There are 11 games on the main slate for Monday, and there’s a little bit of everything in terms of the matchups and available players. Weather could play a role in up to three games, so be sure to monitor this as the day rolls along. Let’s take a look at a tournament lineup for FanDuel.
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Pitcher
Clayton Kershaw (LAD): $12,500 vs. NYM
Beginning with Kershaw leaves you with an average of just $2,813 per player left to construct your roster, but I think there’s enough value to squeeze out of tonight’s player pool to justify using the star pitcher. The matchup against the Mets is a plus one, as they rank 23rd in wRC+ against left-handed pitching, and 29th over the last 30 days. Their strikeout rate against lefties is also elevated as of late (24.4%), which gives Kershaw a boost. He continues to do an incredible job in the run prevention target, and he should be in line to further that success tonight. The Mets have an implied run total of just 2.43, with Kershaw currently a massive -290 home favorite. Locking in the best pitcher in baseball makes plenty of sense.
Other Notables
- Corey Kluber (CLE): $10,300 @ BAL (GPP)
- Jon Lester (CHC): $9,900 vs. SD
- Gerrit Cole (PIT): $8,300 @ MIL (GPP)
- A. Dickey (ATL): $6,700 vs. SF (risky GPP; weather risk)
Catcher
Willson Contreras (CHC): $2,400 vs. SD
Contreras will hold the platoon advantage over Clayton Richard this evening, and he provides cheap access to an offense that has had great success against lefties this season. He doesn’t have eye-popping statistics against lefties, but a .359 wOBA/.176 ISO/122 wRC+ from Contreras is good enough to justify this low tag, especially if he helps you roster Clayton Kershaw.
Other Notables
- Buster Posey (SF): $3,700 @ ATL
- Yasmani Grandal (LAD): $3,000 vs. NYM (GPP)
First Base
Matt Adams (ATL): $3,500 vs. SF
Johnny Cueto is not typically someone we like to pick on, but he’s been plagued by the long ball this season, and I don’t mind targeting that weakness with Adams this evening. Cueto has allowed nine home runs in 49.2 IP to lefties this season, and his hard minus soft contact rate (22.1%) suggests he’s not fooling many batters. His line drive rate to left-handed hitters is also up (26.5%), and I think this presents a great opportunity to target Adams in tournaments as a result.
Other Notables
- Miguel Cabrera (DET): $4,300 @ SEA
- Eric Thames (MIL): $3,800 vs. PIT (GPP)
- Joey Gallo (TEX): $3,800 vs. TOR (GPP)
- Edwin Encarnacion (CLE): $3,700 @ BAL (GPP)
- Matt Adams (ATL): $2,400 @ WAS (risky GPP)
Second Base
Joe Panik (SF): $2,800 @ ATL
Panik rolls into Atlanta riding a strong first half of June, and he’s positioned to continue his success this evening against R.A. Dickey. Since Mat 31st, Panik has hit safely in 13 out of 14 games, including multi-hit outings in six of those contests. Dickey has allowed a .351 wOBA and six home runs to lefties in 35 IP this season, which is a bit worse than he’s been over the last two seasons. The Giants have a healthy implied run total, and Panik is a great way to get exposure to that, while also exploiting a soft price tag.
Other Notables
- Jose Altuve (HOU): $4,300 @ OAK
- Rougned Odor (TEX): $3,600 vs. TOR (GPP)
- Dee Gordon (MIA): $3,200 vs. WAS (GPP)
Third Base
Logan Forsythe (LAD): $2,200 vs. NYM
Two games obviously don’t mean a whole lot when a hitter has struggled as bad as Forsythe, but it’s at least a step in the right direction. Forsythe collected three hits in 10 at-bats over the weekend, including a home run yesterday, so here’s to hoping he can continue clawing his way out of a massive funk. There’s obviously plenty of risk involved in using a player that’s struggled as much as Forsythe, but I’m willing to roll the dice at near minimum pricing.
Other Notables
- Jose Ramirez (CLE): $4,000 @ BAL (GPP)
- Josh Donaldson (TOR): $3,900 @ TEX
- Kris Bryant (CHC): $3,800 vs. SD
Shortstop
Troy Tulowitzki (TOR): $2,700 @ TEX
The Blue Jays have an implied team total of 5.51 runs right now, which shows little faith that Austin Bibens-Dirkx can continue to find success. A glance at his peripheral statistics supports that notion, as he carries an unsustainable .189 BABIP into this matchup and an 83.3% LOB rate. A low strikeout pitcher (4.74 K/9) typically isn’t able to strand runners at that high of a rate, and with an xFIP over two full runs higher than his actual ERA, the wheels could fall off soon. Tulowitzki isn’t doing anything special by any means, but he is a cheap way to access an offense with a high run total.
Other Notables
- Trea Turner (WAS): $4,300 @ MIA (GPP)
- Carlos Correa (HOU): $4,300 @ OAK
- Corey Seager (LAD): $3,700 vs. NYM
- Tim Beckham (TB): $3,200 vs. CIN (GPP)
Outfielders
Matt Kemp (ATL): $3,200 vs. SF
I picked on Johnny Cueto a bit earlier with a left-handed hitter, but he’s not fared much better against right-handers either this season. He’s allowing a .345 wOBA and has served up seven home runs in 37 IP. His hard minus soft contact rate (19.6%) is just as troublesome. Cueto’s line drive rate is elevated as well (25.9%), so there’s nothing wrong with picking a few spots against him. Kemp returned to the lineup yesterday, so assuming there are no setbacks with his hamstring, he should be good to go this evening. Kemp has had success against Cueto in the past, as he’s posted a .353 AVG in 34 at-bats to go along with three home runs.
Billy Hamilton (CIN): $2,800 @ TB
Hamilton finally broke a long drought of going without a stolen base yesterday, and he’s riding a modest four-game hit streak into tonight’s game. Speed is everything to Hamilton’s value, and with him priced under $3,000, I think this presents a good buying opportunity in tournaments. He has multiple stolen base upside on any given night, and this could be one of those evenings if he gets on base.
Mallex Smith (TB): $2,600 vs. CIN
Smith is another speedster whose value is derived from getting on base and stealing, and he’s got a great chance to do that atop a dangerous Tampa Bay lineup. Scott Feldman is about as mediocre as they come in terms of starting pitchers, and with him being vulnerable to lefties, Smith should be in position to produce tonight.
Other Notables
- Bryce Harper (WAS): $4,600 @ MIA (GPP)
- George Springer (HOU): $4,300 @ OAK (GPP)
- Shin-Soo Choo (TEX): $4,300 vs. TOR
- Cody Bellinger (LAD): $4,100 vs. NYM (GPP)
- Nelson Cruz (SEA): $4,100 vs. DET
- Corey Dickerson (TB): $3,800 vs. CIN
- Nomar Mazara (TEX): $3,700 vs. TOR (GPP)
My Lineup
- SP – Clayton Kershaw (LAD): $12,500 vs. NYM
- C – Willson Contreras (CHC): $2,400 vs. SD
- 1B – Matt Adams (ATL): $3,500 vs. SF
- 2B – Joe Panik (SF): $2,800 @ ATL
- 3B – Logan Forsythe (LAD): $2,200 vs. NYM
- SS – Troy Tulowitzki (TOR): $2,700 @ TEX
- OF – Matt Kemp (ATL): $3,200 vs. SF
- OF – Billy Hamilton (CIN): $2,800 @ TB
- OF – Mallex Smith (TB): $2,600 vs. CIN
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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.
