Fantasy baseball pitcher rankings, lineup advice for Friday’s MLB games

Look for our fantasy baseball starting pitcher rankings, hitter upgrades and downgrades daily to help you make smart fantasy baseball lineup decisions and for MLB betting tips. MLB game odds are provided by Caesars Sportsbook, and fantasy advice is geared towards ESPN 10-team leagues with standard scoring.

Note: This file will be updated with any overnight pitching changes or weather-related game postponements, along with the addition of the latest MLB game odds as of the indicated time of publication.

What you need to know for Friday’s MLB Games

By Todd Zola

• There have been afternoon games each day this week and Friday keeps the streak going, albeit with only one matinee as the Chicago Cubs host the Milwaukee Brewers at 2:20 PM ET in Wrigley Field. Aaron Ashby takes the hill for Milwaukee while Keegan Thompson gets the ball for the home team. Ashby (12% rostered in ESPN leagues) profiles as the better pitcher and has a weaker offense to handle, so he gets the nod as a streamer, having fanned 25 hitters over his prior 22 1/3 innings. Thompson was pitching well heading into August, but a 7.30 ERA and 1.78 WHIP this month are too risky to trust, especially with a plethora of other options.

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Marco Gonzales has been slumping lately, but faces a soft matchup on Friday that fantasy managers should be ready to exploit.

• Marco Gonzales (48%) tops the list of steaming candidates as the Seattle Mariners continue to vie for a playoff berth, opening a series in Oakland. Gonzales has struggled over his last six outings, but facing the woeful Athletics lineup should be the elixir. Another good option is Patrick Sandoval (49%), on a road date with Detroit. The Tigers hit lefties better than righties, but they still register as a favorable enemy for Sandoval. Meanwhile, Brady Singer (44%) has quietly taken the next step, even though his roster percentage has been slow to reflect his success. Recent stellar efforts against the Yankees and Dodgers, have made him far more interesting against his Friday opponent, the Rays. Since June 25, Singer has recorded a 2.47 ERA and a 1.08 WHIP with 63 strikeouts and only 16 walks over those 58 1/3 innings.

• It gets a bit riskier with Graham Ashcraft (9%) taking the hill for the Cincinnati Reds in PNC Park. Pittsburgh’s offense is among the weakest in the league, but Ashcraft has been inconsistent. Still, the reward outweighs the risk. Kutter Crawford (5%) gets the start in the first of 10 games down the stretch between the Boston Red Sox and Baltimore Orioles. Boston is currently looking up at Baltimore in the standings but has a chance to do something about it. Crawford has been a second-half revelation, with a 3.20 ERA and 1.00 WHIP in eight starts since July 4. Over that span, he’s managed a palatable 41 strikeouts in 45 frames, while issuing just 11 free passes.

• The final two streaming candidates are Dylan Bundy (19%) and Matt Manning (4%). Both make the cut by virtue of their having home matchups against weak offences. To be fair, Bundy is pitching better lately, but he’s not going deep into games. That said, with the Rangers on the docket, Bundy is in play. Manning hopes to salvage what has been a lost season as he missed most of the first half. Even with Mike Trout back for the visiting Angels, Manning should be able to generate strikeouts against a lineup with the most overall strikeouts against right-handers.

• A few enticing bats to recommend include some names with a relatively high roster percentage. Still, Joc Pederson (55%), and Mike Yastrzemski (52%) are both in a great spot, playing in Coors Field with the platoon edge on Jose Urena. On the other side of the field, Randal Grichuk (54%) enjoys the advantage over Alex Wood.

Starting pitcher rankings for Friday