Fantasy Baseball Week 25 Preview: Top 10 sleeper pitchers feature Luis Morales, Cade Cavalli
Nearly half the choices this week are rookies
By
Scott White
•
1 min read
Not that you'd sit just any pitcher, of course, but if you have an opening or two and could use a streamer off the waiver wire, you've come to the right place. Scott White has 10 recommendations for the upcoming scoring period, all rostered in less than 75 percent of CBS Sports leagues.
The threshold for inclusion here used to be 80 percent, but roster rates move slower this time of year, and too many players in the 75-80 percent range have become too obvious to mention. The clearest example this week is Jose Soriano, who is an advisable play against the Twins.
All information is up to date as of Sunday evening.
Sleeper pitchers for Week 25 (Sept. 8-14)
Kyle Bradish's second start back from Tommy John surgery didn't go as well as the first, but not in a way that would raise any red flags. It's rare to find a pitcher with ace upside on the waiver wire and fortuitous that he's facing the worst lineup in baseball.
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The Red Sox and Reds don't make for the most inviting matchups, but really, any two-start slate would make Luis Morales a must with the way he's performed so far, allowing two earned runs or fewer in all six of his appearances for a 1.59 ERA.
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Despite never getting much prospect fanfare, Ian Seymour consistently dominated in the minors and has so far continued the trend in the majors. The strikeout-to-walk ratio might compel you to start him with any matchup, but particularly one as favorable as the White Sox.
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Cade Cavalli's return from Tommy John surgery has been largely successful, apart from one big misfire at the Yankees a couple turns ago. He generates weak contact, keeps the ball on the ground, and misses enough bats to warrant a look, regardless of format, with two favorable matchups.
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After some initial speed bumps, Zebby Matthews seems to have hit his stride in his past couple turns by mixing in more sinkers. He's still sporting an excellent whiff rate, which should come in particularly handy against what's far and away the most strikeout-prone team.
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After two brilliant starts to begin his major league career, the facade of good control finally slipped for Parker Messick in his third turn against the Red Sox. He bounced back nicely against the Rays over the weekend, though, and still offers enough strikeout potential to warrant a look with a favorable matchup against the White Sox.
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This should be an easy recommendation with the Rockies being on the road and Emmet Sheehan boasting a ridiculous 20 percent swinging-strike rate over his past three turns, two of which were his longest of the season. But the Dodgers are sort of making up their rotation on the fly, meaning there's no guarantee Sheehan actually starts against the Rockies even though he's in line to.
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After years of working mostly in relief, Nabil Crismatt has given the Diamondbacks a stable option in an otherwise torn-down rotation thanks to his penchant for weak contact and ground balls. The WHIP risk and low strikeout rate make him not worth the trouble in categories leagues, but these matchups are choice for Head-to-Head points.
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Tyler Wells came back from UCL surgery Tuesday looking much the same as he did before it, throwing strikes at an elite rate with just enough bat-missing ability for it to matter. His fly-ball tendencies make him vulnerable to home runs, but that shouldn't be an issue against the league's worst offense this week.
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Luis Garcia took an especially long time to come back from Tommy John surgery -- i.e., 2 1/2 years -- and his velocity hasn't been quite the same as before the procedure, whether during his rehab assignment or in his major league return Monday. The results have been fine, though, with him notching a quality start in that Monday return, so you could consider rolling the dice on him in points leagues with a two-start slate.
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