This Week In Streaming Strategy

This Week In Streaming Strategy: Week 7

Here's another weekly look at some players from around the league who are widely available and largely useful based on their upcoming matchups. 

Hector Santiago, Dylan Axelrod -- Your two widely available starters that have the good fortune to square off against the Marlins this coming weekend. The Marlins are still hitting just .220/.282/.317 as a team, and while that's an unfortunate reality for Miami fans, it's something to exploit in fantasy. I wouldn't fret much over my pitcher facing Dustin Ackley, and the Marlins basically equal out to a lineup full of nine Ackley clones. Sounds good to me.

Jonathan Pettibone -- At some point, the Nationals are going to start hitting. There's too much firepower in that lineup to be this offensively deficient. But for now, they're hitting .214/.281/.333 over the past week. Pettibone has been solid enough thus far that he can be trusted against a struggling lineup, even if his success has been partly smoke and mirrors. Plus, he's facing Dan Haren on Saturday, whose persistent struggles should mean Pettibone will get plenty of run support.

Wily Peralta, John Gast -- Both will face off against the Dodgers in the next four days. As a collective unit, the Dodgers are hitting .222/.274/.306 in the past week. They erupted for a whopping three runs last night -- a feat they've managed to top just four times this month. Hanley Ramirez is on the shelf, and they're going to trot out some combination of Juan Uribe, Dee Gordon and Justin Sellers as the left side of their infield, in all likelihood. Sign me up.

Chris Young -- Young's game has been just a hair of above Buterian (which Webster defines as "having qualities similar to that of Drew Butera") this year, but CBY still sports a healthy .267/.369/.483 triple slash line against left-handed pitching, and he'll face a pair of southpaws in his weekend series with the Astros. No one knows how to give up runs in bunches like the Astros. Erik Bedard and Dallas Keuchel beware.

Julio Teheran -- I assume Teheran's recent play has his ownership soaring through the roof (as it should), but he's still out there in 70 percent of Yahoo Leagues and 80 percent of ESPN Leagues. If his one-run, 8 1/3 inning performance wasn't impressive enough for you Monday, consider that he's facing the Mets and Shaun Marcum next Sunday. The Mets are batting .217/.274/.350 over the past week and .223/.281/.350 over the past two weeks. Teheran, meanwhile, has a 2.41 ERA with two walks in 33 2/3 innings over his past five starts, and the Braves should be good to put up somewhere between four and 38 runs against Marcum.

Andy Dirks -- The Twins have dropped six straight games largely due to their starting pitching, and Dirks will be seeing plenty of it with a four-game series coming up. He'll face a lefty in Scott Diamond one day, so bench him for that. The other three games, however, will be started by Kevin Correia, Mike Pelfrey and one of Samuel Deduno, P.J. Walters or Kyle Gibson. Fantasy owners should root for Walters or Deduno if they enlist Dirks for a weekend of service. He's hitting .293/.339/.517 since May 3 and is notably better against righties than lefties.

Bonus recommendation: If you play on Yahoo where Jhonny Peralta is inexplicably available in 40 percent of leagues, it'd be wise to grab him for the series as well. He's owned in 97 percent of ESPN Leagues, which makes boatloads more sense than Yahoo's 59.1.

David DeJesus -- DeJesus keeps on raking, and he's facing a nice run of right-handed pitching as the weekend draws close, starting with the very hittable Jeanmar Gomez. DeJesus will also get Bronson Arroyo, Homer Bailey and Johnny Cueto in the hitter-friendly Cincinnati. Whils Bailey's been terrific, Arroyo is always inches from a meltdown, and Cueto certainly didn't look like himself in his return from the DL last night.

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This Week In Streaming Strategy: Week 6

Here's a look at some beneficial matchups (on both sides of the ball) for players who are owned in less than 50 percent of Yahoo and/or ESPN leagues...

Adam Dunn, Alexei Ramirez, Dayan Viciedo -- The White Sox have a weekend series coming against the homer-prone Angels' rotation, and they'll be getting the two chief offenders in Joe Blanton and Jason Vargas. Dunn's stretch of futility is reaching legendary proportions, but the Angels could easily represent a cure for that. He hit a 415 foot homer to center field on Monday against the Twins... the only problem was that Aaron Hicks saw fit to pull it back over the wall. The White Sox may have the weakest offense in the AL, but they're facing one of the worst pitching staffs in the game. If you can stomach owning Big Donkey or Tank for a few days (and let's be honest, that's a tall order), a few cheap home runs might be in the offing.

Brandon McCarthy, Mike Leake -- Neither right-hander has been exactly dominant this season (McCarthy, in particular, has been brutal), but you'd have to be the 2013 version of Roy Halladay to get rocked by the Fish (sorry, Halladay owners). There are Little League World Series teams that pack more punch than the Marlins' Stanton-free lineup. The Fish have scored 10 runs in their past six games. Five times this month, they've scored one run or been shut out. McCarthy's scoreless eight-inning outing should be a confidence booster in him, as well.

Dan Haren -- Ok, ok, ok -- Haren't not available in 50% or fewer of either ESPN or Yahoo Leagues. He's owned in fewers than 75 percent of each, though, and he happens to be available in a pair of my leagues, so I felt the urge to include him. Haren's season has largely been a nightmare, but he's posted a 3.15 ERA with a 12-to-2 K/BB ratio over his past three turns. He faces a Padres lineup that has a .692 OPS against right-handed pitching on Sunday. There's definite risk involved with Haren, but if you're looking for a spot-start at the end of a head-to-head matchup you could do a lot worse.

Lyle Overbay, Travis Hafner -- The Yankees will face a long run of right-handed pitching (with the exception of Mark Buehrle) including Aaron Harang and Ramon Ortiz (I swear, I'm not making that up... he's seriously alive). Better yet, they'll be playing the games at Yankee Stadium. Overbay has an .814 home OPS and a .974 OPS against right-handers, compared to .736 and .286, respectively. Hafner's home OPS of 1.037 and .969 OPS against right-handers dwarf his marks on the road (.772) and against lefties (.720).

