Bubba Chandler flashes signs of a fantasy baseball turnaround

Bubba Chandler finally gave fantasy managers something better than a headache.

The Pirates starter, one of the more frustrating fantasy arms of the season, entered Wednesday’s outing against the Yankees with a 4.77 ERA, according to CBS Sports’ Chris Towers. Then he delivered 6.1 quiet innings, with Towers noting that Chandler allowed just two batted balls and walked one hitter.

For a pitcher whose season has been dragged down by walks and too few missed bats, that mattered. Towers wrote that Chandler threw strikes on 68% of his pitches and posted a 50% overall zone rate. His slider was in the zone 70% of the time.

The shape of that slider also caught attention. Towers reported that Chandler threw it 1.7 mph harder than usual, while his four-seamer was roughly stable at 0.4 mph above his average and his changeup was down 1.1 mph. The slider also had four fewer inches of drop, pushing it closer to cutter territory in Towers’ analysis.

That change may not make Chandler a strikeout machine overnight. Towers said the tradeoff could still be worthwhile if the pitch helps Chandler get ahead and trim the free passes that have wrecked so many of his starts.

The fantasy verdict was cautious. Towers said Chandler is not yet a reliable fantasy starter and should not jump ahead of waiver options such as Cade Cavalli, Landen Roupp, Griffin Jax or Logan Henderson in shallower leagues. Still, he wrote that few pitchers can match Chandler’s upside if the fixes stick.

Other risers on the fantasy board

Max Fried also made noise in that Yankees-Pirates matchup, returning from an elbow injury with five scoreless innings, one hit, one walk and seven strikeouts on 57 pitches, according to Towers. His four-seam fastball averaged 96.2 mph, 1.5 mph above his season mark and his best velocity in a start since last season.

Chandler Simpson stayed hot, too. Towers reported that Simpson has hit .380 with 12 steals over his past 25 games after going 1 for 2 with two steals Wednesday. Towers said Simpson’s fantasy value remains much stronger in roto formats than points leagues because so much of his production comes from batting average and stolen bases.

Jeremy Pena was another climber. He homered for a third straight game Wednesday during a 3-for-4 performance, lifting his season line to .302 with nine homers and eight steals in 56 games, according to Towers. That pace has him looking like a top-12 fantasy shortstop in Towers’ view.

Waiver names and warning signs

On the waiver wire, Towers highlighted Nationals shortstop Nasim Nunez, Dodgers infielder Tommy Edman, Twins outfielder Trevor Larnach and Cardinals pitcher Hunter Dobbins. Nunez has hit .345 with 15 steals over 39 games since the start of June, while Edman is batting .360 with two homers, 16 runs, 17 RBI and two steals in 28 games since debuting, according to Towers.

Larnach has hit .376 with five homers and 38 combined runs and RBI over his past 26 games, though Towers noted his platoon role limits him. Dobbins worked six scoreless innings against the Angels with five strikeouts, giving him a 3.18 ERA and 3.67 FIP across six appearances.

The down arrows were just as blunt. Towers flagged Munetaka Murakami’s rough return from a hamstring injury, a nine-game stretch since July 10 in which he is hitting .167/.359/.267 with one homer and a 38% strikeout rate. He also said Gage Jump can be dropped in many leagues after giving up six runs and three homers over 4.2 innings in Arizona.

Bailey Ober also landed in Towers’ danger zone after allowing four runs in four innings Wednesday. Towers said Ober’s roster rate in 64% of CBS Fantasy leagues is too high given his reduced velocity and limited recent fantasy impact.

Gerrit Cole offered a brighter closing note. Towers wrote that Cole struck out 11 over seven innings against the Pirates, producing 21 swinging strikes and his highest strikeout total in a start since Aug. 25, 2023.

This story draws on original reporting from CBS Sports.