Daily Batter Breakdown: Friday, April 17th
Welcome to the Daily Batter Breakdown. Each day, with at least eight games on the night slate, I’ll break down some of the best top tier hitters to target based on matchup. The biggest split taken into account will be left/right, but each player card will also show park factors, player salaries and then a description of why I’ll be targeting him.
 | Carlos Santana | ||||||
| Daily Breakdown | Avg | OPS | HR% | wOBA | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Left/Right Splits | 0.212 | 0.757 | 5.22% | 0.340 | |||
| Last 7 Days Splits | 0.286 | 0.778 | 0.00% | 0.364 | |||
| Opp SP vs. LR | Avg | OPS | HR% | wOBA | |||
| Pelfrey – RIGHT | 0.183 | 0.648 | 3.33% | 0.294 | |||
| PARK-1 | PARK-LR | FD | DD | DK | FF | SS | FTD |
| 1.116 | 0.000 | $3,400 | $9,850 | $4,700 | $76,800 | ||
Carlos Santana
Santana hits lefties better than he hits righties, but I still think he is a solid play today against Pelfrey. Pelfrey is not a good pitcher, with a career 4.90 xFIP against lefties and a 5.78 xFIP last year against left handers. This is projected to be a high scoring game and all of the lefties in the Cleveland lineup should be able to dominate Pelfrey away from home and make a very nice stack option. Santana is one of the top catcher options on the board today.
 | Erick Aybar | ||||||
| Daily Breakdown | Avg | OPS | HR% | wOBA | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Left/Right Splits | 0.289 | 0.727 | 1.40% | 0.320 | |||
| Last 7 Days Splits | 0.143 | 0.393 | 0.00% | 0.196 | |||
| Opp SP vs. LR | Avg | OPS | HR% | wOBA | |||
| Hernandez – RIGHT | 0.246 | 0.745 | 2.77% | 0.333 | |||
| PARK-1 | PARK-LR | FD | DD | DK | FF | SS | FTD |
| 1.012 | 0.000 | $3,000 | $6,800 | $3,700 | $59,500 | ||
Erick Aybar
With Jose Reyes on the shelf, I guess I will have to pick another shortstop to write about. Aybar has been leading off in a potent Angels’ lineup which takes on Fausto C… sorry, Roberto Hernandez in a hitter’s park in Minute Maid. There is a reason Hernandez is not sticking with teams long and ended up on the Astros, as his 5.57 xFIP last year against left-handed batters is not good at all. Aybar is relatively inexpensive and should score a couple runs today with double bag speed.
 | Alejandro De Aza | ||||||
| Daily Breakdown | Avg | OPS | HR% | wOBA | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Left/Right Splits | 0.277 | 0.766 | 2.05% | 0.337 | |||
| Last 7 Days Splits | 0.318 | 0.909 | 4.55% | 0.389 | |||
| Opp SP vs. LR | Avg | OPS | HR% | wOBA | |||
| Kelly – RIGHT | 0.243 | 0.689 | 1.58% | 0.318 | |||
| PARK-1 | PARK-LR | FD | DD | DK | FF | SS | FTD |
| 1.072 | 0.000 | $3,100 | $8,200 | $4,500 | $51,900 | ||
Alejandro De Aza
Joe Kelly is a decent pitcher, but he is yet to feel the wrath of lefties in Fenway Park. De Aza has been one of my favorite guys to target in the early going as he has been hitting well and has leadoff HR power at the top of the Orioles’ lineup against right handers. This is not a slam dunk pick, because Kelly has been under 5 in the xFIP category against lefties his entire career, but De Aza’s price makes up for that. He has hit well against righties with a .452 wOBA this year, and while that number is extremely unsustainable, he’s a leadoff hitter at a good price and a very solid cash game option.
 | Matt Joyce | ||||||
| Daily Breakdown | Avg | OPS | HR% | wOBA | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Left/Right Splits | 0.263 | 0.758 | 2.08% | 0.337 | |||
| Last 7 Days Splits | 0.273 | 0.742 | 0.00% | 0.312 | |||
| Opp SP vs. LR | Avg | OPS | HR% | wOBA | |||
| Hernandez – RIGHT | 0.246 | 0.745 | 2.77% | 0.333 | |||
| PARK-1 | PARK-LR | FD | DD | DK | FF | SS | FTD |
| 1.012 | 0.000 | $3,200 | $8,700 | $3,800 | $48,100 | ||
Matt Joyce
I expect Joyce to be one of the highest owned guys of the night, assuming he is in the lineup. Just like with Aybar, Joyce will face Hernandez in Minute Maid, which is a very solid matchup for the platooner. He is cheap, hits right-handers extremely well and is in a hitter’s park and will most likely be in the middle of the lineup. He has one of the best matchups of the day.
 | Freddie Freeman | ||||||
| Daily Breakdown | Avg | OPS | HR% | wOBA | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Left/Right Splits | 0.300 | 0.885 | 3.05% | 0.388 | |||
| Last 7 Days Splits | 0.136 | 0.617 | 9.09% | 0.271 | |||
| Opp SP vs. LR | Avg | OPS | HR% | wOBA | |||
| Hutchison – RIGHT | 0.256 | 0.811 | 4.31% | 0.353 | |||
| PARK-1 | PARK-LR | FD | DD | DK | FF | SS | FTD |
| 1.042 | 0.000 | $3,500 | $9,750 | $4,700 | $68,000 | ||
Freddie Freeman
There are a couple of solid pitchers in this game today, but that still does not make the Rogers Centre over/under less than 8. The Braves, even with a poor lineup, are set at four projected runs, and are not big underdogs against the Jays. Freeman is one of the best cash game plays because of his power and his ability to draw walks despite not doing it this year so far. His wOBA has been around .400 against right-handers the last few years and the Rogers Centre will only help his ISO.
