RADIO
Plenty of baseball on tap for today. A few afternoon games and a monster slate of evening games means I'll probably be on the couch for a solid 12 hours. Below are my DraftKings picks for Wednesday, July 8th, 2015. As always, remember to check your players to make sure they are in their MLB starting lineups before lineups lock.
Game Notes
- It’s early July. That means that it’ll be humid across the country. It also means that every single game occurring on the east coast while have a chance of a shower or two. The game in Denver has perhaps the best chance of being rained out.
- For stacking strategies, there’s no better team to utilize than the Toronto Blue Jays. They crush left-handed pitching and are facing John Danks, who most people forget is still in the league. Make it a point to target two to four or five bats in your lineups from Toronto.
- The Angels/Rockies game in Denver also has the potential to have a billion runs. The California Los Angeles of Anaheim Angels are on a bit of a hitting streak and won’t have their hands full with a pitcher in Chris Rusin that is yielding a .333 BABIP and a 14.6% HR/FB rate. Of course, that is even if the game goes off without a weather hitch.
- The early games do not provide much in terms of stacking, but the Orioles against Tommy Milone provide the best opportunity. A mini-stack of birds is the best route to go.
- Pay up for pitching in the night games. It seems there will be ample opportunity to get some cheap hitting across the board.
DFS Pitchers to Consider for DraftKings
Early Slate
Jacob deGrom, NYM - $10,700
For double-ups and cash games, don’t mess around. He’ll be the top scoring pitcher of the day.
Mike Fiers, MIL - $9,100
Fiers offers intriguing potential. Like his teammates, he’s on a bit of a hot streak as he has given up only two earned runs or less in three straight starts. He has gone at least six innings in those starts and struck out a total of thirteen. Atlanta is a team that has done well hitting to contact, but Fiers has successfully managed his defense behind him during his current run.
Jake Peavy, SF - $8,100
Cleary Peavy is not a pick for cash games, but he is a candidate for aggressive tourney lineups. The Mets are a terrible, terrible offensive team and they are still paying Bobby Bonilla. Peavy did drop 14.1 DK points in his last start, meaning his upside is better today.
Late Games
Clayton Kershaw, LAD - $13,300
This isn’t exactly going out on a limb, but Kershaw is the most expensive pitcher for a reason. The only problem is trying to fill the rest of the lineup with viable options to score points. There are a plethora of weak pitchers tonight, so it shouldn’t be too hard.
Andrew Cashner, SD - $8,100
This sounds crazy and he shouldn’t be utilized in cash games, but Cashner could be a top option due to his strikeout potential. The Pirates are clearly a superior team but they do have a propensity to whiff and miss against a Cashner-esque pitcher. He’ll get tagged for a few runs, but it’s hard to pass up the K number he is due to reach.
Trevor Bauer, CLE - $7,900
Bauer is a great second pitcher or even a solid number one should players go with more aggressive lineups. He has a great matchup against a Houston Astros team that is striking out in over a quarter of plate appearances. Though his 8.60 K/9 isn’t a terribly high number, he should flirt with double digit strikeouts Wednesday night.
Adam Morgan, PHI - $5,500
If you are feeling a bit adventurous, Morgan makes for quite the intriguing matchup against a Dodgers team that has struggled at times against left-handed pitching. Buyer beware, however. Do not play him in a cash game.
DFS Catchers to Consider for DraftKings
Early Slate
Matt Wieters, BAL - $3,600
Caleb Joseph, BAL - $3,000
The catcher position is really bad for the early games. The best option is whoever is starting behind the dish for the Orioles. I hope it’s Joseph because he’s a better hitter against lefties than Wieters- along with being cheaper- but Wieters is a fine choice as well. If they both start, go with Joseph.
Late Games
Russell Martin, TOR - $4,300
Danks is yielding a .386 wOBA to opposing right-handed bats. Do you know how bad that is? So bad that there’s probably only a 10% chance his avatar in video games is worse. And there are some pitchers that have terrible splits in baseball video games. As for Martin, he’s super expensive and doesn’t really make a whole lot of sense to roster in cash games, but he is the best option Wednesday night.
Chris Iannetta, LAA - $3,500
Don’t forget about the weather. Iannetta has been atrocious this year but that is mainly due to his awful splits against righties. His .900 OPS is still in line with his career numbers and will get some added help in the thin air of Colorado.
DFS Infielders to Consider for DraftKings
FIRST BASE
Early Slate
Adam Lind, MIL - $4,300
For a guy that didn’t make the All-Star team, Lind sure is playing like one. He has slugged five homeruns since June 26th. He owns a wRC+ of 187 against RHP at home with a wOBA of .447. Meanwhile, don’t buy into the ‘Julio Teheran is back’ hype. His strikeout numbers are still down and he is at his worst against lefties on the road.
