Fantasy Baseball: 5 Pitchers to Stream for Week 18

Charlie Morton, Houston Astros

Starts: July 31st vs. Tampa Bay Rays, August 5th vs. Toronto Blue Jays
ESPN ownership: 46 percent

It's a surprise that Charlie Morton hasn't been scooped up in more leagues since returning from a substantial DL stint to sling 24-plus innings of 3.28-ERA ball, certified by a solid 3.88 fielding independent pitching (FIP) mark and a 27% strikeout rate.

Owners who need to make up ground in the win column would be remiss to overlook the resurgent veteran, who hasn't logged fewer than five innings in any of his 14 starts this year. Sure, pitcher wins can be a fickle stat, but combine Morton's consistency with the benefit of pitching behind the league-leading Houston Astros offense, and you've got about as good a chance to take home the W as you're going to find on your waiver wire.

We should see Morton's ownership return to its pre-injury levels for his two-start turn this week. The Blue Jays are about as bad as it gets against the curveball this season, and that pitch has been Morton's bread and butter, limiting hitters to a 25 weighted rungs created plus (wRC+) while coaxing a stellar 44% strikeout minus walk rate.

The Rays, however, are one of the most productive squads against the curve, and generally Tampa tends to be a hit-or-miss streaming target, prone both to strong power production and prolific whiffs. Morton has some of the sweetest strikeout upside that you'll find on the wire this week, but he is a high-variance play, particularly against a Rays squad that is one of the league's most productive against righties this season.