-
Todd Zola
Check out all of our starting pitcher rankings and other lineup selection tools here to help you make smart fantasy baseball lineup decisions. MLB betting tips for each day’s slate of games will also be added in the morning. MLB game odds are provided by ESPN BET
, and all fantasy advice is geared toward ESPN 10-team leagues with standard scoring.
Note: All information is accurate as of the time of publication. For updates, including what you might have missed from last night, as well as any breaking news that might impact today’s MLB slate, be sure to check out the latest fantasy baseball news.
Jump to: Pitching notes | Hitting notes | Betting tips
Reliever depth chart | Start a new league
Pitchers to stream on Wednesday
-
New York Mets RHP Griffin Canning posted a 2.47 ERA over his first nine outings, then he ran into the tag team of the Los Angeles Dodgers and Mother Nature. In 2 2/3 innings of rainy conditions, Canning walked four Dodgers batters, though he yielded just one hit. However, after being lifted following a long rain delay, Canning was credited with surrendering three earned runs when the bullpen allowed two inherited runners to cross the plate. Look for Canning to get back on track Wednesday with a home date facing the Chicago White Sox and the worst wOBA in the league facing righties.
-
Chicago Cubs LHP Matthew Boyd is coming off a rare clunker in his last outing, giving up four runs in four frames to the Cincinnati Reds. Six of his first nine efforts registered as quality starts. Boyd faces the ideal club to rebound with the Colorado Rockies visiting Wrigley Field. Historically, visitors struggle outside of Coors Field with a lefty on the hill with this season following suit. They sport the third highest strikeout rate and fourth lowest wOBA on the road versus southpaws.
-
Tampa Bay RHP Drew Rasmussen has consecutive six-inning scoreless efforts. In general, he’s not ideal for points leagues since these are the only two outings in which Rasmussen completed more than five frames. For the record, he didn’t throw more pitches to reach six stanzas; he did it with his usual 80 or so pitches per game, he was just more efficient. Still, it’s a good sign that Rasmussen isn’t automatically lifted after five stanzas, rendering him a more appealing streamer. Wednesday offers a home affair with the Minnesota Twins. It will be a challenge, but Rasmussen’s recent command and control warrant streaming consideration.
Pitchers to avoid on Wednesday
-
Regression doesn’t punch a time clock, but it eventually catches up with the fortunate. Texas Rangers LHP Tyler Mahle received a taste in his last outing on the road against the Chicago White Sox, yielding three runs on five hits and three walks in five innings. He’s due even more payback as evidenced by a 4.16 xFIP and 4.49 SIERA, both considerably higher than his actual 1.80 ERA. A .231 BABIP and 84.5% left on base mark have artificially deflated his ratios. The safe play is avoiding Mahle for Wednesday’s home matchup with the Toronto Blue Jays.
-
Los Angeles Angels LHP Yusei Kikuchi has a sparkling 1.43 ERA over his last four starts. However, his WHIP is a more telling 1.41 as he’s issued 11 free passes over those 23 1/3 innings, including four in each of his prior outings. Giving the New York Yankees free baserunners is a recipe for disaster. It’s best to look elsewhere when the clubs square off in Anaheim.
Hitters to stream on Wednesday
-
Toronto Blue Jays LHP Eric Lauer‘s 87.8% left on base mark and .250 BABIP are suppressing his ratios. While he’s displaying reverse splits this season, more trustworthy historical splits show he’s vulnerable facing righty swingers. The Texas Rangers lineup features several right-handers, with Josh Jung and Jake Burger both available in more than 70% of ESPN leagues and slotted into the meat of the order. Adolis Garcia and Marcus Semien are struggling and have been dropped to the bottom of the order, but they also enjoy the platoon bump.
Betting tips
Best/worst pitcher/hitter matchups and betting projections are generated by THE BAT X, a system created by Derek Carty using advanced methods like those used in MLB front offices, accounting for a variety of factors including player talent, ballparks, bullpens, weather, umpires, defense, catcher pitch-framing, and lots more. Betting projections for every player, team, and game can be found at EV Analytics.
Note: Expected Value is a measure of how good a bet is, factoring the probability that it will win versus the odds the book is providing. If you were to wager $1.00 100 times on a bet with an Expected Value of $25, you would win some and you would lose some, but in the end you would expect to come away with $25 in profit on your $100 investment.
Because odds typically do not get set until the previous day’s games are completed, betting tips will be added in the morning.
