Daily Fantasy Baseball Picks for FanDuel, DraftKings, DraftDay and Draftster 9/11/14

Catchers

Early Slate
Miguel Montero - FD 2200 DK 3100 DD 7550 DFSTR 3200
You'll see that with so many stud arms going on such a short slate, the offensive options for the early slate are tough. Montero has been decent against righties this season with a .764 OPS (fine enough for a catcher) and faces the very average Jake Peavy. The problem with stacking any D-Backs today is that there are so few of them worth warranting a mention. Montero is one of the few.

Derek Norris - FD 2600 DK 3600 DD 7400 DFSTR 5000
Of course playing him against Sale seems like suicide. But you'll need to run someone out in the early slate and Norris hits lefties well. Again, with so many power arms going, avoiding them completely is tough. Our system accounts for Sale's successes and still has Norris as a somewhat acceptable option.

Late Slate
Jonathan Lucroy - FD 2900 DK 4300 DD 9200 DFSTR 6200
Lucroy is still coming so, so cheap on FanDuel. For his success this year against righties (.369 wOBA) and the ballpark playing well for power, as well as his spot in the lineup I think you can roll him out there against Eovaldi. Not a perfect value, but where he's cheap I think you can fit him easily into lineups.

Chris Iannetta - FD 2700 DK 3700 DD 7150 DFSTR 3200
Hank Conger - FD 2200 DK 2400 DD 5300 DFSTR 3000
I'd consider running whichever guy finds his way into the Angels' lineup tonight. Nick Martinez is that bad and you'll see a fair amount of Halos hitting the list tonight. Martinez has an xFIP in the mid 5's and strikes out no one. Iannetta is the much better hitter (relatively speaking) and I'd feel a lot more comfortable if it as him starting. But I'm going on the cheap at catcher against a garbage arm.
 

First Basemen

Early Slate
Carlos Santana - FD 3700 DK 4500 DD 10200 DFSTR 9900
On the early slate you are going to really want to target Kyle Gibson. He's probably the worst pitcher going and with his profile there are a lot of reasons to target Santana. Carlos is a three-true-outcomes guy. He walks a lot, K's a lot and hits a lot of home runs. While Gibson doesn't strike anyone out and is an extreme groundball pitcher. While that doesn't lend itself to big home run upside, there is reason to suspect Santana will be able to get on base here.

Jose Abreu - FD 3700 DK 5000 DD 11450 DFSTR 3200
Our system likes him against Scott Kazmir today. Kazmir's a mid 3's xFIP guy and Abreu has demolished lefty pitching this season with an OPS over 1.000 and a .439 wOBA. Some of that is buoyed by an unsustainable 35% Hr/FB% but hey, you don't get those kind of numbers on luck alone.
Consider Joe Mauer

Late Slate
Albert Pujols - FD 3700 DK 5100 DD 10800 DFSTR 10900
Oh we are all over the Angels tonight. Just all over them. Pujols isn't the masher of old, but he still has an .800 OPS in that split this season to go with a 127 wRC+. Nick Martinez is worse against lefties, but great news: Martinez is bad against everyone. Righties carry a high .700's OPS against him and I will be maxing out on Angels in this late slate.

David Ortiz - FD 4000 DK 4800 DD 10450 DFSTR 5500
I don't mind getting away from the Angels in a some spots and Papi offers one of those opportunities. Liam Hendriks is worse against lefty bats and Ortiz has a .353 wOBA on that side of the split this season. Not a perfect matchup as Ortiz is a little pricey, but if you aren't going Pujols I think this is the way to go.

Second Basemen

Early Slate
Jason Kipnis - FD 3300 DK 3900 DD 8550 DFSTR 4300
From yesterday
Was on him yesterday agains Trevor May and I'm fine buying him against today against Kyle Gibson. Gibson is an extreme groundball pitcher which probably limits Kipnis' ultimate upside. But there should be plenty of contact on the day.

Brandon Phillips - FD 2300 DK 3200 DD 6950 DFSTR 4100
To be honest, I'll probably just roll Kipnis everywhere, but I suppose you can go with Phillips if you like to root for guys who every once in a blue moon do something.

Late Slate
Scooter Gennett - FD 3200 DK 3400 DD 7800 DFSTR 6300
This position is really shallow in the later slate especially on FanDuel without multi-positional eligibility.but Gennett makes a solid option considering you will have to overspend a little on bats tonight because of the pitching situation. Scooter's had a lot of success against righty pitching this season with an .848 OPS and 130 wRC+. He's pricey, but like I said, you want be spending on arms tonight.

Asdrubal Cabrera - FD 2700 DK 4000 DD 8100 DFSTR 7000
I'm not even totally in love with this play as Bartolo Colon's been good against lefties. But in terms of upside and value multipliers the pickings are pretty thin. Cabrera is a cheap option who has a little pop. If I'm looking to save, this is where I'm going.