Late Games
Albert Pujols, STL - $5,600
This is kind of a cop out answer. What Pujols is currently doing at the dish is probably illegal in most other countries and he gets Coors Field.
Mark Teixeira, NYY - $4,200
Big Tex has nice splits against A’s Scott Kazmir and is a better hitter against lefties on the year. Should be a hot one in the Big Apple too.
SECOND BASE
Early Slate
Robinson Cano, SEA - $3,600
Don’t look now but Cano is starting to come back to Cano standards. Over his last week, he has hit two homeruns, plated six, and scored five runs with a .400 BA in 32 plate appearances. Anibal Sanchez has been so inconsistent this season that he’s bound to serve up a few meatballs.
Late Games
Neil Walker, PIT - $4,100
Walker is swinging a hot bat right now, especially from the left side of the plate. His .455 BABIP in July is not at all sustainable, but his K rate has dropped from last month.
SHORTSTOP
Early Slate
Jean Segura, MIL - $3,700
There’s not a whole lot of options that are clear cut choices on Wednesday afternoon, but Segura might be the closest to a must play at the short position. He’s had considerable success (.444 BA, 1 HR) against Teheran and is the hottest hitting shortstop in the early slate.
Late Games
Marcus Semien, OAK - $3,800
Clearly Semien has been on the downside over the last month, but I like him to get back on track against a very hittable C.C. Sabathia.
Xander Bogaerts, BOS - $3,700
Bogaerts is on fire right now and leads all shortstops with qualified plate appearances over the last week with a 0.5 WAR and .571 BABIP. He also has recorded a .459 wOBA and wRC+ of 204.
THIRD BASE
Early Slate
Manny Machado, BAL - $4,800
The young stud has really started to put himself in another level, or is at least trying reach the top-tier of third basemen. He has been done a bit over the last ten days, but there’s nothing quite like getting a nice dose of a soft-tossing lefty to put yourself back on a streak.
Kyle Seager, SEA - $3,200
Seager has been really, REALLY inconsistent this year and isn’t necessarily a safe pick. But Sanchez is almost guaranteed to give up a homerun or two in just about every start. If that logic is going to continue, Seager is as good a choice as any on the Mariners to go yard.
Late Games
Josh Donaldson, TOR - $4,900
No explanation needed here. Dude is the best lefty-hitting third baseman in the game. The Toronto stack starts now.
David Freese, LAA - $4,100
Freese has also been a bit of a platoon guy, unless of course it’s two strikes in his last at bat of the World Series. Then all bets are off. As for the regular season, he has hit lefties harder in his career and he gets a great pitcher/park play Wednesday night.
Connor Gillaspie, CWS - $2,700
Third base typically isn’t a position you wanna go cheap at, but should you load up at other positions, then Gillaspie is your guy. He’ll be facing a hittable Drew Hutchison and owns some solid numbers against him in a small sample size. Consider this a giant risk/reward pick, though.
DFS Outfielders to Consider for DraftKings
Early Slate
Adam Jones, BAL - $4,400
Though AJ has been better for his career against righties, he’s been mashing lefties this year and doesn’t typically strike out. The only downside is that it seems like one of those days where he and J.D. Martinez will be owned in just about every lineup that plays.
Rajai Davis, DET - $3,600
He usually hits lefties hard and is a threat to swipe a bag or two. Expect him to hit high in the lineup as well.
Nick Markakis, ATL - $3,400
Like the pick, don’t love the pick. Markakis isn’t a power option nor should his owners project him to go deep. He is, however, a guy that makes solid contact against right-handed pitching and has been nice this year for getting on base. Roster only as a plug-in option.
Late Games
Mike Trout, LAA - $6,600
Trout is the best option at there, if you want to pay. Most players won't be able to construct solid lineups from top to bottom with a guy like Trout who is taking up over 10% of the allotted budget.
Chris Colabello, TOR - $3,700
Danny Valencia, TOR - $3,200
Though these guys usually hit a little lower in the lineup, there’s no denying that they have irresistible upside against left-handed pitching. I might be in love with Colabello at this price tonight and Valencia is equally dangerous. Colabello owns a .292 ISO, .519 BABIP and .467 wOBA against southpaws this year, while Valencia always seems to put in solid numbers from the seventh or eighth hole in the lineup.
Scott van Slyke, LAD - $3,600
Alex Guerrero, LAD - $2,800
They probably both will not start tonight, but they are the best lefty-mashers on the team. Van Slyke has the better career numbers, but Guerrero has that oh-so-juicy raw power. Both make for great players, with a slight nod to van Slyke.
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