Top 70 starters for Week 13
Owners should have few problems loading up their rosters with two-start pitchers for Fantasy Week 13 (June 25-July 1).
Because there is nearly a full slate of games on both Monday and Thursday, there could be as many as 51 two-start options this week. Most of them are better left for your deeper league teams, but 24 of them made this week's top 70.
Absent from this list are Jeremy Hellickson (shoulder), Josh Beckett (shoulder), Drew Smyly (finger) and Shaun Marcum (elbow), as all are currently on the disabled list. However, each is eligible to return in Week 13, so keep tabs on their status before the Monday lineup deadline. Each would be worth a start if it appears that they will be ready to take the mound this week.
Here are the 70 pitchers who currently look safe to start in standard mixed leagues for the coming scoring period. For some deeper league recommendations, click here.
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| Rank | Player | Start 1 | Start 2 | Stat of note |
| 1 | Clayton Kershaw | @SF (Vogelsong) | NYM (Gee) | 26s K over last 21 innings |
| Worried about a dip in Kershaw's K-rate? Worry no more. | ||||
| 2 | Stephen Strasburg | @COL (Francis) | @ATL (Minor) | 26 innings over last four starts |
| An innings limit will hinder Strasburg's value later in the season, but for now, he's putting in plenty of work. | ||||
| 3 | Johan Santana | @CHC (Wood) | @LAD (Eovaldi) | 18 percent popup rate, last five starts |
| Remember when Johan got torched for four homers at Yankee Stadium? A killer popup rate is the flipside of all those flyballs. | ||||
| 4 | C.J. Wilson | @BAL (Hunter) | @TOR (Laffey) | 14 BBs over last 41 1/3 innings |
| Wilson is still prone to bouts of wildness, but his control has been far more dependable over his last six starts. | ||||
| 5 | Justin Verlander | @TB (Price) | N/A | Career 3.68 ERA vs. TB |
| Verlander's ERA against the Rays hasn't been as impressive as you might have expected, but it's weighed down by some difficulties he had with them last season. | ||||
| 6 | Jake Peavy | @MIN (Liriano) | @NYY (Kuroda) | 0.7 HR/9 |
| Though Peavy has been more of a flyball pitcher than ever this year, home runs haven't spoiled his stat line, even at hitter-friendly U.S. Cellular Field. That could bode well for his visit to Yankee Stadium. | ||||
| 7 | Chris Sale | @MIN (Blackburn) | N/A | 12 percent swinging strike rate, last seven starts |
| Aside from a hiccup in a recent poor start against the Dodgers, Sale has been especially hard to connect against lately. | ||||
| 8 | Matt Cain | CIN (Leake) | N/A | 2 BBs or fewer in 12 of 14 starts |
| Cain's wild outing at the Angels on Monday, in which he walked a season-high four batters, was a glaring exception for him. | ||||
| 9 | R.A. Dickey | @LAD (Harang) | N/A | Six percent line drive rate, last three starts |
| It's no accident that Dickey's earned run-free streak goes on and on. Even when hitters are making contact, they aren't hitting with much authority. | ||||
| 10 | Madison Bumgarner | CIN (Cueto) | N/A | 1.8 BB/9 |
| Bumgarner has developed into a good strikeout pitcher, and owners are also getting the bonus of a walk rate that has decreased every year. | ||||
| 11 | CC Sabathia | CHW (Quintana) | N/A | 27 consecutive innings without allowing a HR |
| What does Ramon Santiago know that other hitters don't? He's the last one to go yard against the Yankees' ace, back on June 1. | ||||
| 12 | Cole Hamels | @MIA (Johnson) | N/A | 6.00 ERA vs. MIA |
| The Fish had Hamels' number earlier this year, but they have been dreadful of late. | ||||
| 13 | Cliff Lee | @MIA (Buehrle) | N/A | .405 BABIP, last two starts |
| Lee's 6.23 ERA from his last two outings won't inspire confidence, but he's highly unlikely to give up so many hits going forward. | ||||
| 14 | Jered Weaver | @BAL (Matusz) | N/A | 38 percent ground ball rate |
| Weaver is no ground ball specialist, but his current rate is a career high, and it's helped him to limit home runs. | ||||
| 15 | David Price | DET (Verlander) | N/A | Career 2.15 ERA vs. DET |
| The Tigers have been the seventh-highest scoring team in the majors since 2010, but Price has been able to tame them. | ||||
