Daily Fantasy Baseball Picks for FanDuel, DraftKings, DraftDay and Draftster 9/16/14

A.J. Ellis - FD 2200 DK 2500 DD 5000 DFSTR 3000
If ever there were a day to go cheap at catcher, today would be it. It's hard to imagine a less exciting guy to put in this position, but taking a right handed hitter against a god awful lefty in Coors field for the minimum salary can't be terrible, right? Right!?

Wilin Rosario - FD 2800 DK 3400 DD 7350 DFSTR 3000
If you were the type of fella to try and catch lightning in a bottle, it might not hurt you to take a quick gander at one Wilin Rosario. Sure, the overall season line is garbage, but his .826 at home and the power that goes with it looks awfully appealing. With a homer last night, I can at least confirm that the Rockies haven't been trotting up the corpse of Wilin Rosario in his stead. I can't say I'm thrilled with it, but Dan Haren does have a history of leaving balls up in the zone. And if he does? Who knows what could happen?

Salvador Perez - FD 2400 DK 3500 DD 6450 DFSTR 3000
Chris Bassitt had a nice run in AA this year, but I mean, in 2013 he pitched for a team called the "Desert Dogs" in Rookie Ball. I'm not sold that he's ready to take on the whole world, just yet. In Perez you get a guy with reasonable upside who has posted a wOBA .50 points higher against right handers this year. Again, not exactly lighting the world on fire, but it's a bad day (season?) for catchers.

First Basemen

Jose Abreu - FD 4000 DK 4900 DD 12000 DFSTR 9100
It feels good just writing his name. With homers in his last 2 games, Abreu has built upon a season that has already established him as a superduperstar. While he prefers lefties, it doesn't really matter - he's one of the best hitters in the league against right handers as well. Liam Hendriks is a failed reliever turned start. Watch out in that weird fountain area, Kauffman Stadium.

David Ortiz - FD 3800 DK 4600 DD 10450 DFSTR 3000
With 32 homers, Ortiz has been no slouch for daily fantasy owners this season, either. And with a career wOBA .70 points higher against right handers, facing Charlie Morton is a lovely spot to take the big man.

Justin Morneau - FD 3300 DK 4600 DD 9350 DFSTR 7500
All in all, it's been a fine fantasy season for Morneau, and most of that has come against right handed pitching. And most of that has come at home. Again, Dan Haren is still a pretty decent pitcher, but pitching in Coors field just doesn't play to his FB and low strike out approach.

Also considered: Edwin Encarnacion

Second Basemen

Robinson Cano - FD 3300 DK 4400 DD 10400 DFSTR 6600
Cano has torn the cover off the ball this season, and while Cory Rasmus has some nice peripherals this year, it remains to be seen how those will translate away from the long relief role. Cano happens to hit righties better as well, but the main thrust of this ranking comes from the opposing pitcher. It's hard to imagine Cano not figuring him out.

Jason Kipnis - FD 3200 DK 3800 DD 8200 DFSTR 4500
While he's more threatening as a base stealer than a power hitter at this point in his career, our projection system likes Kipnis best from an upside perspective today. It doesn't really know what to make of Tropeano's limited major league track record and decent minor league success, and that's enough to land Kip the 2nd slot on this list.

Ben Zobrist - FD 2900 DK 4200 DD 8600 DFSTR 4600
Pineda is basically the purest pitch to contact hurler in the game at this moment in time, and that should suit Zobrist just fine. If Pineda stays around the plate, it could give Zobrist a chance to tap into his doubles power and maybe more.

Also considered: Asdrubal Cabrera, Kolten Wong, Chase Utley

Shortstops

Hanley Ramirez - FD 3400 DK 4700 DD 10850 DFSTR 10000
While it’s true that Hanley’s lost a step or two, you can’t complain about his performance against left handed pitching this year. He’s got a .402 wOBA against lefties this year, and that includes actual major league quality pitchers. On this night he faces Tyler Matzek in Coors Field. Oh, baby.

