Fantasy Baseball Today - It's Miller Time! Brandon Pfaadt Promotion & Worry-O-Meter (5/3 Fantasy Baseball Podcast)

Episode Date: May 3, 2023

Bryce Miller looked great in his debut (1:20)! ... Mason Miller threw seven no-hit innings (5:25). ... Michael King is the Yankees' best reliever (11:40). ... Brandon Pfaadt will make his debut Wednesday (14:50). ... LaMonte Wade or Harold Ramirez (20:53)? ... News (27:30): Liam Hendriks is cleared for rehab. ... Let's fire up the Worry-O-Meter on Daulton Varsho, Jose Abreu and others (34:00). ... We recap the pitching standouts from Tuesday (45:26). ... Let's wrap up with leftovers, bullpen updates and streamers (55:00). Fantasy Baseball Today is available for free on the Audacy app as well as Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts, Stitcher and wherever else you listen to podcasts.  Get awesome Fantasy Baseball Today merch here: http://bit.ly/3y8dUqi Follow FBT on TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@fbtpod?_t=8WyMkPdKOJ1&_r=1 Follow our FBT team on Twitter: @FBTPod, @CTowersCBS, @CBSScottWhite, @Roto_Frank Join our Facebook group at https://www.facebook.com/groups/fantasybaseballtoday Sign up for the FBT Newsletter at https://www.cbssports.com/newsletters/fantasy-baseball-today/ For more fantasy baseball coverage from CBS Sports, visit https://www.cbssports.com/fantasy/baseball/ To hear more from the CBS Sports Podcast Network, visit https://www.cbssports.com/podcasts/ Subscribe to our YouTube channel: youtube.com/FantasyBaseballToday You can listen to Fantasy Baseball Today on your smart speakers! Simply say "Alexa, play the latest episode of the Fantasy Baseball Today podcast" or "Hey Google, play the latest episode of the Fantasy Baseball Today podcast." To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Welcome to the Fantasy Baseball Today podcast from CBS Sports. Got a fantasy question? Email Fantasy Baseball at CBSI.com. Get ready to win your league. Well, fantasy becomes reality. Now here's Frank, Scott, and Chris. It's Miller time. Welcome in to Fantasy Baseball today on Wednesday.

May 3rd, Frank Stamph will join by Scott White. Today on the show. I'm going to recap all of Tuesday's action. Those Millers, they were out and they were about and they were both awesome. Brandon Fott is finally getting the call. He'll make his debut on Wednesday, a Welsh Wednesday, keep the streak alive.

You'll love to see it. We're gonna fire up the Wariometer and much more. Before we get started, please like this video, subscribe on YouTube if you haven't already. If you're listening on the audio side, download, follow, and leave a five-star rating. We really appreciate it. Let's jump right in.

All right, a little Dave Nehouse because, Scott, you're getting us started. here with the Mariner's pitching prospect who looked pretty awesome. Yeah, take your pick which Miller you're going to go with here for the oh my goodness gracious player of the day. I'm going with Bryce. Bryce in his debut who, how deep did he have a no hitter going? He ended up allowing he ended up allowing two hits in six innings.

He took it into the sixth inning. Yeah, there were like competing no hitters between Bryce and Mason and Mason ended up allowing no hits in seven innings. But anyway, back to Bryce. He ended up allowing two, one-er-run, and six-innings struck out 10, walked nobody. It was about as dominant of the debut as you could ask for. It came at Oakland.

So we'll start with that. He had a very plush matchup there to begin his career. The same matchup were constantly having to point out, it seems like, because players have ridiculous performances against that team. So there's that. The other thing that kind of gives me pause here is he threw 70% fastballs. That's a really good fastball. Of his 13 whiffs, 11 came on that fastball.

I mean, how could they not? He was throwing at 70% of the time. But as I've pointed out, pretty often recently, I've had occasion to say this, when a pitcher is capable of getting whiffs on his fastball, that is a sign of a high ceiling. Because not many pitchers can do that regularly with that pitch. But it's 70% of the time that he threw it. So, like, is there enough of an arsenal here?

Now, the slider is, apparently earns pretty high marks in his own right. He doesn't have to turn to it often. It certainly didn't in his debut here. You know, it does make you wonder how this is going to play in the long run. Does he have a diverse enough arsenal when he takes on a good lineup when the league's seen him a couple times to continue doing this. That said, you know, there was a time when we said the same thing about Spencer Strider. Part of what makes Bryce Miller's fastball so effective isn't just that he throws it hard.

And, you know, he peaked at 97 in this one. He didn't get to the triple digits that we've known him to do in the past. So the fastball wasn't even at his hardest in this start. But part of the reason it makes it so effective is that Bryce Miller has a low release point, so he gets that vertical approach angle that causes hitters to swing under it. And that is like the optimal pitch design in the modern game.

And a key to getting swings and misses on your fastball. So it's a really good pitch, and he throws it hard. And at least in this start, he threw it for strikes, his walk rates in the minors, and a bit on the high side. So that's another thing I'm not sure we can count on Bryce Miller to do regularly,

is walk nobody. So I guess what I'm trying to say is very impressive debut, impressive enough that, yes, you should pick him up everywhere you can. He's sticking around for a while. We know that. But there are some reasons for pause, and it doesn't, I'm not ready to conclude that Bryce Miller is your savior necessarily, even if you obviously have to add him.

Yeah, and he is widely available, as you mentioned, and Scott, only 19% rostered for Bryce Miller. So even if you play in deeper leagues, I understand firsthand how desperate people are for starting pitching right now. So yeah, especially in those deeper formats, I think you want to go out there and make sure you add Bryce Miller. I like that point that you made about the low release point and the vertical approach angle.

That is the same type of fastball that Joe Ryan throws, and that's how he's so effective. And mind you, Joe Ryan, this year has a velocity uptick and he's sitting around 92, 93 miles per hour. Bryce Miller has this vertical approach angle, and he was sitting 95 in this one. So it could turn out to be a really, really effective fastball, which you pointed out here, Scott.

I hate to come on here and, like, throw cold water on everything. It's like, obviously we're excited about these two guys, but we have to keep things in perspective. And again, worth mentioning that this Oakland-A's lineup is very bad. And with that, let's talk about Mason Miller on the other side of this one, because he was going up against the Mariners, and he threw seven no-hit innings in this one.