Bronson Arroyo (Phillies) -- Demonstrating the best command of his career (1.4 BB/9), Arroyo is coming off a 6 2/3 innning scoreless outing against the Brewers and will face a Phillies team that is hitting .250/.308/.378 against right-handed pitching. His Saturday matchup carries risk, but as is the case with Haren, head-to-head owners could make far more outlandish risks as they look for late-week points.

Eric Stults -- Stults draws the Nationals on Saturday -- a team with a .587 OPS versus left-handed pitching as I write this. Jayson Werth is currently on the shelf, and there's a chance Bryce Harper could be sidelined for a few days (that's me speculating following last night's collision, of course). Stults' K/BB numbers are troubling, particularly of late (9 walks, 10 Ks in May), but the Nats are 25 points worse than any other club in OPS vs. lefties. Plus, Stults' 4.57 ERA on the season is 58 points higher than his 3.99 FIP. There are the makings of a good matchup here.

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This Week In Streaming Strategy: Week 5

Looking ahead at the matchups that are on the horizon, here's a rundown of scarcely owned players who can provide short-term fantasy boosts...

• Kyle Kendrick (Yahoo: 25% | ESPN: 23%), Andrew Cashner (27%, 5%), Jonathan Pettibone (1%, 1%), Dillon Gee (7%, 0%) -- What do all four right-handers have in common? Facing a Giancarlo Stanton-less Marlins offense within the next week. It's redundant to pick on the Marlins, but this is a group that's hitting .226/.287/.312 as a team. Wade LeBlanc is a career .252/.279/.262 hitter. It's barely a downgrade from the rest of their lineup when he's in. Those matchups are listed in my preferred order, for what it's worth.
• Cashner, in particular, is a great add for today because he's set to face the Cubs tomorrow. You'll have a hard time finding a widely available starter with that combination of strikeout rate and matchup friendliness.
• Patrick Corbin (48%, 74%) -- I'm not really sure why Corbin's owned in less than half of Yahoo leagues thus far given his strong start, but he's facing a lame-duck Padres offense that shouldn't give him too many problems. Corbin's not the ace he's looked the part of thus far, but he's gone at least six innings in each outing with two or fewer earned runs in each start. Show him some love, Yahoo managers.
• David Phelps (6%, 1%) -- Phelps has whiffed 22 hitters in 17 innings so far in 2013 after posting an 8.7 K/9 in 99 2/3 innings last season. On Wednesday he gets to face the Astros, who are making a run at becoming baseball's all-time whiffiest team. Phelps has been killed by a .357 BABIP, 66 percent strand rate and 14.3 percent HR/FB, so there's reason to expect he can outperform the ugly picture painted by his 5.27 ERA.
• Nick Tepesch (9%, 2%) -- Tepesch and teammate Justin Grimm have been impressive thus far, but it's Tepesch who strikes me as the better play against the White Sox. Tepesch has limited the damage more effectively against right-handed hitter, which combats the Sox two biggest offensive threats in Alex Rios and Paul Konerko. He's also put the ball on the ground at a 57.4 percent clip -- significantly higher than Grimm. Either is likely a reasonable play against the Sox, but I favor Tepesch slightly.
• Justin Morneau (55%, 60%), Oswaldo Arcia (2%, 1%), Aaron Hicks (3%, 1%) -- The Twins are headed to Cleveland on Friday to face a trio of right-handers -- Justin Masterson, Ubaldo Jimenez and Zach McAllister -- that have struggled against left-handed hitters. Masterson's control woes are nothing new. McAllister is a homer-prone fly-ball pitcher. Jimenez has just been lost against everyone since 2011. Hicks has been lost himself, but he's hitting .263 with a .333 OBP over his past eight games and should see some free passes against a walk-happy staff, which will give him some stolen base opps. Morneau and Arcia should see plenty of men on base in front of them, leading to ample RBI opps against a trio that's weak against lefties.
• Andy Dirks (2%, 1%) -- Dirks is hitting a whopping .196/.311/.275 on the season, so this is a bit of a leap of faith. If you're in a deep league and in need of an outfielder (that's you, Peter Bourjos owners) or just like to make crazy gambles, Dirks is a career .285/.336/.441 hitter against right-handed pitching, and the Tigers will face plenty of it against the Astros from Thursday to Sunday. Not only that, but the woeful 'Stros have yielded a .909 OPS to left-handed hitters this season. If there's anything that can cure Dirks' slump, it's a four-game set against sub-replacement-level pitching. Dirks did also just club his first homer of the season -- another reason for optimism.
• Chris Denorfia (5%, 4%) -- Speaking of deep league pick-ups or gambling fliers... Denorfia is a known lefty masher (.317/.382/.456 in his career) that will be getting a run of lefties including Travis Wood, Wade Miley, Patrick Corbin and Wade LeBlanc in the coming six days. He's been tremendous through 23 games thus far (.316/.373/.447) and could kick contribute in both homers and steals. You could probably do worse than playing those odds.

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This Week In Streaming Strategy: Week 4

As sample sizes grow larger and become more defined over the course of the season, streaming matchups become less about guesswork and more about trends. We're still pretty early in the year, but here are some matchups that could prove beneficial over the next several days, particularly for those in deeper mixed leagues...

Mark Buehrle (Yahoo: 21% | ESPN:  6%) and J.A. Happ (Yahoo: 13% | ESPN: 5%) -- Buehrle faces the Yankees on Thursday, and Happ gets the nod on Saturday. Both will face a Yankees lineup that's been absolutely abysmal versus left-handed pitching. As a team, the "Bombers" (I have to use that term facetiously given the context) have hit .190/.262/.299 against lefties. Buehrle faced them last week and whiffed seven hitters with one run allowed in seven innings. Happ, who's actually a strikeout pitcher unlike Buehrle, could break double-digit Ks as they flail away.

