Daily Fantasy Baseball Picks for FanDuel and DraftKings - 6/28/16

 

Welcome to Tuesday baseball! We have a full 15 game slate on our hands with some great pitching options and some offenses in great spots. Make sure to check out our other articles as they will touch on some more pitching options, tournament stacks and any weather concerns that may arise throughout the day. Let's get into the top options at each position!

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PITCHER

Zack Greinke FD 10600 DK 10600
Opponent - PHI (Eickhoff) Park - @ARI
FD - 38.8 DK - 25.49

Zack Greinke is going to start us off at pitcher, which is a position that is a little tricky tonight. We have a few big names up top in Jon Lester and Corey Kluber, but they are in match ups that I am not necessarily comfortable with (depends on Braves lineup). However, we do have 1 guy at the top of the salary board that I am comfortable in and that is Zack Greinke. Greinke and the D-Backs will be taking on a Philadelphia Phillies team that has been absolutely horrible this season. Against righties, the Phillies have sported a .290 wOBA that is backed up by a 78 wRC+ and a 27.4% hard contact rate. Greinke makes for a tremendous play in all formats.

Ubaldo Jimenez FD 6600 DK 4800
Opponent - SD (Johnson) Park - @SD
FD - 32.04 DK - 21.09

If you are looking to pay down and are a bit of a risk taker, you may want to peek at Ubaldo Jimenez. While Jimenez is by no means a great pitcher, this is the absolute best match up he could have. Along with the best pitchers park in baseball, the Padres bring the worst offense in baseball against righties. Dating back to opening day, the Padres have exhibited a putrid .281 wOBA with a 76 wRC+ and a ridiculous .136 isolated power. Jimenez is far from safe, don't get me wrong. However, if you are looking to stack up some bats, he may be a decent option.

CATCHER

Willson Contreras FD 3100 DK 4200
Opponent - CIN (Lamb) Park - @CIN
FD - 10.82 DK - 8.54

The Chicago Cubs went absolutely crazy last night and they will look to do more of the same here against John Lamb. We will touch more on Lam in a little bit, but all you need to know for now is that he is horrible. Willson Contreras on the other hand, has been absolutely amazing since entering the league with 3 home runs in only 9 games, as well as a .382 wOBA. While this will be the first of many Cubs, he may be my favorite of them all, outside of Kris Bryant.

Victor Martinez FD 3400 DK 4500
Opponent - MIA (Conley) Park - @DET
FD - 11.6 DK - 8.94

Victor Martinez is going to be the other guy I take a look at, especially in tournaments. While he used to be an elite hitter, he is still very good as evident by the .415 wOBA he has held against lefties this year. While that may be a little inflated by a high BABIP, it is still very obvious that he is a great hitter. The Tigers are going to be another very common trend in this article as they are taking on a lefty in Adam Conley. While Conley is no slouch, the Tigers are a right handed heavy team that hits lefties as well as anyone else in the league.

 

FIRST BASE

Miguel Cabrera FD 3700 DK 4600
Opponent - MIA (Conley) Park - @DET
FD - 13.5 DK - 10.26

Going Directly from Victor Martinez to another Tiger, we have Miguel Cabrera. As always, 1st base has a ton of options with a game in Coors Field as well as some more bad pitchers on the board. While I mentioned Adam Conley was no slouch, he is not very good either. Against righties this year, Conley has given up a 4.62 wOBA that is backed up by a 34.5% hard contact rate. While it goes unsaid, Miggy has been one of the best hitters in the league for about a decade now. Cabrera makes for a tremendous play in all formats, especially on FanDuel where he is only $3700.

Dae-ho Lee FD 2600 DK 3600
Opponent - PIT (Niese) Park - @SEA
FD - 9.02 DK - 6.89

If you are looking for a guy at first base with a ton of upside at a low price, the best option is Dae-ho Lee. While he may get pinched hit for once a righty comes in, he could very well do his damage against the southpaw Jon Niese. Lee has been great against southpaws this season with a .347 wOBA that is backed up by a .268 BABIP and a .241 ISO. While Niese isn't a guy that you look to target in a pitcher park, you can definitely go after him with a 1-off or two. Lee is by no means a cash game play, but if you are looking for some upside at a low price, he is someone to look at.

 

SECOND BASE

Ian Kinsler FD 3400 DK 4200
Opponent - MIA (Conley) Park - @DET
FD - 11.29 DK - 9.11

I know, another Detroit Tigers bat. What more is there to say about the match up these guys are in. Adam Conley has been very bad against right handers, as mentioned. While you may point to the .299 wOBA he has held, you have to look a little bit deeper into his peripherals to see the true Conley. Ian Kinsler is one of the most powerful leadoff hitters in the league as evident by his rediculous .406 wOBA that is backed up by a 31% hard contact rate and 41% pull rate. Make sure to get some exposure to this offense in both cash games and tournaments.

