September 26 Fantasy Baseball Starting Pitcher Streamers: David Festa, Aaron Civale, Tyler Anderson and More
Thursday's probable starters who are widely available in fantasy leagues and have good matchups.
I’ve been lamenting the lack of pitching streamers recently, but the dam finally broke today: we’ve got seven guys who are possibly worthy of a spot in your lineup, ranging from high upside pitchers to those only on the streaming radar due to the matchup.
Let’s run through Thursday’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.
Tyler Anderson, Los Angeles Angels @ Chicago White Sox
Chris Flexen, Chicago White Sox vs. Los Angeles Angels
I’m not going to spend much time on the lineups here: Both the White Sox and Angels qualify as possible bottom-five offenses, and neither has much hope of improvement without major, sweeping changes. Target Chicago and LA over the next few days.
Anderson has had success this year despite having both a walk rate and strikeout rate a few percentage points worse than league average. There are many other measures of how well a pitcher is performing, but those marks often are great ways to start an evaluation. Anderson’s 2024 has turned out just fine despite a lack of strikeouts.
Flexen has also been worse than average with walks and strikeouts, but he hasn’t had the same positive results as Anderson. His ERA is over 5.00, right around his career number, and Flexen is even worse than Anderson with strikeouts. Flexen is a guy just eating innings on the worst team in the league.
Anderson is a mid-level streamer and Flexen a low-level streamer. The matchups put them on the radar, and Anderson gets a bump because of his better performance and strikeout work.
J.T. Ginn, Oakland Athletics vs. Texas Rangers
Kumar Rocker, Texas Rangers @ Oakland Athletics
Another matchup of two bad offensive teams, both the Rangers and A’s are out of the playoff race and harbor bottom-10 offenses. There’s just not a lot else to say about these teams; find ways to take advantage of them before the season ends.
Ginn has been really good in the big leagues; he’s thrown less than 30 innings, though, meaning things might look different over time. He hasn’t walked more than two batters in a start (and only went over one BB once), and Ginn has struck out at least three batters in six of his seven starts.
Rocker has made two starts, showing his tantalizing upside but control issues that will keep him from being successful until he figures them out. In seven innings, Rocker has walked six guys but struck out 12, a phenomenal rate. That strikeout work will keep playing, giving Rocker big upside with a lower floor.
Ginn is a mid-level streamer and Rocker a low- to mid-level streamer. The strikeout upside is there for both, but Rocker has a miniscule track record and big-time short start concerns.
Aaron Civale, Milwaukee Brewers @ Pittsburgh Pirates
Civale has been right at average with both walks and strikeouts over the full season. He was traded from the Rays to the Brewers in the middle of the year, and his walk and strikeout rates are just a little worse in his new home. Civale has an ERA almost a full run lower in Milwaukee, though, looking better overall.
Pittsburgh hasn’t scored more than five runs in a game since September 10. They’ve been over three runs just twice in that timeframe and scored either zero or one run five times. They’re not a team that threatens opposing pitchers, giving fantasy value to every starter.
Civale is a mid-level streamer. The matchup is right, and he’s done well enough with strikeouts to have an OK ceiling.
David Festa, Minnesota Twins vs. Miami Marlins
Minnesota lost to Miami on Monday, dealing a major blow to their playoff push. The Twins bounced back for a convincing 8-3 win yesterday, and they can’t afford to lose today with three games against the Orioles coming up to finish the season. Miami has one of the worst lineups in the league, beat out only by the White Sox (maybe).
Festa’s 60 innings have featured just a few too many walks, but he is doing great strikeout work in his first season, K’ing over 28% of the guys he has faced. Festa has struck out at least five batters in nine of his 12 starts. Against a weak team, Festa is set up for a big day.
Festa is a mid- to high-level streamer. We have to temper expectations just a bit because of his short track record, but Festa has been good enough that he should be in a lineup in every league for this one.
Reese Olson, Detroit Tigers vs. Tampa Bay Rays
Olson missed nearly two months between July and September with a shoulder injury. His two starts back have both been short, but his last outing (three innings, one run allowed) was much better than the first (2.1 innings, four runs). He has good numbers on the season, but it’s hard to expect much given his short stints since returning.
The Rays were finally eliminated from playoff contention. They held on tight, fighting it out after the team traded away big-league talent at the deadline, but time finally ran out. This team will likely be positioned to compete again next season, but this year was one in which everything went wrong.
Olson is a low-level streamer. There’s a little upside, but his apparent pitch limit since returning caps his value.
Thursday’s Streamer Rankings
- David Festa, MIN
- Aaron Civale, MIL
- Tyler Anderson, LAA
- J.T. Ginn, OAK
- Kumar Rocker, TEX
- Reese Olson, DET
- Chris Flexen, CWS
