There are always going to be those mainstay pitchers at the top of the draft that fly off of draft boards in the first two or three rounds. Those players like Justin Verlander, Clayton Kershaw, and Felix Hernandez are must-haves on any fantasy roster. Depending upon how your draft is going, those players may go earlier than they should have, leaving some lesser options at starting pitcher. But not to worry, just because a pitcher is going in the tenth round doesn’t mean he has no value. These are the top seven pitchers that fantasy owners from all leagues can scoop up toward the end of the draft, and still get some solid value out of this year.


1. Anibal Sanchez, Detroit Tigers

Sanchez certainly isn’t a dominant pitcher who is going to rack up 20 wins every year, but he provides value in a number of statistical categories. In ESPN mock drafts, he is going at around the 138th pick, which in a twelve team league puts him in the 11th round. For a pitcher who has averaged 173 strikeouts per year over the past three seasons, that’s excellent value. This is also Sanchez’s first full season with Detroit, who is notably better than the Miami Marlins, so look for his numbers in ERA and wins to improve.


2. Tim Lincecum, San Francisco Giants

Lincecum is going in the 10th round in Yahoo! mock drafts, and in the 11th in ESPN drafts. This seems a little too big of a fall for a pitcher who just two years ago had a 2.74 ERA while striking out 220 batters. Obviously his poor 2012 should drop his draft stock, but he has still been in double-digit wins in the past five years. There’s no proof that Lincecum can’t improve this year, and if he can return to his previous form he’ll be worth far more than a 10th round pick.


3. C.J. Wilson, Los Angeles Angels 

While Wilson did have a 3.83 and a 1.3 WHIP last year, he shouldn’t be going in the 13th round in most ESPN leagues. Just two years ago with the Texas Rangers, Wilson went 16-7 and finished the year with a 2.94 ERA. His ERA has always fluctuated, but with players like Jon Lester and Jeff Samardzija going ahead of him, Wilson has major value going where he is. He has started 34 games in each of his last two years, and strikes out eight batters every nine innings. He’s also made the All Star game twice in a row now, so it makes no sense that he’d be going as low as he is.

4. Dan Haren, Washington Nationals

Heading into his 12th season in the majors, Haren is looking to return to form on the Nationals, the fifth different team he has played for. Haren’s ERA has never been great (its never been lower than 3.07 in his career) but he has won a lot of games. Even though he had a 4.33 ERA last year with the Los Angeles Angels, he still won 12 games and struck out 142 batters. Haren is going in the 11th round in both ESPN and Yahoo! mock drafts, and in that spot it’s worth hoping that he duplicates what he did in 2011 when he went 16-10 with the Angels, fanning 192 batters and sporting a 1.024 WHIP.


5. Alexi Ogando, Texas Rangers

Ogando by no means is a great option at starter, but since he’s going at 200th overall in Yahoo! and ESPN leagues, he is definitely worth a late pickup. He was recently named the fourth starter by Rangers’ manager Ron Washington, a position that he filled in 2010, but not in 2011. The last time he was a full-time starter, he went 13-8 in 29 starts. His ERA was 3.51, not great, but he did have a 1.14 WHIP and struck out a little less than seven batters per nine innings, and even made the All Star game. It’s tough to tell how good the Rangers will be without Mike Napoli and Josh Hamilton in 2013, but Ogando is certainly worth a shot in the late rounds.


6. Jaime Garcia, St. Louis Cardinals

While most of the focus in St. Louis is on Adam Wainwright, Jaime Garcia could quietly be a great option at pitcher this year. Likely the fifth starter for the Cardinals, he still provides a great amount of value, even though he is going as the 53rd pitcher taken in ESPN drafts. He only went 7-7 last year in 20 starts, but in 2011 he went 13-7 in 32 starts. His ERA has been 3.56 and 3.92 in this past two seasons, but it was 2.7 in 2010. If he falls as far as mock drafts are saying he should, he is still worth the pick, as he and Lance Lynn will be the keys to St. Louis’ success this year at the back of the rotation.


7. Trevor Cahill, Arizona Diamondbacks

Spending his second year in Arizona, Cahill is looking to improve on his lackluster stats over the past two years. His best year was 2010 with the Oakland Athletics, when he went 18-8 with a 2.97 ERA. His ERA has gone way up since then (it was 4.16 in 2011), but at 205th overall in Yahoo! drafts, it’s worth the chance to pick up Cahill. If nothing else, he throws a high volume of innings, and has shown he is capable of bringing that ERA down. It’s hard to find a starter that low in the draft that starts an average of 32 games per year and only gives up just over eight hits per nine innings.