MLB Grind Down: Saturday, April 9th - Page Three
Minnesota at Kansas City – 7:15 PM ET
| Minnesota | Kansas City | ||||||||
 | Tom Milone |  | Ian Kennedy | ||||||
| LEFT | RIGHT | ||||||||
| Vegas Moneyline | Vegas Over/Under | ||||||||
| KC -150 | 8.0 | ||||||||
| Stats | wOBA | HR All. | K% | BB% | Stats | wOBA | HR All. | K% | BB% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| SP vs. Left | 0.266 | 3 | 21.2% | 7.6% | SP vs. Left | 0.356 | 18 | 26.2% | 7.6% |
| SP vs. Right | 0.331 | 14 | 15.3% | 6.3% | SP vs. Right | 0.338 | 13 | 22.6% | 7.0% |
| Batter Splits | Batter Splits | ||||||||
| Batter Split Links Above Open In Pop-Up Window | |||||||||
Pitcher Grind Down
| Tom Milone | |||||||
 | FanDuel: | DraftKings: | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Salary:$6,800 | Salary:$6,600 | ||||||
| FPPG:25.0 | FPPG:0.0 | ||||||
| Pitcher Rating:2 | |||||||
| Statistics | SIERA | K% | BB% | LD% | GB% | O-wOBA | O-K% |
| 2015 | 4.39 | 16.8% | 6.6% | 23.0% | 41.6% | 14 | 1 |
Milone is a low strikeout fly ball pitcher, not terrible, but certainly not good enough to want to use against the Royals. It’s a good ballpark for him, but there is no upside, and plenty of downside, as the Royals can cause havoc at any time.
| Ian Kennedy | |||||||
 | FanDuel: | DraftKings: | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Salary:$8,400 | Salary:$8,700 | ||||||
| FPPG:29.8 | FPPG:0.0 | ||||||
| Pitcher Rating:6 | |||||||
| Statistics | SIERA | K% | BB% | LD% | GB% | O-wOBA | O-K% |
| 2015 | 3.61 | 24.4% | 7.3% | 22.8% | 38.5% | 26 | 22 |
The move to Kansas City looks like it should be a positive for Kennedy’s value in 2016. He is a fly ball pitcher who gets a strikeout per inning, and now should have a good chance at picking up wins with a solid team behind him. The Twins are not a bad matchup for a right-handed pitcher in a tough home run park. The reason for caution with Kennedy is he was dealing with a sore hamstring throughout spring training, and there’s really no way to know for sure that it won’t cause him some trouble or an early exit. I’ll be steering clear until we see that he is 100%.
Batter Grind Down
Minnesota
Ian Kennedy does have a propensity for allowing some home runs, and the Twins have some good power. However, the ballpark doesn’t play well, and the righty-righty matchup for the Twins top hitters doesn’t play well. These would be GPP only plays.
Projected Lineup
| # | Player | wOBA vs. RHP | FD Position | FD Salary | DK Position | DK Salary |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Brian Dozier | 0.321 | 2B | $2,800 | 2B | $4,400 |
| 2 | 1.256 | Position | Salary | 0 | $0 | |
| 3 | Joe Mauer | 0.309 | 1B | $2,700 | 1B | $3,800 |
| 4 | Miguel Sano | 0.397 | OF | $3,300 | 3B | $4,400 |
| 5 | Trevor Plouffe | 0.313 | 3B | $2,500 | 3B | $3,800 |
| 6 | Eddie Rosario | 0.306 | OF | $2,400 | OF | $3,600 |
| 7 | Eduardo Escobar | 0.318 | SS | $2,700 | OF/SS | $2,900 |
| 8 | John Murphy | C | $2,200 | |||
| 9 | Byron Buxton | 0.306 | OF | $2,400 | OF | $3,500 |
Elite Plays
Secondary Plays
Miguel Sano – 2015 vs RHP – .397 wOBA, 154 wRC+
Brian Dozier – 2015 vs RHP – .321 wOBA, 102 wRC+
Kansas City
Milone has underwhelming numbers against right-handed batters; a .331 wOBA allowed with a 15.3% strikeout rate. He’s not the ideal type of pitcher to play this offense against, but they are likely to score some runs today can be used in any format.
