Fantasy Baseball Opening Day Streamer Starting Pitchers: Luis Severino, Sean Burke, Zach Eflin, Nathan Eovaldi and More

Baseball is back! Happy Opening Day, one of the best days of the year. Coinciding with a day of March Madness isn't ideal, but this is the first day of the rest of our lives (as far as the baseball season is concerned).

Last season, I was looking for something to write about related to fantasy baseball and thought about how random pitching can be. Not only do starting pitchers only get one or two chances per week to help their team, but pitchers get hurt more than position players, bringing more uncertainty.

Along with that, I find the best fantasy strategy to be built around streaming pitchers mostly, so this idea fit perfectly. The layout developed as the season went along, and it got to where we had about five(-ish) streaming starting pitchers most days.

It's harder to come up with those pitchers on Opening Day because every team starts their best guy for the most part; that doesn't leave many active pitchers who are available on the waiver wire.

We're usually trying to look for good matchups too, but beggars can't be choosers in this case. Below, I have six pitchers who might be available in your fantasy league, two of which have truly good matchups. (They are also the two most likely to be free agents, so that's a bonus.)

Let's start with those two players then look at others who might also be available if you want to get a guy in your lineup who is throwing on Thursday. Most stats used below are from MLB.com, as are the probable starters.

True Opening Day Streamers

Sean Burke, Chicago White Sox vs. Los Angeles Angels

Chicago traded Garrett Crochet to Boston this offseason, leaving them without a clear Opening Day starter. Veteran Martin Perez might have the best case on paper, but the 25-year-old rookie Burke gets the call instead.

Burke threw 19 innings in the big leagues last season, allowing just four runs with 22 strikeouts and seven walks. Chicago would love that sort of performance again, though some regression is sure to come over a longer timeframe. Burke wasn't as good with run prevention in the minors, but he struck a ton of guys out.

The Angels were one of the bottom offenses from 2024 and are part of a group that I am targeting early this season. LA was in the bottom 10 in runs, hits, doubles, triples, home runs, batting average, on-base percentage, slugging percentage, and OPS. They were bottom-12 in walks and strikeouts (most Ks). The Angels made some improvements, with Jorge Soler the biggest name, and Mike Trout should be healthy to open the season, but the Angels were highly vulnerable last year and likely will be again.

Burke is a mid-level streamer. The matchup is nice, and Burke put up numbers in his short time last season. Don't expect a great outing (or a win on the putrid White Sox), but Burke is an OK option.

Luis Severino, Athletics @ Seattle Mariners

The Mariners had maybe the best pitching staff in baseball last year but also among the worst offenses. They were in the bottom 10 in most of the categories listed in the previous section, and their batters struck out more than any other team in the league; that's a high-floor opponent.

Severino had a nice season with the Mets in 2024, and he parlayed it into a multiyear contract with the A's, who are playing in Sacramento but don't have a city/state in their name until moving to Las Vegas (which will be hugely annoying). Severino was right at average in both walk percentage and strikeout percentage last year, turning it into a 3.91 ERA. That's about as average as a pitcher can be.

An average pitcher against a poor offense is a great matchup. Until they show they can hit, Seattle is one of my top teams to target with opposing pitchers. Severino is a mid- to high-level streamer on Opening Day.

Pitchers Good Enough to Pick Up

These guys don't have good matchups, but they are good enough pitchers to make them intriguing, even if just for a future start if you're short on pitching. The first two guys are owned in more leagues than the rest of the players listed here.

Zach Eflin, Baltimore Orioles @ Toronto Blue Jays

Eflin is a below-average strikeout pitcher, but he helps himself by not walking guys: His walk rate has been about half the league average over the past four years. He hasn't had an ERA over 4.17 since 2018, and it was below 4.00 in three of those seasons.

Eflin is worthy of a fantasy spot most starts, but maybe not against Toronto, who is at least an average offense (and probably above average). Eflin's Orioles have a string of tough offensive matchups to start the season, seeing the Blue Jays twice, Royals, Red Sox, Diamondbacks, and Guardians before a late-April reprieve with the Reds, Nationals, and Tigers.

Eflin could be a guy who gets dropped if he doesn't look great against those good teams to start the year, something that would make him a sneaky pickup heading into the meat of the season.

Nathan Eovaldi, Texas Rangers vs. Boston Red Sox

Eovaldi is an above-average strikeout pitcher who also is very good at limiting walks. From 2018-2024, he had an ERA below 4.00 in six of seven seasons. Eovaldi is worthy of a fantasy spot.

The Red Sox had a top-10 offense last year, and they added Alex Bregman this offseason. Things are set up for Boston to be successful again, and they are a team to avoid with opposing pitchers.

Eovaldi will get a string of easier matchups coming soon, with possible starts against the Reds, Mariners, Rays, and Angels.

MacKenzie Gore, Washington Nationals vs. Philadelphia Phillies

I love Gore as a guy to pop this season and become a fantasy stalwart. He might not be a top-line ace, but he will be a guy who is owned in every league and not a streamer, as he is now. Gore is a high-level strikeout guy who has brought his walk rate down to a level just a hair higher than average.

This isn't the time to test out the 26-year-old, though. Philadelphia was another top-10 offense in 2024 who is back with most of the same pieces and ready for another playoff run.

Gore will probably make his first three starts against the Phillies, Blue Jays, and Dodgers. It's likely that he will be a free agent in your league after that time. The Nationals follow that up with series against the Marlins, Pirates, and Rockies, though, so Gore will have his time to shine.

Also Available

Clay Holmes, New York Mets @ Houston Astros

Holmes is transitioning from a reliever to a starter. That has the scent of a short start, maybe topping out at five innings. Pitchers can still be valuable in short outings, but it lowers their value when it's expected.

Holmes has been an above-average strikeout pitcher in his career but also has walked too many guys. Strikeouts usually drop when a guy has longer outings as a starter, so if Holmes doesn't control his walks, he could run into trouble.

Add in the Astros as another 2024 top-10 offense on our list. They did have some turnover: Bregman and Kyle Tucker are gone, with Isaac Paredes and Cam Smith in to fill many of those at-bats, and Christian Walker giving them more upside at first base.

Houston isn't a team I'm looking to target, especially with a pitcher who I'm expecting to have a short first appearance.