MLB Grind Down: Thursday, April 24th - Page 2

by Derek Farnsworth (Notorious) Last Updated 2014-04-24 13:44:29

Arizona at Chicago Cubs

Arizona					Chicago Cubs
Mike Bolsinger		Vegas Moneyline			Edwin Jackson		Vegas Over/Under
RIGHT		CHC (-116)			RIGHT		7.5
Stats	Avg	OPS	wOBA	K%	Stats	Avg	OPS	wOBA	K%
SP vs. Left	0.588	1.376	0.599	16.7%	SP vs. Left	0.302	0.810	0.367	18.2%
SP vs. Right	0.167	0.417	0.202	25.0%	SP vs. Right	0.273	0.744	0.333	17.0%
Batter Splits	ARI BvP		ARI vs R		Batter Splits	CHC BvP		CHC vs R
Batter Split Links Above Open In Pop-Up Window

Pitcher Grind Down

• Mike Bolsinger – Bolsinger is not a great big-league prospect and will be making only his second career start today. Bolsinger gave up 6 earned runs over 4 innings the other day against the Dodgers. Even though the Cubs offense isn’t the best in the world, they should be able to get a hold of the RH Bolsinger. Rating = 2

• Edwin Jackson – This is one of the rare times that I actually may consider rostering Jackson. Not only should he receive plenty of run support, but he is coming off of an impressive start against the Reds. Jackson had a K/9 of 6.9 last season and is a borderline cash game play that certainly has value as a GPP play. Rating = 6

Batter Grind Down

Arizona

• Miguel Montero – Jackson gave up a .367 wOBA to LH batters last season and Montero is arguably the D-Backs’ best LH batter. He should be batting clean-up again today and his price is cheap across the industry. If you are not targeting Jackson, I highly recommend targeting Montero as a punt play at Catcher.

• Additional Plays: Gerardo Parra

Chicago Cubs

• Anthony Rizzo – Seeing as Bolsinger has only pitched in 2 major league games, it’s hard to trust the splits with such a small sample size. That said, Rizzo crushes RH pitching and make a great play at 1B. Don’t be afraid to target a few Cubbies in your lineups today.

• Additional Plays: Starlin Castro, Emilio Bonifacio

San Diego at Washington

San Diego					Washington
Eric Stults		Vegas Moneyline			Jordan Zimmermann		Vegas Over/Under
LEFT		WAS (-165)			RIGHT		7.5
Stats	Avg	OPS	wOBA	K%	Stats	Avg	OPS	wOBA	K%
SP vs. Left	0.193	0.560	0.250	17.5%	SP vs. Left	0.269	0.719	0.317	16.9%
SP vs. Right	0.300	0.781	0.343	14.0%	SP vs. Right	0.216	0.591	0.270	21.8%
Batter Splits	SDP BvP		SDP vs R		Batter Splits	WSN BvP		WSN vs L
Batter Split Links Above Open In Pop-Up Window

Pitcher Grind Down

• Eric Stults – Stults has been a nice pitcher to target when he is playing at home in Petco, but has an ERA over 5.00 in his last 20 starts on the road. Those are not numbers that I like to see. The Nationals offense can hit LH pitching well and with Zimmermann on the mound opposite him, he is going to have a tough time receiving run support. Rating = 3

• Jordan Zimmermann – Zimmermann has had one bad outing this season, but has given up 2 or less earned runs in each of his other 3 starts. He has a great matchup today against the Padres whose offense has really sputtered this season. Zimmermann posted a 2.61 ERA at home last season and is one of my favorite pitchers to target in all leagues. Rating = 9

Batter Grind Down

San Diego

• Everth Cabrera – The only play that I am considering here as a hedge to Zimmermann is Cabrera who hits RH pitching well and can steal bases once he reaches. Cabrera’s price is cheap across the industry and he makes for a nice punt option at SS.

• Additional Plays: None

Washington

• Jayson Werth – Stults gave up a .343 wOBA to RH batters last season and Werth has always fared well against south-paws. Over the last 3 seasons, Werth has a .297 batting average with an OPS of .914 against LH pitching.

