MLB Grind Down: Monday, June 30th Page Two
Chicago Cubs at Boston
| Chicago Cubs | Boston | ||||||||
| Jake Arrieta | Vegas Moneyline | Jake Peavy | Vegas Over/Under | ||||||
| RIGHT | BOS (-148) | RIGHT | 8.5 | ||||||
| Stats | Avg | OPS | wOBA | K% | Stats | Avg | OPS | wOBA | K% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| SP vs. Left | 0.204 | 0.620 | 0.285 | 20.8% | SP vs. Left | 0.246 | 0.748 | 0.330 | 20.2% |
| SP vs. Right | 0.249 | 0.686 | 0.315 | 22.6% | SP vs. Right | 0.258 | 0.717 | 0.316 | 18.5% |
| Batter Splits | CHC BvP  | CHC vs R | Batter Splits | BOS BvP | BOS vs R | ||||
| Batter Split Links Above Open In Pop-Up Window | |||||||||
Pitcher Grind Down
- Jake Arrieta – Arrieta’s price across the industry differs drastically. He’s the most expensive pitcher on Drafstreet (which is probably the sharpest priced site), yet he’s only the 10th most expensive pitcher on FanDuel. Arrieta has been terrific this season with a 2.05 ERA and a K/9 of 10.1. He may be a little too pricey to target on DS, but he’s certainly in play on the other major DFS sites. Rating = 5
Salaries: $7100 FD, $22345 DS, $16250 DD, $8400 DK, $131700 FF, $26600 SS, $16250 FTD
- Jake Peavy – Peavy is ready for the month of June to be over. In 6 starts this month, he has been lit up by his opponents. He has posted a 5.87 ERA in June while giving up a .298 batting average to his opponents. This may be a nice time to buy low on Peavy, but he’s only given up less than 3 earned runs 1 time in his last 10 starts. Peavy may be in play on DraftStreet thanks to his extremely cheap price tag, but he can be safely avoided on the other DFS sites. Rating = 5
Salaries: $6200 FD, $9287 DS, $11300 DD, $6600 DK, $46100 FF, $15100 SS, $11300 FTD
Batter Grind Down
Chicago Cubs
Anthony Rizzo – The one thing that Peavy has going for him this season is that he doesn’t discriminate based on which side of the plate players are batting from. He’s given up a .357 wOBA to LHB’s and a .358 wOBA to RHB’s. Rizzo has great power and a great matchup in the hitter-friendly Fenway Park.
Additional Plays: Starlin Castro, Luis Valbuena
Boston
At this point, I’m not sure that I want to target any hitters against Arrieta. The sample size is small, but he’s held both LHB’s and RHB’s under a .255 wOBA this season. The 8.5 run total may suggest otherwise, but there aren’t any players that stand out here.
Seattle at Houston
| Seattle | Houston | ||||||||
| Taijuan Walker | Vegas Moneyline | Collin McHugh | Vegas Over/Under | ||||||
| RIGHT | SEA (-105) | RIGHT | 7.5 | ||||||
| Stats | Avg | OPS | wOBA | K% | Stats | Avg | OPS | wOBA | K% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| SP vs. Left | 0.194 | 0.536 | 0.234 | 25.6% | SP vs. Left | 0.266 | 0.757 | 0.335 | 20.0% |
| SP vs. Right | 0.222 | 0.563 | 0.253 | 9.5% | SP vs. Right | 0.255 | 0.719 | 0.321 | 21.9% |
| Batter Splits | SEA BvP | SEA vs R | Batter Splits | HOU BvP | HOU vs R | ||||
| Batter Split Links Above Open In Pop-Up Window | |||||||||
Pitcher Grind Down
- Taijuan Walker – Walker is one of the Mariners’ top pitching prospects. He’s dealt with some minor injuries all season long, but finally appears healthy and ready for the majors. The 21-year-old right hander made 3 starts for the Mariners last season and will likely stick around for much longer this season. I typically like to give these top prospects a start or two before targeting them in my lineups, but a matchup against the strikeout happy Astros puts him in play in tournaments. Rating = 5
Salaries: $5900 FD, $NA DS, $NA DD, $7000 DK, $NA FF, $NA SS, $NA FTD
- Collin McHugh – McHugh is one of my favorite “under the radar” plays tonight. He has struck out at least 6 batters in each of his last 4 starts and he hasn’t given up more than 3 earned runs in any of his last 8 starts. His biggest issue this season has been that he has given up too many walks which hurts his ability to pitch deep into games. That said, he has a favorable price tag and a favorable matchup against the Mariners who are ranked 20th in team wOBA against RH pitching this season. Rating = 6.5
Salaries: $7300 FD, $18129 DS, $17500 DD, $9000 DK, $72600 FF, $24800 SS, $17500 FTD
Batter Grind Down
Seattle
Robinson Cano and Kyle Seager are both decent plays here, but I’ll be avoiding Mariners’ bats for the most part. McHugh has held both LHB’s and RHB’s under a .270 wOBA this season.
