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MLB Grind Down: Sunday, May 18th Page Two

by Ryan138 Last Updated 2014-05-18 14:59:36

Seattle at Minnesota

Seattle Minnesota
Felix Hernandez Vegas Moneyline Ricky Nolasco Vegas Over/Under
RIGHT SEA (-153) RIGHT 7.5
Stats Avg OPS wOBA K% Stats Avg OPS wOBA K%
SP vs. Left 0.250 0.657 0.294 24.4% SP vs. Left 0.274 0.768 0.343 17.7%
SP vs. Right 0.230 0.606 0.271 27.5% SP vs. Right 0.260 0.675 0.302 20.2%
Batter Splits SEA BvP pop up 2 SEA vs R pop up 2 Batter Splits MIN BvP pop up 2 MIN vs R pop up 2
Batter Split Links Above Open In Pop-Up Window

Pitcher Grind Down

Felix Hernandez – Felix has continued to not look exactly like the King Felix we have come accostumed to seeing. He has given up at least 2 earned runs in his last 5 starts and at least 8 base runners in each of those contests. His strike out numbers are still there (60 total) and he gets a Twins team that is batting .257 against RH pitching. Felix is still a heavy favorite in a game with a low over/under. With Nolasco opposing him, the Felix should be in line for the win and makes a good fantasy play if you can muster up the trust for him. Rating = 8

Ricky Nolasco – Nolasco has improved a bit over his last 3 games, but has still given up 3 earned runs in each and has been beaten by the long ball in each as well. Nolasco has given up a total of 9 home runs in only 50 total innings of work. He is not a viable option in any format even with the recent improvements. Rating = 3*

Batter Grind Down

Seattle

Robinson Cano – Nolasco is allowing everyone to get on base against him, but has been crushed by LH bats giving up a .344 AVG and 1.032 OPS. Cano has a very good chance of adding to Nolasco’s home run allowed total today.

Minnesota

Felix has the ability to shut down offenses easily and I feel as if today he is looking to bounce back from his recent outings.

Baltimore at Kansas City

Baltimore Kansas City
Ubaldo Jimenez Vegas Moneyline James Shields Vegas Over/Under
RIGHT KCR (-150) RIGHT 7.0
Stats Avg OPS wOBA K% Stats Avg OPS wOBA K%
SP vs. Left 0.228 0.664 0.300 26.7% SP vs. Left 0.236 0.622 0.282 21.4%
SP vs. Right 0.260 0.710 0.319 21.0% SP vs. Right 0.259 0.692 0.314 20.9%
Batter Splits BAL BvP pop up 2 BAL vs R pop up 2 Batter Splits KCR BvP pop up 2 KCR vs R pop up 2
Batter Split Links Above Open In Pop-Up Window

Pitcher Grind Down

Ubaldo Jimenez – Jimenez has looked very good in his last 3 starts giving up 1 total earned run. During this span he has brought his season ERA down 2.5 points and has struck out 19 batters. Jimenez was smacked around by this Royals team prior to the mini heater he is on, but could make for a good GPP play today. Rating = 6

James Shields – Shields comes into this game with a 2.54 ERA and a 1.08 WHIP. He has allowed hitters to bat .232 against him on the year and has already shut this good Orioles team once this year. The Orioles do have Crush back in their lineup which does not help Shield’s fantasy value, but brings a 8.35 K/9 into this game and should pitch a good game. Rating = 7

Batter Grind Down

Baltimore

Chris Davis – Davis is back and went yard on Friday. He has a great small history against Shields as he is 4/12 with 2 home runs. Davis is always a great GPP play and could go yard today even if Shields pitches well.

Kansas City

Eric Hosmer – Hosmer has hit RH pitching well this year for a .321 AVG and if Ubaldo pitches like early season Ubaldo, Hosmer should have a lot to do with the runs being scored.

Atlanta at St. Louis

Atlanta St. Louis
Gavin Floyd Vegas Moneyline Jaime Garcia Vegas Over/Under
RIGHT STL (-115) LEFT 7.0
Stats Avg OPS wOBA K% Stats Avg OPS wOBA K%
SP vs. Left 0.284 0.893 0.381 23.4% SP vs. Left 0.333 0.905 0.392 17.5%
SP vs. Right 0.262 0.670 0.302 22.9% SP vs. Right 0.239 0.662 0.295 18.6%
Batter Splits ATL BvP pop up 2 ATL vs L pop up 2 Batter Splits STL BvP pop up 2 STL vs R pop up 2
Batter Split Links Above Open In Pop-Up Window

Pitcher Grind Down

Gavin Floyd – The change to the NL has really helped Gavin Floyd this year as his ERA is down to 2.70 after his first 2 starts. He has also struck out a nice amount of batters with 8 and 5 respectively. He will face the Cardinals for the second time in 2 weeks today after allowing 1 earned run in 7 innings against them. He makes a decent play, if cheap on your site. Rating = 5

Jaime Garcia – Garcia has yet to pitch this year and I always like to see a non-elite pitcher go once before playing him in my lineups. He has pitched well for the Cardinals in the last 2 years with sub 4 ERAs, but is not going to K enough batters to ever be an elite fantasy option. He does get a high strike out team in the Braves, but I would like to see how he pitches prior to playing him in any type of format. Rating = 4

Batter Grind Down

Atlanta

Freddie Freeman – Last year, Garcia allowed lefties to hit .333 against him with a .537 SLG. Freeman is a very consistent at first base against any RH pitchers as he continues to mash them for over a .300 average this year.

