Fantasy baseball lineup advice for Saturday: Matchup bodes well for Matthew Liberatore

ESPN FantasyApr 25, 2026, 09:20 AM 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.

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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
13.7	Bryan Woo	R	@STL	99.3%	47%	5.9	6.1	1.9	5.3
13.6	Zack Wheeler	R	@ATL	93.7%	48%	6.2	6.9	2.6	6.7
12.0	Kevin Gausman	R	CLE	98.2%	44%	5.9	6.9	2.4	5.6
10.8	Jack Flaherty	R	@CIN	50.2%	29%	5.4	6.8	2.7	6.8
10.5	Garrett Crochet	L	@BAL	99.6%	32%	5.3	6.8	2.6	6.4
10.1	Robbie Ray	L	MIA	79.3%	30%	5.5	7.2	2.3	5.5
9.6	Bailey Ober	R	@TB	22.6%	38%	5.5	6.8	2.6	4.8
9.3	Eury Perez	R	@SF	81.5%	28%	5.0	6.3	2.1	4.8
9.0	Jacob Misiorowski	R	PIT	95.5%	19%	4.8	6.6	2.4	6.2
9.0	Jake Irvin	R	@CWS	1.2%	33%	5.6	7.2	2.8	4.8
8.8	Mitch Keller	R	@MIL	39.9%	34%	5.5	7.3	2.8	4.9
8.6	Noah Schultz	L	WSH	18.3%	20%	4.7	6.4	2.1	5.1
8.5	Roki Sasaki	R	CHC	20.1%	21%	4.6	5.8	2.0	4.6
8.3	Colin Rea	R	@LAD	8.3%	28%	5.4	7.1	2.7	4.7
8.3	Brady Singer	R	DET	9.8%	29%	5.4	7.2	3.0	5.3
8.2	Ryan Weathers	L	@HOU	26.3%	27%	5.0	7.0	2.7	5.6
7.6	Mike Burrows	R	NYY	4.5%	20%	4.8	6.7	2.5	5.0
7.3	Jeffrey Springs	L	@TEX	55.2%	32%	5.2	7.1	3.1	4.9
7.0	Trevor Rogers	L	BOS	72.1%	27%	5.3	7.7	2.9	4.9
6.9	Cole Ragans	L	LAA	85.1%	21%	4.8	7.5	2.9	6.0
6.6	Joey Cantillo	L	@TOR	29.9%	15%	4.7	7.3	2.6	5.1
6.5	MacKenzie Gore	L	ATH	84.2%	24%	5.1	8.0	3.4	5.9
6.4	Bryce Elder	R	PHI	70.0%	22%	5.3	7.7	3.2	4.9
5.9	Shane McClanahan	L	MIN	27.1%	17%	4.6	6.9	2.6	4.3
5.1	Matthew Liberatore	L	SEA	6.2%	13%	4.8	7.3	2.9	4.3
3.7	Walbert Urena	R	@KC	1.6%	29%	5.3	9.2	3.6	4.3
0.9	Zac Gallen	R	SD	69.7%	26%	5.2	8.0	6.0	5.4
-3.8	German Marquez	R	@ARI	1.9%	20%	4.6	8.0	6.8	3.9

Pitchers to stream Saturday

Saturday's slate is one of the weakest for streaming so far this season. A sneaky option is Matthew Liberatore, with the St. Louis Cardinals hosting the Seattle Mariners in an interleague game. The lefty has been hit or miss in his five outings, recording a pair of quality starts where he allowed just one run over six frames, but he also has two efforts where he allowed four runs in five innings. The key to Saturday is that Liberatore will face a lineup with the lowest wOBA in the league with a lefty on the hill.
After exhibiting shaky control in his major league debut, Noah Schultz settled down in his last start, fanning six while issuing just one free pass to collect his first win when the Chicago White Sox defeated the Athletics. Next up is a home date with the Washington Nationals. The Nationals have hot left-handers as well, but it's fueled by an unsustainable .350 BABIP against southpaws. Otherwise, their strikeout rate is above average while their walk rate is below average.

Pitchers to avoid on Saturday

Starting Zac Gallen at home is usually automatic, but keep in mind that the Arizona Diamondbacks are serving as the home team for the Mexico City Series against the San Diego Padres. They'll play at Estadio Alfredo Harp Helú, which is 7,349 feet above sea level -- more than 2,000 feet higher than Coors Field. Runs are generally plentiful in the thin air.

Hitters to stream on Saturday

As mentioned, both games this weekend between the Padres and Diamondbacks should be high-scoring affairs. Ramon Laureano, Xander Bogaerts, Jake Cronenworth, Gavin Sheets and Miguel Andujar are staples of the Padres lineup, and they're all available in more than half of ESPN leagues. Ildemaro Vargas, Nolan Arenado, Jose Fernandez and Lourdes Gurriel Jr. are the primary Diamondbacks batters to target against German Marquez.