MLB Grind Down: Friday, August 1st Page Two
NY Yankees at Boston
| NY Yankees | Boston | ||||||||
| Chris Capuano | Vegas Moneyline | Anthony Ranaudo | Vegas Over/Under | ||||||
| LEFT | NYY (-120) | RIGHT | 10 | ||||||
| Stats | Avg | OPS | wOBA | K% | Stats | Avg | OPS | wOBA | K% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| SP vs. Left | 0.294 | 0.798 | 0.352 | 13.90% | SP vs. Left | ||||
| SP vs. Right | 0.232 | 0.727 | 0.319 | 23.20% | SP vs. Right | ||||
| Batter Splits | NYY BvP  | NYY vs R | Batter Splits | BOS BvP | BOS vs L | ||||
| Batter Split Links Above Open In Pop-Up Window | |||||||||
Pitcher Grind Down
- Chris Capuano – A day after swapping Kelly Johnson for Stephen Drew, the Yankees take on the Red Sox in Fenway in what is expected to be a very high scoring game. Capuano is a 35 year-old lefty that will likely post pretty pedestrian numbers while on the Yankees pitching staff. The total for this game is set at 10.0 runs and both pitchers should be avoided here. Rating = 3
- Anthony Ranaudo – Ranaudo is one of the top Red Sox pitching prospects and he will make his major league debut tonight. Ranaudo has really pitched well in the minor-leagues this season with a 2.53 ERA. I typically like to take a wait and see approach in these situations, but with this high total, I’ll be targeting a few Yankee bats against him tonight. Rating = 3
Batter Grind Down
NY Yankees
Brett Gardner – You could say that Gardner is on a little bit of a tear right now. Gardner has 9 hits (6 went for extra bases) in his last 4 games and a nice matchup against a rookie RH in a game that features a very high run total.
Additional Plays: Jacoby Ellsbury, Mark Teixeira, Brian McCann
Boston
Dustin Pedroia – Pedroia has had a down year, but he’s still very good against LH pitching and he has always hit well at Fenway. I like the matchup against Capuano and wouldn’t be surprised to see him post a multi-hit, multi-run type of game tonight.
Additional Plays: Xander Bogaerts, David Ortiz
Cincinnati at Miami
| Cincinnati | Miami | ||||||||
| Mat Latos | Vegas Moneyline | Jacob Turner | Vegas Over/Under | ||||||
| RIGHT | CIN (-110) | RIGHT | 7 | ||||||
| Stats | Avg | OPS | wOBA | K% | Stats | Avg | OPS | wOBA | K% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| SP vs. Left | 0.187 | 0.526 | 0.232 | 14.70% | SP vs. Left | 0.270 | 0.769 | 0.339 | 8.50% |
| SP vs. Right | 0.182 | 0.544 | 0.248 | 16.70% | SP vs. Right | 0.339 | 0.876 | 0.381 | 21.10% |
| Batter Splits | CIN BvP | CIN vs R | Batter Splits | MIA BvP | MIA vs R | ||||
| Batter Split Links Above Open In Pop-Up Window | |||||||||
Pitcher Grind Down
- Mat Latos – If you just look at the 3.31 ERA, Latos has had a solid season, but his 4.33 xFIP and K/9 of only 5.6 tell a different story. Latos is not missing nearly as many bats as he did last season and he’s producing an extremely low ground ball rate of 32%. Eventually hits are going to start finding holes against him. Even against a strikeout happy Marlins team, I’ll be avoiding Latos tonight. Rating = 5
Salaries: $7600 FD, $14500 DD, $8800 DK, $96800 FF, $19500 SS, $14500 FTD
- Jacob Turner – Turner’s xFIP of 3.88 is almost a full 2 runs lower than his ERA this season, but that’s about all Turner has going for him. He’s only averaging 6.3 K’s per 9 innings and he’s giving up HR’s on 10% of his fly balls. He does have a nice matchup against the Reds, but he’s too risky to use in cash games. Rating = 4
Salaries: $5500 FD, $9150 DD, $5700 DK, $65600 FF, $13000 SS, $9150 FTD
Batter Grind Down
Cincinnati
Todd Frazier – If you didn’t watch baseball religiously like we all do, you’d probably be surprised to hear that Frazier has 20 HR’s and 16 SB’s on the season. He tends to get overlooked at 3B and I love the matchup against Turner who has given up a .381 wOBA to RH hitters this season.