Edwin Jackson (Yahoo: 44% | ESPN: 37%) and Carlos Villanueva (Yahoo: 30% | ESPN: 28%) -- Both righties are going to take on the Marlins this week, with Jackson going on Thursday and Villanueva getting the nod on Sunday. We all know the Marlins can't hit, but they've at least held their own against left-handed pitching (if ranking 20th with a .645 OPS is considered "holding your own," anyway). Against right-handers, the Fish are batting an impossibly bad .199/.250/.255. Jackson and Villanueva should both turn in quality starts (and likely considerably better) with strong K numbers against that anemic offense. Scott Feldman will face the Marlins as well, but he's considerably less talented than the first two names here and has shown command issues thus far. He's a riskier stream but should be available in just about any format short of "Chicago players only."

Wade LeBlanc (Yahoo: 1% | ESPN: 0%) -- LeBlanc is probably a better stream for deeper mixed leagues than standard 12-team or shallower, but his FIP (3.98) is more than two runs better than his ERA (6.27), and he's pitched right around that level for the past two seasons (4.04 FIP in '11; 3.98 in '10). The Cubs are hitting .196/.265/.311 against lefties. LeBlanc does carry a reverse-platoon split, but that actually bodes well for him as nearly all of the Cubs starters are right-handed hitters. It's that tired old "reverse-platoon lefty against a bunch of righties who can't hit lefties" matchup that you hear about ad nauseum.

Gavin Floyd (Yahoo: 6% | ESPN: 3%) -- Floyd's 4.98 ERA isn't exactly dazzling, but his 3.99 FIP and 3.22 xFIP are considerably stronger. He also faces a Rays team that ranks 25th in OPS against right-handed pitching. Floyd has been plagued by homers but the Rays are a middle-of-the-pack team in long balls versus righties, and no team has hit line drives at a lower clip against righties than Tampa Bay's meager 15.6 percent. Floyd has 24 Ks in 21 2/3 innings this season as well, so he can contribute in multiple facets.

David DeJesus (Yahoo: 3% | ESPN: 2%) -- DeJesus is hitting .405/.500/.811 over his past 10 games with three homers. He's starting every game versus righties, and he'll have a run of pretty underwhelming righties coming up in the form of Kevin Slowey, Alex Sanabia and Ricky Nolasco.

Jesus Montero (Yahoo: 50% | ESPN: 35%) -- Montero finally hit his first homer last night, and he'll face Garrett Richards, C.J. Wilson, Joe Blanton and Jason Vargas in the Thursday-Sunday series with the Angels. The Halos are the most homer-prone team in baseball, and while manager Eric Wedge has limited Montero's playing time (because getting Kelly Shoppach ABs is crucial for the Mariners' long-term outlook or something) hopefully Monday's bomb gets him in the lineup more. If Kendrys Morales is available in your league he's probably the preferred Mariners add. If you're feeling lucky, slightly delusional, just plain bored or all three... you can roll the dice on Justin Smoak as well, but the power has just never developed for him.

Jeff Baker (0% in both Yahoo and ESPN) -- Baker's not owned because Baker doesn't do a whole lot for fantasy players except mash left-handed pitching. Luckily, he's facing a pair of low-strikeout lefties in Pedro Hernandez and Scott Diamond in the Rangers' upcoming series with the Twins. Baker is 4-for-12 with a homer in four starts against lefties this season, and for his career he's triple-slashed .297/.347/.502 against them. He's unlikely to be pinch-hit for late in a game either, as Minnesota's closer Glen Perkins is of the left-handed variety.

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This Week In Streaming Strategy: Week 3

We're still dealing with pretty small sample sizes when it comes to making judgments and picking up on trends this season, but the picture becomes clearer each week. Here's a handful of scarcely owned players who can provide big value based on favorable matchups, for those of you with the roster flexibility to make some moves...

Patrick Corbin (Yahoo 6% | ESPN 1%) and Mark Buehrle (Yahoo 14% | ESPN 7%) -- Corbin's off to a solid start this season with a 1.50 ERA and 1.25 WHIP over two games. Buehrle's been a wreck but recovered from a bad first inning to post a quality start in his last outing. Obviously, that's a small sample, but each will be facing the Yankees in their next start, who rank 26th in baseball with a .570 OPS against lefties. Travis Hafner has been a big part of the Yankees' offense thus far, but he'll be on the bench in favor of the hitless Ben Francisco. Ichiro Suzuki and Brett Gardner have plenty of struggles against left-handed pitching as well, so stream away.

Ross Detwiler (Y: 38% | ESPN: 32%), Bronson Arroyo -- Both hurlers will get the Marlins in the coming days. It's pretty self explanatory at this point, but the Marlins are bad. And they haven't been bad because of their pitching so much as the 23 runs they've scored in 13 games. And Giancarlo Stanton is banged up and hasn't been playing. Do you need more to go on than that? Probably not. Stream stream stream.

Chris Tillman (Y: 17% | ESPN: 1%), Miguel Gonzalez (Y: 12% | ESPN: 1%) -- Along the same token, the Rays have been abysmal this season as well. They've posted just a .568 OPS against right-handed pitching (and really stepped it up with a .570 mark against southpaws). Tampa Bay has Desmond Jennings, Ben Zobrist and Evan Longoria. And if you can navigate around those three, you're pretty much in the clear. Sam Fuld, Shelley Duncan, James Loney and Jose Molina have been about as intimidating at the plate as Billy Crystal. Maybe they'll call up Wil Myers to help out, but this offense is woefully bad right now.

Anyone from the Mariners -- Regardless of whether it's Kendrys Morales, Franklin Gutierrez, or even Michael Morse when he returns to the lineup... find an alternative for a few games. Seattle is set to run through a buzzsaw that features Doug Fister, Max Scherzer, Justin Verlander and Yu Darvish over its next four games. Exercise your bench players or look to someone like...

