Rates & Barrels: A show about Baseball 2026 Starting Pitcher Preview, Part 2
Feb 5, 2026
A deep dive into mid-range starting pitchers you might draft between picks 100–200. They debate injury histories, pitch mixes, and recovery timelines for arms like Strider, Glasnow, Wheeler and more. The conversation covers upside versus innings risk, new pitch additions, and which comeback or breakout arms are worth targeting.
AI Snips
Chapters
Transcript
Episode notes
Wheeler: Short Delay, Big Upside Tradeoff
- Zach Wheeler's thoracic outlet recovery could land him on the roster after a short delay, but projections expect diminished production.
- Derek says many drafters will accept a month or two missed for top-end upside.
Favor Non-Surgical Comebacks And Pepiot
- Prefer pitchers who returned without surgery (e.g., Michael King) over those rehabbing major procedures when valuing draft reliability.
- Draft Ryan Pepiot as a safer, already-established innings option with upside in Tampa Bay.
Williams' ERA Masked Predictive Red Flags
- Gavin Williams' low BABIP and high walk rate suggest his 3.06 ERA masked underlying weaknesses.
- Eno highlights predictive value of K-BB and WHIP for expecting a regression toward higher ERAs.