Danny Salazar: Streaming Pitcher for April 18
By Bill Pivetz
Sep 23, 2014; Cleveland, OH, USA; Cleveland Indians starting pitcher Danny Salazar (31) delivers a pitch in the first inning against the Kansas City Royals at Progressive Field. Mandatory Credit: David Richard-USA TODAY Sports
Changes are being made in the Cleveland Indians rotation. After a poor first start from Zach McAllister, the team recalled Danny Salazar from Triple-A and make his first start on Saturday. Against the poor Minnesota Twins offense, use Salazar as a low-end streaming option.
In his first start, McAllister lasted just four innings giving up 13 hits and five earned runs while striking out five. He was then moved to the bullpen where the shorter outings could benefit the team in the long run. Salazar pitched poorly in the spring, but improved in his first Triple-A start, six shutout innings and struck out seven batters.
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Salazar has some major-league experience. He made 30 starts between 2013 and 2014. In those starts, he has a 8-11 record, 3.89 ERA (4.25 ERA last season), 1.302 WHIP, 10.3 K/9 and 2.8 BB/9.
He made huge improvements in the second half of the 2014 season, From July to the end of the season, he went 5-4 with a 3.50 ERA and .255 opposing batting average. If he can perform like he did here, then Salazar could be worth holding onto for the rest of the season.
Salazar’s first start is one to take advantage of. The Twins are not a threatening offense. The team is 25th in batting average, 28th in on-base percentage and last in slugging. If Salazar can keep control and blow his fastball by batters, he could be the best pitcher on the mound Saturday.
He is owned in just 42.7 percent of ESPN.com leagues, so he is widely available to stream. Streaming is a big risk to take, especially this early in the season. However, with Week 2 coming to a close, if you need to make a surge in the pitching categories, Salazar should be your No. 1 streaming target.