The upcoming week of fantasy baseball has some fireballers leading the two-start pitchers who are available. Be ready to see lots of strikeouts throughout the week. If you’re new to the series, here’s how I break down the two-start pitchers that can be used this week.
The first tier is the “No-Brainers,” with ideal pitchers and matchups that require no thought to start. Then the “Next In Line” tier, which will include other optimal matchups but carries a sense of risk.
The third tier is the “Streamer” tier, which is what the name suggests: pitchers who can produce decent stats, but the matchups aren’t ideal, so start at your own risk. The last tier is the “Avoid” tier, which includes pitchers with terrible matchups or who have been pitching badly and can be left on the bench or on the waiver wire.
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MLB Two-Start Pitchers for May 25-31
My Favorite Two-Start Pitchers of the Week
Jacob Misiorowski, Milwaukee Brewers (vs Cardinals, @ Astros)
Jacob Misiorowski has been electric to begin the season. He has a 1.89 ERA over 57 innings and an astounding 88:18 strikeout-to-walk ratio. His massive number of strikeouts back up his reputation for velocity, and in a start on May 8 against the New York Yankees, the righty threw his first 10 pitches of the game over 102 mph. He would be a clear Cy Young favorite if he didn’t have to compete with Paul Skenes, Christopher Sanchez, and Shohei Ohtani in the National League.
The second-year MLB pitcher ranks in the 94th percentile or higher in xBA (.183), xERA (2.31), fastball velocity (99.7 mph), whiff rate (39%), and strikeout rate (39.3%). Next week, he gets ideal strikeout targets as the Houston Astros rank fourth in strikeouts against right-handed pitchers and the St. Louis Cardinals rank 17th. However, they do rank in the top 13 in OPS, but Misiorowski has proven to be matchup-proof.
As division foes, the Cardinals have seen the Brewers’ righty a few times, but he’s held them to a .212 batting average and a .631 OPS. Ivan Herrera is 3-for-6, and Pedro Pages is 2-for-6 off of Misiorowski, but they’re the only two batters in the starting lineup to have multiple hits.
The only Astro batter that has faced the fireballer is Christian Vazquez, who is 0-for-2. I love when pitchers face a team for the first time, and love it even more when the pitcher has the strikeout stuff that Misiorowski has.
Joe Ryan, Minnesota Twins (@ White Sox, @ Pirates)
Joe Ryan has had a solid season in his sixth MLB season. Over 56.2 innings, he has posted a 3.02 ERA, 61:14 strikeout-to-walk ratio, and held batters to a .199 batting average. His 9.69 strikeouts per nine innings is his second-lowest career rate. However, he gets two optimal strikeout options next week.
The Pittsburgh Pirates and Chicago White Sox ranked fourth and seventh, respectively, in strikeouts among MLB teams, but they rank in the top 10 for OPS. Despite being division foes, Andrew Benintendi (8-for-19) is the only White Sox player to face Ryan more than four times, but he is the only batter to have multiple hits.
The Pirates have had slightly better at-bats with Oneil Cruz going 2-for-4 with a home run, and Brandon Lowe going 3-for-9. Though they’ve had better results, I’m backing Ryan, who has been astounding in the month of May with a 1.47 ERA through four starts. Look for Ryan to conclude the month with two more outstanding outings.
Trey Yesavage, Toronto Blue Jays (vs Marlins, @ Orioles)
Trey Yesavage has been phenomenal in his rookie season for the Toronto Blue Jays. He has posted a 1.07 ERA over 25.1 innings with a 29:8 strikeout-to-walk ratio. His 10.3 strikeouts per nine innings pair well with the Baltimore Orioles, who rank third in strikeouts.
The Miami Marlins are a little tougher, ranking 20th; however, neither team has faced Yesavage except for Christopher Morel, who is 0-for-2. Like with Misiorowsk, I love that Yesavage gets to face these lineups for the first time, especially with the swing and miss stuff that he possesses.
Yesavage ranks in the 98th percentile in xERA (2.05) and xBA (.162), and in the 99th percentile in hard-hit rate (19.6%). He has thrown his splitter more this season by nearly 8% and has a 39.7% whiff rate. He throws the pitch more to left-handed batters, which both teams will deploy for the majority of their batting order. The rookie’s hot streak will likely continue through next week.
No-Brainers
Ben Brown, Chicago Cubs (@ Pirates, @ Cardinals)
Cam Schlitter, New York Yankees (@ Royals, @ Athletics)
Chase Burns, Cincinnati Reds (@ Mets, vs Braves)
Griffin Jax, Tampa Bay Rays (@ Orioles, vs Angels)
Landon Roupp, San Francisco Giants (vs Diamondbacks, @ Rockies)
Chris Sale, Atlanta Braves (@ Red Sox, @ Reds)
Bryce Miller, Seattle Mariners (@ Athletics, vs Diamondbacks)
Zebby Matthews, Minnesota Twins (@ White Sox, @ Pirates)
Next In Line
Edward Cabrera, Chicago Cubs (@ Pirates, @ Cardinals)
Braxton Ashcraft, Pittsburgh Pirates (vs Cubs, vs Twins)
Tanner Bibee, Cleveland Guardians (vs Nationals, vs Red Sox)
Michael McGreevy, St. Louis Cardinals (@ Brewers, vs Cubs)
Yoshinobu Yamamoto, Los Angeles Dodgers (vs Rockies, vs Phillies)
Ranger Suarez, Boston Red Sox (vs Braves, @ Guardians)
Sean Burke, Chicago White Sox (vs Twins, vs Tigers)
Streamers
Carmen Mlodzinski, Pittsburgh Pirates (vs Cubs, vs Twins)
Kyle Bradish, Baltimore Orioles (vs Rays, vs Blue Jays)
Shane Baz, Baltimore Orioles (vs Rays, vs Blue Jays)
Anthony Kay, Chicago White Sox (vs Twins, vs Tigers)
Kumar Rocker, Texas Rangers (vs Astros, vs Royals)
Jack Leiter, Texas Rangers (vs Astros, vs Royals)
Janson Junk, Miami Marlins (@ Blue Jays, @ Mets)
Jack Kochanowicz, Los Angeles Angels (@ Tigers, @ Rays)
Drew Anderson, Detroit Tigers (vs Angels, @ White Sox)
Avoid
Merrill Kelly, Arizona Diamondbacks (@ Giants, @ Mariners)
Jesus Luzardo, Philadelphia Phillies (@ Padres, @ Dodgers)
Zack Littell, Washington Nationals (@ Guardians, vs Padres)
Griffin Canning, San Diego Padres (vs Phillies, @ Nationals)
Tatsuya Imai, Houston Astros (@ Rangers, @ Brewers)
Kyle Freeland, Colorado Rockies (@ Dodgers, vs Giants)
Aaron Civale, Athletics (vs Mariners, vs Yankees)
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