Fansided

FanDuel Lineup and picks for Wednesday, April 18th

By Adam Strangis

FORT MYERS, FL - MARCH 11: J.D. Martinez #28 of the Boston Red Sox reacts after flying out to right field during the first inning of the Spring Training game against the Baltimore Orioles at Jet Blue Park on March 11, 2018 in Fort Myers, Florida. (Photo by Mike McGinnis/Getty Images)
FORT MYERS, FL - MARCH 11: J.D. Martinez #28 of the Boston Red Sox reacts after flying out to right field during the first inning of the Spring Training game against the Baltimore Orioles at Jet Blue Park on March 11, 2018 in Fort Myers, Florida. (Photo by Mike McGinnis/Getty Images) /
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NEW YORK, NY – APRIL 13: Todd Frazier #21 of the New York Mets hits his first home run of the game in the second inning in an MLB baseball game against the Milwaukee Brewers on April 13, 2018 at CitiField in the Queens borough of New York City. Mets won 6-5. Photo by Paul Bereswill/Getty Images) *** Local Caption *** Todd Frazier
NEW YORK, NY – APRIL 13: Todd Frazier #21 of the New York Mets hits his first home run of the game in the second inning in an MLB baseball game against the Milwaukee Brewers on April 13, 2018 at CitiField in the Queens borough of New York City. Mets won 6-5. Photo by Paul Bereswill/Getty Images) *** Local Caption *** Todd Frazier /

Third Base, High End Spend

Early

Travis Shaw, $3,400

N/A

Shaw was extremely chalky last night and has every chance to be that way again today. When he plays against a righty, it’s just hard to not play him especially when his price tag is sitting under $3,500. Shaw smacks around righties and Mahle hasn’t been anything but average so far this season. This season has seen Shaw rack up an OPS over .900 and a wOBA of .395 against righties and he’s still underpriced on this slate.

Main

Todd Frazier, $4,300

.250/.500/.625 with 1 HR in 8 at-bats

This is almost surely not a player that I will have tonight as I’m not a believer in Frazier. He gets Tanner Roark tonight who is a solid major league pitcher. Frazier has been hitting well, flirting with the .285 batting average mark and hitting a couple bombs already. The veteran this baseman has been white hot vs righties so far this year with a 1.028 OPS and a .437 wOBA. That’s worth at least taking a look.

Mid-Range

Early

David Freese, $2,300

.500/.500/1.167 with 1 HR in 6 at-bats

Don’t be surprised if Freese finds his way into the lineup today and he’s in a fine spot. He’s always hit lefties well through his career with a .301 average, .840 OPS and a .365 wOBA. Freeland shouldn’t be a pitcher that scares anyone and the tandem of Freese and Faria at the pitching spot opens up so much salary.

Main

Anthony Rendon, $3,600

.214/.214/.429 with 1 HR in 14 at-bats

We’re not sure if Rendon will play tonight as he’s missed the past few games with a toe injury. I really like this play as a GPP style play because Rendon hasn’t played in a few days. That could cause players to be hesitant since they could be worried about a re-injury or something like that. It hasn’t happened yet this season but Rendon has just worn out lefties in his career. He’s accumulated a .860 OPS and a .373 wOBA through his career, which is insanely high. At just $3,600, he’s a true bargain if he plays today.

Value

Early

Danny Valencia, $2,200

.500/.500/2.000 with 1 HR in 2 at-bats

Third base seems like a pretty clear case of either paying up or punting without much middle ground. Freese is still a fine play but I might actually lean towards Valencia, who has the higher ceiling. That’s what you’re looking for in this price range and Valencia has had a wOBA of at least .343 in the last five seasons running against left handed pitching. Matthew Boyd has bad career numbers and is giving up way too many fly balls to not give Valencia a look.

Main

Daniel Descalso, $2,00

.125/.222/.125 with 0 HR in 8 at-bats

This is along the same train of thought as the Ketel Marte play. It’s nothing great and there’s no split or any key stat that screams to play him. It’s more hoping that Stratton falters in Chase Field and that the Red Sox come through to make up the points difference that is there when you play the lesser priced players.