He was not perfect. He did walk four, only threw 54 of his 100 pitches for strikes in this one, six strikeouts total, 13 swinging strikes on 100 pitches. But what I really liked is the hard contact was down. I remember last time out against the Angels, Mason Miller allowed like 11 hard hits,

100 mile per hour, average exit velocity against. And he changed a pitch mix in this one. wasn't as fastball reliant, used the slider and the cutter more, and the slider was very good in this outing. Six swinging strikes on that pitch, 46% CSW for Mason Miller's slider. The velocity was down too, worth mentioning. It was down quite a bit. I mean, the fastball down 1.9 miles per hour, the slider down nearly two miles per hour as well.

For Mason Miller, it was raining early on in that start, so maybe that had something to do with it. You know, Scott, I was going to get on here and say, well, maybe him throwing, You know, taking a few ticks off, helped with his control. But he walked four, and he only threw 54 strikes out of 100 pitches. So I can't use that excuse, but all at all, Mason Miller was much more effective in this start. Like you did for Bryce, I'm going to point out, there was no Julio Rodriguez in the lineup for the Mariners.

So this isn't the same Mariners lineup that we're used to, obviously when you take a big bat like that out of their lineup. He's up to 69% rostered. And I think the obvious question here is, Who would you rather have, Mason Miller or Bryce Miller? I'd rather have Bryce because, as you pointed out, there are reasons to undercut what Mason did here as well. The fact that his most thrown pitches, his two most thrown pitches were both down two miles per hour.

And it didn't have the tangible effect of improving his control. So it doesn't appear to have been by design. That's reason enough to say, okay, what's going on here? he was effective in spite of it. It was the most effective we've seen him in the majors so far. And I think the best thing we can say about this Mason Miller start is that, okay, the idea that he's never going to be allowed to go five or six innings is clearly out the window. He went seven.

The deepest he's gone into his start in his entire professional career, which is not very long, obviously. And when I say professional career, I mean minors included. Deepest he's ever gone. So that's, you know, he's, that band-aid is off. He's gone seven innings now. How consistently will he do it remains to be seen? But he's done at this one time. And so we can at least take that away from this Mason Miller start.

But yeah, I don't know what was going on with the velocity. The control is still been pretty bad. You know, 13 whiffs on 100 pitches. It's a fine whiff rate, like a season-long whiff rate. But if that's what you're doing in your, very best start. I'm not especially wowed by that. So I still have a lot of questions about Mason Miller,

and I don't think I'd go as far as to say he is must roster. Rice Miller, yeah, pick him up everywhere. Mason Miller, it'd be nice to have him. But in shallower leagues, you know, he may get squeezed out. He does pitch for the A's after all. And I saw a funny stat. Yeah, I guess it's still intact because Mason Miller didn't get the win here. there hasn't been an A's starting pitcher who's collected a win.

That's true. Since Bryce Harper had Tommy John surgery. Bryce Harper came back today from Tommy John surgery. That's funny. Which of course just means this year. No, I started pitcher is. But it's usually Tommy John is such a long recovery that it makes it all the more shocking. That is a funny way to phrase it too.

Yeah, it's tough because I picked up Mason Miller in a few spots. So obviously I'm rooting for the kid. Like I want him to do well. This start was awesome. But I think I agree. I think you got to go with Bryce Miller. The team context, right, burying the lead here. Mason Miller threw seven no-hit innings and got pulled.

And his team wound up losing the game. Yeah. It's the most Oakland A's thing possible. So even like there was nothing more that he could do outside of maybe try to throw a complete game. But at 100 pitches after seven, that just wasn't realistic. They weren't going to bring Mason Miller out. for more. So, I mean, this is the limitation. But, you know,

obviously when he's on, he's, he's pretty good. Like, obviously, the stuff is, is pretty nasty for Mason Miller. But I do agree. I think I'd rather have Bryce Miller. And there are other pitching prospects that have emerged, right? We're going to talk about Brendan Fott in just a little bit. He's more available than Mason Miller is.

So maybe that's a swap that you would want to make. Or even Tanner Bybee, he made his second start of the season on Tuesday. He's 71% rostered. that's almost the same as Mason Miller. I would rather have Bybee than Mason Miller as well. So as much as we do like these two guys, just, you know, keep it in perspective. We're being too negative here, these two young upstards,

taking a no-hitter battle into the sixth inning. It was awesome. It really, it was a great start. So it was a great game to watch too. I'm just a negative person right now. Nothing is going right. And even when, you know, when a pitcher comes through with, an incredible performance this year. He's followed it up with a complete dumper. And I just don't,

I just don't trust anything anymore. I don't trust anybody or anything. Don't touch me. I think it's good to keep it in perspective, though. Like, yes, these were great starts, and it was a very fun game to watch. I watched the entire thing. Probably not fun if you're an Oakland A's fan. But overall, yes, I think we have to, again, perspective is that that key word that we keep going back to. Let's liven it up a little bit here, Scott. a oh my goodness gracious shout out to my man. Willie Calhoun. How about Willie Calhoun? A go ahead home run in the seventh inning. His first home run with the New York Yankees. What a stud. But what I actually wanted to talk about with the Yankees is what I ranted about yesterday.

And Aaron Boone, I'm not a genius, buddy. But all you got to do is listen to me. Because Michael King converted a five-out save, zero hits, one walk, three-stri-stri- to lock down the win for the Yankees. Again, he's, in my opinion, clearly been the best reliever in that bullpen this year. Some have pointed this out to me, Scott, so I wanted to bring it up to you first and foremost because I'm getting lots of questions.

Do I drop this closer for Michael King? Do I drop this guy? I don't know if we can go that far yet. Michael King is routinely used for multiple innings at a time. And after he's used, he's been routinely given multiple days off. So I don't know when we're going to see. Michael King pitch again.

And I don't know that he's all of a sudden the Yankees closer. I think he's their best reliever. I don't trust the Yankees to just, okay, they're going to push Clay Holmes aside. In fact, Aaron Boone did the opposite. Before Tuesday's game, he actually gave a vote of confidence to Clay Holmes.

He's like, yeah, he's still our closer and he's still the guy. But I guess they were just giving him off the night off here because obviously he was not very good on Monday. Well, and they had already brought King into the game, and this seems to be King's niche is going. entering a game and just going as long as he can. So he may get some saves that way,

just from the point he enters, he doesn't leave, and it happens to be a safe situation, so he winds up with a save. But I think it's pretty unlikely he's going to become the straight-up closer at any point. I wouldn't rule it out, but I think for the time being, it's unlikely. But I won't rule it out.

I'll call your love to the test with this, because you mentioned people are asking, oh, should I drop this closer for, Michael King this closer. Would you drop a roll as Chapman? Another non-closer who we think very likely to step into the role at some point. Would you drop a roll as Chapman for Michael King?

