MLB Grind Down: Tuesday, April 15th - Page 3
Toronto at Minnesota
| Toronto | Minnesota | ||||||||
| Brandon Morrow | Vegas Moneyline | Phil Hughes | Vegas Over/Under | ||||||
| RIGHT | TOR (-130) | RIGHT | 8.0 | ||||||
| Stats | Avg | OPS | wOBA | K% | Stats | Avg | OPS | wOBA | K% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| SP vs. Left | 0.304 | 0.996 | 0.422 | 17.5% | SP vs. Left | 0.292 | 0.860 | 0.376 | 19.5% |
| SP vs. Right | 0.259 | 0.684 | 0.303 | 21.3% | SP vs. Right | 0.293 | 0.792 | 0.350 | 18.5% |
| Batter Splits | TOR BvP  | TOR vs R | Batter Splits | MIN BvP | MIN vs R | ||||
| Batter Split Links Above Open In Pop-Up Window | |||||||||
Pitcher Grind Down
- Brandon Morrow – Morrow’s last start against the Astros was a perfect summary of how his career has gone. He can look absolutely dominant at times and then he can give up a few hits in a row and get rattled. He’s a pitcher that I have an extremely hard time using in cash games because he is not someone that you can rely on. He does however have a high K-rate (7.0 per 9 innings last season) and makes sense as a deep tournament play. Hughes is pitching opposite him which should result in some run support. Rating = 5
- Phil Hughes – Hughes has given up 4 earned runs in each of his first two starts and should not be targeted tonight against the Blue Jays. He just hasn’t been the same pitcher ever since being signed by the Yankees. A chance of scenery was expected to help, but so far that has not been the case. Rating = 2
Batter Grind Down
Toronto
- Jose Bautista – The Blue Jays will be a popular stack option tonight and are one of my favorites as well. Hughes gave up a .360 wOBA and an OPS of .832 to all batters last season and is off to a similar start this season. Joey Bats makes a terrific play tonight.
- Additional Plays: Edwin Encarnacion, Adam Lind, Melky Cabrera, Colby Rasmus
Minnesota
- Joe Mauer – Mauer is cheap on most fantasy sites and hits RH pitching well. Morrow has really struggled with LH batters in his career. Last season he gave up a .404 wOBA to LH batters and Mauer is one of the best lefties in baseball.
- Additional Plays: Jason Kubel
NY Mets at Arizona
| NY Mets | Arizona | ||||||||
| Jenrry Mejia | Vegas Moneyline | Bronson Arroyo | Vegas Over/Under | ||||||
| RIGHT | ARI (-130) | RIGHT | 9.0 | ||||||
| Stats | Avg | OPS | wOBA | K% | Stats | Avg | OPS | wOBA | K% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| SP vs. Left | 0.250 | 0.690 | 0.311 | 20.6% | SP vs. Left | 0.291 | 0.844 | 0.366 | 12.1% |
| SP vs. Right | 0.257 | 0.563 | 0.244 | 28.9% | SP vs. Right | 0.226 | 0.616 | 0.279 | 17.9% |
| Batter Splits | NYM BvP | NYM vs R | Batter Splits | ARI BvP | ARI vs R | ||||
| Batter Split Links Above Open In Pop-Up Window | |||||||||
Pitcher Grind Down
- Jenrry Mejia – Mejia has some very electric stuff. He already has 15 K’s this season over only 11 innings pitched. His biggest problem this season has been his command. He has already walked 9 batters in his first two starts and they have come back to haunt him. I’m excited for him moving forward, but I don’t see him as anything but a deep tournament play against the D-Backs in the hitter friendly Chase Field. Rating = 5
- Bronson Arroyo – I’m not too excited about Arroyo’s prospects this season. He is now 37 and he is going to be making half of his starts in Chase Field. Arroyo had a low K-rate of only 5.5 last season. Even though he is a small favorite here, the run total is high and Arroyo has very limited upside. It also doesn’t help that the Mets have some great LH batters in their lineup. Rating = 4
Batter Grind Down
NY Mets
- David Wright – Even though Arroyo gave up a higher wOBA and OPS to LH batters last season, I still like Wright at 3B tonight. He is riding a 6 game hitting streak and has always hit RH pitching well. I like his chances to take Arroyo deep here.
- Additional Plays: Lucas Duda, Curtis Granderson, Daniel Murphy
Arizona
- Miguel Montero – Montero was my favorite Catcher last night and he passed with flying colors by going 3/3 with 3 RBI’s. Montero is at his best when he is at home and faces RH pitching. He gets both tonight against Mejia.
- Additional Plays: Paul Goldschmidt
Oakland at LA Angels
| Oakland | LA Angels | ||||||||
| Dan Straily | Vegas Moneyline | Garrett Richards | Vegas Over/Under | ||||||
| RIGHT | LAA (-120) | RIGHT | 8.0 | ||||||
| Stats | Avg | OPS | wOBA | K% | Stats | Avg | OPS | wOBA | K% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| SP vs. Left | 0.248 | 0.730 | 0.325 | 17.9% | SP vs. Left | 0.263 | 0.704 | 0.319 | 17.8% |
| SP vs. Right | 0.217 | 0.584 | 0.274 | 21.8% | SP vs. Right | 0.250 | 0.619 | 0.281 | 16.1% |
| Batter Splits | OAK BvP | OAK vs R | Batter Splits | LAA BvP | LAA vs R | ||||
| Batter Split Links Above Open In Pop-Up Window | |||||||||
Pitcher Grind Down
- Dan Straily – It seems like we have a lot of high strikeout pitchers on the road tonight. Straily had a K/9 of 7.3 last season with a 3.96 ERA. Straily’s teammate Jesse Chavez pitched well against the Angels last night, but I think there are better options than Straily for cash games. This Angels offense can put up runs in a hurry and one bad inning could kill his fantasy outing. Rating = 5
- Garrett Richards – Richards has looked great in his first two starts of the season. He has only allowed 1 earned run while striking out 13 batters in 12 innings of work. Richards is getting some love from Vegas tonight as a -120 favorite. While the A’s hit RH pitching as a team well, Richards has some electric stuff and he is finally start to put it all together. I think he makes a solid play tonight. Rating = 7
Batter Grind Down
Oakland
- Brandon Moss, Jed Lowrie, and Yoenis Cespedes can all be used as tournament plays, but none of them stand out as cash game plays against Richards.
