MLB Grind Down: Saturday, May 24th: Page Two

by John Britt (jmbwngfn) Last Updated 2014-05-24 18:12:48

Texas at Detroit

Texas					Detroit
Nick Martinez		Vegas Moneyline			Rick Porcello		Vegas Over/Under
RIGHT		DET (-175)			RIGHT		9.0
Stats	Avg	OPS	wOBA	K%	Stats	Avg	OPS	wOBA	K%
SP vs. Left	0.222	0.706	0.324	10.5%	SP vs. Left	0.287	0.766	0.342	14.7%
SP vs. Right	0.297	0.794	0.339	17.9%	SP vs. Right	0.239	0.603	0.267	23.0%
Batter Splits	TEX BvP		TEX vs R		Batter Splits	DET BvP		DET vs R
Batter Split Links Above Open In Pop-Up Window

Pitcher Grind Down

• Nick Martinez – Martinez had a strong outing in his last start, only allowing one run on a solo homerun through five innings of work and through 27.2 innings so far this season he rocks a 2.28 ERA. With that said, he has a very tough matchup on tap against the Tigers in Detroit and owns just 5.2 K’s/9. He’s also still in the process of being “stretched out” so he’s very unlikely to pitch deep into this game. Rating = 4

Salaries: $4100 FD, $8550 DS, $8350 DD, $6000 DK, $69200 FF, $13000 SS, $9500 FTD

• Rick Porcello – Porcello hasn’t allowed more than two runs in any of his last four starts, and after dealing in both Baltimore and Boston, he should be looking forward to returning to spacious Comerica Park. He’s been one of the best pitchers in MLB so far this season, sporting a 7-1 record to go along with a 2.91 ERA and 1.01 WHIP. This Texas team, specially without Fielder, is not as threatening as we’re used to it being, which makes Porcello a solid option tonight. The only thing keeping him from a higher rating is his mediocre strikeout totals. Rating = 6.5

Salaries: $7400 FD, $15009 DS, $14800 DD, $9400 DK, $108800 FF, $24800 SS, $12700 FTD

Batter Grind Down

Texas

Shin-Soo Choo – Choo does it all; he can hit for power, swipe bags and he scores runs in bunches. He’s been much more successful against right-handed pitching in his career and has had success against Porcello in the past (9 for 28 with four doubles).

Additional Plays: Adrian Beltre

Detroit

Ian Kinsler – I expect Detroit to do a lot of damage today and Kinsler should be right in the middle of it. He racked up three doubles in last night’s game to extend hit hitting streak to nine games and is now hitting .375 during the month of May.

Additional Plays: Victor Martinez, Miguel Cabrera, Torii Hunter

Milwaukee at Miami

Milwaukee					Miami
Wily Peralta		Vegas Moneyline			Jacob Turner		Vegas Over/Under
RIGHT		MIA (-110)			RIGHT		8.0
Stats	Avg	OPS	wOBA	K%	Stats	Avg	OPS	wOBA	K%
SP vs. Left	0.259	0.712	0.322	16.9%	SP vs. Left	0.250	0.690	0.318	11.5%
SP vs. Right	0.259	0.673	0.309	16.1%	SP vs. Right	0.295	0.817	0.366	16.7%
Batter Splits	MIL BvP		MIL vs R		Batter Splits	MIA BvP		MIA vs R
Batter Split Links Above Open In Pop-Up Window

Pitcher Grind Down

• Wily Peralta – Peralta is the biggest reason why the Milwaukee Brewers still find themselves in first place in the NL Central. He’s yet to allow more than three runs in any of his nine starts this season, and sports a Cy Young caliber 2.18 ERA so far in 2014. Only very little run support and some shaky bullpen performances have kept him from racking up more than his current four wins. While this Miami offense is nowhere near as inept as they were last season, this is still a decent matchup for him as he baffled these hitters in two starts last season. Rating = 6.5

Salaries: $6900 FD, $17948 DS, $13400 DD, $9100 DK, $88800 FF, $22600 SS, $14200 FTD

• Jacob Turner – The once promising prospect has been disappointing for the Marlins. Through the first five starts of this season, Turner has yet to record a win and sports a robust 6.59 ERA. He did, however, pitch rather well in two starts against the Brewers last season. Rating = 4

Salaries: $4500 FD, $9840 DS, $8850 DD, $6600 DK, $42400 FF, $15500 SS, $11300 FTD

Batter Grind Down

Milwaukee

Carlos Gomez – Gomez found himself hitting out of the cleanup spot last night (instead of his usual spot leading off) and it paid off in a big way as he had a big night going 4 for 5 with two doubles, two runs and two RBI’s. He has seven hits in the last two games and is now hitting .351 during the month of May.

