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MLB DFS: The Stud and Steal of the Day 7/22

By Allan Morancie

Apr 19, 2016; Miami, FL, USA; Washington Nationals right fielder Bryce Harper (34) watches as he hits a grand slam during the seventh inning against the Miami Marlins at Marlins Park. Mandatory Credit: Steve Mitchell-USA TODAY Sports
Apr 19, 2016; Miami, FL, USA; Washington Nationals right fielder Bryce Harper (34) watches as he hits a grand slam during the seventh inning against the Miami Marlins at Marlins Park. Mandatory Credit: Steve Mitchell-USA TODAY Sports /
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Jul 16, 2016; Washington, DC, USA; Washington Nationals right fielder
Jul 16, 2016; Washington, DC, USA; Washington Nationals right fielder /

Welcome Back!

After a brief hiatus because of the all-star break, we’re back with the stud and steal of the day for MLB DFS! Looking at tonight’s slate of baseball games, it can be daunting to decide who deserves a place in your lineup. Knowing which star player is worth the money can be the difference between a winning night and one that ends in failure. However, finding the hidden gems that perform well are equally as important because they can let you spend more on your starting pitchers. This article will touch on one expensive player who is primed to have a big night, and one cheap player whom you wouldn’t normally play but is a great play tonight in MLB DFS.

Past Plays:

6/27:Mike Trout:3/4, 1 HR, 2B, 2R’s 1 RBI

6/28: Josh Donaldson:2/5,  3B,BB,3 RBI’s,1R

6/28:Giancarlo Stanton :3/5,  1 HR, 2 1B, 3 RBI’s, 1 R

7/4:Kris Bryant: 1/1, 2 BB’s, 1 HR, 2 RBI’s

7/4:Travis d’Arnaud: 3/4, 1 HR, 2 1B’s, 2 RBI’s, 2 R’s

7/5:Buster Posey: 1/3, 1 HR, 1 R, 1 RBI, 1 SB

Next: The Stud of the Day

MLB DFS
Jul 15, 2016; Washington, DC, USA; Washington Nationals right fielder Bryce Harper (34) stands in the on-deck circle against the Pittsburgh Pirates in the sixth inning at Nationals Park. The Nationals won 5-1. Mandatory Credit: Geoff Burke-USA TODAY Sports /

MLB DFS- The Stud of the Day: Bryce Harper, OF, ($5,100 DK, $4,200)

Our stud of the day comes from the nation’s capital in the Nationals all-world outfielder Bryce Harper. At the start of the season there was nobody who was hitting the ball better than Harper and, at least for tonight, this should be the case. While a glance at Harper’s numbers since late May would lead you to believe he’s in a huge slump, the advanced statistics suggest otherwise.

For his career, Harper has a BABIP (Batting average of balls in play) vs. right-handed pitching of .324 he couples this with a hard hit ball percentage of 34.1% and a medium hit ball percentage of 51.1%. Given his career batting average of .283, many people look at Harper’s current .249 average and think that he’s having problems seeing the baseball.

In reality Harper is simply having a lot of bad luck, this season Harper has a hard hit ball percentage of 33.5% and a medium hit ball percentage of 47.5% yet his BAPIP is a paltry .244. Harper is crushing the baseball the same way he has in the past, the only issue is he’s crushing it directly at the fielders of the other team.

Given all of this, I absolutely love Harper tonight in his matchup against righty Luis Perdomo of the Padres. Perdomo has gotten shelled against basically every team that he has faced off against this year and fares particularly badly against left-handed batters like Harper.

Perdomo vs. LHB on the Road: 34/91, .395 AVG,  1 3B, 5 2B’s, 6 HR’s, 19 ER’s

Not only are lefties hitting Perdomo, they are blasting the ball off of him with 35% of their hits going for extra bases. With someone as powerful as Bryce Harper, it would be a good bet for him to continue this trend. Get Harper in your lineups and look to pair him with fellow left-handed slugger Daniel Murphy!

Next: The Steal of the Day

MLB DFS- The Steal of the Day: Troy Tulowitzki, SS ($3,300 DK, $3,200 FD)

In daily fantasy baseball, one of the hardest positions to choose on a day-to-day basis is shortstop. Since there are so few middle infielders with the sort of power to help out your lineup I sometimes find myself wanting to pay top $ for Carlos Correa, Trevor Story, or Francisco Lindor. Today however my choice is very clear, the Blue Jays Troy Tulowitzki is very under priced and primed for a big night. 

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Facing off against southpaw James Paxton and the Seattle Mariners at home, Tulo is an absolute bargain at $3,200 for a plethora of reasons. The most obvious reason of course is that he gets to face off against a left-handed pitcher who simply cannot get righties out in James Paxton.

Paxton vs. RHB on the Road: 33/98, .355 AVG, 2 HR’s, 3 2B’s

A .355 batting average against in that large of a sample size should be heavily taken into account when making a lineup for fanduel or draftkings. While Tulowitzki doesn’t have the greatest average this year against southpaws he has hit them extremely well in his career, (.315 avg) and has also hit them for power, (1 HR every 20 AB’s).

Not only would I recommend using Tulo, you should also try to fit in Josh Donaldson and Edwin Encarnacion into your lineups as both kill left-handed pitching as well. A Blue Jays and Nationals stack could very well take down a huge GPP tonight!

Next: Draftkings MLB picks for July 22nd

Best of luck tonight gamers!