That's a good one. And I think I would just because actually I know Scott Barlow's overall numbers haven't been good either, but he's been better as of late. Scott Barlow and Clay Holmes are going in opposite directions right now. Like Scott Barlow has gotten better. So I think that's kind of made it less. likely for a role as Chapman, whereas I think it's more likely for Michael King. So yes, I would

make that swap. Craig Kimbrel was a question that I got. I'm like, I don't know, he kind of seems like a pseudo-Philius closer right now, too. What do you think about that one, Scott? I'd be more likely to drop Kimbril than Chapman. I would not drop Chapman for King. Okay. I might drop Kimbril for King. Yeah, I think I would drop Kimball for King. So if I'm ranking these non-closers, I would go. Chapman, King, Kimbril. Yeah, I think I would put King at the top of the list right now, but just because I think there's more of a chance of him just taking over as the closer. Again, I don't know if that's actually going to happen.

Someone asked me, do I drop Clay Holmes straight up for Michael King? And I'm like, I don't think so. I don't think you can do that as much as I like him. And it kind of feels like I'm backtracking, but we just don't know. We just don't know right now. Would you do that? Would you drop Clay Holmes for Michael King? No.

No, I don't think I would either. Let's move over to Brandon Fott, who will finally make his debut. I say finally, right? Like, he did have to work through some things. It's not like he's been completely dominant in the minors, but it feels like we've heard about this possibility of Brandon Fott making his debut for weeks now, but it's actually going to happen.

On Wednesday, going up against the Texas Rangers, in five starts at AAA this year, Fott had a 3.91 ERA, 1.18 whip, 30 strikeouts over 25, and a third innings pitched. He is up to 63% rostered. Next, would you rather, Scott, is Brandon Fott or Tanner Bibi, who went into Yankee Stadium, five and a third, two earned runs, five strikeouts of zero walks. He has walked zero over his first two professional starts.

Brandon Fott or Tanner Bibi? I will continue to imbibe Bibi rather than turning to Fott. Fott. But it's already pretty rostered. As you know, Frank. And this is exciting. And let me explain why it's exciting, because a lot of people have been like,

oh, is this guy really good? His minor league numbers don't seem that impressive. I think the most impressive thing I could say about branded Fott is that, once it got called up to AAA Reno last year, in the PCL, especially difficult place to pitch, very high elevation in Reno.

he had a 263 ERA in 10 starts at AAA Reno that's the same at that same affiliate where Brandon Fott had the 263 ERA Drey Jameson had an ERA over six and Ryan Nelson had an ERA over five and Dre Jameson was coming out here at 263 RA again this year and five starts back at AAA Reno given that context

his 391 ERA is all Also, pretty impressive. Another very impressive stat I can offer up about Brandon Fott is that last year, that year that he finished a AAA Reno, he had 218 strikeouts total between double and AAA. It's the most strikeouts for any minor league pitcher since 2001. 2001, that's a couple decades. So, yeah, there's ability here for FODs. I am a little reluctant to say, call him the Savior either, just because, you know, we've gotten burned so many times with, with, in pursuit of the next savior, particularly this year with all the rookies who have let us down. But there is definite upside here with Fod.

He's done some impressive things in the minor leagues. I think the ceiling is higher than for Drey Jamison, let's say, who at one point, when he got installed in the rotation, he was the hot pickup off the waiver wire. So definitely Fought needs to be rostered, even if his major league debut against a tough rangers lineup goes poorly, I don't think we should abandon Fott at that point. But it may be a bumpy ride just because that's how it goes for rookies in general

and how it's been going especially of late. Do you have anything you wanted to add on Bybee's start here on Tuesday Night? No. It was good. Two good starts in a row. I will note that the whiff rate has been a little underwhelming given the prospect stature and how highly the stuff rates. It's been a little overwhelming.

So, you know, I'm nitpicking there, considering that he's actually come up and delivered on his potential so far. I'd be thrilled to roster him. I don't think I actually have him anywhere. I got bid. I got out bid in all my leagues this weekend for Tanner Bybee. But he's off doing a nice start and I suspect he's going to keep starting every fifth day for the Guardians. Last question here on the pitching prospects. Tage Bradley, his most recent start in the minors. loud eight, eight earned runs in one inning of work. Are you dropping him for any of these names? Bybee fought Millers. I would drop him for Bybee fought or Bryce Miller. I would not drop him for

Mason Miller. And I kind of want to blame the raise for like ruining his confidence and he went down there and he got shelled. I don't know if that's actually the case. But that is the latest story that I'm telling in my head. I mean, it certainly wouldn't be the first instance of a guy who felt like he had earned his keep in the majors being sent down and immediately just stinking it up because I mean maybe it's just coincidental in this case in a lot of them but you can't have but wonder if there is a psychological you know kind of a kind of a pouting effect not that I blame them but just like it's only human that you might not have the same level of conviction you did before yeah yeah I totally agree let's take our first break when we return

We'll get into a few of their waiver-wire decisions. Lamont Wade is quietly hitting the ball very well. Harold Ramirez had another big game. We'll talk about all of that right after this. Welcome back and just a reminder to download and follow Fantasy Baseball Today in Five. That is our five-minute podcast, wherever you listen to podcast. We usually take the biggest news of the day or the hottest player, and we talk about that for five minutes or so.

So if you just can't catch this podcast for whatever reason, you can find Fantasy Baseball Today in Five. if you're watching us live. We got a QR code in the top right corner so you can scan that and that'll take you right to the podcast feed. A few waiver-wire decisions, Scott, between these two first base slash outfielders,

who would you rather have between Lamont Wade who didn't do anything crazy on Tuesday? But just thought I'd point out, he has 22 walks to 21 strikeouts, a 16% barrel rate, and he's hitting the ball harder than ever before, has started seven straight games. Would you rather have Lamont Wade

or Harold Reminds? who went two for three with his sixth home run of the season. The playing time really has been disappointing for Harold Ramirez. It seemed for a while there like he was becoming close to a full-timer for the raise. And now, I believe this was just his fourth start in seven games. Correct. Even though his numbers remain phenomenal. And he's a right-handed batter.

So it's not like he's an obvious sit against lefties. Wade, on the other hand, you mentioned he started seven straight. But he has a left-handed batter. And the Giants, more than any other team probably, like to move hitters in and out of the lineup. One of those seven starts, I will point out, was against a lefty for Wade, but I don't think that's going to be something that becomes regular for him.

