4 Under-the-Radar Daily Fantasy Baseball Plays for 5/31/17
Alex Avila, C, Detroit Tigers
FanDuel Price: $3,000
Why He Will Go Overlooked:
Facing a struggling Kevin Gausman and his 5.06 SIERA, Gary Sanchez and his Yankee teammates are sure to be popular plays. Missing some time to start the year due to injury, Sanchez has come back nicely, posting a .340 wOBA so far.
A mid-range option who could see some run is Yadier Molina of the St. Louis Cardinals. Currently batting fourth in the lineup and priced at only $3,000, Molina has posted 20.0-plus FanDuel points in two of his last six outings.
One option who may not seem so obvious is Detroit Tigers catcher Alex Avila. The Tigers, currently underdogs as they face Ian Kennedy on the road, sport one of the lower implied team totals of the day at 4.36 runs, and they could see some inclement weather on the horizon.
Why You Should Use Him:
Like Molina, Avila is also swinging a red-hot stick, but his teammates, like J.D. Martinez and Miguel Cabrera, garner the lion's share of attention.
Over the last ten games, Avila has posted 9.0-plus FanDuel points six times, and he is averaging 10.7 FanDuel points per game this year.
He'll face Ian Kennedy, who has thrown the ball well but has some batted-ball data that may give left-handed batters an advantage. So far in 2017 against left-handed hitters, Kennedy has allowed a 38.5% hard-hit rate and a 47.7% fly-ball rate.
Oh, there's one not-so-small matter worth mentioning -- Avila is destroying right-handed pitching this year. His 63.6% hard-hit rate against righties leads all qualified hitters.
Avila's recent run of strong play and a quality matchup, assuming the weather holds off, makes him a very nice play with big upside potential.
