Stream of the Week: Kevin Gausman and Matt Shoemaker

I apologize for not writing a "Stream of the Week" last week! Job searching the first month after college graduation isn't exactly a stress free time period. Even still, baseball stops for no man, mortal or otherwise. To make up for last week, I'll provide two choices for this week (and they both pitch on different days, in case you only have one spot to stream). To jog your memory, two weeks ago the selection was Marcus Stroman against the Minnesota Twins. He was hardly untouchable, but he did give owners a quality start, walked none, and struck out four. We'll call that a fantasy-win, which brings the Pete Talking Sports "Stream of the Week" record to 3-1. Let's hope I can bring that record to 5-1 with these two young arms.

Going into the 2014 season, Baseball Prospectus had Kevin Gausman as the 10th best prospect in all of baseball, Baseball America had him 20th. So far, those rankings have been vindicated by the rookie's efforts. Fantasy owners have been burned by some Baltimore Orioles' pitching prospects in the past. Brian Matusz and Zach Britton were both terribly unsuccessful as starters. Though admittedly, Britton has looked strong in his new found closers role with the club. For those who play in deep dynasty leagues, many were burned by Dylan Bundy's Tommy John surgery. Kevin Gausman, however, is not Britton, Matusz or Bundy. He is healthy, starting, and pitching well. Do not let the often disappointing Orioles' pitching cloud your judgment of Gausman.

Through four starts this season, Gausman is 3-1 with a 2.74 ERA and 1.17 WHIP. He's logged 16 K's in 23 innings pitched. No team in the American League has scored more runs than the Oakland A's or Toronto Blue Jays, yet Gausman managed to beat both of them. He's lived up to some tough challenges so far this season and if Baltimore wants to continue the success they've had they'll need all the pitching they can get. Gausman is slotted to face the Tampa Bay Rays on Friday, a team he just blanked through 6 frames of 5 hit ball in his last start. Does it worry me that now the Rays' lineup has seen his pitches a few times through the order? Possibly a little. I certainly do not expect another zero earned run performance, but another quality start and/or a win is definitely within the realm of possibilities. The game is at home in Baltimore and opposing Gausman is a lineup that is dead-last in the American League in runs scored this season. Gausman is currently owned in 7.2% of ESPN standard leagues.

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Rookie Matt Shoemaker of the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim is another strong option to start this week. Shoemaker is scheduled to pitch Saturday against the Kansas City Royals. He has dominated recently. In his last two starts, he's tossed 15.2 frames, striking out 16 and only yielding 3 earned runs. He won both contests. The Angels have been hot, winning their last three games. Whereas the offensively challenged Royals have lost their last four.

While it is true that the Royals have the fifth-best team batting average in Major League Baseball, they are in the bottom-half in runs scored and are tied with the Cardinals for the least amount of home runs. Kansas City isn't a scary offense for Shoemaker to face and owners should add and deploy him with confidence. Shoemaker is owned in 5.5% of ESPN standard leagues.

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Why you shouldn't listen to me: Similar to the last entry, the only reason to be hesitant with either of these pitchers is that they are rookies. All pitchers, especially rookies, hit slumps and give a bad start every now and then. The best attempt at avoiding these instances is to pick and choose when you start them. Opposite the Rays and Royals, you should feel confident with either of these players. Best of luck, whether you go with my suggestions or not!