Look for players that can hit for both average and power when building your daily fantasy baseball lineup today.
Value plays:
Ichiro Suzuki - Rarely is a high powered offense ignited from the bottom of the order, but Ichiro could very well do just that for the Bronx Bombers against Gavin Floyd. He owns a .385 career average against the White Sox righty with an “un-Ichiro” like .590 slugging percentage. Combine Ichiro’s past success with Floyd’s recent struggles (5.40 ERA and a .307 batting average against in August), and you’ve got yourself a 5 tool player who can help your fantasy baseball team in a multitude of ways.
Paul Konerko – With Ichiro we had an average hitter who could surprise with power, and Konerko provides us with the exact opposite in the same game. Typically a player you roster for his power potential, Konerko owns an impressive .357 career average against Freddy Garcia. The White Sox first basemen is batting 23 points higher at home this season, making him a safe bet to do some damage at home against an average at best starter. Paying for a nice average from Konerko doesn’t come at the loss of the elite power, as he holds a .786 slugging percentage against the Yankees righty.
Players to avoid:
Hunter Pence - The postseason hopes of the Giants more or less sit on the shoulders of their newest acquisition, as he is being asked to not only anchor the middle of the order, but also to pull the team through Melky Cabrera’s surprising suspension. While I trust Pence to help this lineup long term, he will not be much help against Clayton Kershaw tonight. The all star lefty has retired Pence 17 of 18 times, striking him out 5 times and never walking him. Kershaw’s ERA is 1.35 runs lower at home, and he gives up a home run once every 18.1 innings at home. The ceiling for Pence and his daily fantasy baseball owners is one hit, not the type of potential I am paying top dollar for.
Ryan Ludwick – The man is single handily carrying his Reds through the extended absence of Joey Votto, mashing 13 homes and raising his batting average 36 points since the beginning of July. The hot streak is nice, but that doesn’t change his past struggles against Roy Halladay (0/9 with 3 strikeouts). Examining Ludwick’s season a bit closer, you’ll notice that 64% of his homers this season have come at home, lowering the potential for a long ball tonight in Philadelphia. The Reds as a team have struck out more often than they have recorded a hit, making his run producing potential nearly non existent. Ludwick is a nice hitter, but not the type of player I trust to beat Roy Halladay, which is why he shouldn’t be on your roster in any daily fantasy baseball game.
Arizona Diamondbacks – Mark Buehrle is not the sexy name that you tend to avoid when looking at pitching matchups, but he has a way of limiting the fantasy baseball production of opposing lineups. At first glance, it appears to be a perfect matchup for the the DBacks, as they hold a .300 team batting average against the craft lefty. But with Willie Bloomquist on the shelf (back injury), the healthy Arizona players are batting a meager .232 against Buehrle. An astounding 80% of Diamondbacks with more than 3 at bats against the Marlins pitcher are batting .200 or lower. The numbers suggest a nice outing from Buehrle tonight, which spells trouble for anybody with a Diamondback on their roster.
Tags: baseball pick'em, daily fantasy baseball, Fantasy Baseball, Fantasy Baseball Games, fantasy baseball salary cap games, free fantasy baseball games
