Yahoo Fantasy Plus identifies 3 boom-or-bust starting pitchers — should you draft them?
In case you haven’t heard the exciting news, Yahoo Fantasy Plus has some major upgrades for this fantasy baseball season, giving subscribers new tools with deeper insights for a competitive edge.
Among the improvements, you can access new, detailed maximum and minimum projections in points leagues to better predict a number of things when it comes to your draft prep, including which potential picks might exceed their projection and be a “Boom” for your squad — or fall short of expectations and be a “Bust”.
[Unlock premium draft tools & player projections with Yahoo Fantasy Plus]
Using the Fantasy Plus Experts Consensus model, we’ve identified three of the pitchers with the widest range of outcomes (AKA the hardest players to project) for 2025. We've also included a wealth of data, both free (consensus projected fantasy points and 2025 season stats) as well as exclusive to Yahoo Fantasy Plus (consensus maximum/minimum fantasy points projections and highest/lowest expert rank) to give you a sample of all we have to offer.
Dalton Del Don has analyzed the data and reveals if he’s in or out on each player.
Carlos Rodón, Yankees
11th-widest range of outcomes among starting pitchers using Fantasy Plus modeling
Projected fantasy points: 633
Consensus maximum fantasy points projection: 812
Consensus minimum fantasy points projection: 328
2025 Yahoo Fantasy consensus projections
IP | W | ERA | WHIP | K |
160 | 12 | 4.02 | 1.20 | 178 |
Rankings overview
Composite expert rank: 134
Highest overall rank: 113 (Ryan Rufe, Rotowire)
Lowest: 157 (Andy Behrens, Yahoo)
Yahoo ADP: 156
Rodón’s ERA has gone from 2.37 to 2.88 to 6.85 to 3.96 over the last four seasons, so he clearly has a high level of volatility. Rodón continued to be inconsistent last season, when he had wild splits; he recorded a 4.63 ERA before the All-Star break compared to 2.91 afterward. It’s possible his second-half adjustments lead to a big 2025, but Rodón also carries health risk along with performance (although he’s stayed mostly healthy in two of the past three seasons).
Bottom line: While I prefer Nick Pivetta even later (and Robbie Ray at a similar cost), I’m in on Rodón at his Yahoo ADP (SP47). He carries risk like the volatile projections suggest, but Rodón’s 21.3 K-BB% after the All-Star break last season would’ve ranked eighth-best among qualified starters on the season. Rodón’s upside outweighs the downside as a pick outside the top 150.
Matthew Boyd, Cubs
The widest range of outcomes among starting pitchers using Fantasy Plus modeling
Projected fantasy points: 445
Consensus maximum fantasy points projection: 619
Consensus minimum fantasy points projection: 231
2025 Yahoo Fantasy consensus projections
IP | W | ERA | WHIP | K |
115 | 8 | 3.90 | 1.23 | 126 |
Rankings overview
Composite expert rank: 288
Highest overall rank: 229 (Dalton Del Don, Yahoo)
Lowest: 334 (Rufe)
Yahoo ADP: 254
Boyd was dominant while returning from Tommy John surgery last season, posting a 3.29 FIP with a 19.9 K-BB% that would’ve been top 15 among qualified starters. Boyd’s 29.9% CSW would’ve ranked seventh, just behind Logan Gilbert. THE BAT projects Boyd to have the 44th-best K% among SPs in 2025, just behind Yoshinobu Yamamoto.
Boyd enters 2025 entrenched in Chicago’s rotation after signing a lucrative deal during the offseason, and he’ll benefit from pitcher-friendly Wrigley Field.
Bottom line: Boyd’s workload may be somewhat limited, but in an era when fewer and fewer pitchers are throwing 200+ innings, fantasy managers can be happy with 160. Boyd has the highest volatility among all starters, but I’m in for free; he’s going undrafted in 83% of Yahoo leagues.
Michael Soroka, Nationals
fourth-widest range of outcomes among starting pitchers using Fantasy Plus modeling
Projected fantasy points: 296
Consensus maximum fantasy points projection: 594
Consensus minimum fantasy points projection: 163
2025 Yahoo Fantasy consensus projections
IP | W | ERA | WHIP | K |
94 | 5 | 4.34 | 1.32 | 94 |
Rankings overview
Composite expert rank: 384
Highest overall rank: 328 (Del Don)
Lowest: 439 (Rufe)
Yahoo ADP: 262
Soroka finished sixth in NL Cy Young voting back in 2019, when he had a 2.68 ERA over 29 starts. Injuries ruined Soroka over 2020-23 before he bounced back after shifting to the White Sox’s bullpen last season (2.75 ERA over 36.0 innings). His K% spiked from 12.4 as a starter all the way up to 39.0 in relief. Soroka struggled mightily while starting earlier in 2024 (6.39 ERA over 43.2 innings), but he’ll get another shot in the rotation in 2025. In fact, he’s been “the story of the spring” in Nationals camp after signing with Washington during the offseason. Soroka has reportedly looked “dominant” and like a completely new pitcher with increased velocity and impressive Stuff+ metrics to back it.
Bottom line: Soroka is a former first-round pick who looks healthier than ever right now. Projection systems likely haven’t adjusted to the new information regarding his pitch mix and velocity, so I’m in on Soroka as a free late-round flier. He’s going undrafted in 97% of Yahoo leagues.
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