Fantasy Sports

Week 15 Fantasy Baseball Waiver Wire: Cam Schlittler, Kumar Rocker Headline Pitchers

The helpful pitching pool is looking bleak this week. The fantasy market has their eyes on Cam Schlittler who may be up next week. Kumar Rocker is best arm rounding into form.

Shawn Childs

New York Yankees Starting Pitcher Cam Schlittler
New York Yankees Starting Pitcher Cam Schlittler / Dave Nelson-Imagn Images
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At the midpoint of the baseball season, some fantasy teams are chasing wins and strikeouts while other are just trying to hold their ground in ERA and WHIP. With each pitching injury, the replacement value bar gets lowered, inviting poor pickup and lineup decisions.

Starting Pitching

Cam Schlittler, New York Yankees

With Clarke Schmidt landing on the injured list with a forearm issue, the Yankees may call up Schlittler to replace him in the starting rotation. He pitched well over 10 games at AA (2.38 ERA, 1.21 WHIP, and 64 strikeouts over 53.0 innings), leading to a promotion to AAA. Schlittler handled himself well over his first four appearances (four runs, 21 baserunners, two home runs, and 33 strikeouts over 21.1 innings), followed by a disaster showing (six runs, eight baserunners, and one home run over 2.1 innings with two strikeouts).

His fastball sits in the mid-90s while relying on a cutter, slider, and curveball to get batters out. Schlittler won’t be called up until next week, so he won’t be in the free agent pools that run this Sunday.

Joey Cantillo, Cleveland Guardians

On Thursday, Cantillo worked as an opener for the Guardians after Luis Ortiz was suspended. His left arm has shown improvement over 26 games between AAA and the majors, resulting in a 3.53 ERA, 1.269 WHIP, and 56 strikeouts over 43.1 innings. On the downside, walks (21 – 4.4 per nine) invite shorter outings and some disaster innings.

Cantillo is a soft-tosser (91.7 mph fastball) who offers a plus changeup, supported by a curveball and slider. He has yet to pitch four innings in a game this year while tossing 68 pitches in his last start.

His starting window hinges on the return of Ortiz. Supposedly, he’s been investigated for opening two games with balls on his first pitch.  If so, the sportsbook deserves to take a beating for offering a prop that a single outcome could influence. Betting on games is one thing, but babysitting dumb, never should be offered props, creates its own drama.

Sean Burke, Chicago White Sox

Burke lines up for double starts next week at home against the Blue Jays and Guardians. He’s pitched well in six (1.78 ERA, 1.160 WHIP, and 36 strikeouts over 35.1 innings) of his last seven starts, with his bad showing resulting in seven runs, eight baserunners, and a home run over 3.2 innings with four strikeouts. Burke has been a better pitcher at home (4-2 with a 3.06 ERA, 1.255 WHIP, and 38 strikeouts over 47.0 innings).

Taijuan Walker, Philadelphia Phillies

The Phillies shipped Mick Abel back to AAA, setting the stage for Walker to return to their starting rotation next week. Unfortunately, he hasn’t thrown more than 43 pitches since May 30th, putting him in the opener category. Over the past month, Walker posted a 4.09 ERA, 1.118 WHIP, and seven strikeouts over 11.0 innings. He feels like a placeholder for Andrew Painter while only being worth a shot in deep formats.

Kumar Rocker, Texas Rangers

Over his last three starts for the Rangers, Rocker has been a helpful fantasy arm (2.20 ERA, 1.10 WHIP, and 16 strikeouts over 16.1 innings). He also had success over his previous two outings at AAA (one run, four baserunners, and nine strikeouts over eight innings). Rocker is a free agent in about 40% of 12-team leagues, with his next start coming against the Angels on the road.

Trevor Rogers, Baltimore Orioles

Based on his next start at home against the Marlins, Rogers is a viable single-start option next week, as long as he doesn’t get rolled in his next outing. He’s made four starts for Baltimore over the past six weeks, leading to much better than expected results (2.05 ERA, 0.86 WHIP, and 18 strikeouts over 22.0 innings). His fastball (92.9 mph) is what it once was, but free agent pitching beggars are at the mercy of the remaining crumbs. Worth a flier, but his long-term leash should be short until his fastball shows a higher pulse.

Spencer Arrighetti, Houston Astros

After his first two starts (six runs, nine baserunners, and eight strikeouts over 9.2 innings), Arrighetti landed on the injured list with a broken right thumb. He’s thrown a couple of bullpen sessions over the past week, giving him a chance to begin a rehab stint soon.

Other Fantasy Baseball News

Week 15 MLB Prospect Watch: Francisco Alvarez, Shay Whitcomb Lead Infielders

Week 15 MLB Prospect Watch: Luis Matos, Esteury Ruiz Lead Minor League Outfielders

Week 15 MLB Prospect Watch: Joe Boyle Surges While Logan Henderson, Bubba Chandler Fade

Week 15 Fantasy Baseball Waiver Wire: Noelvi Marte, Colt Keith, Brooks Baldwin Lead Infielders

Week 15 Fantasy Baseball Waiver Wire: Colby Thomas, Isaac Collins, Esteury Ruiz Lead Outfielders

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Shawn Childs
SHAWN CHILDS

With 20+ years of experience in the high-stakes fantasy market, I aim to research and compete at the highest level in baseball and football each season. I've contributed as a writer/analyst for Sports Draft Daily, ScoutPro, Scout Fantasy, Fulltime Fantasy, FFToolbox, and Sports Illustrated Fantasy. I'm honored to be in the National Fantasy Baseball Championship Hall of Fame. My drafting philosophy is risk-averse yet open to betting on potential game-changers. I approach player selection with a neutral perspective, acknowledging that fantasy sports are inherently unpredictable due to injuries, performance dips, and managerial decisions. My work focuses on these main areas: - Season-long fantasy baseball and football - BestBall Baseball and Football Events - Daily Fantasy Sports (DFS): DraftKings, FanDuel, and Underdog - Long Shot Player Prop Parlays for NFL I participate in various leagues and contests, including NFBC, NFFC, RTSports, FFPC, DraftKings, Underdog Fantasy, FanDuel, and FFWC, with the goal of leveraging my extensive experience and research for success in each game format. A fantasy follower can expect in-depth profiles of NFL and MLB players, along with season-long and weekly projections for each fantasy football season. In addition, I have many strategy articles to help develop fantasy players' learning curves.

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