MLB Grind Down: Friday, August 22nd
The RotoGrinders MLB Grind Down article will give you an in-depth analysis into the MLB schedule. This article will break down the numbers for every single game and give you analysis on which trends you can exploit. While matchups are a major factor in daily fantasy baseball, there are plenty of other factors to consider such as injuries, weather, and salaries.
The analysis should point you in the right direction, but it is still up to you to decipher the information and make your own selections. No sport has more variance than baseball. The best choice is not always the right choice but following the trends will win you money over time.
Note: Any Fantasy Point Average Listed Uses FanDuel Scoring. For more info on FanDuel’s MLB Scoring System,check out the scoring systems section of our FanDuel Review
Chicago White Sox at NY Yankees
| Chicago White Sox | NY Yankees | ||||||||
| John Danks | Vegas Moneyline | Shane Greene | Vegas Over/Under | ||||||
| LEFT | NYY (-180) | RIGHT | 8.5 | ||||||
| Stats | Avg | OPS | wOBA | K% | Stats | Avg | OPS | wOBA | K% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| SP vs. Left | 0.247 | 0.705 | 0.313 | 9.4% | SP vs. Left | 0.240 | 0.638 | 0.290 | 13.30% |
| SP vs. Right | 0.281 | 0.850 | 0.371 | 16.4% | SP vs. Right | 0.229 | 0.594 | 0.275 | 32.10% |
| Batter Splits | CHW BvP  | CHW vs R | Batter Splits | NYY BvP | NYY vs L | ||||
| Batter Split Links Above Open In Pop-Up Window | |||||||||
Pitcher Grind Down
- John Danks – Danks has given up 31 earned runs over his last 7 starts which is almost 4.5 runs given up per outing. On the season he owns a 4.94 ERA with a K/9 of 5.9. Neither of those stats jump off the page at you. While the Yankees offense has been largely a disappointment this season, I will not be targeting Danks against them tonight. He’s more risk than reward. Rating = 4
Salaries: $5600 FD, $10750 DD, $4800 DK, $NA FF, $13000 SS, $10750 FTD
- Shane Greene – Greene has looked great in his last 2 starts. He’s struck out 15 batters while only giving up 2 earned runs over 14 innings of work. He has lowered his ERA on the year to 2.91 to go along with his K/9 of 8.1. He’s producing an impressive 51% ground ball rate and he’s a huge favorite tonight against the White Sox. While there are pitchers with more upside on the mound tonight, his price is low enough that you can use him on multi-pitcher sites. Rating = 6
Salaries: $6900 FD, $12350 DD, $7400 DK, $ FF, $20700 SS, $ FTD
Batter Grind Down
Chicago White Sox
Conor Gillaspie – Gillaspie has mashed RH pitching this season. He’s batting .337 with a .388 wOBA against righties. He gets a major ballpark boost with the short porch in right at Yankee Stadium.
Additional Plays: None
NY Yankees
Mark Teixeira – Teix has some of the best BvP numbers on the board today. He has faced Danks 15 times in his career and has 8 hits off of him, 3 of which went for extra bases. Teix should see plenty of RBI opportunities batting clean-up.
Additional Plays: Jacoby Ellsbury, Derek Jeter
Houston at Cleveland
| Houston | Cleveland | ||||||||
| Brad Peacock | Vegas Moneyline | Carlos Carrasco | Vegas Over/Under | ||||||
| RIGHT | CLE (-200) | RIGHT | 8.5 | ||||||
| Stats | Avg | OPS | wOBA | K% | Stats | Avg | OPS | wOBA | K% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| SP vs. Left | 0.281 | 0.823 | 0.361 | 18.7% | SP vs. Left | 0.239 | 0.620 | 0.279 | 20.10% |
| SP vs. Right | 0.273 | 0.840 | 0.368 | 20.1% | SP vs. Right | 0.203 | 0.566 | 0.254 | 26.00% |
| Batter Splits | HOU BvP | HOU vs R | Batter Splits | CLE BvP | CLE vs R | ||||
| Batter Split Links Above Open In Pop-Up Window | |||||||||
Pitcher Grind Down
- Brad Peacock – Peacock should be avoided in all formats tonight. Not only does he have a 5.47 ERA on the season, but he draws a terrible matchup against the Indians who are ranked 3rd in wOBA vs. RH pitching and 6th in wOBA at home. Peacock is a fly ball pitcher that struggles with LH hitters. That does not bode well for his matchup tonight. Rating = 3
Salaries: $5000 FD, $8450 DD, $5200 DK, $NA FF, $13000 SS, $8450 FTD
- Carlos Carrasco – Carrasco has spent some time in the bullpen, but will make his 7th start of the season tonight. He’s coming off of an excellent outing against the Orioles in which he threw 7 shutout innings while striking out 3 batters. He only threw 79 pitches though and I’m not sure how long his leash will be for tonight. My guess would be around 80-85 pitches (if he’s pitching well) which really caps his upside. Rating = 5
Salaries: $5700 FD, $12850 DD, $6600 DK, $ FF, $16600 SS, $8450 FTD
Batter Grind Down
Houston
Jose Altuve – There really aren’t any plays that stand out tonight against Carrasco, but Altuve is always in play at 2B. He’s an on-base machine and he is as big of a threat to steal a base as anyone on tonight’s schedule.
