This article is part of our FantasyDraft MLB series.
PITCHER
Stephen Strasburg, WAS at PHI ($20,400): Strasburg scored 23.55 fantasy points against the Phillies in a home start on April 14 and tallied 20.95 and 30.95 in two other starts as well. He's gone seven innings in all five trips to the mound and notched between eight and 10 strikeouts in three appearances, while the Phillies strike out against right-handed pitching at the seventh-highest clip (24.5 percent) in the majors.
Danny Salazar, CLE at KC ($19,500): There are several strong pitching options near the top pricing tier Friday, but Salazar draws a premium matchup against a Royals squad that sports the third-lowest wOBA (.283) against right-handed pitching. Salazar has scored over 20 fantasy points in three of his five starts and has between seven and 11 strikeouts in four of his five appearances. Kansas City also sports the lowest overall wOBA (.269) by a sizable margin and have few bats that can counter Salazar's overpowering stuff.
INFIELD
Ryan Zimmerman, WAS at PHI ($9,300): Zimmerman has a .486 batting average, .615 wOBA and 58.1 percent hard contact rate over his last nine games, along with a .507 wOBA and 45.2 percent hard contact rate versus right-handed pitching. Phillies rookie starter Nick Pivetta has already yielded a .583 wOBA and 62.5 percent hard contact rate in a small sample to righty bats, and improvement isn't likely to start with a matchup against a hitter as scalding hot as Zimmerman.
Kendrys Morales, TOR at TB ($6,600): Morales has been on the wrong side of luck over his last 10 games, as a solid 18.2 percent line drive rate and 30.3 percent hard contact rate has been countered by a .188 BABIP. He could be primed for a breakout despite the tough matchup against Chris Archer, who he's battered for a .591 batting average, four doubles, two homers and six RBI over 23 career plate appearances. Additionally, despite much more success against southpaws, Morales seems due for some success against righties, considering the 23.1 percent line drive rate and 41.5 percent hard contact rate (including 48.8 percent on the road) he's amassed against that handedness.
Tim Beckham, TB vs. TOR ($5,600): Beckham's pop has been a revelation, and he's now sporting a 47.4 percent hard contact rate versus southpaws, along with a .323 wOBA. He also boasts the third-highest hard contact rate (65.2 percent) in the majors over the last 10 days, along with a .475 wOBA. Meanwhile, Jays starter Francisco Liriano has surrendered a .346 wOBA to right-handed hitters, including a .503 wOBA and 9.39 xFIP on the road. Additionally, when Liriano exits, Beckham will take aim at a Jays bullpen that's tied with the Angels for most homers (11) allowed to right-handed hitters.
OUTFIELD
David Peralta, ARI at COL ($9,200): Rockies starter German Marquez has surrendered a .388 wOBA to left-handed hitters in a small 25-batter sample this season, and a nearly identical .390 figure over the 76 lefty bats he's faced in his career. Meanwhile, Peralta is already decimating right-handed pitching, posting a .347 batting average, three homers, .399 wOBA and 45.0 percent hard contact rate. Eventhough his home/road splits against righties markedly favor the former, Coors Field has proven to be an exception for Peralta, as he's slashed .362/.388/.468 in 49 plate appearances there over the last three seasons.
Miguel Sano, MIN vs. BOS ($8,100): Sano has been the talk of the American League, and he's tied with the Tigers' Nick Castellanos for the highest percentage of hard contact (62.5) in the league. He's also posting a .333 batting average and .422 wOBA against lefties, with those figures rising to .364 and .536, respectively, when facing them at Target Field. Red Sox starter Eduardo Rodriguez has given up a 37.5 percent hard contact rate to right-handed hitters on the road, while Sano has eclipsed 20.00 fantasy points in four of the last seven games.
Lonnie Chisenhall, CLE at KC ($6,000): Chisenhall is cheap for a matchup against the fading Jason Hammel, who's surrendered a .343 wOBA and 6.52 xFIP to right-handed hitters, along with a 29.2 percent line drive rate and 40.0 percent hard contact rate to them at home. Chisenhall has a .357 wOBA against right-handed pitching, along with a 33.3 percent hard contact rate versus them on the road.
UTILITY
Manny Machado, BAL vs. CWS ($9,600): Machado has three homers over the last four games and a 60.9 percent hard contact rate in his last seven. He also has a .363 wOBA at home and .365 figure and 40.9 percent hard contact rate against right-handed pitching there. Meanwhile, White Sox starter Miguel Gonzalez has been vulnerable to righty bats on the road, yielding a .384 wOBA, 5.85 xFIP and 32.4 percent hard contact rate.
Michael Brantley, CLE at KC ($8,400): Royals starter Jason Hammel's struggles against left-handed hitters were detailed earlier, and Brantley is pounding righties to the tune of a .310 average, four homers, a .400 wOBA, and 52.1 percent hard contact rate, with the latter figure an even better 53.9 percent when facing them on the road.