Devon Travis FD 3700 DK 4900
Opponent - COL (Butler) Park - @COL
FD - 12.38 DK - 9.84

While this is going to be our first Coors Field bat, I could of easily just filled the article with these guys. However, I don't think you came here wondering if the guys in Coors Field were good plays. Of course they are. That being said, I did want to highlight the guys I thought were in spectacular spots in regards to this slate. Travis homered yesterday and if he sees a good lineup spot tonight, I will be all over him. While Eddie Butler is a decent pitcher outside of Coors Field, he has struggled at home with a .376 wOBA to righties since entering the league.

 

SHORTSTOP

Tim Anderson FD 2500 DK 3900
Opponent - MIN (Gibson) Park - @CHW
FD - 9.07 DK - 8.21

Shortstop is actually a decently tough position tonight, opposed to the rest of the slate where there are tons of options across the entire price range. The first guy we are going to look at here is Timothy Anderson, a right handed speedster. Anderson came up as a huge White Sox prospect and he has not disappointing at all with 3 home runs and 6 total extra base hits through 2 weeks. The White Sox will bet taking on Kyle Gibson, a right hander that has been in and out of the majors for around 3 years now. He has always struggled at holding runners which could end up being a big deal here if Anderson can find a way to get on base. As a note, if Kurt Suzuki is catching, he is one of the absolute worst catchers at throwing out runners, if not the worst.

Javier Baez FD 2900 DK 4000
Opponent - CIN (Lamb) Park - @CIN
FD - 11.02 DK - 8.88

On to the guy that is likely my favorite in tournaments, we have Javier Baez. Baez and the Cubs are in a great spot as I mentioned as they will be taking on a southpaw in John Lamb that has been horrendous over the course of his entire career. Against righties in 2016, Lamb has given up a .351 wOBA that is backed up by a very high 35.1% hard contact rate. Baez brings a unique source of upside as he has the ability to hit home runs and steal bases, which is always great in tournaments as well as cash games. If Baez finds his way into the lineup, make sure to get some exposure.

 

THIRD BASE

Kris Bryant FD 4200 DK 5000
Opponent - CIN (Lamb) Park - @CIN
FD - 13.07 DK - 10.11

Third base is a position I am going to look to pay up at as there 3 guys that really stick out to me. Those 3 guys are going to be Kris Bryant, Nolan Arenado and Josh Donaldson, in that order. Bryant had himself one of the best nights I have ever witnessed with 3 home runs, 2 doubles and a combined 6 RBI's. WOWOWOW. While there is no way we can expect anywhere close to that production, I think we can expect another big game out of KB. Dating back to his debut in 2015, Bryant has smashed lefties with a .364 wOBA and an elite hard contact rate of 40.6%. Bryant is going to be my top guy at third, but I will definitely get some exposure to Arenado and Donaldson.

Nolan Arenado FD 4500 DK 4900
Opponent - TOR (Happ) Park - @COL
FD - 14.29 DK - 11.03

Nolan Arenado comes in VERY slightly lower on my board than Kris Bryant. In tournaments, I will be trying to get about even exposure, with my Arenado shares coming on teams that are a bit more contrarian as he will be chalk. While J.A. Happ has been a bit better this year on the surface, his underlying stats suggest some regression. With a 4.30 xFIP and 32% hard contact rate, you can definitely expect Happ to have some bad starts very soon. This should definitely be one of those as Coors field is the biggest hitters haven of all.

 

OUTFIELD

Michael Saunders FD 4400 DK 5200
Opponent - COL (Butler) Park - @COL
FD - 14.2 DK - 11.01
Ezequiel Carrera FD 3900 DK 4500
Opponent - COL (Butler) Park - @COL
FD - 12.66 DK - 10.77

While I am definitely high on Saunders, I thought I might as well highlight both as they are great plays. As I mentioned when talking about Devon Travis, Eddie Butler is a pitcher that is very underwhelming and gives up his fair share of runs, especially at Coors Field. Both of these guys have hit righties well this season and depending on where they end up in the lineup, they are very much in play. If you are playing cash games, make sure you get some exposure to Coors Field as it is by far the best park in baseball for hitting, which is why you see the 12 over/unders constantly.

Hyun-soo Kim FD 2900 DK 3300
Opponent - SD (Johnson) Park - @SD
FD - 10.29 DK - 8.11

While the Orioles have gone unmentioned throughout the article, they make for a very interesting team to target, especially in tournaments. Although they are in Petco Park, they are facing a bad pitcher and have the power to hit home runs everywhere. Hyun-soo Kim in particular, is more of a pure contact hitter as evident by his .384 wOBA with only 1 home run against righties. Erik Johnson on the other hand, has been atrocious against lefties with a .382 wOBA dating back to 2013. Kim makes for a great cash game play and could be considered a tournament option as well if you are looking for a salary saver.

Justin Upton FD 2800 DK 3400
Opponent - MIA (Conley) Park - @DET
FD - 11.16 DK - 8.74

What more is there to say about this match up? not much. Adam Conley is going to struggle here and Upton gives you a much cheaper way to get close to the same upside. Upton has hit lefties extremely well over the course of his career and while he has fell of this year, his peripherals suggest he will pick it up. While he is not on the same level as a Miguel Cabrera or Victor Martinez, Upton gives you some huge power at a very cheap price, especially on FanDuel where he is only $2800.

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