Additional Plays: Devin Mesoraco, Billy Hamilton
Miami
Giancarlo Stanton – If you want an OF with upside tonight, take a look at Stanton. He hit his 25th HR of the season last night and he hit it off of Johnny Cueto. I like the matchup against Latos who has given up a lot of fly balls this season.
Additional Plays: Christian Yelich
LA Angels at Tampa Bay
| LA Angels | Tampa Bay | ||||||||
| Matt Shoemaker | Vegas Moneyline | Jeremy Hellickson | Vegas Over/Under | ||||||
| RIGHT | TBR (-111) | RIGHT | 8 | ||||||
| Stats | Avg | OPS | wOBA | K% | Stats | Avg | OPS | wOBA | K% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| SP vs. Left | 0.284 | 0.802 | 0.350 | 23.20% | SP vs. Left | ||||
| SP vs. Right | 0.236 | 0.684 | 0.298 | 25.80% | SP vs. Right | ||||
| Batter Splits | LAA BvP | LAA vs R | Batter Splits | TBR BvP | TBR vs R | ||||
| Batter Split Links Above Open In Pop-Up Window | |||||||||
Pitcher Grind Down
- Matt Shoemaker – Shoemaker owns a 4.13 ERA on the season, but an impressive 3.12 xFIP and a K/9 of 9.1. While the Rays offense has been much better lately, they are still ranked around the league average in wOBA vs. RH pitching. He’s probably too risky for cash games, but can be used as a contrarian tournament play. Rating = 5.5
Salaries: $7300 FD, $13600 DD, $6600 DK, $117300 FF, $19100 SS, $13600 FTD
- Jeremy Hellickson – Don’t fall into the trap of Hellickson’s 1.00 ERA this season. His xFIP (a better indicator of pitching) is at 4.88 and he’s averaging 3 walks per 9 innings. When Hellickson is healthy, he’s a very solid RH pitcher, but he’s only making his 3rd start of the season and I’m not a fan of the matchup against the Angels who are ranked 8th in wOBA vs. RH pitching. Rating = 4.5
Batter Grind Down
LA Angels
Kole Calhoun – Calhoun is one of the most consistent fantasy options in the OF night in and night out. He has been great against RH pitching all season and I’ll be rostering him once again tonight as Hellickson has given up a career .325 wOBA to LH hitters.
Additional Plays: Erick Aybar, Mike Trout
Tampa Bay
James Loney – The one area where Shoemaker has struggled this season is against LH hitters. He’s given up a .350 wOBA to batters from the left side and Loney has been swinging a hot bat. He’s a nice salary cap relief option at 1B tonight.