| 16 | Zack Greinke | @CIN (Bailey) | N/A | Career 2.45 ERA at CIN |
| Despite being one of the NL's premier home run parks, Greinke has yielded only two homers at Great American Ball Park in 22 career innings. | ||||
| 17 | Ryan Vogelsong | LAD (Kershaw) | CIN (Arroyo) | Opponents' .269 SLG at home |
| Vogelsong has been nearly unhittable at home, and extra-base knocks have been a rarity. | ||||
| 18 | Yovani Gallardo | @CIN (Latos) | ARI (Hudson) | 12 quality starts in 15 tries |
| Considering Gallardo turned in two clunkers in April alone, his quality start percentage is all the more impressive. | ||||
| 19 | Gio Gonzalez | @COL (Friedrich) | @ATL (Hudson) | 3 ERs or less allowed in 13 straight starts |
| Though Gonzalez isn't blowing away the opposition like he was earlier in the year, he can still be counted on for a good start almost every time out. | ||||
| 20 | Lance Lynn | PIT (Bedard) | N/A | 1 HR allowed in 31 1/3 home innings |
| Lynn has been excellent both on the road and at home, but he has taken full advantage of Busch Stadium's spacious dimensions. | ||||
| 21 | Felix Hernandez | BOS (Morales) | N/A | 17 swinging strikes vs. SD on Sat. |
| You may be tempted to write off Hernandez's masterful performance this weekend due to the matchup with the Padres, but Hernandez struggled to get whiffs against the same squad earlier this month. | ||||
| 22 | James McDonald | @PHI (Worley) | @STL (Westbrook) | 1.06 road WHIP |
| McDonald continues to be a better pitcher at home than on the road, but his improved control makes him a worthwhile option regardless of where he pitches. | ||||
| 23 | Yu Darvish | DET (Turner) | OAK (Blackley) | 68 percent strikes thrown, last two starts |
| Darvish's on-again, off-again control is back on again. | ||||
| 24 | Matt Garza | HOU (Rodriguez) | N/A | 66 percent quality start rate since '11 |
| Garza has become a far more reliable pitcher since joining the Cubs last season. | ||||
| 25 | James Shields | DET (Scherzer) | N/A | Opponents' .120 Isolated Power at home |
| Shields has been generous in allowing extra-base hits on the road, but he's been a lot tougher on would-be sluggers at the Trop. | ||||
| 26 | Jason Hammel | CLE (Gomez) | N/A | 1.99 ERA, last six starts |
| Hammel's ground ball rate has sagged, but he is still missing bats, as his breakout season continues. | ||||
| 27 | Ian Kennedy | @MIL (Wolf) | N/A | .354 BABIP, last three starts |
| Many owners are benching Kennedy, probably as they are tiring of his up-and-down stats, but his recent slump just looks mostly like a case of bad luck on balls in play. | ||||
| 28 | Johnny Cueto | @SF (Bumgarner) | N/A | 5 HRs allowed in 101 2/3 innings |
| Home or away, Cueto has been notably stingy with the long ball, which has helped to keep his ERA in the low 2.00s despite a middling K-rate. | ||||
| 29 | Josh Johnson | PHI (Hamels) | N/A | 5.4 runs of support per nine innings |
| Johnson has been pitching much better in recent weeks, but for him, the Marlins' offense has picked a bad time to shut down. | ||||
| 30 | Vance Worley | PIT (McDonald) | N/A | Career 12 Ks, 1 BB vs. PIT |
| Worley should continue to have little trouble baffling the Pirates, who are one of worst teams in the majors at making contact. | ||||
| 31 | Tim Hudson | ARI (Hudson) | WAS (Gonzalez) | 2.25 ERA over last three starts |
| After a tumultuous end to the month of May, Hudson has been effective in three June starts, including two against the Yankees. | ||||
| 32 | Adam Wainwright | PIT (Correia) | N/A | 33 Ks over last 33 innings |
| Wainright has taken his strikeout rate to another level lately, and he could take it even higher against a Pirates lineup that strikes out at the highest rate in the majors. | ||||
| 33 | Wandy Rodriguez | SD (Ohlendorf) | @CHC (Garza) | Six percent swinging strike rate, last five starts |
| Rodriguez has allowed a lot of contact in recent starts, but at least for the coming week, he should be safe with two good matchups. | ||||
| 34 | A.J. Burnett | @PHI (Cochran) | N/A | 13 BBs over last 25 innings |
| Burnett seems to be reverting back to his wilder ways, but has remained successful by getting Ks and grounders. | ||||
| 35 | Matt Moore | @KC (Mazzaro) | N/A | 2.93 ERA over last eight starts |
