Fantasy Baseball Pickups with Upside-Sleeper Central-June 29

Thursday was a full day yesterday in the sports world with the Euro semi-final, the first round of Tiger’s tournament, and the NBA draft stealing attention from a fairly full slate of Major League Baseball. There were the usual mix of high-scoring and low-scoring games highlighted by late inning drama from Seattle to Denver to New York City.

In case you were tuned in to “upside” and “wingspan” saturated NBA draft and missed last night’s baseball, here’s your sleeper starting lineup for this Friday. These players all contributed yesterday and are owned in less than half of ESPN leagues (ownership percentages included). If you need help in your league, check these guys out and browse our archive for more ideas.

Sleeper Starting Lineup

C– Jeff Mathis – Tor: (0.0%) Mathis is the backup catcher for Toronto but hasn’t held much fantasy value over his career. Last night though, he went 4-4 against the Angels with a double, RBI, three runs scored, and his fourth home run of the year. He raised his average over 50 points from .183 to .234 and his slugging is all the way to .484 in 64 official at-bats. If J.P. Arencibia were to get injured, Mathis might be worth a look but until he gets regular time is difficult to count on.

1B– Casey McGehee – Pit: (2.4%) After cooling off for about a week, McGehee homered in a second straight game yesterday while driving in three and raising his average to .234. He now has five home runs on the year, all this month while driving in 16 of his 21 runs in the month of June. He’s a streaky power option if you need home runs and RBI from 1B and can sacrifice a little in average and consistency.

2B– Jeff Keppinger – TB: (1.8%) Although he went just 1-3 with a walk and a run scored yesterday, Keppinger remains one of the best pickup options at 2B or 3B and has played two games at 1B as well. He is hitting .327 on the year with two home runs, 12 RBI, and 12 runs in his 35 games for the Rays and is filling the middle of the Tampa lineup. He hasn’t attempted a steal on the year and doesn’t have elite power, but Keppinger can contribute with his average and OBP while giving you runs and RBI as well.

3B– Chris Nelson – Col: (23.0%) The Rockies put up 11 runs to beat the Nats in extra innings and Nelson went 3-6 with a double and a pair of RBI and runs scored. He’s raised his average to .275 while playing 2B and 3B everyday for the Rockies and has been on fire during the month of June with a triple slash of .317/.368/.619 while connecting on five home runs and driving in 13. Playing at Coors Field is always helpful, but Nelson has shown he has value in almost any format whether at home or on the road.

SS– Cliff Pennington – Oak: (1.1%) At least his one hit in his last seven games was his third home run of the year which he connected on last night against the Rangers. He’s been slumping again watching his average drop all the way to .206. He has value if you need cheap speed, and if he starts hitting even a little he could be a solid fill-in or bargain buy as he starts for Oakland virtually everyday.

OF– Tyler Colvin – Col: (0.8%) I don’t understand why he’s not more owned since Colvin has been a solid bat in all three outfield positions and at 1B for the Rockies. Yesterday he went 4-6 with a triple and a home run while scoring a run and driving in five. He raised his average to .309 on the season to go with his eight home runs, 29 RBI, and 20 runs scored. He’s a solid all-around option even though he doesn’t hit a ton of homers or steal a bunch of bases. If you have a batting average liability, someone like Colvin can help compensate and help your team average remain respectable.

OF– Dayan Viciedo – ChW: (29.0%) It appears that Viciedo has settled in as an exceptional streaky everyday hitter in the outfield for the White Sox. He got the big hit last night with a three-run home run in the ninth to give Chicago the win in Yankee Stadium in the opener of the four-game set between division leaders. He’s batting .254 on the year with 14 home runs and 37 RBI. His home runs and hits come in bunches. He struggled mightily to open the season, got red hot, and then cooled back down as of late. However, last night could be the start of another hot streak so look to add Viciedo if he can string together some more solid games. He’s a good pickup at least for the weekend in New York with their banged up rotation and hitter-friendly dimensions.

OF– David Murphy – Tex: (9.3%) After hitting a pair of home runs on Wednesday, Murphy had another solid game going 2-3 with a pair of RBI last night against Oakland. He had been struggling before his last couple games, but there’s an opportunity for him to earn more playing time and increase his value if he can continue to take advantage of the Rangers home-stand.

AL Starting Pitcher– Franklin Morales- Bos: (21.1%) Since entering the rotation, Morales has been a jolt in the arm for the Red Sox and a huge help for his fantasy owners as well. He went seven shutout innings last night in Seattle while allowing three hits and two walks and striking out seven. He got a no-decision in his duel with Felix Hernandez, but looks to be a solid pickup for your rotation going forward with a good lineup behind him and high strikout numbers so far in his three starts (24 in 18 innings).

NL Starting Pitcher– Andrew Cashner – SD: (3.3%) In a fill-in start for San Diego, Cashner was dazzling taking a no-hitter into the seventh before allowing a two-run homer and getting a no-decision in the Padres eventual win. He has the potential to be a solid starter especially at Petco and with his 100 mph stuff. Look for him to be a good spot starter pickup going forward if he can stick in the rotation. He’s made just two starts this year, but in his 29 appearances he has a 3.63 ERA and a 1.13 WHIP while striking out 43 and walking just 19. Yesterday his final line was 6.1 innings, two hits, two earned runs, one walk, and nine strikeouts.

Relief Pitcher– Joaquin Benoit – Det: (10.8%) The Tigers struggles can be attributed to a lot of factors, but Benoit has again been solid in his setup role for Detroit. He has 35 appearances on the year after yesterday’s clean inning and has pitched 35 innings allowing just seven earned runs for a 1.80 ERA while striking out 45 and leading the AL with 18 holds.