Justin Verlander summed up his latest disaster Wednesday at the White Sox by calling it "really frustrating."
And I agree, but with one addendum: It's really, really frustrating.
The biggest frustration for Fantasy owners is not knowing what to do with him. Sitting him for now is obvious, but what else? He is Justin Verlander, after all, and the Pitch F/X data suggests his stuff hasn't diminished as much as some have been led to believe. His numbers certainly have, though, and while his last six starts are as bad as it's gotten, it actually started last year with a not-so-ace-like 3.46 ERA and 1.32 WHIP. If not for his track record and his final five starts last year, playoffs included, you wouldn't have drafted him where you did this year.
Even if we assume he bounces back to last year's numbers, since that's about what he was doing before this six-start stretch, he'll fall well short of expectations, which makes trading him now not the craziest idea if you can find someone eager to buy low.
But I'll admit I've hesitated to offer him up in leagues where I own him. He'll barely be a top-30 starting pitcher for me when I adjust my rankings later today, but he may have the best chance of those 15 and up to perform like a top-10 option the rest of the way.
If you've succeeded in spite of his struggles so far, you might want to hang on to him, but if you're falling out of the race, an offer of Alex Cobb and, say, Carlos Santana is one to take seriously.