Looking to cycle spot-starters each day? Check out the Stream Team, where we tab pitchers that are likely to help you in your quest for fantasy gold.It's finally time for real baseball again, where the NL actually has a shot of winning some games. Stream Teamer Dallas Braden will be taking the hill tonight against the Angels, and we'll review how he did tomorrow in this space. If you're new to the Stream Team, the idea is to find one pitcher each day that will give you a good strikeout total (and hopefully a win) while posting solid ERA and WHIP ratios.
On Friday, Paul Maholm faces the Giants in Pittsburgh. After going 3-0 in April with a 3.09 ERA and 1.28 WHIP, Maholm's ratios have gotten worse in each successive month, this despite posting much better K/BB ratios in May (26/11) annd June (25/10) than in April (12/12). His ERA now stands at 4.60, but his peripherals indicate it should probably be in the mid-threes. The groundball pitcher should be able to post-ASB ERA under four, if he keeps at his production level for this season.
He faces the Giants, one of the worst road offenses in the league. They've turned in a .659 OPS on the road (last in the league) and hit just 28 HRs (second-worst to the Mets). Against lefties, they rank in the bottom five in the majors in runs, homers, OBP and OPS. While Maholm's July performance (6.97 ERA, 1.94 WHIP in two starts) makes this pick far from a lock to do well, the Giants ineptitude on the road certainly helps our cause. Maholm should be able to turn in a line close to his performance at home against Kansas City on June 27th, in which he gave up two runs in seven innings while striking out a pair.
