Fantasy Baseball: (Buy-Low)

12 Under-Performing Pitchers

By Muntradamus

 

BEAST DOME NATION.

I hope everyone is enjoying their memorial day weekend, to help make it better I have targeted 12 Pitchers you could buy very low in a trade.  Some lower than others, but pitchers who have brighter futures then they are showing right now.  Any questions feel free to ask at the bottom.

 

Check Out the latest Pitcher Power Rankings.

 

YOVANI GALLARDO

Stats as of 5/27: (4.19 ERA. 1.41 WHIP. 3-4 Record. 53 Ks in 58 INN)

Yovani may be struggling when you see his numbers as a whole.  But his ERA has decreased dramatically from April to May.  In April he had a terrible 6.08, in May it has been 2.59.  With the Brewers offense finally getting it together, and Yovani pitching with more confidence.  He is a lot more dangerous than most people realize.  I expect him to regain his top 20 form, right now he is pitching outside of the top 60.

 

IVAN NOVA

Stats as of 5/27: (5.46 ERA. 1.57 WHIP. 5-2 Record. 56 Ks in 56 INN)

Super Nova is blessed to have the Yankee offense behind him.  He can give up 4 ER in 5 INN, and possibly still get a win.  Although the Yankees offense has not been that reliable all season, the team is starting to take a HUGE turn into being the power house they are.  Nova is less than 50% in the QS ratio, but there is no reason to think his confidence will grow with more runs.  The Yankees need Nova to perform, and he has the ability and the confidence to get it done.  If all goes right, that (5-2) record could easily result in over 15 Wins.

 

MAT LATOS

Stats as of 5/27: (4.35 ERA. 1.43 WHIP. 3-2 Record. 48 Ks in 51.2 INN)

Like Gallardo, Latos was horrible in April, but then great in May.  The Reds are starting to turn into a threat in the NL Central, and now they finally have a 9th INN guy who can get the job done in Chapman.  The stat that jumps out at me, in May he has 30 Ks in 23 INN.  That type of pace will win over his owner hearts.  I like Mat to continue on with a great season, but I would buy him low when the opportunity strikes.  He is  a solid pitcher with 200 K potential.

 

IAN KENNEDY

Stats as of 5/27: (4.65 ERA. 1.37 WHIP. 3-5 Record. 52 Ks in 62 INN.

The rough season for Ian Kennedy continued to get worse in May.  Kennedy finished April with a 3.38 ERA, and a 3-0 record.  The Diamondbacks had a rough month in general, and they have a lot of trouble filling the void of Chris Young when he got injured.  Now that he is healthy, and the Diamondbacks are getting healthy, Kennedy should start heading in the right direction.   The bullpen is not as solid as it once was before, but that offense should go back to their ways of giving him run support.  In Kennedy’s 5 starts this month, Arizona only scored 7 runs for him.  Once everything gets back the way it should, he should continue his journey to 20 wins.  I do expect him to fall short of that, but he will get better.

 

 

ADAM WAINWRIGHT

Stats as of 5/27: (4.78 ERA. 1.37 WHIP. 3-5 Record. 49 Ks in 52.2 INN)

Adam loves facing the NL West.  His ERA was 6.16 after his May 12th start.  Then Adam had the pleasure of pitching to the Padres and Giants.  Like a David Blaine magic trick, his ERA dropped to 4.78.  It is hard not to like Adam with the Cardinals offense, but if you look at his starts closely.  He has struggled against good teams, and only pitched well to bad team.  Regardless, everyone will over-own Wainwright.  If Adam does have a good game against a good team, I would make a trade offer with the thought in mind he is going to pitch like a top 25 option.  Between the Cardinals offense, and a majority of weak teams in the NL Central.  The odds are in his favor.

 

MAX SCHERZER

Stats as of 5/27: (5.67 ERA. 1.54 WHIP. 4-3 Record. 72 Ks in 54 INN)

No doubt, if you want to make an aggressive move to climb the K ladder in your roto league, Scherz Dog is your guy.  Not only will Max give you K’s, and a lot of them (72 Ks in 54 INN).  He will also get ample run support, a perfect example of this would be the 30 runs the Tigers have scored for him in his last 4 starts.  The ERA is disgusting no doubt, but if it could fall to the 3.90 range, he would be ELITE.