Additional Plays: Matt Joyce
Toronto at Houston
| Toronto | Houston | ||||||||
| J.A. Happ | Vegas Moneyline | Collin McHugh | Vegas Over/Under | ||||||
| LEFT | TOR (-115) | RIGHT | 9 | ||||||
| Stats | Avg | OPS | wOBA | K% | Stats | Avg | OPS | wOBA | K% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| SP vs. Left | 0.213 | 0.729 | 0.324 | 25.00% | SP vs. Left | 0.211 | 0.652 | 0.292 | 24.90% |
| SP vs. Right | 0.295 | 0.818 | 0.359 | 16.20% | SP vs. Right | 0.184 | 0.625 | 0.280 | 31.40% |
| Batter Splits | TOR BvP | TOR vs R | Batter Splits | HOU BvP | HOU vs L | ||||
| Batter Split Links Above Open In Pop-Up Window | |||||||||
Pitcher Grind Down
- J.A. Happ – You may see Happ against the strikeout happy Astros and immediately target him as an upside play, but I’m not sold on him tonight. The Astros are actually very good against LH pitching as they are ranked 6th in wOBA vs. lefties. The Astros have also had a great homestand where they are scoring runs in bunches. There will be quite a few people on Happ in tournaments tonight, but I’d rather target the Astros bats against him. Rating = 4
Salaries: $ FD, $10650 DD, $6000 DK, $67500 FF, $13000 SS, $10650 FTD
- Collin McHugh – McHugh has pitched well this season, but I agree with Vegas in that I think this will be a high scoring affair. The Blue Jays are ranked 1st overall in wOBA vs. RH pitching. With a full slate, you can safely avoid McHugh in all league formats. Rating = 4
Salaries: $7200 FD, $17000 DD, $7900 DK, $62900 FF, $23100 SS, $17000 FTD
Batter Grind Down
Toronto
Dioner Navarro – Navarro has been terrific batting clean-up this season with both Encarnacion and Lind on the shelf. Navarro has 16 hits (3 HR’s) over his last 10 games and his price is still too cheap on the major DFS sites. Keep targeting him at Catcher.
Additional Plays: Jose Bautista, Jose Reyes, Melky Cabrera
Houston
Jose Altuve – Altuve is a hits machine this season. In addition to holding the AL batting lead, he also has 42 SB’s on the season. I should also mention that Altuve is batting .426 against LH pitching this season.
Additional Plays: Chris Carter, Matt Dominguez
Minnesota at Chicago White Sox
| Minnesota | Chicago White Sox | ||||||||
| Logan Darnell | Vegas Moneyline | Chris Sale | Vegas Over/Under | ||||||
| LEFT | CWS (-260) | LEFT | 7.5 | ||||||
| Stats | Avg | OPS | wOBA | K% | Stats | Avg | OPS | wOBA | K% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| SP vs. Left | SP vs. Left | 0.129 | 0.328 | 0.158 | 38.50% | ||||
| SP vs. Right | SP vs. Right | 0.210 | 0.561 | 0.252 | 26.40% | ||||
| Batter Splits | MIN BvP | MIN vs L | Batter Splits | CHW BvP | CHW vs L | ||||
| Batter Split Links Above Open In Pop-Up Window | |||||||||
Pitcher Grind Down
- Logan Darnell – Darnell gave up 7 earned runs in his first major league start and now has to face the White Sox in Chicago with Chris Sale on the mound. Run support will be limited and he’s going to have his hands full with Abreu and Co. He’s an easy avoid tonight. Rating = 3
Salaries: $5000 FD, $8150 DD, $5700 DK, $67000 FF, $13000 SS, $NA FTD
- Chris Sale – Much like Clayton Kershaw, when Sale is on the mound, you need to take notice. He’s not quite as expensive as Kershaw was last night, but has just as much upside in his matchup against the Twins at home. Sale has a 1.88 ERA on the season with a K/9 of 9.9. He’s giving up very few walks and has a LOB percentage of 83%. All signs point to another dominant outing from Sale tonight. Rating = 9.5
Salaries: $11000 FD, $22350 DD, $12300 DK, $163400 FF, $33000 SS, $ FTD
Batter Grind Down
Minnesota
With Chris Sale on the mound, you should avoid all Twins hitters tonight.
Chicago White Sox
Jose Abreu – Abreu has 31 bombs on the season and is riding a 20 game hitting streak. He gives you the power and the average. While many people may have Miggy as their top 1B plays tonight, I have Abreu ranked slightly ahead of him.
Additional Plays: Alexei Ramirez, Adam Eaton, Dayan Viciedo