Tristan H. Cockcroft
Sep 20, 2021, 10:23 AM ET
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Projected starting pitchers for the next 10 days
Hitter matchup ratings for the next 10 days
Week 24 hitting ratings
Week 24 overall pitcher rankings and two-start pitcher rankings
The penultimate week of the 2021 fantasy baseball season -- and first of the two-week championship matchups in ESPN's standard head-to-head leagues -- includes a good share of makeup baseball, three rescheduled games, to be exact, loading the schedule for Cleveland, Chicago White Sox and St. Louis Cardinals.
Cleveland enjoys a rare nine-game week, and all nine of those games will be played at home, at Progressive Field. That's the result of a Monday doubleheader against the Kansas City Royals, with one game making up their July 11 postponement, and a Thursday doubleheader against the White Sox, with one game making up their June 2 postponement. The added games don't tilt Cleveland's' matchups steeply in their favor, however, as since Aug. 1, both the Royals' and White Sox's pitching staffs have better-than-league-average ERAs (Royals 4.15, 13th; White Sox 4.15, 14th; MLB average 4.37), the White Sox's offense has averaged an 11th-best 4.90 runs per game and the Royals' 4.56 runs-per-game average is just beneath the league's 4.67 average in that time. Cleveland's offense has also struggled at times this year, having been no-hit a record three times. For their lineup, go with the usual starters, while keeping an eye on Amed Rosario's potential return from bereavement leave. On the pitching side, Cal Quantrill (29.6% available), who has five wins, nine quality starts and a 1.79 ERA in 12 second-half starts, should be in every fantasy lineup, especially with the chance that the team could grant Quantrill a two-start week (as projected in the column).
The White Sox reap the biggest benefit of an extra game despite their schedule being entirely on the road, as they'll begin with three at the Detroit Tigers before their five-game series at Cleveland. Both opponents have been better than perceived in recent weeks, residing remarkably close to .500 since Aug. 1 (and exactly .500, in the Tigers' case), but Chicago also dominated the Tigers in the season's earlier stages, when the roster was missing some key names it has available today, while then facing a Cleveland team fresh off a 4-9 stretch.
Though they have been keeping Carlos Rodon's workload in check recently, the White Sox effectively have to start the left-hander during Week 24 due to the extra game, meaning he should be in all fantasy lineups. Among prospective pickups, Leury Garcia (83.5% available) and Gavin Sheets (98.3%) have been getting regular starts of late, with Garcia batting .378/.396/.600 in 12 September games and Sheets slashing .257/.333/.571 with three home runs and 10 RBIs in 12 games in the month.
The third busy team is one of the game's hotter squads, as the Cardinals have won seven of their past eight and enter Week 24 needing as many W's as possible in their quest for the National League's second wild card. Motivation is a good thing in fantasy terms at this seasonal stage, and while the Cardinals' matchups on paper aren't great -- they earn a "5" on the hitting side while only scheduled Friday doubleheader Game 1 starter Adam Wainwright earns a "start him" projection -- their need for wins keeps them fantasy-relevant. Despite his eighth-in-the-lineup role, Harrison Bader (89.1% available) keeps on hitting in addition to providing excellent defense, batting .308/.345/.538 with three home runs and 10 RBIs in 15 games in September.
The Cardinals' division rivals, the Cincinnati Reds, are similarly motivated but have a considerably more favorable Week 24 schedule. All seven of the Reds' games will be played at hitting-friendly Great American Ball Park, but that three of them are against a Pittsburgh Pirates team that, since Aug. 1, ranks last in runs per game on offense (3.71) and 27th in ERA (5.37) gives the Reds the edge on both sides of the ball for the week in its entirety.
Additionally, the Washington Nationals, the Reds' weekend opponent, is hardly elite, especially on the pitching side. Kyle Farmer (80.8% available) just keeps getting it done, batting .273/.313/.500 with three home runs in his past 12 games, settling in as the team's regular No. 6 hitter. Closer Mychal Givens (83.7%), who has eight saves and a 3.06 ERA since his trade to the Reds, is also well worth your start.
The final homestand at Coors Field begins in Week 24, but it features the home-team Colorado Rockies facing one of the worst sets of weekly matchups they could ask for at Coors. They're aligned to face Julio Urias (Tuesday), Walker Buehler (Wednesday), Max Scherzer (Thursday), Anthony DeSclafani (Saturday), Kevin Gausman (Sunday) and the league's two best bullpens in terms of ERA (Giants 3.05, Dodgers 3.13), as well as the Nos. 5 (Dodgers, 5.05) and 6 (Giants, 4.95) offenses in terms of runs per game. Coors games always significantly favor the hitters, so keep your usual Rockies in there despite their more middling matchups, but this week is really more about the hitting benefits for the two visitors. This could be a week, in 15-team mixed or NL-only leagues, to take a chance on Gavin Lux (70.0% available), who has batted .412/.524/.471 while starting each of the team's past six games in left field.
The Tampa Bay Rays have their work cut out for them in a week-opening three game series against the division-rival Toronto Blue Jays, but despite those tough on-paper matchups, the team is well worth watching for fantasy planning as the weekly lineup lock approaches. Wander Franco (hamstring, 10-day IL) has begun workouts and has an outside chance at a Week 24 return, with any promise of it in advance of the week warranting your immediately activating him in all formats. Shane McClanahan (back) was activated in time to make a strong start on Sept. 19, aligning him for a weekend start against the light-hitting Miami Marlins. The team is also expected to promote prospect Shane Baz, who faces a challenging debut matchup against the Blue Jays but has an outside chance at making a Sunday start against the Marlins (though it's not currently projected).
The Baltimore Orioles are the American League team with the biggest interleague-series problem, as their three-game, week-opening series at the Philadelphia Phillies will force them to decide each day between Trey Mancini and Ryan Mountcastle at first base without a designated hitter in play, assuming the team doesn't just try Mountcastle in left field, where he hasn't appeared since June 27. Even then, they'd have to sit Austin Hays or Anthony Santander to do it. The Minnesota Twins are the other AL team to visit a National League park, playing two games at the Cubs to open their own week, but usual DH Josh Donaldson should just shift to third base for those contests.
The New York Mets and Boston Red Sox play a two-game, week-opening interleague series at Fenway Park, resulting in both teams playing a five-game week, the only squads to do that during Week 24. It's awful timing for fantasy managers counting on Red Sox hitters in their playoff matchups, especially as the Red Sox then face the rival New York Yankees, a plenty motivated opponent, during their three-game weekend series.