Houston
George Springer – We don’t know what to expect from Walker tonight, but he could be a little nervous in his first start of the season. Springer has great power against RH pitching (.373 wOBA this season) and makes a nice tournament play.
Additional Plays: Jose Altuve
Kansas City at Minnesota
| Kansas City | Minnesota | ||||||||
| Danny Duffy | Vegas Moneyline | Yohan Pino | Vegas Over/Under | ||||||
| LEFT | KCR (-125) | RIGHT | 8.0 | ||||||
| Stats | Avg | OPS | wOBA | K% | Stats | Avg | OPS | wOBA | K% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| SP vs. Left | 0.169 | 0.400 | 0.195 | 17.1% | SP vs. Left | ||||
| SP vs. Right | 0.210 | 0.627 | 0.295 | 20.2% | SP vs. Right | ||||
| Batter Splits | KCR BvP | KCR vs R | Batter Splits | MIN BvP | MIN vs L | ||||
| Batter Split Links Above Open In Pop-Up Window | |||||||||
Pitcher Grind Down
- Danny Duffy – Duffy is finally starting to live up to the lofty expectations put on him throughout the years. Through his first 10 starts this season he has posted a 2.69 ERA with a 1.07 WHIP and a K-rate of 6.9 per 9 innings. While his opponent has been better against LH pitching of late, they are still only ranked 18th in team wOBA against southpaws. The Twins are not strangers to strikeouts and Duffy offers great upside for the price. Rating = 6
Salaries: $6400 FD, $16015 DS, $10800 DD, $6700 DK, $94600 FF, $18400 SS, $10800 FTD
- Yohan Pino – Pino is the second Yohan on the mound tonight that is only $3,000 on FanDuel. While neither are recommended fantasy options for cash games, both make interesting GPP plays considering their minimum priced salaries. The Royals strike out fewer times than any team in baseball, but are below average in most offensive categories. Use Pino as a deep GPP play tonight. Rating = 4
Salaries: $3000 FD, $6060 DS, $ DD, $6500 DK, $64000 FF, $16200 SS, $10100 FTD
Batter Grind Down
Kansas City
Alex Gordon – Pino hasn’t looked great in his first 2 major league starts and the Royals have a few LHB’s that could cause some havoc for him tonight. Gordon owns a .359 wOBA against RH pitching this season.
Additional Plays: Eric Hosmer
Minnesota
Brian Dozier – Of all of the options at 2B tonight, Dozier has the most HR’s and the 3rd most stolen bases. I always like targeting players that can score fantasy points in a multitude of ways and Dozier provides that with a nice combination of speed and power. It also doesn’t hurt that he has a .393 wOBA against lefties this season.
