No one ever wants to be the last pick for a team. No one every wants to feel they’ve been overlooked by anyone — whether …
No one ever wants to be the last pick for a team. No one every wants to feel they’ve been overlooked by anyone — whether it’s friends, family or prospective teammates. But going unnoticed isn’t always a bad thing. You have a bigger chance to exceed expectations and make yourself noticed. In fantasy baseball, it’s often these neglected players who provide the biggest boosts for your squad. Over 11 games as a reliever for Atlanta, Spencer Strider was 1-1 with a 2.22 ERA, 1.03 WHIP, 13.7 strikeouts per nine and a.167 opponents’ average. As expected, though, the Braves made him a member of the rotation. Before dominating the Pirates over 5 ²/₃ innings Friday night (eight strikeouts, 18.5 percent swinging-strike rate), Strider hadn’t pitched deep into games in his first two starts, and his numbers (0-1, 4.32 ERA, 1.56 WHIP) were uninspiring (outside of the 13 strikeouts per nine and.194 opponents’ average). But they didn’t tell the whole story. Strider made his first start against Arizona on May 30. Though he allowed five runs (three earned) and walked two over just 4 ¹/₃ innings, the Braves defense did him no favors by making a pair of inexcusable errors. Strider was dominant, striking out seven while registering a 13.9 percent swinging-strike rate and throwing 51 of his 72 pitches for strikes. He also threw 22 pitches that were at least 99 mph. Strider’s second start was at Colorado, where he allowed only one earned run over four innings while striking out and walking five. He was out of control, but did strike out 26.3 percent of the batters he faced. Despite walking 12.3 percent of the batters he has faced, the worst mark in the majors among pitchers with a minimum of 30 innings pitched, Strider leads the league with his 36.8 percent strikeout rate.
