Eleven games decorate FantasyDraft’s DFS action on Tuesday night. In order to purchase the evening’s premier ace and some Coors Field exposure, gamers may want to give some attention to a surprisingly hot squad.
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Top SP: Charlie Morton ($21,500) vs. Los Angeles Angels
No brand-name aces grace Tuesday’s slate, but Charlie Morton is pitching like a top-shelf stud. Even if you’re waiting for the 0.72 ERA to soar, he’s still sporting a 2.52 FIP and 60.3 ground-ball % with 33 strikeouts and six walks. Only Max Scherzer, Dylan Bundy, and Patrick Corbin have exceeded his 15.9 swinging-strike % through four turns. Led by some Mike Trout fellow, the Angels are a pesky opponent with MLB’s third-lowest strikeout rate (18.7 %), so this recommendation is purely an endorsement of Morton on an evening with no surefire aces. At least he won’t have to pitch to Shohei Ohtani, who takes the mound against the surging Astros.
Honorable Mention: Kenta Maeda ($18,100) vs. MIA
Value SP: Jake Faria ($12,900) at Baltimore Orioles
Anyone willing to give Jake Faria a mulligan for one disastrous outing will find a bargain near the bottom of Tuesday’s pitching catalog. The popular preseason sleeper has allowed one run in each of his last two starts after relinquishing five walks and eight runs against the Red Sox on April 7. That one game still carries an unbearable stench over 2018’s 5.82 ERA and 1.59 WHIP. Generating as many line drives as grounders (13) with double the fly balls isn’t great either, but that’s why the 24-year-old only costs $12,900. One bad matchup has spoiled his April, but Faria now faces an Orioles offense that possesses the AL’s worst strikeout % and wOBA.
Honorable Mentions: Tanner Roark ($16,100) at SF; Luke Weaver ($14,900) vs. NYM
OF Khris Davis ($9,400) at Texas Rangers (LHP Cole Hamels)
Two weeks ago, Khris Davis was hitting .179/.298/.308. He has since gone 18-for-53 with five doubles and five home runs in 12 games. While his success against lefties has fluctuated considerably by year, he holds a career .349 wOBA against opposite-handed pitchers. Davis has taken Cole Hamels deep three times, and the 34-year-old has already served up seven home runs in five starts. Look for Oakland’s slugger to stay hot in Texas.
Honorable Mentions: Nolan Arenado ($10,700) vs. SD (Eric Lauer); Wil Myers ($9,400) at COL (Kyle Freeland); J.D. Martinez ($9,000) at TOR (J.A. Happ)
IF Trevor Story ($8,100) vs. San Diego Padres (Eric Lauer)
If there’s a time to use Trevor Story, it’s at home against an untested lefty. Despite his troublesome 32.6 strikeout %, the Rockies shortstop has still stockpiled five homers (four at Coors Field) and four steals. He has smacked 33 long balls in 130 career home games and flaunts a gaudy .418 wOBA against southpaws. A night after opening the series with a two-run bomb, his Rockies host a debuting Eric Lauer. The 2016 first-round pick draws an unenviable opening assignment, but some DFS players would rather exploit a bad pitcher (hey there, Kyle Freeland) over an unknown. That uncertainty could persuade some from pursuing a full Rockies stack, but Story is priced too well to fade.
Honorable Mentions: Jose Pirela ($8,400) at COL (Freeland); Christian Villanueva ($8,000) at COL (Freeland)
Value: IF Ryan Zimmerman ($7,500) at San Francisco Giants (LHP Ty Blach)
Wait, are batting averages not like golf scores, where lower numbers are better? Ryan Zimmerman is batting below the Mendoza Line (.195), but season-long and DFS players should not panic. The veteran first baseman enters Tuesday night with a 49.2 % hard-hit rate and .381 wOBA towering above his .279 wOBA. At least he has tallied two doubles and a homer in 25 plate appearances against lefties, padding his career slash line to .306/.385/.519. Ty Blach has posted a 4.10 ERA and 56.3 ground-ball %, but pitching to contact will eventually present some pitfalls for San Francisco’s 27-year-old southpaw.
Honorable Mentions: Matt Kemp ($7,300) vs. MIA (Dillon Peters); Corey Dickerson ($7,200) vs. DET (Jordan Zimmermann); Nomar Mazara ($6,500) vs. OAK (Andrew Triggs); Josh Bell ($6,600) vs. DET (Zimmermann)
Lineup Stack: Tampa Bay Rays at Baltimore Orioles (Alex Cobb)
Insert your best confused meme below. You can also ask if I meant to type “Padres” instead of “Rays,” as the former is the team playing at Coors. I did not, but that doesn’t mean I’m fading them and/or the Rockies. I just wanted to offer some cheap supplements to those high-priced hitters. After scoring 26 runs in three wins over Minnesota, Tampa Bay collides with Alex Cobb. The same Cobb who capitulated 20 hits and 15 runs (12 earned) in seven innings. I ensure you those numbers also are not typos. Cobb, who did not sign with Baltimore until March 20, has allowed 22 of 42 batters to reach base. He’s not very good right now, is what I’m trying to say. The Rays, meanwhile, are rolling. They’re also cheap. Denard Span, a leadoff hitter with a .371 OBP and platoon advantages, costs a mere $6,500. C.J. Cron, who homered three times over the weekend, has compiled two hits in five of the last six games. There isn’t a substantial hot-hand inflation on his $6,700 price tag. Daniel Robertson is available for $6,000 despite inflating his slash line to .318/.474/.523 with a four-hit Sunday. You might only want to play one of those bargains in cash contests, but using two would offer loads of flexibility elsewhere. It’s especially intriguing as a tournament mini-stack.
Honorable Mentions: Rockies vs. Padres (Lauer); Padres at Rockies (Freeland); Pirates vs. Tigers (Zimmermann)