Additional Plays: Josh Willingham
LA Angels at Chicago White Sox
| LA Angels | Chicago White Sox | ||||||||
| Garrett Richards | Vegas Moneyline | Hector Noesi | Vegas Over/Under | ||||||
| RIGHT | LAA (-145) | RIGHT | 8.5 | ||||||
| Stats | Avg | OPS | wOBA | K% | Stats | Avg | OPS | wOBA | K% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| SP vs. Left | 0.250 | 0.668 | 0.304 | 18.6% | SP vs. Left | 0.295 | 0.839 | 0.371 | 18.8% |
| SP vs. Right | 0.241 | 0.590 | 0.272 | 20.2% | SP vs. Right | 0.337 | 0.912 | 0.400 | 16.5% |
| Batter Splits | LAA BvP | LAA vs R | Batter Splits | CHW BvP | CHW vs R | ||||
| Batter Split Links Above Open In Pop-Up Window | |||||||||
Pitcher Grind Down
- Garrett Richards – Richards has all of the tools to be an ace in the majors and it’s really starting to show. In 16 starts this season, he has a 2.76 ERA with a 1.11 WHIP and a K-rate of 8.9 per 9 innings. While the White Sox have some powerful bats in their lineup, they also strike out a lot. In fact, the Sox have the 3rd most strikeouts in all of baseball. That bodes well for Richards’ fantasy value tonight. Even if he gives up a couple of runs, the strikeouts should more than make up for it. Rating = 7
Salaries: $8000 FD, $20661 DS, $17200 DD, $9600 DK, $129600 FF, $28000 SS, $17200 FTD
- Hector Noesi – Noesi has pitched better of late, but he’s still not scaring anyone with his 5.07 ERA. Since the start of 2013, Noesi has given up a .371+ wOBA to both LHB’s and RHB’s. I’ll be avoiding him tonight against the Angels who are ranked 9th in team wOBA against RH pitching this season. Rating = 3
Salaries: $5900 FD, $9385 DS, $9550 DD, $5900 DK, $48200 FF, $13800 SS, $9550 FTD
Batter Grind Down
LA Angels
Mike Trout – Trout is locked in right now. He has 11 hits, 2 HR’s, and a stolen base in his last 10 games. He crushes both LH and RH pitching and should be considered one of, if not the top OF option in play tonight.
Additional Plays: Josh Hamilton, Kole Calhoun
Chicago White Sox
Jose Abreu (GPP) – There are better options at his price point for cash games, but I’ll certainly have some exposure to Abreu in GPP’s. He has multi-HR upside and a .420 wOBA against RH pitching this season.
Additional Plays: None
Cleveland at LA Dodgers
| Cleveland | LA Dodgers | ||||||||
| Corey Kluber | Vegas Moneyline | Dan Haren | Vegas Over/Under | ||||||
| RIGHT | CLE (-105) | RIGHT | 7.5 | ||||||
| Stats | Avg | OPS | wOBA | K% | Stats | Avg | OPS | wOBA | K% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| SP vs. Left | 0.270 | 0.733 | 0.328 | 24.0% | SP vs. Left | 0.248 | 0.698 | 0.309 | 19.4% |
| SP vs. Right | 0.260 | 0.660 | 0.297 | 24.0% | SP vs. Right | 0.288 | 0.786 | 0.349 | 19.0% |
| Batter Splits | CLE BvP | CLE vs R | Batter Splits | LAD BvP | LAD vs R | ||||
| Batter Split Links Above Open In Pop-Up Window | |||||||||
Pitcher Grind Down
- Corey Kluber – Kluber is piecing together a terrific season and he’s managed to cure his road woes which really hurt his numbers last season. Kluber is sporting a 3.09 ERA with an impressive K-rate of 9.8 per 9 innings. The Dodgers hit RH pitching well, but Dodger Stadium is a fairly pitcher-friendly ballpark and the total for this game is set at only 7.5 runs. Don’t rule him out as a contrarian GPP play tonight. Rating = 5.5
Salaries: $8700 FD, $18342 DS, $16700 DD, $8700 DK, $110600 FF, $26400 SS, $16700 FTD
- Dan Haren – Haren’s numbers have gotten worse in each month of the season. Haren will look to cap off of a very disappointing month of June where he posted a 5.24 ERA while only striking out 14 batters in 27 innings of work. I don’t like to target pitchers that are trending downward, especially when they are facing a tough lineup like the Indians. Rating = 4
Salaries: $6900 FD, $11060 DS, $13050 DD, $7300 DK, $71500 FF, $19300 SS, $13050 FTD
Batter Grind Down
Cleveland
Michael Brantley – Haren is a reverse splits pitcher, but it’s hard not to like the LHB’s of the Indians against him tonight. Brantley leads all Indians’ bats with a .403 wOBA against RH pitching this season.
Additional Plays: Carlos Santana, Jason Kipnis, Lonnie Chisenhall
LA Dodgers
Adrian Gonzalez – Gonzalez lit Van Slyke’s shoe on fire the other day (which was a pretty funny clip) maybe in an attempt to light a fire under his own play. Gonzalez’s numbers are down across the board, but he does still have a .372 wOBA against RH pitching this season.
Additional Plays: Dee Gordon