This week will be pivotal for fantasy baseball owners to nail. It’s the week of the Trade Deadline, meaning pitchers may find themselves in more appealing situations, or opportunities for those sticking behind on non-playoff contenders. With Week 17 of the 2023 fantasy baseball season approaching, here’s a look at five pitchers to consider targeting on the waiver wire, starting with a big arm in Tampa.
Shane Baz
We’ll start our Week 17 fantasy baseball pitchers list with Shane Baz of the Rays. It’s been an inauspicious return to the Majors for Baz, who sported a 22.0% Whiff% rate after his fourth start in 2024. That’s down considerably from the 30.6% Whiff he had in 2022, although both were in small sample sizes. The good news for Baz is that the velocity is fine; his 96.2 MPH mean fastball velo average is up from 2022 (96.0). And, he struck out seven over six frames in his last start.
The Rays have shaken up their rotation and roster over the weeks, and that will continue when one of their premier arms returns from the IL (we’ll get to him in a minute). Baz shouldn’t be going anywhere, though.
Ben Joyce
This part of the fantasy season is tough to navigate. With the 2024 MLB Trade Deadline scheduled for July 30, expect closer jobs to turnover, including in Miami assuming Tanner Scott is traded. One already has, as former All-Star Carlos Estevez was shipped to Philadelphia for two Minor League pitchers. Now, the question becomes who will take over as the Angels’ closer.
Luis Garcia was named closer and picked up the save on July 28. However, Garcia’s name has been linked to trade rumors. Ben Joyce was named the top setup man by the Angels and would likely take over as closer should a Garcia trade occur.
Tyler Phillips
Tyler Phillips went to high school in Pennasauken Township, New Jersey, just outside Philadelphia. Now, he’s starring for the Phillies. Across his first four MLB outings (three starts), the 2015 16th-round pick went 3-0 with a 1.80 ERA and 19 strikeouts over 25 frames. He recorded an absurd 33.7% Chase% rate in that stretch. On July 27, Phillips threw a complete-game shutout against the Guardians.
The Phillies needed Phillips to come through, amidst injuries to Ranger Suarez and Taijuan Walker. Assuming no other moves are made by the Phillies, Phillips should stick in the rotation — especially after his stellar work of late.
Spencer Schwellenbach
Our Week 16 list included Spencer Schwellenbach, the 24-year-old righty who’s helped keep the Braves going amidst injuries to their pitching staff. Schwellenbach struck out 19 batters over his first two post-All-Star starts. Eleven of those came on July 27 against the Mets. It was in an outing in which he allowed two hits and no walks.
Despite all the injuries, the Braves are a good bet to get wins. That bodes well for Schwellenbach, who’s done his part. Over his last five starts, he recorded a 2.90 ERA and .608 opponent’s OPS. He’s entering must-own territory.
Jeffrey Springs
We’ll finish our Week 17 fantasy baseball pitchers’ target list with Jeffrey Springs. This past week, Robbie Ray and Clayton Kershaw made their 2024 bows. Springs is set to do the same after Tommy John surgery recovery. Springs will start for the Rays on July 30 after his final start with Durham (AAA) on July 25. He struck out four over five innings.
It’s the last call — and don’t say we didn’t give fair warning — for a lefty who was one of the league’s best over the first few weeks of 2023. Springs struck out 24 over 16 innings last season and owned a 0.56 ERA. Don’t expect that low of an ERA, though.