MLB

5 Daily Fantasy Baseball Value Plays for 4/7/16

Jason Schandl  —  @JasonSchandl Apr 7th, 2016
A pair of Astros lefties are in a great spot against Nathan Eovaldi and the Yankees today. Where else should you look for big time fantasy value?

Building daily fantasy baseball lineups can be intimidating. On any given slate, you have a massive number of options in front of you and a ton of factors to consider.

We're here to help take some of that burden off and break down some hitters who you can slot into your lineup for nice and cheap, while still being well-positioned to provide you with solid fantasy production.

Let's take a look at where we can find value on today's slate.

Carlos Santana, 1B, Cleveland Indians

FanDuel Price: $2,900

Carlos Santana draws a pretty nice matchup against the Red Sox in Cleveland today.

Boston's starter, Joe Kelly, is one of the weaker pitchers on today's slate. His career 4.24 SIERA is tied for the third-worst mark of the day, and he's weakest against lefties, allowing a .326 wOBA with a 15.9 percent strikeout rate.

A switch hitter, Santana does his best work against right-handed pitching, with a career .342 wOBA, 41.4 percent fly ball rate and .197 ISO.

While Cleveland's Progressive Field isn't among the more hitter-friendly parks in the league, production there has been skewed more heavily towards left-handed hitters than any other park in the league over the past five years, giving an added bonus to Santana's already favorable matchup.

Pedro Alvarez, 1B, Baltimore Orioles

FanDuel Price: $2,800

I may be starting to sound like a broken record, but once again I'm high on Pedro Alvarez. He's up against a fairly weak pitcher in Phil Hughes, he excels against righties, the Orioles have the second-highest implied total of the day, and he's in the left-friendly Camden Yards.

Hughes is coming off of a down year in 2015, when he posted a 4.39 SIERA and allowed 1.68 home runs per nine with one of the lowest strikeout rates (14.4 percent) of his career.

Alvarez has a career .340 wOBA and .228 ISO against righties. He strikes out more often than you might like to see, with a 27.1 percent strikeout rate, but against Hughes' low strikeout rate and with major upside in the form of home run potential, Alvarez is in a great spot here.

Preston Tucker, OF, Houston Astros

FanDuel Price: $2,400

Preston Tucker is the first of two Astros' outfielders I'll be targeting against Nathan Eovaldi and the Yankees today.

Eovaldi has an uninspiring 4.24 career SIERA. His numbers are much worse against left-handed hitters: a .340 wOBA with a 15.5 percent strikeout rate. While he benefits from pitching at home today, Yankee Stadium doesn't do him any favors, and it's seen the fourth-most home runs of any ballpark in the last five years.

Tucker's a guy more than capable of taking advantage of a favorable spot for home runs. He posted an impressive .349 wOBA and .241 ISO against right-handed pitchers in his rookie campaign last season.

Colby Rasmus, OF, Houston Astros

FanDuel Price: $3,000

Another lefty slugger against Eovaldi, Colby Rasmus has a lot of the same things going for him as Tucker.

Eovaldi's .340 wOBA and 15.5 strikeout rate against lefties are obviously just as applicable when talking about Rasmus, as is the hitter-friendly ballpark.

Rasmus sports a career .338 wOBA and .212 ISO against right-handed pitchers and is coming off a 2015 season in which he posted a .339 wOBA (the third-best of his career) and a career-high .236 ISO. He has a 46.0 percent fly ball rate through his career, and with this favorable matchup, Rasmus offers strong home run upside.

Adam Eaton, OF, Chicago White Sox

FanDuel Price: $3,200

While Rubby De La Rosa is getting a lot of attention as a pitcher to attack today, Kendall Graveman may be the worst starter on the slate, with a career 4.32 SIERA that is higher than any other starter's, while his 15.6 percent strikeout rate is the lowest. He also allows 1.12 home runs per nine innings.

Graveman puts up his worst numbers against lefties, allowing a .322 wOBA and sporting an ugly 14.7 percent strikeout rate.

Adam Eaton is well positioned to take advantage of this, with a reasonable price tag and hitting for a career .345 wOBA and .146 ISO against right-handed pitchers. Last year was his best from the plate since the small sample we saw in his rookie year, and he should be able to give Graveman a hard time today.