Seth Smith (Y: 4% | ESPN: 4.4%) -- Smith's platoon woes are well known to both fantasy players and his manager Bob Melvin. Smith has drawn just one start against a left-handed pitcher this season compared to eight against right-handers thanks to the 260-point difference in his OPS between lefties and righties for his career. He's set to face a run of right-handed pitchers in Bud Norris, Alex Cobb, Jeremy Hellickson, Roberto Hernandez and Alfredo Aceves in his next five games. Smith has made five straight starts against righties, and he's hitting .448/.529/.759 to open the season.

Jhonny Peralta (Y: 33% | ESPN: 45%) -- It's been awhile since Peralta was much of a power threat, but these days every hitter is a power threat against the Angels, who have allowed 21 bombs on the year. Peralta gets to square off against Tommy Hanson, C.J. Wilson and homer-happy Joe Blanton this coming weekend. He's hitting .319/.347/.426 with a homer so far. Even if he doesn't go deep, he'll have plenty of RBI opps given the depth of the Tigers' lineup.

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This "Week" In Streaming Strategy: October 1-3

Three more days.  Three days in October.  Three days of the Condor (pretend my nickname is "The Condor").  If you're in a fantasy league that ended on a usual weekly deadline and didn't include Monday thru Wednesday, well, that's weak sauce.  If your league doesn't run the full 162-game slate, then you're missing out on the utter PANIC of the last few days as managers race to stream players like crazy to use up their remaining games and innings.  I, for instance, am a good 60 innings under my cap in one league and thus am streaming one or two different starters per day, to great results!  Thank you, Marco Estrada!  

Let's look over the remaining MLB schedule and pick out some of the best streaming options for the the last-minute frenzy...

* Hisashi Iwakuma.  The Mariners are at home for their final series, and while they're facing a hard-charging Angels team, I'd still favor Safeco Field over a team fighting for their postseason lives.  The M's are starting Felix Hernandez, Iwakuma and Blake Beavan over the series.  I'm guessing King Felix probably isn't available for a quick streaming start and while Beavan's home ERA (4.12) is almost a full run lower than his road ERA (5.11), his unimpressive peripherals don't merit a pickup.  Iwakuma, on the other hand, is not only a beast in Seattle --- a 2.70 ERA in 16 home games, as opposed to a 4.20 ERA on the road --- but he also has owned the Angels, posting a 3-0 record and a 1.54 in four games against them this year, three of them starts.  Iwakuma is available in a measly 27% of Yahoo leagues and he's arguably the best streaming pitching option of the week.

* Justin Smoak.  If you heard some weird sounds emanating from the Pacific Northwest over the last month, it may have been the sound of the Smoak Monster tearing the cover off the ball.  Smoak is hitting .343/.418/.614 in September and has an .842 OPS in 138 plate appearances since returning from a stint in the minors.  It's almost like he's a different person....okay, fine, I'll stop with the LOST references, but I would've had a field day had his Yahoo ownership percentage matched one of the Numbers.  Still, Smoak is owned in just 14% of Yahoo leagues and he's facing a good opponent, as he has a 1.004 OPS in (small sample size alert!) 45 at-bats against the Angels this season.  It's usually not a good move to recommend a Mariners hitter for a home series but for Smoak in this series, I may have found a loophole.

* Jim Thome, Chris Davis.  HIS NAME IS JI.... The Orioles finish their dream season with a huge three-game set in Tampa Bay, and the Rays are sending three right-handers (Alex Cobb, James Shields and Jeremy Hellickson) to the mound.  Who better to combat those arms than two big left-handed bats like Thome and Davis, the former a long-time destroyer of right-handed pitching and the latter one of the game's hottest hitters in September?  HIS NAME IS CHR...  Davis just launched his 30th homer of the season on Saturday night but is still available in 42% of Yahoo fantasy leagues, while the great Thome is available in a stunning 98% of leagues.  Of the two, I'd actually say that Davis is the lesser bet given his home-road splits (.891 OPS at Camden Yards, .721 OPS elsewhere), so pretend it's 2001 and go hard into the last week with old man Thome.

* Jonny Gomes and Chris Carter.  Gomes and Carter have picked a bad time to go into slumps, but for this all-important series against the Rangers and with southpaws Martin Perez and Matt Harrison scheduled for Monday and Tuesday, the A's are likely to turn to their lefty-mashers at 1B and DH.  This may come at the expense of benching the scalding-hot Brandon Moss, however, so keep an eye on those A's lineups to make sure they're actually putting Moss on the bench before making any changes.  It wouldn't surprise me if the A's play the hot hand and keep Moss in the lineup at the expense of other Gomes or Carter.  Moss is, in any case, a great pickup for Wednesday's game against righty Ryan Dempster.

* Paul Maholm.  This going to stun you, but the Pirates aren't very good against left-handed pitchers.  I know!  The Pirates!  The modern-day Murderer's Row!  The Bucs only have a .697 team OPS against southpaws this season and that number is probably dropping given the absolute rock-bottom status of the Pittsburgh nine right now.  I wouldn't like their chances against a Little League team right now, let alone the Braves in their season-ending series.  (Note to the MLB schedule-maker: having this year's Bucs wrap up their collapse against the Braves, of all teams, was just cruel.  What next, is Francisco Cabrera going to throw out the first pitch?)  Maholm has pitched well since coming to Atlanta, and minus two blowout starts against the Phillies and Brewers, has a 1.95 ERA over his other eight outings as a Brave.  Maholm, of course, spent his first seven seasons in Pittsburgh and apparently knows how to handle his old teammates, judging by his 2.08 ERA in two starts against the Bucs this year.  On the bright side for the Bucs, at least Maholm won't no-hit them....probably.

