We’re into Week 11 of the 2024 fantasy baseball season. This past week, several notable prospects debuted but also scuffled. On the other hand, other young pitchers have emerged as interesting fantasy options. Here’s a look at our recommendations for which pitchers fantasy baseball players should target on the waiver wire as Week 11 of the 2024 season approaches.
Spencer Arrighetti
We’ll start our Week 11 fantasy baseball pitcher target list with Astros starter Spencer Arrighetti. Arrighetti dodged a scare this past week, as he exited his start against the Cardinals last week after taking a liner off his left leg via an Ivan Herrera line drive. He did exit but he’s projected to make his next start, which will come on June 10 against the Giants.
Arrighetti struck out six or more in each of his last three starts before that outing and in total, the righty owns a solid 3.54 ERA with 25 strikeouts over his last four outings (20.1 IP). He’s netted whiffs at an above-average (27.8%) rate, too.
Ben Brown
Cubs starter Ben Brown has given up eight runs over his first nine June innings, which raised his ERA to 3.58. However, fantasy owners might want to look at Brown’s line and consider it an opportunity.
Brown’s been a strikeout machine this season and his numbers over the past three weeks (3.27 ERA, 28 K over 22 IP) are still good despite the rough start to June. The New York native is lined up to start this upcoming weekend against the Cardinals.
Robbie Ray
It’s time for a stash alert. Giants pitcher Robbie Ray, acquired this past winter, is on the rehab path, as he’s working his back to the Majors after Tommy John and flexor tendon surgeries. Ray’s made two outings thus far, and the lefty struck out eight over three innings.
Ray began his rehab assignment on June 4, meaning he would be set to return for an early July return given the 30-day rehab window for pitchers. When healthy, the lefty commanded a plus four-seamer with elite IVB and a dominant slider. And with that stuff, he was a strikeout machine in 2021-22, as he netted 460 in that stretch.
Randy Vasquez
Padres starter Randy Vasquez has dealt with more downs than ups in 2024. Over 33.1 IP, Vasquez owns a lower K% (14.3) than he did last season with the Yankees (19.9%) and a 5.40 ERA. Those numbers come amidst giving up far too much squared-up contact but a fairly good (34.5%) Hard Hit% rate.
Vasquez has been inconsistent for San Diego but the righty is worth a look on June 11, when the Padres face the Athletics.
Matt Waldron
Yes, the knuckleballer is worth a stash. In fact, Padres starter Matt Waldron has been one of the most efficient starters in recent weeks. Among pitchers with at least 15 innings pitched from May 18 through June 8, Waldron owned the Majors’ 10th-best ERA (1.48) and struck out 23 over 24.1 IP. Waldron, in his most recent outing, threw six strong innings on June 8 to notch his fourth win of 2024 against the D-Backs.
Waldron’s not a typical knuckleballer. Sure, he’s used the pitch almost 38% of the time this year. But on top of that pitch, Waldron can throw off hitters’ timing with a low-90s fastball that plays up with above-average extension. That eclectic arsenal makes the Padres righty a curious target.