CORY’S PICKS

Morrow @ McCarthy

Peavy @ Gomez

Niemann @ Phelps – bench but don’t cut on Niemann

Lewis @ W. Chen – borderline start for Lewis… amazing K-BB but very hittable

Big Erv @ Pavano

Lester @ B. Chen

Smyly @ Vargas

Cueto @ Greinke

T. Hudson @ Maholm

Freidrich @ Bass – Freidrich a must-pick-up in NL keeper leagues

Gee @ Lee – still optimistic on Gee

Detwiler @ Bedard – should be 1-0, which means it’ll be 13-11

Johnson @ Harrell

Lohse @ Miley – gotta ride both

Lincecum @ Billingsley

                                                                                                                                               ***MIKE SAYS “Agreed. I like W. Chen but this is one where I’m not too sure so you’re better off playing it safe.”

                                                                                                                                               ***ZACH SAYS “I’d pass on Miley. I sense that a statistical correction is in store, and it could very well happen vs. Cards. Agree on rest.”

CORY’S PICKS

Danks @ Masterson – cut down the walks please fellas

Shields @ Nova

Feliz @ Arrieta – both are high risk/high reward

Haren @ Diamond

Bard @ Duffy

Romero @ Parker

Verlander @ Millwood – mismatch of the year?

Batista @ Blanton – roll with it

Jackson @ Burnett – if Burnett gets blown up here, he’s DTM

Delgado @ Dempster

An. Sanchez @ An. Rodriguez

Bailey @ Estrada – both are high risk/moderate reward

Westbrook @ Kennedy

TBD (COL) @ Suppan

Vogelsong @ Kershaw

                                                                                                                                               ***MIKE SAYS “Agree. I think I cut Nova in one league which makes him POD in mixed but I believe in rebound eventually.”                                                                                                                                                ***ZACH SAYS “I’d take a chance on Feliz. He’s coming off his worst start of the year but it was @TOR. Ditch on Burnett coming off latest implosion. Agree on rest.”

ZACH’S PICKS

SATURDAY

Hammel @ Cook – I’ll be sold on Hammel if he pitches well here, but playing it safe.

Floyd @ Scherzer – Both are risky but I’ll take my chances.

Holland @ Lowe – Not giving up on Holland yet. Disaster alert for Lowe.

Kuroda @ Paulino – Yankee lineup struggling but ditch on Paulino in his season debut.

Colon @ Hellickson – I have a bad feeling about Colon here so start at your own risk.

Drabek @ Wilson

Marquis @ King Felix – Marquis coming off QS but I’m not a believer, even in this matchup.

Capuano @ Garza – Capuano’s on a roll.

Worley @ Gonzalez

Corbin @ J. Santana

Wolf @ Bumgarner – Wolf disappointing @SD but you can’t possibly bench him here.

Leake @ McDonald – Leake way too erratic thus far.

J. Garcia @ Norris – Bud too inconsistent to pitch here.

Minor @ Moyer – Not liking this matchup at all for fly ball prone Minor.

Buehrle @ Richard – PoD delight!

                                                                                                                                              SUNDAY

Sale @ Porcello – Porcello coming off great start but I need to see more from him.

Darvish @ Jimenez – Ubaldo’s a mess. No way do I pitch him vs. TEX.

Hunter @ Buchholz – Hope you didn’t invest much in Clay. He’s been flat-out terrible.

Milone @ Moore – After implosion at Fenway, not trusting Milone vs. the big boys.

Hughes @ Hochevar – Luke is too disaster prone to pitch vs. Yanks.

Hutchison @ Williams – At home, ride Jerome while he’s hot.

Blackburn @ Noesi – Blackburn a decent option in very deep mixed or AL-only.

Cahill @ Dickey – Dickey’s ERA is skewed by one awful start.

Latos @ Morton – Latos so unpredictable but if you can’t trust him for this one, why is he still on your team?

Wainwright @ Happ – Happ very impressive so far but this matchup is just too risky.

Harang @ Volstad – Harang’s medium risk, minimal reward. Ditch.

Beachy @ Nicasio

Nolasco @ Wieland – I’m waiting for one of those 3 IP, 8 ER outings from Ricky, but chances are it won’t happen here.

Marcum @ Cain

Hamels @ Zimmermann

                                                                                                                                            MONDAY

Humber @ Tomlin (Gm 1 of doubleheader)

TBD (CWS) @ Masterson (Gm 2 of doubleheader) – Masterson close to earning back my trust but not yet.

