Friday's Fantasy Baseball Pitching Streamers: Gavin Williams, Chase Burns and More

Well, we made it to another Friday! It's the best day of the week (once the workday ends). This weekend is the last stretch of games before the All-Star break, which starts on Monday, and we will get a small reprieve before jumping back into the second half of the season, with each team having around 60-65 games remaining once we return.

Let's look at five starting pitchers in action on Friday who are widely available in fantasy leagues and have good matchups. Most stats are from MLB.com, as are the probable pitchers. The full streamer rankings are listed at the bottom.

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Chase Burns, Cincinnati Reds vs. Colorado Rockies

Burns was the second overall pick in last year's draft and threw only 66 minor-league innings before his promotion to the majors on June 24. He has made three starts since that time, and it hasn't gone too well: 10 innings, 13 hits, 11 runs, six walks, and 15 strikeouts. That last number is his best chance at reaching an elite level, as Burns struck out 89 batters in his short time in the minors and should continue to excel in that area.

The Rockies offer a much, much better matchup than what Burns has had to face so far. His three starts came against the Yankees, Red Sox, and Phillies, three above-average offenses (though he was better against Philly last time out). Colorado is the antithesis of those teams: while those three are fighting for the playoffs and even the division, the Rockies are the worst team in the league, and their offensive numbers reflect that.

Burns is a mid- to high-level streamer with some upside. His strikeout work is real, and Colorado hitters have struck out second most of any team, so this could turn into a big day. I'll temper expectations a little given his rough start and lack of track record, but this has all the makings of a successful outing for Burns. I'm tempted to label him as a must-start fantasy pitcher today.

Edward Cabrera, Miami Marlins @ Baltimore Orioles

Baltimore played a doubleheader yesterday, so theoretically, they might be a little tired and vulnerable. They were at home, though, and played both games early, while the Marlins were in Cincinnati and didn't finish their game until after the Orioles had finished both. I'm more worried about the season-long batting stats than yesterday's action, though, where Baltimore is a bottom-12 team in runs, hits, doubles, walks, batting average, and on-base percentage. They hit for a little power, but the Orioles have been a bottom-10 offense all season.

Cabrera is a high-level strikeout pitcher who also walks way too many guys. Those BBs are down close to average this season, as Cabrera has a 9.2% walk rate versus his career rate of 12.5%. If he can keep his walks at this level while still striking out around 25% of the batters he faces, Cabrera is going to become a popular fantasy name. He has also done really well limiting hits (just 294 in 372 1/3 innings).

Cabrera is a mid- to high-level streamer. I want to bump him up to the highest level, but something is holding me back; that doesn't mean he's not a great option, though. Cabrera is a must-start fantasy player on Friday.

Lance McCullers Jr., Houston Astros vs. Texas Rangers

I've written here several times about the Rangers' need to add offense before the trade deadline. Most teams like to wait until the last few days before the deadline (or the hour of) to see where they stand and make sure players are healthy as late as possible, and they also save money by waiting until the last minute, but it can cost that team the chance to sneak in a few extra wins, something that matters a lot when nine teams are within five games of the wild card (not counting division leaders). Texas has a top-five pitching staff and a bottom-10 offense, so it's clear the moves they need to make if they want a chance at the postseason.

McCullers has thrown 38 2/3 innings in nine starts after missing more than two full seasons, and he has been OK, at least in certain areas. He's above average with strikeouts, as he has been in his career, but is also walking a ton of batters. He has also given up eight home runs: that rate of one homer every 4.8 innings is much worse than his career rate of one home run every 11.7 innings. McCullers could see improvement there just by sheer luck, but things don't look good right now.

McCullers is a low- to mid-level streamer. His K work is nice, and the matchup is right, but he has an ERA near 6.00 and is tough to trust at his current level.

Shane Smith, Chicago White Sox vs. Cleveland Guardians

Gavin Williams, Cleveland Guardians @ Chicago White Sox

We'll finish with two paltry AL Central offenses who pepper the bottom of the batting rankings essentially across the board. Cleveland lost 10 straight games before sweeping Houston at the beginning of the week. These four games against the White Sox before the All-Star break could get the Guardians back close to .500 if they can keep up their winning ways, though they would still be double-digit games behind the division-leading Tigers. Chicago simply has the worst record in the American League; they're not going anywhere.

Smith is a rookie with 83 2/3 innings under his belt. He has been close to average with strikeouts but a few percentage points worse than average with walks, which has made him an average pitcher so far. He was really good with Ks in the minors, so there's hope he can keep that level up, and he also had an ERA under 3.00 in 157 minor-league innings. Smith is an intriguing player who needs some more seasoning but might be a popular name in the future.

Williams is another guy who has been an above-average strikeout pitcher but worse than average with walks. That's an OK fantasy profile as long as the pitcher can limit hits and home runs, and Williams has done just that, giving up fewer than a hit per inning in all three of his seasons with a career ERA under 4.00. His rate of one home run allowed every 9.3 innings is also better than average, making Williams a good streaming option.

Smith is a low- to mid-level streamer, and Williams is a mid- to high-level streamer. The former is a decent option who should improve with time, and the latter is at least an average pitcher with a chance for more, especially with his solid strikeout work. Williams also has the better matchup today, though it is close.

One late note: Thursday's game between these teams was rained out, so Logan Allen (Cleveland) and Jonathan Cannon (Chicago) are also good streaming options, though both are a level below Smith and Williams.

Friday's Streamer Rankings

1. Edward Cabrera, MIA
2. Chase Burns, CIN
3. Gavin Williams, CLE
4. Shane Smith, CWS
5. Lance McCullers, HOU