Colorado Rockies - Daily Fantasy Team Preview 2015

Vegas Win Total Projection: 71.5

Don't be misled by the projected win total, the Rockies will provide plenty of daily baseball value. Experienced gamers and fans of baseball in general understand this club will get some unique offensive benefits and the pitching will suffer as a result.

Park Factors

Humidor be damned, Coors Field remains a dreamy destination for offensive output. Runs are inflated to lefties by 36% and righties by 34%. Both left-handed and right-handed batters get a 20% boost in home run hitting. In fact, all hits are amplified at Coors Field, and strikeouts are decreased by a margin of 19% to lefties and righties. Avoid pitchers here, but use batters in bunches when the Rockies host a game.

Projected Lineup

Projected Rotation

Catchers With 2014 Framing Ranks

Nick Hundley- 46/79

Michael McKenry- 71/79

As if the deck isn't stacked against the pitchers of the Rockies enough, both Nick Hundley and Michael McKenry are poor pitch framers. Third catcher, Wilin Rosario, also ranks poorly. Rockies pitcher are a bad daily pick at home anyway, but when they're in consideration on the road their catchers will hurt their stock.

Spring Training Storylines

How will Wilin Rosario be used?

Rosario has tallied more than 400 plate appearances in each of the last three years serving as the Rockies starting catcher. He's a poor defender, though, and the club has opted to insert Hundley as their starter. Rosario will now serve as a reserve catcher and backup first baseman. In the event of an injury to Nolan Arenado, the club could turn to Rosario at the hot corner, despite his poor defense there in 2014. As long as he remains catcher eligible in daily games, daily gamers will want to keep tabs on when he's in the lineup since it will most likely be against a southpaw. Rosario hammers lefties. Since 2012, he's totaled 363 plate appearances against southpaws and totaled a huge .315 ISO and 159 wRC+.

How much will Drew Stubbs play?

Drew Stubbs thrived in his first year with the Rockies. His success should not have taken folks by complete surprise. Stubbs biggest problem throughout his career has been strikeouts and struggling with breaking balls -- curveballs mostly. Coors Field is notorious for reducing strikeouts and punishing pitchers who choose to throw curveballs. Stubbs managed a 113 wRC+ last year in 424 plate appearances, but daily gamers should take note of his dominance of lefties. In 147 plate appearances against them he manged a 148 wRC+ and .221 ISO. He'll probably regularly spell a member of the Rockies all left-handed hitting outfield when a southpaw takes the hill.

2015 Lineup Outlook

Charlie Blackmon followed up a solid half season with the Rockies in 2013 with a good first full season. He's lost against lefties and will probably sit regularly against them, but you shouldn't be using him against southpaws anyway. Against right-handed pitchers, he has managed to provide a little bit of power and above average offense. He's not a great hitter and makes for a weak option against right-handed pitchers on the road. At home, though, he's a much stronger play as the leadoff hitter for a team that should score tons of runs.

Carlos Gonzalez's season was filled with injuries, but when he's healthy he's a scary good hitter. His power is of the top-shelf variety when facing a right-handed pitcher, but he's another hitter on the Rockies who is considerably better at home than on the road. The best part about his forgettable 2014 season is that he might come at a discount early in the year, and if that's the case, roster him heavily when facing a righty at home.

Troy Tulowitzki is the premier offensive shortstop in baseball, and one of the best hitters in the game. He provides elite first base quality hitting at a position where average offensive production is a lofty expectation. He'll cost an arm and a leg to roster in daily games, but the depth of positions such as first base and outfield allow creative daily gamers the opportunity to spend lightly there and pony up for Tulowitzki -- especially on days where pitching can be had for cheap. Tulo is better against lefties than righties, but he's so damn good against both he's a playable option at home against either.

Justin Morneau will probably cede starts at first base to Rosario when a lefty toes the rubber, but you shouldn't have been using him against lefties anyway. Morneau had a great debut season with the Rockies and a big part of the reason for his success was a tiny 10.2% K versus right-handed pitchers. Since 2012, he's been very good against right-handed pitchers, but last year he was dominant totaling a 141 wRC+. Morneau can be used at home or on the road against right-handed pitchers, and if he hits cleanup, the RBI chances will be plentiful.