* Benchings.  This is just a general end-of-season reminder that lineup maintenance is more important than ever at this time of year.  If you have any stars who play on the Reds, Giants, Nationals, Braves or (almost) the Cardinals, don't just assume they'll be starting as per usual over the last three days, as managers may want to give their regulars a break before the playoffs.  The only thing worse than picking a bad streaming player is picking a good streaming player....and then leaving him on your bench since you just couldn't bear to sit, say, Jay Bruce, who ended up taking the night off while your streaming player had three hits. 

* Dan Johnson.  That's right, Dan Johnson!  Forget the stats, I love superstition!  Since last we left Tampa Bay's Mr. Clutch, he was outrighted by the Rays in November and he chose free agency, eventually signing a minor league contract with the White Sox.  Johnson is currently on the Sox big-league roster and has been seeing some pinch-hitting appearances lately.  With this AL Central race going right down to the wire, there could be another chance for Johnson to create some more late-season magic.  If you (against all common sense) picked up Johnson for your fantasy team and he actually delivered a big hit that helped both Chicago win the division and you win your league, you could tell that story on message boards for the rest of your life.  And imagine if the guy who finished behind you was a Red Sox fan?  Oh man, this is too crazy NOT to work.

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This Week In Streaming Strategy: Sept. 24-30

This is it.  The last full week of the baseball season, the last week of head-to-head fantasy league playoff finals and (really) your last chance to pick up significant points through strategic player streams.  Let's see what players can still make a big impact in a short amount of time.

* Norichika Aoki.  If you're looking for both an NL Rookie Of The Year dark horse and a big reason why the Brewers have caught fire in the second half, look no further than Aoki.  He quietly stepped into an everyday role as the Brew Crew's right fielder and leadoff man in June and has put up very solid numbers, stealing 28 bases and taking a .311/.388/.467 line against right-handed pitching into Saturday's action.  Milwaukee opens its week with four straight games against right-handed starters and could face as many as two more righties depending on how the Astros set their rotation for next weekend's series, so Aoki is well-positioned to keep delivering.  Aoki is still available is 46% of Yahoo fantasy leagues so get him as quickly as you can.

* Alcides Escobar.  The Royals shortstop has had a reverse-splits season, hitting better against right-handed pitching (.304/.336/.412) than left-handed pitching (.274/.333/.339) despite being a right-handed batter.  With Kansas City facing at least five right-handed starters out of seven games this week, this is a good time to jump on the bandwagon, as Escobar is owned in just 66% of Yahoo fantasy leagues, and I'd suspect he's a backup in several of these leagues.  (To wit, I've put Escobar on my own bench in the wake of Ben Zobrist gaining shortstop eligibility.)  Escobar is an intriguing young player who deserves a better fantasy fate than this, especially since he also has 31 steals in 36 attempts this year.  That's right, it's time to sound the CHEAP STEALS ALERT.  Imagine if you literally stole your fantasy playoff matchup thanks to one stolen base?  We'd have to sound the OH, SWEET IRONY alert, which oddly sounds a lot like George Plimpton sighing.

* Andy Pettitte.  Let's take a moment to acknowledge how crazy it is that it's 2012 and I'm still writing about Andy Pettitte as a viable fantasy option.  I think I'd ultimately hesitate before putting the guy in the Hall of Fame, but there's no doubt that Pettitte has had a tremendous career and is still more than capable of shutting down Major League lineups at age 40.  Pettitte looked solid in his return from the DL last Tuesday, throwing five shutout innings against Toronto, and I'm recommend him as a good two-start option for this week.  Pettitte faces the Twins on Monday and is lined up to face the Blue Jays again over the weekend --- both with middle-of-the-pack numbers against lefty pitching and playing out the string on the season.  Both starts will be on the road, and while Pettitte has performed better at Yankee Stadium this year (1.85 ERA in seven home starts, as opposed to a 5.40 ERA in three road starts), it's too small a sample size to predict that Pettitte is prone to struggling outside the Bronx.  Pettitte's long DL stint may have made many fantasy owners forget about him, as he is owned in only 25% of Yahoo fantasy leagues.  You could take a chance on a younger, fresher face as a streaming starter this week, or you could pick a guy who has pitched well in umpteen clutch games over the years.  Umpteen, by the way, is also the name of a new drama on The CW this fall, chronicling the high school days of Jim Joyce, C.B. Bucknor, Marty Foster and other men in blue back when they were just boys in blue.  I expect ratings gold.

* Garrett Jones, Pedro Alvarez.  I'm very hesitantly recommending these two just because the Pirates are scheduled to face right-handed starters in all seven of their games this week, setting up these two righty-killers (Jones has an .881 OPS and 22 homers against RHP this year, Alvarez an .837 OPS with 23 homers) for a big week, in theory.  Then again, in the immortal words of Homer Simpson, "In theory, communism works!"  Jones and Alvarez are both notoriously streaky hitters and they've both been ice cold in September, with their slumps a big reason why the Pirates have fallen apart down the stretch.  If you have the roster space and pressing need for some first base/outfield or third base help, I'd pick up Jones or Alvarez and stream them accordingly for a few days to see if they can turn things around with all these favorable matchups.  As a Jones owner myself, I'll be feeling the pain of my own recommendation if he doesn't turn things around.

* Alejandro De Aza.  Robin Ventura benched De Aza for two games last week, saying the center fielder was pressing a bit at the plate and in need of a rest.  (And, Ventura also used the opportunity to get Dewayne Wise's hot bat in to the lineup.)  Since returning, however, De Aza has started all five games and gone 10-for-22 at the plate, including a four-hit outing against the Royals on Wednesday.   De Aza's production has taken a dip in the second half of the season but he's still hitting .291/.347/.428 against right-handed pitching this season, and with the White Sox facing righty starters in at least five of seven games this week, Ventura will surely keep his regular center fielder in the lineup as long as he's swinging well.  With De Aza probably back in Chicago's lineup for the duration, that doesn't leave much room for...

