Fantasy baseball lineup advice for Saturday: Play the matchups with Abbott and more

ESPN FantasyJul 31, 2026, 03:00 PM ET
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Check out all of our starting pitcher rankings and other lineup selection tools here to help you make smart fantasy baseball lineup decisions. All fantasy advice is geared toward ESPN 10-team leagues with standard scoring.

Note: All information is accurate as of the time of publication. For updates, as well as any breaking news that might impact today's MLB slate, be sure to check out the latest fantasy baseball buzz.

Other resources: RP depth chart | Start new league
ESPN's 2026 Draft Guide | Betting notes for Saturday

STARTING PITCHERS FOR SATUDAY

Pitchers are ranked in order of their Forecaster/Daily Notes projected fantasy points (FPTS), using ESPN's standard scoring system (2 points per win, minus-2 per loss, 3 per inning, 1 per K, minus-1 apiece per hit or walk allowed, minus-2 per earned run allowed).

T: The pitcher's handedness. OPP: Opposing team. RST%: The pitcher's roster percentage in ESPN leagues. W%: The individual starting pitcher's win probability using ESPN projections. IP: Projected innings pitched. H+BB: Projected hits plus walks allowed. ER: Projected earned runs allowed. K: Projected strikeouts.

If a team is planning on using an "opener" to start their game, but will rely on a "bulk pitcher" to follow him on the mound after 1-2 innings, the bulk pitcher is listed and indicated with an asterisk.

FPTS	Pitcher	T	Opp	Rst%	W%	IP	H+BB	ER	K
14.5	Logan Gilbert	R	MIN	98.4%	48%	5.9	6.2	2.1	6.5
14.5	Yoshinobu Yamamoto	R	BOS	99.8%	37%	6.1	6.5	1.9	6.5
13.6	Cristopher Sanchez	L	@BAL	99.8%	47%	6.4	7.4	2.6	6.7
13.0	Jacob deGrom	R	@HOU	97.9%	33%	5.7	6.2	2.0	6.2
12.1	Drew Rasmussen	R	CWS	91.9%	30%	5.3	5.7	1.7	5.3
12.0	Zac Thornton	L	MIA	20.1%	36%	5.3	5.5	1.5	4.5
11.9	Kevin Gausman	R	STL	83.1%	42%	6.2	7.5	2.6	5.8
10.9	David Peterson	L	NYY	3.9%	29%	5.6	7.0	2.3	5.8
9.9	Parker Messick	L	ARI	93.5%	36%	5.3	6.7	2.3	5.0
9.8	Payton Tolle	L	@LAD	48.1%	25%	5.0	5.9	2.2	5.1
9.8	Braxton Ashcraft	R	@CIN	84.5%	28%	5.2	6.6	2.5	5.8
9.6	Andrew Abbott	L	PIT	42.2%	33%	5.6	7.2	2.8	5.7
9.4	Tyler Mahle	R	@SD	1.4%	31%	5.3	7.0	2.1	4.5
9.2	Quinn Mathews	L	@TOR	2.4%	19%	4.6	5.7	1.7	4.6
9.2	Max Fried	L	@CHC	98.1%	22%	4.7	5.8	1.8	4.6
8.9	Ronel Blanco	R	TEX	2.7%	26%	5.0	6.5	2.3	5.0
8.7	Shane Baz	R	PHI	29.1%	26%	5.6	7.5	2.9	5.3
8.6	Noah Schultz	L	@TB	3.1%	14%	4.5	5.7	1.6	4.4
7.7	Jose Soriano	R	MIL	80.6%	28%	5.1	7.4	2.6	4.9
7.5	Walker Buehler	R	SF	5.3%	24%	5.1	7.2	2.4	4.4
7.2	Reynaldo Lopez	R	WSH	7.8%	32%	4.9	6.9	2.8	4.9
6.5	Robert Gasser	L	@LAA	6.2%	13%	4.2	5.5	2.2	4.0
6.3	Connor Prielipp	L	@SEA	2.7%	5%	3.8	5.1	1.7	4.0
6.2	Tyler Phillips	R	@NYM	1.8%	7%	3.9	5.2	1.7	3.4
5.4	Framber Valdez	L	@ATH	69.4%	23%	4.7	7.0	3.4	5.1
5.2	Kohl Drake	L	@CLE	0.8%	11%	4.2	5.9	2.4	3.6
4.8	Jack Perkins	R	DET	1.0%	17%	4.6	7.1	3.4	5.1
3.8	Miles Mikolas	R	@ATL	0.5%	16%	4.8	6.9	3.4	3.6
2.2	Luinder Avila	R	@COL	1.6%	23%	4.5	7.4	4.2	4.5
-1.2	Ryan Feltner	R	KC	0.6%	13%	4.3	7.8	5.0	4.0

Pitchers to stream on Saturday

Andrew Abbott recorded his third quality start in his last four efforts, though the last game was more about escaping with only three runs allowed, as he walked four with just four strikeouts in six innings. Control has been an issue all season, as the lefty has been unable to maintain last season's career-low walk rate. However, on tap is a home date with the Pittsburgh Pirates and a lineup with the sixth-lowest walk rate and second-highest strikeout rate with a lefty on the hill.
Zac Thornton made his major league debut in late May, yielding four earned runs in 4 1/3 innings to the Washington Nationals. The New York Mets optioned Thornton back to Triple-A Syracuse, then called him up last June and inserted him into their rotation. The 24-year-old left-hander responded with four straight quality starts. He'll go for a fifth when the Mets host the reeling Miami Marlins, though, to be fair, the Marlins just captured three of four games from the Philadelphia Phillies, but it came after a 12-game losing streak.
Robert Gasser's 21.5% strikeout rate is a tick below average, but he makes up for it with a stingy 5.8% walk rate. He has a chance to improve his strikeout clip when the Milwaukee Brewers visit the Los Angeles Angels, who fan at the league's highest rate facing southpaws.

Hitters to stream on Saturday

The Athletics sport the second-highest home wOBA facing left-handers. This is not encouraging for Framber Valdez as he tries to right the ship for the Detroit Tigers. The lefty recorded a 6.85 ERA and 1.56 WHIP over his past four efforts, compiling only 17 punchouts in 23 2/3 frames while issuing seven free passes. Jacob Wilson, Tommy White, Jonah Heim and Colby Thomas enjoy the platoon edge and line up for a productive evening.