2 days agoChicago Cubs closer
Adbert Alzolay blew his fourth save of the season and took the loss on Saturday in a 3-2 defeat by the Marlins in Game 1 of their doubleheader. Alzolay allowed a single to
Luis Arraez and then a two-run go-ahead home run to
Bryan De La Cruz before retiring the final two batters in the inning. It has been a rollercoaster ride for the 29-year-old, as he's collected three saves to along with the four he's blown, allowing five earned runs on 10 hits and four walks while striking out nine over 10 IP. The righty's ERA now stands at 4.50 and WHIP at 1.40. Fellow reliever
Hector Neris recorded the save in Game 2 and could earn more opportunities if Alzolay continues to falter, although Neris' numbers so far this season don't exactly inspire confidence either, with a 3.86 ERA and a whopping 1.86 WHIP in seven innings pitched.
--Jarod Rupp - RotoBallerSource: ESPN
2 days agoToronto Blue Jays starting pitcher
Jose Berrios threw six innings of shutout ball in Saturday's 5-2 win over the Padres, picking up his league-leading fourth win of the season. The outing was also his fifth straight quality start to begin the year and third straight in which he hasn't allowed a run. The 29-year-old is off to a great start, going 4-0 with a 0.85 ERA, 1.01 WHIP, and a 27:9 K:BB. With a career ERA of 4.06 and 1.24 WHIP, however, he could be a good sell-high candidate. Either way, his next start lines up with what could be a pitchers' duel next Thursday against
Cole Ragans and the Royals.
--Jarod Rupp - RotoBallerSource: ESPN
2 days agoToronto Blue Jays closer
Jordan Romano nailed down his second save since coming off the IL in Saturday's 5-2 win over the Padres. Romano needed just eleven pitches to dispense all three batters he faced, striking out one and not allowing a hit or a walk. The 31-year-old looks like he's sliding right back into the closer role for the Jays and doesn't have any real competition for the job, as set-up man
Erik Swanson has allowed four earned runs on six hits in his inning-and-a-third since coming off the IL as well. Romano tallied 36 saves for the Jays last season. Toronto closes out the series with San Diego on Sunday before traveling to Kansas City for a four-game set with the Royals starting on Monday.
--Jarod Rupp - RotoBallerSource: ESPN
2 days agoCincinnati Reds catcher
Tyler Stephenson hit his second homer in as many games in Saturday's 7-5 win over the Angels. Saturday's home run came in the bottom of the first inning and with the bases loaded, part of a five-run inning for the Reds, a lead they would not relinquish for the rest of the game. The grand slam was Stephenson's lone hit of the game though, going 1-for-4 with four RBI and a run scored. The 27-year-old is hitting just .213 on the season, but likes the home cooking much more apparently, with a .320-2-8-4-0 line at home but .091-1-2-5-0 line on the road (.299 career BA at home vs .241 on the road). Stephenson sits just outside the top-12 catchers right now in season-long fantasy, but is probably a better DFS play at this point.
--Jarod Rupp - RotoBallerSource: ESPN
2 days agoCincinnati Reds starting pitcher
Graham Ashcraft picked up his third win of the season on Saturday in a 7-5 victory over the Angels. Ashcraft was able to do so despite allowing five earned runs on five hits and three walks over just five innings pitched. The 26-year-old also struck out four batters. That now makes two starts out of four total in which he's given up five earned runs and still logged the win. The righty is now 3-1 on the young season with a 5.24 ERA (3.35 xFIP), 1.34 WHIP, and a 16.3% K-BB%. His next start tentatively lines up with the Phillies next Thursday in Cincinnati. While the Phillies are middle of the pack so far in 2024 in runs scored per game, over the last three games they rank second-best (7.67).
--Jarod Rupp - RotoBallerSource: ESPN
2 days agoJosh Berry and the Stewart-Haas Racing team figured 2024 might get off to a bumpy start. That much is true. Berry starts 29th on Sunday and his average start and finish have been around the same (22.3 versus 24.3). Berry survived Daytona barely but did not at Atlanta. So, there is limited data here. However, the Ford does seem to run better at Talladega. He did gain track position at Atlanta and Daytona last season while only driving ten races at the top level. That place differential was +3 and +7. Berry is cheap from a DFS and betting standpoint. With several big "collections" expected, the driver simply needs to survive to improve on Sunday.
