FantasyDraft MLB: Thursday Values

FantasyDraft MLB: Thursday Values

This article is part of our FantasyDraft MLB series.

PITCHER

Zach Davies, MIL vs. CHC ($15,200): Davies was lit up in his last outing and the Cubs have hit righties well, but I think there's a decent chance for a quality start here. In his previous three starts against the Cubs this year, Davies has gone 20.0 IP while giving up six runs. The Cubs also strike out a decent amount with a 23.9 K rate against righties in September. And while their wOBA is up at .340 this month, a lot of that has to do with the 39 runs scored in the Mets series and Davies is better than all of those pitchers they faced.

J.A. Happ, TOR vs. KC ($15,000): Between these two pitchers, at least one will be in for a quality start. Happ has reached double-digit fantasy points in his last 10 starts and has given up just six runs in his last four. The Royals have bad numbers against lefties for the majority of the season and sport a .299 wOBA against them since the beginning of August. I'm also choosing to ignore Kansas City's performance against Brett Anderson on Wednesday as Happ is at a different level.

INFIELD

J.J. Hardy, BAL vs. TB ($5,600): Since Tim Beckham got his wisdom teeth taken out, Hardy should be in the starting lineup again Thursday. He hasn't played much due to being on the DL for the last few months, but at this price, I'll take a gamble. A better stat is that Matt Andriese has given up 13 runs in his last three starts and has a much worse .392 wOBA against righties this season.

Freddie Freeman, ATL vs. WAS ($10,400): Freeman's numbers aren't as good as they were at a time, but he still has a solid .373 wOBA and .233 ISO against righties in his last 52 plate appearances. And while Tanner Roark is striking out a lot of guys in recent appearances, he has much worse numbers against lefties with a .354 wOBA allowed.

Nick Castellanos, DET vs. MIN ($8,400): The Tigers may lose most of their games, but Castellanos has had one of the hotter bats in the league having hit safely in his last 17 starts to go with three homers in the last seven. In his last 23 plate appearances against lefties, Castellanos has a .452 wOBA. As for Adalberto Mejia, he wasn't great in his first appearance since a biceps injury, giving up three runs in three innings against the Jays. Plus, he hasn't had a quality start in his last six tries.

OUTFIELD

Eddie Rosario, MIN at DET ($9,300): If you want to use the entire Twins roster, I wouldn't oppose it. Jordan Zimmermann has been better in recent outings, but better means five runs allowed in five innings. He's still allowed at least eight hits in his last five starts to go with 29 runs. Rosario has the best numbers for Minnesota against righties with a .507 wOBA and .541 ISO in his last 41 plate appearances.

Dexter Fowler, STL at CIN ($9,600): After a week out of the lineup, Fowler has returned without missing a beat with a homer in three-straight games. That should help against Homer Bailey, who still has iffy numbers for the season, despite some recent success. His 5.35 xFIP against lefties stands out and that will be problematic having given up 10 runs the last time he saw the Cardinals (Aug. 6).

Kevin Pillar, TOR vs. KC ($6,600): Pillar is one of the few bats that's hitting well for the Blue Jays with a solid .424 wOBA in his last 39 plate appearances against righties. They'll try and attack Jason Vargas early, who has just seven strikeouts in his last four outings to go with 16 earned runs.

UTILITY

Daniel Murphy, WAS at ATL ($9,600): This is a perfect spot to throw a little money at as Murphy is a great bat to use against R.A. Dickey. In addition to Murphy's two homers in nine career at-bats against Dickey, he has a .455 wOBA in his last 33 plate appearances against righties. Dickey just wants this season to end having allowed 16 runs in his last three starts to go with only eight strikeouts and eight walks.

Mitch Haniger, SEA vs. TEX ($7,500):Cole Hamels has calmed down a bit in his last couple starts, yet while he went 7.1 innings last outing, he also had five strikeouts compared to four walks. I still can't trust him, especially since Haniger is 4-of-5 against him this season. In his last 34 plate appearances against lefties, Haniger has a .457 wOBA and .367 ISO.

The author(s) of this article may play in daily fantasy contests including – but not limited to – games that they have provided recommendations or advice on in this article. In the course of playing in these games using their personal accounts, it's possible that they will use players in their lineups or other strategies that differ from the recommendations they have provided above. The recommendations in this article do not necessarily reflect the views of RotoWire. Adam Zdroik plays in daily fantasy contests using the following accounts: FanDuel: zdroik, DraftKings: rotozdroik, Yahoo: StreakMaster.
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ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Adam Zdroik
Adam, a 2019, 2018 and 2017 Finalist for FSWA's Soccer Writer of the Year, is RotoWire's soccer editor. He also runs RotoWire's Bracketology, as well as writes on other various college basketball content. He has previously worked at ESPN and Sporting Kansas City, and he is a former Streak for the Cash winner and Michigan State graduate.
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