Ask and you shall receive. Thanks to all that have written e-mail to me over the last few days. Several asked to have the recommendation for pitch-and-ditch a day earlier, because someone took the pitcher I was recommending before being able to read the article. With Thursday being a short day, I am going to move ahead to Friday’s pitching matchups so that you can take these pitchers first thing Thursday morning.

If you are using pitch-and-ditch, then you should not be throwing any starters on Thursday, and use those slot to fill out your roster. However I have a few quick thoughts about the starting pitcher for Thursday night. If Matt Cain is still on your waiver wire, he should be on your team. He is pitching at home (pitchers park) against a swing happy offense. The most interesting pitcher is from the same game. Homer Bailey may be an interesting start, because of the park factor, the weak San Francisco offense, and the simple fact that he has something to prove.

Here are the pitch-and-ditch recommendations for the Friday September 21st games:

Joal Pineiro - STL vs Hou - Peneiro has actually been a fairly consistent pitcher since being moved into the Cardinal’s starting rotation. I like his matchup against the light hitting Houston offense. Houston sports a weak .250 batting average against right-handed pitchers and is ranked 27th in runs scored. Carlos Lee has been very cold as of late, and even though Berkman is hitting well, there are no runners on base for him to knock in. The largest concern that I have for Pineiro is run support, especially if Pujols continues to be out of the lineup. Because of this, Brandon Backe is not a bad option either, but I like Pineiro better in this matchup.

Jason Marquis - CHC vs PIT - Marquis has been another serviceable pitcher that may already be taken in deeper mixed leagues.  However, if he is available, the matchup against Pittsburgh is a favorable one.  Marquis is not considered to be a strikeout pitcher with a K/9 rate of 5.01 this season, but the Pirates strikeout 2.40 times per every walk.  The Pirates offense has been sparked as of late by Jack Wilson, but he will not be playing on Friday as he is scheduled to be with his wife for the birth of their child.  My greatest concern is that his FIP ERA (5.01) is 94 point higher then his ERA (4.07).His luck may run out this year, but I think this matchup will keep his run of good outings intact.

If neither of those starters are available, Franklin Morales is an interesting pick.  He has great stuff and is pitching in San Diego.  However, he is facing Jake Peavy and the Padres hit lefties pretty well.  Jair Jurrgins might be another risky gamble against Kansas City.