DFS MLB Hitting Coach: July 3

I am really excited for Sunday’s slate. There are a lot of hitters I am really excited to play, even though a few positions may be a bit difficult to fill. There is a lack of cheap options at catcher and third base, but you can compensate for that with any number of cheap outfield options. In fact, you may have to go cheap in the outfield, because where there is plenty of value, there aren’t many studs worth playing in this slate.

Evan Gattis is 3-for-10 against Jose Quintana and 6-for-18 over the last week. He has a .818 OPS against left-handed pitchers, and you won’t have to break the bank to play him.

Cameron Rupp is 6-for-13 over the last week, and he has a .802 OPS against right-handed pitchers. He is quite cheap on DraftKings and FantasyAces.

Buster Posey is 7-for-17 with a home run during his four-game hitting streak, and right-handed batters have a .369 wOBA against Robbie Ray this season.

My preference is to spend a bit more on my catcher, but if you want a bargain catcher, Carlos Perez is intriguing. Perez went 5-for-6 Saturday and now has two multi-hit games in his last three starts. Hopefully, the Angels give him a chance to keep his hot streak going.

You can’t get any hotter than C.J. Cron, as he hit a grand slam Friday and Saturday became just the second Angel ever to go 6-for-6 in a game. Cron is 13-for-24 during his five-game hitting streak, and his price is still pretty reasonable.

Kendrys Morales may be as hot as C.J. Cron as Morales has gone 19-for-29 with six home runs, nine runs scored and 13 RBI during his current eight-game hitting streak. Morales is 2-for-4 with a home run against Vince Velasquez.

Chris Davis is 3-for-10 in his career against Hisashi Iwakuma, but more importantly, he is 13-for-36 with five home runs and 14 RBI over his last eight games. His price is pretty low on DraftKings.

Adrian Gonzalez is another first baseman worth targeting on DraftKings, though he is worth a look elsewhere as well. Gonzalez is 9-for-18 over the last week.

Robinson Cano is 8-for-14 with two home runs and three doubles against Ubaldo Jimenez, and he is 8-for-24 over the last seven days.

Logan Forsythe has a 10-game hitting streak, and he is 12-for-29 over the past seven days. I would rather play Robinson Cano, but Forsythe is $700 cheaper on FantasyAces, and I don’t know how you pass up that value.

Cesar Hernandez is 12-for-23 over the last seven days, and he is a perfectly fine alternative if you would rather go cheap at second base.

Jake Lamb is 7-for-15 with three home runs during his four-game hitting streak, and left-handed batters have a .348 wOBA against Albert Suarez.

Justin Turner is 10-for-22 over the last week, and he has a .349 wOBA against right-handed pitchers this season.

Kyle Seager is 8-for-18 during his five-game hitting streak, and left-handed batters have a .424 wOBA against Ubaldo Jimenez this season.

Tim Anderson is 10-for-26 over the past week, and he is really cheap on FantasyAces.

Andrelton Simmons is 6-for-17 during his four-game hitting streak and 13-for-35 over his last nine games. If he has another multi-hit game, he will be well worth his modest price.

Corey Seager  is very reasonably priced for a guy who is 8-for-23 over the last week and has a 15-game hitting streak. Seager has a .936 OPS against right-handed pitchers this season.

Didi Gregorius is 10-for-25 with two home runs during his six-game hitting streak.

Mike Trout is 20-for-37 during his current nine-game hitting streak, and there is nothing better than getting one of the two best hitters in baseball at his peak.

The entire Oakland outfield is a strong play Sunday, and unless you are stacking A’s, which isn’t the worst idea, you should probably just play the cheapest guy or two depending on your site of choice.

Coco Crisp extended his hitting streak to nine games Saturday, and he is 6-for-15 against Pirates starter Francisco Liriano. Khris Davis has fared well against Liriano as well, going 4-for-12 with two home runs. Davis is 13-for-35 with three home runs over his last eight games. Jake Smolinski leads the A’s with a 1.321 OPS against lefties, and he is 6-for-13 with a home run during his four-game hitting streak.

Cody Asche is pretty cheap across the board, but he has a .796 OPS against right-handed pitchers this season and he is 7-for-19 with seven RBI over his last six games. Left-handed batters own a .345 wOBA against Yordano Ventura this season.

Seth Smith is 9-for-17 with three home runs and seven RBI during his four-game hitting streak, and he has a .853 OPS against right-handed pitchers this season.

Travis Jankowski is nicely priced for a guy who will bat leadoff and has the platoon advantage against Chad Green. Jankowski is 3-for-7 with a stolen base in his last two games, and he has seven runs scored and six stolen bases in his last nine games.

Christian Yelich is 9-for-28 over the last week and 3-for-4 with a stolen base against Matt Wisler.

There aren’t actually a lot of stud outfielders worth paying for in Sunday’s slate, but Mookie Betts is one of them. He had three hits in each of his last two games, and he has a .893 OPS against right-handed pitchers this season.

Oswaldo Arcia may be the perfect GPP play, especially on FanDuel and FantasyAces. He has always had power, and he is swinging a hot bat since joining the Rays. At least one Ray will probably take Mike Pelfrey deep, and Arcia has as good a chance as anyone.

I’m not sure how much longer J.B. Schuck can continue to hit at this level, but I am prepared to ride it out a bit longer. Shuck is 10-for-25 with three home runs over his last seven games, and left-handed batters have a .374 wOBA against Collin McHugh.