time. They are devoid of power, though, ranking last in home runs and in the bottom 10 in both slugging percentage and OPS.
Sanchez is a mid-level streamer. He’s fine as a pitcher, and the matchup is just OK, so the ceiling seems limited.
Luis Severino, New York Mets vs. Miami Marlins
The Marlins have a little more bat control despite their lack of power. Miami is 19th in hits, 21st in batting average and 17th in most batter strikeouts. They are last in walks, though, bringing down their on-base percentage to 29th. Even where there’s good, there’s a little bad for the Marlins too.
Severino is a regular here on the streamer list, but he’s struggled recently. Over his last three starts, Severino has allowed 15 runs in 13 innings, though he has done well striking batters out in that time. He has found success in three starts against the Marlins this season, accumulating 18.2 innings, six runs allowed, 12 strikeouts and nine walks.
Severino is a mid-level streamer. It’s the same streamer story: decent pitcher with a good matchup who could have a good outing.
Saturday’s Streamer Rankings
- Luis Severino, NYM
- Cristopher Sanchez, PHI
- Bailey Falter, PIT
- Hayden Birdsong, SF
