MLB Grind Down: Monday, April 7th
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
Baltimore at NY Yankees
| Baltimore | NY Yankees |
| Ubaldo Jimenez | Vegas Moneyline | Hiroki Kuroda | Vegas Over/Under |
| RIGHT | NYY (-146) | RIGHT | 8.5 |
| Stats | Avg | OPS | wOBA | K% | Stats | Avg | OPS | wOBA | K% |
| SP vs. Left | 0.223 | 0.656 | 0.293 | 28.9% | SP vs. Left | 0.261 | 0.735 | 0.325 | 17.1% |
| SP vs. Right | 0.258 | 0.705 | 0.318 | 20.7% | SP vs. Right | 0.232 | 0.595 | 0.266 | 19.7% |
| Batter Splits | BAL BvP  | BAL vs R | Batter Splits | NYY BvP | NYY vs R |
| Batter Split Links Above Open In Pop-Up Window |
Pitcher Grind Down
- Ubaldo Jimenez – Ubaldo has as many earned runs, 6, as he did strikeouts. It was a tough matchup against the Red Sox in Fenway, but facing the Yankees in Yankee Stadium isn’t much better. Ubaldo posted a 3.30 ERA last season with an impressive K/9 of 9.6. His biggest struggle is his command, when he is walking batters he can give up that big inning or two that really kills his fantasy outing. Ubaldo is a small underdog today, but his price across the industry is still pricey and he has a less than favorable matchup. Rating = 5
- Hiroki Kuroda – Kuroda got off to a decent start against the Astros. He struck out 5 batters and gave up 2 earned runs in 6 innings of work. Last season Kuroda posted a 2.35 ERA with a 1.02 WHIP at Yankee Stadium. His K-rate last season was 6.7 per 9 IP which is pretty solid compared to the other pitching options on the board today. Even though the Orioles have a stacked lineup, Kuroda posted a 3.38 ERA in 4 starts against them last season. Kuroda is a solid cash game play today. Rating = 7
Batter Grind Down
Baltimore
- Chris Davis – Kuroda gave up a .325 wOBA to LH batters last season and Davis hit 40 of his 53 HR’s off of RH pitching. Davis has reached base 6 times in his last 3 games and makes a nice play against Kuroda. His price on DS is almost too good to pass up.
New York
- Jacoby Ellsbury – Ellsbury is off to a hot start, which cannot be said about many Yankee players. He is batting .375 and already has 3 stolen bases. Ellsury hit for a .328 average against RH pitching last season and actually sees a boost in value when he bats 3rd in the lineup (more RBI opportunities) like he did yesterday.
- Brett Gardner – The speed batters from the Yankees have been carrying this offense. Gardner doesn’t have a ton of power, but hit a HR in their win over the Blue Jays yesterday. Gardner is cheap on most sites, hit for a .285 average against RH pitching last season, and will be aggressive on the base pads.
LA Angels at Houston
| LA Angels | Houston |
| C.J. Wilson | Vegas Moneyline | Jarred Cosart | Vegas Over/Under |
| LEFT | LAA (-149) | RIGHT | 8.5 |
| Stats | Avg | OPS | wOBA | K% | Stats | Avg | OPS | wOBA | K% |
| SP vs. Left | 0.169 | 0.480 | 0.223 | 28.4% | SP vs. Left | 0.176 | 0.491 | 0.236 | 19.3% |
| SP vs. Right | 0.268 | 0.729 | 0.332 | 18.4% | SP vs. Right | 0.286 | 0.837 | 0.372 | 5.0% |
| Batter Splits | LAA BvP | LAA vs R | Batter Splits | HOU BvP | HOU vs L |
| Batter Split Links Above Open In Pop-Up Window |
Pitcher Grind Down
- C.J. Wilson – Wilson was rocked by the Mariners in his first start and is looking to bounce back today against the Astros. His price varies wildly across the industry so he is really going to be a site specific play. Wilson posted a 3.39 ERA with a K/9 of 7.9 last season. He is a large favorite (-154) and makes a nice play against this Astros offense that has been hitting over their heads to start the season. Even though the Astros have some new faces in their lineup, Wilson posted a 2.03 ERA with 34 K’s over 26 innings against the Astros last season. Rating = 8
- Jarred Cosart – I was afraid to pull the trigger on Cosart in his first start as he only had 10 career starts under his belt and faced a tough Yankees’ lineup. I think that’s going to be the case again today against the Angels. Cosart posted a 1.95 ERA last season and got off to a nice start this season by pitching 5 scoreless innings. Cosart is a decent underdog (+135) though and he has limited upside thanks to his K/9 of 4.9. Rating = 5
Batter Grind Down
Los Angeles
- Mike Trout – Even though he has only pitched in 11 games which is a small sample size, Cosart has given up a .372 wOBA to RH batters. Trout has already hit 2 HR’s this season with 5 RBI’s. He has speed and power and makes a great play if you can find a way to fit him in your lineups.
