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Two Start Pitchers :: Week 18
by Scott Mickels
Published: July 31, 2011, 12:17 pm
 With the MLB trade deadline fast approaching this Sunday, there will undoubtedly be players switching teams, even leagues. So far, however, there has been very little movement regarding starting pitchers. The main talks surround guys like Ubaldo Jimenez, Hiroki Kuroda and, to a lesser extent, Jeremy Guthrie and Jason Marquis. There was one pitching move today I feel might fly below the fantasy radar. The Detroit Tigers acquired Doug Fister and David Pauley from the Seattle Mariners in exchange for pitcher Charlie Furbush, third baseman Francisco Martinez, outfielder Casper Wells and the infamous player to be named later. Despite playing for the lowly Mariners, getting no run support and only having 3 wins, Fister still managed an impressive 3.33 ERA and 1.17 WHIP. He now goes to Detroit which not only plays in a pitcher-friendly park, but, and perhaps more importantly, has a more potent offense. He will almost assuredly get better run support. Fister is not a strikeout artist, but rather relies on exceptional control. I wouldn't be the least bit surprised to see him get three wins in less than a month in Detroit. Playing for a contender and with a better supporting cast will definitely help his fantasy value for the rest of the season.
 Another move that happened earlier in the week was the St. Louis Cardinals acquiring Edwin Jackson in a 3- team deal with the White Sox and Blue Jays. Jackson goes back to the National League for the third time in his career. His fantasy value doesn't exactly skyrocket with this move, but it does increase somewhat. Despite having more success in the American League, he does have a slightly better ERA in the NL, and now will be coached by touted pitching guru Dave Duncan. In addition, Busch Stadium is far more pitcher-friendly than the confines of U. S. Cellular Field. Keep in mind, Jackson was traded to the NL last year from the White Sox to the Diamondbacks. As a result of that move, his WHIP went from 1.21 to 1.50 and his ERA increased by almost two runs, 3.24 to 5.16. In Arizona, he seemed to fall back into old habits that kept him inconsistent through his time in LA and Tampa Bay. Granted, he's in a better situation in St. Louis than he was in Arizona (or Chicago for that matter), but it remains to be seen if Duncan can help remedy his inconsistency. It seemed as though he turned the corner after his '09 season in Detroit and his '10 stint with the White Sox, but that move to Arizona last year seemed to really do a number on him. Because of that, I'm somewhat skeptical on how he will fair in St. Louis from here on out, but he is in a good environment to succeed nonetheless.
 Lastly, I have one minor Injury Watch to discuss. For this we make our way to the Lone Star state where Houston Astros pitcher Bud Norris is dealing with a blister on the finger of his pitching hand. He was removed from his last start at St. Louis after 6 strong innings and throwing 94 pitches. According to the Astros, the pain in his finger has subsided and he's scheduled to make his next start at home against the Reds. Norris has likely been Houston's best pitcher this season. Even though he plays in Minute Maid Park, a very hitter-friendly park, and gets lousy run support, he's still sporting a good ERA of 3.39 and WHIP of 1.17. Oddly enough, he has a better ERA at home (2.93) than on the road (4.05). He is scheduled to pitch two games at home this week, which will be good for his blister problems (no humidity indoors) but I'd like to point out he's 0-1 and has given up at least 3 earned runs in every home start for the last month. With that said, I'd still consider Norris a high-end Keep in Mind option going into Week 18. Good luck! Now, on to what we all came here for, the Two-Start Pitchers! Of course, if you have any pitching questions, or now any fantasy football questions, don't hesitate to email me with them at scottmickels@fantasyplaymakers.com. NOTE: These starts are not set in stone. They can change for any variety of reasons: managerial moves, injuries, rain-outs, etc. Please keep in mind they are probable.
AMERICAN LEAGUE NO-BRAINERSJosh Beckett, BOS: vs. CLE, vs. NYY ADVISABLE OPTIONSTrevor Cahill, OAK: @ SEA, @ TB
John Danks, CHW: vs. NYY, @ MIN
Colby Lewis, TEX: @ DET, vs. CLE
Ricky Romero, TOR: @ TB, @ BAL
Ervin Santana, ANA: vs. MIN, vs. SEA OTHERS TO KEEP IN MIND
A. J. Burnett, NYY: @ CHW, @ BOS
Brian Duensing, MIN: @ ANA, vs. CHW
David Huff, CLE: @ BOS, @ TEX
John Lackey, BOS: vs. CLE, vs. NYY
Jake Peavy, CHW: vs. NYY, @ MIN
Max Scherzer, DET: vs. TEX, @ KC
Josh Tomlin, CLE: @ BOS, @ TEX TRY TO AVOIDPhil Hughes, NYY: @ CHW, @ BOS
Alfredo Simon, BAL: @ KC, vs. TORINJURY WATCH
None NATIONAL LEAGUE NO-BRAINERSMatt Cain, SF: vs. ARI, vs. PHI
Chris Carpenter, STL: @ MIL, @ FLA
Jamie Garcia, STL: @ MIL, @ FLA
Zack Greinke, MIL: vs. STL, @ HOU
Cole Hamels, PHI: @ COL, @ SF
Jair Jurrjens, ATL: @ WAS, @ NYM
Ian Kennedy, ARI: @ SF, vs. LA
Clayton Kershaw, LA: @ SD, @ ARI
Tim Lincecum, SF: vs. ARI, vs. PHI ADVISABLE OPTIONSJhoulys Chacin, COL: vs. PHI, vs. WAS
Paul Maholm, PIT: vs. CHC, vs. SD OTHERS TO KEEP IN MINDClay Hensley, FLA: @ NYM. STL
John Lannan, WAS: vs. ATL, @ COL
Cory Luebke, SD: vs. LA, @ PIT
Javier Vazquez, FLA: @ NYM, vs. STL
Carlos Zambrano, CHC: @ PIT, vs. CIN TRY TO AVOID Bronson Arroyo, CIN: @ HOU, @ CHC
Aaron Cook, COL: vs. PHI, vs. WAS
Livan Hernandez, WAS: vs. ATL, @ COL
Kyle Kendrick *, PHI: @ COL, @ SF
Randy Wells, CHC: @ PIT, vs. CININJURY WATCHBud Norris, HOU: vs. CIN, vs. MIL * = this pitcher's two-start status is questionable. Want to see which pitcher is more valuable? Try Fantasy Playmaker's IntelliStats!
 Scott Mickels, FPM Staff Writer/Editor, Member of the Fantasy Sports Writers Association, All-Around Nice Guy
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