Additional Plays: None
Cleveland
Carlos Santana – Santana hits from both sides of the plate which I always like because he always has the splits in his favor. Peacock has given up a .361 wOBA to LH hitters this season and has already given up 16 HR’s. Santana is my odds on favorite to homer tonight.
Additional Plays: Michael Brantley, Jason Kipnis, Yan Gomes
San Francisco at Washington
| San Francisco | Washington | ||||||||
| Tim Hudson | Vegas Moneyline | Doug Fister | Vegas Over/Under | ||||||
| RIGHT | WAS (-150) | RIGHT | 7.0 | ||||||
| Stats | Avg | OPS | wOBA | K% | Stats | Avg | OPS | wOBA | K% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| SP vs. Left | 0.281 | 0.770 | 0.337 | 11.4% | SP vs. Left | 0.257 | 0.655 | 0.290 | 15.50% |
| SP vs. Right | 0.230 | 0.597 | 0.261 | 19.2% | SP vs. Right | 0.227 | 0.611 | 0.271 | 15.60% |
| Batter Splits | SFG BvP | SFG vs R | Batter Splits | WSN BvP | WSN vs R | ||||
| Batter Split Links Above Open In Pop-Up Window | |||||||||
Pitcher Grind Down
- Tim Hudson – Hudson has been knocked around a bit in his last few starts. In the month of August, he is sporting an ERA of 6.00 while giving up a .328 batting average to his opponents. He’s given up at least 6 hits in each of his last 7 starts and will likely have his hands full again tonight as he’s facing a very talented Nationals offense. While his price has come down a bit, it’s typically better to target pitchers that are trending in the opposite direction. Rating = 5
Salaries: $6800 FD, $15400 DD, $6600 DK, $NA FF, $17000 SS, $15400 FTD
- Doug Fister – Fister has been dominant in his recent starts. He hasn’t given up a single earned run over his last 3 outings and has struck out 15 batters over 21 innings during that stretch. He’s been terrific at Nationals Park all season long with a 1.72 ERA and a .204 batting average given up to opponents. Tonight he faces a Giants offense that is ranked 24th in wOBA vs. RH pitching this season. He’s a sizable favorite and he is still pretty affordable across the industry. Rating = 7
Salaries: $8600 FD, $18100 DD, $9100 DK, $ FF, $26800 SS, $18100 FTD
Batter Grind Down
San Francisco
Avoid all Giants tonight against Fister. He has been dominant at home this season and he’s managed to keep both LH and RH hitters in check this season as he has held them both under a .290 wOBA.
Washington
Jayson Werth – Werth is another BvP special for tonight. He has had Hudson’s number in his career going 15/41 with 7 XBH’s. He’s also drawn 5 walks against Hudson to put his career OBP against him at .435.