Feliz @ Matusz

Weaver @ Liriano

Doubront @ J. Sanchez – Doubront roughed up by A’s…now that’s a bad sign.

Verlander @ Beavan

Niese @ Halladay

Hanson @ Samardzija – Pitch on Samardzija if you’re feeling lucky.

Zambrano @ Wandy

Arroyo @ Gallardo – Not concerned about Gallardo.

Lynn @ Saunders – I’ll take a shot on Saundo but feel free to bench for this tough matchup.

Chacin @ Volquez – Chacin is DTM as far as I’m concerned.

Zito @ Lilly – Who’s the real Barry Zito? Closer to the one you saw last time out.

Happy Friday everyone,

Time for our weekly two-start pitchers post. Below you’ll find Cory and Mike’s thoughts (all of this info was discussed on today’s podcast) along with my notes. Keep in mind that these are borderline guys who could very well be available on your league’s waiver wire. That’s really the point of this. We don’t need to tell you to pitch Justin Verlander!

                                                                                                                                                      CORY

J.A. Happ  (vs. MIA, @PIT)

Both opposing offenses are weak. Not a huge fan of Happthere are signs that he’s developing into a more complete pitcher. Increased K rate as he’s throwing more sliders and curveballs.

Felix Doubront  (@KC, vs. CLE)

Leads AL in K/IP. Poor command but he’s faced tough lineups so far. Easier matchups this week

                                                                                                                                                      MIKE

A.J. Burnett  (vs. WAS, vs. HOU)

Roughed up by Cards last time out. Astros are actually hitting pretty well this year. Not a bad NL-only play but too risky in mixed.

Carlos Zambrano  (@HOU, vs. NYM) 

Walk rate poor but it’s skewed by one 6 BB outing. Nice matchups this week.

Doug Fister  (@SEA, @OAK)

West Coast exacta! Risky to pitch anyone coming off DL but this is worth it.

                                                                                                                                                  ZACH’S NOTES

Matt Harrison  (@BAL, vs. LAA)

Awful in last two starts – 14 ER in 8 1/3 IP, though he did face two stellar lineups in TB and TOR. While these aren’t terrible matchups, you can’t feel comfortable starting him against anyone right now. Ditch.

Joe Saunders  (vs. STL, vs. SF)

Saundo!! Has gone at least six innings while allowing two runs or less in each of his first five starts this season. He’s allowed only one home run on the year, this after serving up 29 in 33 starts last season. Cardinals are obviously a tough matchup but Giants offense without Sandoval will be scary bad. I’ll take the risk and pitch.

Edinson Volquez  (vs. COL, @PHI)

Hard to trust but he’s really only had one poor start this season. K rate is strong, Rockies can’t hit on the road the Phillies’ lineup has been very erratic this year. Pitch.

Carlos Zambrano  (@HOU, vs NYM)

Big Z has posted four quality starts in five outings this year. He’s historically pitched well vs. the Astros, including this season, when he limited them to one run over six innings on April 14. He’s also enjoyed considerable success vs. the Mets during his career (2.86 ERA in five starts since the ’09 season). Pitch.

Barry Zito  (@LAD, @ARI)

Coming off brutal start vs. MIA, it’s really tough to trust him here. Kemp and Ethier alone make the Dodgers’ lineup ultra-challenging and he’s had a rough time pitching at Chase Field of late (6.50 ERA  2.00 WHIP since ’09).

A.J. Burnett  (vs. WAS, vs. HOU)

Turned back into a pumpkin last time out, though it was against the Cardinals. Decent option in NL-only leagues but latest shellacking should remind us that he cannot be relied upon in mixed leagues just yet.

Jarrod Parker  (vs. TOR, vs. DET)

Very tough set of matchups but he got the job done at Fenway, which is no easy feat. Being that both of these games are at home, I’ll roll the dice and say pitch, though it’s totally understandable if you’d rather take the conservative route.

MIKE’S PICKS

Peavy @ Smyly *Peavy your pitcher of the month for AL. Smyly on a tear.

Lewis @ Gomez

W. Chen @ Lester *Chen’s biggest test to date. Probably safer to leave him on bench. He pitches well here we may be on to something. WHIP still high at 1.32

Ross @ Price

Sabathia @ B. Chen

Alvarez @ Big Erv *NEVER, SAY, DIE

Pavano @ Vargas *Vargas has been OK and Twins can’t hit at all. I’ll never trust Pavano even though a good start here wouldn’t be shocking. Just not my cup of tea.

