Tuesday brings us a tough slate for streaming pitchers, but it's beginning to get hot in certain parts of the country and we have a couple of doubleheaders at Coors and Wrigley, not to mention a couple hitters that remain far too low-rostered for their talent levels, so at least hitting should be quite easy to find.
Here are Tuesday's choices to bolster your fantasy squad, with everyone available in at least half of all ESPN leagues.
Ryan Weathers (L), rostered in 24% of ESPN leagues, San Diego Padres vs. Pittsburgh Pirates: Weathers left his last start early, so he may not go super deep here, but it's a rough day for streaming starters and the matchup is a good one. Run support shouldn't be an issue, and he faces the worst offense in baseball.
Mike Minor (L), rostered in 20% of ESPN leagues, Kansas City Royals vs. Cleveland Indians: Cleveland doesn't strike out much, but their lineups lately have been quite bad, particularly if Franmil Reyes remains out another day. Minor stands a good chance of picking up a W against rookie Sam Hentges making his first-ever MLB start.
J.A. Happ (L), rostered in 25% of ESPN leagues, Minnesota Twins vs. Texas Rangers: The Rangers are one of the more strikeout-prone offenses in baseball, and most of their best hitters (Joey Gallo, Nate Lowe, David Dahl) are left-handed, giving Happ the platoon advantage.
Luke Weaver (R), rostered in 10% of ESPN leagues, Arizona Diamondbacks at Miami Marlins: Weaver comes off a rough outing, but the matchup couldn't be better against a bottom-5 offense in a top-5 park for pitchers.
Bullpen: The weather forecast for Wrigley Field is in the 50 degrees with close to 10 mph winds blowing in from left (which is more like 30 or 40 mph anywhere else), and the Cubs (despite a good reputation) are a below-average offense and one of the more strikeout-heavy ones in baseball. Blake Treinen (14% rostered) is the clear target here for ratios and the potential for two saves thanks to a doubleheader. You can make a case he's better than Kenley Jansen at this point, and he's even been a good source of Ks this season.
For the latest team-by-team closer situations, please consult our Closer Chart.
Catcher -- William Contreras (R), 2%, Atlanta Braves at Washington Nationals (RHP Joe Ross): With Travis d'Arnaud and Alex Jackson on the DL, Contreras is the new starting catcher for one of the NL's top offenses. 80 degree temperature against one of the day's weaker pitchers makes him a great stream.
First Base -- Brandon Belt (L), 8%, San Francisco Giants at Colorado Rockies (Doubleheader): Giants are lowly-rostered across the board, and they're all in play today for a double-header in Coors. Jhoulys Chacin was scheduled to start before yesterday's postponement and may still be on the docket. Evan Longoria, Brandon Crawford, and everyone else on the team is in play.
Second Base -- Rougned Odor (L), 5%, New York Yankees vs. Houston Astros (RHP Zack Greinke): Odor is home run or bust (with an outside chance of a steal), but hitting in the heart of the Yankees order most days boosts his RBI and run expectation as well. It's Greinke, sure, but the dude is now overrated and Yankee Stadium is perfect for Odor's skillset.
Third Base -- Starlin Castro (R), 11%, Washington Nationals vs. Atlanta Braves (RHP Huascar Ynoa): Castro is in a similar boat to Votto in that he ought to be rostered in more leagues. Ynoa has a reverse platoon split which should benefit Castro, and the 80 degree weather further sets him up well here.
Shortstop -- Jorge Polanco (S), 47%, Minnesota Twins vs. Texas Rangers (RHP Kyle Gibson): There's nothing particularly appealing about this matchup, but Polanco is simply the best option based on pure talent. If you aren't going with Brandon Crawford in Coors, Polanco is your guy.
Corner Infield -- Joey Votto (L), 40%, Cincinnati Reds vs. Chicago White Sox (RHP Dylan Cease): Votto continues to be one of the most egregiously under-rostered players in fantasy this year. He's at home in an elite park, facing a mediocre pitcher. Pick him up and keep him. He's probably better than whomever you currently have in your CI or UT spot.
Middle Infield-- Jonathan Villar (S), 13%, New York Mets at St. Louis Cardinals (LHP Kwang Hyun Kim): Kim is a southpaw with a wide platoon split and, while Busch Stadium is still a pitchers' park, it's a significant upgrade over Citi Field for the Mets offense. Villar will play a bigger role in said offense filling in for J.D. Davis. Keep in mind that Yadier Molina is sidelined and replacement Andrew Knizner is just 1-for-5 in thwarting would-be base stealers.
Outfield -- Austin Hays (R), 50%, Baltimore Orioles at Seattle Mariners (RHP Justin Dunn): Dunn is not just one of the worst pitchers on the slate but one of the worst in all of baseball. And he's extremely easy to steal bases on. Giants outfielders like Austin Slater and Alex Dickerson, and former Yankee Mike Tauchman are the cream of the crop today, but beyond them you can't do much better than Hays.
Outfield -- Andrew McCutchen (R), 59%, Philadelphia Phillies vs. Milwaukee Brewers (LHP Eric Lauer): McCutchen isn't quite available in half the leagues, but he's a fantastic play today if he's an option for you. At home in an elite power park against a weak, flyball, homer-prone lefty in 80 degree weather. Giddy up.
Outfield -- Manuel Margot (R), 34%, Tampa Bay Rays at Los Angeles Angels (LHP Jose Quintana): Margot has been hitting second quite a bit recently for one of the most underperforming offenses in baseball. Regression is coming for the Rays, who get a nice park upgrade going into Angel Stadium today, sneakily one of the 10 best parks in baseball for power. Margot will also hold the platoon advantage against Quintana, giving him plenty of appeal.