MLB Grind Down: Tuesday, August 19th Page Three
Baltimore at Chicago White Sox
| Baltimore | Chicago White Sox | ||||||||
| Chris Tillman | Vegas Moneyline | Jose Quintana | Vegas Over/Under | ||||||
| RIGHT | BAL (-110) | LEFT | 8.0 | ||||||
| Stats | Avg | OPS | wOBA | K% | Stats | Avg | OPS | wOBA | K% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| SP vs. Left | 0.252 | 0.696 | 0.312 | 15.20% | SP vs. Left | 0.239 | 0.642 | 0.284 | 24.00% |
| SP vs. Right | 0.231 | 0.695 | 0.307 | 15.70% | SP vs. Right | 0.246 | 0.637 | 0.285 | 20.30% |
| Batter Splits | BAL BvP  | BAL vs L | Batter Splits | CHW BvP | CHW vs R | ||||
| Batter Split Links Above Open In Pop-Up Window | |||||||||
Pitcher Grind Down
- Chris Tillman – Tillman owns a 3.68 ERA this season, but has an xFIP of 4.42. He is only averaging 6.0 K’s per 9 innings and is walking over 3 batters per 9. The matchup has to be right for me to target Tillman and that’s not the case tonight against the White Sox who are ranked 8th in wOBA vs. RH pitching. Rating = 4
Salaries: $6800 FD, $13000 DD, $7400 DK, $NA FF, $NA SS, $13000 FTD
- Jose Quintana – Quintana is one of the best pitchers in baseball that is not on the national radar. He owns a 3.14 ERA on the season with a K/9 of 7.9. While I would love to recommend him as a sneaky play tonight, I’m not a huge fan of the matchup. The Orioles are ranked 6th in wOBA vs. LH pitching this season and put up 3 earned runs on Chris Sale last night who is one of the best lefties in baseball. Rating = 5.5
Salaries: $7600 FD, $16000 DD, $8100 DK, $ FF, $ SS, $16000 FTD
Batter Grind Down
Baltimore
Adam Jones – Not only does Jones have a high wOBA vs. lefties this season, but he also has good BvP numbers against Quintana. He has faced him 9 times in his career and has 5 hits off of him, 2 of which were HR’s.
Additional Plays: Nelson Cruz
Chicago White Sox
Jose Abreu – Abreu started off the season hot and hasn’t looked back since. He’s shown great power against RH pitching and draws a favorable matchup against Tillman tonight. I always like taking Abreu because he hits for both average and power.
Additional Plays: Alexei Ramirez
Cincinnati at St. Louis
| Cincinnati | St. Louis | ||||||||
| Alfredo Simon | Vegas Moneyline | John Lackey | Vegas Over/Under | ||||||
| RIGHT | STL (-173) | RIGHT | 7.5 | ||||||
| Stats | Avg | OPS | wOBA | K% | Stats | Avg | OPS | wOBA | K% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| SP vs. Left | 0.245 | 0.723 | 0.317 | 14.80% | SP vs. Left | 0.246 | 0.698 | 0.306 | 20.90% |
| SP vs. Right | 0.215 | 0.603 | 0.272 | 15.30% | SP vs. Right | 0.263 | 0.704 | 0.311 | 18.90% |
| Batter Splits | CIN BvP | CIN vs R | Batter Splits | STL BvP | STL vs R | ||||
| Batter Split Links Above Open In Pop-Up Window | |||||||||
Pitcher Grind Down
- Alfredo Simon – Simon has finally started to look like the pitcher that his peripheral stats have suggested all season long. He has given up 14 earned runs over his last 4 starts and is trending in the wrong direction. Even though the Cardinals aren’t the best offense in baseball, they are pretty decent against RH pitching. Rating = 4
Salaries: $6800 FD, $13700 DD, $7000 DK, $NA FF, $NA SS, $13700 FTD
- John Lackey – Lackey was well on his way to a great start against the Padres before the bullpen blew what would have been his first win as a member of the Cardinals. I’m expecting him to pick that up tonight against a depleted Reds offense that is ranked 29th offensively over the last 30 days. Lackey should see good run support and is a solid mid-range option. Rating = 6.5
Salaries: $7600 FD, $13100 DD, $8800 DK, $ FF, $ SS, $13100 FTD
Batter Grind Down
Cincinnati
Jay Bruce – Bruce is still extremely cheap on FD. He has 5 hits and 2 HR’s over his last 3 games and this may be one of the last times that you can take him at such a cheap price.
