FanDuel MLB: Wednesday Value Plays

FanDuel MLB: Wednesday Value Plays

This article is part of our FanDuel MLB series.

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PITCHER

Jack Flaherty, STL vs MIA ($7,800): Flaherty is cheaper than most pitchers that end up being recommended, but there are a few reasons why he's a safe cash game play tonight. He's averaging over 33 fantasy points per start and has scored 37, 39 and 69 fantasy points in three of his six starts. Miami is a good matchup as they have the second-lowest wOBA (.281) against right-handed pitching while striking out at 23.9 percent of the time, the ninth-highest rate in the league. The more expensive pitchers tonight have small red flags, as Aaron Nola faces the Cubs in Chicago and Shohei Ohtani faces a Royals team that doesn't strike out.

GPP Fade: Eduardo Rodriguez, BOS vs DET ($8,100): Rodriguez has been fantastic over his previous three starts, striking out seven in each game en route to scores of 45, 38 and 44 fantasy points. However, the Tigers present a tough matchup for the southpaw tonight even with the game in Boston. Detroit has actually been very tough on lefties this season with a team wOBA of .341 (third highest) and a strikeout rate of 18.1 percent (second lowest). The return of Miguel Cabrera to the lineup should only help those stats, especially the wOBA.

Cheap GPP Consideration: Jon Gray, COL at CIN ($7,300): Gray's immense strikeout upside always makes him a GPP consideration even if he's at home. Tonight he doesn't need to worry about that, playing in Cincinnati, and he has a good matchup. The Reds' strikeout rate is around league average, but their .304 wOBA is the ninth-worst mark in the majors. Gray has a 25.1 percent strikeout rate and a 2.99 FIP on the road since the start of the 2017 season, showing he's been pretty dominant against opposing offenses when closer to sea level.

CATCHER/FIRST BASE

Matt Olson, OAK at TEX ($3,600): Olson has caught fire over the last week, posting 57.1 fantasy points in one game and homering in two others. Tonight's matchup is ideal, as he's hitting in Arlington and Bartolo Colon has looked like a 45-year-old over his last three starts. His low WHIP at home (1.11) has helped mask the 10 home runs (35 innings) that have led to a 5.11 ERA. Teammate Matt Joyce ($2,900) is another good option if he's in the A's lineup.

SECOND BASE

Jedd Gyorko, STL vs MIA ($2,600): Gyorko is off to a blazing start against lefties this season with a .544 wOBA. While that's unsustainable, it's worth noting he had a .402 wOBA against the handedness last season so there likely won't be significant regression. Wei-Yin Chen has a career .340 wOBA on the road against right-handed batters, and this season he's been really bad with a .510 mark. Teammate Marcell Ozuna ($3,500) also has a career .356 wOBA against left-handed pitching.

THIRD BASE

Miguel Sano, MIN vs CHW ($3,600): Sano's .215 batting average isn't going to turn heads, but his track record against left-handed pitching is excellent. He owns a career .364 wOBA and last season's .408 mark shows how much he's improved. With Hector Santiago giving up a .364 wOBA this season to right handed hitters, both Sano and teammate Brian Dozier ($4,100) have a good matchup.

SHORTSTOP

Xander Bogaerts, BOS vs DET ($4,200): It's not tough to recommend the highest-priced shortstop on the slate, especially with multiple factors working in his favor. Bogaerts has been especially good for his career against left-handed pitching (.364 wOBA) and that number goes up to .385 (.386 this season) when in Fenway. He comes into the game with at least 15.2 fantasy points in six of his last 11 contests. Blaine Hardy gave up a .408 wOBA to right-handed hitters last season, indicating he's a good matchup for Bogaerts.

OUTFIELD

Carlos Gonzalez, COL at CIN ($2,700): Gonzalez will likely be a chalky play tonight given his 38.4 fantasy-point effort last night and makes for a good cash game play. CarGo has a .972 OPS over his last 14 games and has raised his overall OPS 103 points in that span. He has a lifetime .384 wOBA against right-handed pitching, and Sal Romano has given up a .366 wOBA over the last two seasons.

Joey Gallo, TEX vs OAK ($3,100): Gallo is the prototypical GPP player, given that he's probably either going to put up a lot of fantasy points or get three or less. He had a .353 wOBA last season at home, almost exactly in line with his current .349 mark. Daniel Mengden has been solid so far this season but there's been too small of a sample to really figure out if he's going to be a reliable starting pitcher. His worst splits this season have also been on the road to left-handed hitters.

UTILITY

Greg Bird, NYY at TOR ($3,600): After an 0-for-4 performance in his first game off the DL, Bird has hit safely in each of his last seven games with three doubles, a triple and two home runs. He and Brett Gardner ($3,300) remain the most cost-effective pieces of the Yankees lineup given the lofty salaries of their teammates. They'll take on Sam Gaviglio in Rogers Centre, a pitcher who isn't a prospect and has thrown less than 100 innings at the big-league level.

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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