DFS MLB Hitting Coach: April 16

I think the most interesting game for DFS Saturday is White Sox-Rays, so of course that game is not available on most slates. FantasyAces does not have that game on either slate, while it is only available on the full-day slate on FanDuel. DraftKings included that game on the early slate as well as the full-day, and as you will see below, I will probably have a lot of Rays in all of the lineups where they are available.

The day is split evenly between the early and late slate, so I have split my picks, as well. The easiest position to fill, in both slates, is outfield, so I am probably filling that position last. As a whole I like the hitters in the early slate better, though catcher is a notable exception.

CATCHER

EARLY SLATE

Left-handed batters slugged .411 against Chris Young last season, and Stephen Vogt had an .832 OPS against right-handed pitchers.

Kurt Suzuki is a .288 batter in his career against Jered Weaver, and while neither is the player he once was, that probably favors Suzuki more than it favors Weaver. Perhaps equally important, Suzuki  is quite cheap, and catcher is a good place to save money in the early slate.

LATE SLATE

A.J. Pierzynski is 7-for-15 with two home runs against Tom Koehler, and you cannot beat his price on FanDuel.

Jonathan Lucroy has a .362 career wOBA against left-handed pitching. He is the best way to get some exposure to Jonathon Niese, outside of maybe Ryan Braun.

FIRST BASE

EARLY SLATE

I probably should have more Cubs in my lineup, but there are just too many guys I like at other positions who cost less. The same is true at first

Albert Pujols is 13-for-35 with three home runs against Ricky Nolasco.

Adam Lind is 7-for-15 against CC Sabathia, and which makes Lind playable even if they drop him down in the order with a lefty on the mound.

Josh Tomlin has allowed 1.46 HR/9 in his career, including 1.78 in 10 starts last season. Lucas Duda is off to a slow start, but he has hit at least 27 home runs in two consecutive seasons, and he could easily get his first homer of the season Saturday.

LATE SLATE

Freddie Freeman is too good a hitter to cost so little against Tom Koehler. The rest of the position is pretty ugly in the night slate, which makes it even easier to roll with Freeman.

Paul Goldschmidt is 7-for-23 with three stolen bases against Andrew Cashner, and while Goldschmidt is worth considering anyway, I would especially like him if Derek Norris is catching for the Padres.

John Jaso is 11-for-26 over the last week, and he should lead off against Taylor Jungmann. Sign me up.

SECOND BASE

EARLY SLATE

Logan Forsythe is pretty much an automatic play against a weak lefty like John Danks. Forsythe had a .972 OPS against lefties last season.

Jed Lowrie is 4-for-10 in his career against Chris Young, and Young has struggled through two starts this season.

Neil Walker has been pretty streaky in his career, and it looks like he may be in a hot streak. He hit his second home run of the season Friday to extend his hitting streak to four games.

LATE SLATE

Kelby Tomlinson has a .367 career wOBA against left-handed pitchers. He has been starting against lefties, especially with Brandon Crawford ailing, and is a fine play when he is in the lineup.

Only five catchers allowed more stolen basses than A.J. Pierzynski last season, and I love Dee Gordon’s chances both to get on base and to steal one in this game. Gordon is 7-for-25 with two steals in his last five games.

THIRD BASE

EARLY SLATE

Yunel Escobar is 11-for-31 against Ricky Nolasco, and he will continue to have DFS value while he is batting leadoff.

Evan Longoria is a very nice value on FanDuel, but I would consider him on every site. He has a .384 career wOBA against left-handed pitchers.

Brett Lawrire has a give-game hitting streak and he is 4-for-7 in his career against Erasmo Ramirez. I really wish this game was more easily available.

Trevor Plouffe has six RBI in 14 at-bats against Jered Weaver. The Twins are impossible to trust despite what should be a fantastic matchup, and Plouffe is your best bet if you want some exposure to Weaver.

LATE SLATE

Jake Lamb is 4-for-11 with two walks against Andrew Cashner and 6-for-16 over the last week. His price is still quite low on FanDuel and FantasyAces.

Adrian Beltre has a .946 career OPS at Globe Life Park in Arlington, no matter what they are calling it these days. He is batting .333 with two home runs over the last week, and is more than good enough to jump all over Yovani Gallardo.

SHORTSTOP

EARLY SLATE

I don’t know how much longer Marcus Semien’s hot streak will last, but I suspect it is at least one more game. Chris Young hasn’t had a FIP under 4.5 since 2011, and Semien has four home runs over his current five-game hitting streak. Hopefully they will finally move him up in the order.

Javier Baez is dirt cheap on FanDuel and FantasyAces, but that will almost certainly change after he has played a couple of games. Baez has 10 home runs in 80 career games, while Christian Bergman has allowed 1.21 HR/9 in his career.

I had Tim Beckham penciled in here, but I prefer Luis Sardinas if the Mariners bat him second, as they did the last time they faced a lefty. Anyone batting that high has some value against CC Sabathia.

LATE SLATE

Alexi Amarista has two hits in three consecutive games.

Elvis Andrus has four runs scored and three RBI over his current four-game  hitting streak.

As you probably already figured out, the late slate is pretty ugly at shortstop, and I wouldn’t blame you at all for simply plugging in Carlos Correa and moving on. After all, Justin Verlander isn’t nearly as scary as he used to be.

OUTFIELD

EARLY SLATE

Kole Calhoun is 12-for-31 against Ricky Nolasco and 13-for-28 over his current eight-game hitting streak.

Daniel Nava is batting second against Ricky Nolasco, and he is a career .282/.377/.408 hitter against righties.

I could make an argument for Mike Trout, but I think Nelson Cruz is the best outfielder available in the early slate, if you can afford him.

As I have said earlier, I pretty much like all of the righties in the Tampa Bay lineup, but I give Steve Pearce a slight edge over Brandon Guyer and Desmond Jennings thanks to Pearce’s four-game hitting streak.

Separating the St. Louis outfielders is extremely difficult as well, especially because each one costs more or less depending on the site. That being said, Randal Grichuk is 6-for-14 with nine runs, six RBI and two homers over his last five games, so he is my pick.

LATE SLATE

Angel Pagan has been batting first or second against lefties, and for good reason. He batted .318 with a .358 OBP against lefties last season.

Ryan Braun is 5-for-16 with four walks against Jonathon Niese, and Braun is 6-for-18 over his last four games.

Nick Markakis is 6-for-11 against Tom Koehler, and he has more walks than strikeouts this season.

Starling Marte has at least two hits in seven of his last nine games, including a 3-for-5 effort Friday. Marte stole a base Friday against Jonathan Lucroy as well, and given Lucroy’s inability to limit base stealers, Marte has an excellent shot at another stolen base Saturday.