- Additional Plays: None
LA Angels
- Albert Pujols – There are few better hitters in baseball than when Pujols is locked in. He has recorded a hit in 10 straight games and has 4 HR’s in his last 6 games. Pujols could get a hold of one of Straily’s fastballs tonigth.
- Additional Plays: Kole Calhoun
Colorado at San Diego
| Colorado | San Diego | ||||||||
| Juan Nicasio | Vegas Moneyline | Robbie Erlin | Vegas Over/Under | ||||||
| RIGHT | SDP (-112) | LEFT | 7.0 | ||||||
| Stats | Avg | OPS | wOBA | K% | Stats | Avg | OPS | wOBA | K% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| SP vs. Left | 0.229 | 0.721 | 0.329 | 18.1% | SP vs. Left | 0.288 | 0.733 | 0.325 | 21.8% |
| SP vs. Right | 0.298 | 0.805 | 0.358 | 16.8% | SP vs. Right | 0.228 | 0.631 | 0.280 | 17.3% |
| Batter Splits | COL BvP | COL vs L | Batter Splits | SDP BvP | SDP vs R | ||||
| Batter Split Links Above Open In Pop-Up Window | |||||||||
Pitcher Grind Down
- Juan Nicasio – Nicasio has actually pitched pretty well in his first two starts considering the fact that they were both in Coors Field. He gets to go from pitching in Coors which gave up the most runs of any ballpark last season to pitching in Petco which gave up the fewest runs. The total is set at only 7.0 runs and I think Nicasio pitches well here. He had a decent K/9 of 6.8 last season and is a nice value at pitcher tonight. Rating = 6
- Robbie Erlin – The Rockies got a hold of one LH Padres starter and will look to get a hold of another one tonight. Erlin pitched well in his first start of the season, but isn’t too high on my radar tonight. The Rockies hit LH pitching well and run support is always a concern with Padres’ pitchers. Rating = 4
Batter Grind Down
Colorado
- Troy Tulowitzki – Tulo has always been good against LH pitching. Over the last 3 years he has a .309 batting average with an OPS of .935 against lefties. Even though this is a pitcher’s ballpark, don’t put it past Tulo to find some gaps tonight.
- Additional Plays: Michael Cuddyer
San Diego
- Everth Cabrera – If you are looking to punt the SS position tonight, Cabrera is a solid option. He is batting .341 against RH pitching this season and is one of the biggest threats to steal bases in the majors. Last season he had 37 SB’s in only 95 games.
- Additional Plays: None
LA Dodgers at San Francisco
| LA Dodgers | San Francisco | ||||||||
| Josh Beckett | Vegas Moneyline | Tim Lincecum | Vegas Over/Under | ||||||
| RIGHT | SFG (-110) | RIGHT | 7.5 | ||||||
| Stats | Avg | OPS | wOBA | K% | Stats | Avg | OPS | wOBA | K% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| SP vs. Left | 0.318 | 0.871 | 0.395 | 19.6% | SP vs. Left | 0.239 | 0.676 | 0.310 | 24.2% |
| SP vs. Right | 0.265 | 0.803 | 0.353 | 23.0% | SP vs. Right | 0.266 | 0.759 | 0.341 | 22.2% |
| Batter Splits | LAD BvP | LAD vs R | Batter Splits | SFG BvP | SFG vs R | ||||
| Batter Split Links Above Open In Pop-Up Window | |||||||||
Pitcher Grind Down
- Josh Beckett – This is a battle of two pitchers that are past their prime. Beckett hasn’t been the same pitcher since 2011. Since the start of 2012, he has an ERA over 5.00 with a WHIP over 1.40. Beckett only managed to pitch 4 innings in his first start of the season and does not look like a great option tonight against the Giants. Rating = 3
- Tim Lincecum – Lincecum is in the same boat as Beckett. He’s a player that I want to pitch well, but he just doesn’t seem to have it anymore. He also has an ERA close to 5.00 since the start of 2012. He has to face a very tough Dodgers lineup tonight. While the run total is only set at 7.5 runs, I will not have any exposure to either of these starters. Rating = 4
Batter Grind Down
LA Dodgers
- Adrian Gonzalez – I owe many thanks to Gonzalez after that incredible series against the D-Backs. He should be able to keep it going tonight against Lincecum who is a shell of his former self. Gonzalez says that his power is back and his 5 HR’s already this season back that up.
- Additional Plays: Yasiel Puig, Dee Gordon, Hanley Ramirez
San Francisco
- Buster Posey – Posey is my top Catcher tonight. I love the matchup against Beckett and think that he should see plenty of RBI opportunities as Beckett will likely give up plenty of hits in this one. If you can afford him, get him in your lineup.
- Additional Plays: Brandon Belt, Hunter Pence, Pablo Sandoval