<body><div><figure><img src="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?type=thumbnail_580x000&amp;url=1EE5nU_0vXXrwoN00" alt="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?url=1EE5nU_0vXXrwoN00" width="1600" height="900" ></figure>What’s up everyone!If you’re unfamiliar with this series, each week I take a look at some hitting matchups you should take advantage of and some hitting matchups you should avoid, based on who the hitters will likely be facing on the mound. I’ll also be focusing on catchers you can stream each week since we all know that catcher can be an especially tricky position in fantasy.Here’s one more thing I want to add in the intro of this particular article and the ones following it: if you’re in the playoffs right now, streaming hot hitters for a week can be a very viable strategy, and you shouldn’t be afraid to dump your struggling middle-of-the-road guys to squeeze the juice out of a hot streak. Obviously don’t drop your studs, but you’re fighting for your life in the playoffs, and hanging onto some guy who’s hitting .150 over the past three weeks and is one of your borderline start guys most of the time isn’t going to help you win.So let’s take a look at the hitters to start and avoid in Week 25 (9/16-9/22) of the fantasy baseball season.Notes: All pitching matchups mentioned here are based on projections as of this post’s publication. It is entirely possible that the actual matchups could change for any number of reasons. Keep in mind, this article is geared toward middle-of-the-road players, meaning you should be starting top-of-the-line bats regardless of the matchup. Always start your studs.STARTArizona Diamondbacks hitters – The D’Backs get a full seven-game week this week, starting off with three games against the Rockies, who own the worst team FIP in all of baseball, in Coors Field. You couldn’t ask for a more hitter-friendly series than that.After that, the D’Backs will head to Milwaukee for a three-game series against the Brewers, a team that currently owns the eighth-worst team FIP in the league. There, they’ll see Freddy Peralta, Tobias Myers, DL Hall, and Aaron Civale, and really Peralta is the only one who even slightly concerns me.Pavin Smith has been hitting .286/.385/.905 over the past two weeks and is definitely worth a grab this week (and he’s pretty widely available too). Same with Randal Grichuk, who’s hitting .385/.429/.923 over that same time period.CATCHER TO STREAM: If you’re in a deep league and need some help at the catcher position, Jose Herrera could give you a hand (or at least, not actively hurt your team, as some catchers only available in deep leagues would probably do). Herrera won’t give you much in the power department, but he owns a .278/.263/.333 line over the past two weeks and is slated for some good matchups this week. You could do worse.Los Angeles Dodgers hitters – The Dodgers also have a seven-game week this week, starting off with one game against Atlanta on Monday that finishes out a four-game series from over the weekend. That game will be against Max Fried, and in daily leagues, that’s likely one to avoid.But after that, you should be in the clear. The Dodgers follow that game with a three-game series against the Marlins, who currently own the fifth-worst team FIP in baseball. In that series, they’ll see Darren McCaughan, Edward Cabrera, and Valente Bellozo, and Cabrera is honestly the only one that gives me even the slightest bit of pause.After that, the Dodgers will get three games against the Rockies. Unfortunately, those games will not be in Coors but still, any chance you get to start your hitters against the worst pitching staff in baseball, you take it.Tommy Edman is definitely worth a start this week, as he’s hitting .326/.356/.628 over the past two weeks. And if you just need batting average or OBP, Miguel Rojas owns a .290/.371/.387 slashline over the past two weeks.Chicago Cubs hitters – It’s also a seven-game week for the Cubs this week, starting off with three games against the A’s, who own the 12th-worst team FIP in baseball. In that series, they’ll see Joey Estes, Mitch Spence, and Brady Basso, none of whom scare me (I know Basso has looked good, but he’s not someone I’m actively avoiding just yet).After that, the Cubs will have four games against the Nationals where they’ll see Patrick Corbin, Trevor Williams, MacKenzie Gore, and Jake Irvin. I know Corbin had a nice stretch where he looked pretty good, but he also gave up seven runs to the Pirates on Sunday, so I’m not suddenly avoiding him, nor am I worried about any of the other pitchers they’re slated to face.Michael Busch is worth a look this week, as he’s been sporting a respectable .257/.333/.486 line over the past two weeks that I’d expect will improve this week. Same with Dansby Swanson, who’s hitting .311/.367/.511 over the past two weeks.Atlanta hitters – Atlanta gets a seven-game