Friday Fantasy Baseball Streaming Pitchers: An AL Central Matchup Brings Fantasy Value

If you haven't been paying close attention to the standings (and in mid-June, you really don't need to), you may have missed that the Chicago White Sox are in first place in the AL Central. After losing 324 combined games over the past three seasons, the White Sox are 36-31, a half-game above Cleveland.

There's still a LONG way to go, but Chicago didn't pick up their 36th win until July 21 last season; in 2024, it was September 16 (!!!), and in 2023, it was June 29. It was a long, arduous trifecta of pitiful seasons, but young talent and improved performance have the White Sox looking like there might finally be hope, even if they don't break through this season.

Moving to fantasy baseball, 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 starters. The full streamer rankings are listed at the bottom.

Use FantasySP's waiver wire tool to find the players who are being added to fantasy teams most often!

Tanner Bibee, Cleveland Guardians vs. Detroit Tigers

Jack Flaherty, Detroit Tigers @ Cleveland Guardians

We'll start today with a game in which we can target both teams with fantasy pitchers. Cleveland and Detroit were thought to be the teams that would be battling it out in the AL Central all season, and while that still could be the case, Detroit hasn't kept up their end of the bargain, sitting 11 games under .500 and within a few games of the worst record in baseball. Cleveland has been better overall, but they have a middling-at-best offense that creates fantasy intrigue for opposing pitchers.

Bibee is owned in over 60% of fantasy leagues, meaning he doesn't really qualify for this list. I have him here for two reasons: first, we have a shortage of real streamers today, and Bibee helps make up the numbers. Second, there is still plenty of availability, particularly in shallow leagues, and it's worth seeing if you can grab a guy who has been a high-level pitcher in the past and has a great matchup. Though his K rate is down this season, Bibee has generally been good with both walks and strikeouts while limiting hits, runs, and homers at a good rate.

Flaherty has kept up his good strikeout work but has walked way too many batters this season. Combine that with giving up more hits than he usually does, and it's not a surprise that Flaherty is holding a 5.31 ERA with eight additional unearned runs allowed. Based on his work the past few seasons, there's a good chance Flaherty can improve his numbers if he finds his control (he has an average walk rate in his career).

Bibee is a mid-to-high-level streamer and Flaherty a mid-level streamer. Bibee is probably the better pitcher and has the better matchup, so he gets the advantage, but either of these guys would fit well in your fantasy lineup today.

Shane Baz, Baltimore Orioles vs. San Diego Padres

San Diego is in position to fight for the playoffs, but they have scored the fewest runs in the league. They also rank last in hits, batting average, on-base percentage, slugging percentage, and OPS; that's astounding for a team that is above .500 nearly 70 games into the season. They are riding good luck and top-10 pitching numbers to their current status, but the Padres won't have any hope of truly competing if they continue with one of the worst offenses in baseball.

Baz has been very average in almost every area this season. He was previously above average with strikeouts, but that number is actually a little below average this season. There's enough time for that rate to go back up, something that would take Baz to a higher fantasy level. Right now, he's owned in around 40% of leagues, leaving enough availability to make it worth checking on him, especially with the strong matchup today.

Baz is a mid-to-high-level streamer. I'm holding out hope that his Ks will increase, and that would make him at least a mid-level guy. Add in the high-level matchup, and Baz has a good outlook in this one.

Tatsuya Imai, Houston Astros @ Kansas City Royals

Imai has had some struggles in his debut season in MLB, but his past three starts have shown why he was a highly touted free agent this offseason. In those outings, he combined for 17 innings, eight hits, four runs, nine walks, and 15 strikeouts. That walk number is too high, but that stretch also included six no-hit innings against the Rangers on May 25 (though he did walk four batters). There's risk with his control issues, but Imai brings strikeout upside that makes him tantalizing.

The Royals are another team that ranks in the bottom 10 in almost every category, including populating that group in all four slash categories. When teams have played a different number of games, a group that has played fewer contests can end up lower in the counting stats due to the quirks of the schedule (and postponed games). Kansas City, though, is performing poorly in each of the rate stats that aren't affected by the number of games a team has played, showing that they are struggling in most areas.

Imai is a mid-level streamer. The risk of his shaky control is offset a bit by good strikeout numbers, and with the matchup in his favor here, Imai has the chance at another good game.

Jack Leiter, Texas Rangers @ Boston Red Sox

Add Boston to the group of teams today that ranks near the bottom in many offensive box stats. They have hit the fewest home runs and scored the second-fewest runs, and they are in the bottom five in both slugging percentage and OPS. Each of those are major factors in determining offensive prowess, particularly in today's game, and the Red Sox are clearly failing in all of them. Boston is one of our best target teams right now.

Leiter's numbers are very average this season, but that's more from mixing good and poor outings rather than a consistent average performance. His previous two starts are a great example of his season as a whole:

• May 31 vs. Kansas City: 5 2/3 innings, 3 hits, 0 runs, 2 walks, 10 strikeouts
• June 6 vs. Cleveland: 4 2/3 innings, 6 hits, 5 runs, 2 home runs, 3 walks, 2 strikeouts

I keep holding out hope that he will show more ace-level production (I'm a sucker for younger pitchers with pedigree), but Leiter has proven to mostly be a guy who shows that upside while reminding us that he's not there yet. If you're willing to accept some risk, there's also the chance at a big performance on any given day.

Leiter is a low-to-mid-level streamer. He has the upside of a much better fantasy player, but Leiter hasn't put it all together yet, leaving him a hair below the middle level.

Friday's Streamer Rankings

1. Shane Baz, BAL
2. Tanner Bibee, CLE
3. Tatsuya Imai, HOU
4. Jack Flaherty, DET
5. Jack Leiter, TEX