David Kohl-USA TODAY Sports
The waiver wire can be a gold mine for fantasy players who are looking to boost their pitching stats. On just about any day, there is sure to be a starter or three just waiting to be picked up who can help lead a fantasy team to the promised land. In today’s slice of fantasy baseball advice, let’s take a look at some hurlers who should be in for a solid day on the hill on May 23 and are quite possibly available on a waiver wire near you.
Now hurry up and grab one of these pitchers before some other cagey owner gets to them first.
Ownership percentages based off ESPN standard leagues
Jordan Lyles: Colorado Rockies (36.8 percent): Although he got roughed up a bit in his last outing, this fellow had been very strong before that. He had allowed two earned runs or fewer in six of his previous seven starts and owns an appealing 5-1 record on the season.
He has an excellent chance of getting back on track today against the Atlanta Braves. Atlanta has had plenty of issues getting runners to home plate this season, as they rank just 29th in the league in runs scored per game. Lyles may even be able to improve on his weak 5.83 Ks per nine innings average, as the Braves strike out 8.61 times per game as a team, good for the seventh-most in baseball.
Tom Koehler: Miami Marlins (27.4 percent): For someone with a sparkling 2.25 ERA and four wins on the young season, this Marlins pitcher sure doesn’t get much respect from fantasy owners. He’s still wasting away on nearly 75 percent of waiver wires despite his strong numbers, but that may be good news for you.
He’ll take on the Milwaukee Brewers at home tonight, and their offense hasn’t exactly been scary this season. The Brew Crew rank 26th in baseball in runs scored per game and have averaged just 2.66 per in their last nine. They may even be without Ryan Braun who left yesterday’s game due to tightness, and that would make this matchup even more appealing for Koehler.
Edwin Jackson: Chicago Cubs (9.7 percent): So far Jackson’s season has been pretty mediocre, but he’s really turned things up a notch in his last three starts. He’s only allowed four total earned runs in those games, which spans 20 innings, and has struck out a superb 23 batters.
Look for his recent success to continue tonight when he takes on the lowest scoring team in the league, the San Diego Padres. San Diego is the only team in baseball that has averaged less than three runs per game this season, and they’ve scored just four total runs in their last three games. Jackson has the talent to continue keeping offenses at bay, and he makes for a nice plug-in on this fine Friday.
Brian Davis is a fantasy sports writer for www.RantSports.com. Follow him on Twitter @SportsGuyBrian, ”Like” him on Facebook, or add him to your network on Google