• Additional Plays: Anthony Rendon, Ian Desmond

Baltimore at Toronto

Baltimore					Toronto
Bud Norris		Vegas Moneyline			Drew Hutchison		Vegas Over/Under
RIGHT		TOR (-142)			RIGHT		9.0
Stats	Avg	OPS	wOBA	K%	Stats	Avg	OPS	wOBA	K%
SP vs. Left	0.306	0.857	0.377	15.8%	SP vs. Left	0.300	0.886	0.387	26.3%
SP vs. Right	0.251	0.648	0.296	23.1%	SP vs. Right	0.214	0.483	0.237	30.0%
Batter Splits	BAL BvP		BAL vs R		Batter Splits	TOR BvP		TOR vs R
Batter Split Links Above Open In Pop-Up Window

Pitcher Grind Down

• Bud Norris – Norris just isn’t a pitcher that you want to target in DFS. He pitches in an extremely tough division and he has a high ERA and WHIP. Norris does have a decent K/9 of 7.5, but I want nothing to do with Norris against the Blue Jays in the Rogers Centre which is one of the most hitter friendly ballparks in baseball. Rating = 3

• Drew Hutchison – Hutchison is the favorite in this game, but he is a small favorite and the total is set at 9.0 runs. Hutchison pitched well against the Orioles in his first matchup with them, but I think the Orioles get a hold of him this time around. After last night’s shootout between these teams, you should avoid both starting pitchers here. Rating = 3

Batter Grind Down

Baltimore

• Chris Davis – Chris “Crush” Davis hit his 2nd HR of the season last night and I wouldn’t be surprised to see him hit his 3rd tonight. Hutchison gave up a .387 wOBA and an OPS of .886 to LH batters last season. Take Davis at his current price before it goes up.

• Additional Plays: Nelson Cruz, Adam Jones, Matt Wieters

Toronto

• Melky Cabrera – There are a lot of Blue Jays bats in play today, but I really like the ones that can bat from the left side of the plate. Norris gave up a .377 wOBA to LH batters last season and Melky is off to a fantastic start this season batting .361 with 5 HR’s. If he can get on base, the big bats behind him will bring him home.

• Additional Plays: Jose Reyes, Edwin Encarnacion, Jose Bautista

NY Yankees at Boston

NY Yankees					Boston
CC Sabathia		Vegas Moneyline			Felix Doubront		Vegas Over/Under
LEFT		BOS (-110)			LEFT		8.5
Stats	Avg	OPS	wOBA	K%	Stats	Avg	OPS	wOBA	K%
SP vs. Left	0.244	0.660	0.298	29.3%	SP vs. Left	0.268	0.690	0.313	21.1%
SP vs. Right	0.280	0.798	0.351	17.2%	SP vs. Right	0.262	0.745	0.333	18.5%
Batter Splits	NYY BvP		NYY vs L		Batter Splits	BOS BvP		BOS vs L
Batter Split Links Above Open In Pop-Up Window

Pitcher Grind Down

• CC Sabathia – After getting warned about the pine tar, Michael Pineda decided that he would put a big glob of it on his neck. Someone may have forgotten to tell him that there may be a camera or two around. How funny. Anyway, Sabathia will draw the start for the Yankees today and even though he is coming off of his best start this season, he got lucky in a few spots in that start. The fact of the matter is that Sabathia has lost a lot of velocity and is an average to above average LH pitcher now. I would much rather be on the Red Sox side of this matchup. Rating = 3

• Felix Doubront – Doubront has a 5.48 ERA this season with only 15 K’s in 21 innings of work. This Yankees lineup has really hit LH pitching well this season and there are always a lot of runs scored when these two teams meet up. I’ll be avoiding both of the starting pitchers in this game. Rating = 3

Batter Grind Down

NY Yankees

• Carlos Beltran – Doubront gave up a .333 wOBA to RH batters last season and Beltran has been a perfect fit for the Yankees. He’s a veteran player that has not been overwhelmed by the pinstripes. Beltran has 6 hits in his last 3 games and should be targeted in all leagues.

