Daily Fantasy Baseball: Mariners’ Robinson Cano Thursday’s top early play
Owners playing in the early games may be discouraged to see so many aces take the hill. With names like Madison Bumgarner, Justin Verlander, Hyun-Jin Ryu and even lesser tier names like Alex Wood, R.A. Dickey and Danny Salazar, it could make selecting bats a difficult task.
Thankfully, this is where Tanner Scheppers comes into play.
Apr 15, 2014; Arlington, TX, USA; Seattle Mariners second baseman Robinson Cano (22) works out during batting practice prior to the game against the Texas Rangers at Globe Life Park in Arlington. Mandatory Credit: Matthew Emmons-USA TODAY Sports
Scheppers has been a wreck this season pitching to a 7.88 ERA and a 4.65 xFIP, all while allowing over a home run per nine innings. When you look even deeper it should only make you giddy to stack Seattle hitters. Scheppers has been even worse at home this season, giving up 12 runs in 11 innings, good for a 9.82 ERA. Those struggles should continue today, as Scheppers has shown no reason to believe he will come out today and shut down the Mariners.
In Draft Kings I am rolling out three Mariners:
Robinson Cano, $4,800
Brad Miller, $3,800
Abraham Almonte, $3,300
Originally I had Mike Zunino and Kyle Seager in also, but Zunino might be given the day off due to it being a day game after a night game. I decided to upgrade to Cano, who hopefully will have his break out game as a Mariner, while adding a cheap catcher with a high ceiling.
Rounding out the lineup:
Catcher: Gerald Laird, $2,300
Laird is starting today for the Braves and is 5-for-8 in his career against A.J. Burnett. Playing in Philly only increases his value.
First base: Prince Fielder, $4,300
I was flip flopping between Fielder and Encarnacion, but the stadiums ultimately served as a tie breaker for me.
Third base: Chris Johnson, $3,600
Johnson is 4-for-8 with a home run in his career against Burnett. Add in Burnett’s struggles this season and the fact that this game is in Philly and he becomes a great low priced value.
Outfield: Jose Bautista, $5,200
Apr 14, 2014; Arlington, TX, USA; Texas Rangers left fielder Shin-Soo Choo (17) leads off first base during the game against the Seattle Mariners at Globe Life Park in Arlington. Mandatory Credit: Kevin Jairaj-USA TODAY Sports
Bautista versus the unproven Kyle Gibson, who despite sporting a 1.59 ERA, has an xFIP of 5.58. If anyone can be the first player to take Gibson deep this season, it’s Joey Bats.
Outfield: Shin-Soo Choo, $4,800
There should be plenty of runs scored in this game and no one will benefit more than Choo.
Starting Pitcher: Alex Wood, $9,100
It’s always tough to trust a pitcher in Philly, but Wood has been lights out this season and will get a Phillies lineup that sports a lot of left handed batters.
Starting Pitcher: R.A. Dickey, $8,400
Pitching in a spacious ballpark, under a controlled climate? This could be the perfect storm for Dickey.
There you have it, my lineup for the early games. Good luck today and for more fantasy updates or to ask a question, make sure to follow me on twitter @MichaelFFlorio.