MLB Grind Down: Friday, June 20th - Page 2

by Derek Farnsworth (Notorious) Last Updated 2014-06-20 17:23:25

Toronto at Cincinnati

Toronto					Cincinnati
R.A. Dickey		Vegas Moneyline			Mat Latos		Vegas Over/Under
RIGHT		CIN (-130)			RIGHT		8.0
Stats	Avg	OPS	wOBA	K%	Stats	Avg	OPS	wOBA	K%
SP vs. Left	0.252	0.748	0.333	17.4%	SP vs. Left	0.247	0.685	0.309	19.8%
SP vs. Right	0.233	0.689	0.311	19.7%	SP vs. Right	0.240	0.608	0.282	22.4%
Batter Splits	TOR BvP		TOR vs R		Batter Splits	CIN BvP		CIN vs R
Batter Split Links Above Open In Pop-Up Window

Pitcher Grind Down

Liam Hendriks – Ignore the pitching tables above. R.A. Dickey was slated to start tonight, but will have his start pushed back until Sunday. Hendriks is not a recommended fantasy option tonight. Over the last 3 seasons he has posted an ERA over 6.00 and will be pitching in the very HR-friendly Great American Ballpark tonight. Rating = 3

• Mat Latos – Latos looked great in his first outing with 4 K’s over 6 scoreless innings against the Brewers. He threw 87 pitches in his first start and you have to think that the Reds will stretch him out a bit more tonight. Tonight he faces a Blue Jays offense that has really been slumping in the month of June. They still have a ton of firepower in their lineup, but you don’t necessarily have to avoid pitchers against them right now. Rating = 5

Salaries: $8000 FD, $16003 DS, $13550 DD, $10000 DK, $108000 FF, $22000 SS, $13550 FTD

Batter Grind Down

Toronto

Edwin Encarnacion – E5 hit his 21st HR of the season last night and 17 of those 21 have come against RH pitching. He has multi-HR upside and is playing in a HR-friendly ballpark. See where I’m going with this one?

Additional Plays: Jose Bautista, Jose Reyes

Cincinnati

Joey Votto – I really like the Reds matchup tonight against Hendriks. Over the last 3 seasons Hendriks has given up an OPS of .832 to LHB’s and an OPS of .961 to RHB’s. Don’t be afraid to get a few Reds in your lineup tonight.

Additional Plays: Billy Hamilton, Jay Bruce, Devin Mesoraco

Chicago White Sox at Minnesota

Chicago White Sox					Minnesota
Hector Noesi		Vegas Moneyline			Ricky Nolasco		Vegas Over/Under
RIGHT		MIN (-120)			RIGHT		9.0
Stats	Avg	OPS	wOBA	K%	Stats	Avg	OPS	wOBA	K%
SP vs. Left	0.295	0.839	0.371	18.8%	SP vs. Left	0.276	0.770	0.344	17.4%
SP vs. Right	0.337	0.912	0.400	16.5%	SP vs. Right	0.273	0.716	0.317	20.3%
Batter Splits	CHW BvP		CHW vs R		Batter Splits	MIN BvP		MIN vs R
Batter Split Links Above Open In Pop-Up Window

Pitcher Grind Down

• Hector Noesi – Noesi has posted 3 quality starts in his last 4 outings, but is still a below average fantasy option. He has a 5.37 ERA on the season and is a bit too risky for me to use in cash games. The price is cheap enough that you could throw him in a GPP on multi-pitcher sites, but temper your expectations. Rating = 4

Salaries: $5900 FD, $9769 DS, $9550 DD, $5800 DK, $47400 FF, $13800 SS, $9550 FTD

• Ricky Nolasco – Nolasco has fit right in with this Twins’ pitching staff this season. He has an ERA well over 5.00 this season and has seen his K-rate go down from that of the past few years. Until he can right the ship, continue to avoid Nolasco in all leagues. Rating = 4

Salaries: $5400 FD, $9603 DS, $10200 DD, $6600 DK, $76000 FF, $13000 SS, $9850 FTD

Batter Grind Down

Chicago White Sox

Adam Eaton – Since the start of 2013, Nolasco has given up a .344 wOBA to LHB’s. Eaton is really seeing the ball well right now with 14 hits and 6 walks over his last 10 games.

Additional Plays: Jose Abreu

Minnesota

Josh Willingham – Noesi struggles against both LHB’s and RHB’s. When it comes to giving up hits, he doesn’t discriminate. Willingham has a .384 wOBA against RH pitching this season.

Additional Plays: Brian Dozier, Joe Mauer, Danny Santana

Seattle at Kansas City

Seattle					Kansas City
Hisashi Iwakuma		Vegas Moneyline			James Shields		Vegas Over/Under
RIGHT		KCR (-125)			RIGHT		7.0
Stats	Avg	OPS	wOBA	K%	Stats	Avg	OPS	wOBA	K%
SP vs. Left	0.230	0.616	0.271	18.9%	SP vs. Left	0.248	0.654	0.295	20.9%
SP vs. Right	0.216	0.629	0.279	23.1%	SP vs. Right	0.268	0.727	0.326	19.7%
Batter Splits	SEA BvP		SEA vs R		Batter Splits	KCR BvP		KCR vs R
Batter Split Links Above Open In Pop-Up Window

Pitcher Grind Down

• Hisashi Iwakuma – Iwakuma is an interesting play tonight. His numbers this season have been great and he offers nice upside. The issue is that he is facing a Royals offense that 1. doesn’t strike out often and 2. has been lighting it up over the last two weeks. I think you can expect 7 strong innings out of Iwakuma in this one, but I’m not sure how many K’s he’s going to be able to rack up against the Royals who didn’t strike out a single time in yesterday’s game against Anibal Sanchez. Rating = 6

