Yahoo DFS Baseball: Saturday Picks

Yahoo DFS Baseball: Saturday Picks

This article is part of our Yahoo DFS Baseball series.

PITCHER

Carlos Carrasco, CLE at CHW ($54):Corey Kluber had his fun at the expense of the White Sox on Friday and now it's Carrasco's turn. As a refresher, the White Sox have the second-worst wOBA against righties and fifth-worst K% against them. Just about any starter would be a good play against Chicago right now, but considering Carrasco has 19 strikeouts in just over 19 innings and a 2.33 ERA this season, he's a great play.

Chase Anderson, MIL vs. STL ($35): There are no great options after Carrasco when considering value for the salary, and when that is the case, you don't want to reach and spend high on a big name just because he's a big name. With that in mind, Anderson is off to a strong start this season, and the matchup is pretty good, as he'll face a Cardinals lineup that ranks in the bottom 10 in wOBA and K% against right-handed pitching.

Sign up for a Yahoo Daily Fantasy Baseball contest today

Free entry into MLB Yahoo Cup: $25K in prizes


CATCHER

James McCann, DET at MN ($13):Alex Avila got some attention earlier this week when he homered in consecutive games, but the other member of the catcher platoon for Detroit is actually having a better season. McCann hit his fourth home run of the season Friday against lefty Hector Santiago. Unsurprisingly, McCann was much better against lefties than righties last season, posting a .357 wOBA against lefties, a number that was .130 higher than against righties.

FIRST BASE

Freddie Freeman, ATL vs. PHI ($26):Jerad Eickhoff takes the hill for the Phillies, and though he's off to a strong start this season, he continues to struggle with lefties. Lefties posted a .347 wOBA against Eickhoff last year, and through three starts that number has held steady. Freeman is the best hitter in the Braves' lineup and he's also the best against righties, posting a .410 wOBA against them last year.

SECOND BASE

Ian Kinsler, DET at MN ($21):Adalberto Mejia takes the mound for the Twins in what will be his third major league start. Through two starts, he's posted a 4.35 ERA, which isn't horrible, but considering both were against the White Sox, you have to wonder if he has any good stuff. Detroit is much more capable of taking advantage of Mejia, so this could be a rough one for the rookie. Kinsler is the most likely to hit Mejia, as he has the best wOBA against lefties on the team.

THIRD BASE

Nolan Arenado, COL vs. SF ($27): Arenado is absolutely crushing lefties, posting a .781 wOBA against them this season. It's a small sample, but he's always been good against the lefties, so while that number is bound to drop, it might not fall until after this game. Matt Moore takes the mound for the Giants, and while he's off to a decent start this season, he continues to have trouble getting righties out.

SHORTSTOP

Carlos Correa, HOU at TB ($12): Correa is off to a poor start this season, which has caused his price to drop. He gets what looks to be a good matchup against Blake Snell, who's pitched well this season but allowed a .330 wOBA to righties last year. Correa, meanwhile, was 50 points better in wOBA against lefties last season.

OUTFIELD

Mike Trout, LAA vs. TOR ($26): The Angels face rookie Casey Lawrence, who has had a little success in the majors but not enough to think about fading Trout. I see this playing out one of two ways: the first is Trout takes advantage of Lawrence's mistakes and pounds him, or Lawrence is afraid to pitch to Trout and he racks up the walks and the stolen bases. Either way, he's going to get points.

Adam Jones, BAL vs. BOS ($17):Steven Wright takes the mound for the Red Sox and he'll again try to recapture last season's success against the Orioles. Wright only surrendered one run to the Rays on Monday, but he allowed nine hits, which indicates that his knuckleball is still not moving like he wants it to. Adam Jones is the only Oriole with more than 10 at bats and some success against Wright and, as we know, when dealing with a knuckleballer you should focus mainly on head-to-head numbers. Jones has two home runs in 11 at-bats against Wright.

Robbie Grossman, MN vs. DET ($17):Matt Boyd has managed to get through three starts without major damage, he's still having trouble with the righties. Batters posted a .341 wOBA against Boyd last year, and while that number is lower this year, there's still a long ways to go before we can believe he's better against righties than he was prior to this season. Robbie Grossman is a switch-hitter who has been better from the right side over the course of his career, posting a .344 wOBA against lefties last year, over 100 points higher than against righties.

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. Greg Vara plays in daily fantasy contests using the following accounts: FanDuel: lennykarl1, DraftKings: lennykarl1.
RotoWire Community
Join Our Subscriber-Only MLB Chat
Chat with our writers and other RotoWire MLB fans for all the pre-game info and in-game banter.
Join The Discussion
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Greg Vara
Vara is the lead golf writer at RotoWire. He was named the FSWA Golf Writer of the Year in 2005 and 2013. He also picks college football games against the spread in his "College Capper" article.
MLB FAAB Factor: More Than the NFL Draft Happening
MLB FAAB Factor: More Than the NFL Draft Happening
Mound Musings: Their Stock Is on the Rise
Mound Musings: Their Stock Is on the Rise
Los Angeles Dodgers-Washington Nationals, Expert MLB Picks for Thursday, April 25
Los Angeles Dodgers-Washington Nationals, Expert MLB Picks for Thursday, April 25
MLB Picks: PrizePicks Plays and Strategy for Thursday, April 25
MLB Picks: PrizePicks Plays and Strategy for Thursday, April 25
MLB DFS: DraftKings Plays and Strategy for Thursday, April 25
MLB DFS: DraftKings Plays and Strategy for Thursday, April 25
MLB DFS Picks: FanDuel Plays and Strategy for Thursday, April 25
MLB DFS Picks: FanDuel Plays and Strategy for Thursday, April 25