Rick Osentoski-USA TODAY Sports
When Oakland Athletics SP Dan Straily was sent down to the minors earlier this month, many fantasy baseball owners were upset.
Straily won his only major league appearance of the year and lasted a respectable 6.2 innings. He allowed just five hits and two runs without walking a single batter. However, the staggering statistic from the outing was the 11 K’s the 24-year-old racked up. It was a truly beautiful fantasy performance from one of the top pitching prospects, but Straily still found himself getting demoted after the game to make room for Bartolo Colon.
Since being optioned back to the MiLB, Straily has a similarly impressive 3-0 record.
In his first minor league start of the year, Straily lasted just 5.2 innings. Three runs crossed the plate in the game, but only one of them was an earned run. Straily still struck out a ridiculous nine batters and didn’t issue a single walk.
In his next two starts, Straily only refined his craft more. He combined to throw 13 innings, but shockingly only gave up seven total hits. He also struck out 11 more batters and only allowed one run over the two-game stretch.
The right-hander currently has an ERA of 0.96 and has amassed 20 strikeouts in just over 18 innings of work. Straily is one of the most dangerous strikeout pitchers in the minors and will have a huge fantasy impact whenever he gets called back up.
Straily may not have a spot in the rotation just yet, but if he keeps pitching this way, it is only a matter of time. He is still worth stashing in any type of dynasty league, because this kid has some 200-strikeout seasons in his future.
Adam McGill is the Senior Fantasy Sports Writer at Rant Sports. Follow him on Twitter @adammcgill83, like him on Facebook, or add him to you networks on Google here or here.
