Yahoo DFS Baseball: Saturday Picks

Yahoo DFS Baseball: Saturday Picks

This article is part of our Yahoo DFS Baseball series.

Pitching aces dominate Saturday's slate, so of course I'm backing cheaper options that will hopefully produce as much. That allowed me to spend more on hitting, although I still recommend plenty of value options for those backing Chris Sale ($61) or Justin Verlander ($58).

PITCHER

Tyler Skaggs, LAA at BAL ($46): Skaggs has been surprisingly consistent for a mid-range pitcher and has hit 26 fantasy points in each of his last four starts. He went eight innings and struck out eight Royals last start and the Orioles are the only team in MLB that have worse numbers against southpaws in the past month. Baltimore may not strike out a ton, but a .095 ISO and .261 wOBA seem favorable enough.

Trevor Williams, PIT at SD ($32): Williams is the play if you want to go against everyone else. After a rough patch, he's back to where he was earlier in the season when he reached 14 fantasy points in his first six starts. He looked great in his most recent outings, going 13 innings and allowing only six hits with 13 strikeouts against the Diamondbacks and Brewers. That success should continue against the Padres, which remain near the bottom of charts with a 24.9 K%, .127 ISO and .290 wOBA against righties over the last month.

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CATCHER

Omar Narvaez, CWS at TEX ($11): Narvaez can only hit righties, so he should be behind the plate in this game. His .338 BABIP will be useful against Bartolo Colon, who should give up a minimum of a couple runs with his 4.72 ERA. Colon's .334 wOBA against righty bats is slightly better than last year's .381 mark, but it's still not good.

FIRST BASE

Yonder Alonso, CLE at OAK ($14):Edwin Jackson got past the Tigers for six innings in his first start of the season, but the Indians present a different challenge. Alonso is one of those challenges, with his .352 wOBA and nine homers against righties – in line with last year's .235 ISO. Jackson made 13 starts in 2017 and doesn't have much to show for it with a 4.51 xFIP against lefties.

SECOND BASE

Alen Hanson, SF at ARI ($14): Hanson provides excellent value for the Giants with a .379 BABIP in 83 plate appearances against righties and should get on base against Shelby Miller, who only made it 3.2 innings in his season debut against the Marlins. In his last year as a regular starter (2016), Miller sported a miserable .400 wOBA allowed to lefty bats.

THIRD BASE

Jose Ramirez, CLE at OAK ($25): Ramirez already has 20 homers and a .435 wOBA against righties, and could add to that total today. On the mound, Jackson has an ERA above five in each of the last two seasons (26 starts), with poor numbers against both sides of the plate. Considering the Indians have posted a .202 ISO and .341 wOBA against righty arms in the last month, Jackson will have trouble making it five innings.

SHORTSTOP

Addison Russell, CHC vs. MIN ($11): Russell comes at a nice price with a stout .370 BABIP against southpaws this season and a career .192 ISO. Adalberto Mejia is getting his first start of the year after having success in Triple-A, but it's hard to ignore what he did last year with a 5.28 xFIP and .350 wOBA allowed to righty bats.

OUTFIELD

Gorkys Hernandez, SF at ARI ($15): Hernandez has shown a little more power against righties, with seven homers this year and a career .328 BABIP. Miller was shelled against the Marlins in his only outing and slumped to a 4.49 xFIP against righties when he last started two years ago.

Teoscar Hernandez, TOR vs. DET ($14): Hernandez has been fairly consistent against both kinds of pitchers, with a .305 ISO and career .352 wOBA being the most intriguing numbers against lefty arms. Matthew Boyd looked like a legit starter for the first couple months, but some control issues have popped up and he's allowed 14 hits and 11 runs in seven innings over his last two starts. And Boyd's career 5.07 xFIP against righties remains a problem.

Ben Gamel, SEA vs. KC ($13): Gamel isn't a power hitter, but he knows how to get on base with a .398 BABIP against righties. He and the Mariners should find success against Jason Hammel, who has given up 15 hits, 10 runs and nine walks in his last two starts. It's been a rough season for Hammel, who has struggled with a 5.34 ERA and 5.34 xFIP against lefties.

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. Adam Zdroik plays in daily fantasy contests using the following accounts: FanDuel: zdroik, DraftKings: rotozdroik, Yahoo: StreakMaster.
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ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Adam Zdroik
Adam, a 2019, 2018 and 2017 Finalist for FSWA's Soccer Writer of the Year, is RotoWire's soccer editor. He also runs RotoWire's Bracketology, as well as writes on other various college basketball content. He has previously worked at ESPN and Sporting Kansas City, and he is a former Streak for the Cash winner and Michigan State graduate.
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