• Additional Plays: Alfonso Soriano, Jacoby Ellsbury

Boston

• Dustin Pedroia – Sabathia has really struggled against RH batters. Last season he gave up a .351 wOBA to RH bats and Pedroia has always been able to mash LH pitching. Last season he hit for a .354 batting average and an OPS of .937.

• Additional Plays: Jonny Gomes, Mike Napoli, David Ortiz

Oakland at Houston

Oakland					Houston
Scott Kazmir		Vegas Moneyline			Brett Oberholtzer		Vegas Over/Under
LEFT		OAK (-160)			LEFT		7.5
Stats	Avg	OPS	wOBA	K%	Stats	Avg	OPS	wOBA	K%
SP vs. Left	0.230	0.573	0.253	24.2%	SP vs. Left	0.262	0.665	0.295	16.4%
SP vs. Right	0.257	0.736	0.328	23.9%	SP vs. Right	0.228	0.634	0.281	16.1%
Batter Splits	OAK BvP		OAK vs L		Batter Splits	HOU BvP		HOU vs L
Batter Split Links Above Open In Pop-Up Window

Pitcher Grind Down

• Scott Kazmir – Kazmir has tremendous velocity and he is one of the better strikeout pitchers in baseball. Last season he averaged more than 9 K’s per 9 innings and he already has 24 K’s in 27 innings of work this season. The matchup bodes well for Kazmir too as the Astros are one of the more strikeout prone teams in baseball. Kazmir has huge upside in this matchup and makes a great play in all leagues. Rating = 10

• Brett Oberholtzer – Oberholtzer has pitched well in his last two starts, but is a huge underdog here and will likely have trouble receiving run support with Kazmir on the mound opposite him. Oberholtzer is also facing a scrappy A’s lineup. I’ll be avoiding everything Astros tonight. Rating = 4

Batter Grind Down

Oakland

• Josh Donaldson – Donaldson is one of the best hitters in baseball against LH pitching. Last season he hit for a .335 batting average and a 1.03 OPS against LH pitching.

• Additional Plays: Yoenis Cespedes

Houston

• I will be avoiding all Astros’ bats tonight against Kazmir.

• Additional Plays: None

Philadelphia at LA Dodgers

Philadelphia					LA Dodgers
Kyle Kendrick		Vegas Moneyline			Dan Haren		Vegas Over/Under
RIGHT		LAD (-172)			RIGHT		7.5
Stats	Avg	OPS	wOBA	K%	Stats	Avg	OPS	wOBA	K%
SP vs. Left	0.254	0.707	0.315	14.7%	SP vs. Left	0.255	0.720	0.316	18.9%
SP vs. Right	0.303	0.758	0.343	13.4%	SP vs. Right	0.275	0.750	0.335	22.4%
Batter Splits	PHI BvP		PHI vs R		Batter Splits	LAD BvP		LAD vs R
Batter Split Links Above Open In Pop-Up Window

Pitcher Grind Down

• Kyle Kendrick – Kendrick has a 3.60 ERA with a 1.28 WHIP and 17 K’s over 25 innings of work this season. He has a very average K-rate and tends to struggle in starts away from home. Kendrick is a big underdog tonight against the Dodgers (+164) and is a below average fantasy option. Rating = 4

• Dan Haren – Haren appears to have figured it out this season and he has actually pitched well since the All-Star break of last year. In his first 4 starts this season he has a 2.16 ERA with a 1.14 WHIP and 20 K’s over 25 innings of work. He is getting plenty of love from the oddsmakers as he is a -174 favorite. If the price is right, I think he makes a solid cash game play. Rating = 7

Batter Grind Down

Philadelphia

• Ryan Howard – Haren biggest problem last season was giving up too many HR’s and Howard could make for a nice tournament play. He has plenty of power against RH pitching.

• Additional Plays: Chase Utley

LA Dodgers

• Hanley Ramirez – Hanley hit a HR in last night’s win and makes a great play again tonight against Kendrick who gave up a .343 wOBA to RH batters last season. Hanley has good speed on the bags too.

• Additional Plays: Adrian Gonzalez, Yasiel Puig