* Dayan Viciedo.  The righty-heavy slate of opposing pitchers is a bad sign for Viciedo, who has just a .625 OPS against right-handers this season.  (And a 1.003 OPS against southpaws, to be fair.)  With so many righties coming up, the White Sox may give Wise more playing time than Viciedo; Wise is a lefty bat, hitting the ball well right now and brings much more to the table than Viciedo in terms of defense and base-stealing.  I'm not suggesting that you add Wise since his career numbers indicate that his hot streak won't last long, but if you have Viciedo, I'd suggest leaving him on the bench and going with another option this week.

* Trevor Cahill.  The right-hander enjoyed significant home/road splits over his first three seasons in Oakland, so the question for Cahill coming into his first year as a Diamondback was whether he could learn to pitch effectively away from the O.co Coliseum.  On the bright side, the answer seems to be yes, as Cahill has a 2.91 ERA in 15 road starts this season.  On the down side, Cahill hasn't quite mastered his new home ballpark, as Cahill has a 4.96 ERA in 15 starts at Chase Field this year.  Even though Cahill is scheduled to face the hapless Rockies and Cubs this week, I'm not recommend him as a two-start streaming option.  The first start is at Coors Field so that's a red flag in and of itself, while the start against the Cubs is in the unfriendly confines of Chase Field.  Cahill has thrown three straight quality starts and is trying to finish strong after a middling 2012 season but I'd stay away from him this week.

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This Week In Streaming Strategy: Sept. 17-23

We're nearing the end of the line of the 2012 season, so hopefully you're holding on tight to your dreams of fantasy success, lest someone bring you down in the final weeks. If you think there are some secret messages within these opening lines, don't feel confusion. I'll get to the point; I listened to a Jeff Lynne compilation last week, and now I can't get it out of my head.  Don't walk away from this column, I'm getting to the streaming stuff right now, here is the (fantasy baseball) news.

The focus this week is on a few well-known players who you should be streaming OUT of your lineups. We're in the crunchiest of crunch time in the fantasy season, so you have no room for dead weight on your roster when you're in your playoffs or fighting for a league title.  

* Carlos Beltran.  The once-reliable Beltran has quietly become a big fantasy drag over the last few months, posting just a .211/.267/.396 line since July 2.  It's getting to the point where Cardinals manager Mike Matheny is starting to give Beltran more and more days off, beyond just the point of "resting the veteran" and edging into "we need a hotter bat in the lineup if we're going to win the wild card" territory.  You should take it a step further than Matheny and bench Beltran altogether if you have any better outfield options on your roster.  Don't be fooled by the tempting matchups this week (the Cards face the Astros and Cubs), as Beltran has had two and a half months to get himself together with no results, so he's long overdue for a benching.

* Josh Willingham.  The Twins face right-handed starters in five of six games this week, so it's all systems go for such righty-killers as Justin Morneau or Ryan Doumit.  Willingham also holds some pretty nice numbers (.873 OPS) against right-handers this season, but most of that was total was accumulated over Willingham's red-hot first half. Over Willingham's last 39 games and 157 plate appearances, he has hit just .218/.312/.421. That battling line looks pretty similar to Willingham's road splits of .219/.324/.438 and wouldn't you know it, the Twins are away from Target Field all this week.  It all adds up to another down week for the Will Ham, so he's another one you can think about sitting if you have a hotter bat on your bench.

* A.J. Griffin. It occurs to me that 'Icarus Pick' is a great name for my weekly choice of a hot fantasy player who's about to regress. It's a good thing I came up with this exciting new column feature ... uh, by mid-September. Anyway, this week's player who is about to get burned by flying too close to the sun is Griffin, and try as I might, I couldn't quite come up with a decent pun here involving griffins and flying. Ol' Arthur Joseph is scheduled for two road starts this week against the Yankees and Tigers, who respectively rank first and third in team OPS against right-handed pitching. If that wasn't enough, there are lots of warning signs that Griffin's incredible performance is semi-smoke and mirrors -- his 1.94 ERA looks a lot uglier (3.55 SIERA, 3.63 xFIP, .238 BABIP) through the lens of advanced metrics. This week is going to be a big test for the rookie, and I'd advise using caution if starting him or picking him up off waivers, as Griffin is available in 61% of Yahoo fantasy leagues.  If he's still throwing darts against the Tigers and Yankees, then yikes, this really is Oakland's season.

* Shane Victorino. I think we can conclude that Victorino's move to Los Angeles has been a bust. Rather than rise to stardom like so many fresh-faced unknowns in Hollywood, Victorino entered Saturday's action hitting a dinner theatre-esque .247/.314/.329 in 178 plate appearances as a Dodger. Whereas Beltran at least was on fire until the end of June, Victorino has been a big letdown all season long. If you're still giving him regular playing time in your lineup, Victorino provides no victories for your fantasy squad.

* Jonny Gomes, Chris Carter. Not much has changed since the last time we checked in (not an ELO link, I swear) on the Athletics' first base and DH platoons.  The A's are scheduled to face right-handed starters in five of six games next week, which means Gomes and Carter should be riding the pine for much of the week, though it's interesting to note that the right-handed hitting Carter actually has a better OPS against righties (.921) than against lefties (.890).  Normally you wouldn't be thinking of benching a player with splits like that, but Carter has just a .676 OPS overall in the month of September, so the A's are understandably going with hotter hands as they fight for a playoff spot.

* Doug Fister.  The Tigers right-hander has been a solid fantasy option in 2012 but I'll level with you folks, I think Fister is a vampire.  That's the only logical explanation.  Inside sources tell me that Fister just stands around outside the Tigers clubhouse for hours before games until someone invites him in.  He is also NOT a Kristen Stewart fan since, and this is a direct quote from Fister,"what, is she too good for vampires or something?"  The most glaring bit of evidence, however, are Fister's day/night splits.  Fister has a strong 2.93 ERA in 14 night starts this season, as opposed to a 4.63 ERA in eight starts under the sun.  Hmm, it's almost like the sun sapped his abilities or something.  Since Fister is scheduled to pitch twice this week during afternoon games, you're probably best served by putting Count Dougula on the bench and streaming another starter in his place.

