STARTERS: Very early slow start holds, 2018

With only extremely tiny data samples available to us after two weeks of the season, it's hard to put a lot of analytical reliability in skills at this point in the season.

That said, many owners will make rash drop decisions very early in the year once they start to accrue bad stats from their SP. Nobody wants to be inflicted with a bad ERA or WHIP. However, those knee-jerk reactions will prevent you from benefiting from the upside that comes when skilled SP see their bad stats correct over time.

Before we take a closer look at guys worth holding onto or targeting in spite of their bad stats, one quick note. The average HR per flyball rate of SP with at least 10 IP is 11.2% so far in 2018, a significant decline from the inflated 14.2%...

Almost!

You’re just a few clicks away from accessing this feature and hundreds more throughout the year that have a singular goal in mind: Winning your league. Subscribe to BaseballHQ.com here!

Already a subscriber? Sign in here

More From Starting Pitchers

Ben Brown gets dialed in with runners on base. Finding a similar approach with the bases empty will help him take a sustained step forward.
Jun 20 2026 3:05am
The ups-and-downs of Jesús Luzardo can be traced to some really ugly results when he pitches at home, largely due to some bad luck during those starts.
Jun 13 2026 3:09am
Chase Dollander's filthy skills against same-sided bats reinforce his upper-rotation ceiling.
Jun 6 2026 3:10am
Cristopher Sanchez's scoreless streak continues, and it has been backed by top-tier skills and similarly elite skill drivers.
May 30 2026 3:05am
Jacob Misiorowski's skills have become firmly elite so far in 2026.
May 23 2026 3:05am

Tools