 

JON LESTER

Stats as of 5/27: (4.72 ERA. 1.36 WHIP. 3-4 Record. 41 Ks in 61 INN)

Lester is a PRIME Buy-Low candidate right now!  He has been very inconsistent, and is coming off of a terrible 7 ER game against the Rays.  He will continue to face tough AL East hitting all season long, so his owners are a bit worried.  However you should never worry about Jon.  The guy is maybe the best pitcher in the AL East not named CC Sabathia.  The Red Sox momentum gauge has not come close to reaching the potential it will be at, and when they become unbeatable.  So will Lester.  Add him now while his value is so cheap.

UBALDO JIMENEZ

Stats as of 5/27: (5.02 ERA. 1.71 WHIP. 5-3 Record. 38 Ks in 52 INN)

Not only is Ubaldo very inconsistent, and his K rate could possibly land him short of 150 for the season.  I still think he has better games ahead of him as the Indians have proved they are a legitimate team this year.  What has impressed me with Ubaldo this season is the fact he threw a 7 INN shutout against the Rangers on May 6th, and in his last start beat a Tigers team that is starting to heat up.  The stats are bad, and he has not had more than 6 Ks in any start all season.  I still like Ubaldo to be a reliable pitcher who can give you W’s, especially as his schedule will get much easier.

 

HIROKI KURODA

Stats as of 5/27: (4.56 ERA. 1.48 WHIP. 3-6 Record. 34 Ks in 53.1 INN)

Hiroki is another pitcher in the Ivan Nova situation.  He has a Yankee offense, that simply has not been hitting for him the way we expected.  It will turn around however as the team is getting very hot.  In Kuroda’s last 4 losses, the Yankees have scored a total of 2 runs.  Two of those games were shutouts.  Kuroda is adjusting to the AL East hitters, and when he figures them out.  He will be pitching like the pitcher that could have had 16+ Wins, and 160+ Ks.  Maybe next season those numbers are realistic, but this season he can still get you those cheap wins.

 

JOSH JOHNSON

Stats as of 5/27: (4.87 ERA. 1.55 WHIP. 2-3 Record. 45 Ks in 57.1 INN)

Since May 4th, Johnson has seen his ERA drop from 6.61 to 4.87.  He is starting to not only pitch with more confidence, he is getting the job done consistently.  His K rate is starting to drop a bit with only 20 Ks in his last 5 starts.  Still the Marlins are getting better, which will mean Johnson will continue to improve with team confidence.  He could easily get 10+ more wins from here on out.

 

TIM LINCECUM

Stats as of 5/27: (6.41 ERA. 1.61 WHIP. 2-5 Record. 58 Ks in 53.1 INN)

Tim is heading in the wrong direction, fast.  His only two quality starts happened in late April, one against the Padres.  The other against a Mets team that has only a few good names.  Lincey is getting bombed left and right, and his velocity is down.  If we look at the positives in season, he has 58 Ks in 53 INN.  If Lincecum starts to get it together, his fantasy  value will rise very quickly.  However to battle from a 6.41 ERA, to a 3.50 ERA.  That will take two months of pure dominance.  If you wanted to buy-low you could, but there is a chance he may not come back to the level he once was.

 

MATT MOORE

Stats as of 5/27: (5.07 ERA. 1.57 WHIP. 1-4 Record. 48 Ks in 49.2 INN)

Moore has been a disaster all season with 2 only to starts of any quality.  It is hard to imagine him getting it all together, especially when he has to face tough AL East hitting more than any struggling pitcher should.  Moore was being drafted very high based on hype, and a huge performance against the Yankees late last season.  There is still a glimpse of hope he can turn this nightmare season around, and if you want to find out.  Now is the time to buy extremely low, his last game he actually helped his fantasy teams was May 1st.  Game was against a cold Seattle team, so he had to.  At least he will help you in the K department.