Adam's Weekly Baseball Forecast: Week of May 23rd

Introduction: Welcome back, as I hope you all are doing well! Another week of baseball has come and gone, which means it is time for yet another weekly forecast. Now almost through the month of May and headed into week 7 of the season, the All-Star break does not seem that far off at all! As always, my two-start pitchers article will be included as well as hitters and pitchers who have performed well this past week. At the end, my "Reliever Report" will round out this week's forecast. With that being said, let's roll!

Two-Start Pitchers:

A "Two-Start" Pitcher is simply a starting pitcher who starts twice in a week. They can be very significant for those who play fantasy baseball, as well as to the real life team that the pitcher plays for. Getting a possible two wins out of one guy during one week can be huge! The following are the majority of two-start pitchers for this week, as I have put them into tiers to make it easier to understand. Also, I have added in their opponent and the date they are scheduled to pitch this week.

Must-Starts:

Gerrit Cole: 5/23 vs. BAL, 5/28 @TB

Corbin Burnes: 5/24 @SD, 5/29 @STL

Walker Buehler: 5/24 @WAS, 5/29 @ARI

Zack Wheeler: 5/23 @ATL, 5/28 @NYM

Max Fried: 5/24 vs. PHI, 5/29 vs. NYM

Shane McClanahan: 5/24 vs. MIA, 5/29

Solid Starts:

Jose Berrios: 5/23 @STL, 5/29 @LAA

Miles Mikolas: 5/23 vs. TOR, 5/29 vs. MIL

Luis Garcia: 5/23 vs. CLE, 5/29 @SEA

Tyler Anderson: 5/23 @WAS, 5/28 @ARI

Sonny Gray: 5/24 vs. DET, 5/29 vs. KC

Questionable Starts:

Josiah Gray: 5/24 vs. LAD, 5/29 vs. COL

Alex Cobb: 5/23 vs. NYM, 5/29 @CIN

Triston McKenzie: 5/23 @DET, 5/29 @HOU

Tyler Mahle: 5/24 vs. CHC, 5/29 vs. SF

Kyle Freeland: 5/24 @PIT, 5/29 @WAS

Marco Gonzales: 5/23 vs. OAK, 5/29 vs. HOU

Kyle Gibson: 5/24 @ATL, 5/29 @NYM

Hitters: The following hitters have either had a great last seven days or I expect them to have a great week ahead.

MJ Melendez: Kansas City Royals: C

Melendez is the new kid on the block so to speak among catchers. With Salvador Perez currently out with a sprained thumb, Melendez has stepped up to the plate, literally, and has produced power numbers in a small sample size of at-bats. Belting two home runs against the White Sox in back-to-back games this past week, MJ's fantasy stock has also risen as a result.

Personally, I have picked up Melendez in one of my leagues as a replacement for Willson Contreras who left Saturday's game against the D-Backs with hamstring tightness, as I would hate not to have a replacement just in case Contreras misses a couple of games this week.

To me, the catcher position is like the tight end position in fantasy football, there are a handful of good ones and then it seems to fall off a cliff. The same applies here as I am willing to give the 23 year-old backstop a shot in Contreras' absence, as I do not think it will hurt given MJ's power potential and overall upside from the left-handed side of the batter's box.

Josh Rojas: Arizona Diamondbacks: OF

Rojas hit three home runs this past Friday against the Cubs and the whole fantasy community seemed to be all over him after one game... imagine that! Rojas was considered day-to-day last weekend, but he can provide numbers in all five major categories and is worth a pickup if you are in need of a replacement for the time being. Given his position flexibility, he can be placed almost anywhere in the infield, which even adds more value to his name.

Christian Walker: Arizona Diamondbacks: 1B

Do not let the .199 batting average fool you when it comes to Walker. Already with 10 home runs on the season, Christian can provide solid power numbers for a struggling and rebuilding D-Backs team. Walker is worth a look in deeper leagues, as he is owned in only 30 percent of Yahoo fantasy leagues.

Mike Yastrzemski: San Francisco Giants: OF

Mike has had a great year so far, hitting just above .300 with three home runs and 13 RBI as well. Entering this week on a six-game hit streak and a weekend series against the struggling Reds, Yastrzemski is in a favorable spot to do some more damage this week.

Other Hitters to Consider:

Nolan Gorman: St. Louis Cardinals: 2B

Tyler Naquin: Cincinnati Reds: OF

Starting Pitchers: Similar to the hitters above, the following starting pitchers have either had a great last week or have a favorable matchup upcoming this week.

George Kirby: Seattle Mariners:

Although Kirby did not have a great last start against Boston at Fenway Park, I predict that he will bounce back this week at home in Seattle against a much easier Oakland lineup. Kirby only has a handful of starts behind him in his MLB career, but playing him against one of the weaker teams in the league is worth the risk.

Bailey Ober: Minnesota Twins:

Making his return on Sunday after missing almost a month due to injury, Bailey had a good outing in which he only gave up one run over five innings. Ober draws the Royals once again at home over the weekend, as another favorable matchup seems to be in the works here, as it seems Kansas City has a lot of young talent in their lineup at the moment. Run support should most likely be there for Ober as the Twins are a solid offensive team led by Byron Buxton and Carlos Correa. Ober's opponent is Brad Keller who has been somewhat solid in his own right, as he is considered as the Royals ace.

Jeffrey Springs: Tampa Bay Rays:

Springs is an interesting one here, simply because his ERA currently sits at the 1.32 mark, but yet he goes up against the Yankees this week. Jeffrey looked dominant in his last outing against Baltimore, but then again it was the Orioles... Nevertheless, I feel like there are better options than Springs this week given his tough matchup.

Zach Eflin: Philadelphia Phillies: 5/27 @NYM

Striking out 12 against the Dodgers over seven innings on Sunday, Eflin deservers more attention than he currently is receiving. Almost averaging a strikeout an inning (35 SO in 37 IP), Eflin draws a tough opponent once again this weekend in the form of the New York Mets. Given that he was dominant against a loaded Los Angeles lineup he gives me a bit more confidence here to play him if you are in need of a starting pitcher this week.

Other Starting Pitchers to Consider:

Chad Khul: Colorado Rockies: 5/23 @PIT

Cristian Javier: Houston Astros: 5/25 vs. CLE

Reliever Report:

Aroldis Chapman: New York Yankees:

Chapman seems to have almost lost his role as the Yankees closer, as Clay Holmes looks to take over full time in the near future. An ERA of 3.86 is not great for a guy who was considered one of the league's top closers at the beginning of the season. Aroldis is also day-to-day with Achilles soreness which should at least give Holmes the closers role for this week and most likely beyond as he has been great so far in the ninth inning.

Final Thoughts:

I hope you all have enjoyed reading my weekly baseball forecast! As always, this week should bring even more excitement than last week, as it is a great week for two-start pitchers. More importantly though, the season seems to be in full swing as players seem to be hitting their stride and getting into a rhythm!

See you at the Ballpark!!!

Adam