So I'll still take Ramirez, but they're pretty close. It might be format dependent for me, like, in a head-to-head points league. Given that crazy walk rate, the on-based skills for Lamont Wade, I might lean with him or in any type of OBP format. but in just roto or categories, you know, I think Harold Ramirez on a per game basis probably will be better than Lamont Wade. It's hard to imagine that Wade's going to maintain

a walk rate over 20% anyway. Probably not, but he typically has had a good eye, right, at the plate, or am I making it? I mean, no. It was 10% last year. 10% is pretty good. But that was the highest over any real sample. Yeah, so this is pretty massive for him.

at a 21% walk rate so far. That is Lamont Wade. A few middle infielder's, we're talking, you know, if you're in a 12-team, roto-league, or deeper, and you need a middle infieler, something like that.

Ezekiel Duran stays hot. There's just something about that name right now. Duran, both those guys, red hot for the Rangers and the Red Sox, respectively. He went three for four with a double and his third home run of the season. He is now batting 328 with an 879 OPS, has shortstop third base,

outfield eligibility, or CJ Abrams went three for three with an RBI, two run scored, actually had a batted ball, 108.9 exit velocity, which I thought was very encouraging for CJ Abrams. Who would you rather have between those two, Scott? I'd rather have Duran. He's in a much better lineup.

He's capable of doing more than Abrams, I think, hitting for power. As we saw in this game, I'm very skeptical that Duran is going to be a lot. long-term fantasy option for you, but he's the hot hand right now at a position where it's hard to find. It's certainly in deeper leagues. It's hard to find alternatives on the waiver wire, so I don't mind using him in that context. Do any of these pitching performances matter? These are the players that are widely available outside of the prospects, which we talked about

earlier. Michael Copac had a big bounce back start. You know, big in that he didn't allow, he only allowed one hit over six innings, but he still had five walks, seven strikeouts, up against the Minnesota Twins. Hayden Wesnesty, a solid start at the National, six innings, one run, two strikeouts, zero walks. I don't really know what happened to Wesnesty this year, Scott, but it was like,

spring training ended, and some kind of switch just kind of flipped for Wesnesty because he keeps changing up the pitch mix and he's not getting whiffs. I think he's just really searching and trying to find something right now. Michael Waka, solid start up against a red, six shutout with three strikeouts for him.

Do any of those matter? Waka, Wesneski, Michael Kopeck. I mean, worth pointing out, it was a really good matchup for West Nesky and he has another one coming up to end this week. He has gotten better in terms of run prevention, but he's not getting any strikeouts at all.

So I have a hard time staying invested in West Neski beyond just the streamability of this week with the favorable matchups. Kopeck is kind of doing some interesting things, throwing that fastball a ton and getting pretty good whiffs with it, but the walks are just way too high to take them seriously at this point.

In five of his six starts, he's at three walks or more. Yeah. And as you mentioned, five in this start. And then Waka, it was a great start. You know, two hits in six innings. He had another start earlier this year, two hits in six innings.

But then the other four starts, all an ERA over six. So it's just like, yeah, I can't. I can't invest in that, no matter how good he looked in this particular start. In the deepest of league, Scott, do either of these names matter? Dominic Fletcher, the brother of one David Fletcher. He is up with the Diamondbacks and does have some prospect pedigree.

He went two for three with a walk and an RBI last year in the miners. He hit 312, 12 homers, 35 doubles, nine steals, and 864 OPS. The other name here is Connor Wong with the Red Sox. Four for four with a double dong. He had four hard hit balls, one of those, 11.6 exit velocity, and has started seven of the last 10 games for the Red Sox. Anything here, Scott?

I mean, we're talking the deepest of leagues. Dominic Fletcher, Connor Wong. Well, I don't know that we are talking the deepest of leagues for Connor Wong. If he's going to start this regularly for the Red Sox, then I think any two-catcher league is probably worth looking into. He's been very hot now. I mean, it's a short stretch, but it's very hot. Not only did he have the two home runs here on Tuesday and a four-for-four-four game,

last three games, nine for 12 with three home runs. He's raised his batting average from 180 to 290, just in those three games. His average exit velocity, 75th percentile, max exit velocity, 85th percentile. So he's legitimately hitting the ball hard. and he's a catcher. So in any two catcher league, I think he's probably worth looking into at this point. I'm skeptical he'll turn into anything

worthwhile for one catcher leagues, but I think it's, you know, I think he has his place at this point. Earned a seat at the table. All right, let's get into some news and notes. And first and foremost, awesome news as Liam Hendricks will begin a minor league rehab assignment on Wednesday.

I assume they're going to give him as much time as he needs. So within the next couple of weeks, if everything goes all right, I assume that we're going to get Liam Hendricks back as the White Sox closer, which again is just fantastic news. Thankfully, Ronald de Cunia was back in the lineup after that hit by pitch on his shoulder. I believe he stole a base in that game as well. So all as well. Yeah.

With Ronald de Cunia. Julio Rodriguez was scratched from the lineup Tuesday due to that recurring backsorness. Aaron Judge hit in the batting cage and is hopeful his aisle stint will be a minimum stay so kind of positive glass half full we'll see where it goes Salvador Perez is day to day

after leaving with a contusion on his middle finger he did smack two home runs before he left that game so thank goodness it was just a contusion of that middle finger remember this happened last year Scott it was like every time Salvador Perez would get hurt he would like have a monster game It feels like it always happens that way.

I don't know why. It's very interesting. I just like that he got a bruise on the very instrument that is used to bruise others. That is right. That is a strong boy there, Salvador Perez. Bryce Harper was batting third in his season debut. He finished 0 for 4 with three strikeouts. A nice little, hey, welcome back.

No rehab assignment. You got to face Julio Reyes on maybe his. Best start of the season to date. Jose Altuve fielded grounders on Tuesday, his first baseball activity since thumb surgery in March. We're probably looking at like a late May, early June return, hopefully for Jose Altuve. That lineup has gone pretty cold too,

so they can definitely use him. Corby and Carroll has missed two straight with that knee contusion. I didn't see any news on the MRI results, Scott. Did you see anything for Corbyn Carroll? No, just that he was out of the lineup. Weird. Hmm. Interesting. Carl Swardon's back is still bothering him and affecting his mechanics.

His pitching arm is actually fine at this point. Elbow, shoulder, good to go, but for whatever reason, his back is still giving him issues. Aaron Boone gave Clay Holmes a vote of confidence, which I mentioned earlier, saying the closer is, quote, in a good spot and can keep and can get through this. Holmes now has a walk per nine up over five after yesterday's, Monday's outing rather. And you know how I feel about that. All of Luis Robert, Eloy Jimenez, and Andrew Benintendi were back in the lineup Tuesday. Louis Varland will officially start on Wednesday against the White Sox. He's 8% rostered for those who need pitching in deeper leagues.

