Welcome to the Wednesday edition of the FanDuel MLB value plays. This article will focus on the 12-game main slate on FanDuel. Be sure to check the team lineups as they are released to make sure these players are in fact playing, as well as the weather around the country. Let’s go ahead and take a look at my favorite value options for the day.
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Pitcher
Michael Pineda (NYY): $8,200 at TB
For cash games I will be locking in Jacob deGrom in a nice matchup against the Braves. However, for GPPs I really like Michael Pineda for tonight. When building GPP lineups, I believe it is crucial to target guys with huge strikeout upside. Out of all of the probable pitchers on tonight’s slate, Pineda had the highest K/9 in 2016 with 10.61. Pineda did have some control issues last season, but he did perform much better outside of the hitter-friendly Yankee Stadium, where he was susceptible to the long ball. In 2016, Pineda had a 2.05 HR/9 at home and only a 0.72 on the road. In 2016, the Rays had the third-highest K% against right-handed pitchers with 24.5%. On a night where Jacob deGrom and Rich Hill will probably be the chalk pitchers for GPPs, I really like pivoting to Pineda
Catcher
J.T. Realmuto (MIA): $2,300 at WAS
Realmuto hit in the two-hole on Opening Day and got out to a nice start with a double, single, and run scored. In 2016, Realmuto did much better against right-handed hitters with a 0.348 wOBA versus a 0.269 against lefties. Tanner Roark is not a scrub by any means, but it is really hard to pass on Realmuto in cash games given his salary and the scarcity of catcher options who hit in a favorable spot of the order.
First Base
Tommy Joseph (PHI): $2,000 at CIN
It must be Christmas in April, because FanDuel gift wrapped the lock of the night in cash games. Tommy Joseph is at the minimum price, and he absolutely crushed left-handed pitchers to the tune of a 0.383 w/OBA and 0.281 ISO in 100 plate appearances in 2016. On top of that, Brandon Finnegan was terrible in Great American Ballpark last season allowing a 2.27 HR/9 to right-handed hitters in 82 innings of work at home.
Second Base
Devon Travis (TOR): $2,400 at BAL
I wrote about Devon Travis the other day, and I’m going right back to him today in cash games. My strategy for cash games is pretty simple. Use as many leadoff and two-hole hitters as possible that are not in terrible matchups. Travis fits that strategy perfectly again today since he will likely be hitting leadoff again, he’s cheap, he’s in a good lineup, and Dylan Bundy is not a dominant pitcher.
Third Base
Yangervis Solarte (SD): $2,500 at LAD
I’ll start out by saying that this recommendation is for GPPs only. For cash games, go with Jose Reyes. Anyway, back to Solarte. I really loved him as a deep sleeper for season-long leagues coming into this season. He had a solid season last year with a 0.346 wOBA and an 118 wRC+, but he gets zero hype since he plays for the dreadful Padres. I know it’s early, but he has looked solid in his first two games with three hits, including a home run, in eight plate appearances. The matchup is not outstanding by any means, but Rich Hill was not nearly as dominant in 2016 as his 2.12 ERA suggests since his xFIP was over a full run worse at 3.36.
Shortstop
Chris Owings (ARI): $2,400 vs. SF
Chris Owings hit second on Sunday against Madison Bumgarner and I would expect he will be back in the two-hole tonight against the lefty Matt Moore. One of my favorite things to do is to target players who hit right in front of an elite hitter. If you were a pitcher, would you rather pitch to Chris Owings or Paul Goldschmidt? Owings should see some pretty nice pitches and he did pretty well against left-handed pitchers last season with a 0.348 wOBA in 116 plate appearances. On top of that, Moore really struggled with his control on the road last season, with a 4.19 BB/9 in 86 innings of work. If for some reason Owings is lower in the order than expected, utilize the new late-swap feature and pivot to Brandon Crawford at the same salary.
Outfielders
Hunter Pence (SF): $2,500 at ARI
Taijuan Walker was far from great in 2016, and now he will be pitching roughly half of his games in an extreme hitter’s ballpark. On top of that, he was a reverse-splits pitcher in 2016, allowing a 0.345 wOBA to right-handed hitters versus a 0.305 wOBA to left-handed hitters. Despite being banged up last season, Hunter Pence was solid with a 0.348 wOBA against righties in 278 plate appearances.
Andrew Toles (TB): $2,100 vs. SD
The Dodgers decided to use Andrew Toles in the leadoff spot against the Padres on Opening Day, and I believe he will be back in that spot tonight against the right-handed Trevor Cahill. Cahill was decent out of the bullpen over the past two seasons for the Cubs, but I don’t believe that success will transfer over to starting. Cahill has good enough stuff to fool hitters the first time through an order, but after that, hitters tend to catch onto him pretty quickly.
Joey Rickard (BAL): $2,000 vs. TOR
I expect to see Joey Rickard in the leadoff spot against the left-handed J.A. Happ when the Orioles’ lineup is released. Rickard was solid against lefties in 2016 as shown by his 0.370 wOBA and 0.181 ISO in 90 plate appearances. J.A. Happ isn’t someone to necessarily stack against in cash games, but we shouldn’t be afraid to target a minimum-priced hitter who is expected to hit in a premium spot of the order.
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Kaz is a correspondent at FantasyPros. To read more from Kaz, follow him @DraftStars_Kaz. You can find more of Kaz’s work at DraftStars.net.