If you accidentally misclick and select someone other than Hanley today, you can consider any of the following:

Jose Reyes - FD 3100 DK 4600 DD 8800 DFSTR 5000
Ubaldo's 104 Ks against 71 BBs in 114 IP this year is frankly grizzly, and perfectly suits Reyes' approach. I expect the Jays' dynamic SS to work some counts, get on base, and compile a counting stat or two in the process.

Elvis Andrus - FD 2400 DK 3600 DD 7750 DFSTR 3300
Why tempt fate? Each time I recommend him recently, he seems to go out and produce nicely on these minimum salaries. The price has ticked upward, but the situation remains. He bats 2nd on a team with a terrific lineup, and shortstop is typically not a place you want to invest big bucks. Today is an exception, and I'd play Hanley, but if you want to spend elsewhere I like Andrus just fine.

Third Basemen

Kyle Seager - FD 3100 DK 4200 DD 8950 DFSTR 3000
Like Cano, Seager rates to have a nice day against the inexperienced Rasmus. The Ms third basemen has a rather dramatic platoon split, and his solid season line comes largely from his .383 wOBA performance against right handed pitching.

Adrian Beltre - FD 3300 DK 4400 DD 9550 DFSTR 5100
It's going to look odd starting someone against Kazmir with some of the other pitchers going today, but Beltre has absolutely tortured left handed pitching this season. With a .979 OPS (a .419 wOBA!), Beltre is basically match-up proof when it comes to squaring off against southpaws. He might be going at it with little help from his friends, but he could have a very nice day.

The rest:
There's a mix of guys who have this going for them and against them. Without belaboring the point, some of them are Nolan Arenado, Pablo Sandoval, and Conor Gillaspie.

Outfielders

 
Michael Cuddyer - FD 3100 DK 4500 DD 10500 DFSTR 3900
Cuddyer is simply a dynamic power hitter, and he particularly thrives at Coors. Haren’s pitch to contact approach might work in the spacious Dodgers’ home park, but it ain’t gonna fly in the mile high air. I think Haren gets run from this game, and that Cuddyer is right in the center of it.

Yasiel Puig - FD 3100 DK 4500 DD 11000 DFSTR 3500
Big joke of a price for what you can potentially get from Puig against Tyler Matzek in Coors Freaking Field. 77 Ks against 40 BBs in 106 IP is not good, in case you were wondering. Puig has actually produced a lot of his value in ways we perhaps weren't expecting - with an approach more polished than dynamic - but I think he could flash his true potential in this one.

Bryce Harper - FD 3200 DK 3700 DD 8950 DFSTR 6300
Harper has flashed his incredible potential recently, and the price is starting to catch up a little bit. It's been a pretty nice August and September if you've followed the advice of our projection system and played Harper, and it looks like this match up with Harang could be another nice one.

Curtis Granderson - FD 2800 DK 3900 DD 8650 DFSTR 5500
Granderson has been a real boom or bust guy this season, but especially in September, he's provided some real boom games. I love him against Eovaldi - who works around the plate and tends not to waste pitches. If Grandy isn't chasing, he's usually cashing, and tonight could be such a night.

Alex Gordon - FD 3200 DK 4300 DD 8500 DFSTR 4100
The trajectory of Gordon's career hasn't quite been what people thought it would be, but with 19 homers and 10 steals, he can still put together a decent fantasy sports line. Our projection system isn't totally sold on Chris Bassitt, and Gordon could take advantage.

Jacoby Ellsbury - FD 3600 DK 4300 DD 9200 DFSTR 3800
It hasn't paid off recently, but that's created a great pricing opportunity for Ellsbury. Upside in daily fantasy baseball comes from homers and steals, and Ellsbury has 53 of those (combined) this season. Odorizzi is a good young pitcher, but Ellsbury only needs to get on base once to start paying these prices.

Give a follow on Twitter @dailyfantasysr and @dougnorrie.

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