(Editor's note: Yeah, Doug Fister isn't a vampire.  That's not true whatsoever.  We're not sure what got into Mark this week.  Maybe since we're nearing the end of baseball season, hockey season may be a wash, and the weather is getting cooler up there in Canada, Mark may be going a little batty.  Wait a minute...BATty?  Mark is a vampire!)

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This Week In Streaming Strategy: Sept. 10-16

Football?  Football?!  It's fantasy baseball playoffs time, son!  The NFL can wait until your fantasy baseball bragging rights have been settled.  Leagues could literally be decided by a single point in the coming weeks so every streaming recommendation is critical.  Take heed....

* Delmon Young.  While Young has largely been a fantasy disappointment this season, you'll want him in your lineup in the early part of the week.  Young's saving grace this season has been a .305/.327/.532 line against left-handed pitching, and the Tigers will face lefties in all but one (Jake Peavy on Tuesday) of their four-game set against the White Sox.  If you're looking for a fellow Tiger to stream Young with, look no further than....

* Andy Dirks.  The Tigers face Peavy on Tuesday and are scheduled to face three right-handed starters during their weekend set in Cleveland.  This provides plenty of opportunity for you to stream Dirks in Young's spot, as the Dirkster has a snazzy .884 OPS against right-handed pitching this season.  Dirks is owned in just seven percent of Yahoo fantasy leagues, so there's no excuse to not snag him for your roster for your critical playoff or end-of-season games. 

* Garrett Jones.  This one is mostly for my friend Dave, who owns and often wears a Garrett Jones jersey t-shirt, thus making him arguably the most visible Pirates supporter in all of Winnipeg, Manitoba.  But really, my recommendation of Jones directed towards the Yahoo fantasy community, as Jones is still available in two out of every five Yahoo leagues.  What the deuce, people?  Jones is one of the great streaming options in the game today, hitting .301/.343/.576 with 21 homers against right-handed pitching heading into Saturday's play.  The Pirates will face righty starters in five of six games this week so Jones is a must-play for each of those occasions.  Wear those jersey shirts with pride, people!  Jump on the Jones bandwagon!

* Rob Brantly.  One of my fantasy leagues has 16 managers and two starting catcher slots per team, so there is literally not enough catching depth to go around.  In this league, just having a warm body in a catcher spot is enough to get by, as some managers who risk a spot on a minor leaguer may just be wasting space; for instance, I think catcher-eligible Wil Myers has been picked up and dropped about six different times over the season.  If you're in a similar bind for catching help, give Brantly a shot.  The Marlins have been playing out the string for weeks now and are giving young talent like Brantly more playing time.  The rookie has started seven of Miami's last nine games and has a .967 OPS over those 24 plate appearances.  Miami is scheduled to face right-handed starters in five of six games this week so it stands to reason that the left-handed Brantly will start those games ahead of right-handed hitting veteran John Buck.

* Ryan Vogelsong, Madison Bumgarner, Tim Lincecum.  The Giants begin the week with a three-game series in Colorado, so beware the Coors Field effect.  Frankly, benching any of these three might be overdue.  Vogelsong had some Cy Young buzz earlier in the season but he's posted a whopping 10.13 ERA over his last five starts.  Lincecum has somewhat righted the ship after his terrible start to 2012, but given his inconsistency and his career 4.08 ERA and 1.50 WHIP in 12 starts at Coors, do you want to risk your fantasy season on Lincecum being in good form?  Bumgarner has pretty solid career numbers at both Coors Field and Chase Field (where the Giants will travel next weekend) but he's also been shaky as of late, with a 6.48 ERA over his last three outings.  It's tough to sit a rotation stalwart like Bumgarner in crunch time but given that he's pitching in two very hitter-friendly stadiums, it might be necessary.

* Eric Stults.  (Yes, I did initially type "Eric Stoltz" out of habit.) If you're a Stephen Strasburg owner looking to fill a void in your rotation, you might be tempted by the Padres southpaw with a 1.66 ERA over his last six starts.  And hey look, Stults has two home starts at Petco Park this week, why surely he's a great streaming choice, right?  Wrong.  Stults has a 2.38 ERA but his advanced metrics are terrible -- a 4.81 SIERA, 4.01 FIP and 4.54 xFIP, topped off by a .250 BABIP and just 35 strikeouts in 75 2/3 innings.  Stults may be at Petco this week, but it's against the Cardinals and Rockies, two of the league's best-hitting lineups against left-handed pitching.  Just like Robert Zemeckis bumping Eric Stoltz from Back To The Future, I'm going to have to bump Stults from your fantasy options.  Great scott!   

* Mark Reynolds.  True, nine homers over nine games does have a way of trumping my fancy in-depth stats, but it would be very surprising if Reynolds' power burst continues into this next week.  Reynolds has feasted on the Yankees' and Blue Jays' beleaguered pitching staffs, but this week he'll be facing the much stiffer test of the Rays' and Athletics' rotations.  That latter series is in Oakland, where A's pitchers have allowed just 56 homers all season long, the third-lowest home total of any AL team.

* Neil Walker.  The Pirates' second baseman has that most irritating type of injury for fantasy owners --- the 'out of action but not on the DL' kind of ailment that leaves you unable to fill Walker's spot on your roster.  If it weren't September the Pirates would surely have DL'ed Walker by now but they (unlike your fantasy team) have roster spots to spare.  Walker has missed the Bucs' last 11 games with his bad back and it's unclear as to when he'll return, given that he still can't swing from the left side without feeling pain and still hasn't taken full batting practice.  Since it's that time of year, I'd recommend simply dropping Walker outright and picking up another second baseman.  If you're entering a playoff scenario, you simply have no room for error, nor any room for a guy that's just taking up space in your lineup.  It's tough to just outright cut one of the NL's best second basemen but nobody ever won a fantasy title without making a tough choice.