Salaries: $8500 FD, $17924 DS, $17800 DD, $9700 DK, $109400 FF, $27400 SS, $17800 FTD

• James Shields – Shields is a very sneaky ace. He is never talked about as being one of the best pitchers in the game. While his numbers may not be up to that of a Cueto, Kershaw, or Wainwright, they certainly aren’t anything to bock at. I love his matchup tonight against the Mariners who are ranked 25th against RH pitching this season with a team .299 wOBA. Rating = 8

Salaries: $8300 FD, $16238 DS, $15450 DD, $8900 DK, $86600 FF, $24000 SS, $15450 FTD

Batter Grind Down

Seattle

Robinson Cano – If you like BvP, then Cano should be high on your list tonight. Cano has faced Shields 83 times and has 32 hits (14 of which went for extra bases).

Additional Plays: None

Kansas City

The Royals’ offense is always tough to predict and I don’t love the matchup against Iwakuma who has held both LHB’s and RHB’s under a .280 wOBA since the start of 2013.

Philadelphia at St. Louis

Philadelphia					St. Louis
A.J. Burnett		Vegas Moneyline			Jaime Garcia		Vegas Over/Under
RIGHT		STL (-155)			LEFT		7.5
Stats	Avg	OPS	wOBA	K%	Stats	Avg	OPS	wOBA	K%
SP vs. Left	0.267	0.763	0.354	19.7%	SP vs. Left	0.333	0.888	0.395	19.6%
SP vs. Right	0.213	0.569	0.256	26.8%	SP vs. Right	0.218	0.621	0.277	19.3%
Batter Splits	PHI BvP		PHI vs L		Batter Splits	STL BvP		STL vs R
Batter Split Links Above Open In Pop-Up Window

Pitcher Grind Down

• A.J. Burnett – Burnett has been all over the map this season. He will pitch a gem one night and then get blown up in his next outing. He offers great upside at his price point, but can really hurt you if it’s one of those nights where he’s not getting the strikeouts. He’s given up at least 2 earned runs in each of his last 8 starts and is a bit too risky to use in cash games. Rating = 5

Salaries: $7100 FD, $13158 DS, $12900 DD, $7700 DK, $71400 FF, $20200 SS, $12900 FTD

• Jaime Garcia – Garcia has pitched well in his first 6 starts of the season. He has a 3.72 ERA with a 0.97 WHIP and a K/9 of 7.6. While the Phillies have a lot of LHB’s in their lineup, they are actually above average as a team against LH pitching this season. Garcia has limited upside, but is in play on multi-pitcher sites. Rating = 5

Salaries: $6200 FD, $14866 DS, $13900 DD, $8800 DK, $105000 FF, $23500 SS, $13900 FTD

Batter Grind Down

Philadelphia

Chase Utley – Utley is a LHB that has always been able to hit LH pitching pretty well. He actually has a pretty decent matchup tonight against Garcia who is a reverse splits pitcher. Garcia has given up a .395 wOBA to LHB’s since the start of 2013.

Additional Plays: Marlon Byrd, Carlos Ruiz

St. Louis

Matt Carpenter – Carpenter is a terrific cash game play at 2B/3B tonight. He has a .345 wOBA against RH pitching, Burnett has given up a .354 wOBA to LHB’s, and Carpenter is 9/21 with 4 XBH’s off of Burnett in his career.

Additional Plays: Matt Adams

Milwaukee at Colorado

Milwaukee					Colorado
Marco Estrada		Vegas Moneyline			Christian Bergman		Vegas Over/Under
RIGHT		COL (-113)			RIGHT		10.5
Stats	Avg	OPS	wOBA	K%	Stats	Avg	OPS	wOBA	K%
SP vs. Left	0.204	0.661	0.293	21.8%	SP vs. Left	0.261	0.581	0.268	16.0%
SP vs. Right	0.260	0.772	0.338	22.7%	SP vs. Right	0.296	0.852	0.367	11.1%
Batter Splits	MIL BvP		MIL vs R		Batter Splits	COL BvP		COL vs R
Batter Split Links Above Open In Pop-Up Window

Pitcher Grind Down

• Marco Estrada – After a strong start to the season, Estrada has come crashing back down to Earth. He has given up 3 or more runs in 9 of his last 10 starts and now has to travel to Colorado to take on the Rockies in Coors Fields. Rating = 1

Salaries: $7000 FD, $12686 DS, $12750 DD, $7500 DK, $72600 FF, $19900 SS, $13650 FTD

• Christian Bergman – Bergman aka the Birdman (that’s what I figure everyone calls him) has pitched OK in his first 2 major league starts. That said, he is a rookie pitching in Coors Field. Avoid both pitchers in this game and take a heavy dose of both offenses. Rating = 2

Salaries: $5000 FD, $7979 DS, $8500 DD, $5400 DK, $64000 FF, $14300 SS, $8500 FTD

Batter Grind Down

Milwaukee

Ryan Braun – This game is full of viable fantasy options. I typically don’t like to stack a single game too heavily, but it’s going to be hard not to tonight in this game. The total is set at 10.5 runs and I wouldn’t be surprised if this game ended up being a 10-8 shootout.

Additional Plays: Jonathan Lucroy, Carlos Gomez, Scooter Gennett, Aramis Ramirez, Jean Segura

Colorado

Troy Tulowitzki – Tulo is batting .477 at home this season with an OPS of 1.42. His price has come down a bit and he’s a no-brainer at SS if you can manage to fit him in your lineup. Great matchup against the struggling Estrada.

Additional Plays: Charlie Blackmon, Corey Dickerson, Wilin Rosario, Justin Morneau

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