Finally, we can discuss a decent set of MLB games this evening. The last two nights have been difficult to navigate with smaller slates. There are great DraftKings tournaments to take down, along with FBWC qualifiers, so let’s dive into some of the best GPP selections.
There are weather concerns tonight. Make sure to look for any updates and team roster lineups before locking in players.
Pitchers
Gerrit Cole (HOU): $12,100 vs. TEX
Usually paying way up for a pitcher is not my favorite strategy. Especially when there is ownership attached. Cole, however, is the clear top pitcher going tonight and should put up the highest score, by a wide margin. In his two outings, Gerrit Cole has pitched 14 innings (7 each), recorded 22 strikeouts (11 each game), just one earned run and seven hits against. He has thrown over 100 pitches per game, showing confidence from management. His team should provide enough offense for the win as well. The Rangers have struggled to string runs together and have some strikeout bats in their lineup. The only negative in rostering Cole is the hitters ballpark.
Eduardo Rodriguez (BOS): $8,500 vs. BAL
A much more risky selection is the Red Sox young fireball hurler, Eduardo Rodriguez. I cannot get a feel of ownership with Rodriguez, but he is a great GPP option. In his last outing, he was only able to go 3.2 innings. Allowing five hits against and three earned runs, most would think it was a disaster outing. Sure, it was not great. But he did still manage to strike out seven and score 12.1 DraftKings points. Outside of Manny Machado, the Baltimore Orioles look absolutely terrible. Baltimore leads the league in strikeout percentage with a 27.2% K rate. Rodriguez is a strikeout pitcher and could flirt with double-digit K’s this evening.
Andrew Triggs (OAK): $7,700 @ SEA
Lookings for an SP2 is a little more tricky tonight. One of the few safer arms is Oakland starter, Andrew Triggs. The redefined pitcher has looked great after two solid outings. Adding velocity to his pitches, continuing his high groundball rate, and consistently getting outs has led to a great start in 2018. Not usually known as a strikeout pitcher, Triggs has recorded 13 K’s against two tough teams already. He will look for another strong outing against the Mariners in a great pitchers ballpark.
Hitting Stacks
Chalk – High Owned Stacks
1.) Boston Red Sox
The Bo Sox are seemingly the best group of hitters going tonight. After putting up 27 runs against the Yankees during their three-game series, the Sox are rolling. With Hanley Ramirez likely sidelined, after being hit by a pitch, Mitch Moreland should be the highest owned player on the board at just $3,300. Boston will host the Orioles and their awful starting pitcher, Chris Tillman. Tillman had a forgettable 2017 after posting a 5.76 SIERA, 14.2 K%, and 2.32 HR/9. Continuing his dreadful performance, Tillman is off to a 0-2 start allowing nine earned runs, 15 hits against, eight walks and just three strikeouts in nine innings of work. Load up on all Red Sox, though be aware of the high ownership.
2.) LA AngelsÂÂ
The Angels are averaging 6.8 runs per game over their last five. The bats are coming alive and they are getting run production throughout the lineup. There are small weather concerns in this game, but what is most intriguing is that the wind is blowing out to left field at 15 mph. This bodes well for all right-handed power bats. Like Mike Trout. Trout will see 25%+ ownership any night he plays and remains a top hitting option. The rest of the lineup is in a great spot against Jason Hammel. The Royals starter is coming off of a solid start against the Cleveland Indians, but he should struggle against one of the MLB’s hottest hitting teams. So far in 2018, Hammel owns a 90% Z-swing rate. This is the percentage of time a batter makes contact when swinging at a pitch inside the strike zone. He isn’t generating a lot of swing and misses. The Angels have devastating right-handed hitters who will give Hammel a short outing.
3.) New York Yankees
As long as Giancarlo Stanton, Aaron Judge, and Gary Sanchez are hitting in order in the same lineup together, the Yankees will always carry ownership. There is the likelihood of a delay in this game with a lot of pop-up showers taking place. The game should get played in full, however, keep tabs as we lead up to roster lock. The Yankees have a lot of power and are facing a fairly sub-par starting pitcher in Mike Fiers. The Yankees are tough to fade, but there is risk attached to stacking this team every night.
Low Owned Stacks
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Pittsburgh Pirates
Don’t look now, but the Pirates are 9-3! After losing Gerrit Cole and Andrew McCutchen, most were writing off the Pirates altogether. They are putting up runs and continue to go overlooked. Gregory Polanco now has five home runs with 15 RBI’s on the season and is primed for a huge breakout season. The Pirates are traveling to Miami to take on a puzzling Marlins team. Dillon Peters will take the mound and he has looked bad. In his last start, the Marlins took a 20-1 loss in Philadelphia. Giving up nine earned runs on nine hits against in just two innings pitched, Dillon Peters looked terrible. The ballpark is not great for hitters, but with how bad Peters is and how bad the Marlins bullpen has been, look for the Pirates to string together hits and runs all game at low ownership.
Houston Astros
Somehow, the Astros continue to fight back in games and pull off late-inning wins. They are now 9-4. Everyone knows how great this team is and how they are capable of putting up runs better than any other team, yet they consistently go overlooked and under-owned. Tonight, they will see Rangers ace Cole Hamels for the second time this year. In his first outing, he suppressed the offense, somewhat, allowing just three earned runs on five hits against through five innings pitched. The long ball has been an issue for the veteran starter allowing five home runs so far in 2018. The right-handed power bats give Hamels issues and are all in play. The bullpen for Texas is also very weak and Houston should have a massive offensive outing at home this evening.
Position-by-position
Catcher
Gary Sanchez $4,400 @ DET
Buster Posey $3,700 @ SD
Evan Gattis $3,600 vs. TEX
Francisco Cervelli @ MIA
First Base
Carlos Santana $4,100 @ TB
Josh Bell $4,100 @ MIA
Miguel Cabrera $4,000 vs. NYY
Eric Hosmer $4,000 vs. SF
Marwin Gonzalez $3,600 vs. TEX
Mitch Moreland $3,300 vs. BAL
Second Base
Jose Altuve $5,200 vs. TEX
Zack Cozart $4,600 @ KC
Ian Kinsler $3,900 @ KC
Eduardo Nunez $3,500 vs. BAL
Cory Spangenberg $3,300 vs. SF
Third Base
Alex Bregman $4,300 vs. TEX
Rafael Devers $4,100 vs. BAL
Maikel Franco $3,900 @ TB
Luis Valbuena $3,300 @ KC
Jefry Marte $3,100 @ KC
Shortstop
Carlos Correa $5,100 vs. TEX
Scott Kingery $3,800 @ TB
Andrelton Simmons $3,600 @ KC
Freddy Galvis $3,400 vs. SF
Outfield
Mike Trout $5,700 @ KC
Rhys Hoskins $5,200 @ TB
Mookie Betts $5,100 vs. BAL
George Springer $4,900 vs. TEX
J.D. Martinez $4,800 vs. BAL
Justin Upton $4,700 @ KC
Gregory Polanco $4,600 @ MIA
Josh Reddick $4,500 vs. TEX
Starling Marte $4,400 @ MIA
Andrew Benintendi $4,000 vs. BAL
Hunter Renfroe $3,700 vs. SF
Corey Dickerson $3,500 @ MIA
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