Additional Plays: Adam LaRoche, Bryce Harper
St. Louis at Philadelphia
| St. Louis | Philadelphia | ||||||||
| Shelby Miller | Vegas Moneyline | Kyle Kendrick | Vegas Over/Under | ||||||
| RIGHT | STL (-168) | RIGHT | 7.5 | ||||||
| Stats | Avg | OPS | wOBA | K% | Stats | Avg | OPS | wOBA | K% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| SP vs. Left | 0.249 | 0.748 | 0.330 | 14.6% | SP vs. Left | 0.288 | 0.834 | 0.364 | 15.30% |
| SP vs. Right | 0.241 | 0.733 | 0.326 | 17.1% | SP vs. Right | 0.255 | 0.721 | 0.319 | 12.10% |
| Batter Splits | STL BvP | STL vs R | Batter Splits | PHI BvP | PHI vs R | ||||
| Batter Split Links Above Open In Pop-Up Window | |||||||||
Pitcher Grind Down
- Adam Wainwright – Wainwright was supposed to start Saturday, but was bumped up to start tonight instead. Wainwright has struggled a bit over the last month. His K’s and his velocity are both down which is typically a red flag for a pitcher in daily fantasy, but he still brings a 15-7 record, 2.40 ERA and 1.03 WHIP to the table. The Phillies have been a cure for the pitching blues all season long as they ranked 28th in wOBA vs. RH pitching. Wainwright dominated them in their only other meeting this season and should have another quality outing tonight. Rating = 8
- Kyle Kendrick – Kendrick is a pitcher that rarely appears on my fantasy radar. He just doesn’t have enough upside to make me consider rostering him. He owns an ERA just under 5.00 on the season with a K/9 just over 5.0. He gives up quite a few HR’s and is averaging 2.6 walks per 9 innings. You don’t have to search too far to find better plays at pitcher tonight. Rating = 4
Batter Grind Down
St. Louis
Matt Adams – Adams is my go-to guy when I need a value play at 1B. He’s batting .332 with a .376 wOBA against RH pitching this season and draws a favorable matchup against Kendrick who has given up a .364 wOBA to LH hitters this season.
Additional Plays: Matt Carpenter, Jhonny Peralta
Philadelphia
This Phillies offense has been ice cold all season long. Even with the recent struggles of Wainwright, I will not be targeting any hitters against him tonight.
Tampa Bay at Toronto
| Tampa Bay | Toronto | ||||||||
| Drew Smyly | Vegas Moneyline | Marcus Stroman | Vegas Over/Under | ||||||
| LEFT | TOR (-130) | RIGHT | 8.0 | ||||||
| Stats | Avg | OPS | wOBA | K% | Stats | Avg | OPS | wOBA | K% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| SP vs. Left | 0.169 | 0.448 | 0.200 | 29.50% | SP vs. Left | 0.222 | 0.659 | 0.293 | 21.20% |
| SP vs. Right | 0.296 | 0.860 | 0.374 | 17.30% | SP vs. Right | 0.266 | 0.630 | 0.280 | 19.40% |
| Batter Splits | TBR BvP | TBR vs R | Batter Splits | TOR BvP | TOR vs L | ||||
| Batter Split Links Above Open In Pop-Up Window | |||||||||
Pitcher Grind Down
- Drew Smyly – Smyly has looked sharp in his last 2 starts. He has only given up 2 earned runs while striking out 13 batters. Joe Madden and the Rays pitching coaches are excited to work with Smyly in the offseason, but until that happens, I will continue to avoid him against RH heavy lineups as Smyly has given up a .374 wOBA to batters from the right side of the plate this season. He’s going to have a tough time with this Blue Jays offense in the very hitter-friendly Rogers Centre. Rating = 5
Salaries: $7400 FD, $12550 DD, $7700 DK, $NA FF, $21300 SS, $12550 FTD
- Marcus Stroman – Stroman put up a rare dud in his last start. He gave up 5 earned runs to the White Sox as he couldn’t even make it out of the first inning. He’s still having a terrific rookie season though as he has a 3.83 ERA with a K/9 of 7.6. He is a ground ball pitcher that gives up very few HR’s. Despite the Rogers Centre being a hitter’s park, Stroman has pitched very well there this season with a 2.70 ERA while holding opponents to a .210 batting average. He’s worth a look as a contrarian GPP play tonight. Rating = 6
Salaries: $7100 FD, $12300 DD, $7000 DK, $ FF, $23200 SS, $12450 FTD
Batter Grind Down
Tampa Bay
Evan Longoria – Stroman has held both LH and RH hitters under a .300 wOBA this season, but he’s still a rookie pitcher and this game is still being played in a very hitter-friendly ballpark. Longo is cheap for the type of upside that he provides and he should see a big ballpark boost in this series.
Additional Plays: Matt Joyce
Toronto
Jose Bautista – Joey Bats has crushed LH pitching this season. He’s batting .347 with a .465 wOBA against southpaws. Additionally, he draws a favorable matchup in one of the most hitter-friendly ballparks in all of baseball. Do whatever it takes to get him in your lineups.
Additional Plays: Jose Reyes, Edwin Encarnacion, Melky Cabrera