The Major League Baseball All-Star break is over, and the stretch run for a fantasy championship has begun. Every move is critical and every decision we make has to be based on moving up in the standings.
We’ve already looked back at the hitters that have performed well and those that didn’t in the first half, and now we’ll focus on the pitchers.
Three Up:
1. Miami Marlins Starting Pitcher Sandy Alcantara — The right-hander has littered our “Three Up” section this season and for good reason. The 26-year-old is a throwback, a true workhorse starting pitcher that we don’t often see in today’s game. Alcantara leads baseball in innings pitched at 138.1 and is second in ERA at 1.76. He has also racked up 123 strikeouts and a 0.90 WHIP. Alcantara has truly been elite this first half and the only question will be if he tires down the stretch.
2. Tampa Bay Rays Starting Pitcher Shane McClanahan — I’m proud of this as I pegged the left-hander as a breakout candidate back in March, and all he has done is lead baseball in ERA and start for the American League in the MLB All-Star Game. McClanahan was drafted outside the top 30 as a starting pitcher this year and has crushed that with his performance. The strikeouts continue to be elite as McClanahan is tied for second with 147. There’s no doubt that championship rosters at the end of the season will have the 25-year-old on their roster.
3. Chicago White Sox Starting Pitcher Dylan Cease — The only reason McClanahan doesn’t lead baseball in strikeouts is because that honor belongs to Cease. The 26-year-old has 150 strikeouts to go along with a 2.15 ERA, 1.18 WHIP and nine wins. Cease was drafted outside the top 20 for starting pitchers this year, which is another reminder that we don’t need to reach on pitching in drafts.
Three Down:
1. Toronto Blue Jays Starting Pitcher Jose Berrios — I’ll start with the positives, as Berrios may have finally figured out his struggles. The right-hander has not allowed more than three earned runs in his last four starts and mixed in a 13-strikeout performance during that stretch. However, the 28-year-old has a 5.22 ERA this season, so he had to crack this list. Berrios was being drafted as the 18th starting pitcher this year, so this is definitely a disappointment. I’m encouraged by the recent performance, and hopefully that leads to success during the final two and a half months.
2. Chicago White Sox Starting Pitcher Lucas Giolito — Drafted as the 10th starting pitcher, Giolito has not lived up to his draft day hype. The right-hander is pitching to a 4.69 ERA and 1.40 WHIP. The issue with Giolito is when he’s bad, he’s really bad. The 28-year-old has allowed at least five earned runs in four starts. In between, we have seen vintage Giolito, but with the blowups, high ERA and where he was drafted, Giolito had to crack this list.
3. New York Yankees Closer Aroldis Chapman — The Yankees had an amazing first half of the season, but it’s been a disaster for Chapman. The one time elite closer has dealt with injury and ineffectiveness. The left-hander was drafted as the 34th pitcher overall this spring, but he is pitching to a 4.50 ERA with only nine saves. I pegged Chapman as an overvalued candidate back in March, writing “The signs are there that drafting Chapman could be a disaster, and I’m bailing now.” That has come to fruition, and hopefully readers avoided this situation.