Sunday's Fantasy Baseball Streaming Pitchers: Luis Garcia, Michael Lorenzen, and More

This is a baseball column, but there's no two ways around it: this is also the first NFL Sunday of the year. Football is the most popular sport in this country, and it dwarfs everything else in TV ratings and fantasy prowess. More people play fantasy football than all other fantasy sports combined.

While MLB is getting to their most exciting stretch, they will take a back seat for the next few weeks as the NFL gets underway; more focus will shift back to baseball as we hit the final week and the playoffs.

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

Use the FantasySP Who Should I Start? tool to compare players when making lineup decisions, including streaming pitchers you might pick up.

Luis Garcia, Houston Astros @ Texas Rangers

After missing most of 2023 and all of 2024, Garcia made his return to the big leagues last Monday, throwing six innings while allowing three hits, three runs, and two home runs, with no walks and six strikeouts. Garcia has been better than average with walks and well above average with strikeouts over his career. His return to something approaching his form before the injury would be a huge boost for the Astros heading into the playoff stretch.

The Rangers are a fringe bottom-10 offensive team, right on the edge of that group in most stats, though they are in the bottom seven in all four slash categories. They play at one of the most pitcher-friendly parks in baseball, something that depresses their numbers; this game is also in Texas, another mark in Garcia's favor.

Garcia is a mid-level streamer. The matchup sets him up for success, and Garcia came back looking decent in his first outing, including striking out a batter per inning.

Michael Lorenzen, Kansas City Royals vs. Minnesota Twins

The Twins continue their losing ways, first getting swept by the White Sox in a four-game series and now losing the first two to Kansas City. Minnesota has steadily fallen toward the bottom of the American League since the trade deadline and now threaten to top 90 losses. The offense is below average, though the pitching staff might be worse right now.

Lorenzen has been a frequent visitor on our streaming list recently, getting matchups against the Angels, Rangers, and White Sox (twice) in his last four outings. The results weren't great in that stretch: 19.1 innings, 23 hits, 10 runs, five walks, and 20 strikeouts. Those K and BB numbers are good, but he has been hit hard, something that matches his season work.

Lorenzen is a low-to-mid-level streamer. Despite recent struggles, he has good rates, and Lorenzen could bounce back with yet another good matchup, though it's not a great one.

Charlie Morton, Detroit Tigers vs. Chicago White Sox

The White Sox are a tough team to target right now. They were on a six-game winning streak before they were shut out yesterday 6-0, with Tarik Skubal throwing seven innings. With a weaker pitcher on the mound rather than a Cy Young contender, Chicago has a chance to get back to their mashing ways. The Sox averaged more than seven runs per game over that winning streak; their spot here is more about the season-long numbers than recent results.

Morton has been better than average with strikeouts while also walking too many guys, a trend over the past few seasons. He has been hit around a little bit, allowing 138 hits in 132 1/3 innings and a home run every 6.3 innings, a number a little worse than average. There is good and bad to Morton's performance, but he has ended up on the below-average side more often.

Morton is a low-to-mid-level streamer. He gets a little bump because of his strikeout work, but Morton hasn't been great, and the matchup isn't a great one based on recent numbers.

Luis Severino, Athletics @ Los Angeles Angels

Severino is another pitcher who has fallen victim to his current home park in Sacramento, which has been one of the most hitter-friendly in baseball. We've seen it with other A's pitchers too, how their numbers away from home are far better than at the not-so-friendly confines. Severino has allowed 54 hits and 26 runs (23 earned) in 70 1/3 innings away and 88 hits and 56 runs (50 earned) in 71 innings at home.

This one is on the road and against the Angels, a team that grades out below average in everything except hitting for power: they are tied for fifth in most home runs. LA also strikes out more than any other team, averaging 9.8 Ks per game. This is a strong matchup despite the big power potential.

Severino is a low-to-mid-level streamer. He gets this one on the road, which is a plus, but Severino's strikeout work has been down, lowering his fantasy ceiling.

Kai-Wei Teng, San Francisco Giants @ St. Louis Cardinals

Teng was listed here before his start on Monday against Colorado. There was good and bad, as Teng allowed nine hits in 5 1/3 innings but also struck out eight and didn't walk any batters. Most importantly, he gave up just two runs and picked up the win. Teng has thrown only 29 2/3 innings in the majors, but he has good strikeout upside to go with high walk and hit numbers.

The Cardinals are playing their worst offensively late in the season. Over the past 30 days, they rank in the bottom 10 in every major offensive box stat. They are still technically in the playoff hunt, but an offense failing so often isn't going to allow them to make up ground quickly, which they desperately need.

Teng is a low-to-mid-level streamer. He has struggled more than he has excelled in his short big league time, so while the matchup is good and he has a little upside, I have to temper expectations.

Sunday's Streamer Rankings

1. Luis Garcia, HOU
2. Michael Lorenzen, KC
3. Luis Severino, ATH
4. Kai-Wei Teng, SF
5. Charlie Morton, DET