Bubic gets two starts this week

There aren’t a lot of off days for teams during Week 14. That leaves us with a bevy of projected two-start pitchers. However, some of them have terrible matchups that make them risky in fantasy. Let’s highlight five pitchers who are expected to take the mound two times each and discuss what their matchups could mean for their fantasy value.

Chris Sale, Atlanta Braves: at NYM, vs. PHI

Sale couldn’t have looked much better in his last start, throwing 8 2/3 scoreless innings against the Mets. He allowed just five hits to go along with seven strikeouts. That marked the sixth straight start in which Sale allowed one or no runs. He also logged at least six innings in each of those outings. For the season, he now has a 2.52 ERA and a 3.03 xFIP.

The Mets and Phillies are two difficult matchups. However, Sale just dominated the Mets in his last start. In his last start against the Phillies, he had eight strikeouts over six scoreless innings. Matchups don’t matter when it comes to Sale. If he has two starts in a week, he can provide significant returns for fantasy managers.

Kris Bubic, Kansas City Royals: vs. TB, vs. LAD

Bubic has been a pleasant surprise for the Royals with his 2.12 ERA and 1.12 WHIP. However, he has allowed eight runs, 15 hits and five walks over 9 2/3 innings in his last two starts. He threw just 30 1/3 innings working as a reliever last season, so it’s unclear how he will hold up down the stretch as he has already logged 85 innings this season.

Facing the Rays at home works in Bubic’s favor. The Rays have a .735 OPS at home, but just a .692 OPS on the road. However, his second start of the week against the Dodgers is troublesome. The Dodgers have the highest OPS and have scored the most runs in baseball. Don’t bench Bubic this week, but it might be wise to temper expectations with regards to his stat lines.

Bailey Ober, Minnesota Twins: vs. SEA, at DET

Ober has allowed just one run in seven of his 15 starts this season. However, he still has a 4.54 ERA. He has been hit hard lately, allowing 16 runs across his last three starts. A major concern is his 1.40 WHIP, which is a stark contrast to the 1.00 WHIP that he had last season. His xFIP sits at 4.79 and his strikeout rate is all the way down to 17.8%, which is more than nine percentage points lower than last season.

With Ober not providing as many strikeouts this season, he doesn’t come with the same upside in fantasy. The Mariners are middle of the pack in baseball in many offensive categories, but the Tigers have scored the fifth-most runs. Given his recent struggles, the best decision here might be to bench Ober.

Taj Bradley, Tampa Bay Rays: at KC, at BAL

Bradley’s last start was about as ugly as it gets. He only logged 1 1/3 innings against the Orioles, allowing seven runs (six earned). He has not made it past four innings in any of his last three starts, giving up a total of 19 runs (13 earned) during that span. His WHIP now sits at 1.35 for the season, but maybe his biggest concern has been his strikeout rate falling to 21.3%. That’s well below his career strikeout rate of 25.8%.

The Royals are not a difficult matchup, considering that they have scored the second-fewest runs in baseball. The Orioles also rank inside the bottom 10 in runs scored, but we just saw Bradley struggle against them in his last outing. With his strikeout upside now limited, this isn’t the time to put Bradley into fantasy starting lineups.

Chad Patrick, Milwaukee Brewers: vs. PIT, vs. COL

Patrick was excellent at Triple-A last year, posting a 2.90 ERA and a 1.09 WHIP. His 4.43 xFIP wasn’t as impressive, but he had a 26.1% strikeout rate and allowed only 1.1 HR/9. That was good enough to land him a starting job with the Brewers this season. He hasn’t been overwhelming with his 22.6% strikeout rate, but he continues to do a good job of keeping hitters inside the ballpark, allowing 0.9 HR/9. The result has been a 3.50 ERA and a 4.18 xFIP.

Patrick was roughed up his last two starts, allowing nine runs across 10 innings. However, he faced the Braves and Cubs, two very dangerous lineups. Matchups flip in his favor heading into Week 14 with the Pirates and Rockies on the horizon. The Pirates have scored the fewest runs and have struck out the fifth-most times in baseball. The Rockies have struck out the most times while scoring the fourth-fewest runs. Patrick should be considered as one of the top streaming options for the week.

Mike Barner has been covering fantasy sports since 2007. His work has appeared in Sports Illustrated, Yahoo, SportsLine and RotoWire. Mike was also a finalist for the 2018 FSWA Basketball Writer of the Year award. Follow Mike on Twitter @rotomikebarner.