--Chris Wassel - RotoBallerSource: NASCAR.com
2 days agoHarrison Burton continues to feel his seat get hotter as the GEICO 500 approaches on Sunday. The Wood Brothers driver did qualify 16th on Saturday. His best results are on superspeedway courses or similar tracks. See Atlanta this year where Burton finished 11th. Overall, his average finish in 2024 is 29th. That is worse than his previous two seasons. Burton has to survive and thrive. The problem is the No. 21 car has finished 30th or worse four times at Talladega with suspension or accident issues a recurring theme lately. Yes, the heat is on!
--Chris Wassel - RotoBallerSource: NASCAR.com
2 days agoHonestly, Ryan Preece starts from 11th for the race at Talladega. That is not a bad thing for the Stewart-Haas Racing driver. On this 2.66-mile track, it is a good thing to begin from outside the Top 10 typically. Preece has shown positive place differential at every track but one in 2024. The one time he started inside the Top 20 was Richmond and that was when his differential was a whopping -12. This causes some concern for Preece who has an average finish of 19.0 this season. On the other hand, Preece has drove very well in the Ford showing top ten stage results three times in the No. 41 Ford.
--Chris Wassel - RotoBallerSource: NASCAR.com
2 days agoZane Smith will begin from the 30th position at Talladega on Sunday. That is not uncommon for the Spire Motorsports driver who has been 14th or worse during every qualifying effort this season. However, he did survive his way to a 13th at Daytona. This could be significant. Again, the 2.66-mile high-banked Talladega can boost a driver's position simply by dodging the big wrecks. If Smith can avoid carnage, unlike Atlanta, that will make him an attractive DFS option at the least. His long-run speed is slow much like his qualifying speed. That could be helpful.
--Chris Wassel - RotoBallerSource: NASCAR.com
2 days agoMichael McDowell was the quickest among all qualifiers on Saturday with a lap of 52.609 seconds. The Front Row Motorsports driver was the only one who broke the 182 mph mark. That was good enough for the pole. However, finishing at the top on Saturday is not a harbinger of what may occur on Sunday. First, McDowell has never qualified better than 12th since at Front Row. Second, some fear his long run speed may be more middle of the pack which will cause him to lose time as the race goes on. McDowell could still make for an interesting Sunday but not in the way some expect.
--Chris Wassel - RotoBallerSource: NASCAR.com
3 days agoCody Ware returns to action for his father Rick's team for the first time since NASCAR reinstated him after his felony assault charges were dropped last December. As with most of the drivers for backmarker teams, Ware will only likely contend if there are a lot of wrecks and he avoids them. He did have a string of three consecutive top 20 finishes in his last three Daytona races including a 6th in 2022, but Talladega tends to have far fewer cars crashing out than Daytona in recent years. Although he's been good at finishing drafting track races and will certainly be eager to prove himself again, he likely won't get a decent finish unless a lot of faster cars crash out. Recent history at Talladega suggests this won't happen, though, so he probably wouldn't be as good of a longshot pick here as he would at Daytona.
--Sean Wrona - RotoBallerSource: Racing Reference
3 days agoEven though Daniel Suárez won the previous drafting race in a classic finish at Atlanta and backed into a top five at Texas last week, don't expect him to contend in this weekend's Talladega race. His win masks the fact that Suárez is actually underachieving. His speed percentile this year sits at 43.32, which is actually the slowest of his career except for the year he drove for Gaunt Brothers Racing. With Trackhouse Racing having numerous future prospects such as Shane van Gisbergen, Zane Smith, and Connor Zilisch on its roster, Suárez likely feels the pressure to perform, which probably helped elevate him to the Atlanta win, but now that he has likely locked himself into the playoffs, it seems he has since grown complacent. Talladega is not a track that typically rewards complacency, so don't expect a good finish unless he dodges the wrecks.
