Michael Lorenzen DVOA, Advanced Stats, & Fantasy Rankings

Texas Rangers starting pitcher Michael Lorenzen produced his best start of the year on Monday, going seven scoreless innings while allowing only one hit and four walks. The Rangers, unfortunately, couldn't provide Lorenzen with any offense, as he finished with a no-decision in the 7-0 loss to the Cleveland Guardians. The performance lowered his ERA to 3.75 and WHIP to 1.22 on the season, but the four walks gave him 18 walks on the season in only 36 innings. The ERA and WHIP are on par with his career numbers of 4.10 and 1.32, but the walks are higher than normal, as he's averaging almost double the amount of walks per inning with 0.5 walks. The heavy load of walks doesn't bode well for his next outing when he faces a patient Philadelphia Phillies team that ranks fifth in the league in taking free passes.

Texas Rangers starting pitcher Michael Lorenzen (neck) is scheduled to make his season debut against the Detroit Tigers on Monday. The right-hander is set to take the mound after dealing with a neck injury to begin the season. The expectation is that Lorenzen fills the void in the rotation left by Cody Bradford (back) who was placed on the injured list. Lorenzen looked sharp last season, but there could be some rust to shake off. He'll be worth rostering in most fantasy formats right now while Bradford is sidelined.

Texas Rangers starting pitcher Michael Lorenzen appears to be nearly ready to join the big league rotation. The right-hander said he was ready to go following his latest rehab start. However, the organization will have Lorenzen pitch one more time to get his pitch count up to 90. That means, Cody Bradford should make at least one more start in the rotation. Lorenzen was solid last season and should be someone worth rostering in most fantasy formats.

Texas Rangers right-hander Michael Lorenzen (neck) said that everything went well with his minor-league rehab start for Triple-A Round Rock on Thursday and that he's ready to join the team's starting rotation for his 2024 debut. Lorenzen will throw a bullpen session in a few days before the team determines when/where his next outing will be. The 32-year-old got up to 70 pitches with Round Rock on Thursday and allowed just one run in four innings, so it would appear that he's close to being stretched out enough to join the big-league roster. Fantasy baseball managers in deep-mixed and AL-only leagues in need of pitching help may want to consider picking up Lorenzen now from the waiver wire. He threw a no-hitter with the Phillies in 2023, but there's not a ton of strikeout upside here.

Texas Rangers right-hander Michael Lorenzen (neck) allowed one run in four innings in his second minor-league rehab start with Triple-A Round Rock on Thursday night. Lorenzen allowed three hits while walking two over 70 pitches (41 strikes). Because the 32-year-old veteran signed with the Rangers so late in spring training, he was placed on the injured list to start the regular season so that he could go to the minors and build up his arm before joining the big-league starting rotation. It's unknown if the team wants him to make another start down on the farm, but if they choose to activate him and bring him to the big leagues, his first start of 2024 could be as good as it gets next week against the lowly Oakland Athletics. Lorenzen doesn't have a ton of fantasy upside for those in mixed leagues, but there is still some streaming appeal in the right matchups in DFS and deeper formats.