Ian Seymour is too good not to be universally rostered by now, and I’m skirting this article’s usual rostership cutoff just to drive home that point. With a 3.26 ERA, 0.98 WHIP and 11.7 K/9 in his past nine appearances, he’s an absolute must against the league’s second-worst offense.
STL
St. Louis
• #62
•
Age: 29
A switch flipped for Kyle Leahy about halfway through this season to turn him into an elite strike-thrower, and the result has been a 1.86 ERA, 1.03 WHIP and 8.9 K/9 over his past 10 starts. He also has a 50 percent ground ball rate during that time, which should help with the smaller venues he’s working with this week, not that the Reds or Phillies offense is particularly imposing.
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MIL
Milwaukee
• #21
•
Age: 28
The Brewers have convinced Dustin May to lead with his cutter, and his two starts with them have been money. The Mariners rank dead last in runs scored, so I don’t know why you’d shy away from him against them.
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STL
St. Louis
• #53
•
Age: 27
There’s nothing flashy about Andre Pallante, but his penchant for putting the ball on the ground has made him a quality start machine, with three of his past four outings fitting that description. His lack of strikeouts holds him back in 5×5 leagues, but with two starts this week, that’s less of an issue.
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ATL
Atlanta
• #54
•
Age: 31
Tyler Mahle’s strikeouts have spiked as he’s cut back on his cutter over his past three starts, the last two of which have come with the Braves. The matchups this week could be better, but when a pitcher who’s trending up lines up for two turns, you might just have to roll the dice on him.
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CHW
Chi. White Sox
• #58
•
Age: 33
After getting away from his changeup in Seattle, Luis Castillo brought back his bread and butter in his second start for the White Sox last time out, and it was a truly dominant outing, yielding 10 strikeouts on 21 whiffs over seven one-hit innings. No telling how sustainable it is, but with two turns coming up this week, the reward probably outweighs the risk.
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ATH
Athletics
• #35
•
Age: 27
J.T. Ginn has become highly bankable this year as a pitcher who induces weak contact on the ground and takes a streak of three straight quality starts into his weekend matchup against the Rangers. Provided he comes through in that one, he’ll be an easy choice against the Royals in Week 22.
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MIL
Milwaukee
• #55
•
Age: 27
Uncharacteristic control issues have cropped up in Shane Drohan’s past two turns, but he still limits hard contact and misses bats at a nice rate. A matchup against the league’s worst offense may be just what he needs to get the ball rolling again.
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SF
San Francisco
• #65
•
Age: 27
Another pitcher with strong underlying data who’s fallen on hard times recently (mostly for the same reason — walks), Landen Roupp will first get a chance to bounce back against the Rockies in San Francisco this weekend. If that goes well, you won’t need much convincing to use him against the league’s third-worst offense in Week 22.
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ATH
Athletics
• #61
•
Age: 23
Gage Jump’s performance against the Rangers this weekend could certainly change the recommendation for Week 22, given how two-faced he’s been as a rookie, but as things stand now, he’s coming off an 11-strikeout gem in which he seemed to acknowledge his need to throw more strikes. You have to like the matchup against the Royals.
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