Starts: April 10th at Baltimore Orioles
ESPN ownership: 5.7%
We can't give Frankie Montas too much credit for handling a Houston Astros lineup that has looked like anything but championship contenders in the early part of 2019. That said, the third-year Oakland Athletics' starter deserves some kudos for keeping his composure: Montas was under constant siege against the Astros on Saturday, with the righty allowing 10 total base runners but still managing to keep his team in the game across five innings of two-run ball.
Montas' sinker-heavy arsenal will leave him bound to the whims of BABIP, making outings like that one fairly common. Even so, developments in Montas' secondary slider might suggest a path to more dominant work, with that pitch earning 37.5% swinging strikes and 19.5% whiffs across 41 offerings so far this season.
The 26-year old will look to flex his developing arsenal against a far less formidable foe in Week 2. The Orioles are a bottom-half offense in terms of team ISO on the young season and bottom-six across the MLB in terms of team hard contact.