Taylor Clarke Daily Fantasy News, Rankings, Projections

Taylor Clarke has allowed 13 HRs in 51.2 innings behind a 16.8 K% and board high 12.9% Barrels/BBE. No other pitcher on the slate is within two points of that latter mark. Luckily for him, Kevin’s forecast does not suggest that the opposition will get much of a weather boost against Clarke in this road start. Much more unfortunately for him, that opposing team will be the Yankees, who are implied for a ridiculous 6.6 runs that no team outside Coors is within one-half run of. Also unfortunate for Clarke is that batters from either side of the plate have exceeded a .380 wOBA against him. Statcast drops RHBs to a .349 xwOBA, but that still does not leave him in anything close to an envious position. Each of the first eight batters in the projected order for the Yankees have at least a 105 wRC+ with an ISO above .150 vs RHP over the last calendar year. Remove leadoff man DJ LeMahieu (105 wRC+, .151 ISO) and eighth hole projection Mike Tauchman (108 wRC+, .226 ISO) and the remaining six are all above a 110 wRC+ and .180 vs RHP over that span. Aaron Hicks (136 wRC+, .249 ISO) is the top power bat via ISO with the second best wRC+ by these standards. It would be safe and perhaps a bit obvious to say that building daily fantasy lineups around Yankee bats as an alternative to Coors carries abundant upside.

J.A. Happ might not be a bad target to focus an attack on either in a much less obvious spot (Diamondbacks 4.4 implied runs). The reasoning is simple. He has struggled (18.3 HR/FB, 5.23 ERA, 6.85 DRA, 88.9 mph aEV, 8.1% Barrels/BBE), while the Diamondbacks have not (112 wRC+, 21.2 K%, 17 HR/FB, 26 Hard-Soft% vs LHP). Fourteen of Happ’s 23 HRs have been allowed at home. Ketel Marte (161 wRC+, .298 ISO vs LHP last calendar year) and Eduardo Escobar (155 wRC+, .261 ISO) are key bats. RHBs have a .327 wOBA, .332 xwOBA against Happ over the last calendar year.

No pitcher on tonight’s board comes within 2.5 points of Taylor Clarke’s 12.9% Barrels/BBE. In addition to this, he has just a 7.8 K-BB%. Perhaps the Diamondbacks realize this because they’ve limited him to 21 batters or fewer in each of his last seven starts. Perhaps they don’t because a .378 xwOBA suggests he shouldn’t be facing even that many. Arizona is no longer the hitter’s haven it once was with the advent of the humidor last season and may lag behind several weather boosted run environments tonight, but here we have a pitcher who has allowed a .403 xwOBA to LHBs against a team packed with left-handed power, implied for 5.5 runs. Christian Yelich (212 wRC+, .412 ISO vs RHP last calendar year) is likely the top overall bat on the board, while Yasmani Grandal (123 wRC+, .238 ISO), Mike Moustakas (115 wRC+, .247 ISO) and Eric Thames (105 wRC+, .237 ISO) all have some daily fantasy value tonight.

With great hitting weather and elevated run lines throughout the league on a full slate, perhaps the Dodgers could fly a bit under the radar in an extremely negative run environment out west. However, their 5.52 implied run line is still fifth best on the board as they’ll take a lineup that hammers RHP up against a rookie, who’s allowed seven HRs over his last four starts and has generated a board high 13.6% Barrels/BBE. While batters from either side are above a .350 wOBA against Taylor Clarke, LHBs have a .407 wOBA (.399 xwOBA). With the exception of rookie Edwin Rios (167 wRC+, 60 Hard% through his first 11 PAs), the projected lineup for the Dodgers offers four additional LHBs with Alex Verdugo being the low man by both wRC+ (122) and ISO (.194) vs RHP over the last calendar year. Joc Pederson (130 wRC+, .304 ISO), Cody Bellinger (173 wRC+, .295 ISO) and Max Muncy (151 wRC+, .304 ISO) have been absolute destruction with the platoon advantage. In addition, each of the first seven batters in the projected order are above a 135 wRC+ over the last week.

Taylor Clarke is not missing bats (15.8 K%, 8.4 SwStr%. His 42.3 Z-O-Swing% is worst on the board, which has led to 10% of his batted balls being classified as Barrels and a .365 xwOBA that’s second worst on the board. It would then seem a bit fluky that he’s only allowed 8.3% of his fly balls to leave the yard, which puts his SIERA and xFIP more than a half run above his 4.43 ERA. With nearly half the teams on a nine game slate above five implied runs, no particular attention should be paid to what’s been an average Philadelphia offense at 5.11, especially with potential weather concerns, but LHBs have hammered Clarke in a small sample (.371 wOBA, .392 xwOBA, 40.5 Hard%). Bryce Harper (123 wRC+, .207 ISO vs RHP last calendar year) and Jay Bruce (109 wRC+, .281 ISO) are the obvious Philadelphia offerings from that side. The latter has been tearing the cover off the ball (266 wRC+, 55 Hard% last seven days). Also interesting though, is that Cesar Hernandez (103 wRC+, .139 ISO) has been working near the top of the lineup with McCutchen out and though he doesn’t have nearly as much power, he costs quite a bit less than those other guys ($3.6K DK, $2.8K FD), making him potentially one of the top values on the board. Also, while Clarke has just a .255 wOBA against same-handed batters, xwOBA drives that up 68 points, making Rhys Hoskins (143 wRC+, .287 ISO) a perfectly viable stacking compliment, especially at a reasonable $4.2K on DraftKings.