Fantasy baseball: 2020 Chicago Cubs fantasy preview

2020 Chicago Cubs projected starting rotation

Yu Darvish, RHP (6-8, 3.98 ERA, 1.10 WHIP, 229 K in 178.2 IP)
Lon Lester, LHP (13-10, 4.46 ERA, 1.50 WHIP, 165 K in 171.2 IP)
Kyle Hendricks, RHP (11-10, 3.46 ERA, 1.13 WHIP, 150 K in 177 IP)
Jose Quintana, LHP (13-9, 4.68 ERA, 1.39 WHIP, 152 K in 171 IP)
Tyler Chatwood, RHP (5-3, 3.76 ERA, 1.33 WHIP, 74 K in 76.2 IP)
Craig Kimbrel, RHP (0-4, 6.53 ERA, 1.60 WHIP, 30 K in 20.2 IP, 13/16 saves)

Darvish isn’t going to get you a lot of wins and the ERA hurts more in the friendly confines, but the elite strikeout rate will keep people coming back. Darvish is not a rotation ace, but I like him a lot in the middle of my rotation. At some point strikeouts are worth the hit to the ERA. The WHIP helps boost his value as well.

Beyond Darvish, there’s not a lot to like. Both Lester and Quintana are powder kegs. They are best left as streaming options on the road. Their strikeout totals aren’t high enough to take a chance with.

Which brings us to Kyle Hendricks. He has long been a fantasy favorite for me. His ERA and WHIP are remarkably consistent and he’s one of the few guys that rarely gets lit up in Wrigley. The strikeouts are low, but he is one of the most reliable fantasy assets out there and many forget about him in the middle rounds.

Kimbrel was a huge disaster from the get go for the Cubs. The silver lining is that there really isn’t anyone to take his job. The Cubs are paying him armloads of money. He’ll be the closer no matter what. What does that mean for us? Kimbrel is a better bounce-back candidate than most because he wont be removed from the role.

Prospects to watch:

Adbert Alzolay struggled with the Cubs in September, but he could get another crack sooner than later. Lester is old, Chatwood pitched in relief most of last year, and Alec Mills isn’t a sure thing either. The bad part is that Alzolay is a fly ball pitcher in Wrigley, and baseball wont start until it’s prime hitting weather in the Friendly Confines.

Cory Abbott is zooming through the minors after formulating a devastating slider. He could jump Alzolay with a good start at AAA Iowa. If he makes the jump, the strikeout potential makes Abbott worth picking up in most leagues.

There are 14 more of these where this came from! Sports may be on hold, but we will have baseball sometime this season. We here at FanSided Fantasy are going to make sure you’re prepared!