Dixon’s Picks: Waiver Wire Additions for the Week of September 10

Welcome back to Dixon’s Picks. If you’re in a head-to-head league, it’s playoff time. If you’re in a roto league, it’s intense. So, I am not going to waste a lot of time with nonsense, let’s take a look at some good names on the waiver wire.

Kyle Kendrick – Philadelphia Phillies

Probable Starts: vs. Miami Marlins, at Houston Astros

There are a few things to point out about Kyle Kendrick here, so let’s take a look at them. First, take a look at his production over the last five starts:

Not bad at all, right? All five were quality starts and while a few were against poor offensive teams, the Reds, Nationals, and Brewers were all included in that run. Another team included in that run was the Marlins, who Kendrick went seven innings against with six strikeouts, only five hits, no walks, and no earned runs. Hard to beat that. 

As for the other start, it’s against the Astros, which is all that really needs to be said. They’re looking right at a 2012 loss total of about 110, so they’re nice to see a pitcher of yours going against. The Marlins have some pop, but they don’t score a lot of runs. Put them and the Astros up against a hot pitcher, and good things will probably happen for said pitcher.

Kendrick’s Projections for the Week

Sam Deduno – Minnesota Twins

Probable Starts: vs. Cleveland Indians, vs. Chicago White Sox

I can’t necessarily show the sexy numbers over the last five starts with Sam Deduno that I did with Kendrick, but he’s been effective. With the exception of a rough outing against the Rangers, all of those have been quality starts, and a few were against good offensive opponents. One of those opponents was the Chicago White Sox, in Chicago. Now for the rematch, they’ll be in a much better pitcher’s environment, Target Field.

In the mean time, the Twins will host one of the worst teams in baseball in the Indians. Deduno is a little more erratic than Kendrick as he does walk a lot of guys, but those runs generally don’t cross the plate, which is what really matters. If you think the White Sox will touch him up a little more this time than they did last time, I get that, but the matchup vs. the Indians is pretty juicy. After that, you can go with your gut over the weekend vs. the White Sox.

Deduno’s Projections for the Week

That’s only two names but while I won’t do a full on projection for these guys, I would like to direct your attention to Dan Straily and Jason Hammel. Straily goes against the Angels in Anaheim and then at home vs. Baltimore, while Hammel is slated to pitch against Tampa early in the week.

The advantage to Hammel is that picking him up would likely set you up for a two-start week next week against the Mariners in Seattle, and then the sideshow known as the Red Sox at Fenway. That’s not traditionally a great stream spot, but the Red Sox are such a mess right now that I wouldn’t really fear a matchup with them. Hammel pitched pretty well in his return from the DL last week, and that was against the Yankees. While New York is a little beaten up, they’re still far more potent than either the Mariners or Red Sox. Now that Hammel is a little more acclimated into action, I would expect strong production.

As for Straily, he’s been a solid pitcher all year. In Triple A, his ERA was barely above 2.00 and in his time in the majors, he’s been at 3.18. That number is really exceptional, as he’s only had three starts and one of them was far from spectacular.

As for the bad, that one rough start was against the Angels, who he faces on Tuesday. As if that wasn’t enough, the Angels are riding a bit of a hot streak now and swept the A’s last week. So, you might think about leaving Straily on the bench during the week, and then starting him over the weekend. If you’re looking for two pretty good percentage plays, go with Hammel during the week and Straily over the weekend.