Fantasy Baseball: Pitching Risers and Fallers – Woodruff Rising fast

To ensure this list of risers and fallers is relevant for most fantasy baseball managers, either the current ranking or the prior ranking must be in the top 300. I have also tried to avoid any players who have risen or fallen because of injury.

Also, make sure to check out our weekly pitcher rankings.

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The fantasy baseball landscape shifts rapidly, and it’s important to know who is rising and falling and why. Over the last 10 days, five pitchers have become the biggest risers; five have become the biggest fallers.

Fantasy Baseball Risers and Fallers

Pitching Risers

Brandon Woodruff (SP, MIL)

On April 30, Woodruff left the game, and the team placed him on the IL with shoulder inflammation. Since his return, he has been dominant.

In his last two games, he has logged 11.2 innings and not given up any runs while striking out 16 and walking only two. Everything seems to work better. His four-seam fastball has ticked up from roughly 93.5 mph to 94.6 mph. The average exit velocity dropped by nearly two mph. For the season, his ERA has dropped to 2.59 with a microscopic 0.84 WHIP.

It’s obvious to see why he is the fastest riser on the list, moving up 158 spots.

Current Rank:   203          Previous Rank: 361        Rostered:  97%

Robbie Ray (SP, SFG)

Ray has not given up an earned run in his last three games. In his last two outings, he has pitched eight innings in each.

Over the last 10 days, he has changed his pitch mix. Lowering the number of four-seamers and increasing his slider volume has resulted in zero barrels over this period. His walk rate, which is still too high, is coming down. In his last game, he issued only one walk. Over his last six outings, he has only given up one home run. For the season, he has brought his ERA down to 3.39, and his BAA is .214.

Current Rank:   109          Previous Rank: 205        Rostered:  94%

Walker Buehler (SP, SDP) 

Buehler is finally getting healthy. Over the last two games, he has pitched 5.1 innings in each. For the entire month of June, he has given up one run or fewer in four of his five starts. He has the third-best WAR for starting pitchers during those 10 days. Buehler has five or more strikeouts in each of his last three games.

For the season, he now has a 3.81 ERA, 1.31 WHIP, and 70:26 K:BB through 78 innings.

Current Rank:   247          Previous Rank: 333        Rostered:  52%

Carlos Rodón (SP, NYY)

His last two starts have been what fantasy managers have been looking for. Each game he pitched at least five innings and had a total of 11 strikeouts. In those two starts, he did not give up any runs.

He has brought his ERA down to 3.30, and the BAA is .195. Rodón’s K:BB ratio has corrected significantly, posting a 12:4 mark across his last 10.1 frames. His fastball velocity has climbed from about 95.4 mph to nearly 96.5 mph. Statcast shows a lower hard-hit rate and fewer barrels allowed, which were his problems earlier this season.

Current Rank:   278          Previous Rank: 343        Rostered:  96%

Connelly Early (SP, BOS)

The 24-year-old rookie is rising up standard league rankings following consecutive dominant outings.

Early’s last outing was impressive in a quality start against the Yankees; he lasted six innings and managed nine strikeouts. In the game before that, he also pitched six innings and had seven strikeouts. For this 10-day stretch, he ranks 13th in K/BB%. During those two games, he has given up only one home run. Early did leave his start last night with some discomfort, so we’ll need to watch that.

For the year, he has a 3.59 ERA and seven quality starts.

Current Rank:   130          Previous Rank: 190        Rostered:  94%

Pitching Fallers

Spencer Arrighetti (SP, HOU)

I am not sure there has been another player to fall this far, this fast. In May, he was named American League Pitcher of the Month. This week, his ranking has fallen 105 positions.

Over the last 10 days, he gave up six earned runs in one game, then turned around and gave up eight more. After carrying a spectacular 1.34 ERA through May, it has jumped to 4.00. In the last 10 days, his ERA is 14.00, which is sixth-worst in the league. Arrighetti has allowed three home runs in each game.

The barrel rate against him was the seventh worst in the league for this period.

Current Rank:   187          Previous Rank: 82        Rostered:  92%

Bryce Elder (SP, ATL)

Over his last two games, he has given up 13 earned runs. He is tied with Zac Gallen for the most earned runs given up during the last 10 days. Fatigue is the word that keeps coming up. His WAR is -0.4 for this period. One thing causing him real trouble is his first-pitch strikes. For the last two years, his percentages were 61.7% and 62.2%. This year, it has dropped to 53.2.

Current Rank:   196          Previous Rank: 98        Rostered:  92%

Kevin Gausman (SP, TOR) 

This 35-year-old right-hander is looking like, well, a 35-year-old right-hander. Gausman endured the worst two-start stretch of his Blue Jays career over the last 10 days, getting tagged for 17 earned runs in just 11 innings. He gave up almost as many walks as he had strikeouts. His ERA over these 10 days was worse than Arrighetti’s at 14.63. His WHIP at 2.88 was sixth-worst, and he had a hard-hit percentage of 53.1 percent, which was the 11th highest.

Current Rank:   211          Previous Rank: 131        Rostered:  99%

Casey Mize (SP, DET)

If you roster Mize, you know it’s been a roller-coaster ride. Over the last two starts, he has given up three runs and four runs. He also gave up a home run in each game. Statcast shows increasing hard-hit contact and a higher barrel rate. However, this doesn’t really explain why he is falling this much. Mize’s K/9 is up from last year. His walks are down. His ERA last year was 3.87, and this year, 2.63. I’m guessing he may show up on someone’s buy-low article this week.

Current Rank:   218          Previous Rank: 148        Rostered:  92%

Will Warren (SP, NYY) 

Warren’s downfall was not just from his last outing but the entire month of June finally catching up to him. In 5.2 innings, he gave up five runs. Over his last two outings, he gave up a home run in each game. He has posted a 5.49 ERA and a 1.88 WHIP since the beginning of June. This terrible stretch has brought his yearly ERA up to 3.75 and a WHIP of 1.3.

Current Rank:   170          Previous Rank: 103        Rostered:  96%