Additional Plays: None
St. Louis
Matt Adams – Once again, Adams makes a solid option against a RH pitcher. His price is so cheap across the industry. Simon has really struggled in his last few outings and Adams has a very high floor. Target him in all cash games.
Additional Plays: Matt Carpenter, Jhonny Peralta
Kansas City at Colorado
| Kansas City | Colorado | ||||||||
| James Shields | Vegas Moneyline | Tyler Matzek | Vegas Over/Under | ||||||
| RIGHT | KCR (-165) | LEFT | 9.5 | ||||||
| Stats | Avg | OPS | wOBA | K% | Stats | Avg | OPS | wOBA | K% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| SP vs. Left | 0.272 | 0.755 | 0.333 | 19.80% | SP vs. Left | 0.240 | 0.623 | 0.277 | 34.00% |
| SP vs. Right | 0.253 | 0.721 | 0.316 | 18.60% | SP vs. Right | 0.303 | 0.859 | 0.375 | 9.20% |
| Batter Splits | KCR BvP | KCR vs L | Batter Splits | COL BvP | COL vs R | ||||
| Batter Split Links Above Open In Pop-Up Window | |||||||||
Pitcher Grind Down
- James Shields – Shields has been pitching better over the last month of play, but that may come to an end as he faces a very talented Rockies offense in the hitter’s paradise that is Coors Field. As usual, I’ll be avoiding all pitchers in Coors. Rating = 5
Salaries: $8600 FD, $16900 DD, $8200 DK, $NA FF, $NA SS, $16900 FTD
- Tyler Matzek – Matzek is a mediocre lefty pitching in Coors Field against a red hot offense. No thank you. Rating = 3
Salaries: $5100 FD, $13250 DD, $4900 DK, $ FF, $ SS, $13250 FTD
Batter Grind Down
Kansas City
Billy Butler – There are a ton of good options at 1B tonight and you can add Butler to the mix as well. He has a terrific matchup against a lefty in Coors Field. He should see plenty of RBI opportunities and he has hit lefties well throughout his entire career.
Additional Plays: Omar Infante, Alcides Escobar, Salvador Perez (if in the lineup – he exited early last night)
Colorado
Charlie Blackmon – Shields has struggled with LH hitters this season and Blackmon’s price is depressed right now. He has mashed RH pitching at home this season and is one of the best values in the OF.
