Daily Dime: Paying up for outfielders while going cheap elsewhere
Here are 10 DFS recommendations for Saturday’s slate on Yahoo but be sure to double-check the weather and lineups before first pitch approaches.
Carlos Gonzalez, OF, vs. SF (Peavy), $23: He has 23 homers over his 41 games, which is pretty much unheard of. Gonzalez is at home Saturday and has been the No. 1 fantasy hitter since the start of July, so I can’t see not using him no matter the price (and he’s not even the most expensive hitter on the slate). It’s tough to ask him to keep up this pace (CarGo has five homers and 12 RBI over his last three games), but it would be a Gambler’s Fallacy to fade him right now.
Gio Gonzalez, SP, vs. Atl (Miller), $42: His K rate has fallen dramatically this season compared to the last three years, but Gonzalez owns a 3.32 ERA at home and is facing an Atlanta team that’s scored by far the fewest runs in baseball. As a result, the Nationals are the second biggest favorites (-205) on the board Saturday.
Lance McCullers, SP, vs. Min (Santana), $36: The rookie has a 1.65 ERA and 1.00 WHIP with 48 strikeouts over 49.0 innings at home this season. His 10.1 SwStr% suggests this is a legit starter in the making, and the price is relatively cheap here considering the Astros are heavy favorites (-185).
John Jaso, C, at NYY (Eovaldi), $11: He mostly plays DH, which makes him one of the safer catchers to start, especially on a day when many games are early. Jaso owns a .373 OBP on the year and will be hitting in a park Saturday that’s boosted home runs by 29% for LHB over the last three seasons, which is an American League high.
Darin Ruf, 1B, at Bos (Miley), $7: He’s hitting .377/.438/.623 against southpaws this season and is the cheapest first baseman on the board Saturday.
Kelby Tomlinson, 2B, at Col (Bettis), $7: I don’t buy into Tomlinson’s .316 BA or .381 OBP as even close to sustainable, but as the cheapest second baseman playing in Coors Field, he looks like a bargain.
Alex Rodriguez, 3B, vs. TB (Moore), $13: He has a 1.016 OPS against lefties and has had success against Matt Moore during his brief career against him. For someone with 27 homers, 72 runs scored and 75 RBI, this price tag seems cheap at a not deep position.
Troy Tulowitzki, SS, vs. Bal (Wright), $17: He’s continued to struggle since joining Toronto, but he’s still relatively priced here considering how thin shortstop is, and Tulowitzki is hitting in MLB’s best lineup while facing a pitcher who owns a career 4.99 ERA.
Charlie Blackmon, OF, vs. SF (Peavy), $18: He has the platoon advantage, is hitting in Coors Field and isn’t a top-10 priced outfielder.
Mike Trout, OF, vs. Tex (Holland), $21: He hasn’t been his usual self since the end of July, but Trout has picked it up of late and has had a lot of success when facing Derek Holland throughout his career, if you’re into BvP. Going cheap at other positions allows us to load up in the outfield here (CarGo, Blackmon and Trout), which gives pretty good upside.
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