FanDuel Lineup and Picks for Friday, May 4

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HOUSTON, TX – APRIL 03: Carlos Correa #1 of the Houston Astros at bat against the Baltimore Orioles at Minute Maid Park on April 3, 2018 in Houston, Texas. (Photo by Bob Levey/Getty Images) /

Astros at Diamondbacks

Astros Probable Starter – Gerrit Cole, RHP

1.73 ERA, 0.79 WHIP and 13.18 K/9

Vs LHH – .188 average, .238 wOBA and 27.3 hard contact rate

Vs RHH – .158 average, .221 wOBA and 35.3 hard contact rate

Yes, Gerrit Cole is likely not as good as he’s pitched so far. The gains from the rest of his career are unsustainable at this level but he gets a quietly solid matchup tonight. Arizona carries the perception of being a really good offense. In fact they rank no higher than ninth in just about any offensive category against righties. Other than ISO, they’re basically league average or worse. The other big factor is they strike out at the seventh highest rate in baseball. That’s not a great mix for a strikeout artist like Cole.

Diamondback Hitters to Target

Elite Options – None

Secondary Options – Paul Goldschmidt, A.J. Pollock for GPP’s only

Diamondbacks Probable Starter – Kris Medlen, RHP

Season Debut

If the name Kris Medlen kind of sounds familiar adn you can’t figure out why, he used to pitch for the Royals and hasn’t pitched in the big leagues since 2016. Arizona isn’t exactly doing him any favors by having him pitch against the Astros lineup and they’re one of the most attractive stacking options of the evening. Medlen has a 6.00 ERA in 18 innings in AAA. Basically any Astro bat is in play, with the big names being the better options.

Astros Hitters to Target

Elite Options – Jose Altuve, Carlos Correa, George Springer, Alex Bregman

Secondary Options – Yuli Gurriel, Evan Gattis

Home Run Pick – Carlos Correa

PHILADELPHIA, PA – SEPTEMBER 15: Jed Lowrie #8 of the Oakland Athletics in action against the Philadelphia Phillies during a game at Citizens Bank Park on September 15, 2017 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Rich Schultz/Getty Images) /

Orioles at A’s

Orioles Probable Starter – Andrew Cashner, RHP

4.76 ERA, 1.47 WHIP and 8.47 K/9

Vs LHH – .273 average, .383 wOBA and 26.1 hard contact rate

Vs RHH – .258 average, .361 wOBA and 35.2 hard contact rate

Cashner always seems like he should be worse than he winds up being. He seems to find a way to pitch six innings while giving up between two or four runs almost every time out. The A’s are a very good offense, contrary to popular belief. They could be a team that knocks Cashner around and the lefties in their lineup are especially intriguing. Cashner isn’t a pitcher that scare me and the Orioles will need him to eat some innings after last night. Their bullpen pitched basically the entire game after Chris Tillman got destroyed.

A’s Hitters to Target

Elite Options – Jed Lowrie, Matt Olson, Khris Davis

Secondary Options – Marcus Semien, Matt Joyce

A’s Probable Starter – Daniel Mengden, RHP

4.68 ERA, 1.26 WHIP and 6.61 K/9

Vs LHH – .206 average, .214 wOBA and 36.7 hard contact rate

Vs RHH – .329 average, .394 wOBA and 42.6 hard contact rate

The splits are odd for Mengden because typically pitchers aren’t his far reversed. It’s been a trend through his time in the majors as he’s progressively gotten better against lefties but his track record against righties is all over the board. That’s not great news when he’s facing a team that is full of righties like the Orioles are. They’ll be looking to get back on track after getting wrecked in Los Angeles last night by the Angels.

Orioles Hitters to Target

Elite Options – Manny Machado, Pedro Alvarez, Adam Jones, Mark Trumbo

Secondary Options – Trey Mancini

Home Run Pick – Matt Olson