After turning in some inconsistent performances out of the White Sox's bullpen, Hector Santiago seems to have hit his stride as a starter. He's put up better stats over his eight starts than in his 11 relief appearances, and in his current three-game-old stint in the rotation, Santiago is sporting a 2.29 ERA and 1.02 WHIP.
He's getting more movement on his fastball and changeup, and that has helped Santiago to generate more whiffs this season. However, with a 42 percent ground ball rate and home starts at U.S. Cellular Field, Santiago is probably a little lucky to have allowed only seven home runs in 65 1/3 innings and a .361 slugging percentage. In fact, only 20 of Santiago's innings have come at home so far this season, so putting his favorable BABIP (.267) and strand rates (80 percent) aside, he still appears due for some regression.
There could be something to Santiago maintaining a K-rate of close to one per inning, but home runs and walks could do some damage to his ERA and WHIP. During Wednesday's broadcast of Fantasy Baseball Today, Scott White laid out why he thinks Santiago can keep his job long-term. But even if he does, that doesn't mean he'll necessarily pitch well enough to be worth a pickup in many mixed leagues.