Look for our fantasy baseball starting pitcher rankings, hitter upgrades and downgrades daily to help you make smart fantasy baseball lineup decisions and for MLB betting tips . MLB game odds are provided by ESPN BET , and fantasy advice is geared toward ESPN 10-team leagues with standard scoring .
Note: This file will be updated with any overnight pitching changes or weather-related game postponements, along with the addition of the latest MLB game odds as of the indicated time of publication
Ride Boyd's hot streak
Since stepping into the Cleveland Guardians ' starting rotation in mid-August, Matthew Boyd has arguably been the team's best pitcher. Many hurlers show some rust following Tommy John surgery, but Boyd has hit the ground running, posting a 2.20 ERA and 0.77 WHIP across his first five starts. He has surrendered only one run in four of those outings, highlighted by a six-inning, one-run effort against the Los Angeles Dodgers his last time out.
Boyd has never thrown particularly hard, but his average fastball velocity (92 mph) is back where it should be. Perhaps even more importantly, he's generating plenty of swings and misses with his slider and changeup. Over his last two starts, Boyd has racked up 26 whiffs with those two pitches alone.
After keeping the Dodgers in check in his last start, Boyd should have little trouble with the Chicago White Sox on Wednesday. Not surprisingly, the Pale Hose sport the worst wRC+ in baseball (68) since the All-Star break, and they've also been the worst offense against left-handed pitching (70 wRC+). Available in 18% of ESPN leagues, Boyd should be at the top of your streaming list for this slate.
Everything else you need to know for Wednesday
- Cody Bradford (29% rostered in ESPN leagues) has quietly been a top-15 starting pitcher in fantasy during the past month. Over his last six starts, he has produced a 2.43 ERA and 0.84 WHIP, registering five straight quality starts. While Wednesday's matchup against the hot-hitting Arizona Diamondbacks may not be ideal, he has pitched well enough to warrant streaming consideration.
- In terms of matchups, Colin Rea (27% rostered) finds himself in a much more favorable spot on Wednesday, facing the San Francisco Giants on the road. The Giants' offense ranks bottom-five in baseball during the past month with a wRC+ of 83, and their 28.5% strikeout rate during that span is second-worst in MLB. For his part, Rea owns a solid 3.55 ERA and 1.08 WHIP during his last nine games (eight starts), with 53 Ks in 50 2/3 innings. Additionally, he'll benefit from the pitcher-friendly Oracle Park.
- After recovering from a right knee injury that sidelined him since late July, Lance Lynn (29%) is set to rejoin the St. Louis Cardinals' rotation on Wednesday. He struggled in his lone rehab start, allowing five runs across 3 2/3 innings, though he did manage to get his pitch count up to 80 pitches. Lynn is not a streaming option against the Cincinnati Reds , but those who play in deeper leagues can monitor the big right-hander. Before his injury, Lynn had been pitching relatively well, limiting opponents to two or fewer runs in five of his last six starts (aside from one blowup outing against the Washington Nationals ).
- With Bailey Falter taking the hill for the Pittsburgh Pirates on Wednesday, Miami Marlins batters find themselves in a favorable spot. The left-hander has allowed a .341/.378/.508 slash line to opposing hitters in the second half, making Jake Burger (37%), Connor Norby (22%) and switch-hitter Xavier Edwards (39%) viable streaming options with the platoon advantage.
Starting pitcher rankings for Wednesday
Reliever report
To get the latest information on each team's bullpen hierarchy, as well as which pitchers might be facing a bit of fatigue and who might be the most likely suspects to vulture a save or pick up a surprise hold in their stead, check out the latest Closer Chart , which will be updated every morning.
Hitting report
Plan ahead in fantasy baseball with help from our Forecaster projections. Each day, we will provide an updated preview of the next 10 days for every team, projecting the matchup quality for hitters (overall and by handedness) as well as for base stealers.
Best sub-50% rostered hitters for Wednesday
Best and worst hitters from the day are generated by THE BAT X, a projection system created by Derek Carty using advanced methods like those used in MLB front offices, accounting for a variety of factors including player talent, ballparks, bullpens, weather, umpires, defense, catcher pitch-framing, and lots more.
- Matt Wallner (MIN, LF -- 2%) vs. Jack Kochanowicz
- Trevor Larnach (MIN, LF -- 1%) vs. Kochanowicz
- Jake Burger (MIA, 3B -- 37%) at Bailey Falter
- Carlos Santana (MIN, 1B -- 16%) vs. Kochanowicz
- Tyler O'Neill (BOS, LF -- 40%) vs. Dean Kremer
- Wyatt Langford (TEX, LF -- 43%) at Merrill Kelly
- Edouard Julien (MIN, 2B -- 3%) vs. Kochanowicz
- Masyn Winn (STL, SS -- 18%) vs. Brandon Williamson
- Andrew Vaughn (CHW, 1B -- 8%) vs. Matthew Boyd
- Xavier Edwards (MIA, 2B -- 38%) at Falter
Worst over-50% rostered hitters for Wednesday
- Anthony Volpe (NYY, SS -- 73%) vs. Cole Ragans
- Randy Arozarena (SEA, LF -- 73%) vs. Michael King
- Cal Raleigh (SEA, C -- 82%) vs. King
- Maikel Garcia (KC, 3B -- 65%) at Luis Gil
- Brice Turang (MIL, 2B -- 67%) at Blake Snell
- Xander Bogaerts (SD, SS -- 77%) at Bryan Woo
- CJ Abrams (WSH, SS -- 88%) vs. Max Fried
- Willy Adames (MIL, SS -- 91%) at Snell
- Lawrence Butler (OAK, CF -- 52%) at Hunter Brown
- Julio Rodriguez (SEA, CF -- 92%) vs. King
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