Adam Wainwright is lined up to make his season debut Saturday against the Tigers. 51% rostered. He's got any interest in Adam Wainwright. Uh, not yet. It's pretty bad last year. I could see him being streamable at some point. I did find here from the Arizona Republic on Corbyn Carroll. Tori Lavillo, the manager said he is continuing to check boxes and show us the signs that he is feeling good and he's healthy.

He's getting close. He's getting very close. All right. It's, you know, it's better than bad news, I suppose. Yeah. Yeah. I think it's, I think he's going to avoid an aisle stent, I think. And hopefully be back this week at some point.

Yep. Harrison Bader was activated and was batting fifth in the Yankees lineup. There was a report on Monday that Kenley Jansen was available following a back injury this weekend. Turns out that was a complete lie and that Jansen was also not available on Tuesday either. It had a save opportunity and it went to Josh Winkowski. Astro starting pitcher Luis Garcia was placed on the IL due to right elbow discomfort. Oscar Colos was optioned back to AAA. An obvious miss for us thus far, Scott.

I know someone we liked as a sleeper this season. Are you dropping Coloss in all non-keeper dynasty leagues? Yeah, probably. And I mean, the writing was on the wall here. They had mostly stopped playing him. Yeah. And you're just not going to keep a player at this stage of development. You're not just going to plan him on the bench.

So it makes sense that they send him down. On the subject of outfielders who've been sent down, by the way, you mentioned Dominic Fletcher earlier coming up for the Diamondbacks. And I don't have a lot of hope for him in fantasy. Because however good his numbers look in the minors the past two years, remember it's at places like AAA Reno. Sure. But it's interesting that when they needed an outfielder,

they brought him up rather than bringing Jake McCarthy back. And McCarthy's been hitting well at AAA. So I just find that interesting. Did he spend the minimum time down required before getting called back up? Because that might have been the reason why. Good question. I will check now. So at AAA, probably not.

Yeah. Probably not. He's off to a 6 for 17 start there with a home run and a double. Okay. And I know they were, they said that he had some. And they felt like he wasn't swinging with enough conviction. Like he was just swinging to put bat to ball basically and not not swinging with the force he did last year. So that was what they wanted him to work on at AAA.

The fact that he has good numbers there, again, it's AAA Reno. So I don't even know how much to read into that. But it is interesting that Fletcher is the one up right now. That's Jake McCarthy again. A name to watch in deeper category leagues if he was dropped in your league. I'm not saying go out and add him now, but just throw them on the scout team. Michael Garcia was recalled from AAA by the Royals. He was batting just 242 with four steals in the minors,

but was much better last year. Hit 285 with 11 home runs, 39 steals in the minors. He's 4% rostered. He's another name. I don't think you need to add him yet, but he's someone to watch and has a lot of speed. So if you play in those deeper category leagues, the name is Mikel Garcia.

Testing on Ronaldo Lopez's right biceps, came back negative and he's expected to avoid an IL stint for now. Hermann Marquez is set to undergo Tommy John surgery. Scott, let's fire up the Worryometer. I've got two, four, six hitters here on the list that I keep getting questions about. And for a lot of them, rightfully so. We'll start off with Dalton Varshot. Of course, the day that I chose him was the day that he hit a three-run home run.

So maybe signs of turning it around. But the triple slash right now for Varsho, 198, 295. 330 slugging percentage. The expected numbers are terrible. The average exit velocity, he's someone that typically does not hit the ball hard. It's down even more than it has been in years past. The pull rate is also down for Dalton Varsho.

Your warriorometer level on him. It's pretty low. And like a lot of it's because he's catcher eligible. And so how much better are you going to do than him? I'll put it at like a two. I think the fact that he his average hex of velocity is first percentile right now

shows that he's just kind of not on it right now he has hit the hardest ball of his career already this year so like the max exit velocity 89th percentile like that's a good sign for Varsho, the plate discipline seems fine he's run when he's gotten on base

five steals already I think you're going to be pretty happy with Varsho still in the long run Jose Ibrahimiru went 0 for 3 and is now batting 2.30 with a 260 on base. 262 slugging percentage. He has four extra base hits all season. And this is a, is not a typos, Scott. This is a fact.

Jose Abraeu has one home run since August 4th of last season. 85 games. He has hit one home run. That includes Tuesday. Your Wariometer level for Abraeu. That is quite the drought, isn't it? It's a little higher. It's probably about a 4, maybe a 4.5 for Jose Brayu,

because he is 36 years old, because he did disappoint us with the home run output last year. Like, as with Dalton Varshot, it's clear he's not hitting the ball. He hasn't hit the ball with the same. consistency. Like his max X of velocity is close enough to normal,

but his average exit velocity is way down, which tells me he's just, like he's just not on it yet. It's such a small sample still. It's a small enough sample

still that it's reasonable to think that's being skewed by it the same way a batting average might be skewed by it. And so, I still have him in my top 10 first basement

for the rest of the season, for instance. But I'm less confident in a Brayu given the stage he's at in his career. I'm less confident he's going to turn things around than somebody like Varsha. Yeah, I was updating the first base rankings on Tuesday

and I moved Abraeu behind both Finney Pasquantino and Nate Lowe. So still inside the top 10, but those guys have performed better so far this year. And it was close enough coming into the season where one slow month for Abraeu and one good month for those guys, I'm okay making that swap.

Anthony Rizzo, that was, I was like kind of debating it, but I haven't made that swap yet. That is right where I have them. Now, I already had Pasquantino ahead of a brave from the beginning, but I moved him between Lowe and Rizzo, yeah. Yeah.

This next one, Juan Soto. I know we get, cue the email, Scott. I'm sure they're rolling in already about Juan Soto or Juan Succo, whatever you want to call him. Two for four with two doubles and an RBI on Tuesday night.

And the expected numbers are unimpressive. 242XBA, 473 X-SL, he's still hitting the ball really hard. 93.2 average exit velocity, the second highest barrel rate of his career. But there's just other weird things that are going on that, frankly, I don't know how to explain. His strikeout rate is a career high. His ground ball rate is a career high, 57.7%. His line drive rate entering Tuesday was 5.6%. That almost seems impossible to have a line.

drive rate that low. And he's pulling the ball more than ever before. So something has changed, like with his approach, pulling the ball and more ground balls. And, you know, maybe he's like in between of like trying to raise the launch angle and nod. And I don't know. He just seems like he's in a funk.

