This article is part of our FanDuel MLB series.
The All-Star break is over and it is time to get back to business. Here are some value play ideas to help you round out your roster on Sunday.
Starting Pitcher
Jesse Chavez ($8,200)
There is no shortage of quality arms to choose from Sunday. Chris Sale, Max Scherzer, Madison Bumgarner, Zach Greinke and Chris Archer are only a handful of the stud options that you can choose from. If you need to save a few bucks though, Chavez is a good option to do so. He struggles with left-handed batters, who have hit .280 against him with seven homers in 53 innings. The problem for Minnesota is they do not have any guys who really stand out as troublesome for Chavez. He has been tough on righties, and the Twins have a lot of right-handed bats. Joe Mauer is the biggest threat from the left side, but his power has not been great this season. Eddie Rosario, the free-swinging rookie, is really the only other guy that gives some concern. I think it is advisable to figure out a way to pay up for one of the top studs today, but as far as value options go, you can do much worse than taking a guy like Chavez.
Catcher
Josh Phegley ($2,800)
Phegley is an underrated hitter at the catcher position and tends to be very low owned. He has always hit left-handed pitching well, dating back to his minor league days. His time in the majors has been no exception, as he has a .385 wOBA with a .213 ISO so far in 2015. He faces Tommy Millone of the Twins, who has a .277 batting average against, with six home runs allowed in 44 innings to right-handed bats. The ballpark is not great, but the matchup data clearly favors Phegley, who should be hitting in the middle of the order.
First Base
Chris Davis ($3,500)
First base is always a tough spot to choose, but Davis stands out as having one of the best combinations of matchup, ballpark and price. He faces Justin Verlander, who had a good start last time out, but so far this year has allowed left-handed bats to hit .271 with four home runs in 15 innings. Davis already has 15 homers off right-handers this year and an ISO of .240. He is feast or famine, as his batting average has dipped this year, but his power upside is too good to ignore.
Second Base
Jimmy Paredes ($2,800)
The price on Paredes is another one that stands out as being too low. Paredes is not as big a home-run threat, as his ISO is a respectable .191, but he does have a .359 wOBA and has done his best work from the left side against right-handed pitching. If you do not buy into Verlander's sudden turn around then it is a good idea to take some of the underpriced Orioles bats and hope Verlander's last game was the fluke.
Shortstop
Brandon Crawford ($3,100)
Crawford is a very sneaky play because he is in a same handed matchup with lefty Patrick Corbin, who has allowed a high home-run rate to right-handed bats and a better batting average to them as well. Crawford is the rare left-handed bat that does very well against left-handed pitching, which is evidenced by his .393 wOBA and .229 ISO, both of which are elite level numbers. Crawford is eight for his last 18 with four runs scored and five RBI.
Third Base
Nolan Arenado ($4,900)
Third base is a position to spend up on Sunday. The two choices that really stand out are Arenado and Manny Machado. Both guys have some merit, but Arrenado gets the slight edge because faces Andrew Cashner, which should help keep ownership levels low. Cashner has been tougher on right-handed bats, but Arenado has been smashing right-handed pitching as well. He has a .401 wOBA with .338 ISO with over 20 home runs against right-handers this year. He faces a solid pitcher and is away from Coors with a really high price tag, so he will be very low owned. His stats point to this as a good spot for him, so paying up for him will allow you to put a high upside player at low ownership on your roster, and that could be the winning difference.
Outfield
Nelson Cruz ($3,400)
This is one of the easiest picks to make based on numbers. CC Sabathia is struggling big time against right-handed bats, allowing a .331 batting average with 18 home runs in 75 innings this year. Cruz is smashing left-handers this year, posting an eye popping .521 wOBA against them with a .403 ISO. On paper this is a no brainer with home-run potential written all over it. At only $3,400, the price is too good to ignore
Justin Upton ($2,900)
Upton has a really solid matchup that you can look to exploit, especially at only $2,900. He faces Kyle Kendrick, who is arguably the worst pitcher in the majors. Kendrick has allowed right-handed bats to hit .283 this year with 14 home runs in only 57 innings. Upton has done most of his damage against right-handed pitching as well, so this matchup is good for him. He holds a .359 wOBA to date with an ISO of .203. Even in a tough hitter's park, Upton has managed to put up some very respectable power numbers. Kendrick is always prone to blow ups, and Upton should be right in the middle of the action when it happens Sunday.
Charlie Blackmon ($4,700)
Blackmon is the third most expensive outfielder, above guys like Ryan Braun and J.D. Martinez, who are also in good spots, but Blackmon might be in the best spot of them all. He faces Andrew Cashner, who has allowed left-handed bats to hit .288 with 10 home runs in 46 innings this year. Blackmon has a .393 wOBA with an ISO of .206, so he is in line to add to his 12 homers on the year already based off those stats. Blackmon also has 24 stolen bases, so if he does not homer, he should be off to the races when he gets on base. Lastly, his price is high and most will not look his way because of the combination of price and name recognition of the opposing pitcher. That will leave him lower owned and in one of the best splits match ups on the entire slate. Lower-owned guys with his upside are what wins tournaments and Blackmon has that type of potential in this spot.
