Almost every season, there seems to be a veteran pitcher who comes out of nowhere and provides solid fantasy value for a good portion of the season.

Jason Vargas went 12-3 with a 2.62 ERA in 2017 before falling off the cliff in the second half. Ervin Santana went 16-8 with a 3.28 ERA last year after going 14-16 with a 3.61 ERA the previous two seasons.

Enter Clay Buchholz.

After four starts for Arizona, Buchholz is 1-1 with a 1.88 ERA, 21:3 strikeout-to-walk rate and a .191 opponent average. He was the fifth-most added player in ESPN leagues this week (third-most added pitcher behind Seattle’s Marco Gonzales and Oakland’s Frankie Montas).

Does this mean Buchholz, a first-round pick by Boston in 2005, is back to his two-time All-Star form and ready to be the surprise pitcher of 2018?

Well, no.

Buchholz, who always has been talented but also wildly inconsistent, has a highly unsustainable strand rate (94.9 percent). Hitters also are making tons of contact on pitches inside and outside of the strike zone, so he is not missing many bats. His velocity (91 mph) is way down (he averaged 94 mpg in 2010). His 3.37 FIP, 4.04 xFIP indicate he has gotten lucky and regression is coming, as does his unsustainable .215 BABIP.

Buchholz always has had ability. He proved that during his 2010 All-Star campaign when he went 17-7 with a 2.33 ERA and finished sixth in Cy Young voting. He proved it again in 2013, when he went 12-1 with a 1.74 ERA over 16 starts before landing on the disabled list.

Health also has been a problem for Buchholz over the years — his injury history has more pages than the Yellow Pages (they still publish that, right?). From 2008-14, he landed on the DL seven times. He made two starts for the Phillies in 2017 before suffering a torn flexor tendon in his right arm. He has pitched more than 130 innings in a season just three times in his 12-year career.

Need more proof Buchholz’s success won’t last? Look at the teams he has faced in his first four starts. They’re not exactly the best in the league. His first start came against the Mets, who are hitting .233 for the season (tied for the fifth worst in the league) and couldn’t buy a run even if team ownership were willing to pay. They entered Friday with the fourth-worst OPS (.688), fifth fewest homers (59) and third fewest runs (231) in the majors.

Buchholz struck out nine over seven innings against the Marlins, who entered Friday with the eighth lowest average (.235) and fewest runs, home runs and RBIs in the bigs.

Buchholz also faced the A’s, who entered Friday hitting .242 with 554 strikeouts (ninth most in the majors). Oakland ranked 26th in runs scored in May (104) — the Mets were 28th and Miami was 29th with 96.

Buchholz limited the Giants to two runs on Wednesday while striking out seven. They had the third-highest average in the majors (.263), but the fourth most strikeouts (582).

With his next four starts coming against the Pirates (twice), Mets and Marlins, Buchholz may be able to provide some value before the All-Star break, but with his history of injuries and inconsistent performance over the years, this is not someone Roto Rage suggests running out to roster.

There are better pitchers available with far more upside, like Gonzales (3-0, 0.35 ERA over his past four starts), the Dodgers’ Ross Stripling (4-1, 1.52 ERA, 11.1 strikeouts per nine), Miami’s Caleb Smith (11.0 strikeouts per nine), Seattle’s Mike Leake (2-0 with 1.82 ERA over his past four starts), Pittsburgh’s Joe Musgrove (2-1, 1.89 ERA, 17 strikeouts in three starts) or San Diego’s Tyson Ross (3-0, 2.79 ERA, .239 opponent average in his past five starts).

It is nice to get these throwback moments from a once highly touted pitcher, but four quality starts does not erase a long history of injuries and disappointment. If you stick with Buchholz for too long, you’re going to get hurt (or he will).

Edwin Encarnacion 1B, Indians

Has raised his average from .198 to .244 over his past 22 games by going 26-for-83 (.313) with seven homers, 20 RBIs, 17 runs and a 1.026 OPS.

Michael Wacha SP, Cardinals

Has not lost since his first start, going 7-0 with a 2.04 ERA, 59:25 strikeout-to-walk rate and a .197 opponent average over his past 11 starts. He is 3-0 with a 1.31 ERA, a 25:8 K:BB rate and .132 opponent average in his past four starts.

Eduardo Escobar SS, Twins

Entered Friday night as the league leader in doubles (24), while hitting .441 with five homers, 15 RBIs, six runs and and a 1.545 OPS over his past nine games.

Matt Kemp OF, Dodgers

Raised his average from .304 to .349 over the past 20 games by going 29-for-67 (.433) with five homers, 23 RBIs, 15 runs and a 1.237 OPS.

Mallex Smith OF, Rays

His value is largely determined on the number of bases he steals, and he has no steals since May 24 heading into Friday. In the 13 games since, he was 8-for-45 (.178) with a .260 OBP and was caught stealing twice.

Zach Davies, SP, Brewers

The 25-year-old has lost his past three decisions, allowing 11 runs in 14 ²/₃ innings (6.75 ERA) while striking out nine, walking seven and allowing opponents to hit .328 in that span.

Asdrubal Cabrera 2B, Mets

Had just two hits in his past 27 at-bats (.074) before the start of the Subway Series. He had no homers, RBIs or runs scored, just two walks and a .249 OPS.

Rafael Devers 3B, Red Sox

Not only had he not hit a homer since May 22, he is just 9-for-48 with one RBI, four runs scored, 17 strikeouts and a .521 OPS in his past 13 games.

— If you’re a Mets fan looking for a reason to smile, Brandon Nimmo was the most added player in ESPN leagues this week. Despite entering Friday with one hit in his previous 16 at-bats, he was hitting .298 with five homers, three stolen bases and a 1.087 OPS over his past 15 games. Another reason to smile (for some Mets fans): Jeurys Famila hit the DL.

— Shohei Ohtani

will miss at least three weeks

with a grade 2 strain of the UCL in his pitching arm. In December, it was reported he had a grade 1 strain, so warning signs were there. Now fantasy owners have a hole to fill while praying this doesn’t turn into a Tommy John scenario.

— Matt Olson had six homers and 13 RBIs in his past 12 games for the Athletics before Friday. He had scored at least one run in eight of those games.

— Aaron Judge struck out 14 times in his first five games this month, and became the first player to record eight strikeouts in a doubleheader. He had just three hits in that span, two of which were homers. He also entered Friday with the fifth highest strikeout percentage in the majors (31.5). He has less hits this month than an Amish website. Even Ben Affleck is a better Bat-man than him right now.

Domo Arigato, Nolan Arenado