Kind of like that Jose Ramirez funk that we saw a couple of years back as well. Your Wauriometer level on Juan Soto. I kind of want to go one just for the statement of it. I'll go two. I'll go two. because he had his whole time with the Padres last year, where he obviously was a major disappointment then as well. As we brought up earlier in the season,

we were talking about Juan Soto. Jose Ramirez had like a full calendar year where he hit about 180, I think it was. It was the end of one season and the beginning of the next season, sort of like Soto's going through. So if you just look at his year-by-year breakdown, you're going to be like, when did that happen to Jose Ramirez? But it happened, and people were freaking out

because it was a lot worse than what Juan Soto's done over a shorter period of time here. But I think it's a similar situation. I didn't lose faith in Ramirez then. I haven't lost faith in Juan Soto now. I will point out three straight multi-hit games for him. He is eight for 18 in his past five games with three doubles and a homer.

So hopefully that's the beginning of him climbing out it. He's got to figure it out. I'm confident in that. And that, you know, not the entire lineup because Bogarts, well, I guess really just Bogart's is the only one that's performing so far, right? But like, if they all start clicking at the same time, we're talking about fireworks here and crazy amounts of counting stats and Machado and Soto and Tatis and Bogartz and Kroninworth and all these guys kind of clicking at the same time. And if that happens, like, man, it's just, it's going to be a lot of fun for fantasy. So I would still be looking to buy low on Wonsoto, but I assume most people who have him don't want to hear that, but I'm sorry. Nolan Aronado went 0 for

three. He is now betting 233 on the season. Strikeout rate is a career high. His ground ball rate is a career high, and he's someone who routinely hits lots of fly balls. He pulls them and he just gets every ounce out of his skill set. Scott. And right now, that is not the case for Aronado. So something happened in the WBC, and I looked it up just now. I remember he was dealing with some kind of injury. He got hit on his hand by a pitch during the World Baseball Classic, and I wonder if it's just like still kind of affecting him. I know we're a month in.

I'm looking for an excuse for him, I guess, but it wouldn't surprise me if that's the reason. Your Wauriometer level on Aeronado. Well, I got to say this segment is revelatory to me in a way. because these are all a bunch of players that have a ton of shares in. So it might explain why. Yeah.

Particularly in the Roto leagues where I'm doing okay in the head to have points leagues, but I'm just getting crushed and all but the league-specific Roto formats. And I have a lot of these guys, so maybe that's why. Hopefully they do actually turn it around. And I do think Aeronado will as well.

I mean, there's such an extensive track record here and he's proven multiple times over that he isn't just a product of Goresfield. He's able to be a high-impact player in St. Louis as well. I think that's a reasonable theory what happened to him in the WBC because it was a scary moment. And we were all thinking he probably fractured his hands.

It turned out it didn't. He didn't. But even if that is the case that his hand isn't 100% right now. It will be. It will be soon enough. And I think he'll take off and deliver

the usual Nolan Aeronado like numbers. We'll look back. We won't look back at this because by the time like July gets here, his numbers just look pretty normal and we'll have forgotten all about this little episode. What a crazy start for the St. Louis Cardinals. They are 10 and 20.

They're in last place in the National League Central, which is like a month into the season. It's almost impossible. to fathom. Two other outfielders on this list, Scott. Taylor Ward who actually hit his fourth home run of the season on Tuesday. He's batting just 209 overall. Lars Neupar, my boy, 0 for two with a walk and a strikeout. He's batting 213, 231 rather, and he's got a 412 on base. So he's walking a ton. He's also hitting an absurd amount of ground ball, 71% ground ball rate for Lars Neupar. Your Wuriameter level on Taylor Ward and Lars Neupar. Yeah, it's still

too early, I think, to be that worried. I'll go, I mean, Ward, I, Ward had only earned so much confidence in the first place, given the way his breakout season broke down. So I'll go, I don't know, I guess I'll go five. Like, it's, I'm not worried enough to move on from him, even in three outfielder leagues, but I don't really feel confident I know who he is either.

He did hit a three run homer here on Tuesday, so. maybe that'll be the start of a turnaround. Lars Nupar, I think Lars Nupar deserves a lot of benefit of the doubt. Because remember, he missed two weeks with a thumb injury, basically right at the start of the season. So he has half the sample of anyone else right now. Of anyone else right now. And I think the most encouraging thing is that he started every single game for the Cardinals since he got back. I mean, even last year when he was beginning to break through, they were sitting him often against lefties.

I guess they've only faced two lefties during the first. that stretch, but oh, you know what? Hang on. I overlooked. He did sit against one of the two lefties. He faced. They faced. I got it wrong. Nupar has started every game, but won since returning. And one of the ones he sat out was against one of the two lefties, the Cardinals face. So that makes me wonder. That makes me wonder. But, you know, still walking a ton like you said, and the sample is too small, I think, to to make anything of it, really.

All right. So again, six hitters there that overall, again, we're only a month into the season. I know typically Scott, the date is like Memorial Day. We get to the end of May, early June, and it's like, all right, now we've got to start making some, like,

legitimate decisions, two-month sample of data there. And obviously, we'll keep doing this up until we get to that point. Let's take our final break, and when we return, we'll get into some leftovers here on Fantasy Baseball today.

Welcome back and a shout out to everyone watching us live. It is past 1 a.m. Eastern Time and 571 people are here watching us live on YouTube. So we do appreciate you. And if you can, please like this video, subscribe if you haven't already. Some pitching left over Scott, I'm just going to go kind of rapid fire, mention a name. And if you have any comments or anything, we'll break it down. Joe Ryan was awesome once again. He was at the White Sox.

Six shut out. One hit allowed. Two walks. seven strikeouts in that one. Anything on Joe Ryan? Yeah, I think the secondary arsenal he's built, particularly the splitter that he didn't even have prior to this year, is, I think it's made him near invincible because that fastball was already so good.

That fastball might have been all he need, but that spliter, he got seven of his 14 whiffs in this start on the splitter. He came into the start. The batting average against on that splitter was 139. So it's been another impossible pitch for hitters. And straight to the moon here for Joe Ryan, I would say. How much more do you need to see, Scott, before you move someone like Joe Ryan ahead of Alec Manoa,

who has struggled all season, or Shane Bieber, who we're like kind of iffy on right now? Yeah, that's a good question. And I struggle with that as I update my ranking. So my latest update earlier this afternoon, So it was before this most recent Joe Ryan start. I moved Ryan up to 27th, and I have Manoa still 20th now.

So they're getting close. I might move Ryan up a little more after this start. I might move them up to 25th. So that would be even closer. And yeah, it might just take one more start from each of them if they continue to veer in opposite directions. Yeah, because this is my range as well. I have Bieber at SP22, Manoa at 23.

