Matchups, sharks, Bigfoot, vomiting. With an intro like that I dare you not to read the Daily Trends piece for May 29th. If you don't, what kind of mind do you have? Clearly it's not an inquisitive one.
DISH DIAMONDS – The Best Hitting Matchups of the Day
Jose Bautista has four bombs and six RBI against James Shields. He's also sporting a .321/.424/.786 slash line over 33 plate appearances against James Shields.
Adrian Beltre has a mere six at-bats against Samuel Deduno. They have been spectacular. Beltre has five hits, two homers and four RBIs.
Coco Crisp has been injured and underperformed this season, no way around those facts. He's also had five hits in 13 at-bats against Rick Porcello in his career and he's got a decent .770 OPS against righties this year.
Mark Ellis has seven hits in 18 at-bats against the suddenly rolling Ryan Vogelsong. Ellis may not even play though so check the lineup card.
Lydia is doing something never before witnessed.
Omar Infante flipping owns R.A. Dickey. It's actually obnoxious how good he's been. In 31 at-bats he has two homers and five RBIs. Those are strong totals. However, it's the 16 hits that light things up. Infante's batting .516 in 31 at-bats folks.
Adam Lind has hit only .255 with a .283 OBP against James Shields. Still, I'm gonna give him a positive review today since he's hit three doubles and five homers while driving in eight runs.
Justin Upton is hot. Jake Peavy isn't. In the previous nine at-bats Justin has against Jake has hit a homer, driven in five, and produced six hits.
Just cause...
DISH DISASTERS – Worst Hitting Matchups of the Day
Melky Cabrera (5-for-27, .185) is just one of many Blue Jays who have struggled against James Shields. The others include the red-hot Edwin Encarnacion (6-for-29 with one homer an a .603 OPS) and Brett Lawrie (.231 with four KS in 13 ABs).
The Diamondbacks face led Tony Cingrani. Here are a couple of D'backs who have struggled against lefties this year: A.J. Pollock (.206 in 34 ABs), Miguel Montero (.195 with no homers in 41 Abs), Gerardo Parra (.152 in 46 ABs).
It's only eight at-bats, but Ian Kinsler doesn't have a hit against Jesse Chavez.
Is this the proof of Bigfoot's existence?
The Mariners face Wade LeBlanc. Here are a couple of Mariners batters who have struggled against lefties this year: Kyle Seager (zero HRs, .227 in 66 ABs), Brad Miller (.143 in 49 ABs). Robinson Cano (.341) and Michael Saunders (.303) have both hit very well against lefties, but in 115 at-bats they have only four doubles, one triple, and no homers.
Russell Martin has 10 Ks and is batting .195 over 41 at-bats against Dan Haren. Ike Davis only has eight at-bats, and he's looked really good this year, but he's 1-for-8 in the matchup.
Yadier Molina hits everyone... but Ryan Vogelsong it seems. In 14 at-bats he's hit .214 without an RBI.
The Red Sox face Mike Minor. Here are a couple of Sox batters who have struggled against lefties this year: Jackie Bradley Jr, (.185 with ho homers in 54 ABs), A.J. Pierzynski (.171 with one homer in 41 ABs) and Grady Sizemore (.132 with 1 homer in 38 ABs).
Bookmark the following three sources to check daily after you read this piece.
Fantasy Alarm Lineups
Batter Versus Pitcher
Daily Projections – For every single day of the season.
MOUND MAVENS – Starting Pitchers to Target
Dan Haren hasn't faced the Pirates this year, but he has had ample success at home with a 2.39 ERA and 1.03 WHIP over four home starts. Note – the homers have returned as he's allowed four in his last three starts, though he's walked only two batters in his last three starts to help mitigate the damage.
Mike Minor has gone at least 6.1 innings in each of his last three starts. He's also allowed a total of five runs in the three outings. Keeping the ball in the yard will be key, since he's allowed three homers his last two starts. He faces the Red Sox in Boston.
Should I cheer or vomit? I'm not sure.
James Shields has a 2.95 ERA on the year, and that number drops to 2.35 when he's on the road (seven starts). He pitches in Toronto and will look to rebound from a poor start that included nine hits and four runs over six innings in his last outing.
Ryan Vogelsong has been nails in May as I wrote about in my weekly Mailbag piece. He's set to face the Cardinals in St. Louis. We're favoring his recent success over a lifelong failure versus the Cardinals (6.71 ERA, 1.68 WIHP over 52.1 innings).
MOUND MESSES – Starting Pitchers to Avoid
Jesse Chavez pitches at home against the Tigers. He's gone just 10.1 innings his last two starts, and he's allowed five homers in his last three starts. Overall he's looked great this year, and in four home starts it's more of the same (2.81 ERA, 1.17 WHIP), but his recent slowdown and the presence of the Tigers makes him a risky start (the club is 5th in baseball in OPS against righties).
Gerrit Cole has league average numbers to this point that include a 4-3 record, 3.76 ERA and 1.33 WHIP. Those are numbers that are vastly below expectations. He's also posted a mere 4.40 ERA and 1.53 WHIP in five road starts and he'll take the bump in L.A. versus the Dodgers.
Jake Peavy pitch at home against the Braves. There is NO way, yes it deserve caps, no way he should be starting for you. Over his last three outings he's allowed 28 hits and 16 runs in 16.1 innings. That's, well, scary isn't a strong enough term. He's got to be glued to your bench.
Brandon Maurer is terrible. He has a 6.99 ERA. He's lost his last three games. He's given up 22 hits and 14 runs over his last 15.1 innings. Why am I even wasting my time writing this? He faces the Angels in Seattle.
Rick Porcello faces the Athletics in Oakland. All in all that's a good place to pitch. However, the A's have the 5th best team OPS at home in baseball. Porcello also has a 4.50 ERA and 1.54 WHIP over nine outings against the A's, and he was bombed for 12 hits, two walks and eight runs in his last outing. That doesn't sound good, does it?
Zack Wheeler ain't getting it done. Through 10 starts he's got a 4.63 ERA and 1.53 WHIP. He's also won just one time, back on April 14th, and his last three starts have resulted in 13 runs (12 earned) and nine walks over 17 innings. He faces the Phillies in Philly.
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.