Streaming pitchers isn't for the faint of heart, but if you find yourself without enough reliable options in a given scoring period, it may be what you need to stay afloat. Scott White has 10 recommendations for the upcoming scoring period, all rostered in no more than 80 percent of CBS Sports leagues. Generally, only the top two or three are full-throated endorsements, while the rest are more about making the best of a bad situation.
All information is up to date as of late Sunday.
Sleeper pitchers for Week 25 (Sept. 7-13)
Jacob Lopez will have a permanent spot atop this list until we get his roster rate up to 80 percent. He's a particularly obvious choice this week, lining up to face the two of the four worst offenses in baseball (as if his 2.36 ERA, 1.09 WHIP, and 10.9 K/9 over his past nine turns wasn't reason enough).
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Andrew Painter has been nearly as effective as Lopez since returning from the minors, riding a new changeup to a 3.12 ERA, 0.89 WHIP and 8.5 K/9 in seven starts. His matchups aren't as favorable, but because there's two of them, he's basically a no-brainer.
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Tyler Mahle came through in his weekend start against the Phillies, and with the way his time with the Braves has gone, you shouldn't be scared away by a Week 25 rematch. He's been in peak form in his six starts with his new club, fading his cutter en route to a 1.24 ERA, 0.94 WHIP and 8.7 K/9.
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Cal Quantrill has a history of mediocrity and hasn't been doing anything all that different this year, yet he has a 1.25 ERA, 0.76 WHIP and 8.5 K/9 in his past eight turns. He's in Seattle for his next start, which is the best opponent and venue that a pitcher could ask for.
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I lost my nerve with Walbert Urena after a couple of bumpy outings and wound up excluding him from this list for Week 24, which yielded arguably his two best starts yet. Those starts came against two strong offensive clubs, the Yankees and Pirates. His opponent for Week 25, the Nationals, also rates well offensively, but Urena's proclivity for ground balls should help to limit the damage.
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Hayden Wesneski's return from Tommy John surgery has gone pretty well, seeing as he has a 3.18 ERA and 1.06 WHIP in seven starts, but his strikeout and walk rates leave something to be desired. He could also ask for better matchups, which is why he's more of a good two-start option than a great one this week.
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It'll take nerves of steel to activate Nick Pivetta after a five month-absence for a flexor strain, but he looked good on his rehab assignment and lines up for two turns right away. Just understand that his starts will likely be on the shorter side. The most pitches he threw in a rehab outing was 64.
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Brandon Young is coming off back-to-back quality starts and has been surprisingly steady this year. He's not much of a bat-misser, which is part of what makes his success so dubious, but he actually did miss bats in his latest turn, collecting 10 whiffs on his splitter alone. It's a positive development as he heads into a favorable matchup against the Guardians.
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Zebby Matthews stumbled in his latest outing after three excellent ones. I couldn't tell you what made him so effective in those three one-run efforts, but he went seven-plus innings in two of them. The overall trends are still positive if you're willing to chance it against the Tigers' 19th-ranked offense.
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Why settle for just one good matchup when you can have two? Well ... because Connor Prielipp hasn't actually been all that good. He has some strikeout ability, though, and turned in five shutout innings last time out against Detroit, which happens to be one of the two teams he's facing this week.
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