Projected Lineup
| # | Player | wOBA vs. LHP | FD Position | FD Salary | DK Position | DK Salary |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Alcides Escobar | 0.263 | SS | $2,300 | SS | $3,800 |
| 2 | Mike Moustakas | 0.353 | 3B | $2,800 | 3B | $4,000 |
| 3 | Lorenzo Cain | 0.338 | OF | $3,800 | OF | $4,800 |
| 4 | Eric Hosmer | 0.378 | 1B | $3,300 | 1B | $4,100 |
| 5 | Kendrys Morales | 0.385 | 1B | $3,000 | 1B | $3,800 |
| 6 | Alex Gordon | 0.347 | OF | $2,500 | OF | $3,800 |
| 7 | Salvador Perez | 0.328 | C | $2,800 | C | $3,400 |
| 8 | Omar Infante | 0.236 | 2B | $2,300 | 2B | $2,800 |
| 9 | Paulo Orlando | 0.303 | OF | $2,200 | OF | $2,900 |
Elite Plays
Lorenzo Cain – 2015 vs LHP – .405 wOBA, 159 wRC+
Kendrys Morales – 2015 vs LHP – .333 wOBA, 110 wRC+
Secondary Plays
Alcides Escobar – 2015 vs LHP – .289 wOBA, 79 wRC+
Eric Hosmer – 2015 vs LHP – .320 wOBA, 100 wRC+
Chicago Cubs at Arizona – 8:10 PM ET
| Chicago Cubs | Arizona | ||||||||
 | Kyle Hendricks |  | Zack Greinke | ||||||
| RIGHT | RIGHT | ||||||||
| Vegas Moneyline | Vegas Over/Under | ||||||||
| ARI -110 | 8.0 | ||||||||
| Stats | wOBA | HR All. | K% | BB% | Stats | wOBA | HR All. | K% | BB% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| SP vs. Left | 0.343 | 13 | 21.3% | 6.9% | SP vs. Left | 0.240 | 6 | 21.3% | 6.9% |
| SP vs. Right | 0.258 | 4 | 23.7% | 4.9% | SP vs. Right | 0.211 | 8 | 25.8% | 2.9% |
| Batter Splits | Batter Splits | ||||||||
| Batter Split Links Above Open In Pop-Up Window | |||||||||
Pitcher Grind Down
| Kyle Hendricks | |||||||
 | FanDuel: | DraftKings: | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Salary:$7,500 | Salary:$8,000 | ||||||
| FPPG:28.1 | FPPG:0.0 | ||||||
| Pitcher Rating:5 | |||||||
| Statistics | SIERA | K% | BB% | LD% | GB% | O-wOBA | O-K% |
| 2015 | 3.37 | 22.6% | 5.8% | 21.8% | 51.3% | 8 | 19 |
I feel like this is becoming a common theme today, but I like Hendricks in general this season, but this isn’t the matchup to jump on board. He looks like he’s developing into a very solid pitcher, with a 3.37 SIERA, 22.6% K and 5.8% BB rate while maintaining a ground ball rate over 50%. That is all good stuff, but on the road in Arizona on a slate with plenty of good choices just leaves him off the list for me.
| Zack Greinke | |||||||
 | FanDuel: | DraftKings: | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Salary:$10,400 | Salary:$10,500 | ||||||
| FPPG:-3.0 | FPPG:-7.0 | ||||||
| Pitcher Rating:8 | |||||||
| Statistics | SIERA | K% | BB% | LD% | GB% | O-wOBA | O-K% |
| 2015 | 3.27 | 23.7% | 4.7% | 19.1% | 48.0% | 14 | 30 |
Greinke did not make a good first impression with his new team in Arizona, but it turns out he was pitching with the flu on Opening Day, and probably just deserves a pass on that first start. That being said, his strikeouts can’t match that of the other aces, so for me he is not in tournament consideration, and against a dangerous Cubs lineup in a hitter’s park, he doesn’t rate particularly high for cash games either. It would be silly of me to tell you not to play him any under circumstances, he is still one of the best pitchers in the league, I just think it makes a lot more sense to pay up for Kershaw, Bumgarner or Sale today, or save money at the position.
