Here are our Week 2 Fantasy Baseball Sleepers: 2-Start Pitchers, Spot Starters, & Hitter Picks. Follow along with our full fantasy baseball tips page all MLB season.
Week 2 Fantasy Baseball Sleepers
Fantasy Baseball 2-Start Pitchers To Add From Waiver Wire
Jordan Montgomery, New York Yankees
- Start 1: vs. Baltimore Orioles
- Start 2: @ Tampa Bay Rays
Jordan Montgomery pitched considerably better than his 5.11 ERA in 44.0 innings last year would suggest. The southpaw walked only 4.7% of the batters he faced, punched out 24.4% of them with a sterling 12.9 SwSt% that points to more strikeout upside, and recorded a 3.84 SIERA, according to FanGraphs. He’s also done a great job of limiting hard contact, yielding a 28.4 Hard% last year and 27.6 Hard% in his career.
The 28-year-old lefty has staying power beyond streaming, but the pitching matchups are outstanding for gamers looking only to pitch and ditch him. Trey Mancini is the only member of Baltimore’s active roster with a wRC+ above 100 with more than single-digit plate appearances against lefties since 2018. The Rays have a handful of threats in their lineup, but their lineup also features a ton of swing-and-miss hitters, bolstering Montgomery’s strikeout potential.
Montgomery’s easily my favorite two-start pitcher this week.
Jordan Montgomery lines up for two starts, making him a key Week 2 fantasy baseball sleeper. (Image: USA TODAY Sports)
Carlos Rodon, Chicago White Sox
- Start 1: @ Seattle Mariners
- Start 2: vs. Kansas City Royals
Rodon showed out in the spring, spinning a 1.32 ERA with a 0.73 WHIP, one walk, and 16 strikeouts in 13 2/3 innings. Spring Training stats aren’t reliable for projecting future performance. Still, it’s a promising showing after Rodon returned to the White Sox following being non-tendered.
More importantly, he demonstrated high-end velocity, dialing it up to 97-98 mph.
Carlos Rodon 97 and 98 mph on these 2 with runner on third, one out. pic.twitter.com/vLnRLKsLwf
— Daryl Van Schouwen (@CST_soxvan) March 26, 2021
As one might deduce from his gaudy strikeout total, he also showcased bat-missing ability.
Carlos Rodón had another solid day on the mound, recording 5 strikeouts in 4.0 IP. pic.twitter.com/6QwhGue8KM
— Chicago White Sox (@whitesox) March 21, 2021
I’m buying into a post-hype breakout for the 28-year-old southpaw. Like Montgomery, he could prove worthy rostering longer than just one week.
Looking at his matchups this week, though, the Mariners represent a soft matchup, providing him sizable strikeout potential. Nine of the 12 active hitters on the Mariners have a strikeout rate north of 26% against lefties since 2018. The Royals are a middle-of-the-road matchup, but if Rodon’s spring gains are legitimate, he should have little trouble carving them up.
Anthony DeSclafani, San Francisco Giants
- Start 1: @ San Diego Padres
- Start 2: vs. Colorado Rockies
If you’re in leagues with weekly lineup changes, fade DeSclafani. There’s too much blowup potential against the Padres. If you’re in leagues with daily lineup changes, scoop up DeSclafani for a home tilt against the Rockies.
The Rockies have been home thus far and have another home series before traveling to San Francisco. The adjustment from playing in the thin air at their home ballpark can be steep, and the Rockies have traditionally been dreadful offensively on the road as a result.
DeSclafani struggled mightily last year, but he recorded an adequate 4.31 ERA, 4.15 SIERA, 1.24 WHIP, 6.7 BB%, and 23.3 K% in 281.2 innings 2017 through 2019. He’s a bounceback candidate who’s worthy of streaming in NL-only formats and 14-team mixers or larger.
Fantasy Baseball Spot Starters
Justus Sheffield, Seattle Mariners vs. Chicago White Sox
When streaming early in the season, I emphasize adding players who have the potential to remain on my roster. Sheffield fits that bill. After a couple of messy starts to open last year, he settled into a groove, looking like the pitcher who was a regular on top prospect lists.
In his last eight starts spanning 47.2 innings, he spun a 2.64 ERA, 4.34 SIERA, 1.22 WHIP, 7.1 BB%, 20.9 K%, and 51.1 GB%. The matchup with the White Sox is mediocre, but it could tilt toward favorable if the hamstring injury that forced Tim Anderson to exit in the first inning of last night’s game shelves him for Monday’s game against Sheffield. Further, adding Sheffield has the forward-thinking benefit of a start in Baltimore against the Orioles on Monday, April 12.
Fantasy Baseball Sleeper Hitters
Jazz Chisholm, 2B/SS, Miami Marlins
- 3 Games vs. St. Louis Cardinals
- 3 Games @ New York Mets
Chisholm won the second base job for the Marlins, and he’ll have an opportunity to work through his strikeout issues and put his power and speed combination to work. He’s already swiped two bases through three games, and he smashed 25 homers with 17 stolen bases in two minor-league stops in 2018 before ripping 21 homers with 16 stolen bases at two minor-league levels in 2019.
The tools are there for him to deliver double-digit homers and stolen bases this season. The stolen base potential alone makes him a viable streamer. Holding the platoon advantage in all six scheduled games as a left-handed hitter opposing a half-dozen right-handed starting pitchers next week adds to his streaming appeal as one of our Week 2 fantasy baseball sleepers.
Colin Moran, 1B/2B/3B, Pittsburgh Pirates
- 3 Games @ Cincinnati Reds
- 3 Games vs. Chicago Cubs
The Pirates face right-handed pitchers in five of six games next week. That’s good news for the left-handed-hitting Moran. He’s hit .281/.341/.447 with 31 homers in 965 plate appearances against righties since 2018. Those marks are worth a stream in some 12-team mixed leagues, but he might be better than them.
Moran’s Statcast data featured new bests in max exit velocity and Barrel% in last year’s shortened season, and he belted nine homers with a .254/.340/.516 slash in 144 plate appearances against righties. The pitching matchups are favorable, and three games (two against right-handed starting pitchers) at the most homer-friendly park (Great American Ball Park), according to the three-year average used at FantasyPros, make Moran worth a look this week.