Miami

Garrett Jones – Jones is somewhat quietly returning to his 2009 form. He owns a .986 OPS against right-handed pitching so far this season and is hitting .310 so far at Marlins Park. Over the last week he is 9 for his last 19 (a 1.575 OPS)

Additional Plays: GIancarlo Stanton, Christian Yelich

Arizona at NY Mets

Arizona					NY Mets
Josh Collmenter		Vegas Moneyline			Zack Wheeler		Vegas Over/Under
RIGHT		NYM (-118)			RIGHT		7.5
Stats	Avg	OPS	wOBA	K%	Stats	Avg	OPS	wOBA	K%
SP vs. Left	0.276	0.703	0.327	18.5%	SP vs. Left	0.284	0.820	0.366	18.5%
SP vs. Right	0.210	0.645	0.291	21.1%	SP vs. Right	0.231	0.614	0.283	21.2%
Batter Splits	ARI BvP		ARI vs R		Batter Splits	NYM BvP		NYM vs R
Batter Split Links Above Open In Pop-Up Window

Pitcher Grind Down

• Josh Collmenter – Collmenter has been solid, yet unspectactular for the Diamonbacks this season (and during his career as a whole). He’s enters tonight’s game with a respectable 4.02 ERA and 1.21 WHIP but lacks some fantasy appeal with just 29 strikeouts in 47 innings. He’s struggled in the past against many of these Mets hitters and his low ceiling makes him a marginal fantasy option today. Rating = 4

Salaries: $4700 FD, $8754 DS, $10300 DD, $6300 DK, $63800 FF, $14000 SS, $NA FTD

• Zack Wheeler – While Wheeler hasn’t been bad by any means for the Mets, he’s simply not the second coming of Matt Harvey like many of the Mets fans were hoping. He certainly has the “stuff” to be a dominant pitcher, which gives him a nice GPP upside, but his struggles with his command have led him down the path of damage too often. He has been very solid at home this season and the matchup against Arizona is nothing to be scared of. Rating = 5.5

Salaries: $6500 FD, $15336 DS, $11300 DD, $6500 DK, $68800 FF, $16300 SS, $12400 FTD

Batter Grind Down

Arizona

Gerardo Parra – Lefties own a .929 OPS off of Wheeler so far this season and Parra should find himself batting out of the leadoff spot once again today. He’s batting .291 against right-handed pitching so far this season.

Additional Plays: Miguel Montero

NY Mets

Daniel Murphy – Left-handed batters are hitting .318 off of Collmenter this season and Murphy has had his number in the past; going 4 for 9 with a pair of doubles. He should see plenty of pitches to hit with David Wright batting right behind him in the order.

Additional Plays: David Wright, Lucas Duda, Curtis Granderson

Colorado at Atlanta

Colorado					Atlanta
Juan Nicasio		Vegas Moneyline			Mike Minor		Vegas Over/Under
RIGHT		ATL (-137)			LEFT		7.5
Stats	Avg	OPS	wOBA	K%	Stats	Avg	OPS	wOBA	K%
SP vs. Left	0.243	0.761	0.342	17.0%	SP vs. Left	0.226	0.596	0.268	26.5%
SP vs. Right	0.282	0.780	0.348	16.4%	SP vs. Right	0.242	0.693	0.304	20.7%
Batter Splits	COL BvP		COL vs L		Batter Splits	ATL BvP		ATL vs R
Batter Split Links Above Open In Pop-Up Window