I have Rodon at 24. I think I're going to drop him a little bit because he keeps suffering these setbacks. And then you get into a group of like Kirshaw, Pablo Lopez, and Joe Ryan. And yeah, I mean, that group has been really good too. Joe Ryan has been even better than Pablo Lopez, so probably going to move him just ahead of Lopez as well.

Garrett Cole has now allowed two or runs or fewer in all seven starts this season. I don't know that there's much else to add, Scott. The swinging strikes have been a little underwhelming at times this year, but two of those low swinging strike totals were against the Guardians, a team that A makes a lot of contact, and B, has seen Garicol quite a bit.

Yeah, his slider specifically hasn't been as overwhelming as it normally as. The whiff rate on that pitch is way down. He's been the most reliable pitcher in baseball, certainly the most reliable ace in baseball. So it just fits in with the theme of undo negativity, here to criticize Cole for that. But it is something that's happening and at least keep an eye on it.

Bryce Elder was awesome at the Miami Marlins. He went seven shutout with six strikeouts in that start. He now has four scoreless starts in six tries the season. He's up to the slider usage this year. I don't think there's any type of ace outcome here, Scott, but in the same way that like Martin Perez and Merrill Kelly, just kind of work their way up to being top 50 or top 40 starting pitchers last season. I could see the same thing working out for Bryce Elder,

obviously assuming he continues to pitch like this. I could see that happening. I would bet against it right now. And I think we've turned a corner with Bryce Elder, where we've gone from, yeah, take a shot at him. Take a shot on him. Maybe this could continue. Maybe he could turn into a useful option for you to now,

okay, he has a 175 ERA after six starts, you know? And yet, he entered today's game, Bryce Elder, with an expected ERA over five. Ooh. Expected ERA is pretty good at explaining what's already happened. There can be pitchers, there can be cases of pitchers or any kind of player who just doesn't, isn't in line with expected stats,

for whatever reason it just doesn't measure what he contributes well. But those are going to be rare cases. They're going to be exceptions. And so for any one pitcher over a sample this small, if the disparity is that great, I'm going to bet against it. Doesn't mean you need to release Bryce Elder,

that would be crazy. No. But shop them around. It's got a 175. VRA. Who knows? While we're talking about shopping around, two names that I want to throw your way. Anthony Descalfani threw a gem at the Astros, eight shutout with three strikeouts in that one, and Graham Ashcraft turned in another quality start at the Padres, six innings, one run, three strikeouts. He has allowed two earned runs or fewer in all six starts

this season. You recently mentioned Graham Ashcraft as a sell high. I'm assuming that hasn't changed. What about someone like Anthony Descalfani as well? So Anthony Descalofani, Gets Gephani, similar to Bryce Elder. 2.13 ERA. He entered the start with a 450 expected ERA. Graham Ashcraft, let's do the same with him. Because what all these three have in common

is they don't have the big bat missing arsenal? Yep. So Graham Ashcraft, not quite as extreme. He has an even two ERA. He entered this start with a 389 expected ERA. But of the three, Graham Ashcraft's the one who struggles with walks. so that's another reason to maybe play it safe with him.

Like I liked all three of these pitchers, I think above the consensus, certainly in the case of Ashcraft and Descalfani coming into the year, in the case of Elder when he first entered the rotation, I think I was giving him more credit than most people. But again, if expected ERA is going to be this unreliable, then it just needs to go away.

So if it's proven to be reliable in the past, If we believe in that and if we believe it's a legitimate resource, then we should believe that in the cases of Elder Ashcraft and Descliffeani, they're not going to be able to continue to outperform it by that much. And so it's a good time to shop them, shop them, provided you'll get an upgrade for it. Like that's the whole point of shopping them, just to remind everybody, It's not to play hot potato with them, get them off your roster. It's to take advantage of their gains before the stock drops again.

Yeah, I mean, I think the names that stand out most, right? The like Chris Sales, Nick Ladolos of the world, if you can turn any of those pitchers we just talked about into, you know, Sailor Ladolo, would you do it? Yeah. I would trade any of those three that we just mentioned for either Lodolo or Sale, especially Sale. Yeah. No, I agree with you as well.

Two of the pitchers... I mean, I'm sorry, especially Lodolo. Okay. Maybe you don't agree with me anymore. No, I just meant that I agree in general that I would look to buy on both of those two names. Okay. Two final pitchers here that looked great on Tuesday night.

Freddie Peralta in Corus Field, six innings, two runs, 10 strikeouts for him, 25 swinging strikes on 94 pitches, and then Julio O'Reas, dominant up against the Phillies, seven innings, only one hit allowed, one run, 10 strikeouts with 16 swinging strikes, anything on those two, Scott Peralta and Arias.

Well, I will say that now Freddie Peralta has as many six-inning starts, I believe already this year as he did last year, four. So the fact he had 25 whiffs in this start, at Cores Field, no less, is very impressive. He did give up 10 base runners and the ERA and whip are higher than you might think they are for Freddie Peralta.

But overall, it's been a nice investment for you, and it seems to be getting better. Arias bounced back from a couple of rocky starts with maybe his best of the year, as you pointed out, Frank. So no worries with him. Any concerns with Sandy Alcans for us, Scott? He has only thrown more than six in six endings once in six starts so far this season.

I know he was dealing with some kind of injury. What was it, Scott? Do you remember off the top of your head? Alcansara? I don't. He was dealing with something, but maybe, I don't know, maybe it's just affecting him right now. Five innings, three runs, three walks, five strikeouts.

And what I've noticed most about Alcantara is the swinging strike rate is a career high, yet his K rate is a four-year low. So I brought this up last time he started, and I think he's been unlucky. And I think he's a by-low right now. You know, there's some things that are in his control that he hasn't done well. the walks are way up this year compared to last year. He's allowing more hard contact.

So I do worry a little bit about those things, but I really like the fact that the swinging strike rate is a career high right now for Sandy Alcansara. It was bicep tendonitis. That's not great. No, it's not. But he was cleared, and his velocity was fine. Yeah, I see him as a pretty obvious

by-low candidate at this point. So. Yeah, I agree. Okay. A few hitting leftovers here. Ryan Malkassel went three for six with a double dong, five RBI, and we spoke about him maybe the first week or two of the season

and brought him up as a potential breakout this year. He is still crushing the ball. 93 mile per hour, average exit velocity, a 15% barrel rate. I know the ballpark doesn't do him any favors there, but I kind of like it. The strikeout rate is down this year too for Ryan Mowcastle. So, I mean, since it's a more favor,

favorable hitting environment league-wide than maybe Camden Yards is going to suppress his power as much as it did a year ago. Let's see, what are expected home runs versus actual home runs?

