Tonight’s slate provides us with a nice mix of solid hitting matchups to go along with some struggling pitchers to attack. Weather may be a concern so please make sure you check it out closer to first pitch. The Dodgers and Padres played a long one last night, and the Sox and Indians have a double header with only the late game counting. All 4 of these teams may have some roster adjustments where value could be found so keep that in mind as well. Good luck!
| CATCHER | |||||||||
| Player | Team | Bats | AVG | OBP | OPS | BABIP | FD | DK | Aces |
| Buster Posey | SF | R | .268 | .325 | .755 | .273 | $3,400 | $3,500 | $5,000 |
| J.T. Realmuto | MIA | R | .304 | .322 | .742 | .342 | $2,700 | $3,500 | $4,550 |
| Victor Martinez | DET | B | .329 | .384 | .907 | .331 | $3,000 | $3,000 | $5,050 |
Catcher
Catcher is highlighted today with Buster Posey facing a lefty. Add in the fact that Posey is 6-10 vs Pomeranz with 2 HR’s and you have your plug and play catcher for cash games. Victor Martinez makes for a nice GPP pivot off of Posey in a similar price range, but should only be in play if pairing with other Tigers. If J.T. Realmuto is leading off tonight which is always a plus for a catcher spot, but he hasn’t had a multi-hit game in over a week. If looking for cheaper options that will be low owned in GPP’s, Curt Casali, Tommy Joseph, and Carlos Perez are all in nice spots to produce, but Posey will be in a majority of my lineups tonight.
| FIRST BASE | |||||||||
| Player | Team | Bats | AVG | OBP | OPS | BABIP | FD | DK | Aces |
| Carlos Santana | CLE | B | .234 | .354 | .823 | .222 | $3,700 | $0 | $4,850 |
| Steve Pearce | TB | R | .312 | .404 | .974 | .289 | $3,600 | $3,400 | $4,450 |
| Prince Fielder | TEX | L | .200 | .268 | .562 | .229 | $2,800 | $3,900 | $4,600 |
| Ryan Howard | PHI | L | .161 | .233 | .614 | .155 | $2,300 | $3,500 | $3,800 |
| Kendrys Morales | KC | B | .190 | .244 | .567 | .210 | $2,600 | $3,400 | $4,300 |
First Base
First base is a little tricky for me tonight. Many of the top players are either priced too high, or are not in plus matchups. While there are no must plays, Steve Pearce checks in as a top option for me. He is 8-17 over his last 5 games, and has taken Chen deep in the past. Carlos Santana also ranks very high for me. The issue currently is the double header. If Carlos is leading off in game 2 vs Johnson, then he is very much in play for me. If looking to target players on teams in which Vegas expects higher scoring, both Ryan Howard and Prince Fielder make for nice targets. Both are capable of going deep, and are nice GPP targets. I like the Royals tonight, but the price difference between Eric Hosmer, and Kendrys Morales draws me to the cheaper option. Let’s just hope Hosmer walks for Morales can drive him and Cain in over Hosmer blasting off.
| SECOND BASE | |||||||||
| Player | Team | Bats | AVG | OBP | OPS | BABIP | FD | DK | Aces |
| Brian Dozier | MIN | R | .199 | .284 | .602 | .218 | $2,600 | $3,200 | $4,650 |
| Jason Kipnis | CLE | L | .283 | .333 | .779 | .336 | $3,600 | $0 | $4,850 |
| Rougned Odor | TEX | L | .274 | .298 | .767 | .299 | $3,500 | $4,000 | $4,800 |
| Brandon Phillips | CIN | R | .250 | .282 | .723 | .252 | $2,600 | $2,700 | $4,500 |
| Johnny Giavotella | LAA | R | .271 | .293 | .666 | .286 | $3,100 | $3,700 | $3,500 |
Second Base
Second base provides plenty of options of which player batting towards the top of the lineup you prefer to roster tonight. Rougned Odor and Jason Kipnis lead the pack for me. Both make for nice cash game plays, and have will have plenty of opportunities to produce. Johnny Giavotella checks in a nice Aces play, and a GPP target on other sites. For slightly cheaper, Brian Dozier offers you a leadoff guy that can hit for power, but has been struggling. Brandon Phillips is your risky GPP BvP play. He has a .360 avg vs Kershaw in 25 AB’s and in the cleanup spot.
