- Through Monday, the Miami Marlins' team ERA was 3.37, the 10th-best in the league. Elieser Hernandez (19% rostered in ESPN leagues) is one of the few Marlins hurlers off to a slow start, having allowed six homers in 20⅓ innings, resulting in a 5.75 ERA. However, Hernandez has fanned 21 with just five walks, fueling a more optimistic 4.31 xFIP and 3.79 SIERA. Look for Hernandez to move his actual ERA closer to what is expected with a Wednesday date against the Arizona Diamondbacks, a team with the fourth-lowest wOBA. Hernandez checks in as the day's top streamer, as well as a solid DFS play.
- At least so far, more starting pitchers than usual are being stashed on reserve, rendering it more difficult to find available streamers. Three examples on Wednesday's docket are Cal Quantrill (68%), Dylan Bundy (65%), and MacKenzie Gore (60%). In previous seasons, all three would probably have been rostered in fewer than half of ESPN leagues. If you're looking for extra starts, it's worth checking on all three. If all are already on another team, Baltimore Orioles rookie Kyle Bradish (1%) is a decent fallback option. Bradish limited the Boston Red Sox to two earned runs over six frames in his MLB debut and now draws the Minnesota Twins in Camden Yards, in what looks to be a much friendlier pitching venue.
- One of the interesting tidbits from Monday's box scores is three steals from the New York Yankees, a team previously criticized for questionable lineup construction being too reliant on the ball leaving the yard. While some of the baserunning in the Yankees 3-2 win over the Toronto Blue Jays was likely due to scouting reports on Tyler Heineman, it's apparent the Yankees will manufacture runs when needed as Anthony Rizzo, Aaron Judge, Isiah Kiner-Falefa and Aaron Hicksall have a pair of steals, two behind team leader Tim Locastro. The takeaway is that Yankees batters are solid trade targets for latent steals while other teams might look to exploit Heineman while he's behind the plate.
- The return of nine-inning doubleheaders means it's once again beneficial to stream hitters scheduled to play a pair. With shortened 2021 twin bills, fantasy managers had risked potentially getting only seven innings out of batters who played in just one contest. With Tuesday's washout in Motown, the Detroit Tigers and Pittsburgh Pirates will now play a straight doubleheader on Wednesday. Hitters from both sides are in play, most notably Jonathan Schoop (52%), Jeimer Candelario(51%) and Robbie Grossman (46%) from the hosts with Daniel Vogelbach (7%), Michael Chavis (7%), Yoshi Tsutsugo (2%) and Ben Gamel (1%) the primary picks from the visitors.
- Rain has been an issue throughout the Midwest. For the second time this week, a St. Louis Cardinals/Kansas City Royalsinterstate tilt has had its start time moved up to combat threatening evening weather. The game is now scheduled for 1:10 p.m. ET. After losing Adalberto Mondesi for the year, it didn't take long for the Royals to promote top catching prospect MJ Melendez (2%). Melendez is clearly blocked behind the plate by Salvador Perez. However, Melendez is athletic enough to play corner infield and outfield. So, with Whit Merrifield and Hunter Dozier offering defensive flexibility, Melendez may well see significant action. Given, it won't be sufficient for one-catcher formats, but Melendez is in play for those waiting on backstops in two-catcher setups
What you need to know for Wednesday's MLB Games
- Thread starter biggins
- Start date