| Moore is still refining his command of the strike zone, but his avoidance of contact has allowed him to hold hitters to a .188 average of his last eight outings. NOTE: The Rays have not officially announced their Tues./Wed. starters, so Moore could get a second start against the Tigers still.r | ||||
| 36 | Dillon Gee | @CHC (Wells) | @LAD (Kershaw) | 3.78 road ERA |
| Gee has been better on the road than at Citi Field this year, as he has allowed just two homers in 33 1/3 innings in away games. | ||||
| 37 | Felix Doubront | TOR (Alvarez) | @SEA (Ramirez) | 5.59 home ERA |
| Doubront should shine in his road start at Seattle, but the Blue Jays could rough him up at home, where he has struggled. | ||||
| 38 | Jon Lester | TOR (Romero) | N/A | 21 percent line drive rate |
| Lester is on his way to the lowest walk rate of his career, but it's not reflected in his 1.37 WHIP. His line drive rate is largely to blame, but his past suggests improvement could be on the way. | ||||
| 39 | Dan Haren | @TOR (Cecil) | N/A | 1.3 HR/9 |
| Owners have been benching Haren due to his recent slump, but his middling ranking this week has more to do with the potential home run threat in Toronto than with his last few starts. | ||||
| 40 | Andy Pettitte | CLE (Jimenez) | N/A | 13 percent swinging strike rate, last four starts |
| Pettitte has been a good source of Ks for his owners, though his output could dip this week against the Indians, who don't swing and miss often. | ||||
| 41 | Justin Masterson | @NYY (Hughes) | @BAL (Hunter) | 7 HRs allowed in 97 1/3 innings |
| Masterson gets plenty of grounders, but he is still a little risky with two starts at good home run parks. He has only one start this year at a homer-friendly stadium (U.S. Cellular Field). | ||||
| 42 | Roy Oswalt | DET (Fister) | N/A | Career 3.63 ERA vs. AL teams |
| Oswalt faced the Rockies -- a familiar foe -- in his Texas debut, but this week, he'll try to continue (or improve upon) his pattern of mild success against the American League. | ||||
| 43 | Matt Harrison | OAK (McCarthy) | N/A | 6.6 innings per start |
| Harrison has been on a particularly good roll lately, but all season long, he has been able to go six innings or more frequently. | ||||
| 44 | Colby Lewis | OAK (Ross) | N/A | Career 3.16 ERA vs. OAK |
| Lewis can be shaky in his home starts, but he should have little problem with an A's squad that sits in the bottom half of the AL rankings in homers. | ||||
| 45 | Jason Vargas | OAK (Blackley) | BOS (Matsuzaka) | 3.19 home ERA |
| Though Vargas has a tough matchup against the Red Sox, it's a good week to play the splits with him. He has allowed only four of his 20 home runs at Safeco Field. | ||||
| 46 | Doug Fister | @TEX (Oswalt) | N/A | 66 percent strikes thrown, last two starts |
| Since coming off the DL, Fister has rediscovered his elite-level control. | ||||
| 47 | Mat Latos | MIL (Gallardo) | @SF (Zito) | Career 1.85 ERA at SF |
| Latos has been bogged down by home runs, but he should be able to leave those troubles behind, at least in his start at the Giants. | ||||
| 48 | Jordan Zimmermann | @COL (Outman) | N/A | Career 3.72 ERA at COL |
| He has only pitched 9 2/3 innings at Coors Field, but he has yet to allow a home run there. | ||||
| 49 | Jonathon Niese | @CHC (Samardzija) | N/A | 2.54 ERA, last six starts |
| Ever since getting hammered for eight runs at Toronto last month, Niese has continued with the progress that he established earlier this year. | ||||
| 50 | Kyle Lohse | @MIA (Zambrano) | N/A | Three straight starts of seven innings or more |
| Lohse had problems with going deep into games in May, but his efficiency has really paid off in recent starts. | ||||
| 51 | Hiroki Kuroda | CLE (Tomlin) | CHW (Peavy) | 5 HRs in 45 2/3 home innings |
| Kuroda has been relatively immune to the home run bug at Yankee Stadium, posting a 3.15 ERA in his starts there this year. | ||||
| 52 | Tommy Hanson | ARI (Cahill) | N/A | 62 percent strikes thrown |
| Hanson still has the potential to help owners with Ks, but his difficulties with command have set him back a step. | ||||
| 53 | Anibal Sanchez | STL (Kelly) | N/A | 10 BBs over last 15 2/3 innings |
