Milwaukee Brewers Junior Guerra: Deep Waiver Wire Add

By Brad Kelly | Jul 4, 2016

Jul 4, 2016; Washington, DC, USA; Milwaukee Brewers starting pitcher Junior Guerra (41) throws to the Washington Nationals during the first inning at Nationals Park. Mandatory Credit: Brad Mills-USA TODAY Sports /

Junior Guerra has been a pleasant surprise for the Milwaukee Brewers this season and has been great since added to the rotation. Should fantasy owners now give him a closer look off the waiver wire?

One of the greatest perks of watching or following sports is the incredible journeys that some players have taken in order to get to the highest level of their profession. The Milwaukee Brewers certainly entered 2016 knowing that they were in the midst of a rebuild, but they have their fair share of intriguing players, such as, Junior Guerra.

The 31-year-old Venezuelan rookie pitcher is the definition of a journeymen, pitching in six different independent ball leagues before making it to the majors. He made his debut in 2015 with the Chicago White Sox, after posting a 3.13 ERA between AA and AAA, but struggled mightily when called out of the bullpen in his first taste of the majors.

Guerra eventually found himself with the Brewers this season, and thanks to their desperation to find quality innings wherever they could, he was once again called upon. He has done nothing but surprise over his 12 starts, and after a solid month of June, it is time to take his success seriously.

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Junior Guerra’s seasonal line, 6 W/2.91 ERA/67 K/1.02 WHIP, is better than anyone could have imagined. He is by no means a flamethrower, but he has a 7.8 SO/9 that offers fantasy owners plenty of value. On July 4 he was brilliant again versus the Washington Nationals, shutting them out over seven innings while striking out seven as well. Outside of his 11 K performance in May versus the Dodgers, his most recent outing was easily his best start of the season.

Guerra’s fastball tops out around 93 mph, and he has a decent mid 80s slider. But, his bread and butter, is an absolutely devastating splitter that has warranted an over 40% swing rate, and has held opposing batters to under a .150 AVG. That one pitch has literally revived his career, and it serves as a tangible source of evidence for fantasy owners to believe in.

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After shutting down the Nationals and Dodgers during his last two starts, Junior Guerra has not given up a run in over 15 innings. He faces another tough test in the Cardinals for his next start this weekend, but it is hard to find a hotter pitcher right now. He also has the added perk of being RP eligible, offering fantasy owners another way to take advantage of his success this season. Make the move now and add him to the back-end of a fantasy rotation while he has everything working.

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