Houston
- Jose Altuve – Wilson gave up a .332 wOBA to RH batters last season and Altuve hit for a .287 average against LH pitching with 15 XBH’s. Altuve is cheap across the industry and makes a solid punt play at 2B.
Oakland at Minnesota
| Oakland | Minnesota |
| Scott Kazmir | Vegas Moneyline | Kevin Correia | Vegas Over/Under |
| LEFT | OAK (-135) | RIGHT | 8.0 |
| Stats | Avg | OPS | wOBA | K% | Stats | Avg | OPS | wOBA | K% |
| SP vs. Left | 0.226 | 0.573 | 0.253 | 24.6% | SP vs. Left | 0.295 | 0.801 | 0.352 | 13.5% |
| SP vs. Right | 0.275 | 0.787 | 0.349 | 23.9% | SP vs. Right | 0.299 | 0.787 | 0.345 | 12.0% |
| Batter Splits | OAK BvP | OAK vs R | Batter Splits | MIN BvP | MIN vs L |
| Batter Split Links Above Open In Pop-Up Window |
Pitcher Grind Down
- Scott Kazmir – Kazmir is one of those pitchers that I have an extremely tough time trusting in cash games. He has great upside, but he can also get rocked. He’s not that consistent pitcher that you can count on every time he steps on the mound. Kazmir had a K/9 over 9.0 last season which really increases his fantasy value. The Twins lineup has been one that I’ve been picking on this season, but so far that has not worked out all that well. Kazmir makes a great GPP play, but an average cash game play. Rating = 6
- Kevin Correia – Correia has always been a pitcher that pitches well in front of his home crowd. Last season he posted a 3.35 ERA with a 1.24 WHIP. The biggest problem with Correia is that he doesn’t strike many batters out. He had a K/9 of only 4.9 last season and with K’s being such a big part of daily fantasy baseball scoring, it really hurts his fantasy value. Not only that, but Correia gave up a .345 wOBA to LH batters last season and the A’s lineup is littered with powerful LH batters. Rating = 3
Batter Grind Down
Oakland
- Brandon Moss – The A’s are a great team to target today because Correia gives up a high wOBA and the A’s can really string together hits. They were a very popular team to stack last season. I’ve been recommending Moss all season against RH pitching and he finally cam through yesterday with a 3-run bomb. He should be batting clean-up once again today.
- Jed Lowrie – Lowrie is a switch hitter that has decent power from both sides of the plate. For whatever reason, he often goes overlooked in daily fantasy baseball. That’s all well with me though. On a day without many SS options, Lowrie makes a great play against Correia.
Minnesota
- Trevor Plouffe – Plouffe is excellent against LH pitching. Last season he hit for a .826 OPS against LH pitching and Kazmir gave up a .352 wOBA against RH batters last season. He makes a great play that will probably go overlooked at 3B.
