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          Fantasy baseball Wednesday advice: Cody Bradford emerges in Texas

          Cody Bradford's success this season does not appear to have been an illusion. AP
          • Mike Sheets
          Sep 24, 2024, 05:49 PM

          Look for our fantasy baseball starting pitcher rankings, hitter upgrades and downgrades daily to help you make smart fantasy baseball lineup decisions and for MLB betting tips. MLB game odds are provided by ESPN BET, and fantasy advice is geared toward ESPN 10-team leagues with standard scoring.

          Note: This file will be updated with any overnight pitching changes or weather-related game postponements, along with the addition of the latest MLB game odds as of the indicated time of publication

          Home on the Rangers

          The 2024 season has been a disappointing one for the Texas Rangers, last season's World Series champs. Currently sitting eight games below .500, the Rangers have been eliminated from playoff contention, having lost six of their past eight. Amid the frustrating campaign, one of the team's few bright spots has been the emergence of left-hander Cody Bradford.

          Over the past two months, Bradford has been the Rangers' most-valuable pitcher, posting a 3.40 ERA and an 0.94 WHIP across his eight starts. The lone misstep came in a blowup outing (8 ER in 3⅔ IP) against the Arizona Diamondbacks, the best-hitting team in baseball since the All-Star break with a 133 wRC+ (the San Diego Padres are next at 121). Take away that one unfortunate outing and Bradford managed a 2.05 ERA and an 0.82 WHIP over his other seven starts.

          Bradford doesn't throw particularly hard and has struck out less than one batter per inning this season (8.2 K/9), so don't confuse him for a future ace. However, he features a terrific changeup, excellent command and elite extension that helps his fastball play up.

          Bradford's final start of the season comes Wednesday against the Oakland Athletics, who have a 90 wRC+ in September and a 26.6% strikeout rate, sixth highest in baseball. Available in 72% of ESPN leagues, Bradford is a quality streaming option as he looks to finish the season on a high note.

          Everything else you need to know for Wednesday

          • Nestor Cortes (49% rostered in ESPN leagues) of the New York Yankees has been "lights out" of late, delivering a 1.58 ERA and an 0.90 WHIP over his past seven games (six starts). During that stretch, he has surrendered more than one earned run only once. Facing the Baltimore Orioles on Wednesday might seem daunting, but it's worth noting that Baltimore's offense has struggled over the past month, producing a below-average 91 wRC+ with a 24.2% strikeout rate, the 10th-highest in baseball.

          • Zack Littell of the Tampa Bay Rays has been on a similar hot streak, posting a 1.41 ERA and an 0.85 WHIP over his past eight starts -- although he did miss some time due to a little shoulder fatigue, but he has shown no lingering effects. Despite his strong performance, he continues to fly under the radar, as evidenced by his 12% roster percentage. On Wednesday, Littell faces a highly motivated Detroit Tigers team that is fighting for a wild-card spot. Even so, the Tigers have been below-average (97 wRC+) against right-handed pitching this season.

          • With the Cincinnati Reds in town, Joey Cantillo (3% rostered) of the Cleveland Guardians has some streaming appeal. For September, the Reds have an 84 wRC+ and a 26% strikeout rate (seventh highest in MLB), while Cantillo has allowed a total of just two earned runs in his last three starts with a combined 22 strikeouts over 16⅓ innings. Take a look if you need strikeout help in your head-to-head matchups.

          • On the flip side of that Reds/Guardians game, we will want to stream Cleveland batters against Cincinnati hurler Julian Aguiar. The right-hander has a 6.25 ERA in his seven starts this year, including two blowup outings of six-plus earned runs allowed. Andres Gimenez (62%), Lane Thomas (44%), Kyle Manzardo (2%), and Jhonkensy Noel (6%) are all in play here.

          Starting pitcher rankings for Wednesday

          Reliever report

          To get the latest information on each team's bullpen hierarchy, as well as which pitchers might be facing a bit of fatigue and who might be the most likely suspects to vulture a save or pick up a surprise hold in their stead, check out the latest Closer Chart, which will be updated every morning.

          Hitting report

          Plan ahead in fantasy baseball with help from our Forecaster projections. Each day, we will provide an updated preview of the next 10 days for every team, projecting the matchup quality for hitters (overall and by handedness) as well as for base stealers.

          Best sub-50% rostered hitters for Wednesday

          Best and worst hitters from the day are generated by THE BAT X, a projection system created by Derek Carty using advanced methods like those used in MLB front offices, accounting for a variety of factors including player talent, ballparks, bullpens, weather, umpires, defense, catcher pitch-framing and lots more.

          Worst over-50% rostered hitters for Wednesday