MLB Daily Fantasy Helper: Saturday 8/13/16
The beauty of daily fantasy baseball is that the top targets are different each and every day. Whether it's the right-handed catcher who destroys left-handed pitching or the mid-range hurler facing a depleted lineup, you're not going to find yourself using the same assets time after time.
While this breaks up the monotony, it can make it hard to decide which players are primed to succeed on a given day. We can help bridge that gap.
In addition to our custom optimal lineups, you can check out our batting and pitching heat maps, which show the pieces in the best spot to succeed on that slate. Put on the finishing touches with our games and lineups page to see who's hitting where and what the weather looks like, and you'll have yourself a snazzy-looking team to put up some big point totals.
If you need help getting started on that trek, here are some of the top options on the board today. This article is for the main slate, which starts at 7:05 PM EST and features 11 games.
Pitchers to Target
High-Priced Pitchers
Madison Bumgarner ($11,400 on FanDuel): Bumgarner has been a consistently superb DFS option this season, and he's scored at least 31 FanDuel points in 7 of his last 8 starts, including an 81-point outburst a month ago. He's always one of the top options whenever he's getting the ball, and that's the case tonight as Bumgarner is our top-ranked hurler for his home meeting with the Baltimore Orioles. Baltimore's implied total of 3.12 runs is the second-lowest mark of the slate, and Bumgarner's strikeout rate at AT&T Park -- which ranks 28th in park factor and 30th in home run factor -- is 29.5%. He's also holding hitters to a .221 wOBA in his home starts.
Jacob deGrom ($10,800): It's hard to go away from Bumgarner in cash games -- or any setting, really -- but deGrom lines up as a nice pivot. Unfortunately, he's not a massive discount from the San Francisco Giants' ace. DeGrom has a lovely home matchup with the San Diego Padres, who check in 26th in wOBA (.305) and 29th in strikeout rate (24.3%). The Friars' strikeout rate coupled with deGrom's ability to get whiffs -- he owns a 28.7% strikeout rate at Citi Field -- gives the New York Mets' righty a huge ceiling in this one. Citi Field ranks last in park factor, and San Diego's meager implied total of 2.9 runs is the day's lowest clip.
Value Pitcher
Reynaldo Lopez ($6,400): Bumgarner and deGrom figure to hog ownership tonight, but if you're looking for a contrarian tournament play, Lopez fits the bill. The Washington Nationals' rookie has flashed big-time ability through his first 8 2/3 innings, posting a 28.3% strikeout rate. Obviously, the sample size is minuscule, but he put up a 30.4% strikeout rate this year in 76 1/3 frames in Double-A. Other than his strikeout ability, which is backed by a stout 11.7% swinging-strike rate, Lopez has a really nice matchup working for him as the Nats host the Atlanta Braves. Atlanta ranks last in wOBA (.292), last in ISO (.119) and last in homers (78).
Hitters to Target
High-Priced Hitters
Charlie Blackmon ($4,000): Blackmon has been outstanding against right-handed pitchers, sporting a 38.9% hard-hit rate, 40.8% fly-ball rate and .388 wOBA. Tonight, he gets a road matchup against Jerad Eickhoff. Coors is Coors, but Blackmon actually has a better wOBA on the road (.388) than he does at home (.379). Citizens Bank Park is a very hitter-friendly environment, too, ranking first in home run factor. Blackmon tattooed three jacks Friday night, and he'll be in a nice situation to do damage again from his leadoff spot.
David Ortiz ($4,400): It'll take a serious investment, but Ortiz is our second-ranked bat for his home matchup with Arizona Diamondbacks' righty Archie Bradley. Putting Papi against Bradley at Fenway Park, which slots in second in park factor, is unfair. Ortiz has been lethal against right-handed pitching this year, mashing righties to the tune of a .444 wOBA with a 45.0% hard-hit rate and 46.9% fly-ball rate Bradley is giving up a .401 wOBA and 40.2% hard-hit rate to southpaws. Bradley's walk rate jumps to 13.0% away from home. Boston's through-the-roof implied total for this one is 5.59 runs, by far the highest of the slate.
Value Hitters
Travis Shaw ($2,700): If you're fine rolling chalk, Shaw is a nice way to get cheap access to the Boston Red Sox lineup. Shaw, a lefty, is sporting a .345 wOBA versus right-handers with a 38.5% hard-hit rate and 44.2% fly-ball rate. As we just mentioned, Bradley has stunk something fierce against left-handed hitters, and Boston's implied total is a silly 5.59 runs. Typically hitting sixth in the Red Sox's gaudy lineup, Shaw makes for an economical inclusion to a Boston stack.
Eddie Rosario ($2,700): After a poor start to the season, Rosario has been on fire over the second half. He posted a .359 wOBA in July, and he's following that up with a monster .390 wOBA this month. Rosario owns an eye-popping 53.1% hard-hit rate in August, and in all, he boasts a 40.3% hard-hit rate and .353 wOBA in the second half. The Minnesota Twins feature a tasty 4.72 implied total for their home matchup with Dillon Gee. Target Field ranks eighth in park factor, and the wind is blowing out.
