More Replacement Starting Pitchers for your Fantasy Team
Benny Sieu-USA TODAY Sports
Well it is finally here. March is rolling on, and with that comes madness! No, I’m not talking about brackets, diaper dandies, or buzzer beaters. I’m talking about Spring training being in full swing and the season being only a few days away. With that comes, talk about who is hot and who is not, position battles, and injuries.
What has been truly astounding this spring would be the amount of injuries to pitchers, especially Tommy John surgery. Kris Medlen, Patrick Corbin, Jarrod Parker, and Brandon Beachy are all headed for TJ surgery. Heck even Miguel Sano needs Tommy John surgery, and he has one of the shortest throws on the field!
That doesn’t even mention Aroldis Chapman. Ernest Hemingway is quoted as saying, “There are only three sports: bullfighting, motor racing, and mountaineering; all the rest are merely games.” The longer explanation goes to say that these are the only sports because the participants risk their lives. Now this may be folklore, but I believe if Mr. Hemingway could have seen the shot Aroldis Chapman took, he might reconsider his list.
Anyway, back to fake baseball. No doubt people are scrambling to fill in spots vacated due to injuries. If you are an Elvis Andrus owner, you are probably missing most of your finger nails by now. I mentioned in a recent Ask Nash that the San Diego Padres have a few good pitching options to fill in for your hurt slingers. However at the rate that pitchers are falling, we may need a few more replacement starting pitchers. Actually, we know we do. Josh Johnson has already gone down.
— Michael Pineda, New York Yankees
Pineda is without a doubt the biggest roll of the dice. He has not posted any stats in two full seasons because of a torn labrum. However if we can remember back to his rookie season with the Seattle Mariners, he was pretty darn special.
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The K:BB ratio is comparable to Patrick Corbin in 2013, while his K:9 is more than 2.0 higher. So he may be worth the roll of the dice.
Aside from the injuries, the one potential drawback is that his rookie season was in Seattle’s Safeco Field, even before the fences were brought in. Now he will be in the far more hitter-friendly Yankee Stadium.
— Wade Miley, Arizona Diamondbacks
After a solid rookie season, Wade Miley took a step backwards in production in year two.
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The trick with Miley is we have to guess which Miley we might end up getting, just ask Robin Thicke about how worrying it can be not sure which Miley to expect.
We at least have the benefit of Miley’s first start, and a nice first start it was. If you have to fill in for an ailing starter, Wade Miley might just be your man.
For a deeper look at Wade Miley, be sure to read what Dixon had to say.
— Kyle Lohse, Milwaukee Brewers
Speaking of Jekyll and Hyde pitchers, here’s Kyle Lohse. Only unlike Miley, we have more than two seasons to draw from.
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Lohse’s career really took a strong upturn three seasons ago. He has been a very capable starting pitcher these last three years, but is not truly getting the credit he deserves. He is not even owned in 20% of leagues, something that given the amount of injuries that have happened, should absolutely change before the official opening day.
All three of these options could be very good replacements for your injured starting pitchers.
Certainly Pineda carries the most risk, but he also may have the highest ceiling if he returns to form. I also like Miley’s potential over Lohse. Lohse on the other hand is probably the most surefire good pitching replacement. This is going to come down good old fashioned risk-reward.
If these guys were stocks, Lohse would be a defensive stock, safe and steady, Miley would be a growth stock, good potential future but not immune to risk, and Pineda would be your classic speculative stock, young, high risk, high reward all the way!
Let’s just hope none of these fellas ends up a junk bond.