Matt Kartozian-USA TODAY Sports
The waiver wire can be a goldmine for fantasy baseball players who are looking to boost their pitching stats. On most days, there is sure to be a starter (or three) just waiting to be scooped up who can help lead a fantasy team to glory. In today’s slice of fantasy advice, let’s take a look at some hurlers who should be in for a strong day on the hill on July 12 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)
Charlie Morton: Pittsburgh Pirates (21.4 percent)
Things have gone quite splendidly for this right-hander of late, as he’s allowed two earned runs or fewer in 11 of his last 13 starts. He owns an outstanding 2.63 ERA over that stretch, and is missing a lot of bats as well with 73 K’s over those 82.1 innings of work. Morton is looking at a pretty decent matchup tonight and makes for an interesting play.
The Pirates will face the Cincinnati Reds on the road this evening. While the Reds have feasted on some bad pitching of late, they still rank just 21st in the league in runs per game. They’ll also be without the big bats of Joey Votto and Brandon Phillips who are both on the DL at the moment. Combine that with Cincy’s mediocre .248 average vs. right-handed pitching and that offense doesn’t look too scary in this one.
Wade Miley: Arizona Diamondbacks (15.2 percent)
By no means has he been spectacular this season, but this southpaw has managed a respectable 3.54 ERA over his past six outings. Miley has really been able to miss a ton bats lately too, as he’s posted an impressive 62 strikeouts over his last 51.1 innings pitched. While this left-hander is strictly a matchup play, he’ll get a pretty good one today.
The D-backs will face a San Francisco Giants team this afternoon that has seen their season take a nasty turn south. They’ve managed a terrible 9-21 record over their last 30 contests and have scored an embarrassingly low 2.90 runs per game over that span. Look for Miley to kick these guys while they’re down and post his third consecutive quality start.
Jimmy Nelson: Milwaukee Brewers (15.3 percent)
It looks like the Brewers top pitching prospect is going to get his chance to stay with the big club for a while. Nelson brings an impressive 1.46 ERA with him from the minors to go along with a lofty 114 K’s in 111 innings of work. In his only big league outing this season, he held the Miami Marlins scoreless over 5.2 innings. He will look for another solid outing today.
The offensively challenged St. Louis Cardinals will be his opponent this afternoon at Miller Park. The Cardinals sport a weak offense overall, but have especially struggled on the road this season as they rank just 29th in the league with a paltry 3.43 runs per game. A win could be tough to come by considering Cy Young candidate Adam Wainwright will take the hill against him, but the matchup is good enough to give Nelson a go today.
Brian Davis is a fantasy writer for www.RantSports.com. Follow him on Twitter @SportsGuyBrian, ”Like” him on Facebook, or add him to your network on Google.
