Wednesday's Fantasy Baseball Streaming Pitchers: Taijuan Walker, Mike Burrows and More
Five starting pitchers in action on Wednesday who are widely available in fantasy leagues and have good matchups.
One more day until the trade deadline. In such a long season, not too many days truly matter. Opening Day is obviously huge, and the All-Star Game is fun, but the other days that mean more are few and far between.
The trade deadline matters. Not only does it show us who is really going for it over the final two months, but it also allows us to imagine something different, like a player sparking his new team's lineup or pitching staff to previously unreached levels, changing the dynamic. We've seen big-time impacts from rentals in the past (like C.C. Sabathia with the Brewers in 2008), and that allows fans to dream that their new acquisition will be the difference in the playoff push.
We are still in the calm before the storm, though, so let's 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 pitchers. The full streamer rankings are listed at the bottom.
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Mike Burrows, Pittsburgh Pirates @ San Francisco Giants
Burrows made one appearance last year, but he's getting his first real taste of the big leagues this season, and he's doing fairly well. Burrows has an above-average strikeout rate and a walk rate just a hair worse than average, currently with 53 Ks and 20 BBs in 52 innings. He has also given up fewer than a hit per inning (48) and has an ERA of 4.15. That's a decent pitcher, and to be doing that as a rookie is impressive.
San Francisco needs wins; they are behind five teams in the wild card race. What they can't do, then, is lose games to the worst teams in the league. Well, they lost the first two games of this series to Pittsburgh, including scoring just one run yesterday. The Giants are a bottom-10 offensive team who is at risk of falling out of the race if they don't win the games they are supposed to.
Burrows is a mid-level streamer. There is upside given his strikeout work, which was also good in the minors, and San Francisco has scored three or fewer runs in six of 11 games since the All-Star break.
Kyle Freeland, Colorado Rockies @ Cleveland Guardians
Kolby Allard, Cleveland Guardians vs. Colorado Rockies
This series has featured more runs than we would expect based on the teams involved: Colorado won 8-6 on Monday before the Guardians went off yesterday to take a 10-4 victory. Based on season-long numbers, though, this is a matchup of two bottom-10 offensive teams, one of whom is the worst in baseball (I'll let you guess who I'm talking about). I still feel good about targeting these teams with the right pitchers.
Freeland is good with walks, but he's well below average with strikeouts, something that has been true his whole career (nearly 1,200 innings). He has below-average numbers, but Freeland has also pitched for Colorado his entire career, so everything is inflated the wrong way. This game is away from Coors Field, giving Freeland a small reprieve, but he still doesn't inspire a lot of confidence for big things.
Allard has been working mostly out of the bullpen this season, starting just one game against 20 relief appearances. He is good with walks but well below average with strikeouts, something that will probably be even worse when starting rather than working in relief. Allard has been very good limiting runs (just 13 earned, 2.83 ERA), but it's also a small sample, and he hasn't been near that good in any other season.
Freeland is a low-to-mid-level streamer and Allard a low-level streamer. The latter is more of a throwaway with a great matchup, while Freeland is a serviceable pitcher who can be considered at the right times but is brought down by a lower strikeout rate.
Jose Soriano, Los Angeles Angels vs. Texas Rangers
Soriano has been very consistent the last two years as a starter (he worked exclusively in relief in 2023), holding a strikeout rate right near average but walking too many guys. He has been good limiting hits, though, giving up 210 base hits in 239 innings in 2024-25, something that has helped him keep an ERA near 3.60. He is also phenomenal at limiting home runs, giving up a homer about every 16 innings, one of the best rates you'll see from a full-time starter.
The Rangers are in the midst of 10 games against teams they are fighting against for the wild card: the Angels, Mariners (four games), and Yankees. It has started on the wrong track, as they lost to LA on both Monday and Tuesday after beginning the second half by winning eight of nine games. Texas still has a bottom-10 offense by season-long numbers, relying more on a dominant pitching staff, and they are vulnerable against the right pitchers.
Soriano is a mid-level streamer. He's a good pitcher, and the matchup is good; sounds like a good time for a streamer.
Taijuan Walker, Philadelphia Phillies @ Chicago White Sox
The White Sox have gotten hot at the right time to build a little trade deadline momentum. Guys like pitcher Adrian Houser (starting in this one) and center fielder Luis Robert Jr. are two of the most likely players to be traded, and more guys will surely be moved before Thursday's deadline. Subtracting some of those pieces will make Chicago even a more appealing target.
Walker looked done after 2024. He threw 83.2 innings and allowed 107 hits, 68 runs (66 earned, 7.10 ERA), and 24 home runs. That's brutal. His walk and strikeout rates were also worse than average, leaving nowhere that Walker could really succeed, and that was after a down 2023 as well (though not nearly as bad). With two seasons left at $18 million apiece, Philly brought him back with hopes he could bounce back, and against all odds, Walker has gotten close to the level of an average pitcher, becoming an asset again. I'm probably being too hard on him, but I'm actually shocked to see him contributing to a winner.
Walker is a low-to-mid-level streamer. He has looked better this year, and the matchup is good (even though the White Sox have hit well out of the All-Star break), but there is a ceiling on his potential given his lower strikeout rate and recent rough numbers.
Wednesday's Streamer Rankings
- Jose Soriano, LAA
- Mike Burrows, PIT
- Taijuan Walker, PHI
- Kyle Freeland, COL
- Kolby Allard, CLE
