MLB

3 Daily Fantasy Baseball Hitters to Avoid on 7/7/16

Jordan Sharp  —  @TehSharp Jul 7th, 2016
Rich Hill is allowing just a .208 wOBA to left-handed hitters this season, making Luis Valbuena very unappealing tonight. Who else should you avoid for Thursday's slate?

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 Thursday.

Luis Valbuena, 3B, Houston Astros

FanDuel Price: $3,000

Luis Valbuena, a left-handed hitter, has been very good as the starting third baseman for Houston. His last two games have been excellent -- he's hit 2 home runs and scored 4 runs -- which will probably drive up his ownership tonight. That could be dangerous with the Astros set to take on Rich Hill.

Hill has been dominant against left-handers this season, stifling them to the tune of a .208 wOBA. Hill’s WHIP against southpaws is 0.71, and he's allowing a hard-hit rate of just 19.2% to left-handed hitters.

Valbuena's wOBA drops down to .331 against lefties, and his ISO goes from .219 against righties to .167 against lefties.

It’s probably the night to jump off the Valbuena train.

Corey Seager, SS, Los Angeles Dodgers

FanDuel Price: $3,000

Corey Seager may be the frontrunner for National League Rookie of the Year, but tonight he has to go up against resurgent southpaw Drew Pomeranz, who seems to have gotten his groove back. While Seager, a left-handed hitter, is by no means a player you’ll want to avoid altogether, his recent run as a cash game option might be put on hold for this one.

Pomeranz has actually been better against right-handers this season, but lefties have had their troubles against him, too, posting just a .274 wOBA. Pomeranz has only given up 1 home run to lefties this season, so the upside just isn't there for Seager.

Seager has a 24.7% strikeout rate and .321 wOBA against lefties this season. Factoring in how well Pomeranz has been pitching (28.3% whiff rate), Seager, at best, is just a tournament play tonight.

Russell Martin, C, Toronto Blue Jays

FanDuel Price: $2,700

Russell Martin is having a solid season for a 33 year-old catcher, but he has to go up against right-handed flamethrower Justin Verlander.

Verlander is sporting a 30% strikeout rate against Martin over his career, and while Martin does have a homer against him, that is the only extra-base hit he has in 23 career at-bats versus the Tigers' hurler.

Martin has also been pretty poor against right-handed pitching this season, posting a .280 wOBA and 28.9% strikeout rate. His walk rate drops 8.6% against righties, and his ISO is .106, compared to a .141 ISO versus southpaws.

Verlander was lights out against the Tampa Bay Rays in his last start, going 7 strong innings and scoring 54 FanDuel points. For the year, right-handed hitters own a .312 wOBA against Verlander, making Martin just not that attractive tonight.