MLB

Fantasy Baseball: 6 Swinging-Strike Stars Who Could Rebound in 2018

Matt Kupferle  —  @MKupferle Jan 4th, 2018
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Dinelson Lamet, San Diego Padres

ERA: 4.57 (84th/135)

Swinging-Strike Rate: 11.8% (25th/135)

Rostering a rookie hurler can be scary in fantasy, and Dinelson Lamet's 2017 season was all over the map. There were a lot of positives, though.

The good: a fantastic strikeout rate, including seven or more strikeouts in 11 of his 21 starts, and a dazzling 12-strikeout performance against a strong Milwaukee Brewers offense in hitter-friendly Miller Park. Overall, Lamet racked up 139 strikeouts in 114.1 innings in 2017.

The bad: getting crushed in a few starts -- namely, five starts in which he allowed a whopping 34 runs (30 earned) over 21 1/3 innings pitched (12.66 ERA).

Of course, all pitchers look better if we remove a handful of their worst outings, but if we take away those five stinkers, Lamet's ERA comes in at 2.71 on the year. The strikeouts are lovely, and PetCo Park, which ranks 24th in park factor, doesn't hurt at all.

Lamet is going to be a chic breakout pick this year.

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