MLB Daily Fantasy Helper: 8/27/13
We know that people play all sorts of fantasy platforms, not just from from our friends at StarStreet but on other platforms such as FanDuel, Draft Kings, and Fantasy Feud as well. So once again, we have four optimized rosters, all for you, the numberFire reader. One is for free here; the others can be found in our Premium section.
As always, the full tables for today's action are available at our Daily Fantasy Projections page. Make sure to check it out to see where the best values are for your team.
Our baseball projections are updated throughout the day, so make sure to come back to double-check your optimized rosters for any last-minute lineup changes. Since most action happens later in the day, we will be ignoring the early games (if there are any) and focusing solely on the late contests. That way, you can use and tinker with our optimized rosters throughout the day.
StarStreet Optimized Roster
| Player | Position | Projected FP | Cost | Value |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Yusmeiro Petit | RP | 21.63 | $18,000 | 1.20 |
| Alex Wood | SP | 26.57 | $17,000 | 1.56 |
| Miguel Cabrera | 3B | 12.86 | $10,000 | 1.29 |
| Adam Jones | CF | 16.97 | $6,700 | 2.53 |
| Michael Cuddyer | RF | 14.73 | $6,600 | 2.23 |
| Buster Posey | C | 12.93 | $6,400 | 2.02 |
| Paul Goldschmidt | 1B | 13.93 | $6,400 | 2.18 |
| Robinson Cano | 2B | 14.48 | $6,300 | 2.30 |
| Dexter Fowler | CF | 14.29 | $6,100 | 2.34 |
| Ian Desmond | SS | 12.6 | $5,700 | 2.21 |
| Brandon Belt | 1B | 13.71 | $4,900 | 2.80 |
Fantasy Feud, Draft Kings, and FanThrowdown Optimized Rosters
For the optimal rosters for the other main players, be sure to check out our brand new Daily Fantasy Optimized Rosters for our Premium members. We know that you're killing it with our picks; maybe now you'll help us continue to help you win each night, every night.
Access to the optimal rosters is immediate, and you'll have it constantly updated for the latest injury news and updates from around the league. The best news of all? For new subscribers, you can use the promo code WELCOME and get it 50% off what was already the reduced price. Think of the savings!
The Top Three Pitchers
Clayton Kershaw – Kershaw is leading the majors in ERA, and even though he’s got one Cy Young and another runner-up finish under his belt, he’s still managed to improve. He’s walking fewer batters this year than he ever has, and his groundball to flyball ratio is the best of his career. As if you needed any more reason to start the N.L.’s best pitcher, he’s facing the Cubs, who have scored the 10th most runs in the N.L. and are third-to-last in batting average. Plus, their two best hitters are lefties.
Alex Wood – Wood is part of a loaded N.L. rookie class that also features Jose Fernandez, Hyun-Jin Ryu, Tony Cingrani, Shelby Miller and Wood’s rotation-mate Julio Teheran. That’s practically an All-Star pitching staff right there. Wood’s put up a 2.50 ERA and an even better 2.25 FIP in 57.2 innings this year spanning seven starts and 15 relief appearances. In four August starts, Wood hasn’t allowed more than one run, hasn’t pitched fewer than six innings in a start, and is averaging 5.75 strikeouts per start.
Yusmeiro Petit – Petit has pitched all of 10 innings in the majors since 2009, but he’s getting the spot start tonight for San Francisco. However, in 15 AAA starts this year, Petit put up an excellent 9.34 strikeouts per nine innings and a stellar 7.00 K/BB ratio. That’s flat-out nuts. (For reference, Adam Wainwright is the only pitcher in the majors this year to post a K/BB above 7.0. It’s only been done four times in the last 10 years.) So Petit might be worth a cheap flier. He won’t cost much.
Top High-Priced Hitters
Miguel Cabrera – You already know that Miguel Cabrera is having the best season in baseball this year, and it isn’t even close. But how about historically? Here’s a fun tidbit: only seven players in the history of baseball have put up a wRC+ better than or equal to Cabrera’s 206 mark this year. Their names: Barry Bonds, Babe Ruth, Ted Williams, Micky Mantle, Lou Gehrig, Ty Cobb and Rogers Hornsby. So yeah. Cabera’s also facing Tommy Milone tonight, and Milone has given up 19 homer runs to righties while allowing them to slug .453 off him.
Adam Jones – If there’s one knock on Jones’s game, it’s that he doesn’t walk. Like, at all. Fortunately for daily fantasy players, OBP rarely counts for fantasy points. With that out of the way, Jones is an excellent source of power (27 home runs), average (.299) and is even good for some occasional steals (12). Tonight Jones is facing Felix Doubront, who is a solid pitcher, but has struggled against righties a bit in his career, allowing them to slug .427 off him.
Cost-Effective, Mid-Range Hitters
Ian Desmond – Desmond is quietly one of the best offensive options at shortstop. He trails only Troy Tulowitzki and Jhonny Peralta in wRC+, and Peralta is out for the rest of the year due to his suspension. Desmond’s 19 homers are third at the position and he’s also the only shortstop to put up at least 15 homers and 15 steals. (Heck, only one other guy, Jean Segura, has put up even 10 and 10.)
Brandon Belt – The #FreeBrandonBelt crowd has finally gotten their way these past couple years, and Belt is paying off big with a solid year. His 133 wRC+ is seventh in the majors, trailing Chris Davis, Joey Votto, Paul Goldschmidt, Edwin Encarnacion, Freddie Freeman and Allen Craig. Belt has been mashing righties this year, posting an .833 OPS against them. Tonight he gets Chad Bettis, owner of a 5.20 FIP, making his sixth big-league start.
