The Double Dip: Fantasy baseball 2-start pitchers for the week

We’re back again for this week’s fantasy baseball Double Dip — highlighting pitchers making two starts in a week. Some of the plays may be obvious — you don’t need a 1,000-word soliloquy highlighting why it’s a good idea to start Jacob deGrom twice. You just do it. 

But volume is key, especially two-start-pitcher volume. This column aims to identify all the two-start hurlers, the ones that are no-brainers, the ones that are avoids, and most importantly, focus on the tough-to-call decisions. 

Each week, I’ll do my best to highlight some of those tricky arms and what could come your way.

(Take advantage of the FTNFantasy Platinum package for the 2021 season!)

All of the two-steppers (37)

1. Merrill Kelly, AZ (vs. PHI, at COL)
2. Huascar Ynoa, ATL (at MIA, at BAL)
3. Matt Harvey, BAL (at TB, vs. ATL)
4. John Means, BAL (at TB, vs. ATL)
5. Nathan Eovaldi, BOS (at NYY, vs. TEX)
6. Justin Steele, CHC (at CIN, vs. KC)
7. Wade Miley, CIN (vs. CHC, vs. MIA)
8. Vladimir Gutierrez, CIN (vs. CHC, vs. MIA)
9. Cal Quantrill, CLE (at MIN, vs. LAA)
10. Antonio Senzatela, COL (vs. SD, vs. AZ)
11. Dallas Keuchel, CHW (vs. OAK, at TB)
12. Lance Lynn, CHW (vs. OAK, at TB)
13. Jake Odorizzi, HOU (at KC, vs. SEA)
14. Framber Valdez, HOU (at KC, vs. SEA)
15. Carlos Hernández, KC (vs. HOU, at CHC)
16. José Suarez, LAA (at NYY, at CLE)
17. David Price, LAD (vs. PIT, vs. NYM)
18. Mitch White, LAD (vs. PIT, vs. NYM)
19. Braxton Garrett, MIA (vs. ATL, at CIN)
20. Sandy Alcantara, MIA (vs. ATL, at CIN)
21. Freddy Peralta, MIL (at STL, vs. WAS)
22. Griffin Jax, MIN (vs. CLE, at NYY)
23. Bailey Ober, MIN (vs. CLE, at NYY)
24. Rich Hill, NYM (at SF, at LAD)
25. Marcus Stroman, NYM (at SF, at LAD)
26. Luis Gil, NYY (vs. LAA, vs. MIN)
27. Gerrit Cole, NYY (vs. LAA, vs. MIN)
28. Frankie Montas, OAK (at CWS, at SF)
29. Chris Bassitt, OAK (at CWS, at SF)
30. Kyle Gibson, PHI (at AZ, at SD)
31. Ryan Weathers, SD (at COL, vs. PHI)
32. Yu Darvish, SD (at COL, vs. PHI)
33. Tyler Anderson, SEA (at TEX, at HOU)
34. Kevin Gausman, SF (vs. NYM, at OAK)
35. Adam Wainwright, STL (vs. MIL, vs. PIT)
36. Josh Fleming, TB (vs. BAL, vs. CWS)
37. Spencer Howard, TEX (vs. SEA, at BOS)

The no-brainers (27)

This group should definitely be in your starting lineup — whether it’s due to matchup or just sheer brilliance, don’t overthink this one. As it gets longer in the season, you are more willing, in most instances, to chase that volume. Now, each situation may be unique — if you have outstanding ratios, you may want to be a bit more careful about damaging your ratios.

• Merrill Kelly, AZ (vs. PHI, at COL)
• Huascar Ynoa, ATL (at MIA, at BAL)
• Nathan Eovaldi, BOS (at NYY, vs. TEX)
• Wade Miley, CIN (vs. CHC, vs. MIA)
• Vladimir Gutierrez, CIN (vs. CHC, vs. MIA)
• Cal Quantrill, CLE (at MIN, vs. LAA)
• Dallas Keuchel, CHW (vs. OAK, at TB)
• Lance Lynn, CHW (vs. OAK, at TB)
• Jake Odorizzi, HOU (at KC, vs. SEA)
• Framber Valdez, HOU (at KC, vs. SEA)
• Carlos Hernández, KC (vs. HOU, at CHC)
• David Price, LAD (vs. PIT, vs. NYM)
• Braxton Garrett, MIA (vs. ATL, at CIN)
• Sandy Alcantara, MIA (vs. ATL, at CIN)
• Freddy Peralta, MIL (at STL, vs. WAS)
• Griffin Jax, MIN (vs. CLE, at NYY)
• Bailey Ober, MIN (vs. CLE, at NYY)
• Rich Hill, NYM (at SF, at LAD)
• Marcus Stroman, NYM (at SF, at LAD)
• Luis Gil, NYY (vs. LAA, vs. MIN)
• Gerrit Cole, NYY (vs. LAA, vs. MIN)
• Frankie Montas, OAK (at CWS, at SF)
• Chris Bassitt, OAK (at CWS, at SF)
• Kyle Gibson, PHI (at AZ, at SD)
• Yu Darvish, SD (at COL, vs. PHI)
• Kevin Gausman, SF (vs. NYM, at OAK)
• Adam Wainwright, STL (vs. MIL, vs. PIT)

(Get an All Access pass to FTN NFL coverage across all sites for $349.99.)

The run-and-hides (4)

This group should only be started out of pure desperation — the volume is nice, and it definitely could end up working out for you, but starting these hurlers is a real gamble. 

• Matt Harvey, BAL (at TB, vs. ATL)
• Justin Steele, CHC (at CIN, vs. KC)
• Antonio Senzatela, COL (vs. SD, vs. AZ)
• Spencer Howard, TEX (vs. SEA, at BOS)

The meat-and-potatoes (6)

This group is one that takes a bit more thinking — the volume is nice, but the matchup could be tricky. Is it worth taking the risk on a questionable start for what could be some juicy fantasy goodness? Let’s dig in and find out.

And since they say imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, I am going to use a similar rating scale that Clay Link and Todd Zola do over at Rotowire — if I was playing in five fantasy baseball leagues, how many would I feel comfortable starting this hurler? Using that as our barometer, we should be able to appropriately deem the risk and reward that’s available if you choose to start this arm. Keep in mind — your league and team context are always key. I’m using a 12-team NFBC Online Championship format as my primary backdrop.

• John Means, BAL (at TB, vs. ATL): THREE LEAGUES OUT OF FIVE
• José Suarez, LAA (at NYY, at CLE): TWO
• Mitch White, LAD (vs. PIT, vs. NYM): TWO
• Ryan Weathers, SD (at COL, vs. PHI): TWO
• Josh Fleming, TB (vs. BAL, vs. CWS): TWO
• Tyler Anderson, SEA (at TEX, at HOU): THREE