MLB

3 Daily Fantasy Baseball Hitters to Avoid on 5/11/16

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.

Michael Saunders, OF, Toronto Blue Jays

FanDuel price: $3,100

If you are playing the afternoon slate on FanDuel, the matchup between the Jays and the Giants is quite intriguing. You have Madison Bumgarner on the hill for the Giants, and if there is one member of the Blue Jays hurt most by Bumgarner pitching today, it's Michael Saunders.

In games where the Jays are facing a lefty, Kevin Pillar tends to bat leadoff while Saunders is knocked way down in the order. Saunders has not been poor against lefties at all this season, but in a day game against one of the greats, it may be a bit too risky with him not hitting leadoff. Saunders does have a great wOBA against lefties this season at .441, but his strikeout rate this season against left-handed pitching is 31.3 percent, and his hard hit rate drops from 30.8 percent against righties to 27.8 percent versus lefties.

Bumgarner has dominated lefties. They have a wOBA of just .199 against him this season and a strikeout rate of 40 percent. He has been great against lefties his entire career, posting a wOBA against of .247 and a hard hit rate against of 23.5 percent.

Justin Turner, 3B, Los Angeles Dodgers

FanDuel Price: $2,900

The Dodgers are one of the final games on tonight’s slate, as they welcome in the Mets into Dodger Stadium. However, they have an extremely tough matchup coming in as well, as Noah Syndergaard is on the hill for the Metropolitans.

Syndergaard has been lights out against righties this season, as they are posting a wOBA of .243 through 82 total batters. His strikeout to walk ratio against righties is 12-to-1 this season.

Justin Turner has struggled against right-handed pitching so far this season. His wOBA is .283 against righties in 87 at-bats so far this season, and his strikeout rate goes from 8.6 percent against lefties to 17.2 percent against righties. His ISO also drops to .092 against righties so far this season, and his hard hit rate has also been substantially lower against righties at 24.2 percent. With his fly ball rate roughly 15 percentage points lower against righties as well, it may be best to lay off Turner even if he is hitting high in the batting order.

Kole Calhoun, OF, Los Angeles Angels

FanDuel Price: $3,100

The other late game tonight is the Angels and Cardinals, and Kole Calhoun is likely the biggest landmine for the Angels tonight. Jaime Garcia is on the mound tonight for the Cardinals, and after struggling over the last few years with shoulder injuries, Garcia is dominating left-handed hitters so far to start the season.

Garcia owns a wOBA against lefties of .160 in 2016. His strikeout rate against lefties this season is 37.5 percent, and he owns an xFIP against them of 1.59. His hard hit rate against lefties is also just 10 percent this season. These are the types of numbers he was putting up before he got hurt, and if he is returning to form, the Cardinals have a huge advantage against lefties tonight.

Calhoun, on the other hand, has hit lefties well so far this season, but his career numbers tell a different story. His career strikeout rate against lefties is 24.4 percent, and his wOBA against lefties for his career is .318. His hard hit rate is also much lower against lefties for his career at 26.6 percent. With Garcia throwing the way he has against lefties this season, it’s hard to think that Calhoun will produce.