Billingsley @ Maholm *One burp by Chad, otherwise pretty darn good. Cubs are terrible hitting team.

Cueto @ Correia

Kendrick @ Strasburg

Miley @ Gee *Miley owns the NL East! Look it up. Gee’s ERA and WHIP a little misleading since he got annihilated in one start vs SF.

Lohse @ Harrell

T. Hudson @ Moscoso *No way on Hudson here. These aren’t the Pirates.

Johnson @ Bass *Bass has been much better than Johnson. If you can’t pitch JJ in PETCO where are you supposed to pitch him?

Greinke @ Lincecum *This is nice yes?

CORY’S PICKS

CORY’S PICKS

Harrison @ Romero – not sure I trust Harrison, but some others might
J. Sanchez @ Verlander
Arrieta @ Nova  – Nova has been extremely hittable but has a 25-5 K-BB ratio, something’s gotta give!
McCarthy @ Bard
Beavan @ Shields
Tomlin @ Humber
Hendriks @ Weaver
Schwinden @ Wandy
Kershaw @ Pomeranz
Gallardo @ Luebke
Saunders @ Jackson – Saundo is hot and the Nationals are struggling badly offensively
Maholm @ Bailey
Halladay @ Hanson
Burnett @ Lynn
Zambrano @ Zito – Zito is hot and the Marlins are struggling offensively…

                                                                                                                                                  ZACH’S PICKS

Harrison @ Romero – Harrison roughed up by TB last time out and has historically struggled vs. Blue Jays (9.82 ERA from 2009-2011)
J. Sanchez @ Verlander
Arrieta @ Nova – Looks like Arrieta is turning back into a pumpkin. No way do I start him here.
McCarthy @ Bard – I trust both for this matchup.
Beavan @ Shields - Beavan very impressive thus far but I’ll play it safe and sit this one out.
Tomlin @ Humber – Doesn’t that perfect game seem like a long time ago?
Hendriks @ Weaver – Hendriks too erratic to trust.
Schwinden @ Wandy
Kershaw @ Pomeranz – Matt Kemp might hit four homers in this game!
Gallardo @ Luebke – Gallardo should rebound nicely after disastrous last start.
Saunders @ Jackson – Saundo! Pitch him while he’s hot.
Maholm @ Bailey – Homer has posted 3 straight quality starts. Worth a shot.
Halladay @ Hanson
Burnett @ Lynn – A.J. back on the mixed league radar but this matchup scares me. If he pitches well here I’ll definitely start him next time.
Zambrano @ Zito – Great matchup for Big Z. Still don’t trust Zito.

                                                                                                                                               ***MIKE SAYS:

-I finally came around on Harrison his last start and he betrayed me. Ditch

-Which Humber shows up? I doubt the perfect one or the crappy one. Hit the one in the middle Rocko.

-I’m rolling A.J. out there, only one I disagree on with CS even though he is still POD.

CORY’S PICKS

Matusz @ Hughes

J. Sanchez @ Porcello

Feliz @ Hutchison

Parker @ Doubront – Doubront has been very impressive

Noesi @ Moore

Jimenez @ Sale – bench but not cut on Ubaldo

Liriano @ J. Williams – same for Liriano

Cahill @ Zimmermann – Nationals can’t score right now

Samardzija @ Arroyo – who knows which Samardzija will show up?

Hamels @ Beachy

Niese @ Happ – Happ’s increased K rate is intriguing

Morton @ Wainwright

Lilly @ Chacin

Marcum @ Volquez – still not trusting Volquez. Maybe I will if he’s dominant again here?

Nolasco @ Cain

                                                                                                                                               ***MIKE SAYS:

ZACH’S PICKS

SATURDAY

Haren @ Gomez

B. Chen @ Marquis – I’m very high on Chen for this matchup.

Smyly @ F. Garcia – Garcia very close to DTM status.

Millwood @ Morrow – K’s have been lacking for Morrow so far but I’m not concerned just yet.

Ross @ W. Chen – Gotta roll with “the other Chen” vs. lackluster lineup. Ross also a decent play here.

Lester @ Peavy

Niemann @ Lewis – Niemann has been solid thus far but this is a dangerous one.

Estrada @ Lohse

Harrell @ Cueto

Wells @ Blanton – After struggling @SF and then @SD, Blanton has lost my trust.

