MLB Daily Fantasy Helper: Monday 6/8/15
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As for today's lineups -- those can be found here. The information below is to help you understand why particular players are being picked, because we don't want you going into the things completely blind. We want to help you. Keep in mind, however, that things often change up until the games start, so make sure you're refreshing the optimal lineups as close to the start of games as possible.
Top Pitchers
High-Cost Pitcher
Chris Sale – There's a pretty substantial gap between Sale and the rest of the pitchers tonight -- whether through a simple glance at the slate or by perusing our projections -- and the reason is pretty obvious. The man is a beast. He's gone at least seven innings in each of his last five starts, surrendering two or fewer runs in all but one of them, where he gave up three. Oh, and while lowering his ERA, he struck out at least 10 batters in four of the five as well. Tonight he gets an Astros lineup that ranks 17th in the league in wOBA against left-handed pitching, striking out at a 24.0% rate, which is second worst in Major League Baseball. The White Sox, per Vegas, are big favorites as well, making Sale an even more attractive option on single-pitcher daily sites.
Alternative Options: AJ Burnett
Cost-Effective Pitcher
Mike Bolsinger – The Diamondbacks haven't been bad against right-handed pitching this year -- in fact, they've been well above average, ranking 10th in the league. But they also play in one of the most favorable hitting parks in baseball, are traveling to Los Angeles, a pitcher's park, and just lost one of their bigger bats in Mark Trumbo. In 36 innings this year, Bolsinger has a strong 1.98 ERA and 3.36 FIP, striking out roughly seven batters per nine innings. It's not the best matchup in the world, no, but for such a small cost, he's worth a look tonight.
Alternative Option: Marco Estrada
High-Cost Hitters
Matt Carpenter - The Cardinals are in Colorado, which means every Cardinals' bat is in play. This is especially true for Carpenter, who gets the platoon split against David Hale. Against right-handers this year, Carp has a silly-good .427 wOBA and .239 ISO. Those are better than his career numbers, sure, but you'll want some exposure to those kinds of splits against a pitcher with a 5.09 FIP.
Jose Bautista - You're bound to see a ton of Cardinal stacks tonight, with them being at Coors and all. But don't ignore the Blue Jays. No team has a better wOBA against left-handed pitching this year, and it's really not close -- Toronto's sitting at .370, while the next best team, Miami, has a wOBA that's 31 points behind. They're facing Brad Hand tonight...a lefty. I'm throwing Bautista out here because of his ability to go yard, but obviously players like Josh Donaldson are in play, too.
Alternative Options: Joc Pederson
Cost-Effective Hitters
Andre Ethier - Rubby De La Rosa is on the mound against the Dodgers tonight, and he has a 4.30 FIP on the year. The real reason you want to target him though -- especially by using a guy like Ethier -- is because of his insane splits. This season, left-handed hitters have a .423 wOBA against the righty (right-handers are at .244), and while that's more drastic than what he's seen over the course of his career, his career-long splits are still huge, too (.368 versus .315). Using lefty Dodger bats tonight should help your lineup.
Neil Walker - It's pretty simple with Neil Walker: against lefties, he's mostly unusable. Versus righties, you want him in your lineup. Because of his splits, he's generally priced well across the daily fantasy space, and tonight is no different, especially on FanDuel. The Pirates will face Jimmy Nelson, and they're expected to win with a team total above four runs. Walker should be part of that success.
Alternative Option: Alcides Escobar
