Sorare MLB GW30 Breakdown | Tanner Houck The Cheat Code
Breaking down Game Week 30 on Sorare MLB
Welcome to the Sorare MLB GW30 Breakdown.
For those new here, I provide an all-in-one place to prepare Sorare MLB managers for the upcoming Game Week every Monday and Friday.
Feel free to message me on X at @Hunter_Himself if you have any questions or want to see something added to the newsletter!
Let’s dive in!
⏪ Game Week Rewind
BorowskiDaChef won Rare AL this week on the back of Rafael Devers, who hit two home runs on Sunday Night Baseball.
It helps that Tarik Skubal threw a career-high 13 strikeouts against the Reds.
“AymSorare” took down the Field Generals Special Weekly contest with the help of four different catchers.
Will Smith was the best catcher play of the week, going 3-3 with three homers on Friday.
This team also played Willson Contreras, Shea Langeliers, and Yainer Diaz.
📋 Roster Movements
In:
Kyle Schwarber - Expected to be activated from IL Tuesday
Bryce Harper - Could return Tuesday, but not as certain as Schwarber
Blake Snell - Returning from the IL and will start Tuesday vs Blue Jays
Edwin Diaz - Returned from 10-game suspension
Jack Flaherty - On track to return Thursday and make start vs Guardians
Nick Lodolo - Expected to return Tuesday and start vs Colorado
Lars Nootbaar - Could rejoin Cardinals as soon as Monday in Washington
Anthony Rendon - Could return from IL as soon as Monday vs. Rangers
Edward Cabrera - Activated from 60-day IL and started Sunday’s game
Out:
Luis Rengifo - Placed on 10-day IL with right wrist inflammation
Yordan Alvarez - Day to day after being hit by pitch on right knee
Ketel Marte - Day to day with back tightness, was out Sat. and Sun.
Carlos Correa - Day to day with hand contusion after being hit by pitch
Jason Heyward - Placed on 10-day IL with left knee bone bruise
Bailey Falter - Placed on 15-day IL with left triceps tendinitis
Dane Dunning - Placed on 15-day IL with right shoulder tightness
🔎 Multi Game Monitor
Four Games
Diamondbacks, Braves, Reds, Guardians, Rockies, Tigers, Angels, Mets, Pirates, Nationals
Three Games
Orioles, Red Sox, Cubs, White Sox, Astros, Dodgers, Marlins, Brewers, Twins, Yankees, Athletics, Phillies, Giants, Mariners, Cardinals, Rays, Rangers, Blue Jays
Two Games
Royals, Padres
☔️ Rain Check
Baltimore - 55% chance scattered thunderstorms Thurs.
Boston - 58% chance PM thunderstorms Wed./53% chance showers Thurs.
Chicago - 79% chance of rain Wed. *RISK*
Cincinnati - 64% chance rain/thunder Wed.
Detroit - 92% chance of rain Wed.
St. Louis - 98% chance of rain Tues./51% chance of showers Wed.
Philadelphia - 53% chance thunderstorms Wed./64% chance Thurs. *RISK*
New York City - 50% chance showers Thurs.
⚾️ Pitching Primer
Nick Pivetta and Tanner Houck vs OAK
Oakland often looks dead on offense and they strike out at the second-highest clip in baseball (26.1%).
The one thing that scares me about Oakland is their ability to hit for power, especially in this ballpark. They currently rank 13th in ISO (.156) as a team.
Pivetta has a 10.22 K/9 and a 3.51 xFIP while Houck has an 8.59 K/9 and a 3.11 xFIP.
I will get to why Tanner Houck makes for an even better play a little bit later.
Framber Valdez vs MIA
Miami was somehow able to hold Garrett Crochet to a modest game but I’m not buying that this team is good.
Since June 1 they have struck out at the fifth-highest rate in baseball (25%).
They are also dead last in wRC+ (69), wOBA (.265), and second-to-last in ISO (.115).
Framber hasn’t shown the high floor we are used to this season, but he still has a massive ground ball rate at 52% and a respectable xFIP of 3.82.
Nick Lodolo vs COL
Lodolo is coming off the IL to start at home against the Rockies.
When Lodolo is out there he is one of my favorite pitchers to roster.
His career K/9 over his 2.5 years in the league is 10.88 and this season he is sporting a 3.74 xFIP.
The Rockies away from Coors are an easy target. They strike out at the third-highest rate in baseball (25.2%) and rank 28th in wRC+ (81).
Other Starters Include:
Corbin Burnes vs CHC
Hunter Greene vs COL
Tanner Bibee at DET
Pablo Lopez at CWS
Michael King vs SEA
Logan Webb vs TOR
Luis Castillo at LAA
Sonny Gray vs KCR
Chris Sale at ARI
I also want to note that the “Aces High” Special Weekly begins this week.
In this contest, pitchers earn 6 points for an inning pitched instead of 3.
The players listed above have recorded the most outs so far this season.
It should be noted that Seth Lugo’s 2022 cards have RP eligibility, however, Lugo is scheduled to pitch in GW31 and not GW30.
Tanner Houck also has RP eligibility on his 2022 cards and is scheduled to face Oakland this week.
And finally, Michael King has RP eligibility on his 2022 cards and is slated to start Wednesday vs. the strikeout-prone Mariners.
Houck and King are the Aces High cheat codes this week.
📞 Call To The Bullpen
Ten teams play four games in GW30 so we should target closers from those teams.
I will rank them here based on the amount of rest they’ve received recently and their matchup.
*Note that Edwin Diaz is back from suspension and the Rockies have been using a closer committee.
Closer Options:
Emmanuel Clase - CLE
Edwin Diaz - NYM
Raisel Iglesias - ATL
Paul Sewald - ARI
Alexis Diaz - CIN
Jason Foley - DET
Aroldis Chapman - PIT
Kyle Finnegan - WSH
Carlos Estevez - LAA
💰 Stacks
Reds
The Reds play four games at home against pitchers ranked 323 or worse on FantasyPros.
Great American Ballpark is one of the best in the league for home runs, and I think we see a few here from Cincinnati.
The Reds don’t have great offensive numbers as a whole, but their best ranking is in the power department. They rank 14th in ISO (.141).
Jonathan India, Elly De La Cruz, and Jeimer Candelario stand out as the three best plays to me.
Braves
Atlanta’s offense has come back to life as of late and they draw a decent matchup on the road against Arizona.
I respect Zac Gallen and Brandon Pfaadt has been solid, but I still think this offense can get to these guys over four games.
All four of these pitchers are righties so the lefties on Atlanta would be preferred. Jarred Kelenic, Matt Olson, and Ozzie Albies stand out.
The Braves are ranked 8th in ISO (.163), 13th in wOBA (.312), and 14th in wRC+ (100).
Other Stacks Include:
Mets, Rangers, Nationals, Guardians
There you have it, the Sorare MLB Slate Breakdown for Game Week 30.
All statistics referenced in this newsletter were pulled from FanGraphs.
All pitcher matchups were referenced from FantasyPros.
I release these every Monday and Friday before lineup lock to help you all with preparing for the slate and setting your teams.
I hope to see everyone at the top of the leaderboards!
Also, follow me on Twitter @Hunter_Himself!
Thanks for reading!