Batter Grind Down
Chicago Cubs
This is a difficult game to figure today. It is a great ballpark for hitters, with two good offenses, but the pitchers are not the type you want to attack. For the Cubs, there is so much firepower in this lineup, you can make a case for playing a couple bats in GPP’s, even against a top pitcher like Greinke.
Projected Lineup
| # | Player | wOBA vs. RHP | FD Position | FD Salary | DK Position | DK Salary |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Dexter Fowler | 0.320 | OF | $3,400 | OF | $4,100 |
| 2 | Jason Heyward | 0.358 | OF | $3,800 | OF | $4,100 |
| 3 | Ben Zobrist | 0.327 | 2B | $2,900 | 2B/OF | $4,000 |
| 4 | Anthony Rizzo | 0.384 | 1B | $4,800 | 1B | $4,800 |
| 5 | Kris Bryant | 0.377 | 3B | $4,200 | 3B | $4,600 |
| 6 | Miguel Montero | 0.326 | C | $2,600 | C | $3,000 |
| 7 | 1.256 | Position | Salary | 0 | $0 | |
| 8 | Addison Russell | 0.324 | SS | $2,600 | 2B/SS | $3,100 |
| 9 | Kyle Hendricks | P | $7,500 | P | $8,000 |
Elite Plays
Secondary Plays
Anthony Rizzo – 2015 vs RHP – .384 wOBA, 145 wRC+
Kris Bryant – 2015 vs RHP – .377 wOBA, 140 wRC+
Arizona
Kyle Hendricks was excellent against right-handed batters in 2015 with a .258 wOBA allowed, but did allow a .343 wOBA to lefties. That number against lefties was a little fluky due to a highly inflated HR/FB%, but there is some merit to playing Diamondbacks left-handed bats here, and of course, Paul Goldschmidt is always in play.
Projected Lineup
| # | Player | wOBA vs. RHP | FD Position | FD Salary | DK Position | DK Salary |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Jean Segura | 0.260 | SS | $3,500 | SS | $3,700 |
| 2 | Socrates Brito | 0.367 | OF | $2,200 | OF | $3,100 |
| 3 | Paul Goldschmidt | 0.408 | 1B | $4,900 | 1B | $5,300 |
| 4 | David Peralta | 0.397 | OF | $3,800 | OF | $3,700 |
| 5 | Welington Castillo | 0.317 | C | $2,500 | C | $3,100 |
| 6 | Jacob Lamb | 0.322 | 3B | $2,500 | 3B | $3,400 |
| 7 | Yasmany Tomas | 0.294 | OF | $2,900 | 3B/OF | $3,300 |
| 8 | Nick Ahmed | 0.251 | SS | $2,500 | SS | $2,600 |
| 9 | Zack Greinke | P | $10,400 | P | $10,500 |
Elite Plays
Paul Goldschmidt – 2015 vs RHP – .408 wOBA, 157 wRC+
David Peralta – 2015 vs RHP – .397 wOBA, 150 wRC+
Secondary Plays
Jake Lamb – 2015 vs RHP – .322 wOBA, 99 wRC+
Jean Segura – 2015 vs RHP – .260 wOBA, 57 wRC+
Socrates Brito
San Diego at Colorado – 8:10 PM ET
| San Diego | Colorado | ||||||||
 | Drew Pomeranz |  | Jorge De La Rosa | ||||||
| LEFT | LEFT | ||||||||
| Vegas Moneyline | Vegas Over/Under | ||||||||
| COL -144 | 10.5 | ||||||||
| Stats | wOBA | HR All. | K% | BB% | Stats | wOBA | HR All. | K% | BB% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| SP vs. Left | 0.200 | 2 | 29.5% | 6.3% | SP vs. Left | 0.293 | 3 | 28.4% | 7.8% |
| SP vs. Right | 0.326 | 6 | 20.0% | 9.8% | SP vs. Right | 0.328 | 14 | 19.0% | 10.9% |
| Batter Splits | Batter Splits | ||||||||
| Batter Split Links Above Open In Pop-Up Window | |||||||||
Pitcher Grind Down
| Drew Pomeranz | |||||||
 | FanDuel: | DraftKings: | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Salary:$4,900 | Salary:$4,900 | ||||||
| FPPG:8.7 | FPPG:0.0 | ||||||
| Pitcher Rating:2 | |||||||
| Statistics | SIERA | K% | BB% | LD% | GB% | O-wOBA | O-K% |
| 2015 | 3.73 | 23.0% | 8.7% | 21.5% | 42.2% | 25 | 24 |
Pomeranz had a strong spring to earn the final spot in the Padres’ rotation and certainly has some upside heading into 2016. However, he draws the short straw with an opening start in Coors Field, where he can safely be ignored today.
