You would be wise to bookmark the following two sources to check daily after you read this wondrous piece (I'm so afraid of giving myself props).
Fantasy Alarm Lineups
DISH DIAMONDS – The Best Hitting Matchups of the Day
Shin-Soo Choo faces young righty Jake Odorizzi Friday. Not only is Choo 2-for-4 with a steal against Jake but he also blasted righties to the point that he looked like Barry Bonds last season. Look at his slash line in 388 at-bats: .317/.457/.554.
David Freese doesn't freeze against Lucas Harrell. He's produced five hits including a big fly in just 12 at-bats. Josh Hamilton has also had success with two homers in eight at-bats against Lucas.
Hunter Pence faces the hot Hyun-Jin Ryu Friday. Pence had six hits in 14 at-bats (.429) with five RBIs in the matchup last season.
Justin Upton will face Jordan Zimmermann (with two N's) who he is 5-for-12 against. Plus, Zimmerman was sick puking all night long Wednesday night so can he possibly be at full strength? See more below on Jordan.
Neil Walker likes him some Shelby Miller. Wait, that doesn't sound that good does it? Not that there is anything wrong with that. Walker has five hits in nine career at-bats against Miller.
The Yankees have had Dustin McGowan's number, albeit it another life when the righty was actually healthy. Still, there are a lot of hitters in the lineup that have had success including Brian Roberts (.462 in 13 at-bats), Ichiro Suzuki (.500 in 14 at-bats) and Derek Jeter (.348 in 23 at-bats). The batters are all old, and McGowan hasn't been healthy in so long, so who knows if this data is even worth noting.
DISH DISASTERS – Worst Hitting Matchups of the Day
Pedro Alvarez has one homer against Shelby Miller in 10 at-bats. He's also been Mr. Hyde with five strike outs as well.
Two Astros had a ton of success in limited work last year against Garrett Richards. Robbie Grossman rapped out four singles in five at-bats while Chris Carter went 5-for-8 with a homer.
Adam Dunn versus the soft tossing Jeremy Guthrie sounds like a decent matchup for Dunn. Not so much. He had only six hits in 28 at-bats (.214) with 12 punchouts. Teammate Alexei Ramirez has been even worse hitting .158 over 38 at-bats.
Martin Prado has started off slowly this season. That slow start will likely last one more day as he's just 1-for-11 against Juan Nicasio.
Mark Reynolds take a seat. He's produced three hits while whiffing 11 times in 20 at-bats against Jake Peavy. Even for him, that's an awful rate of 55 percent in the old K column. Yikes is right.
Don't know why you would be considering Dan Uggla, but don't. He has only two hits in 17 at-bats against Jordan Zimmermann (again, keep scrolling for more on Zimmermann).
David Wright has walked back to the dugout in a third of the 15 at-bats he has against Mike Leake. He's also hit a mere .200. Daniel Murphy has also been off his game against Leake as he's also hit .200 in 15 at-bats.
Have you ever seen the original Frankenstein movie? You can read more about the Thomas Edison film here.
MOUND MAVENS – Starting Pitchers to Target
Roll those dice. Jeremy Guthrie has long been difficult on the White Sox. In 127.2 innings he's posted a 3.45 ERA an a 1.13 WHIP. The current White Sox lineup has hit a mere .214 with a .278 OBP against Guthrie over 229 at-bats. That's a pretty significant sample size. Will you trust it?
Mike Pelfrey can be started against the Indians? Well maybe. He's held the current Indians roster to a .194 batting average and .523 OPS over 98 at-bats. He had success against the Indians last August 25th as he allowed just one run, while striking out six, over five innings. Pelfrey also dropped his ERA 1.25 runs on the road last year (4.54) compared to his home mark. Hey, it's something. If you want a shot in the dark option, this might be your man.
Hyun-jin Ryu has worked 12 innings with 12 punchouts and four walks this season. He's also gone 12 scoreless innings allowing a mere five hits. It's not like the Giants are a loaded offensive bunch, which when combined with his work in five starts against the G-Men are factored in (2.48 ERA, 1.35 WHIP) makes Ryu a very strong starting option.
OK contradictory time. I warned you about the physical situation of Jordan Zimmermann. You will have to decide if you are willing to take a chance on him cause the numbers say go for it. The Braves current roster has hit .214 with one homer an a .592 OPS against Zimmerman in 84 at-bats. He's also gone 3-1 with a 3.12 ERA and 1.14 WHIP over seven starts.
There isn't a bigger Tim Lincecum fan that I. At the same time, Tim, that might be the dirtiest mustache I've ever seen. Shave it. Shave it now. Shave it before your street cred totally evaporates. Isn't there someone in his life that can look him in the eye and tell him 'Tim, that's looks atrocious?'
MOUND MESSES – Starting Pitchers to Avoid
I wish Dustin McGowan well, but he may struggle against the Yankees if history is any guide. Dustin has been hit hard by the Yankees leading to a .297 average and 1.29 K/BB ratio. He hasn't started a big league game since 2011 though, so the numbers likely mean nothing. Give him credit for perseverance. Do not give him enough credit that you feel like you should be starting him.
Don't get cute Friday. Garrett Richards shouldn't be starting. In 15 innings against the Astros in his career he's sporting a 6.00 ERA, 1.60 WHIP and .323 batting average against.
Joe Saunders had an 11.37 ERA and 2.45 WHIP in Spring Training. He allowed 26 hits in 12.2 innings. You've got to be kidding if you're looking to start him against the Rays. Crazy time if you're starting him.
Dan Straily has made three starts against the Mariners. The results have been disastrous. In 12.2 innings he's allowed four dongs and 11 walks on his way to a 7.82 ERA and 2.05 WHIP. Don't know how you can start him given those numbers.
Eric Stults was great at home last year. He was terrible on the road though (4.77 ERA, 1.49 WHIP). He faces a Marlins team that doesn't scare you, but with the game in Florida it would make sense to pass on Stults as a spot starting option.
Ryan Vogelsong had a really rough spring training barely holding on to his starting spot. He's also struggled mightily against the Dodgers last year with an 8.44 ERA and 1.69 WHIP over two starts.
Finally, Kyle Elfrink and I break down some other Friday starters in this audio for SiriusXM Fantasy Sports Radio.
Make sure you tune in to the Fantasy Alarm's Daily Game Show at 6 PM EDT, Monday through Friday on SiriusXM Fantasy Sports Radio (Sirius210, XM87) as Jeff Mans and Ted Schuster will help you to set your daily lineups.