Take a look at Cubs starters during this stretch

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Whether your fantasy baseball league is a standard rotisserie format or head-to-head points-based, streaming starting pitchers has proven to be a very successful strategy.

Any time you can find your way into a player who can offer you at least a quality-start, it’s a win.

The problem is sifting through the array of mediocre talent sitting on your waiver wire.

Who is worth the add and who isn’t?

As we look ahead to the schedule for this coming week, you should begin looking for Cubs hurlers who are available.

The Cubs are already off to a strong start to their season.


Drew Smyly pitches in the first inning against the San Diego Padres.
Drew Smyly pitches in the first inning against the San Diego Padres.
Getty Images

They may be third in their division, but they are above .500, and though it is way too early to think about the playoffs, they are at least among the wild-card contenders.

But with the weather starting to warm already and everyone overly concerned about the possibility of the wind blowing out at Wrigley Field, you may be able to find some of their starting pitchers on waivers.

Marcus Stroman is likely rostered, and there is a good chance Justin Steele is as well, but pitchers like Drew Smyly and Hayden Wesneski just might be solid streamers for this coming week.

For starters, the Cubs are playing a full seven-game schedule this coming week.

They are on the road for four games to face a nine-win Nationals team that has the fourth-worst wOBA (.283 weighted on-base average) then come back home to host the Marlins — who are barely at .500, have a middling .314 wOBA on the road and are striking out a whopping 26.8 percent of the time.

Both teams have a negative run differential, so stifling these offenses shouldn’t be a tough task.

Stroman and Steele should be your first targets from the Chicago roster, but Smyly and Wesneski have found tremendous success recently and should be in great spots this week.

Smyly has allowed just four earned runs over his past 23 ¹/₃ innings (four starts) and has a 24-4 K-BB in that span.


Hayden Wesneski throws a pitch during the second inning against the Los Angeles Dodgers.
Hayden Wesneski throws a pitch during the second inning against the Los Angeles Dodgers.
Getty Images

Wesneski has less strikeout upside, but has allowed just five runs over his past 16 ¹/₃ innings (three starts) and has an 11-2 K-BB across those games.

Both pitchers handled intimidating lineups from the Padres and Dodgers well, and should be equally, if not more, successful this coming week.

Being a diligent and successful fantasy manager is more than just adjusting your roster and making weekly pickups.

You need to make sure you are set up for success each and every week, so studying the schedule and individual matchups is vital.

Keep tracking the bottom-feeding teams, and you’ll find more and more streamers to use. The Cubs are just the tip of the iceberg.

Howard Bender is the head of content at FantasyAlarm.com. Follow him on Twitter @rotobuzzguy and catch him on the award-winning “Fantasy Alarm Radio Show” on the SiriusXM fantasy sports channel weekdays from 6-8 p.m. Go to FantasyAlarm.com for all your fantasy baseball advice.



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