| Jorge De La Rosa | |||||||
| !(align-ct){height:100px;}https://s3.amazonaws.com/rical-images/jorge-de la rosa-300×200.jpg! | FanDuel: | DraftKings: | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Salary:$6,300 | Salary:$6,300 | ||||||
| FPPG:23.0 | FPPG:10.5 | ||||||
| Pitcher Rating:2.5 | |||||||
| Statistics | SIERA | K% | BB% | LD% | GB% | O-wOBA | O-K% |
| 2015 | 4.10 | 21.1% | 10.2% | 20.7% | 52.0% | 23 | 26 |
De La Rosa had two years of good home numbers, with 2.76 and 3.08 ERA’s at Coors Field in 2013-2014. Things headed back to expectations in 2015 with a 5.40 ERA at home. He does have some positives in his skill set, a solid strikeout rate and ground ball rate of 52%, which should both play well at Coors, but he simply walks too many batters to be trusted. He certainly could pick up a win and catch the Padres napping, but I can’t recommend using him at Coors Field with all the other pitching options available today.
Batter Grind Down
San Diego
The first Coors Field game of the 2016 season didn’t disappoint with 19 runs scored. You should be looking to fit as many right-handed bats as you can afford from this game in all formats.
Projected Lineup
| # | Player | wOBA vs. LHP | FD Position | FD Salary | DK Position | DK Salary |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Jon Jay | 0.203 | OF | $3,000 | OF | $3,100 |
| 2 | Cory Spangenberg | 0.327 | 2B | $2,900 | 2B/3B | $3,500 |
| 3 | Matt Kemp | 0.354 | OF | $4,000 | OF | $5,200 |
| 4 | Wil Myers | 0.362 | 1B | $3,600 | 1B/OF | $4,900 |
| 5 | Derek Norris | 0.348 | C | $3,000 | C | $4,000 |
| 6 | Yangervis Solarte | 0.292 | 3B | $3,400 | 1B/3B | $3,600 |
| 7 | Alexei Ramirez | 0.302 | SS | $3,000 | SS | $3,800 |
| 8 | Melvin Upton | 0.346 | OF | $2,900 | OF | $3,800 |
| 9 | Drew Pomeranz | P | $4,900 | P | $4,900 |
Elite Plays
Matt Kemp – 2015 vs LHP – .354 wOBA, 129 wRC+
Derek Norris – 2015 vs LHP – .348 wOBA, 125 wRC+
Wil Myers – 2015 vs LHP – .362 wOBA, 135 wRC+
Secondary Plays
Alexei Ramirez – 2015 vs LHP – .302 wOBA, 88 wRC+
Cory Spangenberg – 2015 vs LHP – .327 wOBA, 111 wRC+
Yangervis Solarte – 2015 vs LHP – .292 wOBA, 87 wRC+
Colorado
The Rockies are playing at home, you know what to do. Let me tell you a Story….
