CATCHERS:
Gary Sanchez (NYY vs TOR)
4 career HRs against Marco Estrada – The Yanks are primed for a big night with a few guys having a great history against Estrada. There should be plenty of ducks on the pond for Sanchez all night… ya know, if the other guys don’t homer too many times.
Buster Posey (SF @ LAA)
Great matchup against the lefty Andrew Heaney, who has allowed a wOBA of .359 over the course of his career to right-handed batters.
* Yadier Molina (STL vs CIN)
5-for-12, 2 XBH (1 HR), BB, K vs Brandon Finnegan
Brian McCann (HOU @ CHW)
McCann has gotten back on the good foot with 3 XBH (1 HR) over the last two games.
FIRST BASEMEN:
Abreu, Pujols and Votto will be reacquainted with some old friends tonight…
* Jose Abreu (CHW vs HOU) 14-for-35, 7 XBH (5 HR), 5 BB, 8 Ks vs Justin Verlander
* Albert Pujols (LAA vs SF) 7-for-19 (1.415ops), 4 XBH (3 HR), 5 BB, 0 Ks vs Jeff Samardzija
* Joey Votto (CIN @ STL) 13-for-34 (1.097ops), 6 XBH (1 HR), 5 BB, 1 K vs Michael Wacha
Carlos Santana (PHI vs PIT)
Santana’s hard-contact rate indicates his bad luck can turn around any day now. I’ve been watching all of his at-bats and he’s clearly seeing the ball well, drawing plenty of walks in the process. The Research Station is quite fond of him with all sorts of fancy analytics to back up his unluckiness… it’s only a matter of time, and that makes him incredibly valuable in GPPs when he finally does go off.
Pedro Alvarez (BAL vs CLE)
On a night where you likely need one of the top arms, Alvarez is severely underpriced for a guy hitting .290 on the young season. If he gets on base twice and comes around to score, job done. There’s added incentive here too, as Manny Machado has destroyed Trevor Bauer over the course of his career… he hits in the 3-hole, one spot ahead, so I’d expect Alvarez to see some hittable pitches in this spot.
Paul Goldschmidt (ARZ vs SD) Not cheap but he’s on a tear
Jose Martinez (STL vs CIN) Cards 2nd-best IRT, platoon advantage against the lefty Finnegan
Joey Gallo (TEX vs SEA)Always a HR threat, Felix has been much worse on the road
Logan Morrison (MIN @ TB) Goes back to TB, HR upside at a discount
Ryan Zimmerman (WSH @ LAD) 8-for-25, 2 XBH (1 HR), BB, 2 Ks vs Clayton Kershaw
Tyler Austin (NYY vs TOR) 2-for-3, 2 HR vs Marco Estrada
SECOND BASEMEN:
Javy Baez (CHC @ COL)
Baez is really seeing the ball well, going 6-for-14 with 4 XBH (1 HR), 6 RBI and 4 runs over the last three games. He’ll get the added benefit of playing in Coors Field tonight… that is, if the rain holds up.
Whit Merrifield (KC @ DET)
4-for-9, 2 XBH (1 HR) vs Daniel Norris – KC is poised for a big night offensively. Merrifield homered and drew two walks last night and this matchup could keep him rolling on the good foot.
Cesar Hernandez (PHI vs PIT)
3-for-8, 2 BB vs Ivan Nova – The price is starting to come down slowly and Hernandez has put up some huge games recently. I’m a lot more interested in Hoskins and Santana from the Phillies, but if Hernandez can get on base he’ll be destined for success as well.
THIRD BASEMEN:
Mike Moustakas (KC @ DET)
Moooooooose gets a lefty-lefty matchup, but it’s not one to be skeptical about… he has done just fine over the course of his career against lefties and Norris isn’t someone I’d ever worry about. Moose currently has a 10-game hitting streak with 8 XBH (4 HR), 11 RBI and 7 runs over that span.
Evan Longoria (SF @ LAA)
Another Giants right-handed bat getting the favorable matchup with Heaney. Longo had a streak of three-straight multi-hit games snapped last night, but it just seems like he’s more comfortable outside of AT&T Park where offense goes to die.
Chase Headley (SD @ ARZ)
Corey Spangenberg (SD @ ARZ)
Both guys are incredibly cheap, get the benefit of hitting at Chase Field and rate very highly on our Research Station. Good enough for me.
Miguel Andujar (NYY vs TOR)
After an excruciating start to the season, Andujar has rebounded nicely over these last three games going 6-for-12, all of those being extra-base hits (4 doubles, a triple and HR). Andujar is another nice salary-saving option if you’re paying all the way up for pitching… the Yanks have a nice IRT and Yankee Stadium is certainly a place where you want your bats.
SHORTSTOPS:
* Manny Machado (BAL vs CLE)
8-for-12, 5 XBH (3 HR), 3 BB, 2 Ks vs Trevor Bauer – Machado returns to Camden Yards in excellent form for a matchup that he’s completely dominated in the past. He homered twice yesterday at Detroit and he’s hit safely in all but one game over the last two weeks.
Didi Gregorius (NYY vs TOR)
3 career HR against Marco Estrada – Yet another piece to add to Yanks stacks this evening.
Alcides Escobar (KC @ DET)
8-for-16, 3 XBH (1 HR), BB, K vs Daniel Norris – It’s unfortunate that Escobar is batting 8th, but he could make for an interesting option as part of a low-owned Royals wrap-around stack.
OUTFIELDERS:
* Aaron Judge (NYY vs TOR)
* Giancarlo Stanton (NYY vs TOR)
– Judge: 7-for-17, 4 XBH (2 HR), 3 BB, 4 Ks vs Marco Estrada – Judge has a .500obp last 6 games.
– Stanton: 5-for-14, 5 XBH (3 HR), 6 Ks vs Marco Estrada
Mookie Betts (BOS @ OAK)
JD Martinez (BOS @ OAK)
– Betts: .604woba over the last 14 days… the man is on fire right now.
– Martinez: Highest DFSA Grade (99.3) of any player on tonight’s slate, about 7 points more than the 2nd-place guy Mookie Betts
Rhys Hoskins (PHI vs PIT)
Ivan Nova is getting absolutely clubbed by right-handed batters early on this season and Hoskins is certainly capable of adding to the pain. Hoskins is hitting .327 with 3 HR and 14 RBI this season… all the fancy analytical numbers are through the roof as well.
Tommy Pham (STL vs CIN)
5-for-10, 1 XBH, 4 BB, 2 Ks vs Brandon Finnegam – Pham is also 6-for-13, HR, 4 BB, 4 SB against left-handed pitching this season.
* Josh Reddick (HOU @ CHW)
8-for-25, 6 XBH (3 HR), 2 Ks vs James Shields – Redick has a whopping 85.8 DFSA Grade on the Research Station.
Nelson Cruz (SEA vs TEX)
Always deadly against left-handed pitching, and he gets one of the best hitting environments in Texas.
AJ Pollock (ARZ vs SD)
David Peralta (ARZ vs SD)
Priced affordably, the D-Backs are always a threat to go off when playing at home.
Andrew McCutchen (SF @ LAA)
Yet another Giants right-handed bat in a favorable spot against Heaney. I doubt many people will pay up for McCutchen, great move for GPPs.