Parker Messick cracks Week 18 fantasy two-start must-start list
CBS Sports’ Scott White ranks 28 two-start pitchers for Fantasy Week 18, with Jacob Misiorowski at No. 1 and Freddy Peralta in the next tier.
By Deshawn Carter · Sports Writer
3 min read
Parker Messick gets the green light for fantasy managers in Week 18, landing inside CBS Sports writer Scott White’s top tier of two-start pitchers for the July 20-26 scoring period.
White’s weekly two-start rankings, updated as of late Sunday, sort pitchers by how safe they are to use. He also notes that the list involves forecasting, so names and matchups may change.
The top tier starts with Milwaukee
Jacob Misiorowski of Milwaukee sits at No. 1 in White’s “must-start, all formats” group. His scheduled week has home starts against the New York Mets and Colorado Rockies, according to CBS Sports.
Philadelphia’s Cristopher Sanchez follows at No. 2 despite a tough-looking pair of home assignments against the Los Angeles Dodgers and New York Yankees. Minnesota’s Joe Ryan is third, with a road start at Cleveland and a home start against the Athletics.
White rounds out the first five with Tampa Bay’s Drew Rasmussen, who is listed for Toronto and Cleveland, and Toronto’s Dylan Cease, who is scheduled for Tampa Bay and Boston.
The rest of the must-start group keeps the star power coming. Texas right-hander Jacob deGrom is sixth with matchups against the Chicago White Sox and Seattle Mariners. Boston’s Payton Tolle is seventh, followed by Cleveland’s Parker Messick at No. 8.
Messick’s week, per the CBS Sports schedule, includes a home outing against Minnesota and a road start at Tampa Bay. Pittsburgh’s Braxton Ashcraft and Toronto’s Kevin Gausman also make the must-start cut, with Kansas City’s Michael Wacha at No. 11.
Peralta lands in the usable middle
Freddy Peralta is not in White’s highest tier, but he is still listed as “advisable in most cases.” CBS Sports ranks him 16th among the two-start options, with a road matchup at Milwaukee and a home start against the Dodgers.
That second tier begins with Detroit’s Framber Valdez at No. 12, followed by Los Angeles Dodgers pitcher Emmet Sheehan, Tampa Bay’s Nick Martinez, Los Angeles Angels pitcher Jose Soriano, Peralta, Detroit’s Jack Flaherty and New York Yankees pitcher Ryan Weathers.
White’s next bucket is aimed more narrowly at points-league managers. Atlanta’s Reynaldo Lopez opens that group at No. 19, with Cleveland’s Tanner Bibee, Baltimore’s Shane Baz, Cincinnati’s Andrew Abbott, St. Louis’ Kyle Leahy, Kansas City’s Luinder Avila and San Francisco’s Trevor McDonald also included.
The avoid list begins with Taillon
White places Chicago Cubs pitcher Jameson Taillon in the “No thanks” tier at No. 26, with scheduled starts against Detroit and at Pittsburgh. Miami’s Janson Junk is next, lined up for Houston and San Diego.
St. Louis pitcher Matthew Liberatore appears at No. 28 in the same avoid group, with his first listed matchup on the road against the Los Angeles Angels. The CBS Sports table provided for that section is cut off after that entry.
For fantasy managers, the message from White’s rankings is direct: load up the upper tier, treat Peralta’s group as useful but less automatic, and be careful with the bottom names unless a league format rewards volume enough to justify the risk.
This story draws on original reporting from CBS Sports.