Projected Lineup
| # | Player | wOBA vs. LHP | FD Position | FD Salary | DK Position | DK Salary |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | DJ LeMahieu | 0.337 | 2B | $3,600 | 2B | $4,100 |
| 2 | Trevor Story | SS | $4,000 | SS | $3,900 | |
| 3 | Carlos Gonzalez | 0.228 | OF | $4,500 | OF | $4,200 |
| 4 | Nolan Arenado | 0.312 | 3B | $5,000 | 3B | $4,900 |
| 5 | Mark Reynolds | 0.324 | 1B | $3,000 | 1B/3B | $4,000 |
| 6 | Ryan Raburn | 0.423 | OF | $3,200 | OF | $3,800 |
| 7 | Nick Hundley | 0.316 | C | $3,300 | C | $3,600 |
| 8 | Brandon Barnes | 0.237 | OF | $3,200 | OF | $2,900 |
| 9 | 1.256 | Position | Salary | 0 | $0 |
Elite Plays
Nolan Arenado – 2015 vs LHP – .312 wOBA, 79 wRC+
Trevor Story
DJ LeMahieu – 2015 vs LHP – .337 wOBA, 96 wRC+
Ryan Raburn – 2015 vs LHP – .423 wOBA, 173 wRC+
Secondary Plays
Mark Reynolds – 2015 vs LHP – .324 wOBA, 106 wRC+
Carlos Gonzalez – 2015 vs LHP – .228 wOBA, 21 wRC+
Charlie Blackmon – 2015 vs LHP – .311 wOBA, 78 wRC+
Texas at LA Angels – 9:05 PM ET
| Texas | LA Angels | ||||||||
 | Cole Hamels |  | Garrett Richards | ||||||
| LEFT | RIGHT | ||||||||
| Vegas Moneyline | Vegas Over/Under | ||||||||
| LAA -115 | 7.0 | ||||||||
| Stats | wOBA | HR All. | K% | BB% | Stats | wOBA | HR All. | K% | BB% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| SP vs. Left | 0.290 | 2 | 22.2% | 9.3% | SP vs. Left | 0.279 | 8 | 22.9% | 9.0% |
| SP vs. Right | 0.294 | 20 | 25.1% | 6.4% | SP vs. Right | 0.309 | 12 | 17.4% | 8.6% |
| Batter Splits | Batter Splits | ||||||||
| Batter Split Links Above Open In Pop-Up Window | |||||||||
Pitcher Grind Down
| Cole Hamels | |||||||
 | FanDuel: | DraftKings: | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Salary:$10,500 | Salary:$11,200 | ||||||
| FPPG:51.0 | FPPG:27.0 | ||||||
| Pitcher Rating:8 | |||||||
| Statistics | SIERA | K% | BB% | LD% | GB% | O-wOBA | O-K% |
| 2015 | 3.45 | 24.4% | 7.1% | 20.9% | 47.7% | 24 | 4 |
I am a card carrying member of the Cole Hamels fan club. He does not get the credit he deserves for six straight seasons of ace level pitching. He struck out eight batters in seven innings against Seattle in his first start of the season while giving up two runs in seven innings. Those are the kind of outings you can expect more often than not out of Hamels. He doesn’t have the type of upside of a Kershaw or Sale, but he doesn’t come with the same price tag either. The Angels only have a couple tough bats to work around, and I think Hamels is a reasonable play in all formats.
| Garrett Richards | |||||||
 | FanDuel: | DraftKings: | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Salary:$8,700 | Salary:$10,200 | ||||||
| FPPG:27.0 | FPPG:13.9 | ||||||
| Pitcher Rating:7.5 | |||||||
| Statistics | SIERA | K% | BB% | LD% | GB% | O-wOBA | O-K% |
| 2015 | 3.94 | 20.4% | 8.8% | 17.1% | 54.9% | 6 | 8 |
Richards is another pitcher who is receiving a good bit of hype coming into the season. He has a strong ground ball lean, 55% in 2015, which limits the damage against him, but his strikeout rate was just 20.4% while his walk rate was up to 8.8%. He showed more strikeout upside in 2014, and he’s likely to get back to that form at some point, but I am not as high on him as others to begin the season. A possible GPP play at home, but not elite.
Batter Grind Down
Texas
Garrett Richards has not had significant splits throughout his career. He is pretty tough on both right and left-handed batters with his decent strikeouts and high ground balls. Texas has a dangerous lineup, but this is not a top game to look for offense.