Consider Rougned Odor
 

Shortstops

Early Slate
Didi Gregorius - FD 2200 DK 3000 DD 5800 DFSTR 3000
Jake Peavy has really struggled with lefty bats this season as they have a .352 wOBA against him. Didi a min-priced shortstop whose struggles against righties this season have a lot to do with his low Babip driving down his production. He's about league average in terms of hitting righties and for this low price I think you can make it happen.

Alexei Ramirez - FD 2700 DK 3900 DD 8100 DFSTR 3000
Not a fantastic option considering the price and the fact that Kazmir is actually better against righty bats this season with some reverse splits. But hitting near the top of the order has its advantages and despite Kazmir's numbers, Alexei is better against lefties.

Late Slate
Erick Aybar - FD 3100 DK 4300 DD 7850 DFSTR 6300
The Nick Martinez hate keeps on coming. I say this all the time with Aybar, but when he faces low K pitchers you almost need to have him in your cash game lineups. His contact rate is so solid that he provides a ton of safety in cash lineups because there is such a low chance of him striking out. Martinez is one such pitcher and I'll have Aybar all over my cash and GPP lineups.

Consider Elvis Andrus

Third Basemen

Early Slate
Lonnie Chisenhall - FD 2400 DK 3600 DD 7100 DFSTR 5100
I really hope I'm not overdoing it on the Indians today in this early slate, but in terms of safety I really don't see many ways around them. Kyle Gibson induces a lot of groundballs, but he also has a 4.57 xFIP against lefties this season which means he's getting a little lucky in keeping the wOBA low against him. Chisenhall offers nice salary relief with a healthy multiplier considering righties are the only side of the split you want him.

Josh Donaldson - FD 3600 DK 4600 DD 9600 DFSTR 3700
Feels very weird throwing him in there against Sale, but someone is going to win a lot of money stacking bats against one of these power arms in the early slate. Donaldson's numbers against lefties are so stellar that I think you can keep him in mind against almost any southpaw. Though I freely admit that Sale is pushing it here.

Late Slate
Brock Holt - FD 2700 DK 3900 DD 7800 DFSTR 3700
Digging deep here. Holt needs to have a lot go right for him to have a ton of upside, but third base in the late slate is thinner than thin and I don't love the idea of paying for some of the "name" guys with higher salaries. As long as he's hitting at the top of lineup there floor is a little higher considering the possibility of extra plate appearances and hitting in front of guys like Papi.

Consider Aramis Ramirez
 

Outfielders

Early Slate
Michael Bourn - FD 2600 DK 3900 DD 8000 DFSTR 4400
Michael Brantley - FD 3900 DK 5100 DD 9300 DFSTR 7700
I still am buying on the Tribe in some spots. Especially these two guys who really hit righty pitching well, Brantley to an extreme degree. His contact rate against righties is excellent and should be a favorite to have the ball in play against Gibson. Bourn strikes out a little too much, but that's diminished against a pitcher who isn't a big swing and miss guy.

Billy Hamilton - FD 2900 DK 4400 DD 7700 DFSTR 3000
Jay Bruce - FD 3100 DK 3600 DD 7950 DFSTR 4700
Lance Lynn is worse against lefties and actually has a 4.57 xFIP on that side of the split this season. He's kept his ERA low by dispatching of righty bats and getting a little lucky against the lefties. I don't mind sprinkling these two guys in some spots for a little upside. They are far from safe options but between Billy's speed and Jay's power there is some opportunity to blow it out of the box.

Consider Angel Pagan

Late Slate
Mike Trout - FD 5200 DK 5800 DD 13850 DFSTR 9800
Kole Calhoun - FD 4000 DK 5000 DD 10000 DFSTR 11900
Brennan Boesch - FD 2200 DK 2100 DD 5000 DFSTR 3000
Know this: you are probably overpaying a little for Trout, definitely pushing the envelope with Calhoun and I threw Boesch in as a possible punt option against a weak arm. Trout and Calhoun have seen their prices climb over the short term as many were buying them (Calhoun especially) on the cheap. Now they have a great matchup and you'll need to pony up. But with pitching coming cheaper I think the overpay here is fine. In terms of raw points, they have the highest expectations among outfielders. Boesch is simply a punt play.

Bryce Harper - FD 3000 DK 3800 DD 9250 DFSTR 3400
Still hits righties at an above average clip though the season as a whole has been a struggle. He's striking out too much, but Bartolo Colon doesn't have a huge K upside. Colon is also an extreme FB pitcher allowing for a whiff of home run upside for Harper who's shown flashes over the last week or so.

Consider Gerardo Parra
 

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