Tim Lincecum Daily Fantasy News, Rankings, Projections

Tim Lincecum has been tattooed for 10 HRs in eight starts and though RHBs have hit him much better since last season (.437 wOBA, 41.1 Hard%), LHBs have been catching up with four HRs and a .386 wOBA this season. Though still a negative run environment, the Mariners have a 17.5 HR/FB at home this season. Seattle is sticking to their normal lineup against RHP despite what the numbers say, making Nelson Cruz (137 wRC+, .230 ISO vs RHP since 2015) the top play at a reasonable cost too (around $4K) against the righty. Mike Zunino may be a decent punt Catcher in this spot. Though he bats eight, he has a 198 wRC+ and .440 ISO vs RHP in a very small sample this year and costs less than $3K on either site. LH Mariner bats still project well, though are not as much of a bargain at a higher cost for Cano and Seager.

We don't have a huge sample size to go off of with Tim Lincecum, but he has been significantly worse against right-handed batters this season. Lincecum has posted a 24.1% strikeout rate and 2.5% BB% to left-handed batters but a -5.2% K-BB% to right-handed batters. His splits are so extreme to this point that we can't completely ignore them even with the minuscule sample size. If we dig a little deeper, Lincecum still had a 11.7% walk rate with a 40.0% Hard% allowed to right-handed batters dating back to last season. Mookie Betts (136 wRC+, .382 wOBA, .232 ISO vs RHP) is the clear number one option tonight if targeting the Red Sox given his steal and home run upside. Xander Bogaerts (124 wRC+, .363 wOBA) and Dustin Pedroia (120 wRC+, .357 wOBA, .153 ISO vs RHP) would be the best secondary plays to accompany Betts in Red Sox stacks. Hanley Ramirez doesn't have great season-long statistics but he has come to life recently and makes a great pivot from David Ortiz.

Tim Linecum is a reverse platoon guy with LHBs having just a .296 wOBA against him since last season, which actually fits with this Texas lineup as their LHBs haven't been good against RHP with only Shin-Soo Choo (138 wRC+, .205 ISO) being much above average against them since last season. Mitch Moreland (117 wRC+, .221 ISO vs RHP since 2015) may still be a bargain in the 5th spot tonight for less than $3K, though players may want to look at Ian Desmond (115 wRC+, .201 ISO vs RHP this season) as the top bat, though actually cheaper on DraftKings ($3.9K). Adrian Beltre (83 wRC+) has struggled against RHP this season, but has to be looked at for just $2.7K on DraftKings as well. This is a strange spot in that it's a pitcher's park with a below average offense, but the Rangers still have a nearly five run projection.

Lincecum has not pitched all that great since making his return to the majors. Lincecum has allowed at least 4 ER in two of three starts and has only made it past the fifth inning once. Somewhat surprisingly, Lincecum has really struggled against RHBs dating back to last season (5.02 xFIP, .396 wOBA, 1.29 HR/9 since 2015) and has been just as bad through his first three starts with the Angels. The Rays have a few interesting bats that could be utilized as one offs or a tournament mini-stack. Evan Longoria (122 wRC+, .351 wOBA, .253 ISO vs RHP) is the top play in the Rays lineup. Corey Dickerson (.264 ISO vs RHP) and Brad Miller (.217 ISO vs RHP) can also be considered in tournaments given their power upside.

Tim Lincecum struck out and walked two A's each in his first major league start this year, stranding 85.7% of runners. He did strike out 19 of 66 batters in three AAA starts this season, but an ERA and estimators above four the last couple of years in a great park hardly makes him worth more than $7K here. Lincecum has had a bit of a reverse platoon split the last few seasons, more pronounced since last season (.368 wOBA, 38.9 Hard% for RHBs vs .266 wOBA, 28.4 Hard% for LHBs). RHBs Valencia (130 wRC+ ,.225 ISO vs RHP since 2015) and Davis (115 wRC+, .248 ISO vs RHP since 2015) appear solid starts for less than $4K tonight. Davis has two HRs in seven plate appearances against Lincecum with a 95.6 mph aEV in five batted balls. Max Muncy (106 wRC+) costs the minimum at a position we don't want to punt tonight (First Base), but bats 2nd.