--Sean Wrona - RotoBallerSource: Racing Reference
3 days agoRicky Stenhouse, Jr. has had a startling collapse since the middle of last year and this year he has been shockingly slow with a speed percentile of 30.83, which is slower than he was in any of his previous full-time seasons. However, if there is any track where he could turn it around, Talladega might be it. Stenhouse has become the millennial version of Michael Waltrip, a driver whose seasons live or die based on his drafting performances. All three of his NASCAR Cup wins have come on drafting tracks, and his Daytona 500 win did come with the NextGen car. Stenhouse has made an on-track pass for the lead in seven of the fourteen NextGen drafting races but didn't do so in either race this season. Regardless, he contends often enough that he is probably undervalued by oddsmakers, likely making him a solid dark horse for the GEICO 500.
--Sean Wrona - RotoBallerSource: Racing Reference
3 days agoAfter selling his Live Fast Motorsports charter to Spire Motorsports last year, BJ McLeod has dropped back to a partial schedule but he continues to enter the races on drafting tracks because those are the only tracks where he realistically could get a decent finish with his team's underfunded equipment. McLeod has been generally good at avoiding crashes, but whether he can get a decent finish is almost entirely dependent on whether most of the field crashes out or not, and that is difficult to predict. Signs point to no because fewer cars tend to crash out at Talladega than Daytona. In the four Talladega NextGen races, there were only 26 crash or DVP DNFs for an average of 6.5 per race. Given that trend, probably too many cars will finish for McLeod to get a top twenty in this weekend's GEICO 500.
--Sean Wrona - RotoBallerSource: Racing Reference
3 days agoCarson Hocevar starts way back in 35th for his first Talladega race as a full-time NASCAR Cup Series driver, but he did start the second Talladega race last year in the Legacy Motor Club No. 42 car. In that race, he crashed after never really significantly factoring. In his Craftsman Truck Series starts at Talladega, he did a little better. Although he crashed in all three of those races, he still finished two of them and led 17 laps, including impressively leading for 12 laps after he crashed in the 2022 truck race. Hocevar is still very young and inexperienced and this is not his best track type, but he has generally outperformed Corey LaJoie this year and LaJoie has led drafting races before including battling for the win at Atlanta in 2022, so don't be shocked if Hocevar contends. He makes a very safe DFS play because of his deep starting position.
--Sean Wrona - RotoBallerSource: Racing Reference
3 days agoShane van Gisbergen makes his NASCAR Cup Series debut on a drafting track today at Talladega, but he's already shown something of a proclivity in drafting in his Xfinity Series starts, finishing 3rd at Atlanta and running in the top five for large portions of this weekend's Xfinity race, including passing Sammy Smith for the lead before running out of fuel and not getting the finish he deserved. While he'll obviously face more competition in the Cup race and the Kaulig cars usually aren't as strong in Cup races as they are in Xfinity races, the NextGen cars are more similar to the Supercars that SVG previously raced. His 17th-place qualifying run for the GEICO 500 is actually better than his qualifying run for the Xfinity race. When considering his teammate A.J. Allmendinger has led the last three Daytona races on track in that car, SVG might do better than you expect.
--Sean Wrona - RotoBallerSource: Racing Reference
3 days agoRoss Chastain qualified 32nd for this weekend's GEICO 500 at Talladega, but starting positions don't really matter here as long as you miss the wrecks. Chastain has been a solid performer on drafting tracks as he has made an on-track pass for the lead in eight of the fourteen NextGen drafting races to date including a win at this race two years ago, but he isn't likely one of the favorites either as this isn't his best track type. His only win at Talladega was rather lucky as he took over the lead almost by accident when Erik Jones's drafting help crashed behind him and this year his teammate Daniel Suárez has essentially matched him if not bettered him in performance on the drafting tracks in what has not been a good year for him other than his win. Chastain's odds of winning are probably less than you think, but he makes a strong DFS play.
