There's no replacement for a high-end hurler, of course, but if you're looking to stream pitchers, you've come to the right place. Scott White has 10 recommendations for the upcoming scoring period, all rostered in no more than 80 percent of CBS Sports leagues. Most likely, they're the best you'll find off the waiver wire.
- Week 26: Sleeper hitters | Two-start pitchers
All information is up to date as of Sunday afternoon.
Sleeper pitchers for Week 26 (Sept. 18-24)
In a year's time, Pepiot has gone from having a major control problem to walking basically no one, and it's not like he's become more hittable as a result. He's in line for two terrific matchups this week against the Tigers and Giants.
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It's unclear whether Cabrera will start or follow an opener, but regardless, he gets two turns this week against bad offenses (Mets and Brewers). It's a recipe for a ton of strikeouts, provided he can keep the walks under control.
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Lugo had a rare misstep at the Astros two turns ago but bounced back nicely against the Athletics over the weekend. He'll welcome the Rockies to San Diego this week after having allowed two earned runs or fewer in 10 of his past 14 starts.
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Three of Clevinger's past four starts have been nothing short of dominant, combining for a 1.35 ERA, 0.60 WHIP and 10.8 K/9, but the other was an eight-run, 12-hit disaster. His two turns this week help mitigate the risk, particularly since one is against the Nationals, so he's at least worth looking into in points leagues.
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Woo has been plenty effective in four starts back from a minor forearm injury and gets two matchups this week, the first being against the Athletics' 30th-ranked offense. Because the second is against the Rangers, though, you might think twice about using him in categories leagues.
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Assad has come back down to earth in recent starts, but he's shown he can limit damage against the right opponent. He has two such opponents this week, scheduled to face the Pirates and Rockies, both in Chicago.
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Allen hasn't been the most reliable option and generally doesn't work deep into games even when he's pitching well. But he'll get two chances to secure you a win this week, the most promising being against the Royals' bottom-feeder offense.
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Sanchez more than held his own against the Braves last time out, setting a career high for strikeouts and innings, which is why you shouldn't necessarily shy away from him with the Braves again on the schedule, this time in a two-start week. The bigger risk to Sanchez is that he may piggyback with Michael Lorenzen moving forward, which could prevent him from going deep enough to get a win.
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Blackburn has emerged as a fairly reliable option for a bad Athletics team by serving up weak contact. If you're looking to max out volume in a points league, his matchups this week (Mariners, Tigers) are favorable enough to take a shot on him.
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Sears was the Athletics' most reliable starter earlier this season and appears to have gotten back on track with a 1.59 ERA in three September starts. As with Paul Blackburn, it doesn't make sense to roll the dice on him unless you're selling out for volume, but it's a reasonable strategy given the favorable matchups this week.
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