Nolan Arenado’s salary has him falling into the value play range for Friday’s slate
Friday is finally here! There are 14 games on the schedule tonight, so be sure to get plenty of action. We have quite a few projected high totals tonight, which should lead towards plenty of fantasy scoring, especially with conducive weather across most of the country. Let’s take a look at some value plays for FanDuel.
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Pitcher
Jake Odorizzi (TB): $8,100 vs. NYY
Odorizzi could go overlooked in tournaments tonight due to his matchup against a left-handed heavy lineup, but don’t let the optics deter you. Since 2014, Odorizzi has allowed a .280 wOBA to left-handed hitters, which is due to his heavy usage of a change up. The Yankees don’t strike out a ton against right-handed pitching (19.3%), but they do rank 24th in wRC+ and they get a negative park shift. If Odorizzi can keep this lineup off balance, he could come in as a great GPP play tonight.
Other Notables
- Trevor Bauer (CLE): $8,500 vs. OAK
Catcher
Evan Gattis (HOU): $2,900 @ DET
Gattis has been hitting out of the fifth spot in the batting order against left-handed pitching as of late, which would make him an acceptable value at a difficult position to fill tonight. Since 2014, Gattis has posted a .232 ISO against lefties, which makes him my top option at catcher given the matchup. Matt Boyd has struggled mightily with right-handed hitters in his young career, allowing a .361 wOBA and 1.95 HR/9.
Other Notables
- Derek Norris (SD): $2,900 vs. CIN
- Russell Martin (TOR): $2,800 vs. BAL
First Base
Jose Abreu (CWS): $2,700 @ MIN
Abreu is incredibly cheap given his matchup against Ricky Nolasco and a bad bullpen. Nolasco is allowing a ton of hard contact this season, which has led to a solid implied team total of 4.45 runs for the White Sox. Abreu has had nice success against same-handed pitching, posting a .375 wOBA and .221 ISO in his career.
Other Notables
- John Jaso (PIT): $3,000 @ MIL
- Kendrys Morales (KC): $3,000 @ TEX
- Mitch Moreland (TEX): $2,700 vs. KC
Second Base
Jurickson Profar (TEX): $2,700 vs. KC
The Rangers have an implied run total of 4.76 runs, which makes Profar an appealing value given his spot atop the batting order. Edinson Volquez has been rather average this season, posting an ERA of 4.56 (4.38 xFIP) to go with a modest 6.8 K/9. Profar is a solid source of salary relief given the contextual factors in his favor tonight.
Other Notables
- Greg Garcia (STL): $2,100 @ MIA (if leading off)
Third Base
Nolan Arenado (COL): $3,000 @ NYM
I’m cheating a bit here, but value also is applicable when someone underpriced given their skills as well as being moderately priced. Arenado fits both of those, so I would make him a cornerstone of roster construction tonight. He sports a .365 wOBA and .230 ISO against left-handed pitching the past couple of seasons, which leaves the slugger as the top dollar for dollar option at third base tonight. Steven Matz has been gutting through bone spurs in his elbow, but he’s been susceptible to right-handed hitters this season.
Other Notables
- Alex Bregman (HOU): $2,700 @ DET
- Jung-Ho Kang (PIT): $2,600 @ MIL
Shortstop
Tim Anderson (CWS): $2,900 @ MIN
Anderson has a very favorable matchup on the base paths if he can get on base tonight. I noted the healthy implied run total that the White Sox have due to their solid matchup against a weak pitcher, so don’t be afraid to target Anderson as a cheaper cash game play tonight.
Other Notables
- Trevor Story (COL): $3,000 @ NYM
- Aledmys Diaz (STL): $2,900 @ MIA
- Adam Frazier (PIT): $2,600 @ MIL (if he plays)
Outfielders
Matt Kemp (SD): $3,200 vs. CIN
Kemp is in a great spot tonight against left-handed pitcher Brandon Finnegan, who has an xFIP of 5.24. Finnegan has struggled mightily with right-handed power, allowing 1.87 HR/9. His deficiency will be bailed out a bit by the park, but it’s not enough to sway me from utilizing Kemp as a source of salary relief. Kemp has top-five upside tonight among all outfielders.
Adam Jones (BAL): $3,000 @ TOR
The Orioles get an elite environment for power, which could present some issues for fly ball pitcher Marco Estrada. Adam Jones has hit safely in 10 out of the last 11 games, including two home runs over the last three. This is a great time to target his soft salary before it ratchets back up if his production continues.
Nomar Mazara (TEX): $2,200 vs. KC
Mazara is basically a free square tonight, as he provides exposure to a prime hitting environment in Arlington. Mazara has decent pop, which makes him too cheap to overlook tonight. If he somehow lands in the second spot of the order, he’d move up the rankings even more tonight.
Other Notables
- Billy Hamilton (CIN): $3,300 @ SD/Adam Duvall (CIN): $3,100 @ SD
- Curtis Granderson (NYM): $3,200 vs. COL
- Matt Holliday (STL): $3,100 @ MIA
- Corey Dickerson (TB): $2,800 vs. NYY
- Travis Jankowski (SD): $2,700 vs. CIN
- Joey Gallo (TEX): $2,000 vs. KC
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Adam Sutton is a correspondent at FantasyPros. To read more from Adam, follow him @DraftStars_Adam. You can find more of Adam’s work at DraftStars.net.
