MLB

3 Daily Fantasy Baseball Hitters to Avoid on 4/20/16

As is the case in most daily fantasy sports, finding information on players you might want to roster is a lot easier than finding players to avoid.

As is the case in most daily fantasy sports, finding information on players you might want to roster is a lot easier than finding players to avoid.

While you can get away with a zero from a hitter in daily fantasy, you certainly don't want to target guys whose matchups aren't enticing.

Here are three hitters you may want to lessen your exposure to or even fade altogether on Wednesday.

Nelson Cruz, OF, Seattle Mariners

FanDuel Price: $4,300

If you’re playing the afternoon or all-day slate, you have the option of throwing in some Mariners to your lineups. However, Safeco Field has never been a great place for hitters, but today against Danny Salazar, it might get even tougher for the Mariners to get on base.

Salazar is off to a nice start this season, posting an ERA of just 0.79, and a strikeout rate of 36.4 percent. While it’s only been two starts, pitching in Seattle is only going to help his numbers, and Nelson Cruz may be the biggest landmine for the Mariners in this one. Last season, Cruz did not hit as well in day games as he did at night. His strikeout rate in day games was over 28 percent.

Salazar has a hard hit rate of 28.7 percent against righties throughout his career, and last season, Cruz had a hard hit rate of just 31 percent against righties, compared to 46.5 percent against left-handed pitching. If those trends continue for Cruz this season, it’s going to be hard for him to get extra-base hits against Salazar in this day game.

Colby Rasmus, OF, Houston Astros

FanDuel Price: $3,500

Colby Rasmus is another guy who has found a home in Houston and is playing very well this season. He is slashing an impressive .282/.442/.564 in 52 plate appearances this season, all of which are on pace for career highs. If he can keep these numbers up, he will become a steal in fantasy baseball this season, but tonight, those numbers might dip just a little bit, as he has to face off against Cole Hamels in Texas.

Even though Rasmus was a lot better against left-handed pitching last season, throughout his career, he has struggled with power and striking out against them. Rasmus’ career ISO against lefties is just .158, and his wOBA is .300. Rasmus does have a career home run off Hamels, and he does have a pretty good history playing at the Ballpark in Arlington. However, Rasmus’ career hard hit rate is just 29.7 percent against lefties, compared to 37.6 percent against righties, and Hamels has similar numbers when you look at his batted ball stats.

Hamels’ career hard hit rate against lefties is 28.8 percent, and last season, that dipped to 25.2 percent. In 2015, Hamels' home run to fly ball ratio against lefties was just 5.3 percent, and his ground ball rate was over 51 percent against lefties.

Rasmus didn't start yesterday, the first time all season the Astros faced a lefty. He might not sit out back-to-back games, but that doesn't mean he's a strong target.

David Peralta, OF, Arizona Diamondbacks

FanDuel Price: $3,500

David Peralta and the Diamondbacks head into AT&T Park tonight for probably the toughest matchup any hitter has when it comes to the park he is hitting in and the pitcher he has to face. Peralta might be the only lefty in the D-Backs' lineup tonight -- and for good reason. They have to go up against Madison Bumgarner.

Bumgarner has owned lefties throughout his career, as left-handed hitters have a wOBA of just .249 against him. When he pitches at home in pitcher-friendly San Francisco, his strikeout rate against lefties is over 30 percent, and overall throughout his career, lefties have a hard hit rate of just 23.7 percent against him.

Peralta is off to a nice start this season, but he has just 2 hits in 10 at-bats against lefties, and his career wOBA against left-handed pitching is just .264. He also has a career strikeout rate of nearly 27 percent against lefties, compared to just 17.3 percent against righties.