Who are the best starting pitchers in baseball right now — and which arms actually belong in the ace tier? Eno Sarris returns with his updated starting pitcher rankings as DVR breaks down some of the toughest calls, biggest risers and most surprising placements on the board.
Blake Snell is back in the top 10, landing at No. 10 after another strong stretch, while Drew Rasmussen climbs all the way to No. 11 as his health and consistency continue to change the way we value him. How sustainable are the pitch-mix and process changes that have helped pitchers like Snell and Rasmussen reach another level?
Then there’s Bryan Woo at No. 22. Woo has flashed ace-level stretches and was pushed aggressively during fantasy draft season, but familiar home-road splits and questions about sustaining an elite strikeout rate may leave him looking more like a high-end SP2 than a true fantasy ace.
Then, one of baseball’s top pitching prospects arrives. Kade Anderson is set to make his MLB debut Saturday against the Chicago Cubs after skipping Triple-A. The Mariners’ left-hander has dominated Double-A pairing elite command with a four-pitch arsenal.
Finally, the guys preview the fantasy baseball waiver wire, including Ethan “Tugboat” Holliday, Ethan Pecko’s MLB debut, Jackson Kent’s second look and several pitchers who could matter during the fantasy playoffs.
Rates & Barrels with Derek Van Riper and Eno Sarris delivers fantasy baseball strategy, MLB analysis, advanced pitching metrics, prospects, waiver-wire advice and everything you need for the stretch run.
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Hosts: Derek VanRiper & Eno Sarris
Executive Producer: McEnroe Francis
Editor: McEnroe Francis
Thumbnail Credit: Photo by Ronald Martinez/Getty Images(SNELL)
Photo by Jack Compton/Getty Images(WOO)
00:00 Eno’s Updated Starting Pitcher Rankings
03:24 Blake Snell Is Back in the Top 10
05:16 Drew Rasmussen Keeps Rising
09:00 Logan Henderson vs. Kyle Harrison
11:48 Managing Pitcher Workloads Down the Stretch
12:43 When Will Chase Burns Be Shut Down?
14:58 Bryan Woo at No. 22 — Ace or SP2?
17:57 Why Is Joey Cantillo Ranked No. 40?
20:38 What’s Going Wrong With José Soriano?
25:19 Kade Anderson Is Coming to the Majors
26:35 What Should We Expect From Kade Anderson?
27:37 What Troy Melton Can Teach Us About Anderson
31:01 How Historic Is Anderson’s Double-A Dominance?
35:14 Does Dominating Double-A Predict MLB Success?
36:58 Projecting Kade Anderson in the Majors
38:18 Where Would Anderson Rank Right Now?
41:10 Should You Add Kade Anderson?
42:33 Why Second-Half Stats Can Mislead Us
42:52 Pete Crow-Armstrong & the Second-Half Trap
43:43 What Brice Turang Tells Us About Recency Bias
45:01 Can Second-Half Slumps Create Draft Bargains?
51:08 Waiver Wire & Baseball News
51:29 A’s Hit Hard By Season-Ending Injuries
55:09 Orioles Playing-Time Opportunities
57:43 What’s Going On With Ketel Marte?
59:09 Jordan Lawlar Gets His Opportunity
1:01:31 Rookie Pitchers to Target on Waivers
1:01:54 Tugboat, Ethan Pecko & Jackson Kent
1:07:00 Ethan Pecko’s Stuff & Role
1:07:28 What Happened With Tugboat’s Fastball?
#FantasyBaseball #BlakeSnell #BryanWoo #MLB #Pitching #KadeAnderson #RatesAndBarrels
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