Fantasy Baseball 2008 Starting Pitcher Sleepers

Starting pitching is one of the hardest things to predict from year to year in fantasy baseball. You probably have seen the latest starting pitching signings in the MLB, and there is no denying that there is a major shortage of quality starting pitching available to teams off the free agent wire. However, this is not the case for fantasy owners, as they have a lot of great young names to pick for their fantasy rosters. Here are a couple of the top starting pitching sleepers for the 2008 fantasy baseball season.

Ian Snell and Tom Gorzelanny, Pittsburgh Pirates

What better way to start off a starting pitcher sleeper set than with two Pirates pitchers? The two young hurlers for the Pirates have superior skills that are somewhat adjusting considering how bad the Pirate lineup and defense is. Snell strikes out a ton of batters, and his K/BB ratio was solid last season. Though Tom Gorzelanny doesn't offer the same strikeout potential as Snell, he is a great sleeper pick as well. If these young pitchers can find some consistency and provide a solid effort from start to start, each could win around 12-14 games and accumulate nice ERAs and WHIPs. If you can get either of these pitchers at a bargain, you're going to turn a very nice profit with them.

Clay Buchholz, Boston Red Sox

Buchholz pitched a no-hitter for the Red Sox last season, which was the highlight of the 2007 season for him. Buchholz is a talented young pitcher who should make great strides in his sophomore season. Playing for the Boston Red Sox, Buchholz has a legitimate shot to win anywhere from 10-15 games, and even more if he gets enough starts. He will get his chance in the rotation with old veteran Curt Schilling recovering from injury until around midseason. People will pump up the hype behind Buchholz, so he may not be much of a sleeper when you go to draft, but if you can get him at a discount, it would be a great value.

Joba Chamberlain, New York Yankees

It is very likely that there is at least one Red Sox or Yankees homer at your draft, that will take Chamberlain or Buchholz three or four rounds early. Chamberlain should be a great value, as he has outstanding base skills and is a strikeout machine. At this point, Joba is supposed to start off the season in the bullpen, but look for him to move to the starting rotation as soon as injuries strike the Yankees rotation (which is bound to happen). Get Joba at a discount and enjoy the production he will provide your team.

Other Sleepers: Micah Owings (Arizona Diamondbacks), Jeff Francis (Colorado Rockies)