Projected Lineup
| # | Player | wOBA vs. RHP | FD Position | FD Salary | DK Position | DK Salary |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | “(player-popup)Delino Deshields Jr | 0.308 | OF | $2,800 | OF | $3,600 |
| 2 | Shin-Soo Choo | 0.396 | OF | $3,500 | OF | $4,200 |
| 3 | Prince Fielder | 0.392 | 1B | $3,400 | 1B | $4,200 |
| 4 | Adrian Beltre | 0.307 | 3B | $3,100 | 3B | $4,000 |
| 5 | Mitch Moreland | 0.372 | OF | $2,700 | 1B | $3,500 |
| 6 | Ian Desmond | 0.286 | OF | $2,700 | SS | $3,600 |
| 7 | Rougned Odor | 0.333 | 2B | $2,800 | 2B | $3,700 |
| 8 | Elvis Andrus | 0.273 | SS | $2,700 | SS | $3,500 |
| 9 | Robinson Chirinos | 0.314 | C | $2,400 | C | $2,900 |
Elite Plays
Secondary Plays
Prince Fielder – 2015 vs RHP – .392 wOBA, 146 wRC+
Shin-Soo Choo – 2015 vs RHP – .396 wOBA, 148 wRC+
Mitch Moreland – 2015 vs RHP – .372 wOBA, 132 wRC+
Roughned Odor – 2015 vs RHP – .333 wOBA, 105 wRC+
LA Angels
Much like the Texas side of this game, this just isn’t the best place to look for offense today. Hamels allowed just a .294 wOBA to right-handed batters and a .290 wOBA to left-handed batters in 2015. Of course, Mike Trout is always in play, and Albert Pujols always has home run upside, but outside of that, there isn’t much to see here.
Projected Lineup
| # | Player | wOBA vs. LHP | FD Position | FD Salary | DK Position | DK Salary |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Yunel Escobar | 0.351 | 3B | $2,800 | 3B | $3,000 |
| 2 | Craig Gentry | 0.181 | OF | $2,200 | OF | $2,400 |
| 3 | Mike Trout | 0.408 | OF | $4,800 | OF | $5,000 |
| 4 | Albert Pujols | 0.339 | 1B | $2,800 | 1B | $3,900 |
| 5 | C.J. Cron | 0.333 | 1B | $2,300 | 1B | $2,900 |
| 6 | Kole Calhoun | 0.329 | OF | $3,000 | OF | $3,700 |
| 7 | Andrelton Simmons | 0.300 | SS | $2,200 | SS | $2,900 |
| 8 | Geovany Soto | 0.300 | C | $2,200 | C | $2,700 |
| 9 | Johnny Giavotella | 0.304 | 2B | $2,200 | 2B | $2,900 |
Elite Plays
Secondary Plays
Mike Trout – 2015 vs LHP – .434 wOBA, 185 wRC+
Albert Pujols – 2015 vs LHP – .316 wOBA, 104 wRC+
Oakland at Seattle – 9:10 PM ET
| Oakland | Seattle | ||||||||
 | Rich Hill |  | Nathan Karns | ||||||
| LEFT | RIGHT | ||||||||
| Vegas Moneyline | Vegas Over/Under | ||||||||
| SEA -140 | 8.0 | ||||||||
| Stats | wOBA | HR All. | K% | BB% | Stats | wOBA | HR All. | K% | BB% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| SP vs. Left | 0.166 | 0 | 30.0% | 5.0% | SP vs. Left | 0.308 | 5 | 26.1% | 11.7% |
| SP vs. Right | 0.193 | 2 | 34.9% | 4.7% | SP vs. Right | 0.306 | 14 | 20.3% | 6.1% |
| Batter Splits | Batter Splits | ||||||||
| Batter Split Links Above Open In Pop-Up Window | |||||||||
Pitcher Grind Down
| Rich Hill | |||||||
 | FanDuel: | DraftKings: | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Salary:$7,400 | Salary:$8,400 | ||||||
| FPPG:11.0 | FPPG:4.4 | ||||||
| Pitcher Rating:5 | |||||||
| Statistics | SIERA | K% | BB% | LD% | GB% | O-wOBA | O-K% |
| 2015 | 2.29 | 34.0% | 4.7% | 16.1% | 48.4% | 13 | 20 |
Perhaps the most unexpected surprise of last season was the end of year surge from 35-year old Rich Hill, who came out of nowhere with three brilliant starts in September, posting a 30/2 K/BB ratio in 23 innings. After a rough spring, he made a spot start on Opening Day in place of Sonny Gray, and didn’t make it out of the third inning. That first start shouldn’t be counted too heavily as he was thrown in at the last minute, but it seems very doubtful that he’ll be able to come anywhere close to his 2015 success. It could be worth a GPP dart throw at Seattle to hope that he can get his groove back, but it is a long shot.
