Fantasy baseball lineup advice for Saturday: Should you trust Scherzer at Arizona?

ESPN FantasyApr 17, 2026, 04:29 PM ET
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Check out all of our starting pitcher rankings and other lineup selection tools here to help you make smart fantasy baseball lineup decisions. All fantasy advice is geared toward ESPN 10-team leagues with standard scoring.

Note: All information is accurate as of the time of publication. For updates, as well as any breaking news that might impact today's MLB slate, be sure to check out the latest fantasy baseball buzz.

Other resources: RP depth chart | Start new league
ESPN's 2026 Draft Guide | Betting notes for Saturday

STARTING PITCHERS FOR SATURDAY

Pitchers are ranked in order of their Forecaster/Daily Notes projected fantasy points (FPTS), using ESPN's standard scoring system (2 points per win, minus-2 per loss, 3 per inning, 1 per K, minus-1 apiece per hit or walk allowed, minus-2 per earned run allowed).

T: The pitcher's handedness. OPP: Opposing team. RST%: The pitcher's roster percentage in ESPN leagues. W%: The individual starting pitcher's win probability using ESPN projections. IP: Projected innings pitched. H+BB: Projected hits plus walks allowed. ER: Projected earned runs allowed. K: Projected strikeouts.

If a team is planning on using an "opener" to start their game, but will rely on a "bulk pitcher" to follow him on the mound after 1-2 innings, the bulk pitcher is listed and indicated with an asterisk.

FPTS	Pitcher	T	Opp	Rst%	W%	IP	H+BB	ER	K
13.6	Chris Sale	L	@PHI	99.2%	34%	5.9	6.7	2.2	7.2
13.0	Cristopher Sanchez	L	ATL	99.5%	36%	6.2	6.9	2.3	6.0
12.9	Paul Skenes	R	TB	99.9%	37%	5.7	6.3	2.0	5.9
12.6	Tarik Skubal	L	@BOS	99.9%	38%	5.8	6.7	2.5	6.6
12.4	George Kirby	R	TEX	98.1%	40%	5.8	6.6	2.2	5.7
11.7	Nathan Eovaldi	R	@SEA	83.6%	28%	5.7	6.6	2.3	5.8
10.8	Brandon Woodruff	R	@MIA	86.0%	27%	5.2	6.1	2.0	5.3
10.7	Freddy Peralta	R	@CHC	97.9%	31%	5.5	6.9	2.4	5.9
10.7	Sandy Alcantara	R	MIL	92.8%	38%	5.9	7.4	2.4	5.0
10.0	Jameson Taillon	R	NYM	6.5%	30%	5.7	6.7	2.5	4.8
9.7	Taj Bradley	R	CIN	72.8%	28%	5.4	7.1	2.5	5.6
9.5	Noah Cameron	L	@NYY	23.0%	34%	5.5	7.0	2.6	5.0
9.5	Luis Severino	R	CWS	5.9%	33%	5.7	7.5	2.6	5.1
9.2	Drew Rasmussen	R	@PIT	83.7%	22%	5.1	6.2	2.2	4.7
9.0	Will Warren	R	KC	22.9%	28%	5.2	6.8	2.4	5.1
8.8	Dean Kremer	R	@CLE	1.7%	29%	5.4	7.0	2.7	5.0
8.6	Andrew Abbott	L	@MIN	53.6%	30%	5.5	7.4	2.7	5.1
8.5	Zac Gallen	R	TOR	74.8%	33%	5.5	7.5	2.9	5.1
8.3	Gavin Williams	R	BAL	85.3%	26%	5.0	7.3	2.6	5.8
8.1	Erick Fedde	R	@ATH	0.6%	28%	5.4	7.3	2.7	4.6
8.1	Andre Pallante	R	@HOU	1.4%	41%	5.3	7.4	2.5	4.3
6.9	Max Scherzer	R	@ARI	7.5%	20%	4.6	6.2	2.6	4.4
6.7	Adrian Houser	R	@WSH	1.2%	36%	5.7	8.1	3.3	4.2
6.5	Yusei Kikuchi	L	SD	14.7%	27%	5.4	8.0	3.3	5.1
6.2	Brayan Bello	R	DET	9.6%	24%	5.4	8.0	3.3	4.9
3.9	Cade Cavalli	R	SF	3.9%	13%	4.3	7.1	2.8	4.1
3.1	German Marquez	R	@LAA	0.9%	22%	4.8	7.6	3.7	3.8
2.2	Emmet Sheehan	R	@COL	57.4%	23%	4.6	7.3	4.9	5.3
	TBD		STL	0.0%	0%	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0
-1.9	Ryan Feltner	R	LAD	0.2%	17%	4.5	8.5	5.6	4.3

Pitchers to stream on Saturday

Spoiler alert: Saturday's slate is not streamer-friendly. One of the top options is veteran Max Scherzer taking the hill in the desert to face the team that drafted him in the first round almost 20 years ago. The Toronto Blue Jays and Arizona Diamondbacks will play the second game of their interleague set, pitting Scherzer against one of the least patient and least powerful teams in the league. The Diamondbacks put the ball in play, and the Blue Jays have an above-average defense.
Lance McCullers Jr. opened the season at home with a gem, then struggled twice on the road. He's back home on Saturday when the Houston Astros host the St. Louis Cardinals. Three games are clearly not enough to draw conclusions, but without better options and facing a manageable lineup, McCullers is in play for fantasy managers needing to make up some ground with the fantasy week winding down. Jordan Walker leads the Cardinals with a .452 wOBA, with no one on the club within 100 points of his mark.
Like McCullers, Luis Severino makes the cut due to a lack of alternatives and a soft matchup. The Athletics host the Chicago White Sox. Severino's 24 strikeouts in 19 1/3 innings are encouraging, but 16 walks are worrisome. The White Sox draw walks at a league-average pace, but they strike out at an elevated clip and sport the lowest wOBA in the league.

Hitters to stream on Saturday

Andre Pallante has eight walks with only seven strikeouts over 15 innings. The Houston Astros are using a makeshift pitching staff, but their bats are averaging the fifth-most runs per game in MLB. Look for the trend to continue when the Astros host the Cardinals, setting up Yainer Diaz, Carlos Correa, Isaac Paredes and Cam Smith for a productive game.
Most of the Los Angeles Dodgers lineup is rostered in the majority of ESPN leagues, apart from Max Muncy, who is available in around 75% of leagues. He could be the slate's most desirable pickup, as his fly ball tendencies play well in Coors Field, and the Rockies are sending the vulnerable Ryan Feltner to the hill.