Yeah, it's not like... There are parks where he has fewer expected home runs than Baltimore this year, including Milwaukee, strangely enough. So it hasn't at least so far this year with the kind of contact

that Ryan Mountcastle has made. Camden Yards and that deep left field fence hasn't hurt him. And hopefully, hopefully that's going to lead to good things. A huge game for Anthony, Volpey on Tuesday, two for four with a sock and two shoes. He's up to his third home run,

his 10th steel of the season. And since his first opportunity to lead off the last 20 games for Volpe, he is batting 3.75. three homers, seven steals, 11 walks, with a 91 mile per hour average exit velocity. Great stuff from him. Masataka Yoshita stays hot, two for three with his fifth home run,

and that was a lefty on lefty that came off of Yusay Kukuchi. Adly Ruchman, four for five with two doubles, a walk, three runs scored. He is up to a 315 batting average on the season. Christian Walker went two for five with his fifth home run, slowly coming around, multiple hits in three of his last four games. Tyro Estrada, completely wrong about so far on my end. I had him as a bus this year. Two for three with two walks and his ninth stolen base.

He's betting 342 with a 9-11 OPS. He's been great. And Scott hopefully a sign of things to come, maybe finally starting to get healthy. Our guy, mostly your guy. Miguel Vargas, four for five with three doubles. Please, I have quite a few shares. So do I.

Let's ride the momentum. Hopefully this is the start of the turnaround for Miguel Vargas, who's hitting track record in the minors is just unimpeachable. And a lot of people have been like, oh, all he does his walk, why are we bothering with him? Well, I think the fact that he has exhibited such good plate discipline in his first look around the league shows that he's not being overmatched here. And yeah, the hitting track record, I think,

will eventually come through for him if that's the case. and hopefully this four hit games the start of it. I also wanted to point out with Masataki Yoshida, a player who I did not give much credence to coming into the year. He's somebody I had to move way up

with this latest rankings update. 12-game hitting streak now for Masataki Yoshida. He's batting 435 with four home runs. That 12-game hitting streak. Only six strikeouts during that stretch as well. His ground ball rate for the season is near 60%. which is kind of untenable unless you're just going to be a batting average specialist.

But during this 12-game hit streak, it's down to more like 50%, which is still high, but it is tenable. Yeah, I was going to... The power is playing better than I thought it would. And he's actually stolen a couple bases, which is not even something he really did in Japan. That's the point I was going to make

about this recent stretch for Yoshita is, I remember two weeks ago, it was like 70%. So the fact that the ground ball rate is down to 60 tells me that, you know, overall during this stretch, he is, he's getting the launch angle up, which is a good thing. The call to the bullpen, a few updates here for Tampa Bay. We know that Pete Fairbanks is currently dealing with that Raynaud syndrome.

Jason Adam allowed a hit, but struck out the side for his first save of the season. He's 20% rostered if you're chasing saves. For the Nationals, Kyle Finnegan allowed a hit, but picked up his sixth save. For the Red Sox, I mentioned this earlier, Josh Winkowski picked up his first save of. of the season. For the Rangers, Will Smith allowed a hit and a walk

but recorded the final four outs and his fourth save. He has the last three saves overall for the Rangers. And for the Rockies, Pierce Johnson allowed a hit but struck out one for his fourth save. Scott, what do you think happens here

with Daniel Bard? Because it feels like they're not using him in high leverage situations. And for the time being, I guess it's still Pierce Johnson's job. Yeah, I was. a little surprised to see him get the save. It was his first safe since Bard returned.

Bard has yet to allow a run in four appearances, but his average fastball velocity is down three miles per hour from a year ago. And it's clear from this, from Johnson getting the safe here on Tuesday, that the Rockies don't have full confidence in Bard yet. I think if I had to predict today, Bard would be the team leader for the entire season. So in leagues where saves are scarce, I think you hold on to them. But in shallow leagues where you can find replacement safe sources off the way of

wire, Bart doesn't have much value at this point. And then the regulars for the Giants, Camillo Duval picked up his fourth save. For the Mariners, Paul Seawald picked up his eighth. And for the Reds, Alexis Diaz got his fifth save of the season. So I'm just realizing now that I didn't write down names for to stream or not to So you know what, Scott? Some people are going to get very excited because we're going retro. I'm just going to have to read you a bunch of names.

You tell me yes or no. Are we streaming these guys? Let's start with Wednesday. Are the Mets ever going to play again? All of their games have been getting rained out recently. But they've got another double header on Wednesday. Hopefully they play those games. Joey Lucasey at the Tigers.

It's very risky, but if you're desperate, you could do it. Brandon fought in his debut at the Rangers. I'd rather not have the... I mean, we just saw how Bryce... I'm forgetting his name now. Bryce Miller, we just saw how his debut win, but the Rangers lineup very different from the A's, so I'd rather give Fott a chance to show what he could do

before sticking him in my lineup. Gavin Stone up against the Phillies in his debut. Yeah, same thing for him. Rather not. Look at this early slate of games on Wednesday, man. Fought at 2 p.m. Eastern Time. Gavin Stone at 4. Oof, jam-pack day.

Seth Lugo going up against the Reds. I will say that's pretty good. Braxton Garrett versus the Braves. No. Okay. Who is Jake Irvin? I don't know, but he is starting for the Nationals. Louis Varland at the White Sox.

Yeah, Varlane's kind of interesting. and the White Sox are a favorable matchup. And this isn't his debut. We saw him make a start earlier this year, and it went very well. So I kind of like that one. Not as much as Seth Lugo, but probably second in priority here Wednesday. Kyle Gibson at the Royals. Yeah, that's good.

J.P. Sears at home against the Mariners. I'd rather not. And then on Thursday, I don't know if Eduardo Rodriguez is available in enough leagues, but he's at home against the Mets. What do you think? Nah. Well, that's a little too dismissive

the way he's pitched recently, but it's... I guess it's okay. I'm not thrilled with it, though. Vince Velasquez at the raise. He's pitched well recently, but not against the race. I don't think I could do it either.

Griffin Canning at the Cardinals. Yes. I say yes. I don't know, but you could do work. Well, Wade Miley is widely available, but he's at Corse Field, so I assume that is a no. And the last one is Brian Beow at home against the Blue Jays. Not for me.

All right, so Thursday, not a great streaming day. Make sure you get them in on Wednesday. We're going to wrap there for Scott. I am Frank. Thanks as always for tuning in to Fantasy Baseball today. Please make sure to follow and leave a five-star rating on Apple or Spotify. We'll be back again tomorrow. Bye-bye.