week this week, starting off with the one game against the Dodgers I mentioned earlier that finishes out a weekend series. They’ll see Yoshinobu Yamamoto in that game, and normally that would be someone to avoid, though it seems the Dodgers are slowly building up Yamamoto’s pitch count with each game to get him ready for the playoffs, meaning he might not pitch too deep into this game, so you could be alright.After that, Atlanta will get a three-game series against the Reds, who currently own the ninth-worst team FIP in baseball, and then they’ll get three games against the Marlins who, as I mentioned earlier, have the fifth-worst team FIP in the league.Here’s who Atlanta is slated to face after they have that one game against the Dodgers: Brandon Williamson, Jakob Junis, Julian Aguiar, Adam Oller, and Darren McCaughan (unsure who’s going to start between Oller and McCaughan for the Marlins at this point as Miami’s been rolling with a four-man rotation lately). None of those worry me at all.Jared Kelenic could provide some value if you need some power this week, as he owns a .316 ISO over the past two weeks, same with Jorge Soler who has a .176 ISO over the same time period (and a .342 OBP, which could be helpful in OBP leagues).AVOIDCincinnati Reds hitters – The Reds have six games this week and are slated to have some pretty tough matchups.They start the week off with three games against Atlanta, who currently owns the best team FIP in all of baseball right now. In that series, they’ll see Ian Anderson, Spencer Schwellenbach, and Chris Sale, and while Anderson doesn’t worry me (so feel free to start your Reds hitters against him in daily leagues), Schwellenbach and Sale do.After that, the Reds will get three games against the Pirates where they’ll see Mitch Keller, Paul Skenes, and Jared Jones, all three of whom could prove pretty tough, making this a week to avoid for your Reds hitters.Baltimore Orioles hitters – The Orioles get six games this week, starting with three against the Giants, who currently own the eighth-best team FIP in baseball. In that series, they’ll face off against Blake Snell, Hayden Birdsong, and Logan Webb. Birdsong doesn’t worry me too much (though he’s certainly had his moments) but Snell and Webb do.After that, the O’s will have three games against the Tigers, who currently own the second-best team FIP in the league and nearly pitched a perfect game against the Orioles on Friday. The Orioles do miss Tarik Skubal in that series, but given how well the Tigers have been pitching as a team and how much they absolutely owned the Orioles on Friday, it’s likely to be a tough series and a tough week for what’s been a pretty cold O’s offense lately.Kansas City Royals hitters – The Royals have basically the opposite schedule of the Orioles, and if the Orioles are an avoid this week, that means the Royals are too.They start their week off with three games against the Tigers who, as I mentioned earlier, have the second-best team FIP in baseball. In that series, the Royals will have the pleasure of facing Tarik Skubal, which is always tough for your hitters.After that, the Royals get three games against the Giants who, as I said in the Orioles entry, have the eighth-best team FIP in the league. In that series, they’ll see Mason Black, Landen Roupp, and Blake Snell. I’m not worried about Black, but Snell is obviously a concern and Roupp has actually looked pretty decent when he’s been out there.All in all, it’s slated to be a tough week for your Royals hitters and one that I don’t think you’ll be able to squeeze a ton of value out of.Texas Rangers hitters – The Rangers have six games this week, starting off with three games against the Blue Jays where they’ll see Chris Bassitt, Bowden Francis, and Kevin Gausman. Bassitt doesn’t worry me but Francis has looked awesome lately (almost throwing two no-hitters) and Gausman has looked really solid lately, giving up more than two earned runs just once in his last seven starts (and that was three runs against Atlanta, so not even that bad of a game).After that, the Rangers will have three games against the Mariners, who own the third-best team FIP in baseball. There, they’ll face off against Logan Gilbert, George Kirby, and Bryan Woo, all of whom concern me, making this a tough week to start your Rangers hitters.</div></body>

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Hitters to Start and Avoid in Week 25 (9/16-9/22)

If you’re unfamiliar with this series, each week I take a look at some hitting matchups you should take advantage of and some hitting matchups you should avoid, based on who the hitters will likely be facing on the mound. I’ll also be focusing on catchers you can stream each week since we all know that catcher can be an especially tricky position in fantasy.

Hitters to Start and Avoid in Week 25 (9/16-9/22)

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