Additional Plays: Justin Morneau, Corey Dickerson, Nolan Arenado
NY Mets at Oakland
| NY Mets | Oakland | ||||||||
| Dillon Gee | Vegas Moneyline | Scott Kazmir | Vegas Over/Under | ||||||
| RIGHT | OAK (-200) | LEFT | 7.0 | ||||||
| Stats | Avg | OPS | wOBA | K% | Stats | Avg | OPS | wOBA | K% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| SP vs. Left | 0.245 | 0.732 | 0.325 | 12.50% | SP vs. Left | 0.227 | 0.577 | 0.264 | 23.30% |
| SP vs. Right | 0.200 | 0.620 | 0.277 | 22.40% | SP vs. Right | 0.222 | 0.618 | 0.276 | 21.60% |
| Batter Splits | NYM BvP | NYM vs L | Batter Splits | OAK BvP | OAK vs R | ||||
| Batter Split Links Above Open In Pop-Up Window | |||||||||
Pitcher Grind Down
- Dillon Gee – Gee has not been great on the road in his career and even though the A’s offense has been ice cold, I still try to avoid taking pitchers against them. The A’s are still ranked 7th in wOBA vs. RH pitching on the year. Gee is a +190 underdog that can be avoided in all league formats. Rating = 4
Salaries: $6600 FD, $12600 DD, $7300 DK, $NA FF, $NA SS, $12600 FTD
- Scott Kazmir – Kazmir’s strikeouts are down. That’s typically a big red flag, but a depressed price and backing from Vegas at least puts him in play tonight against the Mets. Kazmir is the biggest favorite on the board and should see enough run support to put him in line for the win. The Mets did knock him around a bit when they faced him in Citi Field, but I think Kazmir bounces back nicely here. He’s in play on multi-pitcher sites. Rating = 6.5
Salaries: $8600 FD, $18750 DD, $8600 DK, $ FF, $ SS, $18750 FTD
Batter Grind Down
NY Mets
David Wright – If you aren’t a fan of Kazmir tonight, Wright is a solid play at 3B. He continues to be one of the better hitters in baseball against southpaws and his price is always affordable.
Additional Plays: Eric Campbell
Oakland
Brandon Moss – Moss has finally snapped out of his funk, well he’s slowly snapping out of his funk. He has 7 hits over his last 5 games and draws a nice matchup against Gee who has struggled on the road this season.
Additional Plays: John Jaso, Stephen Vogt, Josh Reddick
San Diego at LA Dodgers
| San Diego | LA Dodgers | ||||||||
| Ian Kennedy | Vegas Moneyline | Kevin Correia | Vegas Over/Under | ||||||
| RIGHT | LAD (-125) | RIGHT | 7.0 | ||||||
| Stats | Avg | OPS | wOBA | K% | Stats | Avg | OPS | wOBA | K% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| SP vs. Left | 0.214 | 0.665 | 0.295 | 26.40% | SP vs. Left | 0.289 | 0.776 | 0.341 | 9.10% |
| SP vs. Right | 0.253 | 0.699 | 0.310 | 25.20% | SP vs. Right | 0.298 | 0.796 | 0.349 | 12.50% |
| Batter Splits | SDP BvP | SDP vs R | Batter Splits | LAD BvP | LAD vs R | ||||
| Batter Split Links Above Open In Pop-Up Window | |||||||||
Pitcher Grind Down
- Ian Kennedy – Kennedy is a high strikeout pitcher that is having a terrific bounce back season. He owns a 3.64 ERA with a K/9 of 9.6. I like his price on FanDuel tonight, but I’m having a hard time getting him in any of my lineups because there are quite a few pitchers with better matchups. The Dodgers are ranked 6th in wOBA vs. RH pitching this season and can put runs up on the board quickly. If this game were in Petco, it might be a different story, but I’ll be avoiding Kennedy tonight. Rating = 6
Salaries: $7600 FD, $15750 DD, $8300 DK, $NA FF, $NA SS, $15750 FTD
- Kevin Correia – Even though he is facing the Padres, I will not be targeting Correia tonight. He has an extremely low K-rate (lower than his ERA which is tough to do). The Padres are the top ranked offense in all of baseball over the last 30 days. There is more risk than upside with Correia tonight. Rating = 4.5
Salaries: $5300 FD, $9350 DD, $5400 DK, $ FF, $ SS, $9350 FTD
Batter Grind Down
San Diego
Seth Smith – Smith has been a solid option against RH pitching all season long. He’s an affordable option in the OF and a pretty cheap source of power. Tonight he draws a favorable matchup against Correia who has given up a .339 wOBA to LH hitters this season.
Additional Plays: Jedd Gyorko, Yangervis Solarte
LA Dodgers
Dee Gordon – Gordon’s price is depressed right now and I always like targeting him against RH pitchers because his stolen base potential goes up. He’s only $2900 on FanDuel which is too good of a bargain to pass up tonight against Kennedy.
Additional Plays: Adrian Gonzalez