Monday's Fantasy Baseball Starting Pitcher Streamers: Justin Verlander, Eric Lauer and More
Five starting pitchers in action on Monday who are widely available in fantasy leagues and have good matchups.
Another Monday; time to get back to the grind. The summer is ending, you'll start to see the leaves changing soon, and the odd days of morning frost will be starting before you know it. I don't know what to tell you, folks: it's time to start facing the end of the baseball season as well.
Let's look at five starting pitchers in action on Monday 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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Adrian Houser, Tampa Bay Rays @ Los Angeles Angels
The Angels are fighting for the wild card, but they set themselves back over the weekend, losing two of three at home to the White Sox. Every team loses games in a 162-game season, but playoff hopefuls can't be losing series to the worst teams in baseball in August. LA has good numbers over the past month, but they are back to being a bottom-10 offensive team over the last two weeks, a sign of their inconsistency.
Houser came over from the White Sox at the trade deadline and is making his first start here for Tampa Bay. He was great with Chicago: 68 2/3 innings, 62 hits, 16 earned runs (2.10 ERA), and just three home runs allowed. He has an average walk rate but below-average strikeout rate, mostly matching his career numbers. There is worry that Houser was just taking advantage of weak competition: six of his 11 starts came against the Orioles, Royals, Rangers, Giants, Rockies, and Pirates, teams on our target list.
Houser is a low-to-mid-level streamer. His lower strikeout rate holds him down a bit, and Houser is likely to perform worse just by pure luck, if nothing else.
Eric Lauer, Toronto Blue Jays @ Colorado Rockies
Lauer continues his fantastic season, holding an ERA under 2.70 and a WHIP under 1.00 in 74 innings. He has both a walk rate and strikeout rate considerably better than average and has given up just 53 hits; it's been nothing short of a remarkable season for Lauer, much better than any other in his career. That brings with it the worry of regression, but let's ride the hot hand.
The matchup is right for the good times to continue. This game is at Coors Field, a clear downside, but the Rockies are still a bottom offensive team, and they top out at average even when they play at home. Most notable for our purposes, Colorado batters have drawn the second-fewest walks and have struck out the second most.
Lauer is a mid-to-high-level streamer. He gets knocked down a notch because the game is in Denver and not Toronto, but this is a guy who is on fire facing a team that is the opposite of fire (maybe a dumpster fire?).
Sean Manaea, New York Mets vs. Cleveland Guardians
Manaea missed most of the season, only making his debut on July 13. He has looked good in the very small sample, making four appearances (three starts) with 17 1/3 innings, 11 hits, four runs, four walks, and 22 strikeouts. He is making short starts, having not topped five innings, but Manaea is on the right track and will likely start lengthening out a little.
Over the full season, the Guardians have bottom-10 offensive numbers essentially across the board. They have been better recently, putting together an above-average offense over the past month. There were rumors that Cleveland was going to do a little house cleaning at the trade deadline, but they held onto most of their pieces, making more minor moves and leaving the offense intact.
Manaea is a mid-level streamer. His work has been very good, but it's a super small sample, and Cleveland might be improving if the last month is any indication. There's still plenty of talent on the roster.
Casey Mize, Detroit Tigers vs. Minnesota Twins
On the opposite side of the trade deadline were the Twins, who sold off pieces like a Blockbuster going out of business. They lost two of three to the Guardians over the weekend after the fire sale, averaging less than four runs per game. They are likely to be one of our best streaming targets moving forward before they can refigure the lineup and roster in the offseason.
Mize has a good walk rate and an average strikeout rate this season. His career numbers are lower over his career, but he has his best K% in 2025. The top overall pick in 2018, Mize is now a few years removed from missing all of 2023 (and most of 2022) with Tommy John surgery, and it looks like he could be hitting his stride, even if he never turns into a full-blown ace.
Mize is a mid-level streamer. His increase in Ks helps his floor and ceiling, and the matchup is likely to be one of the best in the league over the next two months.
Justin Verlander, San Francisco Giants @ Pittsburgh Pirates
We might be seeing the final two months of Verlander's career. He will turn 43 in February, and his numbers have dropped across the board. Verlander still looks like a slightly below-average pitcher, a very large, very rich group of guys in the big leagues, but he's far worse than the former MVP we've seen in the past. He's still a worthy fantasy streamer in the right situations.
Pittsburgh is one of those situations. They have maybe the least offensive talent in all of baseball, still feeding Andrew McCutchen starting-level at-bats as the team flounders and young guys need the time to improve. The problem is that there aren't many young guys who have shown they deserve those chances (but they still need to phase McCutchen out of the lineup).
Verlander is a low-to-mid-level streamer. The matchup is good enough here to bump him toward that middle level, and Verlander can still show upside at times, making him a pitcher worth considering.
Monday's Streamer Rankings
- Eric Lauer, TOR
- Casey Mize, DET
- Sean Manaea, NYM
- Justin Verlander, SF
- Adrian Houser, TB
