May 15 Fantasy Baseball Starting Pitcher Streamers: Garrett Crochet, Cole Irvin, Patrick Corbin and More
A look at Wednesday's probable starters who are widely available in fantasy leagues and have good matchups.
After a great day for streamers yesterday, today offers a few high-level options but more guys in the middle of the pack. That’s what makes baseball both great and frustrating: the starting pitchers make every day different, which could mean a sharp increase or decrease in the odds of your favorite team (or fantasy team) winning.
Let’s look at Wednesday's probable starters (according to MLB.com) who are widely available in fantasy leagues and have good matchups, creating streaming value. Most stats and rankings are from MLB. The full streamer rankings are listed at the bottom.
Griffin Canning, Los Angeles Angels vs. St. Louis Cardinals
In each of the previous four seasons in which Canning pitched (he missed 2022), he had an above-average strikeout rate. That has fallen off this season, as he is well below average and about 6% lower than any other season.
His ERA has felt the effects, currently sitting at 5.75, which would be the highest in any season of his career. While Canning has never been ultra-successful, 2024 has been his worst year in the big leagues so far.
St. Louis offers a reprieve after a tougher stretch of opponents, as the Cardinals are sitting among the bottom of the league in most major offensive categories. They don’t strike out much, so Canning’s struggles to sit hitters down might come into play, but there aren’t many better matchups in baseball than St. Louis.
Canning is a low- to mid-level streamer in this one, propped up a bit by his past numbers and the weak opponent.
Patrick Corbin, Washington Nationals @ Chicago White Sox
Corbin’s best days are far behind him, and he’s probably playing out the last season of his career to secure the final $25 million Washington owes him. That’s great for Corbin, but it leaves the Nationals with a major hole in their rotation as he produces career-worst numbers every fifth day.
The lack of offensive prowess from the White Sox is the only thing making Corbin worthy of consideration for a roster spot today. I keep naming the same stats day after day, but there’s not a lot else to say. Here are a few player notes (stats are correct through Monday's games):
- No qualified hitter on the White Sox is batting higher than .242
- Paul DeJong is the only player with at least five home runs
- Andrew Benintendi leads the team with 14 RBI, which ranks tied for 137th in the league
I could go on, and the fact is that the White Sox are at the bottom without much hope for improvement. Corbin is a low-level streamer only fit for the last spot in your lineup; Chicago gives him a small amount of fantasy value.
Garrett Crochet, Chicago White Sox vs. Washington Nationals
I’m going to keep this one short, because Crochet is already owned in about half of leagues. It’s time for him to be owned in the other half, though.
Crochet has struck out 64 batters in 46.2 innings while walking just nine. The eight home runs he has given up are way too many, but Crochet is striking out over 34% of the hitters he’s faced.
Don’t overthink it: grab Crochet and keep him on your team unless you’ve got a stacked pitching staff.
Robert Gasser, Milwaukee Brewers vs. Pittsburgh Pirates
Gasser made his first big league start on Friday against the Cardinals and threw six shutout innings with four strikeouts, no walks, and just two hits allowed. There’s not a much better introduction a pitcher could hope for.
St. Louis was likely a factor, as we talked about their lack of prowess above, and Pittsburgh offers more of the same. The Pirates good start petered out quickly, and they are now among the worst offenses in baseball.
Gasser has the same outlook as his last start: He’s a strikeout machine (369 Ks in 299.1 Minor League innings) with a great matchup against a weak lineup. While St. Louis is league average in terms of batter strikeouts, Pittsburgh hitters have struck out the fifth most among all teams.
Gasser is a mid- to high-level streamer. We can expect a solid performance, but it’s important to remember that it’s only his second start, and anything can happen.
Cole Irvin, Baltimore Orioles vs. Toronto Blue Jays
Irvin has performed admirably for an Orioles team looking to contend. Especially with injuries to other pitchers, Irvin has stepped up to help solidify the rotation. While he doesn’t strike out a lot of hitters, he also walks them at a very low rate (28 strikeouts and eight walks in 40.1 innings this year).
Toronto continues their journey as one of the most disappointing teams of 2024. Among qualified hitters, only Vladimir Guerrero Jr. is hitting above .250. Daulton Varsho is the only guy with at least five home runs (seven). A team expecting to compete has seen their hopes dashed by a few injuries and a lot of underwhelming performances.
Irvin is a mid-level streamer in this one. His results have been good, but he doesn’t strike out enough batters to reach the top tier, even during a successful season.
Alec Marsh, Kansas City Royals @ Seattle Mariners
I mentioned yesterday that Seattle is on the verge of hitting well enough to not be a fantasy target; Marsh seems to be a worthy streamer even if they are improved, though. Seattle has been a league-average offensive unit the last few weeks, making things a little tougher on the 26-year-old than it would have been in April.
Marsh made his debut last season and has combined for 106.1 innings. While last year was more of a struggle, Marsh’s results have been much better in 2024, working to a 2.53 ERA so far.
His strikeout rate has fallen, but Marsh also slashed his walk rate by about 40%, setting himself up for more success than failure. Allowing just two home runs so far this season is also a huge improvement after giving up 16 last year in about twice as many innings.
Marsh is a low- to mid-level streamer in this one. Seattle’s performance is the most important factor: If they continue hitting, Marsh won’t have much value, but if they revert to the early-season team, he will be a more valuable fantasy performer.
Casey Mize, Detroit Tigers vs. Miami Marlins
Mize has been good to start the season. His low strikeout rate will cap his ceiling (both in real and fantasy baseball), but Mize also limits walks, going close to four innings between BBs in both his career and 2024.
Miami is the real star here, offering bottom-10 performances in runs scored, home runs, batting average, on-base percentage, slugging percentage and OPS. The last week and two weeks both paint a little rosier picture, but the Marlins still top out as a middling unit.
Mize is a mid-level streamer, sporting good numbers but failing to stand out in most areas (mainly strikeouts).
Wednesday’s Streamer Rankings
- Garrett Crochet, CWS
- Robert Gasser, MIL
- Cole Irvin, BAL
- Casey Mize, DET
- Griffin Canning, LAA
- Alec Marsh, KC
- Patrick Corbin, WAS