| Nathan Karns | |||||||
 | FanDuel: | DraftKings: | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Salary:$8,100 | Salary:$8,500 | ||||||
| FPPG:28.9 | FPPG:0.0 | ||||||
| Pitcher Rating:5.5 | |||||||
| Statistics | SIERA | K% | BB% | LD% | GB% | O-wOBA | O-K% |
| 2015 | 3.90 | 23.4% | 9.0% | 21.6% | 41.9% | 21 | 4 |
Karns was a solid rotation piece for the Rays last season, and steps into another good ballpark in Seattle, where he will look to build on his success. He had an above average 23.4% strikeout rate and a 3.90 SIERA. He was generally very good the first time through the batting order, but began to struggle later in games. If he can learn to pitch effectively later into games, he could take another step forward this season. There’s probably not enough upside here to warrant too much interest today, but he’s not bad.
Batter Grind Down
Oakland
Karns did not show strong splits in 2015, with a .308 wOBA to lefties and a .306 to righties. He did have a higher strikeout rate and ground ball rate to lefties and allowed more hard contact to righties, but it’s not enough of a sample size to make definitive judgement on those numbers. Oakland batters are a possibility if you want to differentiate your lineups today, but not a great play.
Projected Lineup
| # | Player | wOBA vs. RHP | FD Position | FD Salary | DK Position | DK Salary |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Billy Burns | 0.308 | OF | $2,300 | OF | $4,100 |
| 2 | Jed Lowrie | 0.273 | 2B | $2,400 | 3B/SS | $3,100 |
| 3 | Josh Reddick | 0.356 | OF | $2,900 | OF | $3,800 |
| 4 | Danny Valencia | 0.374 | 3B | $2,400 | 3B/OF | $3,500 |
| 5 | Stephen Vogt | 0.353 | C | $2,600 | 1B/C | $3,300 |
| 6 | Chris Coghlan | 0.355 | OF | $2,200 | OF | $3,300 |
| 7 | Yonder Alonso | 0.333 | 1B | $2,200 | 1B | $3,400 |
| 8 | Marcus Semien | 0.286 | SS | $2,800 | SS | $3,500 |
| 9 | Coco Crisp | 0.212 | OF | $2,200 | OF | $3,000 |
Elite Plays
Secondary Plays
Josh Reddick – 2015 vs RHP – .356 wOBA, 129 wRC+
Stephen Vogt – 2015 vs RHP – .353 wOBA, 128 wRC+
Danny Valencia – 2015 vs RHP – .374 wOBA, 140 wRC+
Billy Burns – 2015 vs RHP – .308 wOBA, 96 wRC+
Seattle
We don’t have enough recent innings from Rich Hill to make any clear statements about splits or tendencies. You need to decide if you think his end of 2015 run was real. I lean towards thinking it wasn’t, which puts Seattle bats in play. Nelson Cruz, who was outstanding against left-handed pitching last season let us down last night, I will be going back to the well today, as he is in consideration as top play of the day.
Projected Lineup
| # | Player | wOBA vs. LHP | FD Position | FD Salary | DK Position | DK Salary |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Norichika Aoki | 0.317 | OF | $2,500 | OF | $3,600 |
| 2 | Ketel Marte | 0.342 | SS | $2,500 | SS | $3,500 |
| 3 | Robinson Cano | 0.349 | 2B | $3,900 | 2B | $4,100 |
| 4 | Nelson Cruz | 0.371 | OF | $4,300 | OF | $4,600 |
| 5 | Kyle Seager | 0.322 | 3B | $3,600 | 3B | $4,100 |
| 6 | Chris Iannetta | 0.259 | C | $2,500 | C | $3,100 |
| 7 | Franklin Gutierrez | 0.408 | OF | $2,300 | OF | $2,900 |
| 8 | Dae-ho Lee | 1B | $3,000 | 1B | $2,800 | |
| 9 | Leonys Martin | 0.256 | OF | $2,800 | OF | $2,700 |
Elite Plays
Nelson Cruz – 2015 vs LHP – .459 wOBA, 202 wRC+
Franklin Gutierrez – 2015 vs LHP – .411 wOBA, 168 wRC+
Secondary Plays
Robinson Cano – 2015 vs LHP – .310 wOBA, 99 wRC+
Ketel Marte – 2015 vs LHP – .316 wOBA, 103 wRC+
Kyle Seager – 2015 vs LHP – .357 wOBA, 131 wRC+