| Sanchez has been burned by a low strand rate in his June starts, but he is also not helping his own cause by walking so many batters. | ||||
| 54 | Chris Capuano | NYM (Young) | N/A | 1.80 ERA over last three starts |
| Capuano is still a little suspect in some road starts, but in Saturday's outing at Angel Stadium as well as in two previous home starts, he showed that he is highly reliable in pitcher's parks. | ||||
| 55 | Francisco Liriano | CHW (Peavy) | KC (Sanchez) | Four quality starts in last five tries |
| Since getting reinserted into the Twins' rotation, Liriano has been getting more whiffs, and that is helping to compensate for his spotty command. | ||||
| 56 | Jeff Samardzija | NYM (Niese) | N/A | 26 percent line drive rate, last six starts |
| Though Samardzija is still getting strikeouts, he is getting hit hard when he does allow contact, making him a more marginal choice in standard mixed leagues. | ||||
| 57 | Nate Eovaldi | @SF (Zito) | NYM (Santana) | 6.3 percent home run per flyball ratio |
| Eovaldi has benefited from a low HR/FB ratio, but with starts at AT&T Park and Dodger Stadium, regression probably won't happen this week. | ||||
| 58 | Wade Miley | @MIL (Fiers) | N/A | 1 BB over last 22 2/3 innings |
| Miley is not losing his knack for control and efficiency; in fact, it's been getting stronger. | ||||
| 59 | Max Scherzer | @TB (Shields) | N/A | 11.4 K/9 (leads AL) |
| Though owners can never be sure what kind of overall results Scherzer will produce in a given start, they can be assured of a high strikeout total. | ||||
| 60 | Daniel Hudson | @ATL (Hudson) | @MIL (Gallardo) | .476 BABIP over last three starts |
| Though Hudson has been allowing a few too many liners lately, his poor recent run looks like a major aberration. | ||||
| 61 | Wei-Yin Chen | CLE (Lowe) | N/A | 7 HRs allowed over last 48 1/3 innings |
| Chen's early-season avoidance of the long ball is a thing of the past, but the Indians' lineup shouldn't pose too much of a threat to the lefty. | ||||
| 62 | Jarrod Parker | @SEA (Millwood) | N/A | 2 HRs allowed in 66 2/3 innings |
| Parker is just an average ground ball pitcher, but he has been taking full advantage of O.co Coliseum. He should have similar success in his visit to Safeco Field. | ||||
| 63 | Ricky Romero | @BOS (Lester) | N/A | 1.25 ground ball-to-flyball ratio, last six starts |
| While Romero still has to figure out his command issues, he has been doing a better job of keeping the ball down and letting his infield help him. | ||||
| 64 | Bronson Arroyo | MIL (Estrada) | @SF (Vogelsong) | 3.75 home ERA |
| As homer-prone as Arroyo is, it's surprising that he has been decent at Great American Ball Park. His start against the Brewers may not be so scary. | ||||
| 65 | Trevor Cahill | @ATL (Hanson) | N/A | No HRs allowed in 11 of 14 starts |
| Cahill's move from Oakland to Arizona has not resulted in erosion of his low home run rate. In fact, it's less than half of what it was last season. | ||||
| 66 | Ivan Nova | CHW (Axelrod) | N/A | 7.4 runs of support per nine innings |
| Nova still has to prove that he can shut down good lineups at home, but if nothing else, he's a good bet to deliver a "W," thanks to healthy run support. | ||||
| 67 | Erik Bedard | @PHI (Blanton) | @STL (Lynn) | 21 percent called strike rate |
| Bedard hasn't been getting all that many whiffs, but he is still contributing Ks because of an above-average called strike rate. | ||||
| 68 | Joe Blanton | PIT (Bedard) | @MIA (Nolasco) | 39 Ks, 5 BBs over last 42 1/3 innings |
| Home runs have destroyed Blanton's Fantasy value, but even during his current slump, he hasn't hurt himself with poor command. He could be a surprise producer, given his matchups this week. | ||||
| 69 | Kevin Millwood | OAK (Parker) | N/A | 2.96 ERA vs. OAK, last eight starts |
| Millwood has cooled off from his hot May, but he should be good enough to start with a decent matchup in hand. | ||||
| 70 | Scott Diamond | KC (Mendoza) | N/A | 1.65 ground ball-to-flyball ratio, last two starts |
| Diamond has come down to earth in his last two turns, but as long as he is still getting grounders at a high rate, he can give owners a good start. | ||||
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