--Sean Wrona - RotoBallerSource: Racing Reference
3 days agoNew York Mets outfielder
Starling Marte went 2-for-5 with a home run, four RBI, a stolen base, and two runs scored in Saturday's 6-4 win over the Dodgers. Marte belted a three-run shot in the sixth inning off Dodgers right-hander
Ryan Brasier to put the Mets ahead 5-4. He has collected a hit in five of his last six games while driving in eight runs in his previous three contests. The 35-year-old has been healthy this season and is off to a terrific start, slashing .282/.330/.459 with four home runs, five stolen bases, and 16 runs over 20 games. Fantasy managers should continue to start Marte in all league formats while he's wielding a hot bat.
--Brad Camara - RotoBallerSource: MLB
3 days agoNew York Knicks guard
Jalen Brunson led his team to the win over the 76ers on Saturday. Brunson had trouble shooting the ball, going 8-for-26 from the field. But he still finished with 22 points, seven rebounds, and seven assists. The 22-year-old didn't have his best showing in Game 1. However, he played well enough to help his team take the series opener. Both clubs will meet for Game 2 on Monday evening. While Brunson hasn't had the easiest time dealing with Philly throughout the 2023-24 campaign, he will likely spend most of the game on the floor, which is always good for anyone's DFS potential.
--Dennis Clausen - RotoBallerSource: ESPN
3 days agoCincinnati Reds second baseman
Jonathan India (illness) was removed from Saturday's game against the Los Angeles Angels due to illness. "He wasn't feeling great," said Reds manager David Bell. "He was trying to play. He was doing everything he could to play through it." India went 1-for-3 with a run before exiting in the sixth inning. The 27-year-old is considered day-to-day. India has struggled this season, hitting .174 with four RBI and two stolen bases over 19 games in 2024.
Santiago Espinal would see an uptick in playing time if India were to miss a few games.
--Brad Camara - RotoBallerSource: Charlie Goldsmith
3 days agoBaltimore Orioles outfielder
Austin Hays (calf) was removed from Saturday's game in Kansas City with calf tightness. Hayes was replaced in the seventh inning by
Colton Cowser. It was later announced that he had injured his calf, which was why Hays was pulled from the game. The 28-year-old went 1-for-3 with a walk and a run before exiting. The severity of Hays' injury is unknown, and he is considered day-to-day. Hays has struggled this season, hitting .111 (5-for-45) with two RBI over 19 games. Cowser has surpassed Hays on the outfield depth chart, and fantasy managers can leave Hays on the waiver wire in most leagues even if he avoids a trip to the injured list.
--Brad Camara - RotoBallerSource: Roch Kubatko
3 days agoMartin Truex Jr., who currently sits second in the NASCAR playoff standings, will start sixth in Sunday's Geico 500 at Talladega Superspeedway. Heading into a weekend with so much uncertainty given the unpredictable nature of superspeedway racing, Truex is perhaps the biggest question mark on the slate. Although
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3 days agoFresh off a second-place finish at Texas, Brad Keselowski will start 22nd in Sunday's Geico 500 at Talladega Superspeedway. Despite being a former series champion, a perennial title contender, and a future hall of famer, Brad Keselowski has not won since the 2021 Talladega spring race, a drought that has now reached 107 races. While 107 races is a long time, the RFK Racing driver-owner has remained relevant and competitive, earning 39 top-10s, including four second-place finishes. Interestingly, aside from last week's race at Texas, Keselowski's other three second-place finishes over this drought occurred at Atlanta, Daytona, and Talladega, NASCAR's three restrictor plate tracks. With six wins and 14 top-10s in 30 Cup starts at this track, as a driver that is competitive on superspeedways, and given that he has finished in the top-five in 33% of his starts this season, the No. 6 looks like a solid play this weekend in DFS.
--Adam Erhardt - RotoBallerSource: Racing-Reference.info
3 days agoBoston Red Sox right-hander
Kutter Crawford (1-0) allowed one run on three walks while striking out six over six innings in Saturday's 4-2 win over the Pittsburgh Pirates. He picked up his first win of the season. The 28-year-old was sharp in Saturday's victory, throwing 68 strikes on 100 pitches. He drew 17 swings and misses, which was a season-best. Crawford has yielded only one run or less over five starts this season. He owns a dazzling 0.68 ERA, 0.99 WHIP, and 30 strikeouts over 27 1/3 innings in 2024. Crawford will look to build on his strong start to the season in his next start on Friday against the Chicago Cubs.
