FanDuel MLB: Thursday Value Plays

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Updated on June 1, 2017 11:58AM EST

Pitcher

Adalberto Mejia, MIN at LAA ($6,100) – There aren't a lot of great pitching options tonight and in cash it's probably a good idea to pay up for Zack Greinke or Marco Estrada. However, Mejia makes for a good GPP play given his price and matchup. The Angels are a mess right now with Mike Trout out and Cameron Maybin banged up, as well. If Mejia gets 24 fantasy points (which he's done in three of his last four starts), he'll make value.

Catcher

Chris Iannetta, ARI at MIA ($2,800) – After a respectable (for a catcher) .331 wOBA against lefties last season, he's been way better this season with a .479 wOBA in 31 plate appearances. He's also heated up at the plate over the last two weeks with a 1.543 OPS.

First Base

Justin Bour, MIA vs ARI ($3,100) – This is going to be a contrarian pick given that Bour arguably has the toughest matchup tonight facing Greinke. Bour is coming off a ridiculous month where he hit 11 home runs, fueling his 1.110 OPS. In a small sample, Greinke's worst splits have come on the road against left-handed hitting (.323 wOBA).

Second Base

Devon Travis, TOR vs NYY ($3,300) – After a slow start, Travis has finally heated up and is probably sad to see the month of May gone. However, he should continue to hit for the rest of the season and found himself in the leadoff spot yesterday, where he hit a game-winning two-run home run late in the game. Travis has a .403 wOBA against lefties this season, which bodes well against CC Sabathia.

Shortstop

Deven Marrero, BOS at BAL ($2,100) – Marrero is a great punt play at a position that's ridiculously thin on a short slate of games. He has the righty-vs-lefty matchup in a good hitter's park against Wade Miley (more on him later). Marrero has at least 10 fantasy points in five of his last nine games including a crazy 47.9 fantasy points effort Tuesday, or a 22.8X game when it comes to value.

Third Base

Manny Machado, BAL vs BOS ($3,600) – There's really no logical explanation for Machado's slow start, and at some point there's going to be regression to the mean. Tonight, he'll get lefty Eduardo Rodriguez at home and that was a favorable split for Machado last season. He posted a .405 wOBA against southpaws at Camden Yards last year,.

Outfield

Joey Rickard, BAL vs BOS ($2,400) – Rickard usually finds himself hitting leadoff against lefties so he should be in that spot tonight. Last season he had a .370 wOBA against southpaws and that number sits at .322 in 2017. Eduardo Rodriguez isn't the best matchup, but given Rickard's success against southpaws in a hitter's park, he's in play tonight.

Chris Young, BOS at BAL ($2,400) – This is a really good price for a player who has notoriously been a lefty-killer. Young gets a matchup tonight against Miley, who is known as a soft-tossing lefty and gave up a .360 wOBA to right-handed hitters last season. Young has a career .364 wOBA against lefties and last season that number was even better at .422.

Yasmany Tomas, ARI at MIA ($3,600) – The usual suspects are in play tonight for the Diamondbacks against southpaw Jeff Locke. Along with Paul Goldschmidt and Chris Owings, Tomas makes a great play for someone who had a .460 wOBA against lefties last season. Locke is coming off the DL and gave up a .372 wOBA to right-handed hitters last season.

The author(s) of this article may play in daily fantasy contests including – but not limited to – games that they have provided recommendations or advice on in this article. In the course of playing in these games using their personal accounts, it's possible that they will use players in their lineups or other strategies that differ from the recommendations they have provided above. The recommendations in this article do not necessarily reflect the views of RotoWire. Kevin Payne plays in daily fantasy contests using the following accounts: Fanduel: kevinccp, Draft Kings: kevinccp, Yahoo: kevinccp.