Kennedy @ An. Sanchez

Bedard @ Delgado – Challenging matchup for Bedard but he’s the kind of guy you pitch vs. everyone, that is until he gets injured.

Gee @ Guthrie – This could get ugly for both.

Bass @ Lincecum – Need to keep trotting Lincecum out there. Bass worth a shot in deep leagues.

Strasburg @ Billingsley – I’ll give Billingsley a mulligan for his last outing.

                                                                                                                                               SUNDAY

Big Erv @ Lowe – Erv deserves one more chance before I’d think about benching or cutting him.

Scherzer @ Sabathia – Much like Erv, Scherzer very risky, but when he’s on he can dominate any lineup. I’d totally understand if you choose to bench him though.

Vargas @ Alvarez – Outstanding matchup for Alvarez.

Colon @ Hunter

Beckett @ Floyd – Red Sox lineup is hot so I’d lean towards sitting Floyd. Not much upside here.

J. Sanchez @ Blackburn

Price @ Holland

Miley @ Johnson – Miley impressive in first start but I need to see more.

Norris @ Latos – Norris a gamble but he’s still racking up the whiffs.

Garza @ Kendrick

Correia @ T. Hudson – Correia’s hot but he’s due for a blowup soon. Nice way for Hudson to open his 2012.

Greinke @ J. Garcia

J. Santana @ Moyer

Richard @ Bumgarner – Richard almost always a ditch on road but this is an exception.

Gonzalez @ Capuano – Capuano has been excellent at home.

                                                                                                                                             MONDAY

Hammel @ Kuroda – Disaster alert for Hammel.

Hochevar @ Wilk – I’ll play it safe and sit Hochevar for this one.

Darvish @ Drabek – Drabek way too inconsistent to trust vs. upper-echelon offenses.

Milone @ Buchholz – Clay is very close to DTM.

King Felix @ Hellickson

Hendriks @ Wilson

Collmenter @ Buehrle

Samardzija @ Worley – Samardzija turning back into a pumpkin!

McDonald @ Minor – Not a good time to test out McDonald.

Dickey @ Happ – Dickey coming off a much needed bounce back performance.

Harang @ Nicasio – Nicasio a worthy play in deeper mixed leagues.

Wolf @ Wieland – Great matchup for Wolf.

Hey guys,

Every Friday going forward, in addition to the analysis on the podcast, we’ll be posting our two-start pitcher notes right here on the blog. So let’s get started. Here are my thoughts on some of the more intriguing lineup decisions that you might face next week. Be sure to watch today’s podcast (coming out later) for Siano’s thoughts.

-Zach

                                                                                                                                                        Mike Minor: vs. PIT, @COL

He’s a fly ball pitcher, which makes the start at Coors scary, but 4 ER over his last three starts spanning 21 1/3 innings, and the Pirates matchup is too good to resist. Pitch.

Randy Wolf: @SD, @SF

His last start was good enough that I’ll take a chance on him here. As far as matchups go, it doesn’t get much better than this.

Ubaldo Jimenez: @CWS, vs TEX

He’ll be pitched in the vast majority of leagues so this is more of a tread lightly warning. Still, I haven’t been impressed at all with Jimenez so far, particularly the mediocre K rate. This has disaster written all over it and I’d seriously consider sitting him if I had a better two-start option or even a lower ranked one-start guy with an exceptionally favorable matchup

Clay Buchholz: vs. OAK, vs. BAL

He’s not officially DTM but I personally don’t feel comfortable starting him under any circumstance right now, even in a two-start week with decent matchups. Ditch!

Luke Hochevar: @DET, vs. NYY

A really tough call but with these matchups I’ll say ditch in mixed leagues as long as you have a capable alternative option.

Jason Hammel: @NYY, @BOS

I don’t care how well he’s pitching. This is the week when his stats will see a major correction, and the Red Sox lineup is hot.

Juan Nicasio: vs. LAD, vs. ATL

Not in love with the matchups but in a deeper mixed league he’s been good enough to trust in a two-start week.

James McDonald: @ATL, vs. CIN

A little risky as these are not great matchups, but he’s coming off a gem and has yet to be really roughed up. A decent play in deep mixed leagues. A must-start in NL-only.

Jerome Williams: vs. MIN, vs. TOR

Not sold on him yet but the Twins’ offense ranks near the bottom in the AL in runs and the Jays haven’t hit too well on the road. I’ll be conservative and ditch but he’s not a bad gamble if you’re looking for a sleeper two-starter.