Waiver Wire Rotation Help

Jul 7, 2014; Phoenix, AZ, USA; Arizona Diamondbacks pitcher

throws in the first inning against the Miami Marlins at Chase Field. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports

As we get further and further into the 2015 season, all fantasy owners are now beginning to get a feel if their fantasy teams are legit or not. Whether we are in first or last, our teams can always use waiver wire upgrades to either solidify or retool our squads for the rest of the season.

This brings me to two SP, who for some reason, have quietly flown under the radar yet are having great starts on a near weekly basis. The good news for most fantasy owners though, is that they are still widely available in almost all of our leagues.

Chase Anderson and Kyle Gibson are the two quiet rotation studs that fantasy owners should scoop up. Now, I know that fantasy owners tend to stigmatize D’Backs and Twins pitchers as usually guys we would never touch, but these two guys early season success is hard to ignore for even the most pessimistic owners.

Anderson has been probably the most consistent and effective SP on the D’Backs this season. He has done a great job early on of showing signs that he could be taking the next step in his development as a pitcher.

He did start 21 games last year posting a 9-7 record, 105 K’s, with a 4.01 ERA as well. Those are mediocre numbers fantasy wise, but it speaks to Anderson’s current run possibly being more than just a fluke.

He currently sits with a 1-1 record, 38 K’s, and a 2.59 ERA. While his record is a direct reflection of his team, Anderson individually has been rock solid. I also like that his 3.16 FIP shows that he has not just been getting lucky each start either.

Over his last 5 starts, including yesterday, he has not given up more than 2 runs and has averaged 6 IP per start. He will not wow with high K numbers, but his consistency and ability to limit damage makes him a great back-end rotation upgrade.

Like Anderson, Gibson is another intriguing SP that has shown signs of dominance early on this season. Gibson was the Twins 1^st round pick in 2009 and since then a lot of pressure has been on him to develop into the front line ace that the Twins desperately covet.

Early on his career it seemed as though he was going to more hype than anything else, but this season he has exhibited the SP1 traits that the Twins thought they had with taking him.

For me the Gibson’s success is directly correlated with the Twins solid start and if we look at his numbers we see why. Since Gibson’s first start where he was rattled for 6 runs against Detroit, Gibson has fired off 8 starts where he has not given up more than 3 runs!

Gibson has certainly figured something out, and I think his change to a more pitch to contact approach has been the key for him to limit rough innings and stay deeper into ballgames.

Like Anderson though, Gibson’s K’s numbers leave a lot to desire, but on Sunday against the White Sox he did strike out 8 showing that the swing and miss stuff is there.

Hopefully, I have quelled some of the apprehension and allowed you to buy in on these guys as cheap and effective rotation upgrades.