Cincinnati at St. Louis
| Cincinnati | St. Louis |
| Tony Cingrani | Vegas Moneyline | Michael Wacha | Vegas Over/Under |
| LEFT | STL (-145) | RIGHT | 7.0 |
| Stats | Avg | OPS | wOBA | K% | Stats | Avg | OPS | wOBA | K% |
| SP vs. Left | 0.186 | 0.521 | 0.238 | 29.1% | SP vs. Left | 0.197 | 0.491 | 0.227 | 22.0% |
| SP vs. Right | 0.200 | 0.687 | 0.307 | 28.4% | SP vs. Right | 0.242 | 0.710 | 0.308 | 27.8% |
| Batter Splits | CIN BvP | CIN vs R | Batter Splits | STL BvP | STL vs L |
| Batter Split Links Above Open In Pop-Up Window |
Pitcher Grind Down
- Tony Cingrani – The total of this game is set at only 7.0 runs which is one of the lowest on today’s schedule. Cingrani faced this Cardinals team in his first start of the season and now gets to face them again in St. Louis. Cingrani pitched 7 scoreless innings while striking out 9 batters in his season debut. While I don’t quite expect for him to have a repeat performance, I think he makes a nice contrarian play that you can target in a GPP. Rating = 6
- Michael Wacha – Wacha Wacha Wacha! Wacha faced the Reds in his first start of the season and posted 6 shutout innings with 7 strikeouts. Wacha posted a 2.15 ERA at home last season with a WHIP of only 0.91. He also had a very impressive K/9 of 9.1. Wacha is my top overall pitcher today and should be targeted in all leagues. Rating = 9
Batter Grind Down
Cincinnati / St. Louis
- These same two pitchers squared off last week and combines for 13 innings of scoreless pitching while striking out 16 batters. Both of these lineups have a tough matchup and should be avoided if possible. Yadier Molina may be the one exception as he hits LH pitching as well as anyone in baseball.
Texas at Boston
| Texas | Boston |
| Tanner Scheppers | Vegas Moneyline | John Lackey | Vegas Over/Under |
| RIGHT | BOS (-164) | RIGHT | 9.0 |
| Stats | Avg | OPS | wOBA | K% | Stats | Avg | OPS | wOBA | K% |
| SP vs. Left | 0.218 | 0.585 | 0.274 | 20.0% | SP vs. Left | 0.238 | 0.651 | 0.290 | 19.5% |
| SP vs. Right | 0.210 | 0.578 | 0.285 | 19.1% | SP vs. Right | 0.258 | 0.749 | 0.331 | 22.2% |
| Batter Splits | TEX BvP | TEX vs R | Batter Splits | BOS BvP | BOS vs R |
| Batter Split Links Above Open In Pop-Up Window |
Pitcher Grind Down
- Tanner Scheppers – Scheppers did not live up to his Spring ball hype in his first start as he gave up 7 earned runs in only 4 innings of work against the Phillies. His matchup doesn’t get any better today as he faces the Red Sox at Fenway. Scheppers is the biggest underdog on the board and should be avoided in all leagues. Rating = 2
- John Lackey – Lackey got off to an impressive start this season. He picked up a win against a tough Orioles lineup in Baltimore. Lackey was excellent at home last season with a 2.37 ERA and a 1.03 WHIP and a K/9 of 7.6. The Rangers are a powerful lineup, but Lackey is the biggest favorite on the board and should get plenty of run support to help his cause to pick up the win. Lackey is a top 5 pitching option today. Rating = 7
Batter Grind Down
Texas
- Adrian Beltre – Typically it’s the other way around, but Lackey actually have up a higher wOBA and OPS to RH batters last season than he did to LH batters. I will likely have some decent exposure to Beltre today who hit for a .312 average against RH pitching last season with 44 XBH’s.
Boston
- David Ortiz – Ortiz receives the honors for “Dong of the Day.” Big Papi has a terrific matchup against the very inexperienced Scheppers who got absolutely rocked in his first outing. Papi hit for a .339 average and a 1.09 OPS against RH pitching last season.
- Dustin Pedroia – Pedroia has always hit well at Fenway. Last season he hit for a .315 average at home with 34 XBH’s. 26 of his 42 doubles last season came at home. I like the matchup against Scheppers.
MLB Grind Down Page 1 – Page 2
