DFS MLB Hitting Coach: April 13

If you haven’t done so already, be sure to check out my new DFS Strategy article that breaks down my first week of DFS MLB Cash Game Lineups. I don’t expect this to be the norm, but I went 6-1 through the first week of games, and did so in pretty convincing fashion. You’ll be able to get a glimpse of my approach to putting together these lineups, and I even go a little bit into game selection. Over 95% of hitters that I use in my cash game lineups come directly from my Hitting Coach articles. You can view the article by clicking here. 

 

Nonetheless, if you're not familiar with how Major League Baseball scheduling works, you better get used to these Wednesday/Thursday split slates, because they are definitely the norm. We have a three-game early slate today to go with a nine-game late slate tonight.

 

With that said, let’s get started with my picks to click!

 

 

 

Stephen Vogt is sadly the best of the very limited options at catcher in the three-game early slate. He only has three hits in 15 at-bats against Matt Shoemaker, but two of those hits were home runs. 

 

 

Jonathan Lucroy should be excited to see Mike Leake back in the NL Central. Lucroy is 12-for-29 (.414 AVG) with a home run against Leake in his career. 

 

Miguel Montero is one of my favorite catchers to roster because he’s almost always at a reasonable price, has an above-average OBP, and shows some power. I also like his matchup against Alfredo Simon.

 

Yan Gomes is an absolute left masher who has done just that against Drew Smyly of the Rays. Gomes is 4-for-8 against Smyly with two home runs and a double. 

 

Jason Castro has had the upper-hand against Yordano Ventura. He is 4-for-8 with a double against the Royals right-hander throughout his career. He has started the season off extremely slowly, so I will limit him to GPPs if you're looking for salary relief. 

 

 

 

Paul Goldschmidt absolutely, positively, destroys Dodgers pitching. Yes, he’s going to face Alex Wood, who he has demolished in the past, going 4-for-9 (.444 AVG) with two home runs. But it should also be noted that Goldschmidt is 100-for-294 (.340 AVG) with 21 homers, 20 doubles, and 63 RBIs against the Dodgers throughout his career. 

 

Anthony Rizzo is just one player who is probably loving the fact that Alfredo Simon is back in the National League. Rizzo is 5-for-15 (.333 AVG) with two homers and a stolen base against Simon.

 

Chris Davis is 4-for-7 (.571 AVG) with two walks and a .700 BP against Joe Kelly in his career. People may shy away from Davis because of his expensive price, but not many players can bring his type of upside to the table. 

 

Brandon Belt usually crushes the ball in Coors Field. He had an off night last night, but I say he rebounds tonight against Jordan Lyles, who allows a line of .282/.371/.422 against left-handed hitters. By the way, I’m deciding to leave Ben Paulsen off of the Playbook to reverse jinx his chances of making tonight’s lineup. 

 

Freddie Freeman’s matchup against Stephen Strasburg has been referenced before in the Hitting Coach, and it will be mentioned again. Yes, he’s more of a GPP play, but there’s huge upside there. Freeman is 12-for-31 (.387 AVG) with three long balls against Strasburg. 

 

Carlos Santana obviously packs that power upside to go with incredibly good plate discipline. He also loves hitting from the right-side of the plate against southpaws. Tonight, he’ll face a southpaw in Drew Smyly, who he has a .438 OBP against.

 

 

 

Daniel Murphy is smokin’ hot and just happens to be 3-for-6 with two doubles against Matt Wisler. 

 

Starlin Castro has gone 5-for-12 (.417 AVG) with two doubles and two walks against J.A. Happ. 

 

Scooter Gennett already has three multi-hit games this season, and has hits in every game he has started. He is 7-for-16 (.414 AVG) with two doubles against Mike Leake in his career. 

 

Dustin Pedroia would be a nine-time All-Star if he played the Orioles 162 games a year. He is 196-for-604 (.325 AVG) with 14 homers, 82 RBIs, 63 walks, 61 strikeouts, and a .390 OBP against the Orioles throughout his career. 

 

 

 

Nolan Arenado is 5-for-11 (.455 AVG) with a homer and two doubles against Jake Peavy. His price is astronomical, but he may just be the surest option at third.

