Quickly jump to any page for specific intelProjected starting pitchers for the next 10 days Hitter matchup ratings for the next 10 days Week 24 hitting ratings Week 24 overall pitcher rankings and two-start pitcher rankings
The penultimate week of the 2021 fantasy baseball season -- and first of the two-week championship matchups in ESPN's standard head-to-head leagues -- includes a good share of makeup baseball, three rescheduled games, to be exact, loading the schedule for Cleveland, Chicago White Sox and St. Louis Cardinals. Cleveland enjoys a rare nine-game week, and all nine of those games will be played at home, at Progressive Field. That's the result of a Monday doubleheader against the Kansas City Royals, with one game making up their July 11 postponement, and a Thursday doubleheader against the White Sox, with one game making up their June 2 postponement. The added games don't tilt Cleveland's' matchups steeply in their favor, however, as since Aug. 1, both the Royals' and White Sox's pitching staffs have better-than-league-average ERAs (Royals 4.15, 13th; White Sox 4.15, 14th; MLB average 4.37), the White Sox's offense has averaged an 11th-best 4.90 runs per game and the Royals' 4.56 runs-per-game average is just beneath the league's 4.67 average in that time. Cleveland's offense has also struggled at times this year, having been no-hit a record three times. For their lineup, go with the usual starters, while keeping an eye on Amed Rosario's potential return from bereavement leave. On the pitching side, Cal Quantrill (29.6% available), who has five wins, nine quality starts and a 1.79 ERA in 12 second-half starts, should be in every fantasy lineup, especially with the chance that the team could grant Quantrill a two-start week (as projected in the column).
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