FanDuel MLB: Wednesday Value Plays

FanDuel MLB: Wednesday Value Plays

This article is part of our FanDuel MLB series.

Wednesday's DFS action starts with an early slate consisting of four games with 12:05 PM first pitches, leaving the main slate with only six games starting at 7:05 PM ET. There is no game at Coors Field and the only "stud" pitcher on the mound for the main slate is Rich Hill, as he takes on the new-look Brewers.

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PITCHER

Anibal Sanchez, ATL vs MIA ($8,500): It's hard to believe Sanchez is mentioned in this spot given that he finished last season with a 6.41 ERA. A move to the National League has done wonders for him and his home run tendencies, as he comes into the contest with a 3.00 ERA supported by a 1.09 WHIP. His numbers have been slightly better at home this season, where he's allowing only a .280 wOBA to opposing hitters and his ERA drops to 2.61. The Marlins are still a good team to pick on, as they have the fifth-worst wOBA (.301) while striking out at the 12th-highest rate (22.9 percent) against right-handed pitching. In six of his 14 starts this season Sanchez has at least 37 fantasy points, showing the type of upside he has Wednesday.

GPP Fade: Cole Hamels, CHC at PIT ($7,700): It seems that the pitchers traded to new teams have fared well in their debuts, particularly Nathan Eovaldi and J.A. Happ. While there hasn't been a correlation established there, owners could be using that thought process to roster Hamels. The veteran southpaw hasn't scored over 22 fantasy points in any of his last five games, though, and the Pirates are not a great matchup. Pittsburgh's .311 wOBA against lefties along with their 21.9 percent strikeout rate are both around league average, giving Hamels no added advantage, especially on the road.

Cheap GPP Consideration: Nick Kingham, PIT vs CHC ($8,300): Kingham is coming off his worst start of the season, and even though he'll be at home, the Cubs aren't a good matchup. For those two reasons it's hard to imagine Kingham will carry more than a five to 10 percent ownership rate in GPPs. The good news is his last start was likely a hiccup, as he's been pretty solid all season. Kingham has scored at least 20 fantasy points in every other start at home this season (five) and, coming off his other bad outing (zero fantasy points against the Dodgers), he put up a 40-point effort against the Phillies his next time out.

FIRST BASE/CATCHER

Freddie Freeman, ATL vs MIA ($4,200): Freeman comes with at the highest salary at the position tonight, which makes sense considering he's at home with a great matchup. He has a career .389 wOBA in Atlanta against right-handed pitching and will face off against Pablo Lopez, a rookie who hasn't pitched past the sixth inning in any of his five starts this season and has allowed at least four earned runs in three of those games. Using a Braves stack tonight sound like a good idea in GPPs and should even provide a solid floor in cash games.

SECOND BASE

Yoan Moncada, CWS vs KC ($3,500): This game features two struggling young pitchers, as Dylan Covey takes the mound for the White Sox and Jakob Junis toes the rubber for the Royals. Moncada should be back in his usual leadoff spot tonight against Junis and has a decent .332 wOBA this season against right-handed pitching. The allure to using Moncada is his speed/power combination, and he'll be in a good spot considering that Junis is giving up a .355 wOBA to left-handed hitters.

THIRD BASE

David Freese, PIT vs CHC ($2,500): Freese has been an auto-play recently whenever the Pirates are facing a lefty, especially at home. In those situations Freese typically occupies the cleanup spot and was up to a .354 wOBA before last night's 2-for-3 effort against Jon Lester. Hamels has allowed a .348 wOBA to opposing right-handed hitters this season.

SHORTSTOP

Paul DeJong, STL vs COL ($3,100): DeJong missed almost two months with a broken hand and has been back on the field for only a few weeks. He was a lefty killer last season with a .392 wOBA, albeit in only 88 plate appearances, and will get southpaw Kyle Freeland. Despite having Coors Field as his home park, Freeland has pitched better there than on the road the last two seasons and has struggled more against right-handed bats. The Pirates' Jordy Mercer ($2,200) is another option at the position if salary cap space is needed.

OUTFIELD

Carlos Gonzalez, COL at STL ($2,700): Charlie Blackmon ($3,900) is the better option here, but given the savings CarGo could provide excellent value. Gonzalez has a .364 wOBA this season against right-handed pitching, while Luke Weaver has allowed a .358 wOBA to opposing left-handed hitters. Expect Gonzalez to be in his usual cleanup spot, a good place to rack up the RBI against Weaver. Ryan McMahon ($2,200) is another Rockies option if you're looking to save money or stack.

Kole Calhoun, LAA at TB ($3,200): Calhoun continues to turn his season around for the Angels, homering Tuesday and firmly establishing himself as the leadoff man against right-handed pitching. Los Angeles will face Tyler Glasnow, who will be making his Rays debut and will be on a pitch count as he transitions from a relief role with the Pirates. After posting a .342 wOBA in the month of June against right-handed pitching, Calhoun was even better in July with a .577 mark. He's scored at least six fantasy points in his nine straight games, eclipsing 31.7 fantasy points in four of those contests.

UTILITY

Ryan O'Hearn, KC at CWS ($2,000): The lure to O'Hearn is that he's at the minimum price and has a really good matchup against the aforementioned Covey. Using him opens up cap space at other positions, yet there's some upside with him. O'Hearn had a .330 wOBA at Triple-A over the last two seasons with 29 home runs, so while he's not a big-name prospect, there is some pop in his bat. Covey is allowing a .339 wOBA this season to left-handed hitters, putting O'Hearn and teammate Lucas Duda ($2,600) in play. It doesn't hurt that O'Hearn hit his first big-league home run last night in Chicago against James Shields.

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.
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ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Kevin Payne
Kevin has worked for RotoWire over a decade and has covered basketball, baseball and football. A glutton for punishment, he roots for his hometown Bills, Sabres and the New York Yankees. You can follow him on Twitter @KCPayne26.
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