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This Week In Streaming Strategy, Sept. 3-9

Here are some fantasy streaming recommendations so you're not "laboring" to make roster decisions over the holiday weekend.  Ha ha ha, timely humor!  And what's the deal with airplane food?!

* Trevor Plouffe.  The former Twins first-rounder exploded onto the scene earlier this season after a ridiculous stretch of 10 homers in 14 games. We all knew this power wasn't sustainable and yet even some modest pop combined with Plouffe's versatility (he qualifies as a 2B/3B/SS/OF in Yahoo's system) made him a fantasy darling. It's safe to say the bloom has come off the rose, as Plouffe's numbers go poof against right-handed pitching. Plouffe carried a .228/.285/.399 line against righties into Saturday's play, as compared to an OPS of 1.005 against southpaws. The Twins are scheduled to face right-handed starters in five of their six games this week, so no matter where you have Plouffe in your lineup, insert a better option instead.

* Justin Ruggiano. Consider this my weekly case of throwing shade on a good fantasy story (And while we're at it, why is "throwing shade" a negative term?  This summer's brutal heat has made shade a valued commodity, so bring it on). Ruggiano has been one of the few bright spots for the Marlins this season, hitting .329/.389/.597 in 241 plate appearances. While his .818 OPS against right-handed pitching is nothing to sneeze at, that's still close to 500 points below his 1.290 OPS against lefties, so it's clear that Ruggiano adheres to normal splits for a righty bat. As good as Ruggiano has been, he isn't nearly proven enough to be a lineup fixture, so you might use one of your other fantasy outfielders during this week when Miami faces right-handed opponents in six of their seven games.  As usual, I am prepared to eat my words during next week's column should Ruggiano keep up his hot hitting. Prove me wrong, Justin!  Prove me wrong!

* Ross Detwiler. Shutting down Stephen Strasburg will certainly be a blow to the Nationals' pitching staff and World Series hopes, but beyond just Gio Gonzalez, Jordan Zimmermann and Edwin Jackson picking up the slack, you also have the oft-forgotten fifth man in the Washington rotation.  Detwiler has been a thoroughly solid and steady fifth man for the Nats, eating innings and relying more on grounders (a 52% groundball rate) than power pitching (5.62 K/9).  Detwiler's 3.32 ERA looks less impressive through the lens of advanced metrics (3.66 FIP, 4.21 xFIP, 4.19 SIERA) and while I wouldn't recommend picking him up for the rest of the season, he has two good matchup this week.  The Cubs and their 29th-in-baseball .625 team OPS against left-handers are up on Monday, followed by the Marlins and their .679 team OPS against lefties (ranked 24th in the majors) on the weekend.  Both starts are also at home, where Detwiler has a 2.74 ERA in 14 games (11 of them starts) this season.  The only way this week could shape up any better for Detwiler would be if he starts punctuating each strikeout by yelling "The Det has been paid!" and then rubbing his fingers together like he's holding money.

* Scott Rolen. Weep for the Reds and their embarrassment of riches as Joey Votto returns from the DL and Cincinnati suddenly has more potent bats than spots in the lineup.  #firstplaceproblems  As Jonah Keri outlines, Votto's return will push NL Rookie of the Year favorite Todd Frazier into a possible super-sub role, subbing Votto at first, Rolen at third and Ryan Ludwick and/or Drew Stubbs in the outfield.  For those wondering why Dusty Baker doesn't just install his hot rookie at third base and stick old man Rolen on the bench...well, Rolen has a .966 OPS over his last 126 plate appearances.  The Reds are careful to give Rolen regular rest, so in this next week, I would guess Rolen starts no more than four of Cincy's six games, with one of those sits coming on Sunday when the Reds are (tentatively) set to face Astros lefty Fernando Abad.  If you have Frazier and are bemoaning his loss of playing time, it might be a smart move to pick up Rolen --- owned in just three percent of Yahoo! leagues -- as a handcuff and then keep an eye on the daily lineups to see who's starting.  Rolen is a very solid 3B bench bat to have, especially since he's hitting like the Rolen of old.

* Tom Milone. Just as many rookies come back to earth at some point during their first full season, Milone had four rough starts in a row from July 26 through August 17, somewhat normalizing his ridiculous home/away splits.  Don't get me wrong, they're still ridiculous (Milone has a 2.34 ERA in 12 starts in Oakland as opposed to a 5.30 ERA in 13 road starts) but they're not quite as lopsided as earlier in the season. Over Milone's last two outings, he has allowed just one run in 14 innings, so I think we can safely say that the A's southpaw is back on track.  He's at home against the Angels on Monday and then heads to Seattle's Safeco Field on the weekend, leaving fantasy owners with a dilemma. Milone isn't very good on the road ... but this is Safeco, where perfect games grow on trees and hard-hit line drives just die on the vine.  Milone has a 2.77 ERA (four ER in 13 IP) over two starts at Safeco already this season so I'm comfortable in picking him up as a two-start option and pitching him in both games. Also, forget my campaign to anoint Milone with the "Mayday" nickname; given those splits, shouldn't we just call him Home Milone?

* Ezequiel Carrera. No team is happier to see August end than the Indians, who went a putrid 5-24 in the month and had a collective team OPS of .644 in the first 28 of those games.  Virtually the only Clevelander who did anything at the plate in August was Carrera, who hit .306/.346/.486 in August and has more or less taken over the everyday left field job.  Carrera's playing time could be altered once the rosters expand but he should be the first choice starter for the coming week, when the Tribe faces right-handed starters in five of six games. 

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