Pitcher Grind Down

• Juan Nicasio – Nicasion has struggled a bit on the road this year, but one would expect him to preform better away from Coors Field (and he has in past seasons). He was knocked around by the feeble offense of the San Diego Padres in his last start, and was blasted by the Braves in their only meeting last season. While the Braves do tend to swing and miss quite often, Nicasio has just eight strikeouts in 24 innings pitched this month. He’s a mediocre starting pitcher and should be viewed as nothing more today. Rating = 4

Salaries: $5000 FD, $10303 DS, $11650 DD, $7400 DK, $62600 FF, $16500 SS, $11400 FTD

• Mike Minor – After missing the first month of the season and being roughed up a bit in his first two starts, Minor appears to be settling back in nicely. He’s won each of his last two starts and pitched very well in both, allowing just two runs over 13.1 innings while striking out 11 batters. The Rockies are a much less lethal team away from Denver and Minor held them in check in two starts last season (2.08 ERA in 13 innings). He doesn’t receive a ton of attention, but he’s a very good pitcher. Rating = 6.5

Salaries: $8000 FD, $16266 DS, $12450 DD, $9400 DK, $104000 FF, $21100 SS, $11000 FTD

Batter Grind Down

Colorado

Michael Cuddyer – Cuddyer has made a career out of crushing left-handed pitching, owning an .874 career OPS against southpaws. He homered last night and has racked up five hits in the last two games. He’s roughed up Minor in their few previous meetings, going 3 for 6 with a double and a homerun.

• Additional Plays: Troy Tulowitzki, Drew Stubbs, Wilin Rosario

Atlanta

Freddie Freeman – Freeman is in a perfect spot today, at home (1.002 OPS in 2013) and versus a right handed pitcher (.958 OPS last year). Throw in the fact that he’s absolutely crushed Juan Nicasio in the past to the tune of 5 for 8 with a double, a triple and three homeruns and you have yourself one of the top hitting options of the day.

• Additional Plays: Justin Upton, Jason Heyward

Boston at Tampa Bay

Boston					Tampa Bay
Jake Peavy		Vegas Moneyline			David Price		Vegas Over/Under
RIGHT		TBR (-141)			LEFT		7.0
Stats	Avg	OPS	wOBA	K%	Stats	Avg	OPS	wOBA	K%
SP vs. Left	0.235	0.735	0.322	21.1%	SP vs. Left	0.226	0.587	0.261	23.5%
SP vs. Right	0.242	0.701	0.311	19.5%	SP vs. Right	0.267	0.705	0.310	21.7%
Batter Splits	BOS BvP		BOS vs L		Batter Splits	TBR BvP		TBR vs R
Batter Split Links Above Open In Pop-Up Window

Pitcher Grind Down

• Jake Peavy – Peavy got out of the gates well this season, but things have turned ugly in his last two outings where he’s given up 11 earned runs on 20 hits in just 10.1 innings. To make matters worse, he only struck out three batters in those two starts combined. He’s been struggling with his control all season and it’s finally catching up to him. He pitched admirably in his only start against the Rays this season, but I advise you to let him get his command back and string a few successful outings together before considering him for cash game use. Rating = 5

Salaries: $6700 FD, $13748 DS, $12450 DD, $8000 DK, $68500 FF, $18500 SS, $13400 FTD

• David Price – Price has had an up-and-down start to the 2014 season, but always seems to bring his “A game” when he squares off against the Red Sox. In 15 starts against Boston since the beginning of 2011, he owns a 7-4 record, 2.78 ERA and 89 strikeouts in 97 innings. Price has been a beast at home thoughout his career, posting a 2.92 ERA over 511 innings. The Red Sox are certainly dangerous, but Price has proven himself against them with regularity. Rating = 7.5

Salaries: $9300 FD, $19763 DS, $17150 DD, $11200 DK, $112500 FF, $27500 SS, $16900 FTD

Batter Grind Down

Boston

Xander Bogaerts – While the matchup is tough, Bogaerts does own a .349 career batting average against left-handed pitching and is 9 for 22 with a pair of homeruns over the last six games.

Additional Plays: Dustin Pedroia

Tampa Bay

James Loney – He doesn’t get much love, but Loney just keeps on quietly producing. He’s hitting .302 with 26 RBI’s this season and he’s had success against Peavy in the past (10 for 33 with five doubles and two homeruns)

Additional Plays: Desmond Jennings, Matt Joyce

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