| THIRD BASE | |||||||||
| Player | Team | Bats | AVG | OBP | OPS | BABIP | FD | DK | Aces |
| Evan Longoria | TB | R | .263 | .307 | .792 | .305 | $4,000 | $4,600 | $4,850 |
| Anthony Rendon | WSH | R | .259 | .351 | .716 | .307 | $4,000 | $4,300 | $4,600 |
| Mike Moustakas | KC | L | .240 | .301 | .801 | .214 | $3,000 | $3,700 | $4,900 |
| Justin Turner | LA | R | .232 | .323 | .675 | .256 | $2,400 | $3,000 | $4,300 |
| Yunel Escobar | LAA | R | .306 | .370 | .792 | .340 | 3300 | 3700 | 4450 |
Third Base
I feel like you cannot go wrong rostering either Anthony Rendon or Evan Longoria. Rendon is batting .405 over his last 12 games, and has gone 6-16 with a HR off of Colon. Longoria is always in play vs a lefty, and he has taken Chen deep twice before. For GPP’s, Mike Moustakes is your best bet if going with the Royals stack, but I like Justin Turner. He gets the lefty matchup, and has went deep twice in his last 3 games.
| SHORTSTOP | |||||||||
| Player | Team | Bats | AVG | OBP | OPS | BABIP | FD | DK | Aces |
| Francisco Lindor | CLE | B | .325 | .383 | .811 | .372 | $3,900 | $0 | $5,000 |
| Aledmys Diaz | STL | R | .352 | .386 | .985 | .355 | $3,300 | $3,100 | $4,650 |
| Taylor Motter | TB | R | .200 | .273 | .773 | .143 | $2,100 | $2,200 | $3,300 |
| Jose Ramirez | CLE | B | .296 | .349 | .749 | .314 | $2,800 | $0 | $4,250 |
| Alexei Ramirez | SD | R | .231 | .265 | .547 | .267 | $2,400 | $2,000 | $4,200 |
Shortstop
Shortstop will be my salary relief position play of the slate. The only exception for me is paying up for Fransisco Lindor. I want some exposure to Cleveland, but if want to save a bit, I will target Jose Ramirez. He has at least one hit in 7 of his last 9 games, and think Cleveland lights up the Sox in the second game tonight. If targeting players against Chen tonight, take a look at Tayler Motter. If in the lineup, he has been batting second, and pretty much minimum price across the board. Aledmys Diaz I have a feeling will be a popular play today, but think you can look elsewhere. To be fully contrarian, the Padres, and Alexi Ramirez is 10-17 vs Cueto.
| OUTFIELD | |||||||||
| Player | Team | Bats | AVG | OBP | OPS | BABIP | FD | DK | Aces |
| Jayson Werth | WSH | R | .221 | .288 | .695 | .258 | $3,000 | $3,700 | $4,650 |
| Cameron Maybin | DET | R | .600 | .652 | 1.402 | .688 | $3,100 | $2,900 | $4,100 |
| Jon Jay | SD | L | .276 | .341 | .709 | .361 | $3,200 | $2,500 | $4,000 |
| Desmond Jennings | TB | R | .181 | .256 | .551 | .216 | $2,500 | $3,000 | $4,100 |
| Trayce Thompson | LA | R | .280 | .343 | .902 | .297 | $3,100 | $3,300 | $4,550 |
| Hunter Pence | SF | R | .289 | .376 | .854 | .328 | $3,900 | $3,600 | $5,100 |
Outfield
I’m sticking with targeting mid-tier priced players tonight, and outfield provides a few juicy options. Although I like all the Rays Of’s, Desmond Jennings and Brandon Guyer are the top two targets. That just made me realize that I think I recommended all the starting Rays players, but Chen has always been a pitcher I like to target, and the Rays are priced very low for the most part. Jayson Werth paired up with Rendon is another favorite mini-stack option. He has hit Colon well in the past, and can see him getting a few extra base hits tonight. Cameron Maybin and Trayce Thompson are two similary priced players who are both in nice spots, and are hot at the plate. I feel it is perfectally acceptable to roster both of them, but if had to choose, I’ll take the player that is 12-20 over his last 6 games in Maybin. If looking for a late night hammer, check to see if Enrique Hernandez is in the lineup for the Dodgers. If so, I like him slaightly more than Trayce.