Fantasy Baseball: Five rookie pitchers to target in 2019
Who are five rookie pitchers to target for fantasy baseball in 2019?
Let’s continue on with our fantasy baseball previews. Pitchers and catchers report in less than a month. As old man winter move on, many of us across the country need to think warm thoughts to help get us through and one of those things that gives everyone those thoughts is baseball and of course, fantasy baseball.
You shouldn’t dismiss taking a rookie pitcher or two to stash on your bench. If your fantasy baseball league has a minor league/NA spot, a great use for it could be a pitcher.
I stashed Walker Buehler in multiple fantasy baseball leagues last season. I would say I didn’t regret that decision.
There were plenty of rookie arms that could have helped your fantasy baseball team last year. Tampa Bay Rays’ rookie lefty Ryan Yarborough won 16 games last year. Shane Bieber and Jaime Barria also won double digit games. Jack Flaherty led all rookies with 182 strikeouts in 151 innings. Of course, Shohei Ohtani pitched a bit too, though he won’t have value there in 2019. Out of the bullpen, Seranthony Dominguez and A.J. Minter had saves in double digits.
Rookie arms can provide a lot of value for your fantasy baseball team. You may be able to grab them late in the draft while others are looking at veterans who may or may not have something left in the tank.
So who could be the 2019 version of Buehler or Flaherty or Bieber? Here are five rookie pitchers to target in fantasy baseball this year.
We’ll start with one, who already has some professional pitching experience.
Yusei Kikuchi
The Seattle Mariners are undergoing a bit of a transformation this off-season. Out the door is Robinson Cano, James Paxton, Edwin Diaz and Mike Zunino. In their place has come a bunch of prospects and young players as they go through their process.
They did spend some money, however, adding Japanese left-hander Yusei Kikuchi to anchor their rotation with one of the more creative contracts you’ll see a free agent sign.
Whether you consider him a rookie or not because he played professionally overseas or not, for all intents and purposes he’s a rookie in the MLB and he’s a rookie you should consider for your fantasy baseball squad.
Back in 2017, Kikuchi went 16-6 with a 1.97 ERA, striking out 217 in 187.2 innings. No matter what level of ball you play at, those numbers pop out at you. Last season wasn’t as good, as he went 14-4 with a 3.08 ERA in 163.2 innings, striking out 153.
He’s going to be starting from day one. You don’t even have to stash him on your fantasy baseball roster and wait for him to get called up. Even though the Mariners are a team in transition, this is an arm to take a chance on.
Justus Sheffield
Kikuchi’s new teammate in Seattle, Justus Sheffield, is another arm that you should keep on your fantasy baseball radar throughout spring training as he could be battling for a spot in the Seattle Mariners rotation at some point this season.
Sheffield was the key piece of the James Paxton trade earlier this off-season with the New York Yankees, and is regarded as one of the top left-handed pitching prospects in all of baseball.
In 25 games between AA and AAA last year, Sheffield struck out 123 in 116.1 innings and held opponents to a .195 average against. The question with Sheffield is can he develop that third pitch. He’s got the fastball and the slider, and if he can nail down the changeup, and command his fastball better, he has a chance to stick and thrive in the starting rotation. Power, left-handed arms always have a ton of value, and the more he can start, the more valuable he’ll become.
Whether it be by trade or forcing his way, Sheffield will find himself a member of the Seattle Mariners rotation at some point in 2019. He makes a perfect stash option to unleash on your fantasy baseball roster once he gets called up.
Jesus Luzardo
The Oakland Athletics rode some timely signings in their rotation, along with some of their young players taking the next step in their development to an AL Wild Card game birth. One of their top pitching prospects, Jesus Luzardo, was shut down before the end of the season to keep his innings down. I’d look for him on the A’s roster at some point in 2019, and he is someone that you should keep your eye on for your fantasy baseball roster as well.
The 21-year old lefty came over from the Washington Nationals in the deal that also gave the A’s Blake Treinen and his turbo sinker.
Between three levels last year, Luzardo went 10-5 with a 2.88 ERA and held opponents to a BAA of just .220. He struck out 129 while walking just 30.
Luzardo has a chance to make the club out of spring training. The A’s as currently constituted don’t have a ton in the starting rotation that isn’t coming off of arm surgery. Luzardo reached AAA last year, and even if the A’s send him down there to start the year, it won’t be long before he’s in Oakland and your fantasy baseball roster.
Mike Soroka
The parade of young arms the Atlanta Braves have in their pipeline started to really bear fruit last year. Not only did Mike Foltynewicz and Sean Newcomb take the next steps in their development, but other big time arms started to come up and fill holes in either the rotation or in the bullpen.
One of those was Mike Soroka, albeit for a limited amount of time due to injury. Soroka made five starts at the major league level, giving up 30 hits in 25.2 innings while striking out 21 and going 2-1 with a 3.51 ERA.
Soroka isn’t a huge strikeout guy, but the fact that he made the majors leagues at just 20 years of age, should show you what the Braves think of him. Soroka has excellent control, issuing fewer than 35 walks per season during his minor league career. He could very easily win a rotation spot coming out of Spring Training next year, and if that’s the case, he is someone who should be on your fantasy baseball team radar.
Soroka currently sits as the Braves number one prospect according to MLBpipeline.com.
If Soroka continues to pitch the way he did in the minors, it just gives the defending NL East champs another weapon.
Dylan Cease
If you want an arm to stash for a while on your fantasy baseball roster and unleash in the second half, look no further than Chicago White Sox power arm Dylan Cease, the other piece that came to the club with Eloy Jimenez in the Jose Quintana deal with the Chicago Cubs.
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The 22-year-old in 2018 went 12-2 with a 2.40 ERA between AA and AAA last season, earning himself a 40-man roster spot this off-season. Cease struck out 160 in 124.1 innings, featuring a fastball that can reach triple digits and a hammer of a curveball. Once he can clean up his changeup, his chances for success at the major league level as a starter get even better.
The Chicago White Sox are going to need their young arms to take the next step in their development, like Lucas Giolito and Carson Fulmer who already have experience. Should any of them falter, Cease could be ready to seize control of the rotation spot and a spot on your fantasy baseball roster.
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So there you have it, five of the young arms that you need to stash on your fantasy baseball roster this season. Keep an eye on all five during spring training and as you get closer to your fantasy baseball draft day.