RESOLVING THE LEDGER
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See the full story · 1 sourcesHello and welcome to the 19th installment of our weekly two-start pitcher article for the 2026 MLB season.
I will continue to be here every Friday to highlight some of the best two-start pitcher options in fantasy baseball leagues for the upcoming week providing my insights and recommendations on which options should be started or benched.
With each passing week, I’m getting more emotional thinking about the fact that there may not be a full season in 2026 due to the uncertainty surrounding the labor dispute between Major League Baseball and the Player’s Association. I’m really trying to take time to appreciate each day that we have baseball and the joy that it’s able to bring me.
As fantasy managers have turned their full attention to football, there are opportunities to creep up in the standings where others aren’t giving their teams the full attention that they still deserve. Keep putting in the work and plugging away, striving to improve each week, and you’ll reap rewards at the end of this season.
This is a living document, so we'll update the options below as the weekend moves along.
Before we get into it, we'll start with a couple of notes on situations that may be unresolved or teams that may not have a two-start pitcher lined up for the upcoming week. With teams still trying to get their rotations lined up for the second half, there’s more uncertainty than usual for a Friday afternoon:
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As things currently stand, with the additions of Clay Holmes and Kevin Gausman to their starting rotation, the Cubs appear to be rolling with a six-man alignment for the time being. It’s possible that David Peterson or Javier Assad get bumped to the bullpen, but that has yet to be confirmed. That means with six games on tap for next week, none of their hurlers are currently lined up to make two starts. Assad is set to pitch on Tuesday and he would go twice (at Nationals, vs. Cardinals) if Peterson were to be shifted to the bullpen, and would make for a solid streaming option. If Assad gets pushed to the bullpen, it would be Shota Imanaga getting the two-start assignment. We’ll update here if we gain any additional clarity throughout the weekend.
The Giants have yet to announce a starter for Monday, so we don’t know who (if anyone) will make two starts for them next week (vs. Astros, vs. Rockies). Blake Tidwell got the call last time and went five strong innings against the Rangers. If he gets another opportunity, he could be worth a look as a deep league streaming option, especially for the home tilt against the Rockies over the weekend. If we get clarification or if anything changes over the weekend, we’ll update here.
Someone on the Blue Jays is likely to make two starts next week in place of the injured Trey Yesavage , we just aren’t sure exactly who that will be just yet. Whoever gets the assignment will face a very tough draw with matchups against the red hot Red Sox and the Yankees. Once we get clarity on the situation we’ll provide an update here, but it’s unlikely that any of them will relevant for fantasy purposes.
Going Twice…
Note: Probable pitchers as of August 7 and are subject to change.
American League
▶ Strong Plays
Sonny Gray , Red Sox, RHP (at Blue Jays, at Pirates)
Gray has been absolutely incredible in his first season with the Red Sox, posting a 14-2 record, 2.78 ERA, 1.15 WHIP and a 106/32 K/BB ratio across 119 2/3 innings through his first 21 starts. He has been the ace atop the pitching staff that has helped to fuel the club’s ridiculous 31-5 run over their last 36 games. Gray hasn’t allowed more than five runs in a start this season and has allowed more than three runs just three times. He should be locked into fantasy lineups each and every week, so there’s no inflection point or decision to make here. Just sit back and enjoy double the production from one of the best pitchers in baseball.
Trevor Rogers , Orioles, LHP (at Twins, at Rays)
Rogers has had a very polarizing season for the Orioles and for fantasy managers. He started strong, with a 1.89 ERA across his first three starts. Then he went through a terrible stretch where he held a cringe-inducing 10.01 ERA (6.30 xFIP) across 29 2/3 innings over his next seven starts. Most fantasy managers completely wrote him off at that point. Since then? He’s back to dominating with a 2.28 ERA, 1.00 WHIP and a 60/14 K/BB ratio over 67 innings since the start of June. Continue to ride the hot hand here. Rogers makes for an excellent play in all league formats for this two-start week.
Sean Burke , White Sox, RHP (vs. Reds, at Tigers)
Burke has been fantastic through his first 23 appearances (19 starts) for the White Sox this season, registering a 3.08 ERA, 1.12 WHIP and a 144/39 K/BB ratio across 128 2/3 innings of work. He has also pitched extremely well recently, as he hasn’t given up more than two earned runs in a start since June 13. The Reds and Tigers offenses have both been swinging the bat well lately, but that’s not enough to sway us from using Burke in a two-start week. He should be started in all leagues without question.
Tanner Bibee , Guardians, RHP (at Tigers, vs. Padres)
Despite tallying just four victories on the season, Bibee has actually pitched pretty well for the Guardians, compiling a 3.85 ERA, 1.13 WHIP and a 110/38 K/BB ratio over 138 innings. They’re in the thick of the Wild Card race in the American league and he’ll have to battle a pair of other contending teams this week, which should lead to increased focus and positive results for the 27-year-old right-hander. He looks like an easy start in all league sizes this week.
Reid Detmers , Angels, LHP (vs. Rangers, v...
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