--Brad Camara - RotoBallerSource: MLB
3 days agoOn Saturday afternoon, Erik Jones qualified 28th for Sunday's Geico 500 at Talladega Superspeedway. On a slate with so much uncertainty, Jones looks to be one of the more reliable plays heading into the weekend. In his four starts in the Next Gen car at Talladega, the Legacy Motor Club star has finished in sixth place three times , has two appearances in the DraftKings optimal lineup, and is averaging 45.79 DraftKings points, which is the third-highest average among full-time drivers in the series. It is also worth noting that while 2024 is not off to a hot start for the 27-year-old, his one top-10 finish this season came at Daytona, NASCAR's other true superspeedway. Because racing on this style of track is so unpredictable, there are no true "core" plays this weekend as you do not want to go overweight on any driver. Having said this, given his past performances on this track, Erik Jones is a driver that you will want to be deliberate about targeting when building your DFS lineups on Sunday.
--Adam Erhardt - RotoBallerSource: Racing-Reference.info
3 days agoPhiladelphia Phillies ace
Zack Wheeler (1-3) allowed one hit and two walks while striking out eight over 7 1/3 scoreless innings in Saturday's 9-5 win over the Chicago White Sox. Wheeler cruised to his first victory of the year by carrying a no-hitter into the eighth inning. White Sox catcher Kodie Lee broke up Wheeler's no-hit bid with a ground ball single to right field. The 33-year-old threw 106 pitches, landing 75 pitches for strikes. Wheeler owns a 2.30 ERA, 0.89 WHIP, and 38 strikeouts over 31 1/3 innings this season. The Phillies ace will look to build on Saturday's performance in his next start on Thursday against the Cincinnati Reds.
--Brad Camara - RotoBallerSource: MLB
3 days agoDaniel Hemric will start 19th in Sunday's Geico 500 at Talladega Superspeedway. Despite 2024 being a largely disappointing season for Hemric, he did have a solid fantasy performance last weekend at Texas. After starting 38th, the 33-year-old ended the day with a 20th-place finish, earning 41 DraftKings points
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3 days agoPhiladelphia 76ers center
Joel Embiid (knee) finished with 29 points, eight boards, six assists, and two steals in Saturday's playoff loss to the Knicks. The reigning MVP had trouble shooting the ball, going 8-for-22 from the field and 2-for-8 from deep. But more importantly, he came down hard on his left knee after a dunk late in the second quarter and exited the contest. Fortunately, he returned to start the third quarter and finished the contest. However, Embiid should undergo more tests ahead of Game 2 on Monday night. But it's possible he won't be out there for that one, opening the door for
Mo Bamba and
Paul Reed to take over in the middle.
--Dennis Clausen - RotoBallerSource: ESPN
3 days agoBoston Red Sox right-hander
Kenley Jansen struck out the side to earn the save in Saturday's 4-2 win over the Pittsburgh Pirates. Jansen entered Saturday's game in the ninth inning to protect a two-run lead. The 36-year-old struck out all three hitters he faced to earn his fifth save of the year. Jansen has converted 5-of-6 save chances with a 2.35 ERA, 1.57 WHIP, and 12 strikeouts over 7 2/3 innings in 2024. Fantasy managers should continue to roll with Jansen as he continues to rack up saves as Boston's primary closer.
--Brad Camara - RotoBallerSource: MLB
3 days agoPhoenix Suns guard/forward
Grayson Allen (ankle) exited Saturday's postseason loss to the Minnesota Timberwolves. The former Duke Blue Devil tweaked his ankle, so he'd finish the day with four points, five rebounds, and two assists in 25 minutes of work. Luckily, X-rays were negative, and the team will now take things day by day before deciding his availability for Game 2 on Tuesday evening. If he can't suit up,
Royce O'Neale, finishing with 14 points in Game 1, would likely slide into the starting lineup and immediately become an enticing DFS option for any contest.
--Dennis Clausen - RotoBallerSource: Donnie Druin
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