St. Louis

Matt Carpenter – Carpenter has had a down year so far for his standards, but for his career is a .300+ hitter against RH pitching. His price should be down at most sites due to recent hitting slump this past week.

Milwaukee at Chicago Cubs

Milwaukee Chicago Cubs
Marco Estrada Vegas Moneyline Travis Wood Vegas Over/Under
RIGHT MIL (-118) LEFT
Stats Avg OPS wOBA K% Stats Avg OPS wOBA K%
SP vs. Left 0.197 0.618 0.277 23.3% SP vs. Left 0.198 0.541 0.256 22.2%
SP vs. Right 0.254 0.728 0.319 23.2% SP vs. Right 0.244 0.680 0.308 16.8%
Batter Splits MIL BvP pop up 2 MIL vs L pop up 2 Batter Splits CHC BvP pop up 2 CHC vs R pop up 2
Batter Split Links Above Open In Pop-Up Window

Pitcher Grind Down

Marco Estrada – Estrada has been a good starter this year for the Brewers. He holds a 3.28 ERA with a 1.09 WHIP. He also comes into this game with a good 8.39 K/9 and pitched well against this Cubs squad at the end of April. This Cubs squad is at the bottom of the league against RH pitching and Estrada has held this lineup to a .189 AVG overall. Rating = 7

Travis Wood – Wood has really struggled recently and has given up a total of 19 earned runs in his last 3 starts. This run of terrible games has brought his ERA up to 4.91 with a 1.43 WHIP. Wood was rocked by this Brewers team to begin this bad streak and should be avoided until he can find his stuff again. Rating = 3

Batter Grind Down

Milwaukee

Ryan Braun – Over the last 3 years, Braun has crushed any type of LH pitching. He has an overall average of .360 against lefties and an OPS of 1.118. He also has a good history against Wood at 7/22 with 1 home run.

Chicago Cubs

Starlin Castro – Estrada has, over his career, allowed RH bats to hit for a higher average than lefties. Castro is finally starting to come around and swing the bat well as he has 11 hits in his last 6 games.

Toronto at Texas

Toronto Texas
R.A. Dickey Vegas Moneyline Nick Martinez Vegas Over/Under
RIGHT TOR (-112) RIGHT 9.5
Stats Avg OPS wOBA K% Stats Avg OPS wOBA K%
SP vs. Left 0.249 0.738 0.327 17.9% SP vs. Left 0.214 0.697 0.319 9.4%
SP vs. Right 0.235 0.679 0.310 20.2% SP vs. Right 0.294 0.806 0.342 16.7%
Batter Splits TOR BvP pop up 2 TOR vs R pop up 2 Batter Splits TEX BvP pop up 2 TEX vs R pop up 2
Batter Split Links Above Open In Pop-Up Window

Pitcher Grind Down

R.A. Dickey- Dickey has had a nice string of games recently as he has not allowed more than 2 earned runs in his last 4 games. The problem I have with Dickey is he has only pitched 7 full innings 1 time this year. Teams are doing a great job of getting his pitch count up early in the game and it really depresses his fantasy value. He has a tough match today in a game with a high over/under. Dickey is a GPP only play if you decide to use him. Rating = 5

Nick Martinez – Martinez has started two games this year and has pitched out of the bullpen for the rest. He has a high WHIP of 1.41 and does not have a high strike out rate (5.16 K/9). This Blue Jays offense has been as hot as they come recently and you can safely avoid Martinez. Rating = 3

Batter Grind Down

Toronto

Melky Cabrera – Cabrera has been one of my favorite fantasy plays this year for cash games as he is so consistent every game. He is hitting RH pitching for a .331 AVG and a .492 SLG on the season. Plug him in against Martinez and watch the points add up.

Texas

Alex Rios – Rios has seen and hit the Knuckleball well as he has 2 home runs against Dickey. With the injury to Fielder, Rios should move up a spot in the order and be in position to drive in some runs today.

MLB Grind Down Page 2 – Page 3

About the Author

Ryan138
Ryan138

Ryan (Ryan138) is from Chicago and has been playing fantasy sports for over 10 years. He has been playing daily fantasy sports for over 2 years since he was introduced to Daily Joust in late 2010. In the last year, Ryan has risen into the Top 100 of the RotoGrinders leaderboards by playing at DraftDay, DraftKings and FanDuel in all the major sports.