First off, a quick introduction, though if you don’t know what FanDuel is, well, you’re missing out. FanDuel is a site that offers daily fantasy sports games. Participants are given a chance every day to select new players, fill out a lineup and, most importantly, win some cash. If you choose poorly Monday you can come back Tuesday and try again. Easy as that. Click here to enter a $5 FanDuel contest that offers a $10,000 prize today!
As for what we’re going to be doing in this space: The goal here will be to direct your attention toward some players who you might not otherwise consider. If you’re here and reading this, then you already know that Mike Trout is really good. But when filling out a roster you can’t just pick out stars. You’ll blow your cap that way and get stuck praying to the baseball gods that a guy like Wilmer Flores actually gets a few hits. No, if you want to win, you have to take advantage of certain matchups — and in order to do that you have to know where to look. That’s what we’re here for. Below are three players to target and three to avoid this weekend.
3 players to target
Gerrit Cole, SP, Pirates: Cole gets to face the punchless Mets on Friday, and is only slotted at $9,400 on FanDuel, which makes him the best play of the weekend. For one, he’s been dominant all season. He’s got an ERA of 2.40 (and FIP of 2.41) and is striking out 9.8 batters per nine innings while walking just 2.4. Hitters have had trouble catching up to his 95 mph fastball all season, and his hard slider just gives them something else to think about. Thinking about additional pitches while at the plate is something the Mets struggle with.
In fact, right now they struggle with almost everything while at the plate. Only three teams have scored less runs than the Mets over the last 30 days, and only four have struck our more frequently. The team is really struggling with David Wright and Travis d’Arnaud out of the lineup. Until they come back, targeting pitchers facing the Mets is a great strategy.
Wilin Rosario, 1B, Rockies: Rosario has taken over first base duties in Colorado in place of the injured Justin Morneau. First off, the Rockies play the Giants in Colorado this weekend, where Rosario is slugging .609 this season. Since being recalled from AAA 10 days ago, the 26-year-old Rosario is .293 with a double, a triple and a home run. Not world-beating numbers, but considering he’s going for just $3,700, numbers you’ll certainly take.
Yadier Molina, C, Cardinals: Molina got the day off against the Mets on Thursday, which means he should be nice and rested for the weekend. He’s also been red hot this month — he hitting .382/.384/.394 in 71 May at-bats. Catcher is one of the weakest fantasy positions, which makes it a good one to go cheap. The difference between what Molina gives you at $2,300 and Evan Gattis (the second-most expensive catcher) does at $3,500 is miniscule. The red hot Molina should be your man all weekend.
3 players to avoid
Chris Archer, SP, Rays: Archer has been fantastic all season, which is why it will be tempting to break the bank for him on Friday, when he faces the struggling Athletics. So, why should you be avoiding him? Strikeouts, or, rather, Oakland’s propensity for avoiding them. The Athletics can’t score, but they also don’t strikeout very often, especially against righthanders (which Archers is). Oakland is whiffing in just 17 percent of its at-bats against righties, the fourth-lowest in baseball. Archer may shut them down, but don’t expect a lot of Ks from him. In FanDuel, where every point matters, the difference between your starters striking out six batters and and someone else’s striking out 10 can be all that’s needed to knock you out of the money slots. Archer will be tempting on Friday, but you should avoid him.
Joc Pederson, OF, Dodgers: If you haven’t been following Dodgers box scores over the past couple of weeks you’ve missed Pederson’s fall from Greatest Rookie Ever to Guy Who Shouldn’t Ever Be Getting At-Bats. In his last 12 games he’s hitting just .163/.194/.279. Also problematic: the Dodgers can’t seem to hit anymore. Only eight teams have scored less runs than Los Angeles over the past 14 days. So not only is Pederson struggling, but he’s also got very few chances to drive in and score runs. Until he and the Dodgers turn things around you want to stay away.
Hanley Ramirez, OF, Red Sox: Another player who got off to a red hot start but is currently having trouble just making contact with the ball. Here’s what you need to know. First, the Red Sox lineup currently stinks. No one has been worse offensively over the past couple of weeks. As for Ramirez himself, well, he’s hitting just .216/.231/.275 over his last 12 games. His power has seemingly been sapped by that shoulder injury he sustained early in the year which he only recently returned from. Avoid him all weekend.
Other notables
If you want to break the bank on a batter, Bryce Harper, who faces the Phillies this weekend, has go to be your man. He’s batting .393/.513/.967(!) in May. Gerrit Cole, mentioned above, will be facing Matt Harvey on Friday night, who is also a good play. The Pirates lineup has struggled all season and also, well, Harvey is just a lot of fun to root for. Giancarlo Stanton has four home runs over the past seven days. Yeah, he’s pretty good.
