Wednesday's Fantasy Baseball Pitching Streamers: Are Matthew Boyd and Griffin Canning Must-Start Pitchers?

It's streamer time, which means time to look at five starting pitchers in action on Wednesday who are widely available in fantasy leagues and have good matchups.

Most stats are from MLB.com, as are the probable starters. The full streamer rankings are listed at the bottom.

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Brayan Bello, Boston Red Sox @ Milwaukee Brewers

Bello is near average over his career with walks, but he has gone through times where he loses control, and that has been the case in 2025. He has been able to limit runs (16 earned in 35.1 innings), but Bello isn't going to continue to succeed if he keeps putting so many guys on base (20 BBs), especially with below-average strikeout numbers (27 Ks).

The Brewers might seem like a surprising team to show up as a target, as they usually put together formidable lineups, but they have a habit of sending guys out rather than paying big, and eventually that's going to leave them short in certain areas, even if they do well at replacing guys. Milwaukee is especially lacking in power, ranking in the bottom 10 in doubles, home runs, batting average, slugging percentage, and OPS.

Bello is a low-level streamer. The matchup is more good than great, and the same could be said about Bello, whose lack of strikeouts is a major issue for his fantasy value.

Matthew Boyd, Chicago Cubs vs. Colorado Rockies

Boyd's season-long numbers are good: 4-2 record, 3.42 ERA, and both a walk and strikeout rate better than league average. His last two starts came against middling and worse competition (White Sox and Reds), though, and Boyd got hit hard, allowing 12 hits and seven runs in 10 innings. He still struck out 11 and walked just two in that time, so Boyd seems likely to get back on the right track with another great matchup.

Colorado is the worst team in the league, and that extends to both their offense and pitching staff. On the offensive side, they rank near the bottom of pretty much every box stat, and that's with half their games coming at Coors Field. The Rockies also strike out more than any other team, setting a high ceiling.

Boyd is a high-level streamer today. He's a must-start fantasy pitcher in this one and is worthy of consideration as a keeper because he does good strikeout work. Two of his next three starts will likely come against Washington and Pittsburgh, giving him a nice outlook.

Griffin Canning, New York Mets vs. Chicago White Sox

Rookie catcher Edgar Quero has looked good for the White Sox over his first 100 or so at-bats. Though he hasn't hit a home run, Quero has six doubles and is batting .265. It's a very small sample, but it's good to see something positive for Chicago. That's about all there is to be excited about at the big-league level, though, as the next wave of guys who might win are in the minor leagues.

Canning's career numbers are right around average for both walks and strikeouts. He has walked a few more guys this season, but he's back to striking batters out after an oddly ineffective 2024. Canning has looked much better this year, holding an ERA under 3.00 (and sporting a 5-1 record for good measure). Those numbers won't keep looking so nice, but Canning is a good streamer.

Canning is a mid- to high-level streamer. Just based on 2025, he'd be a top-level guy, but I fear there might be a little regression coming, so I'm docking him just a bit. Still, he's a must-start fantasy pitcher today.

Clayton Kershaw, Los Angeles Dodgers @ Cleveland Guardians

Kershaw has made two starts after beginning the season on the IL, first getting roughed up by the Angels (five runs and five hits in four innings). His last outing was better, but it only lasted two innings because of a rain delay, as the Dodgers didn't send Kershaw back out after the stoppage. He didn't allow any runs or hits, and Kershaw now has a combined four walks and three strikeouts in those six innings.

Cleveland ranks in the bottom 10 in essentially every box stat, though they hit home runs at an average rate and don't strike out a ton. Like Milwaukee, Cleveland churns players more often than other good teams, and that can leave them to surprisingly disappoint if a replacement doesn't click right away.

First baseman Josh Naylor (traded to the Diamondbacks this offseason) had an OPS over .770 every season from 2022-2024 and is around .800 this year; Cleveland's replacement, Carlos Santana, has a .725 OPS and .240 batting average (Naylor is at .287). That's just one example of a position where the team clearly lost value by getting rid of a proven player nearing free agency.

Kershaw is a low-level streamer. We can't expect a lot until we see sustained success. The matchup is right, but I'm not counting on Kershaw right now.

Miles Mikolas, St. Louis Cardinals @ Baltimore Orioles

Ryan O'Hearn is having a career year for the Orioles. He's batting .340 with eight home runs; his previous career high was 15, which he should cruise past. After hitting a home run once every 27.2 at-bats the past two seasons, O'Hearn has gone deep once every 19.1 at-bats this year. His 1.9 WAR this season almost matches his career high of 2.0, set last year.

I say all that to qualify it with the fact that O'Hearn is likely to slow down. Even if he keeps having success, it probably won't look this good. He's also the best thing (only thing?) Baltimore really has going. Everyone is struggling, from the stars to the bench, leaving the Orioles flailing, both at the plate and in the standings.

Mikolas is good with walks but far below average with strikeouts. His K rate this year is 14.6% versus the league average near 22% (and his career rate of 17.4%). Even if he improves that number a little, it's not going to come close to the middle, and that caps his ceiling, even if he continues to perform well (3.51 ERA). Mikolas has allowed only three homers in 51.1 innings, about one every 17 innings; his career rate is one every 8.1 innings. We're likely to see more regression there.

Mikolas is a low- to mid-level streamer. His strikeouts are so low that I hate to recommend him because a lot must go right for him to have a successful fantasy outing. He has had good results this year, though, and the matchup is right.

Wednesday's Streamer Rankings

1. Matthew Boyd, CHC
2. Griffin Canning, NYM
3. Miles Mikolas, STL
4. Brayan Bello, BOS
5. Clayton Kershaw LAD