 | Kyle Seager | ||||||
| Daily Breakdown | Avg | OPS | HR% | wOBA | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Left/Right Splits | 0.283 | 0.862 | 5.66% | 0.376 | |||
| Last 7 Days Splits | 0.280 | 0.708 | 4.00% | 0.312 | |||
| Opp SP vs. LR | Avg | OPS | HR% | wOBA | |||
| Gallardo – RIGHT | 0.233 | 0.637 | 1.57% | 0.287 | |||
| PARK-1 | PARK-LR | FD | DD | DK | FF | SS | FTD |
| 0.825 | 0.000 | $3,500 | $8,700 | $3,600 | $69,500 | ||
Kyle Seager
We’re still waiting on a Seager breakout, but today looks as good as any. He had very solid home splits last year despite hitting in Safeco, and gets to face Gallardo today, who is pretty good at giving up homers. There were a few games last year when Seager carried fantasy teams to big paydays and I would expect the same today. He had a .221 ISO against RHP last year and that number has improved every year in the majors, along with his wOBA. He has struggled a little out of the gate, but this is a great bounce back spot.
 | Jose Altuve | ||||||
| Daily Breakdown | Avg | OPS | HR% | wOBA | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Left/Right Splits | 0.319 | 0.775 | 0.59% | 0.340 | |||
| Last 7 Days Splits | 0.323 | 0.815 | 3.23% | 0.359 | |||
| Opp SP vs. LR | Avg | OPS | HR% | wOBA | |||
| Weaver – RIGHT | 0.210 | 0.619 | 1.79% | 0.277 | |||
| PARK-1 | PARK-LR | FD | DD | DK | FF | SS | FTD |
| 1.012 | 0.000 | $4,100 | $9,100 | $4,300 | $70,200 | ||
Jose Altuve
Even though Weaver is pitching, the Astros still have a solid chance at putting up some runs. Altuve is always a leading candidate to score, and even though this is a right/right matchup, I think there is still merit in using Altuve today. He is one of the best second basemen on the board with SB upside (especially against right-handers) and a bit of power while hitting leadoff. I would not try to force him into my lineups, but if I can get him with remaining salary, I would feel great about it.
 | Chris Davis | ||||||
| Daily Breakdown | Avg | OPS | HR% | wOBA | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Left/Right Splits | 0.199 | 0.716 | 5.65% | 0.312 | |||
| Last 7 Days Splits | 0.280 | 0.788 | 4.00% | 0.344 | |||
| Opp SP vs. LR | Avg | OPS | HR% | wOBA | |||
| Kelly – RIGHT | 0.243 | 0.689 | 1.58% | 0.318 | |||
| PARK-1 | PARK-LR | FD | DD | DK | FF | SS | FTD |
| 1.072 | 0.000 | $3,500 | $10,450 | $4,800 | $61,900 | ||
Chris Davis
I talked a little bit about Kelly earlier for De Aza, and even though he is a solid pitcher who can limit homers and is generally effective against lefties, I love Davis as a GPP play. I doubt that there will be many people on Davis today because of the pitching matchup and his inconsistency, but if you are looking for a two-homer game, there are a select few I would rather have. As a dead pull hitter, Davis should be able to work with Fenway’s layout, and if he connects with a couple, watch out.
 | Jacoby Ellsbury | ||||||
| Daily Breakdown | Avg | OPS | HR% | wOBA | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Left/Right Splits | 0.258 | 0.711 | 2.78% | 0.312 | |||
| Last 7 Days Splits | 0.276 | 0.654 | 0.00% | 0.298 | |||
| Opp SP vs. LR | Avg | OPS | HR% | wOBA | |||
| Karns – RIGHT | |||||||
| PARK-1 | PARK-LR | FD | DD | DK | FF | SS | FTD |
| 1.002 | 0.000 | $4,000 | $9,900 | $4,500 | $66,400 | ||
Jacoby Ellsbury
Nathan Karns has been a mixed bag so far, with one bad start and one good start. I tend to sway on the side of him having another good start today at home, but it is hard to ignore Ellsbury’s upside against a right-handed pitcher. He steals more bags, he hits for more power and has a .347 career wOBA against righties despite hitting them poorly in the last couple of years. Ellsbury can sometimes really disappoint, but the upside is massive.
 | Bryce Harper | ||||||
| Daily Breakdown | Avg | OPS | HR% | wOBA | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Left/Right Splits | 0.276 | 0.769 | 3.89% | 0.338 | |||
| Last 7 Days Splits | 0.172 | 0.56 | 3.45% | 0.24 | |||
| Opp SP vs. LR | Avg | OPS | HR% | wOBA | |||
| O’Sullivan – RIGHT | |||||||
| PARK-1 | PARK-LR | FD | DD | DK | FF | SS | FTD |
| 1.068 | 0.000 | $4,200 | $10,700 | $4,500 | $74,900 | ||
Bryce Harper
The Nationals are the biggest favorite on the board today playing at home against the O’Sullivan-led Phillies. We are going back to the well here as Harper has struggled in the early going, but hit a homer off O’Sullivan in the last game between these two a few days ago. O’Sullivan was not bad, but the Nationals have one of the biggest over/unders of the day and Harper crushes right-handers. He will be hitting in the middle of the lineup and I love his potential.