Nolan Arenado is emerging as one of the top options at third base. His power surged last year, and yet his strikeout rate dropped. A dreamy combination, indeed. A cleanup assignment against lefties would make a ton of sense, but manager Walt Weiss occasionally befuddled daily gamers last year with his lineup decisions, so it shouldn't be considered a foregone conclusion. Arenado will make for a great daily game option against lefites whether he hits fourth or fifth, but a move up to fourth would provide further incentive to make him a member of your daily game rosters.

In many MLB rosters, Corey Dickerson would be hitting higher than sixth. In an offense as loaded as that of the Rockies, an assignment to serve as the sixth hitter is fine due to the RBI opportunities the talented hitters in front of him will award him. Dickerson mashed last year in his first full season with the Rockies, and continued right-handed pitching abuse looks highly probable. Dickerson's raw power is evident when scanning over Baseball Heat Maps' average home run and fly ball distance and seeing him check in at 20th last year. When a right-handed pitcher is starting at Coors Field against the Rockies, Dickerson will be a good bet for high point scoring.

The offensive nature of Coors Field and high betting totals that will be a regular occurrence could make Hundley and DJ LeMahieu punt plays. Neither are options on the road, and even at home, both are poor options. Sometimes added exposure, chiefly cheap exposure, will result in these two being touted as usable options.

2015 Pitching Outlook

Jorge De La Rosa is the best pitcher in the Rockies rotation. Unfortunately, that's akin to being the best member of the Washington Generals. De La Rosa will occasionally have daily game value on the road due to passable walk and strikeout rates and a strong ground ball rate. The ceiling is a usable SP2 at DK and a bottom barrel play at FD when he's favored on the road.

Kyle Kendrick wasn't very good with the Phillies last year totaling a 4.61 ERA and 4.57 FIP with a low strikeout rate and only a 44.6% ground ball rate. Kendrick has allowed a .322 wOBA to left-handed batters since 2012. Get your lefties ready to stack against him.

Jordan Lyles might make for an interesting pitcher away from Coors Field. Alas, he's a member of the Rockies. Left-handed batters are toxic for Lyles. Since 2012, among starters who have totaled a minimum of 150 innings, his .358 wOBA allowed to left-handed batters is the third highest. Stack lefties against him at home or on the road.

Tyler Matzek's stuff kept him on the prospect radar even when he struggled mightily with his control. Amazingly, his 8.8% BB in the majors bested all of his minor league walk rates since 2010. Beware of walk rate regression, but if he retains his passable control, he could be a FD option on the road in the rare instances the Rockies are favored.

Jon Gray and Eddie Butler are a pair of prospects who are competing with other for the fifth starter job. Both have good stuff, and they could each have some value pick appeal on the road. As young pitchers who call Coors Field home, though, stay far, far away from them when they start at home.

Stock Watch

Up- Justin Morneau

Last season was Morneau's third straight in which he received 550 or more plate appearances. It appears he's finally over his concussion woes. His strikeout rate was a career low last year, and getting Tulo and CarGo back will provide him more ducks on the pond this year. I'm loving Morneau as a first base option who is capable of scoring like the top players at the position, but will likely cost less than the elite players there.

Down- Kyle Kendrick

It's fair for people to question if Kendrick is a masochist. He willingly signed to pitch for the Rockies, and that means trading homer friendly Citizens Bank Park for an even more difficult pitching venue at Coors Field. He doesn't induce enough ground balls to navigate the pitfalls of his ballpark, and his pitch to contact approach will be disastrous for him.

Daily Fantasy Outlook

Since their inception, the Rockies have been a source of gaudy offensive numbers. Even with the humidors addition to the fold, they remain strong offense -- when at home at least -- that daily gamers will be turning to for roster options regularly. The 1-through-4 spots offer stack potential against right-handed pitchers. There could also be juicy stack potential against lefties if Weiss is willing to juggle the lineup moving Stubbs and Rosario in and Arenado up, but it remains to be seen if he'll wisely do such a thing. The Rockies pitching outlook can be summed up simply. Don't use these guys at home, and their road outlook is mediocre at best.

Resources

StatCorner Framing using a 1000 pitch minimum and ranks according to per game value.

ISO and wRC+ Statistics are from FanGraphs

StatCorner Park Factors Using a rolling 3-year average.

Vegas Betting Win Total Provided by Pinnacle Sports