Fantasy baseball: 2020 Houston Astros fantasy preview

2020 Houston Astros projected starting rotation

Justin Verlander, RHP (21-6, 2.58 ERA, 0.80 WHIP, 300 K in 223 IP)
Lance McCullers Jr., RHP (10-6, 3.86 ERA, 1.17 WHIP, 142 K in 128.1 IP)
Zack Greinke, RHP (18-5, 2.93 ERA, 0.99 WHIP, 187 K in 208.2 IP with ARI/HOU)
Jose Urquidy, RHP (2-1, 3,95 ERA, 1.10 WHIP, 40 K in 41 IP)
Josh James, RHP (5-1, 4.70 ERA, 1.32 WHIP, 100 K in 61.1 IP)
Roberto Osuna, RHP (4-3, 2.63 ERA, 0.88 WHIP, 73 K in 65 IP, 38/44 saves)

Verlander’s dominance was all the more impressive considering he was 36 years old last season. That ridiculous WHIP makes him even more valuable. In fact, 2017 was the only season out of the last five that Verlander had a WHIP over 1. Will he regress? Maybe, but it’s hard to bank on it considering what he’s done in a Houston uniform (42-15, 2.45 ERA, 0.84 WHIP, 633 K in 471 IP spanning 73 starts).

The order of Greinke and McCullers doesn’t matter much for their draft stock. I prefer Greinke’s rock-solid WHIP and better track record, but McCullers will have more strikeouts. Still. Greinke was 8-1 with Houston after the trade last year with the ERA just a touch higher. I’d be happy with him as my second starter.

I see McCullers as more of a middle of my fantasy rotation guy until he gets his ERA back in the low 3’s. The WHIP is also much higher than Verlander or Grienke and many others on his same tier. Are the strikeouts worth it?

The Astros haven’t disclosed Urquidy’s injury yet either. He has nice upside, but don’t go crazy spending on him. He’ll likely start ten games or less this season. Framber Valdez will fill in with Urquidy out, and there’s a great chance that he doesn’t relinquish the position. I think I prefer Valdez over Urquidy and James right now.

James’s ridiculous K rate isn’t going to translate into his role as a starter. He is probably the least likely to remain in the rotation with all of the good pitchers on the way to the majors, but be prepared to pounce if he starts hot.

Osuna quietly had a nice year for the Astros last year. His ERA is a touch high and his K rate is a touch low for an elite closer, but he’s close to that tier. This is especially true when you consider the number of save chances he’ll get.

Prospects to watch:

Forrest Whitley flew through the minors. He did struggle in his time at AAA Round Rock last year, but his ceiling is high enough to save a slot for him if he makes the roster.

Bryan Abreu’s stuff is nasty, as shown by his 13 strikeouts in 8.2 major league innings last September. He’ll be a force out of the bullpen that can help your ratios even if he doesn’t crack the rotation.

There are only five 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!