Pickups of the Day: Skubal’s Return Supplies Fireworks
Rotoworld's brand-new Pickups of the Day column is designed to help fantasy managers uncover a handful of widely-available targets over the course of the season. It could be a breakout candidate, a prospect stash, an injury replacement, a pitcher with a favorable matchup or week, a player who is due some better luck, or any other number of scenarios. If there's value to be found on the waiver wire, we will find it and bring it your way. Today's edition features the return of a talented left-hander in Detroit and a former top prospect finally starting to show some signs of life at the dish.
Tarik Skubal, SP, Tigers
Available in 66 percent of Yahoo leagues
Skubal will make his long-awaited return to Detroit's starting rotation on Tuesday against the Athletics for his first start in the majors since last August after undergoing surgery to repair the flexor tendon in his left forearm. It's an extremely soft landing spot for the 26-year-old southpaw, who has allowed just five runs (two earned) with a 20/3 K/BB ratio across 14 2/3 innings over five minor league rehab starts. He's no longer the elite strikeout artist his early-career numbers suggested he would be, but he made notable strides in terms of control and keeping the ball in the yard last season, finishing with a career-best 3.52 ERA, 1.16 WHIP and 117/32 K/BB ratio across 117 2/3 innings (21 starts). He projects as a solid mid-rotation stabilizer for fantasy managers moving forward. He might be on a bit of a pitch count in his first couple outings, but should benefit tremendously from a tasty matchup against an Athletics' lineup that ranks dead-last in runs scored this season.
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Spencer Torkelson, 1B, Tigers
Available in 82 percent of Yahoo leagues
It's completely fair to label Torkelson as one of the more significant prospect busts, from a fantasy perspective, in recent years. The former top-overall selection in the 2020 MLB Draft was expected to make an immediate four-category impact as one of the most major league-ready prospects in a while, but struggled to a disastrous .604 OPS with just eight homers in 110 games last year as a rookie. He got off to a frosty start this season, but has shown some serious signs of life lately, batting .318 (7-for-22) with four homers and eight RBI over his last six games since June 26. It's too small of a sample size to draw any definitive conclusions, but it's an extremely encouraging sign that he's making a ton of hard contact. The combination of his prospect pedigree, and availability in the majority of fantasy formats, makes him a worthwhile speculative pickup over the next few days for fantasy managers, especially in deeper mixed leagues.