 

Matt Carpenter had a rough start to the season, getting only two hits in his first 16 at-bats. But he seems to have turned a corner, going 5-for-11 (.455 AVG) with a double, triple, and home run, and driving in six runs in his last three games.

 

Todd Frazier had a ridiculous .242 ISO last season, and will face Phil Hughes who had a terrible 4.31 xFIP. If he can get a hold of one, there’s a good chance the ball is going out of the yard. 

 

Justin Turner is once again featured in my Hitting Coach article, going up against a right-handed pitcher in Rubby De La Rosa. Again, Turner is a reverse splits third baseman, and should have low ownership in GPPs. He went 3-for-9 (.333 AVG) with a home run off of De La Rosa in 2015.

 

 

 

Corey Seager got demoted to the seven-hole in the Dodgers opening day lineup, yesterday, against the D-Backs. Not really sure what’s going to happen tonight, but regardless, I love his matchup against Rubby De La Rosa. De La Rosa is an absolute gas can of a pitcher, and Seager at the rest of the big Dodgers bats could take advantage of it. For what it’s worth, if you want to pay up at shortstop, you can obviously pay up for either Trevor Story or Brandon Crawford, but I prefer the other options for value.

 

Francisco Lindor is a guy I mentioned in yesterday’s hitting coach who loves to face lefties. Linder went .321/.368/.521 against lefties in 2015. He homered off of Matt Moore last night, and he’ll look to do the same tonight against Drew Smyly. 

 

J.J. Hardy was quite the diamond in the rough last night in Boston. He smashed two big homers in the Orioles big 9-4 win at Fenway. He faced Joe Kelly three times last season, and had hits in each of those three at-bats. 

 

Alcides Escobar isn’t going to ever hit multiple home runs or drive in five, but he is a good value at a minimal price at the leadoff spot. He has two stolen bases against Scott Feldman in his career, and there’s a good chance he’ll be active on the bases tonight if he can reach base. Royals Manager Ned Yost has been very aggressive against Feldman throughout his tenure, and I’d be surprised if he doesn’t do so tonight.

 

 

Mookie Betts was my pick to break out this season, and while it’s still probably a long shot, Betts continues to rake at Fenway. He has hit .311/.367/.496 in his career at Fenway, compared to .272/.328/.446 on the road. He’ll face Ubaldo Jimenez, who he went 4-for-10 (.400 AVG) against least season. 

 

Lorenzo Cain tends to be a guy you want to target when he faces lefties, but that’s not always the case here, because I’m going to have some exposure tonight considering he’s 7-for-13 (.538 AVG) with a double a three stolen bases against Scott Feldman. 

 

Angel Pagan is 4-for-10 (.400 AVG) with a stolen base against Jordan Lyles of the Rockies. He’s a bit pricey on FanDuel due to the Coors Field price boost, but should be a lock for production. He makes very good contact with the ball and generally maintains a high OBP.  

 

George Springer is a five-tool player who has that lethal combination of speed and power. Last night, advanced statistics (specifically, PITCHf/x values) supported the Cain vs. Fiers play, and tonight, I’m really liking Springer vs. Yordano Ventura. 

 

Justin Upton is the one Tigers player who has faced Ryan Vogelsong more than nine times. It makes sense considering both players are career National Leaguers playing for their first American League team. Upton has dominated this matchup, going 9-for-28 (.321 AVG) with three doubles and a triple throughout his career. 

 

Joc Pederson tends to be a boom or bust pick, but whenever he can get good wood on the ball, there’s going to be a chance for the ball to go out of the park. Rubby De La Rosa had a 4.10 xFIP while Pederson had a .206 ISO in 2015. 

 

Austin Jackson should get the start tonight against Phil Hughes. Jackson is 10-for-30 (.333 AVG) with two home runs against Hughes, and went 3-for-7 with a homer last season against Hughes. 

 

Alex Gordon is 10-for-23 (.435 AVG) with a double, triple, and two stolen bases against Scott Feldman.

 

Jeremy Hazelbaker is 10-for-19 (.526 AVG) with hits in each of his last six games and has driven in runs in each of his last five. He is also inexplicably still at $2300 on FanDuel.